Posts Tagged ‘owru yari’
Tori Oso’s Kawina Festival prepped to be legendary
PARAMARIBO–Osje Braumuller still has dreams; big ones. The biggest one yet it to see his Tori Oso Kawina Festival once develop into an Owru Yari music and cultural spectacle that dominates almost the entire length of the Frederik Derby Street, starting from Weidestraat all the way down to Molenpad. The hottest event of Suriname’s Year End festivities. But that would be the ultimate big dream; Osje’s slightly smaller dream has already become reality. Bursting at its seams, the Kawina Festival on December 30 this year has expanded a few blocks; one more stage has been added. Twice the music and twice the fun. The tale of the Kawina Festival is a tale of growth.
Kawina and kaseko may best be described as the styles of music that are truly indigenous to Afro Suriname culture, much as pan music is indigenous to the Caribbean. Characterized by exotic and pulsating rhythms flowing from predominantly traditional handmade percussion instruments that accompany strong, dominant vocals, these styles is quick to get feet moving. Kaskawi is a blend of both.
The festival that pays homage to these rhythms started back in the eighties, just after Theater Thalia at Nassilaan was refurbished. The new theater had an outside stage, and the question was how to make use of this unique extra place to perform. “There were several inspiring young people involved in culture back in those days and they wanted to revive cultural expressions,” Osje recalls. He vividly remembers talks with Thalia Director Wilfred Texeira, Culture Director Lothar Stadwijk, Eartha Silos and then Dutch intern Kees Verpoort that eventually led to the first Kawina Festival. “It was a monthly Kawina Night on the terrace. Four or five bands took part. Great atmosphere,” he reminisces.
Xmas, New Year’s trips to Suriname
PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten–“I want to create more awareness in the Caribbean of the possibilities Suriname has got to offer for a unique vacation,” Andrew Budike says. Budike is a small tour operator with big plans to actively go out and bring Caribbean tourists to Suriname. He is currently organizing an 8-day/7-night Christmas 2011 tour and a 6-day/5-night New Year’s 2012 Tour to Suriname. “There has been quite some interest from when I announced the tours; I didn’t get massive bookings yet, but I know the customers will come,” he says.
The trips to Suriname bring Budike full-circle back into what he used to do as a hobby, back when he still lived in Suriname. “I flirted with eco-tourism back then and I used to enjoy it,” he recalls. After he relocated to St. Maarten, he got the opportunity to enroll in a Tour Director’s course that was being offered by Carib-A-Travel. “I took the course because I saw it as an opportunity to broaden my scope with
knowledge that could come in handy,” he relates.
And from the looks of it, it will. “I am now organizing this tour and pinned it around Christmas and New Year’s because I really want people to experience Suriname when the country is celebrating and culturally at its best,” he says.
More Owru Yari pictures
By Ruth San A Jong
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Suriname blasted and partied the old away
Suriname closed off 2010 like only Suriname can close off an old year.
As
it does annually, the
country exploded from early on December 31st, to rock until the wee hours of the morning on January 1st 2011.
Imagine a week of Caribbean Carnival, with parties abound, molded and jampacked to fit into one day. Food, drinks, fun, fun-loving people, jamming and rocking to captivating beats. In the midst of it all: the unique pagara relay: strings of firecrackers lined on the streets in the heart of Paramaribo and lit at midday … a loud crescendo of bangs and smoke that slowly crawled over the streets, cheered on by onlookers, as businesses said goodbye to the old.
Hailed as one of the top places to be at year-end, Suriname truly rocked with its biggest party of the year. The next day, as the New Year dawned, all that was left to do was the task of sweeping the old –the trash and the snippets of the firecrackers- away.
Suriname is ready for 2011! Photojournalist Hedwig “PLU” de la Fuente shares with us what his camera snapped: pictures that speak thousands of words …
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