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The Key To Good
Spaghetti
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I am in no way a master chef but I can make a fantastic spaghetti dinner.   Now, everybody who has eaten spaghetti knows that the quality of a good spaghetti has less to do with the noodles and more to do with the sauce. When a person critiques a plate of spaghetti they are actually critiquing the quality of the sauce.  Well, that is how most of us critique fetes. 

We don't critique the "noodles" but we do critique the "sauce."  Well, there is one fete which I have attended every year since 2012 during their first annual fete.  And over the years they have served different appetizers, changed up the dinnerware and even the venue BUT I go back year after year because the "spaghetti" is of a high quality because they understand the secret to making the sauce. 

The Flag Fete in Orlando, Florida, which is run and operated by Soiree Events understands how to create a quality experience for all levels of feteing. No matter if you want to experience your evening in General Admission or V.I.P. they have figured out how to make sure all persons have a good time.   

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Why I do VIP at The
Flag Fete In  Orlando
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I worked all morning and then got on the road to head to Orlando. I got to my hotel to shut my left eye for about 10 minutes and catch a fresh.  Thereafter, I proceeded to the Flag Fete.

I was hungry!

But, I had zero worries or concerns about eating because I know the quality of the food served at the Flag Fete in Orlando. Now, I was in VIP. And I will CLEARLY tell you the reason that I was in VIP. The main reason is because, I'm a former athlete and I eat constantly and when a party starts at 9pm and ends at 6am (and in all actuality, I didn't get into my car until 7:15am) I know I will be eating.  And the amount of food that I eat and water that I drink would surpass what I invest for VIP.   And I can tell you that I had about 3 FULL plates of Jerk Chicken. And I will not go into the number of beef patties that I kept shoving in my mouth.  I tried to be good and not eat the rice and peas but the beef patties were calling me by name and I had to answer  :-(  Okay, maybe I didn't but who has the heart to be mean to a beef patty?  Not me! 

I digress.

So, I do VIP at the Flag Fete because it fits my feeding schedule and the quality is what I can count on. Especially, when it comes to getting in enough, high-quality, protein.  They also had fish, rice and peas, desserts, plenty liquor, soft drinks, water, vegetables, macaroni pie which was delicious but I didn't eat it. I was trying to be good and I already fell off the wagon with the beef patties...... I fell off bad!

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Yes.... I ate the cookies
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Oh, and I think that this is important to mention.  At some fetes when the food is all inclusive or all-inclusive in the VIP as in this case, people rush to eat as much as they can because they are afraid that the food is going to run out.  Well, such was not the case and is not the case because at the Flag Fete the food NEVER runs out. 

Now, lehwe not be silly. The food at 5:15 am is not great in number as it is at 10pm but the food changes over.  Meaning, around the hour of 3:30am the food was still being served but as the food from the dinner menu reduced, the dessert menu increased.  At that time most people had eaten most of the dinner food (not all) and it was dessert time. 

Now, I'm not going to lie.

I WAS NOT GOING TO EAT ANY OF THE DESSERT.... but, because I owe it to you to provide a review of the fete which is different and more intimate that what you normally receive, I did have a few cookies.... just for you. And I will tell you this. All 8 of them were delicious.  (I'm so ashamed).

Biggup to Golden Krust Orlando fuh keepin' meh belly full!!

The Carnival Doctor is not a drinker, therefore I wouldn't be able to comment on the quality of the liquor because I don't know one rum from the other or the types of Johnnie Walker that are on the market. I will say this, plenty people were drinking.


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General Admission
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As I do in most venues, I walk around to get a feel of the whole fete. So, I decided to move around the general admission area where most of the people were.  And all I can say is this. At the Flag Fete the General Admission area is like a fete inside of a fete. The whole places has "vibes" so I won't reduce the feeling and mood of the general admission area to such a cloudy phrase as, "the vibes were nice."  I will say to you that when you are in general admission it feels like you are in a totally different fete than when you are in VIP. One is not better than the other just different. 



At some fetes which I attend that don't have the all-inclusive options, I put packets of almonds in my pockets and some protein bars and I just fete. I could most certainly do this and have the most outstanding time in General admission but the ability to eat "real food" and keep the protein intake up is worth the extra expense, for me.  However, I did not and do not find there to be an increased readiness to party harder in general admission than in VIP as most people like to subscribe to the stereotype of VIP being "stush." Such was not the case at the Flag Fete and I've never found it to be so.



