Goodbye April, It Was Nice Feting with You. Jamaica Festival Comes to an end.
Unknown
10:01 AM
0
.jpg)
The end of April in Jamaica signifies several things. It means that the last forty days that we spent giving up Pork and whatever else from the food group is over. It means that we are just about on our last supply of the bun and cheese left over from Easter celebrations and more importantly it means that the carnival ‘junkies' are on the last lap of the bacchanal season as they prepare for Carnival Sunday in the streets of Kingston. From as early as 5 am the revellers are up for what is to be the last ‘jump up day' of the Bacchanal season. Last minute beadings are being added to costumes, boots and other accessories, the makeup artistes are fanning out brushes, the ‘Big trucks' are all parked at The Mas Camp (The starting venue of the carnival) , and the only thing is the wait for the sweet sweet sound of soca music to get the mas started, for the last time.
Earlier in the month of March, the 2014 series of Bacchanal events kick off with opening night featuring all Jamaican DJs under the theme ‘Conquest and Surrender'. Opening night was followed by the popular Socacise Mondays and Wednesdays (because you know, we have to be fit for road march day). Then Bacchanal Fridays ended with a bang with a performance from the Bacchanalist herself, Destra Garcia. After that it's off to St Mary for the much anticipated Beach J'Ouvert with Bunji Garlin and Faye-
Some popular night spots also joined in. Clubbing took on a whole new line of musical selection and certainly more Soca was heard thumping through the speakers in Fiction, Privilege and even the Quad night club. Lyming spots where patrons usually go for after work jam or as we put it ‘to beat a juice' such as E.P.I.C at The Regency Bar at the Terra Nova Hotel and Carnival Central at Ribbiz in Barbican were also a part of the Soca offerings during the season. In the midst of my feasting on a curry goat burger at one of the spots (yes, it was awesome) I was tempted on several occasions to abandon the burger to get up and demonstrate with Machel how exactly it is that ‘I'm the happiest man alive'.
"Carnival is ‘freedom; one day to forget everything and everybody'. Then its carnival Sunday in Jamaica and then it finally hits you that it's ALL over. The jump up, the paint..."
-
Monday morning it's back to work and it now seems like a very good time to catch up with the regular scene and continue to fake care about Vybes kartel incarceration (with no possibility of parole) and the fate of dancehall without the popular entertainer. Seriously though, we all need something to keep Carnival Tabanca at bay. As expressed by many carnival participants, Carnival Tabanca is real. After waiting and preparing for that one big day and then it's over just like that, there is this feeling after that you have absolutely nothing left to do with your life. Tabanca according to Trinidad carnival diary is a form of ‘love sickness'. It describe 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 experience unrequited love. It's an adjustment disorder of losing a loved one. A person suffering from Carnival Tabanca will stare longingly at their costume hanging lonely in the closet and relive the moment a thousand times in their minds. Oh, whatever shall we do now?
Well, I for one would suggest we jump for a joy as a nation for the government's decision to withdraw the withdrawal tax that was so recently announced in the sectoral parliamentary debate of 2014-
".. .. people will flock to the gym with the strangest request from getting a bigger butt to having a bigger cup size. A miracle is more in the running for what they are looking for'.
Well Dwight, miracles do happen. Maybe not so much in the gym though.
There's no doubt that April was a whirlwind of events, much to everyone's delight. As for May, well, that's not looking so shabby either. There is some showing of promise on the entertainment scene with some much needed offerings in Live entertainment from up and coming and even from some of our more established performers. We can definitely look forward to that.
.jpg)
No comments