Caribana Stories

What is your favorite memory of Caribana? Is it your first time dancing along the parade route, seeing the stunning King or Queen costumes, or eating something spicy and delicious?

We asked a few Torontonians - Mayor David Miller, Matt Galloway of Here and Now on CBC Radio One 99.1 FM, Garvia Bailey of Big City, Small World on CBC Radio One 99.1 FM and Jessica Gale, CBC's Caribana researcher - to share their favourite memories.

Do you have a funny or interesting memory of Caribana? CBC would love to hear about it!

Mayor David Miller

My favourite memory of Caribana is riding in the parade with my daughter Julia in 2004.

Having taken Julia to Caribana since she was born, we've always enjoyed Caribana as a family from the outside. When I became Mayor and we rode in the parade together, we experienced Caribana as a family, from the inside.

CBC Researcher Jessica Gale

I've attended Caribana every summer since I was a little girl. When I was eleven, I had the chance to play mas'. I was so excited to wear a bright costume and be a part of the parade.

I was having so much fun dancing that I forgot to drink water and I almost passed out from dehydration. I remember being carried onto the float to rest and cool down. Before long, I went right back into the crowd to jump up and wave my flag (anybody from Trinidad!).

Now that I am older, Caribana means a lot more to me. It's about freedom and celebrating multiculturalism in Toronto. I go every summer and I wouldn't miss it for the world.

Be sure to check out my Caribana checklist so you don't end up like I did while you're at the parade.

Host of Here and Now, Matt Galloway

My first experience with Caribana consisted of me selling t-shirts out of a van parked off Lakeshore Boulevard. The experience was eye-opening to say the very least.

Between keeping an eye out for the law (we were, ah, unlicensed shirt sellers), I had my first experiences with the mighty Jamaican drink Ting, jerk chicken cooked in an old oil barrel and tooth-rattling dancehall blasting from mobile sound-systems in the back of pickup trucks.

All are now major parts of my life, and I can't imagine summer in the city without them.

Host of Big City, Small World, Garvia Bailey

My most vivid Caribana memories are all wrapped up in my own coming of age (don’t worry this story isn’t X-rated).

I grew up in a smallish Ontario town, so the whole idea of Caribana was remarkable to me. Caribana was an exotic and surreal happening that seemed to be happening on another planet.

When I became old enough to travel to Toronto on my own to visit my cousins, I quickly made the decision that my Toronto visits HAD to coincide with Caribana.

The most vivid memory is arriving in Toronto, meeting my cousin and making a beeline to the Eaton Centre. There, I bought a dress that my parents would certainly not approve of…perfect for the parade. Then it was off to University Avenue, this was THE spot.

Back then Caribana wasn’t a spectator sport…so soon I was following a float chippin’ down the road, dancing and sweating and not feeling my feet. This was no longer an otherworldly event, this was a massive coming out party just for me.

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