Monday Feb 4

The last entry was actually SUNDAY Feb 3, it’s the time and culture change….
Made my way through Port o’ Spain in a wild taxi ride around revelers preparing for Carnival to Chugauramas, Trindad, where I’ll be staying with Tom Frankie, owner of Awaywego, a 47’ Tayana cutter rigged sloop.
We had a quick lunch and returned to POS (Port of Spain) to begin the Carnival experience. Glad I’m not driving here. The natives move along quite unconcernedly weaving and bobbing in, out, and around stopped cars on a narrow 2 lane road at a rapid rate. I just gave myself to the experience and watched the scenery go whizzing by.
The country’s #1 DJ, Lalo, was killed in an auto accident last week on his way to a Mas band event. I’m told it cast a somber pall over the proceedings for all of 2 days before it was decided to make this Carnival a tribute to him and blow it out even more. I like the way they think. As close as I can figure, Mas bands are like Krews in New Orleans during Mardi Gras; they get together year after year, dress to a theme and march together. There was a huge party Sunday night to choose the winning bands. Some of the steel pan bands have over a hundred pans, all tuned differently. Sounds chaotic but it’s great If you like that unique Caribbean sound. I do… and it was.
If Carnival is anything like pre-carnival….. WOW….Oh, do I wish I had a group of my party animal friends down here. Talk about a party. I didn’t quite get pulled into the parade like I did in Rio in 1970, but I did get my Carnival Kup filled with rum several times. Being a sober type individual, I of course emptied it, discretely, on the ground. Well, I emptied it at least. ;-)
We only spent 3 hours there today. We have a ride set up for 8AM tomorrow, returning at 5. I’ll wait and describe the festivities after that. Lots of colorful pictures to share when I figure out how to upload them. Took a number of videos too, they show the pageantry and sound much better then stills. Hope I can figure out how to upload those publicly this time.
Just returned from a stroll around the docks overlooking the harbor. Balmy tropical night, lightning flickering on the horizon like ghostly faerie lights off south towards Venezuela, can’t quite see the coast, but it’s only 7 miles away. Calypso music still ringing in my ears, rum and sweat oozing from my pores in equal shares… did I mention that I really, REALLY like the tropics?