Find Carnival Costumes Online!

by Adrienne Wilson on

Last year around this same time I was busy scouring the web for all Trinidad & Tobago Carnival sites and band sites. I was mainly on the lookout for costumes and without the help of a friend of mine I would have been utterly lost. For an event an entire country spends the entire year preparing for I would have expected more information on the tourism site or in one central location on the web, but I couldn’t find one. This year I’ve stumbled upon this groovy PlayCarnival.com website which seems to have it right! Jammin’ island music, flash animation of winin’ ladies and all the mas band sites with costume information. Jackpot! It looks as if PlayCarnival has been around for a wee-bit and I just didn’t catch on last year, but if this should be your first time going to TnT’s carnival – check them out.

Like last year, I’m really feeling Island People’s theme this year – Sahara. Imagine parading Port-of-Spain’s streets half-clad in your beaded feathery attire pretending to be in the Sahara as you dance under the sweet Soca sun. (Though Tribe is looking pretty nice too.) Oh, Trinidad – how I wish to play next year again!

Photo of the Day (6/24/06)

by Adrienne Wilson on

After weeks of stepping through dozens of America’s dry characterless farm lands in Oklahoma, Indiana and Illinois my team and I finally stumbled on a site full of lights, action and dizzying kiddie carnival rides in Pampa, Texas. Today’s POTD is a simple shot of a Ferris wheel in motion from my own photo files. With summer here I’m sure scenes like this will be springing up all over the states.

Postcards from Trinidad: Six

by Adrienne Wilson on


Well it’s Carnival Saturday and here I am spending this early part of the afternoon with you on Gadling. After two nights of fetes I figured I’d play it by ear tonight and just mellow out for the rest of the afternoon. With that being said here is a shot from the pan lime me and a group of folks checked out a couple night’s back. Taken in the Desperadoes pan yard, where the band played a melody over and over striving for perfection, the drums from which this older gentleman plays produced a deep rich sound full of bass. While I haven’t been following the pan competitions much, I’m told the Desperadoes placed third in one of their last and are really trying to step their pan game up.

World's Greatest Party?

by Erik Olsen on

It’s nice to be vindicated. Or to have your
preferences confirmed by a large media organization. Forbes agrees with
me, that Carnival is one of, if not THE world’s greatest party. I was in Brazil some years ago for the Carnival in
Salvador, and let me tell, you, there is nothing like it. It is the most vivid, heart-pounding, sexually-loaded
festival on the face of the earth. A true bacchanalia. I wrote a long piece
about the party which I think you’ll enjoy, but I also urge you to check out Force’s take, which is a bit less, shall we
say, lurid, than my one, but still enjoyable. But they also include Mardi Gras in their story, which is fine, even
though I attest that Mardi Gras can’t touch Salvador carnival. Still, worth a read.

Kiddie Carnival

by Erik Olsen on

Years ago I did the carnival celebration in
Bahia, and I can tell you that it was one of the most
exhilarating, phantasmagoric experiences of my life. I wrote a long piece about it which was supposed to be part of a book about my travels through Latin America,
but it stands alone nicely now as a description of the event. I know most people rave about Rio as the place to be for
Carnival, but let me tell you, Bahia is the place. But there is one thing about it: it
is mostly for adults.

Which brings me to this post over at sister site Blogging Baby. Writer Karen Walrond wants you to give some thought to
Carnival in a completely different place: Trinidad & Tobago. She says, and I believe her, that the party in T&T
is consistently rated one of the best Carnivals in the world.  The standard Carnival fare takes place: dancing,
scantily-clad women, pounding drums, and of course ample amounts of rum. But she also points out that in the week
before the adult-bacchanalia explodes, Trinidad hosts a Children’s Carnival. During
the pre-event, children dress is colorful costumes and boogie as best babies can. There’s just much less rum.