Carnaval

February 27th serves double duty in the DR. It is simultaneously Independence Day and Carnaval. There are numerous Carnaval celebrations across the country and my city of El Seibo is no exception.

I didn't know what to expect of the parade and celebration here in El Seibo. The celebrations in other cities, most notably La Vega, are well known and attract visitors from all over the DR and across the globe (I'm already looking forward to visiting La Vega next February 27th). I hadn't been feeling too well on Saturday and had little desire to sit through a noisy parade. I decided that if someone in my host family invited me to go with them, then and only then would I go. Otherwise I was going to chill in bed watching Curb Your Enthusiasm all day. I quickly learned that an invitation from the host family wouldn't come. You see, my host family is Cristiano. Here in the DR being Christian is the equivalent to being evangelical in the U.S. And being Christian in the DR apparently means you are not allowed to have any fun. Anywhere there is dancing or non-Christian music taking place, my host family is not allowed lest they be punished by God. Although, they found a Holy loophole and watched it all on TV.

With my family glued to the TV, I decided fever be damned and made a trip to the city center to see what all the fuss was about. The fuss was noisy. The parade was lined up and down the city's one main thoroughfare. Floats, dance troupes and people in costumes filled the streets. The reoccurring theme was el toro. The eastern DR is known for its bulls. The baseball team in La Romana has the toro as a mascot and each May at the Patronales festival here in El Seibo there are bullfights. Another reoccurring theme was la bulla. The DR is a very noisy country. If it's not the music blaring out of the colmados it is the million motorcycles that fill the streets. During Carnaval it seems to be all of those things at once. I didn't spend much time partaking in the festivities. Just enough to snap a few pics and say that I 'experienced' Carnaval in DR.