A Caribbean carnival of carnivals

Unlike the rest of the world where carnivals are typically held in February (the most famous of which are in Venice and Rio), visitors to the Caribbean can find a carnival at almost any time of year. Islands such as Trinidad and St Lucia where the original colonists were Catholics tend to keep their carnivals on the traditional schedule, meaning they climax in the pre-Lenten period before Ash Wednesday, usually around February. But elsewhere, local festivals like the July Harvest Festival on the former British colony of Barbados have morphed into huge events with all the trappings of carnival.

No matter the name or origin, all of these explosions of creative energy share raucous dance, pounding music and flamboyant costumes that combine into one heaving, sweaty orgy of colour and sound. And while Caribbean carnivals share much, each has its own flavour. You will need to visit many – if not all – to get the complete picture of what is always the main event on each island's calendar.

Visitors are welcome at all these events and you can fully expect to be swept up in frenetic, hectic riot of it all. So pick your month, pick your carnival and enjoy the celebration.

February

Trinidad has one of the world's largest carnivals. The celebrations begin up to eight months in advance, with costumes becoming more elaborate and spectacular every year and hundreds of calypso bands preparing their music. Easily the pulsing heart of Caribbean carnival creativity, the island’s sounds are constantly evolving -- you may hear booming rapso (a mixture of calypso and rap) or the latest variation on soca (the ubiquitous carnival sound that started on Trinidad 50 years ago and combines calypso, soul and African among many other influences). It is a huge honour (and a large cash prize) to be named the Calypso Monarch, the person chosen in national judging for their musical performances.

Affluent Aruba’s local music tradition is also a focus of its carnival celebration. Parades last for about four weeks before Ash Wednesday, with the entire island thronging in the capital, Oranjestad, for the Grand Parade on the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday. The parade includes the ritual burning of an effigy of King Momo, a bad spirit. Most carnivals throughout the Caribbean, even the ones most closely linked to religious traditions, have a component of old African mysticism and often involve the exorcising of evil spirits.

All the French-speaking islands celebrate carnival for at least five days before Ash Wednesday, and St-Barthélemy has one of the best around. It has all the expected parades, music competitions, pageants -- but because of the island's small size, the festivities seem all-pervasive. Here, King Carnival is the name given to the evil spirit and he goes up in smoke on beautiful Shell Beach.

April

Jamaica's week-long carnival celebrates the island's world-famous music. On Easter, bands from across the region converge in the capital, Kingston, for festivals that start on the beaches and parade through the streets.

July

Back in the 17th Century when Barbados was largely British sugar plantations, the slaves and locals began celebrating the cane harvest with the appropriately named Crop Over Festival in late July. Over the years it has become a proper carnival, the second-largest in the Caribbean after Trinidad's. Calypso band competitions begin in mid-July and peak on the first Monday in August, called Kadooment Day (Bajan slang for 'big commotion', when Barbados is one big party. Once an island of carnival mania, the celebrations in Cuba became muted in the early 1960s -- with the notable exception of island's second city Santiago de Cuba, which throws a bash as good as any despite official efforts to discourage it. The spirit and vigour are raw, and you sense island-wide carnival energies just below the surface waiting to explode should change come to Cuba. Sint Eustatius may be small, but its late July carnival is not. Like many islands, it has a midnight-to-dawn parade that ends with the burning of an effigy -- here charmingly called Prince Stupid -- to rid the island of evil. Given the island only has 3400 inhabitants, this carnival is almost one-big family reunion. The mid-July carnival on the island of St Lucia is one of the Caribbean's largest, as seemingly every one of the 170,000 islanders has a vital role to play. The capital Castries shuts down for a week so it can explode in colour, song, dance and non-stop revelry.

August

In Antigua, the abolition of slavery on 1 August 1834 is the root of this suitably free-spirited bash which reaches its wild peak on the first Tuesday in August. Like other carnivals, music is a key component, but on Antigua there is even more of an emphasis on entertaining the jubilant masses island-wide. Bands of all sizes thread their way around the island visiting villages big and small to party before heading to the capital, St John’s, for the final explosion.

