This is a four-day weekend! Monday and Tuesday are national public holidays because they're the last two days of Carnival (like Mardi Gras) on the main island. Everyone will be reveling in the streets, and pretty much wasted.
You see, we are part of a two-island nation and we observe the national holidays. But we also preserve the heritage and customs (and holidays) unique to our island as well.
Our island already had Carnival on the traditional dates in May. So today on our island is "August Monday" in observation of Emancipation Day - and everybody goes to the beach. The decree freeing all the slaves was signed on August 1, 1834, which was a Friday. The following Monday was a national holiday in 1834. Since then, the first Monday in August, or "August Monday" is a holiday and everybody goes to the beach or goes camping.
Aah, camping out is very popular here. This weekend the village is very quiet because LOTS of people have taken their tents into the bush, or to one of the several camping sites near our gorgeous beaches. Our neighbor says there are more tents at one camp site than there are houses in the village!
Hooray for holidays.
No comments:
Post a Comment