Notting Hill Carnival draws two million

The 60th Notting Hill Carnival is taking place this weekend in west London, with an estimated two million people expected to attend. The event is described as Europe's largest street festival and the world's second-largest carnival, after Rio de Janeiro's.

Despite a forecast of rain, sunshine greeted attendees on Sunday, with flags from the Caribbean and Africa decorating the area. The day began with J'ouvert, an early-morning celebration where participants are covered in paint, and is considered a family-oriented event. Children were present in large numbers, with one of the youngest visitors reported to be 18-month-old Triny-Savannah, who attended with her mother, Twinsy, from Paris.

Family Traditions and First Experiences

Twinsy explained that her parents used to bring her and her twin sister, and she is now continuing the tradition. She described the carnival as a celebration of the abolition of slavery, calling it "a big day of memories." Elsewhere, eight-year-old Alex was experiencing his first carnival with his mother, Tiana, from Enfield. Alex said he loved the event, noting it was busy but made him feel like everyone was together. Tiana said she used to attend religiously every year when she was younger and found it nice to return with her son.

A father named Daniel was seen carrying his five-year-old son, Asher, on his shoulders after the boy's legs grew tired. Daniel, whose wife Rachel is from the Caribbean island of St Vincent, said the family had just returned from their first holiday there. He said it was great to represent St Vincent at the event, calling it a "perfect kind of event." The family was dressed in matching St Vincent's outfits.

Food, Music and Culture

Food stalls were a central part of the festivities. Christina Bedau, who runs the Sweet Hand Cuisine stall, estimated she would sell at least 500 "doubles" over the weekend. Doubles are a street food snack of flatbreads filled with curried chickpeas. One customer, Dave, said eating them made him feel like he was "about to land in Trinidad." Christina said she has been coming to the carnival with her stall for seven years and felt she had to attend because her regular customers would be "up in arms" if she did not.

The parade, though described as a smaller version of Monday's main event, featured floats, dancers, and steelpan groups accompanied by large sound systems on trucks. A participant named Heather, a steelpan player who arrived in the UK in 1992, said she had attended every carnival since. She described the event as a chance for "recharging and being immersed in my culture," adding, "We work hard and we want to play hard and just enjoy our culture."

As the day progressed, the area was transformed by the festivities. A reporter noted purchasing a handmade cotton fan from Ghana from a seller named Betty, who was advised on taking card payments as crowds grew. A poster seen on leaving the area urged people to donate with the message "Fund 60 more," aiming to secure the carnival's future. The reporter wondered what the event would look like in another 60 years, suggesting some of the children present might one day tell their own children about this milestone.