myTobago – your questions, review and comment about Tobago

Hi,

So come on then, who has been - what was it like ??? I know the last night is tonight, but someone must have been and can give us an update so far.

It has really depressed me this weekend thinking about the Jazz Festival. For the last 3 years we have been to Tobago at this time of year for our wedding anniversary. We decided / couldn't afford to go this year and look what we're missing. I would have given anything to be there this weekend

Jill

Hi Jill,

From my own perspective, so far you've missed traffic tailing back from Plymouth to Buccoo Junction for the last 2 nights (tonight will be worse), having to queue 9 deep on each till in Morshead (and twice that in Pennysavers), losing every available parking space to a Trini with a 4x4, and a deep indepth discussion by most of Tobago as to whether Elton John being allowed on the island will turn the island gay.

Sour grapes? You're darn right!! I want to be at the Jazz Festival!!! And I can virtually GUARANTEE that one of my friends will say 'I didn't realise you didn't have a ticket... I had a spare one'.... in which case, said soon-to-be-ex-friend had better be able to run very fast!

Lisa.

hey lisa...we had a spare... just joking, but they sold some at the entrance still. have been yesterday for the first time and it was great!

it was organized very well to reach the place by bus from the car parcs. the music started 5 p.m. on the dot as it was supposed to be and it was great. al green was so funny and really entertaining (yes, he did some singing, too).
earth, wind and fire was really good and then sir elton, who must have sung more than one and a half hours, even with and extra at the end, yeah he is still goooood.
firworks after that.
beeing hard working people we got tired of waiting for the last act and went home (although they had a DJ playing nice dance music to entertain until the stage was ready).
caught a bus back to the car park and be sure to come back next year (then with a ticket for all of them and in the front, although the place is tiny compared to the venues I was used to to see famous people like that... more like stadiums back in europe...)
thought the prize was steep before hand, but those tickets are really worth every penny...
maybe we meet you there next year, jill...

tired greetings
steph

Yes, Steph, all very interesting but what we are all waiting to here is whether Elton waved his wand over you and turned you gay?

Steve,I think the people of Tobago are gay-----in the true meaning of a very old English word,which literally means carefree,happy,bright and showy,etc.
Now isn't it nicer to use our beautiful expressve language correctlly?
David(gay but not queer)

nope... no wand... nothing. there were quite some folks in the crowd that obviously arrived as gays and left the same way (a very rare sight here in tobago... ).
but elton did not even say much. he just sang his tiny heart out... gosh that man is short (and I mean his hight).
so we are unharmed (except for the extreme tiredness) and happy...

steph

........and gay!

Thanks for the update Steph. Glad you enjoyed it. Please let us know when you hear about next year - dates and who's going to be there.

From looking at the line up - I would have preferred Saturday night (not an Elton fan) but I would have loved any evening really - in fact just to be in Tobago would have been fantastic.

would have preferred saturday, too. but you don't look in a gift horses mouth, do you?! alibaba surprised me with the tickets, what should I have said? return them, I want saturday? and I quite like elton, although I would have loved diana ross...

I guess under http://www.tobagojazzfest.com/ you might find information as soon as they have any...

steph

Thanks for that Steph, I will keep checking back to look for info for next year.

Jill.

Please don't think I'm being picky here - but is there any jazz played at the festival?

This year's line-up seems short (no reference to Elton's stature Steph) on true jazz artistes , or is it the case that it's more of a music festival, with headline mega-stars doing the odd jazz number, thrown in for good measure?

Confused of Bristol

was asking the same question here... everybody just said: it's only the name of the festival... guess the average trinbagonian is not too much into jazz anyway.
so it is nothing for jazz fans to travel arround the world for, but for the twinislanders it is a very welcome interruption of the usual concert scene..

steph

Brian Taylor wrote:thought the prize was steep before hand, but those tickets are really worth every penny...

Just had a quick peek at the website re the ticket prices. Given the lineup, I don't think they were quite that steep, considering what I have heard prices to Carnival fetes can and do cost, admittedly in Trinidad. (Between $375 to more than $1,000.) That is without even considering the cost of Carnival costumes. That said, I do appreciate that Carnival is an institution .

I was thinking from the perspective of the tobagonian that earns 3000TT$ per month average (so I heard)...

seeing who was in the concert I could see that it was just the "upper 10000" (wich would be the upper 2000 in tobago?!) in there...

you can tell what kind of crowd you are in, when you husband leaves you alone for 20 minutes and noone comes up to you with the "hey, baby"number... last time at sunday school it took about 10 seconds and I got three of those...

steph

Brian Taylor wrote:I was thinking from the perspective of the tobagonian that earns 3000TT$ per month average (so I heard)...

Yes, I did also have this in mind when I was recalling the prices of the tickets to the Carnival fetes and the cost of costumes in Trinidad. Whilst I suspect the average salary in Trinidad is higher, the tickets would still take a big % of the net earnings. Likewise, Carnival. But, Carnival is 'an institution' therefore, people will probably save up (or not, as the case maybe) and or probably not go out for 10 months before and afterwards, just so that they can go to the various Carnival events at the very least.

Brian Taylor wrote:you can tell what kind of crowd you are in, when you husband leaves you alone for 20 minutes and noone comes up to you with the "hey, baby"number... last time at sunday school it took about 10 seconds and I got three of those...

I think it is all about priorities...

carnival is very important... cell phones are very important... flat screen TV's are very important... some foreigners come here and say "these tobagonians must be poor...look at the "galvanize-chacks" some live in, but they did not have a look inside: TV, PC, play station (I guess the carnival costume on a hanger ) and a tuned car to drive arround in...

as I said: it is all about priorities!

sunny greetings from the beach
steph

I totally agree Steph. De mony cum soon
David

Brian Taylor wrote:I think it is all about priorities...

carnival is very important... cell phones are very important... flat screen TV's are very important... some foreigners come here and say "these tobagonians must be poor...look at the "galvanize-chacks" some live in, but they did not have a look inside: TV, PC, play station (I guess the carnival costume on a hanger ) and a tuned car to drive arround in...

Absolutely! A 'jazz' festival may not figure in that list

Brian Taylor wrote:sunny greetings from the beach
steph

Thanks... for rubbing it in! Shouldn't/Can't complain really. It is a beautiful sunny blue sky where I am in London - slightly cool, but still, no rain and no grey skies!

just making sure everybody remembers tobago right.. and comes back soon...
I am going to europe for a few weeks soon, just to come back and appreciate what I have here better again... keep some sun for me in june...

steph

It's beautiful here in Cornwall also.Clear blue skies,unfortunately a flat sea,and temperatures in the low/mid 20's,but,to paraphrase BR,it is the wrong kind of sun!!!
David