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Authentic Festivals

Cultural celebrations highlight music, food, fish, reefs, bikes, and boats

By George Miller

With a year-round forecast of warm and sunny — plus a multicultural population that loves a good party — Curaçao almost never slows down. But unlike destinations whose festivals are designed for cruise-ship crowds, these organic events spring from the heart of Curaçao's rich heritage. What better way to experience the joie de vivre of a vibrant culture than through its authentic celebrations of music, culture, food, fishing, diving, biking, and boating?

Carnival. The year starts with Carnival, the mega-celebration that combines culture and religion. The extravaganza begins in January with the Tumba music festival and continues through February with weekly parades. Carnival events — a mixture of a street party, theater, art, culture, history, cuisine, and folklore — ends the day before Ash Wednesday with the burning of King Momo, a life-sized, straw-filled effigy that symbolizes infertility, sins, and bad luck. He isn't just burned, he's blow to smithereens with fireworks that rock the island.

Harvest Festival. This month-long festival, with a huge folklore parade the day after Easter, celebrates with traditional Seú (blues) music and dance. Organized by the Curaçao Cultural Foundation, this festival recalls the slave era when workers marched through the fields carrying baskets of fruits and vegetables. The women danced with the graceful motions of planting and harvesting, while the men played drums and blew cow horns.

Cultural, Cuisine, and Heritage Festival. These celebrations bring out the spicy best of the island. During August and November, the Curaçao Tourist Board sponsors events to give visitors an authentic sampling of the cuisine, art, history, music, and dance of Curaçao's multicultural heritage. Museums offer free or discounted entrance, bands perform free weekend concerts, living history presentations recount the struggles of the slaves, folklore performances recreate traditional music and dances, and food booths offer an international buffet of island favorites.

Music festivals. Music from Curaçao's rich multi-ethnic culture sets the pace, literally, for many festivals and parades. With the Jazz Festival in May, the island sizzles with the world's premier jazz artists. Pianist and composer Randal Corsen, a Curaçao native, is one of the hottest performers on the world jazz circuit. His 17-piece Antillean Big Band Tumbabo plays traditional Caribbean compositions re-arranged with salsa, jazz, funk, and pop rhythms. During the Salsa Dance Festival in the summer, star performers from across Latin America join for a fusion of traditional rhythms from Colombia, Venezuela, Puerto Rico, and Curaçao.

An exciting addition to the music calendar happens in 2010. The Netherlands North Sea Jazz Festival - the largest indoor jazz festival in the world celebrates 35 years in 2010 and will debut for the first time ever, in Curaçao. Mark your travel calendar for the first Curacao North Sea Jazz Festival, September 3-4th, 2010. The music festival is a celebration of jazz artists as well as some of the world's great performers of funk, soul, Latin, salsa and R&B music. The North Sea Jazz Festival will take place at various venues around Curaçao. Details about the jazz festival, venues and tickets will be released on www.curacaonorthseajazz.com/en/north-sea-jazz. Make your plans and book your hotel early for this event!

Marine festivals. Surrounded by coral reefs and sandy beaches, Curaçao celebrates its underwater treasures with world-class festivals and competitions. The annual International Blue Marlin Release Tournament in April awards a $10,000 first prize to the team that catches and releases the largest blue marlin. The Dive Festival each May highlights the island's more than 60 dive sites, 57 coral species, and 500 species of colorful fishes. Besides diving, the weeklong party features workshops on underwater photography, marine art, dive safety, and ecology.

Bike race. Amateur and club bikers only dream of peddling with pros. But every November, the Amstel Curaçao Race gives cyclists the chance to compete beside the big names in pro racing. Amstel brings in top bikers from the Euro circuit, and pits them against eager enthusiasts. The 80 km race begins in Willemstad, as spectators line the streets with as much excitement as a Tour de France.