More junior mas camps as bands prepare for carnival
The countdown is on and we’re less than two weeks away from carnival 2010. The judging started on Wednesday and on Thursday night, News Five was also on hand when other mass camps in the junior segment of the competition, showed off their costumes and dance steps. By all indications, it will be a fierce contest among the bands and Safiyyah discovered that not even the humid night slowed down the revellers. Here’s her report.
Safiyyah Mohammed, Reporting
It was a humid Thursday night in the streets of Belize City, but that had no effect on the mini-masqueraders at our first stop, Pickstock Carnival Band. We took a moment to check out a few of the costumes and find out how the preparations for the carnival had been going.
Gareth Gill, Organizers, Pickstock Carnival Band
gareth gill
“It has been good. We’ve had a dance, we have fundraising, we’ve been there, we doing car wash. That has been very good to us. Every, every Saturday we make like three to four hundred dollars with carwash so we doing a thing. Well the kids for me have been excellent. I have one hundred and five members strong. I have never found no carnival band who have that like Pickstock.”
Gill told us his theme and line up for the carnival.
Gareth Gill
“We have four sections. The first section is bountiful. That’s anything that man creates’; we go into crime, when you create fruits and everything. You don’t want to go into your fruits and everything fi bruk up. You noh want no gunshot or nothing fi bruk up yoh fruits. You no want nothing eena your fruits. When you come out a fruits you go into crime. When you come out a crime you go into forest. Forest dah weh you gain, weh all yoh reap, di animals you put in and everything. When you come out of the forest you go into prosperity. All the bands for me are winners. We are only going out to compete on that day. And the best lies in the hands of the judges.”
Our second stop was Mahogany Masqueraders and these junior dancers were full of energy and spunk, showing everyone they were ready for carnival day. Nadia Avila is the brains behind these masqueraders and she told us all about her group.
Nadia Avila, Organizers, Mahogany Masqueraders
nadia avila
“My theme is you better Belize it, Belize at 2010. We are Belize, that’s my theme. I have eighty members. I had to turn back children because I don’t have the space, I don’t have the funding. We have dance every two weeks that is what helps me. I have good parents. My humble assistant, Andrew Milton, he designed my costumes, Andrew Middleton; he’s a chef at the Radisson. I have five guys that don’t speak. I have a child that’s disabled. He can’t see through one eye. He can’t speak nor hear but he’s jamming. We’re ready for the road march.”
Our final stop for the night was the Jump Street Posse who brought the carnival spirit to Rio Grande Crescent. Even I was taken by the carnival spirit. After I had my fun, I spoke Ms Marina Welcome about her chosen theme for this year.
marina welcome
Marina Welcome, Organizer, Jump Street Posse
“This is our beautiful gem, right, Belize. So I decided to stray a little and remember that Belize dah fi we. So now we di tek wi back Belize. So Jump Street coming out Belize Style. You gotta come out. You gotta look out for Jump Street Posse because we’re coming you way live and direct. And you no have to ask if dah Jump Street Posses, cause you know dah Jump Street when you see the costume.”
Well I don’t know about you but these mini masqueraders sure got me pumped for the road march. Make sure you look out the senior mas camps next week. Reporting for News Five, I’m Safiyyah Muhammad.
