Take a walk up to Whiteladies Road on any Saturday afternoon and the atmosphere is dry; the shops are lavishly expensive and everywhere has a particular air about it. Is this England? On the same day venture across the city to St Pauls, where you will become rich, this time without having even a quid in your pocket. You will be rich with culture.

The warm African and Caribbean vibes travel across the Atlantic, the graffiti of Palm trees and beaches on the street along with the sea of faces suggest that we are somewhere other than Bristol. St Paul’s is one of the poorer communities of Bristol, however every summer since 1967 they throw the most prolific of parties.

A vibrant, glittering pageant full of costume, culture and curried goat; this is a party that reflects traditions and awareness. The streets are paved with stages and sound systems that boom through the day and night and become an expandable band that ceaselessly stretches the limits of reggae beats that can be heard throughout the city. Every system competing with the next, the Star and Garter boast having a 1000 watt system alone.

The carnival itself is a reflection of the mass community spirit similar to the annual Notting Hill carnival in London and has been in existence for over 40 years attracting on average 40,000 people a year. This year will see the return of the carnival to its usual summer slot on July 5th. The parade will take place from the assembly point; The Albany centre, Shaftsbury at 1:00pm. This is a truly unique experience that sets to unite Bristol with a community that has a big heart and an every bigger soul. Debbie Ransom a carnival organiser says; “Carnival, like cricket, is one of the great uniting features of Caribbean life.”

From the ray of coloured Jamaican T-shirts to the cans of red stripe chilled in buckets of ice alongside BBQ’s smoking with Jerk spices to the coloured flags that fly in line with ours; This is England.

www.stpaulscarnival.co.uk

Carlie Dragone
Photos: St Paul’s Carnival