|
beyond boundaries |
|
building lasting and just relationships across cultural and class boundaries |
|
Copyright © 2005-2008 Beyond Boundaries, Syracuse, NY. All rights reserved. No part of this website may be reproduced without written permission. Site by Bluetree Studios
|
|
Upcoming Events |
|
ANNUAL PICNIC Saturday September 27, 2008 3:00 pm
340 Midland Avenue (Aggie Lane’s house)
All Are Welcome Please bring a dish to share and a lawn chair, RSVP to Aggie at 315-478-4571 __________________
BB Booth at Westcott Street Cultural Fair
Sunday September 21, 2008 11 am – 7pm
Westcott Street, University area, Syracuse __________________ Come toBB’s FIRST MEETINGTo get information on our 2008-2009 Project
Sunday October 19, 2008 4 – 6pmBrady Faith Center404 South Ave, Syracuse |
|
Experiencing and Exploring: Puerto Rico
This trip was about cultural awareness, history, and relaxation for the others and myself. It was my first experience traveling with Beyond Boundaries. Puerto Rico was beautiful, the Ocean, the people, and the scenic views, just breath taking.
I landed in San Juan, Puerto Rico and I was very excited about our itinerary. I realized that I needed to brush up on my Spanish language skills. Okay, I really |
|
Puerto Rico Awareness Trip - At Tibes, PR |
|
needed to learn the basics. A few people in the group knew a little Spanish, which proved to be helpful. To order food was quite an experience in itself. I never knew if I was going to like what I ordered because I was just beginning to learn how to say what I liked. I learned how to say “maduros”, the sweet yellow plantains.
From the airport we traveled to Jayuya, about two hours. It was a little scary driving through mountainous terrain. Hacienda Gripinas was beautiful. It was like living in Paradise for a few days. We went to sleep listening to native coqui (tiny frogs) and we awoke to roosters. The next day, we went to Tibes, an indigenous site, and Ponce where we saw its 17th century cathedral and the country’s oldest fire station. On day two we headed to the Observatory and a beach in Arecibo. The Observatory is world’s largest radio telescope, with a 1,000-ft antenna and 1,000-ft dish gathering radio signals from distant galactic regions still forming stars and planets.
|
Desiree at the Observatory |
|
En route to our next stay, Yabucoa, we stopped at the Cemi Museum, the 19th century home of Puerto Rico’s independence struggle and enjoyed the panoramic views of the Ocean shoreline. For the next four days we rented a house on the Ocean. Beautiful! It stopped us all in our tracks and commanded our full attention. The next day Jenny, whose roots are from Naguabo, introduced us to her cousin, Hector, who showed us his summer home while introducing us to the many native |
|
fruit. Star fruit, mangos, passion fruit, and mameyes. At dinner in Naguabo we were able to see Monkey Island, but the boats were definitely too-o-o-o small for us to get a close up look. Maybe, next time.
Maribel, a BB friend, invited us for dinner at Ramon (her brother) and Yuya’s home. Surprisingly, I knew their son and daughter-in-law. Ramon called Syracuse and connected us by phone. That’s when we say “It’s a small world!” The next day we were off to Loiza. There, we visited Samuel Lind in his studio. He explained his artwork and how Puerto Rican history is intertwined with African culture. Also in Loiza, “the Ayala Brother” Raul demonstrated how he creates a traditional coconut mask. We finally got to visit Old San Juan and others in the group went to “ El Yunque,” the rain forest.
The greatest experience I gleaned from the trip is to appreciate your community’s cultural differences. Everyone you think that comes from a different background just may be tied to your history. Thank you BB member Aggie Lane for a great trip and your leadership in experiencing and exploring Puerto Rican culture.
- Desiree Williams-Harrell |