Notting Hill Carnival - 3 Sunday for the Adults

First, a bit of the audience. Nice of Darth to take time off running the evil empire.
Likewise for the cops.
Ronald McDonald, too.
Makes you think, really. Exacly who is running all the evil at this time of the year. All the bad guys all seem to have dropped in for a look-see.
These two have the best balcony in town and are gonna use it.
Start of the parade and Trinidad and Tobago get to lead.
Steel bands, of course.
Followed by the rest of the parade.

Not much to say about the rest of the piccies, really, so I'll let you enjoy.

Notting Hill Carnival - 2 Sunday for the Kids

Come morning there are some last minute preparations. This bloke put a snake on his head.
Sound systems get set up.
Crowds arrive.
And red, gold and green by the hatfull.
Where there's smoke there must be....
Food.
and more food.
Oh look, food.
Ran into these dancers.
At last, a beetle that looks cool.
A crashed German aircraft, bits of dinosaurs and Elvis. It all makes sense somehow.
Kim with a multi-trunked eliphant. [shrug]

Even the cops PR people have put signs out.
The parade gets started - themes from different parts of Africa this year.
Morroco?
Some of the bigger costumes had trouble with the crowd pushing forward.
Some of the kids were going to dance to the death.
And some were flagging - by this time they had gone about 4km.
Got no idea what this is about - heads on sticks, or something.
And LOTS of steel bands.
At bloody last - ice-cold Red Stripe.

Notting Hill Carnival - 1 Calm before the storm

The Notting Hill Carnival goes off every year in this area. While it has been marred by riots in the past, it is altogether too jolly an affair these days. Still, you can't be too careful...

Remembering the Library Riots of 1967 - paper cuts all round - the local authorities are taking no chances.
As is this buider's merchants. A lot of the shops boarded up their windows as a precaution - and then got in some grafitti artists to do their stuff. I never knew you could do this sort of thing so quickly.
Rolf Harris, look out.
As usual, the time warp brought in some strange creatures. Looks like the Triassic wormhole was cooking on gas. They even help out by eating a few street-people while in town.
I always wanted to photograph this row - because of the colours - but there were always cars and vans in the way. Good opportunity now that the cops have cleared the streets.