CARIBBEAN INSIDER BLOG

Carnival, it’s a unique experience. As I wrote some years ago, it took me a few years to give it a real try rather than just being a spectator in Antigua, St. Kitts and Trinidad, but since then I have been hooked. My introduction to true participation was Trinidad’s Carnival, “The Greatest Show on Earth” in the 1990s when I was able to get a costume the night before Carnival Monday in Peter Minshall’s band - Minshall was the famed Olympic Opening Ceremony designer for the Barcelona and Atlanta events. Luckily (as I was a shy girl then), Minshall’s designs were very artistic, depicting a story, almost like being part of a play with a cast of thousands, and also the body is well covered so I had a modest and cultural introduction.

When I played in Trinidad again in 2000 in Legends (now split into Legacy and Genesis), I played the now renowned “bikini mas” which has spread in popularity throughout the Caribbean (even though many who play do not have bikini bodies, it really doesn’t matter although some do spend hours in the gym in the months leading up to Carnival). Since then, I have played mas most years in Dynamics, one of the largest bands in Antigua.

But Carnival is not just about playing mas, and dancing for two days in the hot sun through the capital city (sounds like torture when written down, but the local rum really helps!). For those who are not exhibitionists (or rum guzzlers), the Carnival shows are quite entertaining. Most Caribbean carnivals have a similar composition: Calypso Competition, Queen of Carnival Competition, Steelband Competition and a Party or Soca Monarch Competition followed by the Monday morning J’ouvert - an early morning (4am) street party where revellers follow their favourite band or steelband through the city streets as the sun rises (an unimaginable feeling each time).

Trinidad is the home of the steelpan and they really take their “Panorama” steelband competition seriously. You can hear the bands practicing on the “track” before the competition, which is a whole experience in itself - pan playing, food and drink.

The Calypso competition tends to have songs reflecting the politics and issues of the country, so those not resident may not always get the drift, but it is a really unique and intense way to delve into the culture – though you should go with someone who can interpret and doesn’t mind you asking lots of questions.

The Queen Pageant is fun also, encompassing talent, evening wear, swimwear, interview and a Carnival costume performance. 

And Carnival is the birthplace of the “All Inclusive” party where you get drinks and sometimes food all night.

The highlight is the one or two day spectacle of costumed groups or bands dancing through the streets. The bands are judged at various points on the route and then the bands cross the stage in a stadium where the audience watches (I usually stay at the back of the stage, away from the cameras!)

Some of the best carnivals take place during the summer time including:

St. Lucia – The highlight of the Carnival usually takes place in the second week of July and encompasses the traditional shows and competitions and two days of mas.

Antigua – The Carnival starts in mid July, with preliminary competitions and calypso tents and all inclusive parties, and peaks on the first Monday and Tuesday in August.

Barbados – Called “Crop Over”, the carnival has its origins in celebrating the end of the sugar harvesting season and starts with the Ceremonial Delivery of the Last Canes and the crowning of the most productive cane cutters of the season, the King and Queen of the Festival. A five week festival ending on the first Monday in August, Grand Kadooment. With great bands, good shows and serious parties, this festival is catching up with Trinidad and competes with Antigua being held at the same time.

Anguilla – Starting the first Saturday in August and culminating the following weekend, this Carnival also incorporates boat-racing which is a strong tradition in the country and the Leeward Islands Calypso Competition.

Grenada – Starting in July and culminating on the second Monday and Tuesday in August, it features calypso competitions, queen’s competitions and a two day parade.

Some hotels participate in activities like the Opening Parade with a t-shirt band, and encourage their staff and guests to join and have fun.

So why not plan a visit to the Caribbean in July or August. In addition to catching some of the best carnival events of the summer, you also benefit from a host of special discounts and offers provided by hotels during the low season.

Ask your hotel if it is participating, or insist that they do. It really is an experience of a lifetime!

Although the Caribbean this year has not succeeded in qualifying for the prestigious FIFA World Cup, with both the most likely representatives the Reggae Boys (the Jamaican team which qualified in 1998) and the Soca Warriors (the Trinidadian team that qualified in 2006) not involved, we still have our flags flying for our Caribbean nationals and Caribbean descendants.

Already a major contributor for the English football team scoring the winning goal for England’s move into the next stage of the tournament, Jermaine Defoe has a St. Lucian mother and a Dominican father. 

Also, a well known player for England, Emile Heskey has an Antiguan father and a Barbudan mother.  Emile has invested in the country of his parents’ birth seeking to set up an Academy of Excellence for youth with sporting potential and also in a gated ocean view villa development. 

Ashley Cole is another major player on the England team with Caribbean heritage, his father is from Barbados. There are others on the England team of Jamaican descent including Aaron Lennon, and Shaun Wright-Phillips who also has Grenadian influences.

