Synagogues in the Sun

During my stay in the Caribbean, I visited synagogues on three islands: Barbados, Curaçao and Jamaica. Each one was originally built by the Sephardim who were descendants of the Spanish and Portuguese Jews who had fled the Inquisition for Amsterdam, went to Recife, Brazil for a short sojourn and continued on to the islands of the Caribbean in the mid-17th century. The grave stones in the cemeteries were fascinating with depictions of trees being cut down by a hand with an axe, heads of cherubs and even the skull and bones that we associate with pirates. Many of the inscriptions were in old Portuguese, Hebrew and in the case of Barbados, old English. The Friday night services on each of the islands  were different, the Bajan Shabbat service was modeled on what is now standard Conservative Ashkenazi ritual as all the Sephardim had either left the island or intermarried by 1929 and Polish Jews arrived in the 1930s taking over the community. The Jamaican service took place in a huge, white colonial style synagogue and seemed to be influenced by the British with its sermon from above and organ. Of all the synagogues, I was most fascinated by the one in Curaçao. It had included old Portuguese during parts of the service, was completely egalitarian and let women participated in the reading of the Torah, had what looked like a very successful Hebrew school for children and a nice museum. The pictures of the two grave stones were actually copies of the real ones in a cemetery that unfortunately is falling in disrepair due to its proximity to an oil refinery. It was sad to see the writing literally burned off the stones by the chemicals in the air. The pictures above were taken in Curaçao and include a view of the sand covered floor of the actual synagogue as well as two of the most interesting headstones. There is much more to be explored about the "Synagogues in the Sun" as I call them and I plan to continue this discussion in a blog specifically devoted to the topic. Look for it soon.

Great Houses in Barbados

Throughout Barbados there are homes that were built on sugar cane plantations during the time of slavery.  These "great houses" as they are called can often be seen from miles away as they have Royal Palm trees that line the road leading to their door. During my stay in Barbados I visited at least two of these historical landmarks including Oughterson in St. Philip and Farley Hill where the movie "Island in the Sun" was filmed in 1957. The latter burned down after the filming of the movie but the impressive structure still survives on the land that now serves as a beautiful national park.

Oistins on a Friday night

On Friday nights go to Oistins, a small fishing village that expands into a huge open air restaurant during the weekends. There you will find all types of fish, especially Flying Fish, fried and grilled right before your eyes and thousands socializing. It's a great place to eat and hang out.

Bajan Sunsets

The sunsets of Barbados were spectacular. No matter what part of the island I was on, I saw gorgeous shades of orange, yellow, pink and purple. Here are a few pictures of dusk from the western and southern beaches.

The Super Bowl in Barbados

One of the most exciting things that I did on island was watch the Super Bowl with my brother, Russell who was visiting from Milwaukee. He brought up a cheesehead hat for me to wear and several Packers t-shirts. We first headed out to the US Marine House where we had Embassy clearance to watch at a Super Bowl Party they were having. There weren't a lot of Packer fans there and I actually started snoozing on a couch. From there we went to Worthing Court next to my apartment and saw Aaron Rodgers lead the team to victory. It was incredible celebrating our team in the tropics, thousands of miles away from the Frozen Tundra.

A Visit to Harrison's Cave

One day my friend Joy and I drove to Harrison's Cave in St. Thomas Parish. It was a long drive in an un-airconditioned car, but the scenery was beautiful as we crossed the island moving north. I didn't know that Barbados had one of the most incredible caves in the world made easily accessible by a brand new trolley car that slowly descended down to the depths of the cave. Inside I saw huge stalactites and stalagmites (I always get confused as to which one goes up and which one goes down). I also became somewhat claustrophobic, but the visit was worth it and I would definitely recommend the excursion to anyone interested in seeing phenomenal formations underground.  

A Trip to Speightstown

Speightstown is a town on the Northwest side of the island. It is quaint with many art galleries, a few cafes and small businesses. I went there one day with my friend Joy and saw some beautiful Calder-like metal wind chimes near the sea. Joy snapped a picture of me on this very hot April day.

The Gold Cup

Instead of going to Carnival in Trinidad, I ended up going to the Gold Cup Horse Race in Barbados. Thousands of people attended the big race and it was exciting to watch it dressed up Kentucky Derby-style, ie. with a big hat and pretty dress. Though I didn't bet on the horses, I chose "Show Me The Money" to win because I liked his name. The race went by fast on the small track with sharp turns and my horse won. At least for a few minutes. He was disqualified for interfering with another favorite, "Apostle", and "Zoom", a Bajan horse trained by the brother of a friend ultimately won.

Hair braiding

After shopping on Swan Street for the first time with my friend, Shama. We went back to my apartment and she braided my hair. I could tell that she was very good at it as the process was quick, although somewhat painful. In the end, my hair was braided up in beautiful rows going up to a little braided bun on top. It was beautiful. After the braiding, Shama's boyfriend Dale came over to take pictures. He put me in all of these poses that must have come from "The Next Top Model" wearing my new clothes. They came out amazing and people responded to my Facebook posts at the time, especially looking over my shoulder in skinny jeans. In school the next day my students were amazed and wanted to know who did it.

Palms at Bathsheba Beach

Bathsheba Beach on the East Coast of Barbados is one of the most amazing places you could go on island. There are huge rocks that stick out of ocean like Stonehenge. There is always a breeze coming off the Altantic Ocean and the palm trees are magnificent.

Learning how to blog

I've got so much to say yet I need to learn how to do this. Thank goodness my friend Ramez is helping me.

Back in New York City

After seven months in the Caribbean, primarily in Barbados, I am back in the City. The transition is hard. I think of myself living on a beautiful island, surrounded by friends, with little worries except for doing some research and teaching. Now that I am back I would like to share with others some of the things I experienced and learned on island. I welcome your comments and questions.