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A Slice of Italy with a True Trini vibe!

Carnival time and D Young Juice & Keyz on de prowl again checking out de scene both day and night. This weekend, one of the decisions was to hit another one of de All Inclusives yet again.... Republic Bank's 2nd Annual Carnival All Inclusive to be more specific. After all, what's Carnival without All Inclusive fetes right?

So standard procedure ... check in at the door upon arrival. Organizing the scene was easy, but it was de lack of love shown that was the drama. When we were told that there was limited access provided to media when it came to drinks and food, it was at that point things seemed to get a bit sticky. Did we hear correctly? How can we report on the food and drinks and the quality of service at this All Inclusive if we cannot partake in the festivities??!! Somebody better tell somebody, yes! It was kind of a downer on our party spirits, but say wha ... something will work out. It always does!! ;-)

As we entered Pier 1, there were sights of food everywhere. Isn't life ironic ... lol! We're talking about cuisines of all kinds such as Chinese, Indian, some of our favorite Creole dishes and Italian (supporting this year's theme). It was an Italian fusion menu featuring pasta, salads, and a selection of Italian style meats. All dishes were complimented with tantalizing desserts to top your stomach off if so desired. The bars contained an all premium line up, and there were several of them strategically located throughout the venue. So it was no shortage on the drinks front.

The vibe at this time was pumping as Shurwayne Winchester and Traffik were putting down a solid performance. After Caribbean Traffik Jam left the stage, there was a little interlude by Alicia D Duchess on the one's and two's. Walking through the crowd, we could feel the anticipation building as we fed off of some patrons' vibes. The Pier 1 crowd was anxiously waiting on Machel Montano HD performance.

In the mean time there was no sticking. During live performance intermissions, all-inclusive go'ers surely took the opportunity to enjoy some drinks and grab a couple of eats. Then in what seemed like the blink of an eye, the introduction of Machel Montano was in the air. Entering from the HD caravan was Zan, kicking things off with "Out On De Road". Zan was followed by Machel, and then came the rest of the HD camp such as Farmer Nappy, and the 'wuk up' woman Patrice Roberts giving the crowd "Mo Wuk". About the performances ... lets just say that they mashed up on stage. Even the mature partygoers enjoyed the HD performances, showing folks that they were still young at heart.

In the end, everything turned out all well and good. We were even able to grab a drink or two and indulge in some of the delicious eats as well. Now it's a short ram cram Carnival season, so after taking 'a five' on the HD bus (you know TJJ does always have the exclusive access), we made tracks to the National Stadium. So if you're looking for the TJJ Crew, you can meet us on de farm ... de Gyal Farm!!

On de go again … Young Juice!
-- TJJ Carnival 2008 Frontline

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