Rio Ferdinand was named captain of the England team and but for the injury suffered in training in South Africa before a match had been played, would have been the first England World Cup captain of Caribbean descent, since his father Julian hails from St. Lucia.

Among the French team, descendants of Martinique are represented by Eric Abidal and Thierry Henry (along with his father from Guadeloupe), and French Guiana where Florent Malouda was born. The Netherlands has a Surinamese born footballer, Edson Braafheid, and the USA team has players with Haitian roots, Jozy Altidore, and Trinidadian roots, Robbie Findlay.

Regardless of which team they are playing for, we will support our Caribbean brothers, so on that basis, I am backing England to win the World Cup! Who’s your favourite?

My earliest memories of cricket were travelling to the countryside in Sutton on a Sunday morning to watch my Dad play cricket with his Greater London Council team. Well, I wasn’t really watching the cricket, but I was playing with the other children on the green grass, looking forward to lunchtime and tea time when we ate scrumptious creamy cheese sandwiches. After the game when all the players returned to the clubhouse, there would be lots of noise and banter that I didn’t understand, but I revelled in the special camaraderie. Often the wives would have their own game on a neighbouring pitch so there would be a review of this four and that catch by the ladies while they prepared the refreshments after the game.

I remember as a young teen having a go at scoring a couple of games, which helped me understand the byes, leg byes, sixes, fours, wides, overs and many of the other terms that seem to confuse most cricketing novices. I still don’t fully understand all of the rules and terms, especially the bowling and fielding terms (googly, silly mid on, fine leg, gully, deep extra cover, leg break, backward square leg and it goes on and on), but I know enough to appreciate a five day test match, although my concentration will not allow me any longer than a day – thank goodness for the introduction of the one day International (50 overs) and the controversial twenty overs forms of cricket (twenty overs cricket takes only 3 hours, which is heresy for the cricketing purists.)

Cricket, however, is less about the game itself, and more about the culture and people surrounding it. I recall my entire family and close family friends packing up picnic baskets and coolers with dumplings, fried chicken and canned sodas (which later served as instruments), and taking a long car convoy drive to Lord’s Cricket Ground in London to watch the West Indies play against England. In those days, the early eighties, the West Indies team were at the pinnacle of international cricket, in the golden period, the glory days dominating both England and Australia. The West Indian supporters in the UK were proud to cheer, drum and hit conch shells to encourage their “sons of the soil” from Jamaica, Trinidad, Antigua, Barbados and Guyana, and left the conservative “Lord’s” changed forever. That was my introduction to cricket in the Caribbean style!

I acknowledge that Caribbean cricket was probably the driving force for me transposing my life to the Caribbean. Watching the antics on BBC TV of comedians in the Antigua Recreation Grounds (Antigua was the pioneer of Carnival Cricket), the dancing of spectators between overs, and the commotion created for a six or a catch, while I, on the other side of the world, was sitting in a draughty living room in the British winter. We watched the faces of people we thought we recognised (“Eh look at Roger!  Hey, there is cousin Babs!) I vowed that I would be in the middle of that crowd one day. By April 1991, I had made it into the Double Decker stand of the Antigua Recreation Ground for the Australian tour of the West Indies, a member of  Chickie’s Hi-Fi posse with its all inclusive arrangement, where a pot of seasoned rice passed among former strangers; unlimited liquor flowed, music galore - ah, cricket heaven. And the partying did not stop at the end of the game. Everyone gathered in the “Party Stands” until way into the night to celebrate, regardless of whether the team was winning or not. In the early nineties, Richie Richardson, an Antiguan, was captain of the West Indies cricket team, so it really didn’t matter what the score was, we felt that it was Antigua - 1; the rest of the world - nil.

The other cricket venues in the region sought to keep up with Antigua, and Trinidad‘s Queen’s Park Oval and the Kensington Oval in Barbados were grounds with which I became familiar. Sabina Park in Jamaica was considered a close second to Antigua, but I still haven’t made it there for cricket.

Time has passed and with the decline in the superiority of the West Indies cricket team, the fever and fervour has tapered somewhat, along with the very disappointing Cricket World Cup in 2007 which really sought to impose very conservative rules and regulations on the exuberant West Indians and visiting spectators.

The recent ICC World Twenty 20 tournament has reinvigorated the region once more, with matches taking place in Guyana, St. Kitts, St. Lucia and Barbados in the most exciting yet controversial shortened form of the game. The ICC having learnt from the debacle of the World Cup in 2007 has allowed the West Indians spectators to be West Indian and have actively encouraged Carnival Cricket for which we are renowned.