December

Junkanoo, as the party is called in the Bahamas, has its roots in secret West African societies before slavery. Now a fully-fledged carnival in terms of music, dance, colour and costumes, it kicks off on Boxing Day (26 December) for a short and frenzied swirl of parties and parades that culminate on New Year’s Day (1 January). Personal 'floats' worn by one person and weighing up to 90kg vie for prizes and star in parades in the capital, Nassau. There is another flurry in July, mostly because it has already been six months since the last Junkanoo.

Sex and the Beach: Caribbean Sex Guide

The Caribbean is known as one of the most romantic vacation destinations on Earth, but island getaways are not only about long walks on the beach and spooning in hammocks. "Hooking up" is also a big part of the appeal for newlyweds spending their first extended time together as husband and wife very often use some anabolic steroids, parents escaping the kids for a few precious days, or singles looking to connect for a vacation fling.

Nearly every Caribbean resort has the kind of amenities that can make for a romantic vacation, including sun-drenched beaches, hot tubs, nightclubs, and couples-friendly activities like horseback riding or catamaran cruises. If your goal is to stoke the fires of passion with that special someone, you can make it happen at almost any decent hotel or destination.

Some resorts, however, stress the erotic over the romantic, where activities can include nude limbo contests, body painting, and fetish dance parties - and the Desires resort in Cancun, which unabashedly promotes itself as a destination for couples looking to explore "alternative lifestyles" - such as swapping partners in a special "play room" conveniently located next to the resort's disco.

The Caribbean also is home to a number of other clothing-optional resorts, as well as resorts that have special areas set aside for nude sunbathing and swimming. However, in most cases nude does not necessarily translate into "naughty": a few clothing-optional resorts do cater to swingers, for example, but more appeal to nudists and naturists who don't view nudity in a relentlessly sexual context, and in fact ban overt sexual behavior. 

The Seven Natural Wonders of the Caribbean

In a region where the natural beauty of tropical rainforests, pristine beaches and colorful reefs are among the main attractions, you'll find plenty of nominees that merit inclusion in any "best of" list. 

The Baths, Virgin Gorda, British Virgin Islands - The Baths is the Caribbean snorkeler's paradise, a jumble of ancient underwater boulders that form a series of caves, grottos and pools along the coast of Virgin Gorda in the British Virgin Islands. Thanks to the calm and sheltered waters, even the most novice snorkeler can enjoy the beauty of the coral-kissed rock formations as tbey paddle from hidden pools right up onto the shore of the main beach. There's nothing more refreshing than a plunge into the sparkling sea after exploring The Bath's intricate shore caves - it can take an hour or more of clambering and snaking through the rocks to see them all.

Bioluminescent Bay, Vieques, Puerto Rico - A kayak trip down a narrow mangrove river leads to Vieques' Bahia Fosforescente, or Biolumnescent Bay, which is both a unique natural site and a wonderful experience for visitors to Puerto Rico. The bay's shallow and bacteria-rich waters provide the ideal environment for one-celled protozoa that use bioluminescence, or light creation, as a defense mechanism. In other words, these microorganisms light up when disturbed, either by a predator or a swimming tourist.

On a moonless night, a swim in the biolumanescent bay of Vieques is truly a magical experience as ripples and waves of light stream from your paddling arms and wiggling fingers. If you can't make it out to Vieques, there's also a bioluminescent bay in Fajardo can that be reached via day-trip from San Juan. 

Bonaire National Marine Park - In a region where nearly every destination has a reef system and boast of its diving opportunities, Bonaire is acknowledged as one of the true meccas for scuba buffs and snorkelers. Bonaire's National Marine Park literally surrounds the island, from the shoreline to the point where the water reaches 200 feet in depth, and is the best protected reef system in the Caribbean. Human activites, while closely controlled, range from swimming, kayaking and windsurfing to diving and snorkeling.

El Yunque Rain Forest, Puerto Rico - The Caribbean's most famous rain forest is also it's most beautiful, one of the crown jewels of the U.S. National Park Service. The Puerto Rico park isn't huge, but its 28,000 acres includes staggering biodiversity - home to thousands of native plants and hundreds of animal species. With 600,000 annual visitors, El Yunque can sometimes feel a bit overwhelmed, but quieter experiences can be had in the summer (when locals enjoy a dip in the cool rivers, largely away from tourists), spring, and fall. Hiking, fishing, and even camping is available to those who truly want to immerse themselves in the rainforest experience.

