November is a big month here in Belize. They celebrate the arrival of the Garifuna people from the Caribbean. The story goes like this: A slave ship wrecked off the coast of St. Vincent and the slaves swam for shore. A large number of them drowned trying to reach shore. They settled the island, but the British and French were already there. The British did not like them, but they got along okay with the French. Finally, the British just kicked them out. They set sail in dories - dugout canoes - and tried to find a different place to settle. By this time, they had mixed with many other cultures...the French, Carib, and Spanish...and blended that with the West African culture that they came with to form a distinct Garifuna culture. Some settled in Honduras and other places along the coast of the Caribbean Sea. A group sailed to Belize and sought entry. A British soldier met them and turned them back...three times. The fourth time, they were allowed to settle here in Belize.
To celebrate the Garifuna culture, Punta Gorda hosts a Battle of the Drums where people come from all over (even from Honduras!) to demonstrate their amazing Garifuna drumming skills. It was a lively event and the drumming was spectacular. Below are some photos and a video of the event:
Then, November 19th is Garifuna Settlement Day. It starts essentially the night before and there is drumming literally all night long. The next morning at dawn (ish - this is Belize) they re-enact the arrival, rejection, and eventual acceptance of the Garifuna people to Belize. We arrived at 5:30 am and there were people milling around the wharf. Most had not been to sleep the night before and many were at varying levels of intoxication. We found some of the students and staff from Hillside and began the wait for the event. And wait. And wait.
A man was talking with the group and he was pretty intoxicated. He told us that he was our neighbor and talked in circles for a good 15 minutes before a light bulb went on and he said, "I have a dory (dugout canoe)! I'm gonna go get it! Want to ride in the dory?" Hmm. Paddling while intoxicated. No thanks. He proceeded to leave. He did indeed have a dory and he paddled it (with a 2X4) back toward us while drinking a beer and waving a palm frond enthusiastically. We were laughing at his silliness.
As his dory approached, Deirdre said "When he lands, can we count that as seeing the re-enactment? I'm tired and we're just standing around!"
After he beached his dory, a group of people in Garifuna garb started getting into the canoe...his canoe was actually the one being used for re-enactment. They brought bigger paddles, though. The canoe approached the wharf and was rejected three times by a gentleman dressed as a British colonial soldier.
Then, they were finally allowed to land. This was followed by a procession of drumming and dancing...well, a procession of drumming and dancing then a whole day of drumming and dancing!
Beautiful people, beautiful culture! I'm so grateful to be able to experience them both!
To celebrate the Garifuna culture, Punta Gorda hosts a Battle of the Drums where people come from all over (even from Honduras!) to demonstrate their amazing Garifuna drumming skills. It was a lively event and the drumming was spectacular. Below are some photos and a video of the event:
Then, November 19th is Garifuna Settlement Day. It starts essentially the night before and there is drumming literally all night long. The next morning at dawn (ish - this is Belize) they re-enact the arrival, rejection, and eventual acceptance of the Garifuna people to Belize. We arrived at 5:30 am and there were people milling around the wharf. Most had not been to sleep the night before and many were at varying levels of intoxication. We found some of the students and staff from Hillside and began the wait for the event. And wait. And wait.
A man was talking with the group and he was pretty intoxicated. He told us that he was our neighbor and talked in circles for a good 15 minutes before a light bulb went on and he said, "I have a dory (dugout canoe)! I'm gonna go get it! Want to ride in the dory?" Hmm. Paddling while intoxicated. No thanks. He proceeded to leave. He did indeed have a dory and he paddled it (with a 2X4) back toward us while drinking a beer and waving a palm frond enthusiastically. We were laughing at his silliness.
As his dory approached, Deirdre said "When he lands, can we count that as seeing the re-enactment? I'm tired and we're just standing around!"
After he beached his dory, a group of people in Garifuna garb started getting into the canoe...his canoe was actually the one being used for re-enactment. They brought bigger paddles, though. The canoe approached the wharf and was rejected three times by a gentleman dressed as a British colonial soldier.
Then, they were finally allowed to land. This was followed by a procession of drumming and dancing...well, a procession of drumming and dancing then a whole day of drumming and dancing!
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