ArtsAutosBooksBusinessEducationEntertainmentFamilyFashionFoodGamesGenderHealthHolidaysHomeHubPagesPersonal FinancePetsPoliticsReligionSportsTechnologyTravel

Life on my Island

Updated on April 11, 2009

Life is a Beach

Boat at Maracas - Original art by Sharrie69
Boat at Maracas - Original art by Sharrie69

Views of Trinidad

Click thumbnail to view full-size
ParadiseHunuman Temple - The Statue is 85 ft highCeling of the Hanuman Murti TempleTemple in the Sea - built on land that was reclaimed bucket by bucket by a devoteeMudflats and prayer flagsDriving through the Northern Range after a rainstormDolphins at play 'Down the Islands' off of TrinidadScotland Bay, TrinidadPort of Spain Lighthouse in one of its many incarnationsOverlooking Maracas Bay, TrinidadNo Man's Land, TobagoBoats anchored in ChaguaramusBeauty of Mayaro Beach, TrinidadI could stay here foreverEvery creed and race find an equal placeAnd we have castles tooCarnival - J'Ouvert morning. Mud and paint and music!!
Paradise
Paradise
Hunuman Temple - The Statue is 85 ft high
Hunuman Temple - The Statue is 85 ft high
Celing of the Hanuman Murti Temple
Celing of the Hanuman Murti Temple
Temple in the Sea - built on land that was reclaimed bucket by bucket by a devotee
Temple in the Sea - built on land that was reclaimed bucket by bucket by a devotee
Mudflats and prayer flags
Mudflats and prayer flags
Driving through the Northern Range after a rainstorm
Driving through the Northern Range after a rainstorm
Dolphins at play 'Down the Islands' off of Trinidad
Dolphins at play 'Down the Islands' off of Trinidad
Scotland Bay, Trinidad
Scotland Bay, Trinidad
Port of Spain Lighthouse in one of its many incarnations
Port of Spain Lighthouse in one of its many incarnations
Overlooking Maracas Bay, Trinidad
Overlooking Maracas Bay, Trinidad
No Man's Land, Tobago
No Man's Land, Tobago
Boats anchored in Chaguaramus
Boats anchored in Chaguaramus
Beauty of Mayaro Beach, Trinidad
Beauty of Mayaro Beach, Trinidad
I could stay here forever
I could stay here forever
Every creed and race find an equal place
Every creed and race find an equal place
And we have castles too
And we have castles too
Carnival - J'Ouvert morning. Mud and paint and music!!
Carnival - J'Ouvert morning. Mud and paint and music!!

Thoughts of an Island Girl

I live on an island called Trinidad which is in the Caribbean. It is the larger island of our twin island republic - Trinidad and Tobago. I case you still have no clue where we are, get a world map, look just off the tip of Venezuela..and bingo..you have found us. We are actually only about 7 nautical miles from Venezuela. On a clear day I could see the mountains of Venezuela from the porch of the house I grew up in.

I was born in Trinidad and feel very blessed to be a Trinidadian. My mum is a second generation Trinidadian, my father was from Guyana. My mum's mother was born in Barbados and my mother's Grandfather was an Anglican Reverend who came to Trinidad from England to run the Anglican church in Toco. My Dad's father was born in Guyana and his mother was born in Suriname and grew up speaking dutch. As you can see, I come from a real melting pot of cultures! And that is what Trinidad is like - it is a place of great diversity. A little island populated by people who came from all over the world and found a home here. We have many races and creeds all living together in harmony. We celebrate each others' festivals, respect each others' religions and take pride in the fact that this land has birthed many creative and talented people. Where else in the world can you find Africans lighting deyas for Divali, or Hindus putting up Christmas trees and celebrating Christmas, or Syrians out in the streets to see the wonderful Hosay processions the Muslims have,or Chinese people enjoying a good curry with their Indian friends?

We have carnival, calypso, steel band, the most amazing and delicious array of food you will probably ever find, lovely beaches, bustling cities, quiet country areas and music that moves your feet and stirs the soul. We have warmth - and not just from the sun. Visit our country and you are sure to make a friend within moments of landing who is only too eager to introduce you to "Richard's shark and bake" at Maracas or a good old fashioned Trini Lime at their home. "Liming" is Trini slang for hanging out with your friends and having a good time. Something we do well! A Trini can make any event an occasion to remember.

