Caribana takes its 'last lap'

Several thousand people did the final "jump up" yesterday at Ontario Place for Scotiabank Caribana 2009.

Organizers said that even with the garbage strike and cooler temperatures, the turnout for the festival was on par with last year's numbers.

"God must be Caribbean," festival spokesman Alicia Sealey said with a laugh yesterday. "In spite of all the challenges we had with the strike and the weather, we had such strong partnerships with corporate companies to accommodate our needs in a short amount of time."

More than 1.2 million people lined Lake Shore Blvd. W. to watch Saturday's parade and roughly 7,000 made the trip to Ontario Place for "de caribana lime," Sealey said.

The recession also didn't affect the festival, which she attributed to more corporate sponsorship that recognized "the power of Caribana."

"The only thing we noticed was the size of the masks and costumes didn't seem as elaborate as past years," Sealey said. "Feather plumes are expensive, so they used less feathers. But it was no less beautiful."

This year's Caribana raked in $300 million to $350 million on events, hotels, restaurants and overall tourism, she said.

Yesterday's closing festivities included an evening parade of more than 200 dancers in colourful costumes and three steel drum bands.

"Caribana is part of our heritage," said Donald Carr, a 60-something theatre performer originally from Jamaica, who was dancing in a "black angel" themed costume in last night's parade.
"It's empowering and a celebration of different cultures."

Both tourists and locals enjoyed food, music and entertainment yesterday.

"I am born Trinidadian and have been designing costumes for the past 20 years," said Montreal resident Norma Smith-O'Neill, 60. "It's the costumes, foremost, steel bands and the families, which keep me coming back."

Torontonian Shella Francois, 40, said she hopes the festival transfers back to the island next year. She has been coming to the parades for 25 years.

"Some things you had to pay for, so it becomes expensive," she said. "I also hope they have more info for tourists. I was sitting up in the stands explaining the history of the festival."
As for next year, it's going to get better, organizers say.

"In Trinidad, we call this a 'last lap,' " Sealey said, describing the closing ceremonies. "We hope it'll be bigger and better next year ... with no strike of any kind."

JENNY.YUEN@SUNMEDIA.CA