Friday March 9, 2016 - Toronto, Canada: Babbzy At Large, the number one Caribbean blogger in the world and the "Caribbean Cultural Ambassador" affectionately known as by her fans, has given her verdict surrounding the big hoopla over a social media meme that has been circulating over the past few days ranking the top 5 Carnivals in the region.
As the region prepares for the second set of carnivals for 2016, beginning with Jamaica in April and ending with St. Kitts and Nevis in December; Carnival, with its origin dating back to medieval times and a very present African element mixed into it are evident in most of the Caribbean region's modern carnival. However, that battle for supremacy as the penultimate carnival in the region has caused much stir and controversy over the past few days.
A meme gone viral recently on Social Media, gives Grenada the top spot followed by Barbados, Jamaica, St. Vincent and the Grenadines and St. Lucia; even giving Carriacou notable mention and clearly no Trinidad and Tobago. This has caused an uproar among carnival lovers as well as patriots of their respective countries.
Needless to say, the decision to downsize the carnival activities and joining the Soca and Groovy competitions of the International Soca Monarch in Trinidad and Tobago did leave a sour taste in the mouths of carnival connoisseurs worldwide.
According to Babbzy, "Trinidad and Tobago’s Carnival is a difficult one to plan for. Over the past couple of years because of Lent shifting dates, the Carnival never seems to land on the same week every year. With Trinidad and Tobago’s extremely high crime rate, Non-Nationals are thinking twice about attending a carnival in a nation that seems to not be able to control their crime situation. Secondly, the music has taken a serious shift. There is less “Pace” soca coming out of Trinidad and many of the "soca songs" are sounding like “EDM” (Electronic Dance Music) rather than soca. All these issues combined make for a tough sell for Trinidad and Tobago’s Carnival".
Babbzy also added, "the Smaller Islands have taken serious strides in promotion for their Carnivals; whether it is Crop Over, Spice Mas, Vincy Mas, Anitgua and Barbuda Carnival you will now see a heavy presence on Social Media and also, via traditional Media methods. Even in liquor stores you will now see promotions for Small Islands right beside their Island branded rum/alcohol".
In conclusion, Babbzy said, "with more promotions and safer conditions than what Trinidad and Tobago has to offer currently, Non-Caribbean nationals who would like to experience Carnival, are now seeking alternative ways and means; and choosing the smaller islands seems to be the direction they are headed. The only obstacle to the alternatives to Trinidad and Tobago’s Carnival is the issue with lack of direct flights to many of the islands. Having to leverage LIAT, which is one of the only ways to get to many of these islands, the opportunity costs does not add up or prove to be profitable. And lets just say LIAT does not have the best reputation in the world when it comes to delivering on it promises, let alone timely arrival and departure flights. So the issue of which carnival is number 1 or number 2, really is a non-issu;, as all islands has something very unique when it comes to the experience of a post emancipation celebration. I will leave it there".
*************************
DISCLAIMER
This article was posted in its entirety as received by SKNVibes.com. This media house does not correct any spelling or grammatical error within press releases and commentaries. The views expressed therein are not necessarily those of SKNVibes.com, its sponsors or advertisers
