Jamaican Rude Boyz doing their thing!

The day of Caribana, I woke up and the only things on my mind were coffee, shower, and getting down to the parade route. As we made our way down to the parade route on Lakeshore Blvd. looking for parking, we could hear the music and see swarms of people going all towards the Parade entrance.  20 years later with parking is still a hassle, we lucked out and found parking on a grassy knoll.

As we got to Caribana and paid the $20 to enter the near 5-mile parade route - it all came back to me - the sights, smells, and sounds of the biggest day of the summer for West Indians in Toronto. The roasted corn was still there and I indulged.

  Three Guyanese Women

The music filled up my eardrums and automatically and the floats were just as beautiful as I remembered. I felt something I didn't feel as a child. I felt proud. Proud that this was my culture and I was a part of it.

The whole goal of any parade is to get into it and march along with the floats and masqueraders - which we call Mash. After strategizing the best way to sneak onto the parade route - we made the dash and walked behind a float to avoid the security guards blocking the entrance.  We made it in and mashed the entire 5 miles with the floats and masqueraders.

The mirage of reds, oranges, purples, greens surrounded us and I blended in like a regular when one of the masqueraders threw me her beads to tie around my leg. We watched in amazement at the Jamaican Rude Boyz dancing in perfect synchronization, the Indian girls moving their bodies in sultry and exotic ways, and the locals tearing it up on the streets with their own versions of dance moves. You cannot help but to catch the beat yourself!

Before I knew it - we were at the end of the 5-mile route and we did it all without a bathroom break! Now we're off to see Jay-Z and Kanye West, Roc-A- Fella recording artists that came up to Caribana to perform what they call - Roc-Da-Caribana. 

  The bus is rolling out

As I walked back to the car, with the help of piggyback rides from my boyfriend, I reflected on returning to Caribana and experiencing the same 'ole with a new family.  This family will be the kind that you make, not the kind you're born into. Good friends to share in the good times. 

I can't wait 'til next year!

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