It is hard to believe that the Christmas season has started, but in Trinidad the stores are alive with Christmas music. Trini Christmas music is not the slow syrupy music of the states like "deck the halls" and "Silent Night". Trini Christmas music is called Parang is Caribbean music folk music and is mostly in Spanish

Traditional Parang bands often consist of four to six singers accompanied by musicians who played guitar, cuatro, mandolin (bandolin) , violin, cello (violoncello), bandol (bandola), box bass, tambourine, clapper, toc-toc (claves), wood block pollitos, tiple, scratcher (g�iro) and maracas (chac-chac or shak-shak).

Parang bands move from house to house in neighborhood serenading to family and friends during festive seasons. It would be customary for families to greet the Paranderos with drinks and food, following specific steps or rituals that accompanied the entry to a home, the dedication of songs to a host, the eating and drinking, and the departure. The festive season begin in mid October and goes approximately to January 6 which is the feast of Epiphany.

Last Saturday group of us hired a driver for the evening and went to a Parang concert. The venue was open air with food and drink available. We started the evening seated in chairs and after the first set the MC welcomed the "visitors from over seas (we did come over sea) and made it clear that this was not to be a spectator sport and that we were expected to get out and dance. I shuffled my way out to the dance floor and was adopted by a really good woman dancer and she gave me lessons and when she deemed me good enough to be on my own she adopted another "visitor". It is acceptable for women to dance together-after all it is all for fun. After the second set the MC thanked the visitors and asked that we participate in the maraca shaking contest. Well, I am just a white girl with no rhythm, but at the moment that did not seem like a deal breaker and I stood up and shook the maracas. I did not win, but the audience clapped and hooted and was probably very grateful for a short performance. We had a great evening and on the way home we stopped for doubles from a street vendor.