A day in the life: pre-gaming Mardi Gras 2012

Mardi Gras kicked off Sunday. Of course, Kanival (i.e. Carnival) doesn't really start for two weeks, but hey... this is the Haiti... nothing like turnin' up the speakers on some soft kompas to get your feet, hips and shoulders swaying like the coconut palms that line the azur beaches!

For a Sunday afternoon, the boys had their engines revving, horns blaring and wings aloft as they sped up and down... up and down... up and down Rue Rochasse by 2pm:

And the onslaught of crowds, the first wave had arrived by 3pm:Heading le pwosession were the impromptu participants:Then comes the DJ with his amps in the back of a pickup:Then the boys! Covered in used motor oil and dressed in voodoo red, they love dragging people, such as this blanc, into the party:And the crew of oil-slicked, masked partiers continues:Of course, not all of the guys are willing to simply don their garb to show their love to Baron Samdi! At least one of them showed his love of the other gender:Unsurprisingly, he "she" wasn't too thrilled when a couple of other young men wanted some of the limelight (a.k.a. my camera). Ha!As I mentioned above, the people who are leading the party want everyone to partake... including the girl who lives directly across the street from me:
and despite my best efforts at avoiding getting slimed by what we consider hazardous waste in America, I couldn't entirely escape the party!Haitian Mardi Gras is good times!

Tim White