Barbados Festivals: Crop Over

Crop Over, a five-week summer festival, is Barbados' most popular and
colourful festival. It's origins can be traced back to the 1780's, a time when
Barbados was the world's largest producer of sugar. At the end of the sugar
season, there was always a huge celebration to mark the culmination of another
successful sugar cane harvest - the Crop Over celebration.
As the sugar industry in Barbados declined, so too did the Crop Over
festival and in the 1940's the festival was terminated completely. However, the
festival was revived in 1974 and other elements of Barbadian culture were
infused to make the extravaganza that exists today ..... an event that attracts
thousands of people from across the globe.
- The festival begins with the Ceremonial Delivery
of the Last Canes and the crowning of the King and Queen of the
Festival - the most productive male and female cane cutters of the season.
- The Decorated Cart Parade attracts several
participants, with the carts ranging from miniature models of cars
and buses to decorated bicycles and huge trucks - each cart depicting
a particular theme. Bajans and visitors alike line the route taken by the
carts, often enjoying a snocone and the calypso
music as they watch the carts pass.
- Bridgetown Market
consists of several stalls which sell local food and beverages as well as
local arts and crafts. Enjoy the calypso
music and the live tuk bands as you browse through the stalls.
- Cohobblopot is a
huge carnival-like show with members of the Kadooment bands displaying their
elaborate and stunning costumes. In recent years there has also been a huge
entertainment package with the most popular calypsonians and bands
performing to packed audiences.
- The children are not left out as they can
participate in the Kiddies Kadooment, donning
beautiful costumes and joining their friends in a band to parade before the
judges of the competition.
- Folk concerts and art
and photographic exhibitions are integral parts of the festival,
highlighting Barbadian history and culture as well as the artistic talents
of Bajans.
- Calypso
is one of the main features of the Crop Over festival. The calypsonians are
organised into "tents" (Conquerers, Untouchables, House of Soca,
Pioneers, Stray Cats,etc) and these tents are sponsored by Barbados
businesses. Calypsonians compete for several prizes and titles, including
the Party Monarch, the Road
March Monarch and the Pic-O-De-Crop Monarch.
The semi-finals of the Pic-O-De-Crop competition are held at the picturesque
East Coast Road, where the
calypsonians perform on a stage with the Atlantic surf as the backdrop while
the spectators gather in the hillsides with their picnic baskets. This
magnificent spectacle should not be missed! The finals of the Pic-O-De-Crop
competition is held at the National Stadium, and this is followed by the
Fore-Day Morning Jump-Up!
- The grande finale is the Grand Kadooment!
This carnival parade features large bands with members dressed in elaborate
costumes to depict various themes. Designers compete for the coveted Designer
of the Year prize while the revelers seem more intent on having
a good time! The revelers make their way from the National Stadium to
Spring Garden accompanied by the pulsating rythym of calypso
music. When they reach Spring Garden, the party continues with more
fantastic music, lots of food and drink and, for some, a quick swim at the
nearby beach. A grand end to a grand festival.
Crop Over - more than a carnival!
Barbados Congaline Carnival
Congaline
Carnival was started in 1994 and it's emphasis is on good music and fun! The
most popular part of the festival is the T-shirt carnival parade which begins in
the capital Bridgetown and makes
it's way through the streets of Barbados to the very popular St.Lawrence
Gap. Along the way, revelers dance behind music trucks which carry the most
popular bands, musicians and dee jays.
Come and help form the Caribbean's longest
congaline!
De Human Congaline is the
featured event of Congaline Carnival. During this T-shirt band parade, visitors
and locals, both young and old, join together, arms around each others waist, to
form the congaline - one line, one love, one people.
The Congaline Village is the focal point of the festival. Set up on the
Dover playing field in St.Lawrence
Gap, the village consists of several food and beverage stalls as well as
local arts and crafts stalls. The Village features entertainment in the form of
comedy and music shows, with the music varying from gospel to calypso. The
nighttime entertainment is especially popular, with the best calypso and reggae
singers from Barbados and other Caribbean islands performing.
As you see the colourful spectacle of the Carnival and the diversity of the
people, enjoy the local food and beverages on offer and dance to the sweet
strains of calypso, you will agree that the Congaline Carnival is the
world's greatest street party.
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