It is not to early to.............

Yes, I know it is 11 months and 11 days away, but there are some things you can start buying from now in preparation for Carnival 2009 instead of waiting for the very last minute!!

BOOTS – lots of stores are having sale and clearance sales on winter wear as Spring approaches; if you are looking for discounted prices on boots now is the time to buy them! This then gives you an entire year to break them in properly.

CLOTHING – Scour any website and you will see lots of "summery" clothing items, from shorts to tank tops to dresses, all on sale. I know some ladies have already started shopping , believe it or not, for Carnival 2009! They are getting shorts, tops and dresses which can do quadruple duty for spring, summer and upcoming international as well.

TICKET – Only a few more weeks until you can book a ticket to Trinidad for February 2009, right now you can only book up until February 5^th so keep looking at the websites and saving your pennies!

GYM MEMBERSHIP - Procrastination, we are all guilty of it. I am thinking if you have the gym membership in hand from now, chances are within the next 11 months you are going to use at some point in time!

Feel free to add to the list all the things that YOU think it is not too early to get in preparation for Carnival 2009.

Soca is NOT Reggae!

I received the following email yesterday about an online petition to have Soca Music recognized on itunes, read, sign and forward to your friends!

The issue is that itunes recognizes all island music as either Latin or Reggae music. I have written them numerous times, long diatribes about what is Calypso and Soca with no positive feedback, in fact they I got a politely worded letter basically telling me to bugger off. So I cant take that sitting down. It hurt my little Trini heart to find a listing for Lord Kitchener's music as Reggae - he is probably rolling over in his grave.

I created a group on face book asking people to email to itunes on the issue and am doing all I can to get this issue publicized because I think it is gross disrespect. The fact is we should stop the nonsense about taking Soca music to the Grammy's. Nobody watches TV, the world is run over the internet - OK that is a stretch but still. Soulja Boy made millions on ring tone downloads and Yael from Israel had a song chosen to launch the new MACBOOK AIR and went from obscurity to selling the number one album on itunes and then there was Feist from Canada with the 1234 song - you get the picture.

Any way a recommendation was made to send in some petitions to the itunes folks and since I cant remember the last time I signed a piece of paper that wasn't a credit card slip I developed an online petition.Here is the link to the petition please sign it!

The music of TNT is genius, you know what it takes to make not one but a few hit songs every year, year after year consistently that is what Calypsonians and Soca artists do - and this ability has to be respected. Damn even the Beatles stop making music after a few years.

Spread this message and let us use" we Trini loudmouth" for something to benefit us .Please the same way you bombard folks with the forwards about the free computer that Bill Gates will never be sending can you forward the info on the petition to all your friends in your inboxes.

Bacchanal Mas for Nottinghill Carnival

Click on the flyers for more information on Bacchanal Mas' Band Launch of their 2008 Nottinghill Carnival presentation "Paradise":

For more information on this event visit the Bacchanal Mas Facebook group.

Clearing things up..

It would be remiss of me not to make a statement on the “She Said.. ...He Said” post. I would hope that everyone understands that the opinion of one affiliate does not reflect the opinion of Island People Mas. That the judgment made by one individual over a simple comment does not take away from the fact that for the most part Island People masqueraders had nothing negative to say about their 2008 Carnival experience and that from registration to costume collection to on the road experience YOU all have stated you had an enjoyable Carnival experience with Island People Mas. Therefore, I would hope that as objective readers, you can separate the “drama” in that post from the Island People Mas family as my intent was not for anyone to have any ill feelings towards the band. I would like to also add that I have known Wyatt for a number of years and from what I know of him in no way can he be considered a racist, nor did I see anyone say that in the comments that were left on that post. Obviously he felt otherwise and we shall agree to disagree and let the whole issue die a natural death! Wyatt, I apologise for causing you distress over the whole issue, and I hope that it is clear that you will not be judged as being "prejudiced" or "racist" by me or anyone who read that comment.

Dear TRIBE....2008 version

Well, it took me long enough to write my “Dear TRIBE” letter, as always other bands wishing to take note can apply the recommendations made:

1. Extended hours for costume pick up – I know you all thought the hours of 5:30 to 9pm was catering to the after work crowd, but starting distribution earlier in the day would help alleviate the line up as one bounces around from station to station. I for one will gladly leave work at ANY time to pick up my costume, since fast track for me was not THAT fast.

2. Mobile snacks on the roads is needed, something between breakfast and “lunch” to ease the hunger pangs of masqueraders who skipped breakfast , must eat on time or who just like their belly!! I don’t know how much I can complain about the tortilla chips and peanuts, too salty, but the Mario’s of course is always yummy!

