The high point of the year in Trinidad and Tobago is at the end of February when the carnival comes to town.
In terms of size and colour, this Caribbean carnival is very much the equal of anything that Rio de Janeiro has to offer. The islanders don their glitzy costumes and party the whole weekend long to the rhythm of Calypso and Soca beats.
This year, however, the Caribbean carnival season began much earlier - on 16 November when Trinidad and Tobago qualified for their first ever FIFA World Cup™ finals. The whole country united in celebration, with locals dancing in the streets of the capital, Port of Spain.
With impeccable timing, the FIFA World Cup Trophy Tour came to town a week before the beginning of this year's carnival season. The party atmosphere has already taken over the island, even at the Dr Joao Havelange Centre of Excellence which is the headquarters of the CONCACAF football confederation. Costumes are already very much in evidence, making the Trophy Tour even more of a special event.
Makeda is sporting red and white warrior's robes "made especially for the World Cup in Germany". The costume, complete with feather head dress, will be worn by all the fans going to Germany to support their team. Makeda does not know yet whether she will be able to make the trip but says: "I'd love to go to the World Cup in Germany this summer and I really hope that I'll be able to manage it."
Despite a thermometer reading of 32 degrees centigrade, there is a slight breeze, so the temperature feels just about right. Puppets and inflatables dance in the wind, calypso beats fill the air and steel drums – the national instrument of Trinidad and Tobago – serenade the visitors as they arrive.
Inside the centre, stilt-walkers in wild costumes welcome young and old alike, and right from the moment the doors are opened to the public, the loudspeaker booms out a song praising the efforts of the country's footballers: "Germany! Germany! Hey Soca Warriors, wonderful!" The team's anthem - "I'm a Soca Warrior" by Maximus Dan – also seems to be on a continuous loop. Dan himself, a dancehall/soca star and a big fan of the team, is here in person to see the Trophy, and he is happy to pose for photos and sign autographs.
Video walls on either side of the entrance welcome visitors with a medley of the Soca Warriors' goals from their FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign, the highlight of course being Dennis Lawrence's strike which saw the team home in their final play-off against Bahrain.
School parties pour into the Centre of Excellence throughout the morning to catch a glimpse of the FIFA World Cup Trophy. Queues soon build up, but the time passes quickly thanks to the variety of entertainment on offer, including table football games and X-Boxes. When one of the staff asks who is going to win at Germany 2006, 200 children reply in unison "Soca Warriors!"
Music is in the blood in this part of the world, as evidenced by the way the visitors sway to the rhythms pounding out of the loudspeakers. Those present are also treated to a fascinating 3-D film featuring classic moments from past FIFA World Cups, featuring such stars as Diego Maradona, Pele and Ronaldinho.
The viewers seem to swell up with pride and excitement as they watch the film, no doubt thinking to themselves: "This time around, we're going to be there!" Support for the team is almost unconditional. Visitors take it in turns to sign their names and write good luck messages to Dwight Yorke and his team-mates on special walls.
"St Lucia supports T&T" is there for all to see in big letters showing that all the Caribbean islands are pulling together for the FIFA World Cup. The sun slowly begins to set, making the sky a blaze of colour, but the party is far from over. The following day, 18 February, the Trophy Tour will move on to its next leg, as it works its way around the world and back home to Germany.
Fans around the globe are in for a colourful treat next summer, particularly in the cities and stadiums of Dortmund, Nuremberg and Kaiserslautern, where Trinidad and Tobago will be playing their Group B games against England, Sweden and Paraguay. And who knows, maybe these Soca Warriors could be the surprise package of the FIFA World Cup. Carnival time in June 2006? Why not...