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Last Updated: Sep 14th, 2008 - 22:35:57 |
Cape Town's grandest and most raucous carnival sees the city celebrating the advent of the New Year with numerous festivals, competitions and extravagant parades.
The event pays tribute to the tradition of the minstrel entertainers who stopped by Cape Town on American ocean liners over 100 years ago.
The banjo music, spirituals and black face paint that all made such a big impression so long ago are all a big feature of the Carnival today.
Costumed dancers, banjo-picking musicians, parades, marches, competitions and street festivals guarantee that the year begins on the biggest possible high.
The street parade on the first weekend starts in District Six and there are plenty of South African wares and mouth-watering local delicacies on sale along the route, attracting crowds of over 80,000.
The event then turns to its contests. Dance, singing, field events and costume competitions are performed at the Green Point Stadium, where locals with a thirst for the limelight can compete for a coveted prize at the grand finale at the end of the carnival.
Former President Nelson Mandela endorsed the event in 1986 and is now a patron of the Cape Town Minstrel Carnival Association.
And if it's good enough for him, it's good enough for us!
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Book online 24 hours a day or contact our telephone helpline on:
0870 1999 038
Mon - Fri 08.30 - 22.00
Saturday 09.00 - 22.00
Sunday 10.00 - 22.00
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