Trini's love to laugh. And we love to poke fun at each other. From very young you learn how to be on the giving and receiving end of a joke and take it all in stride. A walk down a street on any given day (as long as you can catch our sing song accent and learn a couple local words) can literally have you doubled over in stitches laughing at the 'ole talk'.

Trinidad is a land of beaches, mountains, forests, temples, mosques and churches, rivers and birds, culture and art and rhythm and song. The photos I have posted are only a fragment of the many wonderful experiences you can have here. We are truly blessed as a people to have such a treasure trove of culture and beauty.

But every paradise must have its snake. In recent times I have shed tears for my beautiful country. For the few people who are growing up without morals or care. For the rise in crime and for a Government that seems to be turning a blind eye on its people. No longer is our paradise as safe as it was..but this seems to be the trend world wide. People are forgetting what it is like to be a good neighbour, to be a friend, to treasure what we have as a people. But still, I would tell you to come see for yourself that there are still many wonderful people left here who are willing to share this beautiful place with you. Our magic island.

working

This website uses cookies

As a user in the EEA, your approval is needed on a few things. To provide a better website experience, hubpages.com uses cookies (and other similar technologies) and may collect, process, and share personal data. Please choose which areas of our service you consent to our doing so.

For more information on managing or withdrawing consents and how we handle data, visit our Privacy Policy at: https://corp.maven.io/privacy-policy

Show Details
Necessary
HubPages Device IDThis is used to identify particular browsers or devices when the access the service, and is used for security reasons.
LoginThis is necessary to sign in to the HubPages Service.
Google RecaptchaThis is used to prevent bots and spam. (Privacy Policy)
AkismetThis is used to detect comment spam. (Privacy Policy)
HubPages Google AnalyticsThis is used to provide data on traffic to our website, all personally identifyable data is anonymized. (Privacy Policy)
HubPages Traffic PixelThis is used to collect data on traffic to articles and other pages on our site. Unless you are signed in to a HubPages account, all personally identifiable information is anonymized.
Amazon Web ServicesThis is a cloud services platform that we used to host our service. (Privacy Policy)
CloudflareThis is a cloud CDN service that we use to efficiently deliver files required for our service to operate such as javascript, cascading style sheets, images, and videos. (Privacy Policy)
Google Hosted LibrariesJavascript software libraries such as jQuery are loaded at endpoints on the googleapis.com or gstatic.com domains, for performance and efficiency reasons. (Privacy Policy)
Features
Google Custom SearchThis is feature allows you to search the site. (Privacy Policy)
Google MapsSome articles have Google Maps embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
Google ChartsThis is used to display charts and graphs on articles and the author center. (Privacy Policy)
Google AdSense Host APIThis service allows you to sign up for or associate a Google AdSense account with HubPages, so that you can earn money from ads on your articles. No data is shared unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
Google YouTubeSome articles have YouTube videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
VimeoSome articles have Vimeo videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
PaypalThis is used for a registered author who enrolls in the HubPages Earnings program and requests to be paid via PayPal. No data is shared with Paypal unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
Facebook LoginYou can use this to streamline signing up for, or signing in to your Hubpages account. No data is shared with Facebook unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
MavenThis supports the Maven widget and search functionality. (Privacy Policy)
Marketing
Google AdSenseThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Google DoubleClickGoogle provides ad serving technology and runs an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Index ExchangeThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
SovrnThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Facebook AdsThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Amazon Unified Ad MarketplaceThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
AppNexusThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
OpenxThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Rubicon ProjectThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
TripleLiftThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Say MediaWe partner with Say Media to deliver ad campaigns on our sites. (Privacy Policy)
Remarketing PixelsWe may use remarketing pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to advertise the HubPages Service to people that have visited our sites.
Conversion Tracking PixelsWe may use conversion tracking pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to identify when an advertisement has successfully resulted in the desired action, such as signing up for the HubPages Service or publishing an article on the HubPages Service.
Statistics
Author Google AnalyticsThis is used to provide traffic data and reports to the authors of articles on the HubPages Service. (Privacy Policy)
ComscoreComScore is a media measurement and analytics company providing marketing data and analytics to enterprises, media and advertising agencies, and publishers. Non-consent will result in ComScore only processing obfuscated personal data. (Privacy Policy)
Amazon Tracking PixelSome articles display amazon products as part of the Amazon Affiliate program, this pixel provides traffic statistics for those products (Privacy Policy)
ClickscoThis is a data management platform studying reader behavior (Privacy Policy)