Ipswich Art Festival In pictures

Saturday the 29th of June saw Ipswich come alive with a fantastic celebration of T&T's culture. This event was sponsored by the Trinidad and Tobago High Commission to the United Kingdom, and they put together a wonderful cultural display that brought together large crowds to experience what a true celebration of Trinidad and Tobago’s music, cuisine and culture is all about at the annual Ip-Art Festival held at the scenic Christchurch Park in Ipswich, UK.

see what you have missed and relive the experience through these photos

photos courtesy T&T High commission

View Articles here and here

More photos here and here

Happy 50th Anniversary My Sweet Trinidad & Tobago

Just wishing all my fellow Trinidadians and Tobagonians a Heartfelt Happy Independence day...50years and WE as a country still going strong .


Websites to have a look at on Info About T&T Independence

Republic of Trinidad & Tobago Government 

Local news 10   (video link of some celebrations on this site)

Trinidad Express 

Review : Trinidad and Tobago Cultural Village in London

Its been 20 days since the Opening of  the Trinidad and Tobago Cultural Village. I am guessing by now most of you all would have visited. Probably to take your kids and enjoy the children's workshop, the dance workshop, music workshop, browse around 'the trade expo', enjoy the delicious dishes of Trinidad, liming round d 'rum shop' bar area or even just to sit , relax and enjoy performances from Orange Sky,3Canal and Machel and the HD family to name a few.

Well for those who have visited thus far, I would really love to hear what you all think of the Village, because i have a fair amount to write ,
My personal views :

• The Location - I thought it was a bit far but we all managed to get to and fro, but I will suggest in the future that a more central venue is sourced.
• The Venue - Loved the décor at the Tricycle it really did give you that feeling as tho you stepped out of a travel machine that took you straight to Trinidad with no stopovers lol lol .                          Despite the village scoring A+ on the decor I must say the size of the venue definitely could have been bigger especially with the amount of people that gathered for 2 of the mass bands AWL (after work lime) and for Machel concert. A bigger venue definitely would have been much better.
• Trade expo - this bit I was definitely disappointed with. Its my understanding that this area should have been dedicated to exhibiting goods and services from Trinidad/UK and Trinidad, and all this was lacking. The trade expo room only had tables set up with some Matouk's products, Sacha Cosmetics some exotic chocolate and the some UK carnival bands showcasing their 2012 presentation.                                                           In my opinion if we are showcasing Trinidad I am pretty sure we could have come way better than what's on display in that room. Is that all Trinidad trade has to offer?                                                                                                                    However the Gallery offered a much better feel and vibe for our Trinidadian Artists and Culture..Some of the art work were for display purposes and some were for sale
• Food - the food huts are set up at the entrance and are brilliantly decorated to look like beach huts which were appropriately named after  places and dishes in Trinidad...( Debe Roti shop,Woodbrook Cafe ) the food wasn't bad as well, each hut had a different menu , either Pelau,bbq chicken, roti,doubles,phlourie ,trini sweets, and ice cream to name a few. (all food and drink purchased must be paid for with chits...the venue does not take card )
• Entertainment - despite the theatre being small , I must say I loved the intimate (sold out) small audience feel when listening and watching 3 Canal and Machel perform...the vibes will always be there because trinis know how to enjoy themselves . Fantastic performances from all artist that came and perform

So my final verdict : if you have kids on their school holidays and you are looking for something for them to do, check out the Village schedule and entertain them with the various workshops, but don't expect much from the 'Trade expo though', there is not much in there that will attract you besides the carnival costumes. The best bit of the village (besides the liming by the rum shop  ;) ) is the evening entertainment. The village did put together a brilliant line from Soca music,comedy,story telling,steel pan ,jazz, film festival  and many others.

You still have almost 2 weeks left. So check out the schedule and see what interests you and head over. 

A quick look at some photos from the Village from over the 2 weeks I have been and a few photos from a couple of the days with Machel in concert the balance of the pictures can be found on the Facebook page  

 Entrance

Entrance and Food Area

Gallery

Trade expo 

Entertainment 

 More Photos HERE 

Review on TnT cultural village .....SOON!!!!!!

OK , so I have been to the Trinidad and Tobago Cultural Village 4 times now  since it was launched and I have loads to say...but I think I will reserve my thoughts until the end of this week or Next week....as I am due to make a few more visits and take a few more pictures.

(The wait is only to make sure that things are definitely different on each night before I comment )

So stay tuned for more !!!!


REVIEW SOON!!!!!!

Trinidad and Tobago Cultural Village / Cultural Festival

So for everyone that is interested and has been asking about the Trinidad and Tobago Culture Fest from the 25th July -25th August (see earlier post)

The event is FREE, but for some events you will have to register on-line to get the FREE tickets in order to enter ( eg...for all the concerts that are scheduled )

All relevant information and links you will need are listed below :

Info - Trinidad and Tobago High Commission 

Tickets - Trinidad Cultural Village - eventbrite

Event Schedule - Trinidad Cultural Village

Mini Carnival at London Heathrow Airport

Mini Carnival at London Heathrow Airport!!!!!!!

I must commend all parties involved for flying the Trinidad and Tobago flag very HIGH in London-town this morning.

Bright and early all arrivals and departures at London Heathrow were treated to the sweet sounds of Steel Pan, and dazzled with the beauty of Our Colourful UK mas bands carnival costumes. Beauty!!!!

If Londoners and/or foreigners didn't know about Trinidad before...well this morning they were given a brief lesson of Trinidad and our culture. :)

As part of the Trinidad and Tobago High Commission in London's Cultural Fest for the the Olympic season....they organised a mini warm meet and greet celebration for all the Trinidad Olympic hopefuls and others.

Entertainment provided ; a Steel orchestra and a snippet of what UK Carnival has to offer with costumes, from some well known UK mas bands : Bacchanalia , Mass with a difference (part of the Poison uk line up) and Shipwrecked

See photos below.

Photo credit : Trinidad and Tobago Cultural Village
Round of applause for a great showcase..Well done guys!!!! :)

see more photos HERE