1,000,000 people, check. Music, check. Sunshine, check. Whistles and vu vu zelas, check. Jerk chicken, check. Rum and coke in an Evian bottle, check! I can think of no better way to spend the bank holiday weekend than heading to Notting Hill Carnival for what was literally the biggest and bestest street party I've EVER been to. I may not look it, but I'm very partial to a skank and a whine to the best soca, bashment, dancehall, raggae, dubstep, hip hop and R n B and Notts Hill had it ALL. Two years ago, I was lucky enough to go to Jamaica with my best friend Ify, and stay with our friend who is Yahdie through and through. She got us fully involved in Kingston carnival with the full sequin bra get up and feather head dress! (see below- guess which one's me!) It was amazing and I felt like I was back there this weekend. Residents open their homes for carnival goers needing a wee which looking at the queues outside the pubs and getting the nasty whiffs from the portaloos, I know which I'd rather! Colourful costumes, amazing sounds and tempting smells every where, I wish I could live in a carnival everyday of my life. I'm on a serious carnival comedown after what may have possibly been the most fun I've had in England! Of course, where there's 1,000,000 hyper, tipsy people, there is also the occassional bit of drama. We were heading to the Radio One Rampage stage at one point only to realise everyone else was running in the opposite direction. Similar to the stampeed scene in The Lion King, minus the hyenas, jungle cats and miles and miles of flat, dusty terrain. We think someone got punched or stabbed as we then saw a guy being carried out, unconcious, by his group of furious looking friends, but then a good song came on and everyone forgot that we'd feared for our lives a few seconds earlier! I also had an encounter with a European lady who wasn't happy with me getting a picture with a guy that she wanted to get a picture with. I think she was annoyed when I kept laughing and posing to which she hurled abuse at me and got moved along by her friend, DOH!
Apart from those episodes of standard hostility, it was a great day and I didn't want it to end. After the 2nd jerk chicken stop, it was suggested we headed home, to which I nearly cried! I could have carried on dancing to the early hours (thanks to my converse!) but we went home and had a few more drinks before collapsing into bed. BLISS! Only 363 days until the next one then.....!
