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Why you should not miss the Kampala City Festival
Kampala City festival. PHOTOs by Rachel Mabala.
What you need to know:
Costumes, dancing, music and parades are all part of carnival celebrations throughout the world. Today, the Kampala City Festival too has its sights as Lydia Ainomugisha writes.
Have you been blocked from accessing certain roads with your car? Or better still, wondering why there are a lot of people wearing bright and ridiculous colours plus why there are a lot of stalls on certain roads yet Jennifer Musisi chased the vendors from the streets? Worry no more; today is the Kampala City Festival.
If you were not aware, just join in because it is a free entrance event. All you need is to get out your most rare costume; most probably the brightest and choose your own way to celebrate the carnival.
The Kampala City Carnival is a colourful, lively and fun-packed event that brings together a multitude of people from all walks.
You don’t want to miss out on more than 200 events and activities cross the world of business, fashion, art and culture, entertainment, technology and industry to engage the whole family and general public.
This is your opportunity to see and swing to the beats of your favourite artistes and also crack your ribs at comedians performing at no cost. The artistes lined up include; Cindy, Judith Babirye, Wilson Bugembe, Mesach Semakula, Irene Ntale, Fille, Irene Namubiru and Radio and Weasel while comedians include; Dolibondo, Idringi Salvado, Mendo Ssegujja alias Sevo, and MC Kapale.
Full of flair, fun and feasting, the festival will see the entire stretch from Watoto Church to Kitgum House on Jinja Road closed. Robert Kalumba, the deputy Spokesperson of KCCA, said they anticipate close to 1 million people to attend.
“If you are a lover of the wild and nature, this time the zoo will be in Kampala,” Kalumba assured, “We are bringing a live elephant.”
Under the theme, “For the love of Kampala, fashion specialists, mchomo specialist, chicken or artisan will be ‘legally’ selling your favourite snack with no fear of KCCA officials confiscating their goodies.
Addressing journalists at a press conference at the launch last week, KCCA Executive Director Jennifer Musisi said the carnival was sponsored by several companies, adding that more than Shs400 million had so far been collected for the function.
The event is about merrymaking and everyone is a guest of honour.
Top five carnivals around the world
Across the world, most carnivals take place during Easter season and have grown into both huge tourist attractions. Many people head there on a holiday or short break to enjoy some of the biggest parades and shows. Some of the most prominent carnivals in the world include:
1. Rio de Janeiro -Brazil - February 28 to March 4, 2014.
Probably the most famous carnival in the world dates back as far as the 17th century, when processions took place to celebrate the crowning of the Portuguese monarch John IV who ruled the country in 1640.
Today, the carnival in Rio de Janeiro attracts upward of five million people to several days of parades known as ‘The Greatest Show on Earth’. The finale of the extravagant and lavish event is the flamboyant late night parades through the Sambodromo, where the various samba schools that make up sections of the huge parade are judged to find the winners each year.
The Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro goes all out for four long days and transforms into a celebration of one of the most significant events of the year. Nothing compares to the flamboyance and sheer enjoyment of the great Brazil.
2. USA – New Orleans- February 28 to March 4.
The Carnival held in the largest city in Louisiana is called Mardi Gras. Mardi Gras originates from the end of the 17th century as a French celebration of spring but today it is a huge celebration and party altogether.
In the past, they were the last few days on which you could enjoy culinary and carnal pleasures before Easter. The streets of New Orleans are filled with parades, floats and masked balls. The biggest draw to this is the parades that run from the Friday before Ash Wednesday until Mardi Gras . Each parade is themed, from traditional costumed parades to outlandish parties and balls. To be part of this celebration, one needs to book a hotel early as the event draws a multitude of people.
3. Venice, Italy - February 15 to March 4, 2014
The splendid City of Canals has hosted this event since the 17th Century. Formerly, throughout Carnival day, the Venetian nobility donned masks to go out and mingle with the townspeople. Today the masks are still the symbol of the Venice Carnival, along with colourful and elegant costumes. Over the festival days many cultural activities are held including art shows, parades and theatrical performances. Compared to some carnivals, the carnival in Venice is a more sedate affair. However, there are still fantastic parades on the water, with immaculate and outlandish costumes.
4. Santa Cruz, Tenerife, Spain - February 23 to March 9, 2014.
The largest of all the carnivals and fiestas in Spain takes place on Tenerife, the most popular cheap holiday destination in the Canary Islands. Originating back to the 18th century, this is a huge event for the Tenerifstas and is centred on the capital in the north east of the island. All-night parades and parties continue for up to a week and each year there is a theme – this year it’s cartoons. The finale is the funeral and burial of the Sardine, a giant papier mâché fish.
Today, next to the festivals of Cadiz in Andalusia and in Sitges, Catalonia, the Tenerife Carnival is undoubtedly the most well-known from Spain. The celebration has become so popular, and is such a massive event, that it has been declared a ‘Festival of International Tourist Interest’ and brings together thousands of people who come to dance until dawn.
5. Cologne, Germany – February 27 to March 5, 2014
Cologne’s carnival is a huge fancy dress party taking around a week from beginning to end, with the biggest parade taking place on Rose Monday when more than a million people will hit the streets of the city to celebrate. A city break in Cologne is an ideal way to capture the fun. Similar events take place in a number of other cities in Europe, such as Maastricht in Holland, Basle in Switzerland and Binche in Belgium.
Facts about the Festival
It started in 2012 as a platform to rally city dwellers together to celebrate the city.
It is aimed at preserving history and tradition and strives to stimulate the local economy, entertain and involve the community and visitors in a fun–filled atmosphere.
It attracts a lot of sponsorship from different companies
Everyone is invited.
New route map
The festival will kick off with a procession, from CPS Buganda Road at 9am.
The procession will head towards Yusuf Lule Road (Nakumatt)- Nile Avenue (UBC TV)-Speke Hotel- Constitutional Square- then Kampala Road up to Jinja Road Roundabout.
Stages and locations
Main Stage will be at the Railway Grounds (This is where most of the action will take place. BELL will have a surprise act between 7-8pm and this is a must watch)
Children’s stage (Children’s play area and zoo) - Constitutional Square
Christian Stage – Sheraton Gardens
Matali Stage – (Muslim stage) – Kampala Serena Hotel- Lower gardens.
MTN stage – Radio One street, Airtel stage – inside National Theatre.
Sponsors; Uganda Breweries Limited (Bell Lager), MTN Uganda, Huawei Technologies LTD, Total Uganda, Airtel Uganda Limited, Century Bottling Limited and the Ruparelia Group.
