San Pedranos Celebrate Juan Carnaval

Juan Carnaval in San Pedro Town is described as a vibrant tradition handed down through generations and celebrated for three days before Ash Wednesday. The event features street dancing, paint, flour, live music and even drag. The island held its final celebrations last night, into the morning. San Pedro Resident, Marina Kay spoke to News Five about this year’s celebrations.

 

Marina Kay, San Pedro Resident

“It is a tradition that we inherited here on the island form our parents, great grandparents, my parents, they use to do this, celebrating carnival. And we grew up from primary school days. There were a lot of groups that would come out. And every year right before Ash Wednesday, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday, we celebrate Carnaval on the island. This year we had three groups and each group picks a theme for each day and we dress as that theme and come out in the streets and go house to house dancing and collect money to help those who are sick in the community. The boys, especially the men who are between thirty and forty, now we see the youths getting involved more, but it has always been the thirty and forty year old men, that again keep with the tradition, they dress up as girls and you know how they can be very sexy and rude with their dancing”

 

Attention readers: This online newscast is a direct transcript of our evening television broadcast. When speakers use Kriol, we have carefully rendered their words using a standard spelling system.

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