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GRENADA
SPICE MAS 2010 COVERAGE
TJJ's Party Guru's Guide to Grenada's Spicemas 2010 & Beyond It's been long over due, but finally TJJ officially headed to the "Spice Isle of the Caribbean" ... GRENADA to play a wicked Mas! All summer, we've been island hopping checking out the various Caribbean carnivals in search of the answer to: "Who has the next best carnival (outside of Trinidad & Tobago) in the West Indies?" The race came down to three (3) comparable carnivals (based on country's population) - Vincy Mas (we're still yet to do), Lucian Carnival and Spicemas! Let's talk about Spicemas... and that's "Mas" with one not two "s"! Prerequisites:
Friday: Put your bags down, change into your beach wear and head down to Garfield's Beach Bar on Grand Anse Beach in the afternoon. Tons of Med students and locals liming and drinking. You will see the highest piles of empty Carib bottles stacked up towards the end of the lime. "Spicemas Soca Monarch Finals" is the biggest event on the night ... a RAM OUT National Stadium full of energy sets the pace for the Carnival weekend. Afterwards, don't waste time ... head straight to "De Permit Fete"! You can hear the Soca Monarch results on the radio during the drive over. Saturday: We at TJJ believe that a Boat Ride should be an integral part of one's carnival itinerary, and despite the iffy weather SummerCrew's "Bikini Cruise" (All Inclusive day cruise) delivered just that for Spicemas 2k10. Later on, "Pantastic Saturday" satisified our appetite for both culture and steelpan music. Saturday night is what they call 'Country Lime' or 'Road Show' as thousands gather in St. Andrew for the annual "White In The Moonlight" fete. If you don't want to make the trek to the country, club Karma (Grenada's Club Zen) and Club Bananas (our official party and after party spot) is for you! Sunday: Grab a solid plate of bessss local food at Creole Shack to get your day started off right ... it's going to be non-stop feting until Carnival Tuesday! 1st stop... the annual Rotary Club's Fete in the evening. Some would call it 'de ole people fete', but as serveral patrons told me, "If you don't have a walker or a wheelchair in the party, it ent no ole people party!" Afterwards, it's back to the stadium to see who's going to get the "Queen and King of the Band" titles. But the highlight for the Dimanche Gras is the Calypso competition. Congrats to this year's winner, Biko Lewis. Monday: It's 4AM!! Who's ready for J'Ouvert? If Grenadian Soca artiste Tallpree tell us we must do J'ouvert, we don't need anyone else to convince us. The real wicked jab is definitely with the 2010 'Best Jab Jab Band' De Real Jab Jab .... one word - "OIL!" Since Carnival Monday Parade is not as well attended as J'Ouvert or Carnival Tuesday, there's sufficient time to recuperate for Grenada's popular (and well kept secret) Monday Night Mas. Tuesday: When we thought St. Lucia carnival parade got off to a late start (12-1pm), Spicemas took it a bit further with a 2-3pm start time. Tuesday Road March is the big day for costumes and parade of the bands. We're still a little puzzled at the difference in numbers that come out on Tuesday vs Monday for the parade. Final Thoughts: Which
Carnival ranked #1? Vincy, Lucia or Grenada? The survey results were never
cut and dry, as it appears that every carnival has it's strong and weak
points. So until we officially check out Vincy Mas, we will hold off on
making an official decision! Spicemas definitely gets TJJ's Stamp of Approval. A special thanks to the Grenada Board of Tourism for their warm hospitality. See you guys next year!
Heading back to St. Lucia for a few days, Disclaimer: Professional and experienced TJJ Fet-a-lot-athon® Party Gurus have rigorously tested these Carnival grounds and are providing said recommendations based on the fundamentals that the audience is a healthy rum drinking islander. If while performing any of these actions you begin to feel any dizziness, fatigue or pain please stop and consult your physician immediately. |
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