3. Hire a quality control officer; one whose job is to visit each and every costume being manufactured to ensure that the six feathers advertised on the headpiece is exactly the six feathers masqueraders will get when they open their box come costume collection day.

4. For the premium price we frontliners are paying, the “ultimate experience” needs to step up the game! Yes, the complimentary photographs were nice, thank you very much. But As I was reading WUZDESCENE Blog I saw her raving over these “luxury loos” called Andyloos featured at Brian Lara's fete, and I think it would be PERFECT at the lunch stop for exclusive use by frontliners and individual masqueraders . To your credit the PARC units were clean HOWEVER using one of those is like being a sauna!!! I am not fussy, so we will pass on the Ultimate Luxury design and go for the cheapest Andyloo set up, The Millennium.

5. Bring back the resting bus and get rid of the smoking bus! Smoking is bad for your health and really, that has got to be the most underutilized vehicle on the road. Masqueraders who were ill were forced to leave the band and find refuge somewhere else. I know this happened to one of the ladies in Lady of the Lake frontline and if there was a resting bus she could have used it to recuperate instead of making a trek from South Quay to her aunt’s house in Belmont and then having to find her way back to rejoin the band!

6. Please do not raise prices!!! Ok I can understand that everything is going up in Trinidad, I was shocked to see the price of cheese and milk when I went to the supermarket last week, so I know that this will be used as a justification for raising Mas prices once again for 2009. However, it would be nice to have costumes remain in the same price range as they did this year, or else I fear some people will be priced out of TRIBE. Personally I have no complaint with the prices for Frontline Costumes this year and will be ecstatic if they remain the same price for 2009 UNLESS we get some SWEET amenities as frontliners, such as the Andyloo lol.

7. Can we NOT have more masqueraders for 2009??? Even though I was to the front of the band, I did not even bother to walk any further to see just how massive it was but I have gotten enough reviews and complaints that the band was TOO BIG.

So, that is all I have to recommend really, I am sure others will put in their 2 cents on other concerns or advice that they, as masqueraders can give to bandleaders. Please note that though others may have different concerns and will make recommendations as such, these are the areas that I see need some tweaking in the overall sphere of my mas enjoyment.

International Carnivals Update...

JAMAICA CARNIVAL INFORMATION
Island MAS will be having a T-Shirt Band within UWI Carnival 13th-16th of March:
Details:

Name of T-shirt Band is SOCA JUNKIES

Cost: $600 Ladies / $800 Gentlemen

Inclusive of : Soca Junkie T-shirt, Island MAS Wave Rag, 6 drinks chits (grants you 6 Wray + Nephew mixes) and alot of fun...

Register latest by: Monday 10th @ Soca Sweat[7pm-9pm] @ Union, UWI
or contact one of the following to register via phone; Ria - 8616978 or Xandria - 4569624


The Trinidad and Tobago Students' Association at the Mona Campus will be including a t-shirt section, "Gyal Farm" in the UWI campus carnival on March 15, 2008.

Costume
Male- T-Shirt, Cowboy Hat, Bandanas, goodie bag, drinks package (JA$1000)
Female- T-shirt/Merinos,Cowboy hat, hot shorts, goodie bag, drinks package (JA$1200)

Sign Up
Monday at Soca Aerobics 5-7pm

Contact
Kai (876)412-2992
Melissa (876) 863-7882


ORLANDO CARNIVAL INFORMATION

The carnival will again be on the Memorial Day weekend which is May 23 - 25, 2008. The official launch of the carnival is on April 25, 2008 at the Lake Eola Amphitheatre. As well, the band leaders will be having their band launchings soon. Watch out for more information on this and other things that will be happening for the carnival. If you need any information in the interim, you can call the OCA at: 407-952-6464.

CARIBANA INFORMATION

Carnival Nationz led by Curtis Eustace's will launch their presentation “Pirates” for Caribana 2008 on May 24th. More information will be released in the near future, so keep your eyes peeled!

2007 Band of the Year Toronto Revellers present their theme for Caribana 2008 "Beyond the Nile". The official band launch takes place on...

