It's been a good minute since I've post on my blog. My apologies. I hope everyone enjoyed their summer. My summer was busy and fun from birthday celebrations, BBQ's, boat rides and Caribana. This year was the first in 8 years that I went out from Wednesday night straight through Caribana Sunday. I couldn't keep up but my Caribana and summer was great!
I decided to take a trip to Miami for Carnival. The last time I went to Miami Carnival was 4 years ago. A lot has changed since then. Miami Carnival always fall on Canada’s Thanksgiving weekend Oct 7-12, 2010. My flight, car rental and hotel cost me $733.00 Cdn (not bad). We stayed at the Starlite Hotel on Ocean Drive in South Beach. I was a little scared of this hotel from the bad reviews in Trip Advisor®, but was very please with this hotel. All we needed was somewhere to rest our heads. The location was perfect, right across from the beach and right next to Wet Willies. The only downside is parking. It was very hard to find a parking spot, and if you did, you didn't want to move your car unless you absolutely had to.
So what parties did I attend and did I play mas? Well, let’s start with Thursday...
Thursday (Girl Power) - The last time I went to Girl Power it was held at the Seville hotel in South Beach, but this time it was held at Calder Casino & Race Course. This was an outdoor event with free parking. Our ticket was $45 V.I.P. As we entered the venue, we immediately saw food vendors on the left and right side of the venue. We headed for the VIP section but didn't really want to stay in that area because the vibes. We missed most of the performance due to arriving late, however we did not miss Machel Mantano. I was excited to see him! I didn't see him at Trinidad Carnival or Toronto Carnival, so I was pumped. As he came on stage I walked straight to the front (brave). Machel sang all of his greatest hits, from Ramajay, Bumper to Fender, Congo Man, Theifin and his newest song On de Road. Machel and his family tore up the stage. Girl Power has grown over the years and I was pleased with this fete. I rate this fete 7. Party done at 4 a.m.! Time for a quick nap before we head out to the next event: Shine Breakfast Fete.
Friday Morning (Shine) - This party started at 6 a.m. The theme is for everyone to wear yellow. The cost for the event was $25US (general admission). We arrived around 8 a.m. The party seemed to be warming up. We order a tasty corn soup and a bake & shark; this helped increased our energy level. By 12 p.m. the placed was packed and you couldn't move. Everyone was wilding out, people were jumping on top of the bar, men were picking up woman on their shoulders and people were palancing on top of the roof. This party was boss. People were DRINKING, DRINKING and DRINKING. The most popular drink was a jug of peach Schnapps and Vodka (warning: that drink is a creeper). Me and my friend split the drink and I was feeling tight. The bar tenders and the owner of the venue were smiling. They knew they were making tons of money. People are buying bottles of Johnny Walker $265US for one bottle. Even the ladies in the party were buying the Johnny’s and jugs for their crew. No need to wait on any man to buy you a drink… love it! By 2 p.m. the party music shut off. The people who didn't want to leave were creating their own riddim section shouting "We ain't going home". I loved this party! I rate this event a 9. We headed back to the hotel to get at least 4 hours sleep and rest up for the next event that same Friday night: Super F.R.I.E.N.D.S
Friday Night (Super F.R.I.E.N.D.S) - After fêting all morning and afternoon it was time to attend Super F.R.I.E.N.D.S (brought to you by SixAxis Ent). Ticket cost $25 early bird - $30US/$35US V.I.P. This party was held at Gulfstream Racing & Casino (free parking) the venue was amazing, not too big or small, just enough space for a night of fun. The crowd was grown and sexy. The woman came out with their best look and the MEN were looking FWYNE (lol). Everyone was ready to palance and Go Dung, Go Dung. We can't forget Edwin Yearwood’s up close and personal performance. Toronto’s favorite soca DJ, Dr. Jay, played back up for Edwin Yearwood and had all the ladies singing his hits. Super F.R.I.E.N.D.S vibe was niceee. 4 a.m. came quick! The lights turned on and again nobody was ready to go home. I had a great time. I rate this event a 8.5
Saturday- We spent two days in Miami and still didn’t hit the beach. So, Saturday morning we woke up early, crossed the street and looked for a comfortable spot on the beach. The beach was packed, music blasting, sun beaming and it was just right. We couldn't stay on the beach all day because we had another event to attend: Lime Beach Party. This was a free, invitation only event, located at Raleigh Hotel in South Beach from 2-8 p.m. As we arrive at the venue, we were greeted and escorted to the back of the hotel. The ambiance was nice, the crowd was definitely stylish, the ladies were dressed in there best beach/casual look and the men were once again Fwyne (lol). They served free finger foods (mini burgers/sausages/steak skewers/shrimp) which was a plus. The most disappointing thing about this event was the cost for drinks. A vodka and orange juice cost $18US! Damnnnn… that is just madness! This event was definitely a social party, but it was free you can't go wrong with that. We left the venue around 10 p.m. to try and take a quick nap before heading out to the Vale Vibe party. Who told us to do that? We slept untill midnight, rushed to get dressed and then got stuck in traffic! We had to detour (thank God for GPS), but we still lost. Long story short, we arrived at the party late but were so frustrated and tired that we headed back to the hotel, grabed some food and went to bed. Next up: playing mas with Carnival Nationz.
Sunday- Time for the big event: Miami Carnival Parade! This is my first year playing mas in Miami. I normally stand to the side and watch the bands pass but decided to get involved this year. One improvement from previous years is that the parade route is actually a street route. Previously, it was in an airport stadium which had the bands going around in circles. Around 11 a.m. we met up with our band (Carnival Nationz) and had some breakfast (bake & salt fish). Our band was number 20, not sure if that was a good or bad position. The band started to move just after noon. The girls and I started off with a Johnny Walker and Shandy (weird mix) but it tastes really good. After the first jug I was feeling nice. All the ladies were looking HOT! The men… ummm yeah…..I didn’t see many. The majority of the band was women. That’s a plus for the men, but not for us ladies! We want to see a strong man in a costume (lol). The route is short, but the day was very long and HOT! After having lunch to re-energize ourselves, I was ready for round two. The DJ started to spin some House music, and the masqueraders started to pump their fists. Jokes! But it definitely brought the vibe to the next level. As the sun went down, the band was starting to get close to the judging point. All we heard was “everyone get in your section!” Jean & Dinah, Miss Mary, Jane, Big Bamboo, Congo Man, Royal Jail and Toronto section palanced in front of the judges. We looked GREAT. I, Carleen have completed Miami Carnival 2010. I had a blast. Overall Parade experience is a 8. Only Trinidad Carnival will get my 10.
Monday – This was a day of relaxation. We hit the beach, checked out a few shopping spots and hanged out with old and new friends. Bags were packed and we ready to go back home to Toronto.
Miami will definitely see me again! The worse part of my trip: I lost my camera. The last photo taken was at the breakfast table before we headed to the airport. It could be in the car rental, shuttle bus, who knows where it is but we don’t have any personal pics. I have uploaded some pictures of the events I attended courtesy of various party promotion websites.
These pictures are courtesy of trinijunglejuice.com; D-junction.com; Torontolime.com; Nycaribbeanvibes.com…..enjoy!
