I have visited St Maarten twice and Love Love St Maarten. Its a small country/island, but thriving with activity. A popular destination for tourist, St Maarten will satisfy your every holiday desire.
This time i wanted to experience the Carnival in St Maarten. As an “Ambassador of Carnival” I believe it’s my duty to visit and experience as many carnivals worldwide as possible.
My fiance’ used to live in St Maarten so it was nice to reunite with family and friends.
Normally Carnival takes place over two weeks, however due to the calendar and Easter holidays, this year Carnival was only a week long.
In St Maarten they host several events in the build up to the parade. This includes,
the Carnival Queen Pageant, local talent shows, major music events including Soca , Reggae and R & B artist.
The day I arrived we picked up our car rental, dropped off our bags and went straight in to town to see what was going on. In Phillipsburg the capital of St Maarten houses the great Festival Carnival Village. This is a outdoor venue where all the shows take place. It is also a place to lime and get your food and beverages. The carnival also finishes at the village.
I met the President of the Carnival Committee. Stuart A. Johnson. He and his team are responsible for managing the carnival event on a whole.
Wednesday night i got my first taste of the carnival festivities. I attended the show featuring Ginuwine, Beenie Man, Tantro Metro and Devante and other local artists . It was a great show. Its was surprising to see the variation of the artists that perform. In Trinidad or London the shows mainly feature Soca artist. It was a show with a difference.
Thursday- I was frustrated a little as finding a Mas camp was no easy feat. Before i arrived i tried to research the bands and locate Mas camps etc but had no luck. So when i arrived i was on a mission to find me a Mas camp. I finally visited the famous Gordon Yee’s Mas camp. The costumes were fantastic. Gordon had a team from Trinidad to assist in the designs and production. I must mention that Gordon’s band won best Carnival troupe for carnival 2011. Congratulations Gordon!!
I went to another camp but it was closed, which was a little weird as carnival was days away!!
Anyway i found my Mas camp (gordon) and made a great connection with the team.
Before you knew it it was J’ouvert morning. I was geared up for my first J’ouvert in SXM. I didn’t know what to expect but i went prepared. I tied up my locs to protect it from mud, paint, you know what. I wore the least cared about clothes, and shoes that were comfortable enough to chip and jump up. I was ready for the road.
I love how J’ouvert is organised in SXM. There is a meeting point in town where all the bands line up. All the revelers dressed in their J’ouvert attire awaiting the trucks, with the best vibes. The other great thing was the music was performed by live bands.
So as i got into the music and had a few drinks i realized ...wait! no mud, no paint no chocolate no dust. no powder! I thought this was J’ouvert. i was a little confused.. this is new to me.
The next day was the parade which took place over two days Saturday 30th April and Sunday 1st May 2011
Saturday there was a lot of kids but the adults do come out to play Mas too. Sunday was mainly the adults day.
Like most carnivals around the world the parade is the focal point. The masqueraders are the main attraction and are enjoyed by the audience who respectfully stand on the sides of the street and take in all the splendor of the parade. I must mention that Steel Pan had not yet arrived on the Island.
The parade is small i think 10-12 bands in total and band sizes ranging from 20-150
The vibes are fantastic though. I really enjoyed myself.
The cherry on top for me was the show featuring Alison Hinds, Denise Belfon, Tallpree, WCK, Gyptian and more. This show was off the Chain!! ooo Alison Hinds fans please note the Locs are gone! she is still natural but cut off De Locs. xx she looking good though!!
Last lap was tuesday night with a short “jump Up” from one point of SXM to the Village. At the end of the carnival season they hold a ceremony where you witness the burning of King Moo moo . A dummy is made to represent this figure and the ritual marks the end of the carnival season in SXM.
I felt that sadness i feel when the end of carnival comes. I had a wonderful time. Met some really lovely people and i look forward to going back to SXM for a longer carnival season.
I spent the rest of the time on the beach :)
