For all those of you who love to eat, dance and have fun should book your calendars for the biggest festive celebration of its kind in Europe - The Notting Hill Carnival!! The grandiose is all set to take place on the bank holiday weekend dated 26 August 2012 (Sunday) and 27 August 2012 (Monday - August Bank Holiday)!!! Ever since it started on the August Bank Holiday every year since 1966, the Carnival has been an epitome of Caribbean roots and the spirit of diversity in London.
Sunday will be celebrated as Children's Day with kiddo floats and a shorter parade route followed by costume prizes. The main procession will happen on Monday with lots of DJs, dance and the Carnivals’ after-parties. The Carnival Bands will jazz -up the roads beginning 9am on both days and the procession at the Carnival parade will be over by 7pm approximately. With nearly 50,000 performers and 40 sound systems and almost 2.5 million people attending over the Carnival weekend, you can surely see the streets of West London coming alive with zeal, colours, music and culinary delights.
To make things better, you can prepare yourself in advance with lots of information on the event so that you can have loads of fun without any extra baggage on your mind. There are various sources of information that you can refer to:
Sunday will be celebrated as Children's Day with kiddo floats and a shorter parade route followed by costume prizes. The main procession will happen on Monday with lots of DJs, dance and the Carnivals’ after-parties. The Carnival Bands will jazz -up the roads beginning 9am on both days and the procession at the Carnival parade will be over by 7pm approximately. With nearly 50,000 performers and 40 sound systems and almost 2.5 million people attending over the Carnival weekend, you can surely see the streets of West London coming alive with zeal, colours, music and culinary delights.
To make things better, you can prepare yourself in advance with lots of information on the event so that you can have loads of fun without any extra baggage on your mind. There are various sources of information that you can refer to:
- For detailed information on events, routes, food stalls, public utilities (public loos), etc., you can surf through http://www.thenottinghillcarnival.com/ and visit Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea website also.
- Visit Transport for London website to know about all possible ways to reach Notting Hill.
- Those in possession of smart phones (iPhone and Android), can also download a free Notting Hill Carnival app to get all the above information at the touch of your hand.
All the information that you can gather from these sources will be helpful as you will not need to waste your time in locating things when you are there. Apart from this, there are some basic tips that can come in handy for you:
- Reach the venue early to get a fair idea of the surroundings while the crowd is yet to arrive.
- Wear comfortable shoes, carry sunglasses and take a pocket camera if you’d like to capture the vibrancy of the event, especially if you are not a resident of London and have come for a short stay.
- Bring a bit of your own food & water if you want to save some money.
- Avoid:
a. Brining valuables with you.
b. Carrying a backpack as you will only end up being jostled with it as you make your way through the ever moving crowd, plus it will add to your tension of ensuring its safety!!
Vacationers and Londoners both could also consider renting a short stay serviced apartment in Notting Hill for the weekend and enjoy without any botheration of travelling!! Have fun and enjoy the Caribbean spirit in London!!
0 comments:
Post a Comment