The total number of participants in the San Nicolas Parade was roughly 2167, which is only 400 fewer participants than the last parade in 2020, when the total participants was 2590. Three years ago, there were 11 carnaval groups, and this year that number is only 6. Nevertheless, with the sun overhead and the lively atmosphere to be back in the Carnaval season after a two-year hiatus was definitely infectious. Our expectations are that the participation for next year’s carnaval will break records!
The parade in San Nicolas started, as usual, with a group of SMAC members, including the group’s president, Darren van Ommeren together with the Police Force.
Royal Carnival Group
The first group was Royal Carnival Group, led by Kevin James, with the theme “Players C69”. This group has been around for 14 and has the fewest participants this year, with only 100 participants and 25 helpers. Royal Carnival Group is the first group of the parade because they are the group that the Carnaval Queen is in. They are accompanied by NBO.
They also have a section titled “Treasures of Dubai”.
Champagne Carnival Group
The second group was Champagne Carnival Group, which was led by Lienchi Merryweather and had 540 participants. This group was themed “Broadway” and was accompanied by the band Tsunami.
They have five sections: Lion King, Wizard of Oz, Broadway Visitors, Cinderella, and Phantom of the Opera. It is important to mention that Champagne Group is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year.
Touch of Brazil (TOB)
The third group, and also the largest one for this year with 655 participants, was TOB Carnival Group led by Lisette Cheung. Their theme is “Asi es mi Peru”. This group has actually existed for 25 years but has been going by TOB for 23 years.They started out as a nameless group as former participants of ex-Tivoli, but in the year 2000 they had the theme “Touch of Brazil” and have been going by that ever since. This group was accompanied by the Colegio Arubano Carnaval Queen. This group has 47 tourists who are also participating as a part of the group. They were musically accompanied by both Groove Masters as well as ‘Nfuzion.
Los laga bay
The fourth group is “Los Laga Bai”. Their theme for this year is Umoja. This group has been around for 39 years and has a total of 350 participants this year. Over the years, Los Laga Bai has become more like a family with the same participants returning every year, and even the new generation, oftentimes grandchildren of the original members, have become a part of the group.
Musically, they will be accompanied by Robert JeanD’oe and his One Band Show, which is one of the only bands that performs live during the parade, without the use of machines or computers.
Empire Carnival Group
Empire Carnival Group is the fifth group and was led by Queeny Bergenand. Their theme for this year is Festivals.This group has been around since 2014 and has a total of 322 participants this year. Their sections are Cherry Blossoms, Tomorrowland, and Coachella. They are accompanied by Buleria, as they are every year.
Infinity Carnival Group
The sixth and final group in the San Nicolas parade was Infinity Carnival Group, led by Julissa Hernandis. Their theme for this year is “Jubilee” and they had a total of 200 participants. Infinity Carnaval Group has been around for 5 years and is always musically accompanied by Delicious.
