Sunday, November 22, 2009

Nariva Swamp

I just got back from the three day 6th grade trip to Nariva in southeastern Trinidad. Since all the industry in Trinidad is in the north, the southern areas are still quite untouched.

























My students interviewed village residents about life in a wetland, including their system for collecting rain-water, their use of the powerful buffalypso (named in honor of calypso after a scientist figured out how to create a breed of water buffalo that was healthier than the original), their pets, and their traditional hunting and farming methods (mostly blue crab for curry) and watermelon for exports).



















More importantly, they witnessed lives for the first time without malls, fast food, and money.

The experience can be quite profound; upon arriving back at school, one of my students said, “Wow. It doesn’t even look like the same place to me anymore. It’s changed so much.”

1 comment:

Kristin said...

Kate,

Saw your comment on my blog, thanks for visiting! I LOVE the school and Colombia in general. I have always loved the Latin American culture, so I especially love living here.

In terms of the city of Cali, there are pluses and minuses. I love the warm weather, but it is pretty hot all the time. And the city itself is definitely developed but has a ways to go in continuing to develop more restaurants, green spaces, and the public transport.

In the cities I always feel quite safe, but as with any big city there are places I do not travel alone and I typically do not walk outside alone after dark for more than a few blocks. You can be quite safe here as long as you take general precautions.

I would love to chat more, let me know!

What do you teach??