Reflections on the 2010 Chess Carnival

The 2010 Caribbean Chess Carnival was a successful event with a record 147 players from 10 countries. Three-time champion IM Humberto Pecorelli could not travel to defend his title, so a new champion was crowned.

There are many reasons this tournament was special and perhaps is an example of how the Caribbean and Africa can leverage the beauty of their countries in a way to attract strong players. This was one of the features that drew GM Gennadi Sagalchik who stayed a couple of more days after the tournament to explore the local sights and the neighboring island.

Following are some of my most cherished memories at this year’s tournament. They are extensive and varied, but will certainly give readers an idea of how successful the tournament was.

MOMENTS TO REMEMBER…
• eating “doubles” on the side of the road;
• seeing capoeira being played in downtown Port of Spain;
• watching Josh Colas victory over FM Ryan Harper;
• witnessing the Emancipation Day parade… what beautiful African garments!
• the Baba Ghanouj at the guest house;
• climbing to the top of the lookout point on Lady Chancellor Road;
• the performance by Denyse Plummer at closing ceremonies;
• drinking coconut water at the various stands;
• Meeting IM Nestor Velez Betancourt who I had only seen in a photo playing in Jamaica. He graciously greeted me every single day. It was quite touching.
• drinking mauby at a stand near Queen’s Park;
• Fort George lookout point;
• Watching Wasudha Malgie going over games with Suriname students;
• Watching Athena Martin (under-10) of Trinidad bounce all over the place;
• the walk around Queen’s Park;
• my first taste of the snack tollum (coconut and molasses);
• Meeting German Herrera of Venezuela who had posted a blog comment in Spanish and seeing him overwhelmed when I gave him my Drum t-shirt;
• sitting next Carlisle Singh in the press area for the duration of the tournament, a pleasant fellow;
• the resourcefulness of Ms. June Edwards’ guest house;
• meeting Vishnu of India, who was working as a software engineer in Trinidad and staying at the guest house;
• conversations with Ms. June Edwards, hostess of the guest house;
• seeing cricket’s Queen Park Oval and understanding more of the tradition;
• this cute girl from Trinidad;
• learning words of Surinamese language
• a purple water lily;
• the steel pan music at closing ceremony;
• getting to the lookout point of the Lady Chancellor peak;
• watching a cyclist climb up and zip down the Lady Chancellor incline several times;
• hearing a cacophony of different languages;
• the verbal jousting between the Trinidadians and the Barbadians;
• the singing of Trevor Griffiths;
• the politeness of IM Nestor Velez Betancourt;
• seeing the same “purple heart” flowers that I have in my garden;
• Suriname’s Ashwari Akloe and her hats;
• the relaxed demeanor of Gennadi Sagalchik;
• the beautiful lady at the Emancipation parade;
• the dancing lady at the Emancipation parade;
• Jonathan Pitterson (Jomo Pitterson’s son) referring to me as “Uncle Daaim” :-);
• the determination of this young girl 😀
• taking a local tour with Trinidadian-based Jamaican Jason Scarlett who is a friend of Jomo Pitterson;
• the cultural display in Trinidad’s airport;
• buying a CD in tribute to Michael Jackson with steel drum music.

MOMENTS TO FORGET…

• dogs barking constantly at the guest house;
• music blaring on Sunday morning at 6am from across the street;
• a dispute over a coconut water between a man who wouldn’t pay and a machete-wielding vendor. I paid the cost of the coconut to stop the argument;
• crossing Trinidadian roads on foot;
• the expensive almond milk in Hi-Lo grocer;
• poor customer service at Subway;
• stores closing early;
• the lost dog on the freeway;
• trudging in mud at Maracas Beach;

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REPORTS

| 3 August 2010 | 4 August 2010 | 5 August 2010 |
| 6 August 2010 | 7 August 2010 | 8 August 2010 |

RESULTS

| Open | Under-20 | Under-14 | Under-10 |

PHOTOS

See beautiful photos from Trinidad!

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