Saturday May 10th, 2008

Toronto Revellers - Caribana 2007 Band of the Year

OFFICIAL BAND LAUNCHING

FOR CARIBANA 2008 PRESENTATION
ALKEBU'LAN... Beyond the Nile


@ The Armenian Community Centre
45 Hallcrown Place (Victoria Park Ave & 401)
Toronto, Canada

Doors open at 9pm | $15.00 | This is a 19+ event

Details: Costume presentation at 11pm

Info: info@torontorevellers.com

She Said.. .....He Said

Many of you responded to my little post announcing that Island People’s galleries were up for viewing on their website, using the feedback feature to not only point out what you, as masqueraders, saw as a bias towards certain masqueraders being featured but also to express how you felt about it. Now, I am all for feedback, I think that bands should be grateful that they are getting into the brains of their masqueraders without having to pay for a market research survey; though the comments are not always positive (as in the case against the idea of TRIBE managing two bands for Carnival 2009) at the very least it gives an indication of masqueraders’ opinions which I would think smart band leaders should listen and pay attention to.

As far as feedback go, the comments that have nothing constructive to add but seek to defame, slander and libel others have to be deleted, hence I introduced the feature to register before being able to make comments. Prior to this anonymous comments were allowed and that “freedom” was abused.

Consequently I was asked to remove what was seen as a racist comment from the post entitled “Island People Pics!”, this is the offending comment:

Kerryann said...
Chris, I thought I was the only person that noticed.

I'm sorry but the 2 women that Wyatt was taking pictures of on carnival Monday were the only two that made up IP? I like looking at beautiful women too because they inspire me to look good but you know what, beautiful women come in all shapes and sizes and COLORS. Clearly he has a preference in what he thinks is beautiful but my gosh.....give us some variety.

To be fair to the request that was made I read over every single comment and personally saw nothing offensive or alluding to racism in any of the comments. However, I may be biased to the whole idea of “freedom of speech” seeing I was also banned from an online forum for what I saw as nothing more that speaking my mind. So I am asking YOU to tell me if you think that comment should be removed because it is alluding to the fact that the photographer in question is racist, or if any of the comments are libelous and defaming the character of the photographer in question. Your feedback, as always, is appreciated!

Jamaica Carnival 2008!!

Bacchanal Mas has updated their website with a list of events leading up to Jamaica Carnival which takes place on the 30th of March!! Beach Jouvert and Soca at the Sandbar were two events that were featured on triniscene last year, I saw lots of Trinis looking like they were having a good time. From all the facegroup groups and tons of emails I get Jamaica Carnival looks like it is going to be big(er) for 2008.

Costumes are a practically sold out at Bacchanal Mas, with only two sections remaining, but you can still check them out to see what is left !! I hope some of you guys are planning to go to Jamaica for Carnival, seeing as it comes just over one month after Trini that should be a temporary cure for the Carnival Tabanca!

Harts Review 2008 - finally!

written by squeezle:

Let me first explain why this review was such a long time coming. When I originally set out to write it, almost three weeks ago, I found myself with the mindset that in some way, I had to defend my choice to play with Harts. As a loyal Harts masquerader I am often asked why I would choose to remain in Harts with all the other hot, new, all-inclusive bands around. And as the days added up, so did my list of reasons why,after 18 years of being a Harts masquerader, I have absolutely nodesire or reason to leave them. So what has become of this list? I decided to delete it, partly because I wanted to write a review and not a testimonial, but mostly because I've decided that I really don't need to defend my decision, as I would never consider asking anyone else to defend theirs. My long history with this band speaks for itself. So without further ado, here's my take on "Lights, Camera, Action".

Presentation:
This year, Harts chose a theme that lent itself to a slightly more representative type of costume, so there was more of a departure from their usual abstract representations. However, it was nothing that couldn't be tackled without straying from the traditional bikini and beads formula. This year, I was quite delighted to see a marked reduction in the use of pastel colours, as well as fewer all-female sections. The men's costumes, usually superior to most bands, were downright exceptional this year, and this resulted in my having a lot more choices among the sections, as there were many more appealing options for both sexes. After much internal debate, I finally settled on 'Apocalypto - large headpiece option' because I found both the male and female versions to be very richly decorated (I don't see why my S.O. can't have a plume or a bead here and there). True to form, Harts also released a few late sections that had people in a frenzy. Even though these were quite lovely, I was very satisfied that I had made the right choice, and I had no regrets with my decision. In other words, I still think my section was DE BEST!

Costume ordering:
Once again, Harts was playing the fool with their on-line registration, but this time around, it was especially hard on the overseas masquerader because the band launching fete had been cancelled, so there was no on-line source of photographs until Saucy went to the mas' camp to get a few snaps for those of us chomping at the bit. And knowing how quickly the 'hot' sections sell out, I made it my business to fax my order to Harts way before the website launched. I followed up with a phone call, and received a confirmation e-mail a couple of days later.

