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| Local bread on the way to Carib territory |
This was definitely my favorite trip thus far. We started off the day on a journey to a region of Dominica called Carib territory, which is located on the east coast of the island, where the last of the indigenous Caribbean people reside on 3,700 acres of land. These mainly mixed descendants of the Kalingo (Caribs) live in eight villages on this reserve. On the way to the Carib territory we stopped for some local bread, that I am now forgetting the name of but let me tell you, it was amazing. They fix the bread on a black flat surface and heat it with firewood, it's an exceptional taste. We were also able to stop and take photos of the bay, which was incredibly beautiful.
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| View of the bay |
Once we made it to the reserve the first thing you see is the Karbet (meeting place for live performances). It's interesting that apparently this portion of Dominica became the Kalingo's property just over one hundred years ago by the British. The people are allowed to build anywhere within this territory as it is claimed to be theirs indefinitely however this also means that they are not allowed to sell the property and therefore do not have deeds, etc like we do in the States. There is a duly elected Carib council with a Chief and a Parliamentary Representative at the House of Assembly. The Caribs continue to farm, fish, and practice traditional skills such as basket making and canoe-building. The Karifuna (which is a term for the Kalingo women) is an award-winning, internationally recognized organization that recently celebrated 30 years of promoting and preserving Carib culture. This group was able to perform for us while we were there. I even got to participate in one of their cultural dances!
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| The Karbet |
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| Traditional dance by the Karifuna Cultural Group |
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| Jumping in the pool (I'm on the right) |
After leaving the Carib territory we stopped for a buffet lunch, which was a mixture of Dominica as well as American cuisine, such as fish, rice, beans, salad, and even mac and cheese (but better!). We were then off to Emerald Pool! I heard stories about Emerald Pool before having set foot on the island. While we were in route we saw where Johnny Depp and Orlando Bloom stayed during the filming of Pirates of the Caribbean. I didn't know until today that part of the film was shot just 5 minutes from my apartment, which was pretty neat to find out!
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Trying the "Sorel" drink of Dominica-they boil the petals
and it makes for a great mixture of ginger and cinnamon |
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| After jumping off the main cliff at Emerald Pool |
Emerald pool is known as "Crystal Pool" and by the photos below you will be able to see why. There is a small waterfall and natural pool within the Morne Trois National park and many people that visit Dominica make a stop here because of it. I didn't expect the water to be so cold but as soon as the first person jumped in, we all realized that in order to enjoy the water we had to throw ourselves in. My friend Scott encouraged me to do so and after much coercion, I finally decided to do it. It was a great experience and I even jumped again a bit later! Definitely an experience I will remember forever. About 30 students got in the pool and let me tell you it was a bonding experience for all of us to jump in that pool together.
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