Notting Hill Carnival: Community, culture, connection
26 August 2024, 15:44 | Updated: 27 August 2024, 11:22
Notting Hill Carnival is historic and carries with it traditions of immeasurable significance. It’s upbeat and lively. It’s vibes.
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“Every year people come to Notting Hill Carnival to celebrate their differences, but also their similarities.
“To know that a lot of people come here for my culture and their other cultures as well, it makes me feel so happy.”
Kaylah says this to me while wearing stunning blue feathers and gems - she looks brilliant.
All of your five senses can feel Notting Hill Carnival when this time of year comes around. I’ve always gone with my best mates - in fact, as I write this, the background on my phone is a photo of my friend Ife and I at Carnival a couple of years ago.
It’s a cute picture, she’s wearing a sparkly butterfly top and I’m wearing a cherry crop-top with a colourful floaty shirt.
I’m about to go and meet Ife and our crew… but this year, Carnival has been different for me. And that’s because I was asked to report on it.
I thought long and hard about working an event that I’ve always vibed at without any major responsibilities.
But for some solid reasons, I realised that this was a job to which I HAD to say yes! It’s been fun, busy, productive and a chance to share stories about a tradition that means so much to me, and even more to others.
So, it’s not a responsibility I’ve taken lightly.
That being said, I’d be lying if I said I didn’t get swept into the Carnival spirit when hearing from Alex about why he keeps coming back every year: “Carnival is great, it’s a place of unity, good vibes, good food, good people.
“You get to see people that you love… there’s no trouble, no far-right. It’s important because we need to be one, and London is a very forward thinking city when it comes to being multicultural.”
Alex’s friend Javier says: “It’s a very cosmopolitan city, there’s many different cultures that intertwine amongst each-other, and it makes it one. It’s unity, it’s beautiful.”
When I asked Alex’s group of friends what their favourite thing about Carnival was, Javier responds with, “The people.” And that is a question I’ve asked people across my coverage of NHC this year…
People have replied with: the music, the dancing, the food, the togetherness. I’d say that my answer is embracing all of the above, while being with my friends.
With around two million people passing through the community-led event every year, NHC is known to many as “Europe’s biggest street party.”
It is historic, and carries with it traditions of immeasurable significance.
It’s upbeat and lively. It’s vibes.
I could write and write about the atmosphere and essence of this momentous event, but honestly, until you go, no words will do justice to Notting Hill Carnival.