The Pitons, St. Lucia - One of the iconic vistas not only of St. Lucia but in the entire Caribbean, the twin volcanic peaks of the Pitons rise dramatically from the sea. The Pitons Management Area, a UNESCO World Heritage site, includes active hot springs, coral reefs, and tropical forests. Hardy visitors to St. Lucia take the challenge of hiking to the top of the 2,619-foot Gros Piton (Petit Piton, at 2,461 feet, is off limits to climbers).

Pitch Lake, Trinidad - Some call the Pitch Lake of Trinidad the ugliest tourist attraction in the Caribbean, and some visitors have likened its appearance to a giant parking lot. But this bubbling, hissing, stinky 100-acre lake of liquid asphalt is the largest of its kind in the world, and well worth a visit. Located near the town of La Brea, the Pitch Lake is 350 feet deep, and visitors can walk on parts of its crusty surface. Guides will show you how the lake is constantly moving and swallowing some items, spitting out others. The lake, which contains an estimated 6 million tons of asphalt, is replenished from pitch veins that run deep below the earth's surface.

Soufriere Hills Volcano, Montserrat - The highly active, sometimes angry Soufriere Hills volcano in Montserrat has been both a blessing and curse to local residents. A major eruption of the volcano beginning in 1995 devastated the tiny island, rendering the entire southern half of Montserrat uninhabitable, burying the capital city of Plymouth under tons or ash, and killing 18 people. But the volcano also is an irresistible lure for island visitors, who can view current eruptions and abandoned buildings from a former golf course now covered by volcanic mudflows. Tourists also can visit the Montserrat Volcano Observatory, which closely monitors activity at Soufriere Hills.

The Best Authentic Caribbean Gifts and Souvenirs

Adopt a Turtle - Want to make someone feel good at the holidays, and feel like you did something good yourself? Adopt an endangered sea turtle on behalf of the person you love.

Angostura Bitters from Trinidad - a secret mix of herbs and spices used as a cocktail mixer and cure-all for a variety of ailments.

Batik from St. Kitts or Andros - The Caribelle Batik Factory on St. Kitts, located in an old sugar plantation, is bursting with colorfully dyed fabrics and clothing, from sarongs to dresses to pillow covers and wall hangings.

Caribbean Gift Baskets - Caribbean Tastes can put together a custom gift basket stuffed with Caribbean goods like rum, spices, fruit, and more.

Caribbean Rum - Other than sunshine, the Caribbean's most famous export is rum, and this liquor distilled from molasses (a byproduct of sugarcane cultivation) remains the most popular souvenir for Caribbean travelers.

Curacao Liqueur - Made from the peels of the laraha fruit grown on Curacao (a type of bitter orange), this liqueur is famous for giving color to drinks like the Blue Hawaiian and the blue margaritas you'll find at many bars.

Guava Cheese - Guava cheese doesn't actually contain any cheese -- it's the quirky name for an authentic treat found in Caribbean islands like Trinidad and Nevis and made of fresh guava and cane sugar, plus flavorings like cinnamon or lime juice.

Guavaberry from St. Maarten - The Guavaberry shop in Philipsburg, St. Maarten is one of the island's most popular tourist destinations and the best place to pick up a bottle of St. Maarten's folk liqueur, made from a rare and bitter local berry found in the island's interior. In addition to rum blended with guavaberries, the shop stocks guavaberry honey, hot sauces, and other products.

Island Charms Jewelry - Island Charms produces original jewelry crafted in the shape of islands like Anguilla, Antigua, Aruba, Grand Cayman, St. Croix, St. Martin, and St. Thomas, with more on the way. Made of sterling silver or 14k gold, the islands are adorned with Swarovski crystals denoting the location of capitals or major attractions.

Jimmy Buffett's Christmas CD - Singer/songwriter Jimmy Buffett is the personification of laid-back Caribbean cool, and his "Christmas Island" CD will warm up even the chilliest winter day.

• Model Ships from Bequia
• Spices from Grenada
• St. Croix Cookbook
• St. Croix Hook Bracelet
• DVD on the History of Montserrat
• Tortuga Rum Cake

Taste Of The Caribbean: Kilibibi

When the going got really tough during the Great Depression, people ate dirt. Literally! Thankfully, the current global economic mess hasn’t had as profound an impact on most of us, but really, who isn’t trying to slash their grocery bill these days? Enter the magical chefs from the island of Martinique with a gourmet twist on the most desperate of Great Depression meals, Kilibibi.

