Carnival on the course

(Para ver la versión en español pulsar en Mañana de carnaval.)

Madrid. Saturday,19:30. Tired of waiting for a taxi, I decided to walk to my parents’ house despite the cold. I was surprised by the empty streets and a distant column of smoke. When arriving to Plaza Colon I found floats, fairies and pirates and Don Carnal driving a dragon and four white horses. Madrid was dressed for Carnival with fireworks and music. I celebrated it last Tuesday in Cascais dunes.

Oitavos Golf course, 8:30 am. I picked up my card wrapped in a magic cloak and a Venetian mask. Downstairs there were buggies decorated with multicolored balloons, an unusual image in a sport with such a strict etiquette.  I was greeted by a clown while an Indian lady and a Scarlet O’Hara organized the tee offs. I approach an orangutan, a lady-sun, a sixties girl, a punk and even a Gaddafi. What an imagination the Burners and their friends showed in their March tournament.

I shared my buggy with Pocahontas and the game with a six-foot soldier and a pilot in tights and black miniskirt. It was so funny seeing him pulling his clubs. It reminds me the decisiveness of Thelma in Thelma & Louise. We tried to focus on the game but we could not avoid the laughter. Pocahontas hit powerful and direct drivers and even the longest of the tournament. My clubs were transformed into magic wands and gave me an even par in hole 7. The soldier pulled out his camera and documented our achievements between the dunes and the Atlantic.

Thelma found several impossible balls. The guy is a jewel. He spent the morning fighting with his wig curls. In hole 18 he secured them with a scarf and hit a great ball straight to the green. Then we transformed the buggy into a minibus and moved together to hole 1. We walked across the putting green which was dressed with tables. On top of them some caipirinhas waited for us. A lonely player freaked out when she saw us reaching the tee off singing. I’m sure she would have loved to join our crazy group. Laughter and sport is definitively the best cocktail for a Carnival morning.

Oitavos Dunes. Hole 1