Trinbagonians have a well-deserved reputation for partying. With thirteen public holidays embodying T&T's cultural and ethnic diversity, there are plenty of occasions to celebrate.
Carnival , held on the Monday and Tuesday before Ash Wednesday, is the most famous - a hedonistic two days of drinking and dancing in ornate and revealing costumes. In Trinidad , especially in Port of Spain, everything shuts down for two days, and increasingly three, as people use Ash Wednesday to recover. Other popular Trinidadian celebrations are the Islamic Hosay during May-June, and the Hindu Phagwa festival. The festival of Diwali , celebrated nationwidein late October, honours the Hindu goddess of light. Deyas - small oil-wick candles - are lit in every house.
For music lovers October's World Steel Band Festival , known as "Pan is Beautiful", features music ranging from classical to the latest calypso tunes. In May, the month-long steel-band festival Pan Ramajay is held, and December is the season of parang - nativity songs sung in Spanish, sounding more Latin American than Caribbean.
In Tobago the eagerly awaited Tobago Heritage Festival occurs in the last two weeks of July and features traditional customs, story-telling and festivities. The Charlotteville Fisherman's Fete , held on Man O' War Bay in the middle of July, is a wild beach party. On the Tuesday after Easter in Buccoo, crab and goat races are held. These bizarre spectacles are entertaining to watch - though for those betting they're no laughing matter. For the latest information on events and a festival calendar, contact TIDCO at 868/623-6022.
Public holidays
January 1 New Year's Day
December/January Eid-ul-Fitr
March/April Good Friday, Easter Monday
March 30 Spiritual Baptist (Shouter) Liberation Day
May/June Corpus Christi
May 30 Indian Arrival Day
June 19 Labour Day
August 1 Emancipation Day
August 31 Independence Day
October Diwali
December 25 Christmas Day
December 26 Boxing Day
Phagwa
A lighthearted celebration of the arrival of spring, the Hindu Holi festival - known in Trinidad as Phagwa (pronounced "pag-wah") - is held in March. Upbeat and carnivalesque, Phagwa celebrations are massive outdoor parties that represent a symbolic triumph of light over darkness. The festivities include the singing of devotional folk songs called chowtals , but the main focus is an intense fuchsia-pink dye known as abir , which is squirted from plastic bottles over participants wearing white. Games add to the fun; adults participate in makhan chor , where teams form a human pyramid in order to grab a suspended flag, while children compete in roti eating contests. Chaguanas hosts one of the largest celebrations in Trinidad, in an open space off Longdenville Old Road. There are other gatherings at Aranguez Savannah in San Juan and at Couva, but none is widely publicized - contact TIDCO for the exact dates (tel 868/623-6022).