Costume collection:
Although my section was among the first to be distributed, I was unable to make it to the mas' camp until a few days later. When we arrived, I found several lines at the windows, which were labeled with the section names. Of course, my line was the longest, what else is new! In spite of this, the entire process of collecting my costume and goody bag, having it checked by the staff and purchasing our wee-wee truck and drinks cart bracelets all took less than 45 minutes. Just as well, because I was practically twitching with excitement as I watched people walking away from the windows with those stunning headpieces balanced atop costume boxes. There was one notable change this year, and I wish I had been made aware of it beforehand. For the first time, there was a 'fast-track' window available for those who had already paid their balance in full. And although those folks were done in less than 10 minutes they had to endure a lot of cut-eye from those of us standing in line. For 2009, I will definitely be paying in full before I get to Trinidad, cut-eye or not!

Goody bags:
To be quite honest, I flung those things in a corner as soon as I walked in the door. When I eventually dumped the contents out onto my bed, the snacks and drugs were quickly snatched up and everything else went in the trash (yes, we are a couple of savages, and we are not ashamed). It was mostly the standard fare, plastic mug, sample sized shampoo, lotion, toothpaste, sanitary pads, really boring stuff, no surprise there.

Costume issues:
I very rarely have any problems with the fit or comfort of my costumes, and when I do, it's usually something that can be solved in 15 minutes with a needle and thread. Unfortunately, this time around, I ran in to a rather difficult situation. In recent years, I had found that my XL bikini bottom was somewhat on the large side, but having ordered a size L this time around, I found it to be too small. I could probably
have gotten away with it if I was prepared to be constantly monitoring my waistband. But when I ready to bus' a wine, I really don't study where my waistband is going, and I wasn't willing to take the chance that something would inadvertently spill over and cause unappealing bulges, especially when even the vagrants in the road have digital cameras these days. There are some things that should NEVER be caught on film.

Sadly, the folks at Harts were unable to help me out of this bind, but certainly not for lack of trying. I had four staff members, including Thais Hart, rummaging in the bowels of the mas' camp for an XL bikini what would suffice, but alas, they searched in vain. All I had to fall back on was my own emerald green bikini bottom, which didn't match the costume exactly, but which Thais assured me would be close enough that it wouldn't be a big deal. Just to cover all my options, I made the rounds of quite a few stores in Port of Spain but was unable to find a suitable match. In the end, the colour difference was negligible, and I noticed a few other women in the band who had chosen to wear their own bikini bottoms/shorts, most notably, Michelle Xavier of Imij & Co. who was in my section and was sporting a pair of boyshorts in a beautiful
shade of purple. There were just so many colours in the beading and braid that just about any bikini would have worked, so this turned out to be not such a bid deal after all. And, as is customary, the other components of my costume, as well as my boyfriend's, fit flawlessly.

As a side note here, I would like to commend the staff at Harts for being very helpful and professional. While waiting for my bikini dilemma to be resolved, I had the opportunity to witness their interactions with other clients, and they were always pleasant and eager to please, even when the customers were being unreasonable and/or rude - like the woman who cut her costume to pieces and then decided that she wanted to return it for a refund. That one had me rolling my eyes real hard!

On the road:
Monday departure 11:00 am - Having spent close to six hours on my feet during J'Ouvert, I was simply unable to will my body out of bed to make the 11 o'clock departure, but I did manage to get myself in gear a couple of hours later, and I met the band at the Savannah before they crossed the 'stage'. As was the case last year, it was mostly smooth sailing all the way through, with no delays to speak of. Drinks were flowing freely from the cart all day, and lunch was delicious - a large container of pelau with huge, juicy pieces of chicken and a small salad. I was glad that I had taken those extra two hours in bed, because it really made a difference to my energy level for the day, and I was able to keep up with the never-ending wining and jamming.

Tuesday departure 6:30 am - As the band was shutting down on Monday night, the DJ repeatedly made the announcement that the band would be taking off promptly at 6:00 am on Tuesday. This was a little perplexing to me, since I clearly remembered the flyer that came with my costume listing the departure time as 6:30. Had the time actually changed to 6:00 or was he just saying this to ensure that everybody got to the band on time? I wasn't taking any chances, so as the sun was barely peeking out over the horizon, my sweetie and I found ourselves on Tragarete road greeted by the sight of - NOBODY. However, way in the distance, we could see the headlights (yes it was still that dark out) of the lead music truck coming towards us. So we decided to use this 'quiet time' to take pictures ourselves while we were still fresh and totally put together. Within about 15 minutes the band had caught up to us and we were on our way, chipping happily towards the Savannah.

