| by Sandra Keats
aka Dolores Mulvawitz PART TWO of THREE: The Odyssey So join me, if your imagination and stamina are up to the challenge, as we take a make-believe, vulva-filled voyage through the carnival itself. Latch onto your labia and let’s go … Walk in and you’re immediately swallowed into a womb. “The hope is to create a warm and round environment filled with deep reds, purples, and pinks,” Quissell says. After you have taken in some of the scenery, make sure you make you way over to the “Menstrual Hut.” If you are a guy and you’ve never menstruated, here is your chance—well, sort of. And if you are a woman and you do menstruate, now it’s time to experience what really goes on inside. “My idea is to make it rather large and round and red. Inside there will be chocolate-covered strawberries to eat and people will be able to come in and tell stories about their menstruation,” she says. I know it might be tempting, but don’t get tied up in the hut. There is much more that awaits you. If you’re an arts and crafts buff, be sure and stop at the “Vagina Quilt” and design your own patch. This is your chance to write any personal stories, poems, or any abuse experiences you have had on a piece of the quilt and put it together with everyone else’s. You can also express your thoughts on the “Graffiti Sheets.” Have you ever wondered what your vagina would say if it could talk, or what your vagina would wear if it could dress, or even what your vagina would sing if it were in the shower? Well here is your chance to exhibit your ideas and drawings on large bed sheets, Quissell says. If you are interested in something a little more game-oriented, then step over to “Va-Jeopardy” and test your knowledge about everything from orgasms and different methods of stimulation to sexual harassment. (The winner gets a free bottle of lick-off lotion.) Here’s a trivia question to get you warmed up: How many nerve endings are in the vagina? According to Quissell, “There are 8,000 nerve endings in the vagina—twice as many as are in the penis.” Maybe girls are better than boys after all! What’s that you say? You say you are a master of the vagina and you could find the clitoris with your eyes closed? If you’re so sure of yourself, prove your skills at “Do You Know Where Your Clitoris Is,” formerly known as “Pin the Clit.” You remember this one, except the last time you played, it most likely involved a donkey and a tail. You’re blindfolded; it’s dark; you’re spun around in circles until you are dizzy; and then you must pin the clitoris on the female anatomy. If you are victorious, you win an instructional masturbation shower card. It’s just like the ones in the dorm showers that teach you how to inspect your breasts or your male genitalia. Now you can kill two birds with one stone—take a shower and learn the art of masturbation at the same time. If you are a girl, this will make you and everyone else around you a whole lot happier. And if you’re really lucky, with you’re skills, you might even score a date. It’s hard to find a partner who knows his or her stuff. Also, remember when you were younger and your friends would have those random people at their birthday parties who made the balloon animals. If you’re like me, you miss that sort of thing. So don’t forget to stop the balloon artist and ask him to construct you a balloon vagina. I think you can probably even wear it on your head. There is also a myriad of activist groups at different tables, handing out loads of info on everything from rape and domestic violence to genital mutilation, Quissell says. Oh, and watch out for the human-sized clitoris! Yes, that’s right, senior Katherine Zwick dressed up as a clitoris and performed her own poetry and songs about her vagina. At this point you think you’ve seen it all, and your time inside the carnival is running out. But before you head to Eve Ensler’s Vagina Monologues, stop at the “Sex Toy Booth” to purchase some souvenirs. With all this talk about masturbation, how could you possibly go home empty-handed? Use your shower card and get to work—it’s never too late to learn. “Everything having to do with women’s s sexuality is hush, hush—it’s not talked about in public, or really even in private,” Lipton-Lubet says. “So the Vagina Carnival is an attempt to fix those issues surrounding women’s sexuality and also make women feel more comfortable with having it be in the public.” “The idea is not to over-sexualize, but it needs to be talked about,” Quissell says. "The Vagina Carnival games and shows are a part of the general activism in helping women be more confident with their sexuality." On to PART THREE of THREE: The Afterbirth >>
"If you are a guy and you think that this is unfair and you want to have a “Penis Day” ..." | 
