The Carnival Doctor Review of The Hookie DC Pool Party



Event: Hookie
Location: Capitol Skyline Hotel
Date: Friday June 25th 2015

Let's Just Start Here..........  THIS IS WHAT IT WAS LIKE!!!

After a long week of work I could not wait to get to Washington, DC for carnival week.

Like most of you that attended, I just needed a nice likkle soca injection and a good wine or two to hold me until the next time I need my fix. 

As a graduate from Howard University, I was more than pleased to return to DC. I love the city and I always love visiting the campus while I am in town.  I usually reach DC early before I have to do business or before I have a meeting to allow my feet to touch the campus.  On Friday, I flew into DC early so I could do just that.

Then after that, I went to the house of my frat brother and showered, ate and then left his house to go to Hookie.

Now some of you who are reading this may ask yourself, "What does hookie mean?"  Well, when you play hookie, you miss out on work school or a professional obligation. The Hookie Pool Party fete is on a Friday and most people miss work in order to be there. That is why and how it got its name.

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When I Reach
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As soon as I arrived I just knew it was going to be good.  The amount of people present was awe inspiring.  As soon as I arrived I contacted the promoter and asked him, "How long have you all been doing this party?"  He replied, "This is our 6th year."

It was amazing to see the massive size of this party after only 6 years.  Of the DC carnival weekend it is literally the greatest party. I'm not sure if it is the best. That's a personal preference but if you look at the pictures, it is clearly the greatest.

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As Soon As I
Walked In
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As soon as I got there I did what I normally do. I walk around, check the bathrooms, the bar area, the bar areas, the vibes and the people.

The people were beautiful. Many of the women commented on how nice the men looked. I don't usually hear this feedback at fetes. Maybe because it's not a question that I ask. But, on this day, more than few women offered up this feedback.

And this is probably why.....



The bathrooms were readily available but not easily accessible but that's because the party was so packed. I mean, packed!! You could most certainly move, but when it got filled to capacity, it was tight.  However, it was not so tight that you could not enjoy the vibes.  It was tight like, you knew that you were in the right place because everybody was here too.

After taking a trip around the fete, a young lady walked up to me and said, "Would you like a massage?"

I said, "Pardon me?"

She pointed to the massage chair and said, "A massage. We are doing free massages and you may tip if you'd like."

I replied, "I sure would."  I only said "yes" after I knew exactly what she meant LOL!!

While sitting in the massage chair I remember telling myself, "Man, this is one great start to a fete!"

After the massage, ran into some of my friends that I fete with in Miami and in Trinidad and had an awesome time.  I also stumbled upon a group of people that actually took a bus to carnival in DC for the weekend. All of these people had green bands on their arm and called themselves "Lime Green Bandits."  Their vibe, intensity and willingness to trow a mean wine was a thing of splendor. I'm not really sure about the "Lime Green Bandits" but I think The Carnival Doctor has to do a little bit more researching on this group ;-) They were everywhere during the carnival weekend. EVERYWHERE!! And where ever they were, they were turnt up!! All the way turnt up.

So..... at the pool party, for about 1.5 hours, I just partied with them. It was a GREAT time. (I'm not sure I can say this enough).

The music selection was varied. Generally, I like to listen to all soca music at a fete but this party played about 70% soca and the other 30% was reggae, dancehall, hip-hop and R&B.  The blend of music was most definitely well received and the party was on "10" the whole time. 

After to running into one of the promoters again in the fete he asked if I'd like to come to the room to get an aerial picture of the fete.  I took him up on his offer and I must admit from upstairs the Hookie Pool Party looked AWESOME.  Not only was it great to be in the party it was also great to get a view of it's grandeur.

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Two Separate Fetes
In One Fete
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The cool thing about Hookie is that there are (2) two ways that you can do it. You can choose to fete and not go into the pool, or you can come in your bathing suit with every intent and purpose to get in the water.  Those in the water were having a really good time. And if that's your thing, you would have had a ball. Personally, I chose not to get in the water but those throwing a wine or two in the water were most definitely getting their money's worth!
That person with the whistle is going "in"!!!! #hookiedc #goodtimes #dccarnival #thecarnivaldoctor A video posted by The Carnival Doctor (@thecarnivaldoctor) on Jun 27, 2015 at 4:35pm PDT

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The Twos and Fews
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I don't drink but for me the water was plentiful.  I was also able to get snacks at the front of the hotel with no problem and when I wanted to sit down, which was not often because I was fettin', there were plenty of seats for me to do so.

Quite honestly, I think this party has hit critical mass. This party is so good and has been over the years that the deliberate and the word-of-mouth marketing has made this party so big that it is creating some "good problems" for the promoters.  The regular problems that you have when you grow faster than you expected were here. And I looked at that as a good thing.

Why?

Well, carnival, in the grand scheme of things is a movement. And that movement is growing globally. And the global growth is still done, one person at a time, one fete at a time, one j'ouvert at a time and one road experience at a time.  When I looked at the pool party and saw the massive amount of people there, I said to myself, "Look at the work that these people have done to grow carnival and to actually aid in the process of bringing the road back to DC." 

I really had a great time at the Hookie Pool party. it sure did beat, being at work.  I was just as happy as I wanted to be...... Playing Hookie.

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The Investment
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The investment for Hookie was anywhere from the $35 - $50 range depending on when you secured your ticket. Personally, I'm not sure that the price is going to be able to stay at that rate next year.  This is one of those parties where you can clearly see the price going up. The demand for it is just so high.  Mystic Vibes and Darkwater Entertainment are going to have to change the venue, change the price or make it more exclusive.   And this is a great problem to have because this party has grown. 

I'm looking forward to seeing what changes are going to be made next year.

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The Carnival Doctor's
Recommendation
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Find a way to create a VIP, all-inclusive section for about $125-$150.  There are those who would appreciate it and uh..... make sure the massage table is in there  :-) 

And, this is just a personal pet peeve of mine..... Play more soca.  At carnival, I want soca and a dash of reggae and dancehall. That's it.  Now, that's my "personal" recommendation and request.

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Closing
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Some people liked the fete. Some people did not. With that massive amount of people, you are sure to have some dissenters. But, I can tell you this..... HOOKIE IS NOT MISSING ME IF I'M IN DC NEXT YEAR!!!!  I had a fantastic time.

Blessings From Here To There,

Rhadi Ferguson, PhD
"The Carnival Doctor"
Instragram - @TheCarnivalDoctor
www.TheUltimateRoadReadyGuide.com

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