The first snag we encountered was at Green Corner. From what I could tell, the band was being delayed by the police, and I saw what appeared to be a heated conversation between Luis Hart and some police officer. Long-time Harts masqueraders will recognize this as a very common sight! There was a lot of back and forth going on for almost a half hour, but eventually we were allowed to proceed. I was wondering if we would be prevented from crossing the judging point, like we were last year, because the powers that be seem to have an agenda to make sure that Harts is never the first band to cross the stage, even if we are the first to arrive at the Savannah. As expected, when we neared the judging point, our band was cut off, with the help of the police, by Trini Revellers. So even with the majority of our masqueraders present, we were forced to wait yet again, for Revellers umpteen trucks to get on the road ahead of us, then for all their masqueraders to show up and get into sections, then for them to cross the so-called stage.

Now, speaking of the stage, it was painfully obvious from the TV coverage of every band that I saw, that officials have failed miserably in making it clear to masqueraders exactly where the stage begins and ends. The cameras caught most people after they had passed what they believed was the judging area, so the TV footage of all the bands I saw showed masqueraders posing for pictures, chatting with friends and even retrieving food and snacks from the drinks trucks. That part of the experience was rather anti-climatic, and left me wishing that we had been 'banned' from the stage again this year so that we could just go about our merry way and not wait around for 2 hours to jump in front of non-existent TV cameras. Do they seriously want us to treat that entire strip of Queens Park West as if it is a stage?

Fortunately, that was the last significant delay we encountered for the day and we proceeded to carry on like wild-people until long after the sun went to bed. My costume held up beautifully, as it always does. In fact, is looks like it could survive Carnival all over again. Which brings me to a very interesting observation : I happened to notice a woman in the band in a costume that was familiar, but definitely not from this year's presentation. It eventually dawned on me that she was
wearing LAST YEAR'S costume!!!! Another friend of mine also noticed her and confirmed this. Now we are speculating as to whether she played mas' in it last year. It's entirely possible, and while you might raise your eyebrows at the bold-facedness of this act, you can't deny the durability of a Harts costume. So nice, you can play mas' twice!

All in all, I have to say that yet again, I had a spectacular time playing mas' with Harts. Once they maintain their level of service, costume quality, and fun-loving vibe on the road, will most definitely be coming back for more.

First Out the Gate...

Who : Evolution
When: June 21st, 2008
Carnival 2009 Presentation: Temptations

When I was thinking the 2008 band launching season began early, this one takes the cake!!!!!!

Your Feedback is wanted....

Here is a suggestion submitted by someone who reads the blog, and which I think is a cool idea. Submissions are open for YOU to submit your choice for the top costumes on the road for Carnival 2008, MALE and FEMALE. Costumes can be from chosen from any band. Consequently, your submissions will be then put up for voting at a later date.

Narrowing it down to favourites is somewhat difficult I think, especially with so many bands. Anyway, my picks from TRIBE and Island People are Lady of the Lake, Mystique,Goddess of the Chase, Silver Fox, King Fisher and Man o War costumes. I will have to scrutinise the other bands more closely to choose some more favourites, but I also liked Showgirls and Prince of Egypt in Harts. More of my picks to come and feel free to submit yours by leaving a comment!

Island People Pics!

For those complaining about a drought of Island People photographs online, please note that Island People Mas has updated their website with lots of photographs from both Monday and Tuesday. Has anyone seen a photograph of the Black Widow Individual (bodysuit option) smiling? I swear in EVERY photograph she looks sour, getting the award for the saddest H.O. of 2008;not one photograph shows this lady smiling!! Franny, she did not do YOUR costume justice!

Poison for 2009???

Ah yes, the rumours keep coming fast and furious. I was asked to investigate the possibility of Poison's return for 2009, and my sources have informed me that this rumour has been circulating since 2007, however the head honcho has yet to "make up his mind" on if it will indeed come to fruition!!

Micheal Ealy

Buh aye aye, how he make mediatakeout for being in Trinidad for Carnival, yet another year??? And I know every single female in TRIBE, and even other bands, got a pic with him on the road.. including me!

Check out the "NON" story on MediaTakeout.com:

Ealy in 2007!!!

10 Signs you are suffering from Carnival Tabanca

Tabanca is a form of “love sickness”. It was described as ‘a state of depression' accompanied by withdrawal symptoms (can't eat, can't sleep) that occurs when one has been rejected by a loved one or experiences unrequited love. It is an adjustment disorder of losing a loved one. The term is also used to describe the feeling of being in love where one is constantly thinking, daydreaming and totally “head over heels” with someone, the mental anguish of getting *“horn”and having girlfriend/boyfriend worries or “a case of Love Jones”. Severe tabanca has been described as “tabantruck”.

