AS expected, the Once upon a Dynasty 2011 Bacchanal season got off to a flying start on Friday night.

Held at the Mas Camp in Kingston the opening night marked the genesis of a 10-week season of Bacchanal Fridays.

It may not have been palancing on the road, but it was definitely palancing inside the Bacchanal venue when the Observer team arrived close to 11:00 pm on Friday.

The party animals were kept in Carnival heaven with music provided by DJ Smoke of Renaissance alongside Sparkles Production. The hits from favourites Machel Montano, Alison Hinds, Destra Garcia, Kevin Little, Fay-Ann Lyons and Bunji Garlin ruled the night.

Of course Bacchanal Friday would not be complete without the DJ offering a touch of dancehall hits from Vybz Kartel, Busy Signal, Beenie Man to name a few.

Thirsty? No worries as the Appleton bar attendants were kept busy throughout the night serving shots of intoxicating Appleton Mixes.

Across from the Appleton bar was the Digicel Cash Vault. Inside persons who purchased over $200 or more of call credit were given a chance to win cash prizes and other goodies courtesy of Digicel. An elated Shelly-Ann Curan, senior sponsorship manager of Digicel, told the Observer that Bacchanal Jamaica strives to improve upon the carnival experience year on year and Digicel is proud to be a part of each historical experience that this event continues to bring to Jamaica. “Our sponsorship of Bacchanal not only allows us to align our brand with one of Jamaica’s most anticipated and valued entertainment properties, it also allows us to continue to deliver value to our customers through exciting weekly giveaways and phone offers for the 10 weeks of Bacchanal”, she said.

As the dawning of Saturday morning arrived, thousands of soca enthusiasts gyrated to the sweet sounds of soca and dancehall music and there is no doubt many have already marked their — Simone Morgan