A simple, sweet cereal enjoyed plain, with milk or molasses, Kilibibi consists primarily of sand – yes, the same impossibly ubiquitous granules that we scold our kids for putting in their mouths and whipping at their friends. Here’s how you turn grains of sand into gastronomy:

Rinse sand and heat it in a large pot. Add uncooked popcorn and stir, bringing popped grains to the surface. Once all the popcorn has popped, sift out the sand with a strainer and store in a large bowl. Grind popcorn to a powder using a mortar, then combine with sand, add 300g of cane sugar, cinnamon, grated nutmeg.

Bon appetit!

Points Of Interest in Anguilla

Sandy Ground  is “the entertainment capital of Anguilla.”  A sleepy village by day, at night the imaginative beach bars, and fun and casual restaurants come alive with music, dancing and lively conversation. At night the popular “Pumphouse” jams with dancing, drinking and fun, but by day The Old Salt Factory & Pumphouse is a historic site that showcases the once thriving salt economy. During holidays, Sandy Ground hops all day.  Whether you come down to “lime” (hang out) or “mash sand” (dance), it is usually the place to be, and to be yourself. 

The Old Valley  - On the road to Crocus Hill, is the area of town that Anguillians refer to as The Old Valley.  Here there are a number of architectural examples from Anguilla’s yesteryear.  Ebenezer’s Methodist Church, Miss Marjorie’s House, The Warden’s Place, Rose Cottage, and other graceful buildings are a reminder of Anguilla’s beautiful past. 

Crocus Bay - Crocus Hill - the highest point on Anguilla at 213 feet above sea level, crowns the beautiful turquoise bay and offers spectacular sunset views as well as a bit of history. Crocus Bay is the site of the first military invasion in 1745. Six or seven hundred French soldiers landed on the beach and were fought off by the English settlers in less than fifteen minutes - the first of three invasions that all ended in the invaders’ defeat. Not too long ago Crocus Bay was a quiet place mostly forgotten by visitors, except to catch Calvin for a ride over to Little Bay.  Today, Crocus Bay is home to DaVida’s, an elegant fine-dining experience, and her sister property, DaVida’s Bayside Grill. Calvin is still there underneath the Mahogany trees, and he is still one of the easiest and least expensive ways to get to Little Bay for snorkeling.

Shoal Bay - Home to bright beach bars, blinding white sands, electric turquoise seas, umbrella and beach chair vendors, snorkeling at the coral reef, scuba diving and glass bottom boat tours. While many of Anguilla’s beaches have been mentioned among the world’s best time and time again, none so much as Shoal Bay — “The world’s best beach.”

Island Harbour Anguilla’s quaint fishing town, Island Harbour, is on the East End of Anguilla. Colorful boats moor in this protected cove, and the fishing pier juts out towards the conch-lined island of Scilly Cay. Children jump and fish from the pier, while their parents tend to their boats and the day’s catch.

The Wallblake House - The only standing “Plantation House” on Anguilla, The Wallblake House is situated on the Western edge of The Valley next to Anguilla’s Catholic Church.  Located across from The Old Cotton Gin, this part of our capital houses some of Anguilla’s more colorful and interesting architecture.

El Morro (Fuerte San Felipe del Morro)

El Morro juts out of San Juan harbor beckoning cruise ships just as it used to deter sea attacks. The structure is a hulking six-story fortress built between 1539 and 1589, withstanding two World Wars and several other scrimmages. Now, El Fuerto San Felipe del Morro is Puerto Rico's go-to tourist attraction, both for its extensive history and its outstanding vista of the Atlantic Ocean. You can also walk though the fortress' depths, which include a maze of tunnels, barracks and prison cells.

Admission to El Morro is reasonable, considering its size, and as one Virtualtourist notes, "what I enjoyed the most about visiting El Morro was that we were able to roam around the fort on our own." You'll enjoy exploring more if you wear comfortable walking shoes.

El Morro is one of two forts inside the San Juan National Historic Site. Its sister, the Fort San Cristóbal, is one of the largest Spanish fortresses in the Western Hemisphere. Both sites have seasonal hours; during the summer the Visitor Center is open from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. and you can hike the trails from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Admission is $3 for patrons age 16 and over, $5 if you want to visit both forts.