Much colour & festivity @ Long Bush Parade! [Photo-display Included]
And there were some disappointment expressed by some spectators about the reduced size of the troupes compared to previous years, but for others bigger didn’t mean better.
The parade started just about an hour behind schedule but once it got started the street walks swelled with spectators, some of whom were well equipped with cameras, cellphones and ipads to capture the moment.
The gyrating bunch made its way from the Long Bush Road, passed the Sunday Morning Well, proceeded into Huntum’s Ghut, down through Lower Estate and ended at the Band Stand.
Of course the four demonstration points, which were at the Sunday Morning Well, the basketball court in Huntum’s Ghut, “The Tree” in Lower Estate and the Band Stand, were the place to be to catch the paraders in full swing.
The troupes this year included Santa Babies, Peppermint Divas and Candy Cane Angels. Santa Claus was also there on his sleigh as well as his reindeer, which joined the parade at Huntum’s Ghut; a walking, talking Christmas tree, Elves and a few clowns. The floats included Santa’s Workshop and the Gingerbread Village.
VI Showtime also added energy to the parade although there wasn’t much Christmas songs coming from them but that seemed to be any problem either!
The sun went down on the parade before its conclusion but that wasn’t much of a bother as some of the floats and even the paraders were equipped with colourful lights.
According to Stacy, who viewed the parade as it passed through Huntum’s Ghut, it was a wonderful sight and a good event for Christmas afternoon.
Natasha said “it was nice, I loved the dance routines and how the bands played.” Kevin told Virgin Islands News Online, that he thought the parade was “nice” but that it wanted more troupes. The same was said by many others including a Cassandra, who quickly noted that there were fewer troupes this year. “I want to see more people in the parade,” she commented to this news site.
Among those in the crowd was 6th District Representative Hon. Alvera Maduro-Caines, who noted that the parade was “good”. She added, “It started a bit late, later than we anticipated, but it was a good family outing for the afternoon...the other three years had a bit more troupes but this year there were only a few so I hope that next year it would brighten up a bit more.”
Long Bush Christmas Parade Coordinator Jeanette Scatliffe-Boynes described it as a joyous and spectacular Christmas parade.
“I think that the young people had a wonderful time. I think it was spectacular. This year we wanted to add lighting to the parade because we realised that 6 ‘o’ clock is dark but we accomplished that halfway. We have to tweak it some more for next year but we are really pleased that all the hard work that the young people put into, because they are the ones who chose the costumes, they are the ones who came up with the theme, they are the ones who used their Christmas vacation from school to decorate the floats and to practice the choreographed dances. I know that they are very proud of themselves what they have accomplished.”
Asked about the idea behind the parade, Scatliffe-Boynes said “It’s basically serenading. The young people would complain that there is nothing to do on Christmas afternoon, that it is boring and they want something to do. That’s their way too of telling the folks in the area ‘Merry Christmas’.”
The Parade Coordinator also expressed gratitude of sponsors, including Fourth District Representative Hon. Mark H. Vanterpool, who she said was a really “big sponsor”. She also noted the input of businesspersons, who lent their trucks to facilitate the floats.
The theme for this year’s parade was ‘A Jolly Christmas’ and judging from the atmosphere yesterday, it seemed to have been achieved.
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