Santiago de Cuba’s Carnival Party Gets Going

Carnival celebrations in Santiago de Cuba kicked off July 23 through July 27 in that city of eastern Cuba, featuring a vast program of dancing parades and performances to the beat of drums and the brass sound of Chinese trumpets.

The summertime carnivals of Santiago de Cuba –the longstanding tradition harks back to three and a half centuries ago- are the most famous of their kind on the island nation, usually luring scores of foreign dancers and sunbathers willing to get a taste of this big bash.

Organizers have set up nearly two dozen places around town where some fifty different bands and orchestras will be playing the finest Cuban music.

People will get a chance to dance their way down the streets to the beat of thumping drums and parades. Some of the best-known comparsas (parading groups) –they are over a hundred years old- now boast younger breeds of dancers and musicians.