The West Indies didn’t make the semi finals, but for those of us Caribbean Brits, we had a wonderful time cheering on the eventual winners of the tournament, England, which hasn’t won a global tournament in a very, very, long time. Although strangely enough, their three top batsmen were all born and bred in South Africa – go figure.

Incidentally, the South African team are currently touring the Caribbean in a series against the West Indies, making their first stop in Antigua. We spent a gorgeous day at the new Sir Vivian Richards Cricket Stadium (named after the former West Indies cricket captain), which has a specially designed stand which visitors will enjoy as it comes complete with its own swimming pool.

Unfortunately, I can’t say the cricket has been glorious for the home team so far, but it has always been more than simply about the actions on the field, and more to do with the food, the drinking, the vendors, the iron bands, dancers, socialising with friends and the budding comedians heckling the fielders from the stands.

So if you are new to the game, be introduced by incorporating a beautiful island or two, fabulous accommodation, white powdery beaches, along with a couple of days of entertainment among Caribbean cricket lovers who will ball by ball explain to you every aspect of the game, the styles of the batsmen and the field placement deficiencies of both captains, while sharing macaroni and cheese pie and fried fish with you during the lunch break over a local beer.

I will be there again for the final match in Antigua before sending the festivities on to Dominica and Jamaica for two one day matches, and St. Kitts and Barbados for the final one day match and three five day Test matches ending on June 30.  We look forward to seeing you there.

(An updated post from January 2009).

Elections have been on the mind recently. There was the recent calling of elections by the Trinidad and Tobago government for May 24, two years earlier than expected - resulting in a major upheaval in the ICC cricket schedule, with the much berated Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua now hosting two twenty 20 matches and two one day International matches in the West Indies versus South Africa series (but more on that in a later post!)

Also, with a shocking legal decision on Antigua and Barbuda’s election held last year whereby three election results were said to be invalid and those seats were determined null and void due to discrepancies in the polling procedures (but more on that later!). This has resulted in three Government Ministers including the Prime Minister himself facing a possible by-election or even calling a general election, all pending the appeal decision. Similar petitions, although on different grounds, have been filed in Dominica and St. Kitts.

With all of these shenanigans in the Caribbean, many of us were looking to the United Kingdom for their well organised, free and fair elections. In our condescending way, those of us who have lived abroad and especially those who have lived in the UK – I am the biggest culprit – tend to say “that could only happen in the Caribbean, never in the UK, America, Australia….insert any large developed country of your choice”.

The inefficiencies, the less than ideal customer service, the poorly planned and disorganised systems of the Caribbean. Wrong!  More and more I am beginning to realise that the Caribbean is making great strides and is meeting and indeed surpassing the standards of large developed countries in many areas, and there is an unfair assumption that things are better in these bigger countries compared to the small, less developed, Third World Caribbean countries.

I recently returned from the UK where a soldier who had returned intact from the Afghanistan war, was killed on his bicycle as a result of a swerving to avoid a large pothole. As another example, I am awaiting a response from a UK private hospital no less, on important information having telephoned and emailed them several times to no avail – so much for superior customer service.

But the icing on the cake has been the reports of disenfranchised voters in London, Sheffield, Leeds, Liverpool, Newcastle and Manchester who were not allowed to vote in the recent UK elections. They arrived during the scheduled polling hours at polling stations, but polling staff were unable to cope with the numbers prior to the close of the poll, electoral rolls not being updated and also reports of inadequate numbers of ballot papers. The Electoral Commission is due to undertake a thorough investigation. This is déjà vu – almost the same situation that we thought could only occur in Antigua resulting in the three Ministers losing their seats – due to polling stations opening late and disenfranchising voters.

Not to pick on the UK, I am reminded of hanging chads in the US 2000 elections and that drama.

Although we have much more progress to make, the Caribbean given its size, income, capacity, populations and natural endowments is doing extremely well. There must be a reason why many of us who live in the “Third World” never return to the “First World” in a hurry. It’s time for a visit so you can make up your own mind.

If you did not believe in a higher power, or even the influence of Mother Nature, I am sure the volcanic eruption in Iceland and its impact on the entire world humbled you as it did me. The world did not come to an end as predicted in the movie “2012” but it certainly came to a massive STOP (the sequel may be “Volcano 2010!”).

The disruption in air traffic via Europe halted travellers and air cargo in and out of Europe costing airlines an estimated US$200 million a day. It also affected global manufacturers and suppliers with supply chains crossing the continent.

Closer to home the hotels and tour operators had to face testy passengers who although had enjoyed wonderful vacations, were anxious to get back to work and school.

Although, the whole episode was quite nerve wracking if you were in any way affected, I could not help but think how the world may now have a better understanding of the experience of Montserratians.

