This year was my first time at the Notting Hill Carnival. I went to the Children's Day part of the carnival with my best friend (I didn't really expect to go, I just made a last-minute decision to go, which I don't actually regret when looking back). I've been told that Children's Day is calm and pretty child friendly, so having gone there I kind of missed the big deal of carnival (Adult's Day). However, I was so exhausted towards the end of the Bank Holiday Weekend because I had a whirlwind weekend and was just busy, busy, busy. Plus, as an introvert I felt the need to retreat to my happy place and just relax before I went back home to my city.
I initially went to London to join
ISIS to the Woman In The Jungle Hair and Beauty Show. The Saturday was adventurous, at times stressful but highly rewarding... we made it. We received incredible feedback and the love for ISIS was amazing. ISIS is making
strides.
We also had an encounter with Valley Fontaine at the event, who ended up interviewing ISIS CEO/Co-Founder Linda Graham on BBC Radio the next night (WOW!!!). So that Bank Holiday Weekend was just
amazing for me and the people around me.
Back to the Carnival. The day was hot as hell. We jumped on the tube to Notting Hill and the way we all struggled for oxygen every time the tube doors opened... thank God I went with my instincts and actually wore a T-shirt and jeans that day and also my typical, signature Converses made for comfortable walking.
Despite the seemingly good prep, I messed up. I took a big tote and my coat inside it. Imagine carrying around a big bag behind a float with 100-odd people dancing right behind it,
never again.
The first part of the day was calm. There were many people, but it was clear that as the day progressed, more and and more people attended. Me and my friend sort of looked around for the
Chocolate Nation float, where my friend
Hunii was. After a frantic search which included me and my best friend losing each other, we finally found Hunii and her float. I definitely had a proper workout that day, I'm sure I didn't need the gym for another two weeks after that.
Being someone who does not appreciate claustrophobia, I was surprised that I didn't struggle too much with all the touching, grinding and bumping in. I even danced and genuinely had fun. The only thing that I struggled with was the consistent walking (my feet were done at the end of the day). Also, some creepy guy tried to flirt with me and it became pretty scary at one point but then he got the message.
Now here are some of the pics I had taken with my Canon 600D. I used different settings for the different scenes. I still have a lot of practicing to do and should have also used the grid feature on the camera but hey. Practice makes perfect.
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| The sheer irony... |
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| Trinidad represent! |
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| In commemoration of the 50th March on Washington |
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| The beautiful sky. |
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| This boy is so cute! |
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| Paint everywhere. |
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| I personally love this picture. |
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| People everywhere. |
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| Love her locs. |
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| The chocolate lady. |
This woman smeared chocolate on my face!
At the Chocolate Nation float, bottles of chocolate was sprayed all over us. My friend got the most chocolate. I had chocolate on my shoes, T-shirt and my camera! It was all a little messy, but I really did enjoy myself.
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| 'Check me out!'. |
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| These guys asked for a picture, LOL! |
I will go again next year!