There was also food for purchase outside of the fete and the average price of a nice dinner of fish and fries or conch and fries was about $10 to $15 dollars. The corn soup was available for purchase for $5 but it was a healthy amount of corn soup.  I walked around to all the vendors just to be able to provide you with such feedback so when you reach next year you know what to expect.

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Now....The Performers
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Here are most of the the performers, DJs, and Hosts that weren't in attendance

I will also tell you who was in attendance:
"Mad Man Smallie" Smallie Bholai
Cassius Benjamin
Natty Ramoutar
Ava Concieta Fontain
Krazy K
BugZbugs Showbreed StarBwoy
The Supertones
Raj Singh
Majah Hype
Edwin Yearwood
Ravi B
Nikki Crosby
Leadpipe and Saddis
PUMPA
Neil Iwer George
Kes the Band
Ricardo Drue
Lyrikal
BABY CHAM
DJ Kareem Faisty







It is impossible for me to comment on every performer. Just impossible. So I will just talk about 5 of them....

Kes
Lyrikal
Pumpa
Kerwin
and.......
Baby Cham

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Kes
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"Big ting, small ting. I winin up on all ting....."

The performance of Kes was definitely one of the highlight's of the night. The crowd waited with anticipation for him to perform. Backstage in the VIP area, there were many patrons and fans hanging outside of his relaxation area trying to get a peak of him or to see him in person. His presence at fete was unlike any of the other artists.  I've seen Kes perform many times and I always walk away saying the same thing. I always say, "Damn, he's such a nice guy!"  LOL!!

Because he is. He's a great performer. He has an excellent voice and an awesome stage presence but more than that, he's just a really nice guy. And his performance at the Flag Fete was just as excellent as you would expect a performance from Kes to be. The crowd was responsive and his control of the arena and stage presence was great.  With some artists you jump up and down when they reach the stage. With others you feel inclined to throw your hands in the air.  And with some you just want to yell and scream.  When I see Kes, I just smile because I know when he finishes his performance that I am going to feel better than when he started.  He's a one of a kind performer, an innovative soca artist and the kind of caliber talent that the Flag Fete provides on a yearly basis.

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Lyrikal
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What a cool and down to earth brother!

Lyrikal was hanging out and taking pictures and talking with folks and just liming in the VIP area. Both he and Majah Hype did the same thing. I don't think Majah Hype turned down one photo request.

There are certain artists that have a hint of arrogance or an air being untouchable Lyrikal is not one of them.  When he hit the stage his performance was nice. Nothing special until.... he started hammering out his hit "Cloud 9" in sync with the riddim section and only the riddim section with full crowd involvement. It was sweet!

It was one of the "moments" of the flag fete.  And every fete has its moments. This was one of them.

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Pumpa
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I cannot lie to you and say that Pumpa had the most melodic performance but it was one of the best of the evening. He was beyond energetic. He was like the energizer bunny! He maximized his time on the stage and really got the whole place jumping. I could have hooked some jumper cables up to him and started my car!  But it seems like somebody on stage got something started but I'm not sure if it was a car.  :-)

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Kerwin Du Bois
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On a personal level, I was waiting for this man's performance all night. I love his music. His energy on stage is superb and the song "Circles" is one that just puts me back on the road in TNT and damn near brings tears to my eyes thinking about my friends and the memories that we created over the years on the road and in fetes. Its one of the few songs that I listen to that creates a huge sense of nostalgia.

And when the beat drops on the song "Possessed" which Kerwin co-wrote with Machel the whole place always tun up!!!

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Baby Cham
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Now let me be completely CLEAR!!!! Beenie Man was supposed to performed but ran into problems during travel and the individuals from Soiree were able to secure Baby Cham as a replacement.  I'm a hard core soca fan so I was ready to leave after the last soca artist performed. A person that I met in the fete asked me to stay and watch. I really didn't want to but I'm glad that I did.  O-----M------G!!!!!!!!! BABY CHAM put on a performance that was ABSOLUTELY AMAZING!!! I felt bad because some people actually missed it because they left.  That was a HUGE mistake. And one that I am so glad that I didn't make.  

Even Kes, who performed about an hour before, stayed to watch Baby Cham perform.  I can see why. As a musician and a fellow entertainer in the industry, you have to admire and respect the energy and the showmanship of Baby Cham. The baddest part of the night is when he left the stage singing and sang all the way back to the VIP area and then into his "dressing room" and then kept singing.  I was pissed after he finished because I thought I recorded the whole thing but never hit the button.

Ugh!!

I'm still mad thinking about it. 

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Video Below
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Blessings From Here To There,

Rhadi Ferguson, PhD
"The Carnival Doctor"
www.TheUltimateRoadReadyGuide.com

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