The five-day Barbuda festival – Caribana – ended on a high note on Monday night with revelers dancing to recorded music in a ‘last lap’ celebration of a festival described by Coordinator, Matthew John, as ‘absolutely great’.
John said he was pleased with the overall festival as it was well supported by the people of Barbuda and scores of Antiguans traveled to Codrington for the festival and this gave a boost to the overall festivities.
“This year we experienced some financial challenges, but in the end we were able to overcome these hurdles with support from the main contributor, the Barbuda Council, the Antigua and Barbuda government and major sponsors such as PLH and Nobu Restaurant,” John explained.
There were no pageants this year as both the Teenage Pageant and the Miss Barbuda Pageant were called off from lack of participation. “I made an appeal for a pageant with three girls from Barbuda and thee from Antigua, which would have been a first. We even had a practice session. Unfortunately, one of the Barbudan girls withdrew and this led to the others withdrawing as well. In the end we called off the show and instead held the Caribbean Show featuring Claudette Peters and Rupee among others,” John explained.
However, John was particularly pleased with the support for the International Dhow that featured local artist, Tian Winter as well as Asa Banton from Dominica. That show had the biggest turnout and was very well received.
Looking ahead, John said he plans to tweak some aspects of the programme if he is returned next year as Coordinator, such as the Opening Parade.
He also expressed his appreciation for the fact that this was the first Caribana since the introduction of flights by LIAT20 and the opening of the new airport. “While most people traveled to Barbuda by ferry, LIAT20 had full flight into Barbuda especially on the weekend ensuring that even more Antiguans were able to make the journey over,” John declared.
