Everyone knows the drill when you go out to dance whether its a serenade for the person you love or a passionate moment in time you will remember forever.   For the most part you have to ask permission when you want to dance with someone else.  You simply cannot just go up and let your body odor caress the skin of another person without permission (I just pictured that eww).  Caribbean festivals are in a whole different league.  YOU DONT ASK ANYONE TO DANCE.  See this video of Caribana Toronto to see how its done. You dont even need an eye connection with the other person.  You simply go up and start dancing.

How not to Dance at Caribbean Festival

DO NOT ASK ANYONE TO DANCE-

This is great for men but not so great for women.  There are going to be times when you get someone that you really dont want to dance with.  For men, lets just be honest, the way these girls dance I think any man would enjoy it.  One thing that you can say about any Caribbean festival is that is gets well, “passionate”.  Im going to be honest passionate is an understatement, things get down right wild and crazy. But its a festival you should be there to have a good time right?

Correct Way to danve at a Caribbean Festival

“GET PASSIONATE”-

If you are filled of inhibitions and are embarrassed then I would highly recommend that you DONT GO TO A CARIBBEAN PARADE.  You should just sit on the sidelines and watch.  Because the dancing that you see above is expected.  Expected not only from the women but from the men as well.  I saw plenty of bodies being thrown around and groups of women attacking men.  Think of night at the roxbury but with a man in the middle.  There was a point when a friend of mine started dancing with three women that come out of nowhere!  He even lost his sandals!

You dont dance by yourself at a Caribbean Festival

DONT DANCE BY YOURSELF-

One thing that you dont do (often) is dance by yourself if you are a man.  Since there is an abundance of women they are expected to be alone on occasion.  With so many women around at a festival where you are expected to dance at, why would you dance alone if you are a man? Tisk Tisk. Find a nice women and get to know her and dont forget you dont have to ask to dance.  You can see a great video of the whole experience of Caribana 2010 here.

Group Dancing is Encouraged

GROUP DANCING IS ENCOURAGED-

Group dancing is encouraged and you will often find 3 or more people dancing together at one time.  Since Americans and Canadians like their space dont be alarmed if you get bumped around.  There are going to be pockets in a festival where there are large groups of people dancing all together.  Many times you will also find dancers on trucks and even semi trucks.

Be Weary of the hardcore dancers that have "throw you against the wall" tendencies

BE AWARE OF THE HARDCORE DANCERS-

And conforming like a true world traveller I couldn’t just walk around and take pictures.  After the huge effort that we made to get into the actual parade it would be a shame if I just watched and didn’t take part in the parade.  I myself learned to go out and dance with everyone and had a great time (see below).  Would high recommend planning your trip to include the Caribana Caribbean festival.  A great time I will never forget.

When in Rome do as the Romans do

WHEN IN ROME DO AS THE ROMANS DO-

If you ever find yourself in a Caribbean festivals you now know how to get down with the locals.  Dont forget to get a good nights rest to make sure you are up for all the events.  Check out our top 5 section for more things to do in Canada and around the world!

Caribana Weekend Toronto Page Directory:

• Video: Dancing at Caribana Toronto Part 1
• Video:Dancing at Caribana Toronto Part 2
• Video:Dancing at Caribana Toronto Part 3
• Video:Dancing at Caribana Toronto Part 4
• Video:Dancing at Caribana Toronto Part 5
• Photo Tutorial: How to Dance at Caribana Toronto
• Photo at Caribana Toronto Part 1
• Photo at Caribana Toronto Part 2