Come Halloween, Ybor’s historic district transforms into a surreal landscape where super heroes hula hoop, Santa Claus sips on beer and giant penises roam the streets.
What started out as a Halloween party thrown by artists in Ybor City has evolved into one of the craziest Halloween celebrations in Tampa.
Guavaween is Ybor City’s own version of a Halloween fiesta. This year, it took place from 9 a.m. on Sunday to 3 a.m. the next day.
The celebration had costume parades, dance performances, live music, competitions and more, all in a carnival-like atmosphere.
Those who have been to Ybor both during the day and at night will be able to vouch for the fact that the contrast between the two is astounding.
Guavaween takes Ybors split personality to a whole new level. The day is for the family, while the night is, let’s just say, when the naughty ones come out.
During the day, kids seemed to be living out their fantasies by becoming super heroes or fairy tale princesses.
A number of kids were also seen wearing gruesome and violent costumes. Halloween serves as strong commentary about what sort of ideas children today are being exposed to and the extent to which these ideas influence them.
In such a media-infiltrated world, it is impossible to protect children from a culture of violence.
Then there were plenty of little girls who looked all too grown-up. With elaborate make-up and beauty queen costumes, moving their hips the right way, they were a disturbing sight. By making or allowing children to dress up in this manner, aren’t the parents reinforcing the stereotypical idea of what “beauty” is supposed to be? A similar trend was seen in the dance performances at Centennial Park, where young girls danced to songs in ways too grown-up for their age.
The family-oriented half of Guavaween was a fun way of celebrating.
There was plenty to do, plenty to eat and some creative costumes. “Mama Guava” urged the parents to vote in the upcoming elections.
The nocturnal half was, of course, totally different. The streets were crowded and dirty. The costumes were flirty and sometimes downright shocking.
There were thongs and flimsy excuses for costumes that simply shouldn’t be allowed in public. The live music was very unlike the jazz and western classical performances of the daytime. Club music throbbed in the streets.
The entire street reeked of alcohol.
And then there was Bobo, the splash-dunk clown screaming obscenities at people throwing balls at the targets to dunk him in the water.
He said some mean things; and I mean really mean! But if you kept your conscience aside, it was hilarious.
With so many people dressing up as policemen, one would think it would be difficult to identify the real ones. The real police spared revellers the confusion. They rode on tall horses and were quite a sight in themselves.
Guavaween was a place to see the extreme polarities of our culture. The fact that the two extremes unfold against the same landscape exemplifies an element of co-existence.
It also speaks of the Americanization of a space known for its distinct immigrant history. It allows you to witness creative expression and the impact of the media and other influences. Guavaween demonstrates that
Halloween not only provides an opportunity for living out fantasies, but also really does bring out the dark and crazy in people.
Reema Sengupta can be reached at reeema.sengupta@spartans.ut.edu.