Oistins Town is still the hottest place to be every Easter.
The island’s most southern fishing village evolved into a potpourri of culture, entertainment and entrepreneurship earlier today, for the opening ceremony of the 36th annual Lime Oistins Fish Festival, which runs until Easter Monday.
On a picturesque Caribbean day, Barbadians and visitors alike mingled through the historic town from early in the afternoon until dusk and beyond, feasting mostly on Caribbean dishes in addition to Barbados’ traditional Saturday dish, Pudding and Souse.
From the north of Oistins, near Super Centre, down south to the Oistins Police Station, Barbadian vendors also plied their wares, with the sale of craft and jewellery lining the streets on both sides, and attracting mostly visitors to the island.
Minutes before a brilliant sunset kissed the horizon, those on hand were treated to a soul-soothing 30-minute presentation by the Royal Barbados Police Force Band, which included renditions of the world-famous tunes Beautiful Barbados and Island in the Sun.
But the band saved the best for last, upping the tempo with an immaculate cover of local artiste Biggie Irie’s ‘Mas’ and ‘Nah go Home’.
In a new move for the opening ceremony, a few visitors were invited up to say where they came from, and what they liked about Barbados.
The festival’s traditional throwing the net and greasy pole competitions were also held, interspersed with entertainment from local acts.
The opening of the festival was also attended by Member of Parliament for the area, Minister of Health, John Boyce, as well as Senators Dr Esther Byer-Suckoo and Wilfred Abrahams.
Managing Director of the festival’s sponsor LIME, Alex McDonald, reminded those on hand that a touch of LIME with anything involving fish would always produce a delightful meal, and his company was proud to have maintained their support for the second consecutive year.
Lady St John, widow of Sir Harold St John, one of the founding members of the Oistins Fish Festival, was also on hand, and said helping start the festival remains one of the greatest delights of her life, but hoped she would see more being done in future years to attract children to the three-day event.
“Oistins is still an area where we can do great things. We want to continue that and to recreate what we did before,” she told attendees. (BA)
