The islands of T&T are known collectively as the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. They are located off the coast of South America and, together with a bunch of smaller islands, they occupy an area of 1,980 square miles. The main enterprise in the country is petroleum and petrochemicals. Because of its amazing weather and laid-back lifestyle, the islands are a magnet for tourists. You could say that job seekers and tourists are constantly seeking vacancies in Trinidad and Tobago.
Part of the islands' attraction to tourists is its position outside the notorious "hurricane belt." A large portion of the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico are battered by hurricanes every year between the months of June and November. The country has a tropical climate, with six warm months of summer and six wet months of winter. Trinidad, the larger of the two main islands, has a rectangular shape with a thick, westward-pointing "tail" in the southwest corner.
Trinidad itself occupies 1,800 square miles. The pointy end of the tail comes within a few miles of the South American east coast. Christopher Columbus, the Catholic, Spanish explorer, named the island for the Holy Trinity. Prior to that, it is unclear whether it was named after the hummingbird, or if its name, derived from the Arawak language, just meant "island."
The main cultural event on the islands is the Carnival. This is a two-day festival held the Monday and Tuesday before Ash Wednesday each year. Brilliantly colorful and more than a little bit racey, it serves as a get-it-all-out-of-yer-system party before the 40-day period of abstinence of Lent. A major tourist attraction, Carnival is two full days of parades, costumes, music and dancing. The precursor to Carnival, Canboulay, was the birthplace of calypso music. Today, soca has become very popular at Carnival, too.
It was during the 1600s that calypso was born. Then, it was a blend of kaiso from West Africa with a strong influence from the French. The instruments of soca come from the Indian subcontinent. Hence its nickname, "chutney music." Calypso uses a greater variety of musical instruments: clarinet, flute, trombone, saxophone, steelpan, congas, bongos, violin and more. Soca, on the other relies on the dhantal, tabla and dholak and a few others.
While Carnival was imported by the French, their slaves were prohibited from attending. Instead, they kicked off their own party, called Canboulay. The word comes from the French for burnt sugar cane. Unfortunately, the celebrations were sometimes infiltrated by what we would probably refer to as gangs, who would start out by singing song duels at each other. Eventually, they degenerated to violent clashes.
The British authorities took umbradge at this and tried to ban the weapons that were used in these clashes, principally torches and sticks. It didn't help to put an end to the violence so they got tough and put a stop to Canboulay outright. The partymakers, who adored their yearly festival, rebelled.
Bereft of their big party, the natives launched a series of angry encounters, referred to in the history books as the Canboulay Riots. Eventually things simmered down and a new, less rambunctious version of the festival evolved. This is what we now refer to as Carnival. This two-day spectacle is what really makes it worthwhile to search for vacancies in Trinidad and Tobago.
Part of the islands' attraction to tourists is its position outside the notorious "hurricane belt." A large portion of the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico are battered by hurricanes every year between the months of June and November. The country has a tropical climate, with six warm months of summer and six wet months of winter. Trinidad, the larger of the two main islands, has a rectangular shape with a thick, westward-pointing "tail" in the southwest corner.
Trinidad itself occupies 1,800 square miles. The pointy end of the tail comes within a few miles of the South American east coast. Christopher Columbus, the Catholic, Spanish explorer, named the island for the Holy Trinity. Prior to that, it is unclear whether it was named after the hummingbird, or if its name, derived from the Arawak language, just meant "island."
The main cultural event on the islands is the Carnival. This is a two-day festival held the Monday and Tuesday before Ash Wednesday each year. Brilliantly colorful and more than a little bit racey, it serves as a get-it-all-out-of-yer-system party before the 40-day period of abstinence of Lent. A major tourist attraction, Carnival is two full days of parades, costumes, music and dancing. The precursor to Carnival, Canboulay, was the birthplace of calypso music. Today, soca has become very popular at Carnival, too.
It was during the 1600s that calypso was born. Then, it was a blend of kaiso from West Africa with a strong influence from the French. The instruments of soca come from the Indian subcontinent. Hence its nickname, "chutney music." Calypso uses a greater variety of musical instruments: clarinet, flute, trombone, saxophone, steelpan, congas, bongos, violin and more. Soca, on the other relies on the dhantal, tabla and dholak and a few others.
While Carnival was imported by the French, their slaves were prohibited from attending. Instead, they kicked off their own party, called Canboulay. The word comes from the French for burnt sugar cane. Unfortunately, the celebrations were sometimes infiltrated by what we would probably refer to as gangs, who would start out by singing song duels at each other. Eventually, they degenerated to violent clashes.
The British authorities took umbradge at this and tried to ban the weapons that were used in these clashes, principally torches and sticks. It didn't help to put an end to the violence so they got tough and put a stop to Canboulay outright. The partymakers, who adored their yearly festival, rebelled.
Bereft of their big party, the natives launched a series of angry encounters, referred to in the history books as the Canboulay Riots. Eventually things simmered down and a new, less rambunctious version of the festival evolved. This is what we now refer to as Carnival. This two-day spectacle is what really makes it worthwhile to search for vacancies in Trinidad and Tobago.
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Job seekers looking for vacancies in Trinidad and Tobago can turn to the suggested website for info. Here is the latest listing at http://www.trinidadjob.com.
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