Watch Haiti Carnival Live

Watch Haiti's Carnival live tonight (2/27) and tomorrow night (2/28) starting at 6pm Eastern at www.sakapfet.com.


Haiti - Carnival - Caribbean

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Haiti-based Haitian Blogger on Elections and their Aftermath

Here is my latest Global Voices entry translating Haiti-based Yon Ayisyen's latest posts on the presidential election there.

Global Voices - Haiti - Elections - Caribbean

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Snowstorm Blues and Trini Fetes

Sunday's snowstorm was the second all time worst in New York history. I now know how to navigate these things so I can't complain a whole lot. That said, Caribbean-based bloggers helped pass the time (24 full hours)I spent holed up inside.

I dreamt warm and fuzzy festival-laced daydreams thanks to Nicholas Laughlin's Blog and Caribbean Free Radio.

• Nicholas posted a beautiful description of the Muslim festival of Hosay as celebrated in his native Trinidad. As he depicts in detail the wide variety of creeds and races partaking in this technically moslem holiday, he writes: "this place [Trinidad] is a mess, yes, but we've figured a few things out." He's referring to T&T's unique brand of multiculturalism.
• Meanwhile Georgia over at Caribbean Free Radio shares blow by blow accounts of the lead-up to the Trini Carnival taking place at the end of the month. See her My Carnival series. Her experiences compliment Nicholas' quite well and she does admit to running into him at events...
  
  
  Trinidad - Carnival - Hosay - Snowstorm
  
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Asiko at Gureje's

Asiko performed at Brooklyn's Gureje last Saturday night. Asiko is, like Antibalas, a high-life band a la Fela Kuti: a "big band" with a dozen musicians including several drummers, a hefty horn section and a Fela-like lead vocalist. The band is as diverse as Brooklyn itself, including Belizian-American singer and former classmate Nyasha Laing and a Nigerian singer who sings in what is probably Yoruba. Nyasha has been blogging about her travels to Belize over at the Global Parish and may have inspired the band's choice of a garifuna singer as their opening act for the evening.

They gave a great show and Gureje (a high ceilinged club neatly tucked behind a clothing store) has what it takes atmosphere and decor-wise to amplify the experience.

Asiko - Brooklyn - Caribbean-American - Garifuna - Afropop - Nigerian-American

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Haiti-based Haitian Blogger on Tomorrow's Presidential Election

See my Global Voices post summarizing the rare haiti-based Haitian blogger's perspective on tomorrow's election. Yon Ayisyen blogs in French but I translated his remarks.

Haiti - Caribbean - Election

Chauvet's Amour Topic of Port-au-Prince Panel

Amidst a general strike against the UN mission's perceived inaction against insecurity, the recent suicide (or is that killing?) of the head of the UN mission, and delayed elections, a panel took place last week in the Haitian capital about Marie Chauvet's novel Amour, Colere et Folie. (The subject of kiskeyAcity's very first post.) According to a story by www.infohaiti.net, the panel was organized by the franco-haitian academic journal Conjonction and panelists included Alix Emera, Nadève Ménard, Darline Alexis and Yanick Lahens. Among various themes, panelists highlighted the work's relevance to haitian literature and to haitian women's literature.

Haiti - Caribbean - Marie Chauvet - Conjonction

The Holidays, Afghan Restaveks and Diaper Fetishers

• During my holiday blogging hiatus, I read several interesting books.
• I highly recommend The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini--which I am still reading-- especially if you found yourself enthralled with my second to last Restavek post. That is because Runner is essentially about an Afghan version of a restavek, Hassan, but written from the perspective of the boy Hassan spent his life serving. Very compelling book although the end has one or two overly melodramatic twists and turns.
• I also read Are Men Necessary? by Maureen Dowd which I received through my family's secret santa pool. No, no, no, I don't hate men and neither does Ms. Dowd. The book is basically an update for those who wonder what has become of those women who did burn bras in the 60s and of their daughters.
• The answer may or may not be warm and fuzzy as it involves plastic surgery and lots of frivolousness for everyone except maybe ... Hillary Clinton, whose determination to stay true to her 60s' style feminism is a focal point of the book. Oh and let's not forget the surprising diaper fetish among my cohort. Apparently, despite the prized "three letters after our names" --to borrow MBAyisyen's phrase-- Gen X/Y women don't seem to think the corporate ladder is worth the hassle.

Incredible Vegas

Paris?





Vegas! (Paris Hotel. Jan 2006)

China?







Vegas! (Chinese New Year at Hotel Bellagio. Jan 2006.)

Connection to the Caribbean? None. Found out about the Tropicana and Treasure Island too late to be able to visit. Maybe next time?


Las Vegas - Bellagio - Chinese New Year - Paris

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