Tabantruck – symptoms of tabanca so severe they cannot figuratively, fit in a car but needs a truck (“taban-truck” as opposed to “taban-car”)

1. You constantly play your Soca CD or downloads to your ipod at work, home and in your car resulting in spontaneous wining down low to Congo Man at your desk, behind the steering wheel or while making breakfast!

2. You wear your costume at home while listening to Soca CD Mix (see 1) it does not matter that you are dressed as such while doing household chores.

3. You consume stocks of Carib, STAG and Angostura rum that you brought back from Trinidad while doing 1 and 2, though hopefully not at work or while driving!

4. You scour the internet photo websites looking for photographs of you and your friends at Carnival fetes or on the road on Monday and Tuesday. You also peruse such sites to observe, and entertain yourself, by looking at others in costume. The daily obsession involves multiple clicks to Trini Jungle Juice who are taking forever to load Carnival photos.

5. You carefully organize, date and add witty commentary to your own Carnival photos which are placed in an online photo album slideshow which you then share with all and sundry via email.

6. You frequent internet forums, blogs, carnival-centric facebook groups and chatrooms to talk about your Carnival experience over, and over and over again with anyone that will listen.

7. You search for “Carnival 2008” on Youtube, looking at Carnival videos made by random strangers just to see people wining in costume.

8. You are pricing tickets to return for Carnival 2009 and are seriously contemplating purchasing a ticket to return to Trinidad this year for any reason, any reason at all!

9. You are looking at other Carnivals to ease the pain, DC, Cropover, Miami…. here you come!

10. You visit this blog daily like a crack fiend, whether you like Saucy's musings or not, just to see what new Carnival bacchanal has been unearthed, what gossip has been heard and to read other's comments on their Carnival 2008 experience.

*Horn - refers to the act when the your partner is unfaithful to you in the relationship – infidelity

SOURCE OF GLOSSARY:
Recognition of Cultural Behaviours
in Trinidad and Tobago

Accomodations Part 2

Sundeck Suites

Par May La's Inn

Waterville Estate

Crosswinds Villa

Melbourne Inn

Gabby's Villa

Picton Court Apartments

Forty Winks

Simple Escapes 25 Baden Powell Street Woodbrook - (868) 628-1283

La Calypso 46 French Street, Woodbrook, Trinidad - (868) 622-4077

Motown Guest House, 64 Picton Street - (868) 628-3828

Capri Isle 6 Rust Street, St. Clair, Trinidad - (868) 622-7359

Carnetta's Inn Limited 99 Saddle Road, Maraval, Trinidad - (868) 628-2732

Cedar Ridge Towers 56 Third Street, Maraval, Trinidad - (868) 628-6526

Fabiennes Guest House 15 Belle Smythe Street, Woodbrook, Trinidad - (868) 622-2773

Halyconia Inn 7 First Avenue, Cascade, Trinidad - (868) 623-0008

Johnson's Bed & Breakfast 16 Buller Street, Woodbrook, Trinidad - (868) 628-7553

La Calypso 46 French Street, Woodbrook, Trinidad - (868) 622-4077

La Maison Rustique Limited 16 Rust Street, St. Clair, Trinidad - (868) 622-1512

Mauge's Guest House & Car Rental Services 15 Gordon Street, Port of Spain, Trinidad - (868) 625-2335

Picton Courts Apartments 2 Ana Street, Woodbrook, Trinidad - (868) 625-6260

Sam's Guesthouse 5 Alberto Street, Woodbrook, Trinidad - (868) 627-4865

Tropical Hotel 6 Rookery Nook, Maraval, Trinidad - (868) 622-5815

Carnival Accomodation

Here are some links to Guest Houses and Vacation Rentals for those of you already planning for Carnival 2009.

Please note that none of these are coming with any recommendation as I cannot verify the standard of accommodation, however the information is being provided for those who are interested. Do you homework and research on the properties that may interest you :

Great Rentals

Gingerbread House

Vacation Rentals by Owner

Best of Trinidad and Tobago

Nemoy Guesthouse

Monique's Guesthouse

Barbara Guesthouse

http://trinicasa.com/

http://www.maxpages.com/harbor/

http://thannas.com/

http://www.crosswindsvilla.com/

http://www.caribbeantouristvilla.com/

http://www.dislandsinn.com/

http://www.fortywinkstt.com/

http://www.trinidadhosthomes.com/

http://www.parmaylas.com/

http://www.pictoncourt.com/

http://joesphmejias.webs.com/

http://www.samisevillatrinidad.webs.com/

http://www.sundecktrinidad.com/

Alicia's Guesthouse

L'Orchidee

Jireh Inn

Tony's Guesthouse

Executive Suites

All In One Guest House 

Countdown to Carnival 2009!!

