Carribean Carnival spirit hits Dominica Caribbean Carnival spirit comes to the island of Dominica every year — ‘The Real Mas’. The annual carnival officially starts about a month before Ash Wedensday each year. but truly kicks-off in February or March culminating with Jump Up - the National Traditional Carnival Street Party on the Monday before "Shrove Tuesday" and island wide celebrations on Carnival Tuesday. Carnival (or Masquerade as it can be referred to) is strongly an Afro-French festival. The festival is rooted in the masquerade in which revellers on the streets wore masks to conceal their identity. The African love of colour, costumes, masks and the rhythm of the drumbeat predominantly influence masquerade. During Carnival, flamboyant shows, dance, drumming competitions and pageantry take place across the island throughout the month. The island comes alive with frenetic activity, from the crowning of Miss Dominica and the Calypso Monarch to awarding the best costume band. On Ash Wedensday each year, Tewe Vaval is celebrated in the Carib territory and in Dublanc (in the islands north west). This event is held on the afternoon of Ash Wednesday, to symbolically bury or burnt the spirit of Carnival. An effigy of Vaval (the symbolic spirit of the carnival) is burnt at sunset, marking the end of the revelry and the beginning of Lent. Plan you trip to Dominica an stay at Wind Blow and be part of Carnival !