Caribbean: Aerial Views of St. Martin and Anguilla

On my trip to Antigua in 2005 I could see the outlines of the nearby islands St. Martin and Anguilla. Anguilla is the long, narrow island to the north, which belongs to the United Kingdom. It is only a 20-minute ferry ride from St. Martin. St. Martin is shared between the French and Dutch (the Dutch spelling is Sint Maarten) and is slightly south of Anguilla, with the French side on the north side of the island and the Dutch side on the bottom. The part of St. Martin that sticks out to the west is shared by both countries and features Simpson Bay, a large haven for ships of many sizes. Also on a small patch of land on the south side of Simpson Bay, on the Dutch side, is Princess Juliana Airport.

Both islands, though close to each other, have very different personalities. Anguilla is quiet and laid back with a few high-end resorts, and St. Martin is bustling with hotels, casinos on the Dutch side, traffic and tourists.

Visit my webpage on the Caribbean at http://www.latinandcaribbeantravel.com/caribbean.html

Other websites:

Caribbean Folk Arts Network (Caribfolk) - Caribbean cultural network: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/caribfolk/

Raices Culturales Latinoamericanas (Latin American Cultural Roots) - a nonprofit organization I founded in 1991 that presents Latin American cultural shows, exhibits, and workshops: http://www.raicesculturales.org/

Raicesnews - Latin cultural events in the Philadelphia area: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/raicesnews

Miami: Visit to Star Island, 1998

For many years my wife and I would travel back and forth between Philadelphia and Bogota and change flights in Miami. We were curious to visit Miami but didn't have the chance to do so until 1998, when our flight from Philadelphia to Bogota had a six-hour layover in Miami.

We left the airport and found a taxi driver who offered to take us around the city for three hours. This taxi driver was originally from Sweden and on his card said that he spoke 14 languages. His Spanish sounded very Cuban, and he conducted the entire tour in Spanish. While he was driving he took a call on his cell phone from his daughter. They were discussing the results of the World Cup that was going on at that time. He spoke to her in Danish and gave her the score of the game: "et - et" (1-1).

Among the places he took us were Coconut Grove, Miami Beach, particularly South Beach, and Biscayne Bay. On the way back from Miami Beach, we stopped at Star Island, home to many celebrities. He drove up and told the guard that he was taking us on a tour, and he was let through. He stopped at the house in the first photo that he said was the residence of Gloria Estefan. (Note: On Google Earth Gloria Estefan's house is now identified as a different house on the island.) The next stop was a house that he said formerly belonged to Julio Iglesias (second photo).

After this trip we felt content that we finally were able to see something of Miami. We returned to Miami in 2003 and stayed ten days.









Visit my webpage on Latinos in the United States at
http://www.latinandcaribbeantravel.com/latinosintheus.html


Other websites:

Caribbean Folk Arts Network (Caribfolk) - Caribbean cultural network: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/caribfolk/

Raices Culturales Latinoamericanas (Latin American Cultural Roots) - a nonprofit organization I founded in 1991 that presents Latin American cultural shows, exhibits, and workshops: http://www.raicesculturales.org/

Raicesnews - Latin cultural events in the Philadelphia area: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/raicesnews

Puerto Rico: Beach at Loiza, 2004

In 2004 I had the opportunity to return to Puerto Rico after 20 years, this time with a group of people. It was a short but very intense visit, as our purpose for being there was to document the Fiesta de Santiago Apostol (Feast of St. James) in Loiza, which takes place at the end of July of each year. This research trip was part of my activity with the group Raices Culturales Latinoamericanas ("Latin American Cultural Roots"), and our purpose was to gather information that could be used to teach the dances based in Loiza to students in Philadelphia's Latino community. I had been in New Haven, Connecticut one week before to see their version of the same festival, and one of the participants in that festival also was in Loiza.

The event, which lasted six days, started with a parade through the town that started at 4:00 AM. We went to the municipal building and met some of the participants, attended religious devotions, met a visual artist at his studio, and filmed the parade that featured dancers, musicians, and floats.

The way that Loiza is designed, the beach does not seem to be the focus of activity. It seems to be more designed to face the Loiza River. As such, it is remarkable that this beach is still relatively undeveloped. There have been documentaries that have filmed performers of folk dances on the beach.



See my previous post on Loiza at
http://latin-caribbean-travelblog.blogspot.com/2007/11/puerto-rico-coastal-road-to-loza-1984.html


Also see my webpage on Puerto Rico at http://www.latinandcaribbeantravel.com/puertorico.html


Other websites:

Caribbean Folk Arts Network (Caribfolk) - Caribbean cultural network: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/caribfolk/

Raices Culturales Latinoamericanas (Latin American Cultural Roots) - a nonprofit organization I founded in 1991 that presents Latin American cultural shows, exhibits, and workshops: http://www.raicesculturales.org/

Raicesnews - Latin cultural events in the Philadelphia area: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/raicesnews

Colombian crafts

It should come as no surprise that Juan Valdez, the symbol of Colombian coffee, would be immortalized in crafts as well as commercials and logos. There are many places in Colombia where crafts such as Juan Valdez with his sack of Colombian coffee can be found.

Colombian crafts, which include wooden and ceramic figures, replicas of pre-Columbian gold pieces, clay pots, wall tapestries, leather goods, and other items, can be found throughout the country. I am most familiar with those that are available in Bogota, which was the ancient capital of the Muiscas, the indigenous group that inhabited the region when the Spanish arrived (which also explains the motifs of some of the pre-Columbian replicas). There are several stores, some better known than others, where they can be bought. In the center of the city there is an artisans' center close to the Museo del Oro (Gold Museum) where there are several individual vendors. There is another store further north called El Balay that is a haven for foreigners looking for these kinds of crafts.

See my webpage on Colombia at http://www.latinandcaribbeantravel.com/colombia.html

Other websites:

Caribbean Folk Arts Network (Caribfolk) - Caribbean cultural network: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/caribfolk/

Raices Culturales Latinoamericanas (Latin American Cultural Roots) - a nonprofit organization I founded in 1991 that presents Latin American cultural shows, exhibits, and workshops: http://www.raicesculturales.org/

Raicesnews - Latin cultural events in the Philadelphia area: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/raicesnews