Calle Ocho

I only have a couple things to say about the Calle Ocho festival since I didn't spend all that much time there. For those of you who aren't familiar (I'm not sure how well known this event is), once a year in Miami they hold what is purportedly "the world's largest block party" with over a million people coming through in one day. Last year, they set a record for the world's longest conga line with something over 110,000 people. It's been hosted by lots of famous people who originate from Miami (notably Gloria Estefan), but I'd never heard of the guy hosting this year. I was told it's a must see event, but also that I should go early and leave early since it can get a bit sketchy as it gets busier and less sober.

The theme of the event is basically a Latin heritage/pride celebration as far as I can tell. Basically the city blocks off the entire area on SW 8th street between 12th and 27th (Little Havana) and a giant organized carnival fills in with lots of authentic food, music, and entertainment from Cuba/DR/PR/Nicaragua/Mexico/Venezuela/etc. The event description says they set up 30 stages with live music and I wouldn't be surprised if that were accurate. It's effectively a 2 mile stretch of road in the middle of Miami that resembles an amusement park without all the rides.

I won't say I didn't enjoy it, because I had a good time soaking in the cultural stuff (which I'll get to in a second). But uh, you could say I wasn't exactly the target audience, which I probably should have anticipated based on the look the cab driver gave me when I told him where I was going. I don't mean to make this a race thing, but if I saw 80,000 people there, then 79,994 were Hispanic. To be expected I guess, but I got more than a few weird looks.

I showed up at about 11:15 and started by taking a walk from one end all the way to the other, opting to grab some food and entertainment on the way back once I had a sense for what was going on. The festival was 100% as advertised. Lots of authentic food and music. A stage where Flo Rida and Fat Joe were scheduled to play. At one point I got this feeling like I'd walked into Telemundo, then I realized I actually had walked into the section of the carnival sponsored by Telemundo. Not a lot of English being spoken overall. Lots of flags and people drumming up support for democracy in Cuba. Some freebies too, though the lines were generally long. (The longest lines were for free dental screenings..?) A bodypainting station that people weren't being shy about. People with snakes, people with parrots. A dude getting arrested before noon. A stage with country music, and 0 people watching.

I ate an arepa, which I don't think I've had before. So far as I could tell it's kind of a fried sweet cornmeal cake sandwich with cheese in the middle. Delicious, but I guess how could you mess that up? I also grabbed a chicken skewer with peppers and artichoke that was alright, and a side of black beans and rice. The flavors were there, though everything else suffered a bit as it was effectively being served out of a cart.

Rain was coming and I didn't have much else to do, so I took off around 1:45. Glad I went I guess, but I wouldn't say "can't miss."