The countdown clock says days until 11 months and 27 days until Carnival 2009; we know that Mc Farlane will be journeying to Africa next year while Island People will be giving us a taste of Heaven and TRIBE will be flying high! Rumors abound about bands splitting up, breaking up or falling off the radar, while amid all that is the fact that once again we will have no stage for 2009. It’s time to start getting ready for Carnival 2009!!!

Now, I am, not going to say anything different that what I said when we started counting down to Carnival 2008, so here it goes:

Firstly, organize your finances. Every one has an idea of what prices for flights, costumes, fetes and accommodation were this year so give or take a 10% increase for 2009 and start working on that budget. List everything you need at an estimated cost and work out a financial plan so you will not be broke this time next year! If you have plans on joining a sou sou, putting aside a fixed amount monthly or using a bonus to pay for your costume do the necessary.

For those coming from overseas note the ridiculous prices for airfare that was quoted a month or two before Carnival; prices rose to over $1000.00 US and that includes those inter Caribbean flights as well!! When it comes to travel I always look for deals, bargains and sales. Keep on the look out for cheap airfare by registering for the “fare watcher” service at Travelocity.com or the “buzz alert” at kayak.com which will send you an email when airfare prices to a specific destination drops. I know of persons who purchase their air fare from as early as April for the following year! Of course this will only work if you know the specific time you will be in Trinidad, no use buying a ticket and you do not have approved vacation time off.

This brings me to my next topic; apply for your vacation leave in advance! My company has a roster that they send out each year for employees to indicate when they want time off and I know other companies do the same. Even if your company does not have this policy in place it does not hurt to inform the Human Resource department or your supervisor that you will be applying for vacation late January/ early February 2009. Mark it big and bold on a calendar and stick it on your desk so that when the time comes he or she cannot pretend that they were unaware of your plans, looking for excuses to deny you leave.

You can safely book accommodation in advance as most hotels allow you a window for cancellation, so it does not hurt to make a tentative reservation when you have your dates confirmed. Some of the more popular places are booked way in advance and especially those guest houses and apartments which see repeat customers every year. A good idea as well, if you are planning on visiting Tobago after Carnival is to book early, remember many Trinidadians escape Carnival and head to Tobago!

You know how we all like to wait LAST MINUTE to try and get into shape, myself included, how about starting the eating right and exercise program from now. That will give us all enough time to not only meet our target weight loss goals but also the extra time to try and maintain it. Then when we succumb to the occasional temptations like at Thanksgiving or Christmas our waistlines will be much more forgiving seeing as we would have already lost weight.

All of you suffering through winter time at the moment can barely think about spring far less summer, but keep in mind how difficult it was for some of you to get boy shorts in January. Therefore, when summer rolls around this year start shopping for Carnival. You don’t have to get all the trendy stuff but at least get items that are seasonal like sandals, flip flops, shorts, tanks and swim wear.

Though it may seem like 2009 is so far away, soon enough we will all be obsessing over costumes, waiting to register and going through the drama we love so much!

Mas on the road....indefinitely?

The following article appeared in yesterday's Trinidad Express:

Construction of the new National Carnival and Entertainment Centre will start in September, Culture Minister Marlene McDonald has said.

"Construction will start in September 2008 and we are hoping that by the first quarter of 2010 the Centre will be completed," McDonald told the Express in a telephone interview.

"The design is finished but we are just doing the final tweaking. We will then invite tenders and award contracts."

Construction of the proposed $450 million National Carnival and Entertainment Centre came to a halt last year because the design was being reviewed.

Prime Minister Patrick Manning had made the announcement of the work contract stoppage in November 2007, almost a month and a half after the Urban Development Corporation of Trinidad and Tobago (Udecott) said the Requests for Proposals for the project were to have been issued "in the coming weeks".

Manning then said: "The Carnival Centre is on hold because of the events of Carnival this year and the need to rethink the design in the face of all of that."

The Express understands that the original design incorporated the Parade of Bands in the Centre, but the Government is now considering keeping mas on the roads.

When asked to comment on this, McDonald said: "A few changes are being made which I cannot speak about at the moment, because I haven't yet sat down with the designer and Udecott to finalise the design." In February last year, former Culture Minister Joan Yuille-Williams said construction of the centre would not be completed in time for Carnival 2008. However, she said it would have been built by 2009.

