We recently spent a week in Trinidad, striking a careful balance between pleasure and responsibility. Two days were devoted to the vibrant Trinidad and Tobago Carnival, and five days to essential work on Kialoa III with bottom cleaning and painting.

The contrast could not have been sharper.

By day, we were covered in dust and paint.

By night we were covered by color and mud, carried away by the pulse of the Carnival.

Work hard. Celebrate harder. And what a celebration it was.

Often considered one of the most renowned carnivals in the world, alongside the spectacular Rio Carnival, Trinidad’s Carnival is widely recognized as the birthplace of the modern Caribbean carnival. But beyond reputation, it is the energy that defines it: Raw, powerful and deeply rooted.

For two days in a row, the Kialoa crew stepped fully into that energy. Carnival here is a commitment. We immersed ourselves in a celebration shaped by emancipation history and Afro-Caribbean culture.

And the festivities started before the Carnival itself, even before sunrise. J’ouvert, a pre-dawn explosion of music and movement sets the tone. At 4 am, while most of the world still sleeps, the streets awaken. Steel bands and soca music pulse through the city. Trucks loaded with huge speakers slowly forward, leading thousands of people through the streets. Paint, oil, and white mud cover bodies as the crowd dances from darkness into daylight.

We followed the music and followed the trucks carrying live steel bands, through the streets, dancing.

J’ouvert traces its origins back to the time of slavery, when enslaved Africans, forbidden from participating in colonial masquerade balls created their own parallel celebrations. Through music, satire, and ritual, they reclaimed space, identity, and voice. That history still resonates today.

The following day, Carnival Tuesday continues as an endless river of costumed masqueraders, feathers, glitter, sweat, and rhythm flowing through the streets. Again, it wasn’t about spectatorship. It was about participation.

As a crew, we danced for hours to the relentless rhythms of carnival music.

Carnival in Trinidad is lived culture. It demands energy. It gives it back tenfold.

Enough to return to the yard to finalize the preparation of Kialoa III for the miles ahead. Back to the boat, nearly ready to cross the Caribbean sea in direction to our next regatta!

Enough words. The images speak for themselves. Would you join us next time?