Montserrat is a small, 10 mile by 7 mile, British overseas territory located in the Leeward Islands. With a strong cultural connection to Ireland given its early inhabitants and its lush landscape said to resemble coastal Ireland, it is known as the Emerald Isle of the Caribbean and is the only country outside of Ireland that celebrates St. Patrick’s Day as a public holiday.

In July 1995, Montserrat's Soufriere Hills volcano, dormant throughout recorded history, rumbled to life and began an eruption which eventually buried the island's capital, Plymouth, in more than 12 metres (39 feet) of mud, destroyed its airport and docking facilities, and rendered the southern half of the island uninhabitable. The first large event occurred in August 1995 blanketing Plymouth in a thick ash cloud which brought almost complete darkness for about 15 minutes. Shortly afterwards the first evacuation of southern Montserrat was initiated. Plymouth itself was finally abandoned in 1997. It now lies buried under layers of volcanic debris deposited by pyroclastic activity and mudflows - each time it rains in the Emerald Isle, a little more of the former capital disappears forever. Montserrat's capital Plymouth has been compared to a modern day Pompeii. Buried deep in ash and volcanic debris including boulders up to the size of the houses that once stood there, the once thriving business and commercial centre of the island now resembles a dust-covered lunar landscape through which deep canyons have been gouged. 

Following the destruction of Plymouth, more than half of the then population of 13,000 left the island due to the economic disruption and lack of housing. A period of regular eruptive events during the late 1990s took place, including one on June 25, 1997 in which 19 people died when they were overtaken by pyroclastic flows, and surges swept down the north-eastern flanks of the volcano causing the abandonment of the W H Bramble Airport.
 
The volcano's activity in recent years has been confined mostly to infrequent ventings of ash into the uninhabited areas in the south. However, this ash venting does occasionally extend into the populated areas of the northern and western parts of the island. The southern part of the island has been evacuated and visits to that area are severely restricted. 

This year has seen some increased activity at the Soufriere Hills volcano. On January 18, 2010 pyroclastic flows reached the sea. On February 5th, a vulcanian explosion sent pyroclastic flows down several sides of the mountain, and on February 11th a partial collapse of the lava dome sent a column of ash more than 20,000 feet into the air that rained down on several nearby islands including Guadeloupe and Antigua. Due to favorable winds, the inhabited areas of Montserrat itself received very little ash from either event. 

When the ash is thick, the covering of grey dust can be seen on the mountains of Montserrat from the southern side of Antigua, and neighbouring islands are generally dusty - imagine a film of dust on your computer, on your furniture and on all cars, when nobody wastes time washing vehicles only to have to wash them again the same day. 

Periodically, flights in the Eastern Caribbean are cancelled due to ash affecting local travellers through the islands. I remember in 1997 when my son was months old, leaving him with a family friend while I was on a day trip to Puerto Rico, only to be forced to remain in San Juan for 3 days due to ash from the volcano. Unlike our current day counterparts in Europe, we didn’t stay at the airport or fuss or complain, but went back to the mall to shop some more and enjoyed a few more calorie laden dinners during our unexpected vacation.

Now, we are more than accustomed to these disruptions and take it in our stride. Along with the Montserratians who have adapted with great dignity, either re-building in the North of the island or re-locating to other Caribbean islands and Britain where the people of Montserrat were granted full residency rights in the United Kingdom in 1998, and citizenship was granted in 2002.

Today most of Montserrat remains remarkably lush and green, apparently a positive side effect of volcanic eruptions, whereby volcanic deposits are known to develop into some of the richest agricultural lands on earth with volcanic ash considered as a time-release capsule, rich in nutrients. With this luscious landscape and the renewed interest in volcanoes, Montserrat’s tourist industry is seeing a revival especially following the opening of the new John A. Osborne International Airport in 2005 and the recent opening of docking facilities in Little Bay, where the new capital is being constructed. Volcano adventures encompass helicopter tours of the volcano, circumnavigations which enable a view from the South from the sea, and visits to the Montserrat Volcano Observatory (MVO).  In addition to monitoring the volcanic activity, the MVO Interpretation Centre provides poster displays explaining the techniques used in monitoring seismic activity, gas emissions, ground deformation and environmental impacts, and dramatic video shows including a synopsis of the activity and examples of the recent events on the volcano, along with touch screen kiosks and volcanic artefacts on display.

It seems as though this Icelandic event may not go away anytime soon so the Europeans may have to seek guidance from the experts on living with an active volcano. Alternatively, see life alongside a volcano first hand and enjoy your choice of beautiful luxury villas set in landscaped gardens with pools and patios with panoramic views of the mountains and the sea. Villa rentals generally include maid service and pool and garden attendants, with the services of a cook or baby-sitter available when required. Life in the shadows of the volcano is not necessarily so bad after all; it is just a matter of how you work in conjunction with Mother Nature.