While work is still on hold for the centre, work has already begun on the Academy of the Performing Arts, another cultural facility approved by the Manning administration.

SOURCE:
www.trinidadexpress.com

Now, I know that the proposed construction on the National Carnival and Entertainment Centre had come to a halt months ago and that the design was being "modified", however this is the first I am seeing that Government proposes to keep mas ON THE STREETS!!! Wasn't the original design modeled after Rio's Sambadrome, the design that Peter Minshall , and others, criticized so much?

I am not liking the sound of "keeping mas on the roads" at all! And shall update you all when I do some further investigating, in the mean time feel free to share your thoughts and comments about your experience with mas on the road for Carnival 2008.

Makeup Artist Review

This year I decided to go with a professional makeup artist for Carnival Tuesday, albeit I can apply makeup good enough to satisfy me on a daily basis, and have been doing my own makeup for past Carnivals I thought this year to try something and someone different. Added to that was the fact that the colours of my costume are not what I was used to wearing and as such would have had to procure eye shadow to match, so instead of buying more makeup that I will not have cause to use again the money went to the make up artist.

There are several professionals who do makeup come Carnival, I chose this particular one because she did a friend’s face last year and she also had an online portfolio that I could peruse and see what kind of job she did and what faces I liked or did not like. I made an appointment for 6:00AM on Carnival Tuesday, and along with Mystique and her friend we got to the location just after 6:00, late yes, but we were met with several masqueraders already waiting!!! The appointment system just went out the door. After we took our numbers we had nothing to do BUT wait, it was not like we could just say forget it as none of us walked with any makeup to do the job ourselves.

During the waiting period some of us had breakfast that was provided, others finished dressing and we even made a trip to TRIBE’s mas camp (looking for our backpacks). After a long wait, and resigned to the fact that we were indeed going to miss the band leaving Stanmore Avenue, we eventually got called. The system was like an assembly line, and another makeup artist showed up to do colour, so the line started moving a bit faster but not by much. Upon entering the room I had foundation applied first, I walked with my own so the makeup artist used Revlon Colorstay, then her own products for concealer and powder. I also have to add that my face was already primed with Milk of Magnesia, the one tip I was given that worked wonders for Carnival!

Next it was off to get the eyes done at a another station, I liked that they asked what I wanted done and I was able to say I want it dramatic, with glitter and where I wanted my face decoration. The eye shadow application on the eyes was fabulous! I even wanted more lashes to the individual extensions I was wearing so they added strip lashes which were ridiculously ostentatious; I mean it WAS for Carnival right! After my eyes were done they added face jewels, lipstick and fix it spray; I was VERY pleased with the end results. One thing I do not like about some makeup artist is when they use contouring to shade the nose and this was not done at all. The makeup looked outstanding but the face still looked natural and not as if product was caked on.

The cost of $200.00TT included the lashes, face decoration, breakfast and even a little gift bag that included some goodies like Dior perfume samples, Dove face wash, eye shadow and lip-gloss; to me the price (and long wait) was worth it; if I had to purchase the lashes and face decoration myself it would easily cost $100.00TT. In addition if you wanted your face painted or individual face jewels added they were doing that as well.Interestingly enough there were many ladies playing with Harts getting their faces done along with many from TRIBE and even one guy! I also recognized some faces from the beauty pageant arena such as Nasma Mohammed and Lorca Gatcliffe. And after the long wait we did not miss the band, meeting TRIBE on South Quay with a few minutes to spare before my section crossed the stage

As for how the makeup held up on the road, my face decoration stayed on all day, they were not individual stones but rather the ones that come in a pack; my nose and bindi stick-ons did fall off however! The eye makeup lasted for the entire day as well, and since I used Colorstay foundation my makeup was not sliding off my face either, at the end of the day my face was still “on”. Of course I used blotting sheets to absorb the excess oil and reapplied powder at the lunch stop.

The difference with the professional makeup and doing it on your own is not with the product but the application; you rely on the makeup artist’s skill to choose the right colours for your skin tone and the ability to accentuate your features. I would definitely use this same makeup artist for Carnival 2009, but I am not going to reveal who she is in fear of having an even LONGER wait next year!! I hope all of you who chose to go with a professional were pleased with the results, and feel free to share your experience and the makeup artist you used (if you feel like sharing the identity) by leaving a comment.

Ladies whose faces were also done by the makeup artist I used:






Can you tell which one had her face professionally done?


PHOTO SOURCE:
www.carnivalscene.com
www.toronto-lime.com
www.watever.com