 |
| Super Heroes Dancin' photo by MM Figueroa. |
Carnaval! (In English: Carnival!)
Crazy
colourful costumes, pulse-pounding music and exuberant dancers –
it's the best time of the year to visit Isla Mujeres.
The annual
five-day event kicked off on Friday night with the traditional
coronation of the kings and queens representing various segments of
the island population.
 |
| Yadira Medina Velazquez in the middle |
Early
on Saturday afternoon, I popped out to a Kyra Thompson Drennan and
Bruce Saaranen's house to watch our friend Yadira
Medina Velázquez and her amigas
dance in the street.
When I arrived, Freddy Medina pointed out that a latch was open on
the bottom of my camera. I looked inside, empty! I had
accidentally left the camera's memory card in my computer at home!
No memory for my camera – and apparently I have no memory.
Fortunately, Janet Davison had a card that I could borrow for a few
hours. Saved! Thank you! On with the show!
 |
| Dramatic black and purple costumes |
Thumping
music, smiling people and the ladies swinging and swaying to the
tunes. Awesome. The twelve women danced several times in the hot
afternoon sun, stopping only briefly for a costume change. The first
costume was dramatic purple and black, the second cheerful lime green
and hot pink. These impromptu and intimate performances are, for us,
the best part of Carnaval. It's a chance to get to know the dancers
and their friends.
 |
| Saturday night in Centro waiting to dance |
Later
on Saturday evening, we trekked down to Centro with John and Maia to
watch the Cuban dance band. We arrived around 9:30, and the square
was packed with people. People watching the dancers. People buying
food from the street vendors. People enjoying a warm Caribbean
night. We watched several dance troupes run through their
energetic routines until around 11:00 in the evening. By then, we
were too tired to wait any longer for the Cuban band and trekked
back home.
 |
| Red Devil Angels & White Saintly Angels. |
The few taxis that we saw were overflowing with
passengers. No chance of a ride that night. Fortunately, we are only
about a twenty-minute walk from Centro, but when you are sleepy, that
twenty minutes seems like twenty hours.
On
Sunday, Alexis and Darren Grabby asked us to stop by their house. A
neighbour across the street is in a dance troupe, and her group was
putting on a show for the neighbourhood. The ladies were a bit late
arriving, but eventually a collection of red devil angels and white
saintly angels showed up on a convoy of motorcycles. They looked a
bit weary; however, they cranked up the tunes and ripped through
several dances with big smiles on their faces.
 |
| Kids troupe - dancing on another street |
While
the red devils and white angels were performing at Alexis and
Darren's casa, we noticed a second group arrive just a block away.
I
snapped a few photographs of the young dancers. They were all about
elementary age; a dozen young ladies, and one brave young man. He
seemed to be enjoying himself: a lot.
 |
| Kids, kids, kids! |
And
then it was time to scoot downtown to see the first parade. We met
up with a dozen or so friends on the upper deck at Jax Bar &
Grill, settling in to wait for the 3:00 o'clock start time.…......
waiting, waiting, waiting. No one was particularly worried as the
time was consumed with eating good food and drinking cold beverages.
It's a very pleasant way to pass an afternoon with friends.
 |
| King & Queen of Carnaval, heavy headdresses |
About
an hour past the scheduled start time, we could hear the police
motorcycles' sirens clearing the roadway, and luring sunbathers off
the beaches and swimmers out of the ocean. Parade time!
The
first group to arrive were the reigning King and Queen of Carnaval,
toting heavy feathered headdresses and brocade costumes, followed by
their feather-bedecked entourage.
Then the other groups flowed past –
each stopping at the reviewing stand to dance for the judges. Teenagers in orange, black and red. Youngsters in blue, red and
gold. Grandmothers in sparkling pink, yellow and purple.
 |
| Lime & Orange costumes - very tropical |
Thirty-something women in lime green and orange. Supermen –
plural. Wonder Women – plural. By
the time Carnaval is over, the roads will be littered with small
decorations that have fallen off various costumes. Hundreds of
brightly coloured feathers are already fluttering forlornly on the
edges of the road – so many hues, I wonder if a flock of
psychedelically-dyed poultry had recently met its demise.
 |
| Grandmothers kicking up their heels! |
The
five days flow together in a confusion of colour, motion, and music, and soon it will be done for another year. Hasta Luego
Lynda, Lawrie, Sparky, and Thomas the Cat
%20Instagram%20%231.jpg)
.JPG)
