The Carnival Calabar Queen Pageant

          The pageant was Saturday, December 22.  Our activities calendar said it started at 7 pm but did not list a venue.  Last Monday, when we were helping at the school we were told we were going to the pageant.  On Friday, when we walked to the school, we talked to the bookkeeper and he said we could get in by saying who we worked for, but still no venue or transportation information was given to us.  On Saturday, Clint called the Business Manager to ask how we were getting there and when.  Finally we got some answers.  He was picking us up at 9 pm with tickets.  This is how everything goes here.  You just have to sit back and relax and trust it will all work out.  Pre-planning on your part will just frustrate you.  The disappointing thing about this activity was that I had also been invited to a student’s birthday barbecue and I couldn’t go because I was afraid it would conflict.  It ends up I could have done both.  The one good thing is the parent had not contacted me since the last day of school so it was also not completely planned so hopefully my student wasn’t looking for me at her party.  I did not know where they lived or when it was.  I am an organized planner so this all frustrates me but I am learning to just trust the process.

This is a picture of a picture so the quality isn't very good.

          This is the sixth year for the pageant.  The winner gets a car and 2 million Naira (apx. $13,000) in addition to other gifts.  The goal of the pageant is to convey the Mothers Against Child Abandonment (MACA) message.  

Children are our heritage.  Cross River State is a land of alluring beauty and amazing potential.  When a baby is abandoned and left to die in dustbins (garbage cans), toilets and other places that erodes the dignity of mankind, the land is denied that potential.  Join us and save a child today.

The queen’s primary role is to be an ambassador of this MACA message by preaching the dangers of pre-marital sex to teenagers, who are usually victims of unwanted pregnancies. All the proceeds from the ticket sales to this event go directly to fund the MACA projects.  For example, the Baby Refuge Home we went to this past week.

We sat at the table saved for our Surefoot school group.

Last year's queen introduces this year's princesses.

          We arrived at the venue which was called the Arena.  It is a new building farther north than our school campus.  The entrance was all decked out like the entrance to the Oscars.  We were treated to the same invasive security check you get at the airport including the pat down.  There was a red carpet and off to the side a camera crew was interviewing guests.  We were invited to interview but I quickly realized we were very under-dressed for the occasion.  That was important information we were not given.  Luckily, I had dressed up in my best dress but Clint had just worn his work clothes.  The business manager had on a tuxedo with a bow tie.  He was not in the car when his driver picked us up or I would have suggested Clint run back in and put on a dress shirt and tie.  I didn’t want us to look bad as ambassadors of our school so I declined the interview.  Clint thinks we had our pictures taken at least 40 times inside but hopefully we didn’t look too shabby.

The presentation of Cultural Costumes.

Although there was no swimsuit presentation, I believe some used their cultural costume as a way to display themselves.

          We sat at a table near the middle so we had a great view of the stage.  Our table was set for a dinner.  I told Clint I bet it will be chicken and rice.  I was partly correct, I had fish and rice and he had chicken and rice.  Rice is a huge staple food here.  We also had the famous pepper soup we had heard about.  I tried to look like I was eating the soup but after only one real spoonful I was not going to swallow any more of it.  It tasted like I put a spoonful of dry pepper in my mouth.  I was so glad we had eaten dinner unaware of food being served at the pageant.  The amount of drinks were interesting, first we received bottled water, then soda pop, juice, and finally a bottle of wine.  They definitely kept us hydrated but no dessert was served.  I need to learn not to look for it.  Dessert is a rarity here.

          The 30 contestants were from all over Nigeria but they each received a title of a famous tourist attraction in the Cross River State where Calabar and the carnival are located.  As part of the pageant we were first introduced to each princess as they came out all wearing the same style of dress.  Next, they each made a presentation about a different region of Nigeria by wearing the historic cultural clothing and speaking about the significance of the different parts of what they were wearing.  I was so amazed by how different each one was and this was just a representation of Nigeria.  Most of my pictures are of the princesses in their costumes.  I wish our program had included what each princess said about what they were wearing.  Interestingly, we found out what the significance of the cow tail whip is.  This is one of the gifts we had purchased for our son for Christmas.  The person holding one is the royal figure in a tribe.  It stands for strength and power.  Several of the costumes included one of various lengths.

Awards were given by some of the sponsors.

Our new queen was crowned.

          After the evening wear competition, the top ten finalists performed a talent which had to be related to the MACA theme.  So most of the ladies sang a song, did a skit, or gave a speech.  One chose to spray paint a poster.  It was a bit odd to say the least because she used stencils.  Not what I would call a talent.  Finally, the top five were chosen and then the queen was crowned.  In between the main events we listened to a comedian, saw a dance act and heard two famous singers.  It was 2:30 in the morning when we left the Arena.  Clint and I were both puzzled as to why the event was not started earlier in the evening.  We were really tired when we pulled into our compound but it was an exciting night. 

          I believe the Carnival Calabar officially begins the day after Christmas.  You can find out more by going to this website: Carnival Calabar
There are two parades coming up this week one the children will be show-cased and the other one the adults will be.  It will be filled with music, dancing and elaborate costumes.