St. Maarten Carnival 55 started for me with a Reunion Concert that was straight bouyon. I am from Dominica, so you already know I felt at home. Little Boy and Quan performing “Best Wuk Up” was a moment, and between the music I was enjoying shots, satay and BBQ pigtail. That first night set the tone: I came to cover Carnival, but I was very much there to live it too.
The Festival Village became its own part of the trip. I returned for the music, the food and the people. St. Maarten gave me something I had never experienced before when it introduced its first lighting parade. The lights and costumes changed the look of the road entirely. There is a special kind of excitement in seeing a tradition try something new and watching everybody show up for it.
Grand Parade Day was another kind of energy. Philipsburg was full of colour and movement, and by the end of the parade I should have been ready to rest. Instead, DJ MJ and MV on Keys at the NSE booth in the Festival Village delivered one of my favourite post-parade bouyon sets of the season. I still think about how much energy I found for that one.
Then there was the Night of the Hitmakers. I listen to Edwin Yearwood regularly, so seeing him alongside Krosfyah brought a real sense of nostalgia. He did not disappoint. Kenyo at Soca Rumble gave me another burst of the high-energy performance I love. The music kept connecting islands and memories for me. That is part of why I enjoy covering Caribbean festivals: one stage can feel like a whole region speaking to itself.
St. Maarten is one of my favourite places to visit. I can admit the traffic wore on me and the pond smell was hard to ignore, while still saying Carnival 55 gave me a time. It was the first lighting parade, the food between events, the bouyon from home finding me abroad, and those extra hours in the Village after I thought the day was done. SXM carnival stay lit.