Hello Elmat, Some of the content of this Vacation Chronicles post may be politically incorrect. I am only reporting on what I have been told that appears to be internally coherent and logical.
The reason Trinidad should be considered lucky is that, as my relation Tony puts it, ‘no one goes hungry at night no matter what they do not do’. The 600k blacks here are in a political deadlock with the 600k East Indians, leaving the 50k mostly-Chinese and 50k mostly-whites to develop and prosper undisturbed. Tony said that Trinidad (as opposed to Tobago, an island with a separate Assembly that runs the island) has non-petroleum related manufacturing industry such as air-conditioner and car assembly (from CKDs), soap and paper, etc. and exports to the rest of the region. The industrial workers in these businesses are also on flex-time, same as the agricultural, hospitality and other service workers in Tobago. The blacks here in Tobago are uniformly very genuinely friendly (in fact, everybody is friendly), but, according to Tony, have been indoctrinated starting in 1957 (by some local politicians) that organized work in factories and farms is retrogressing towards slavery. The East Indians, having never been slaves (they were contract workers) had no trouble working the land or in factories, and so they do. The East Indians business ethics was such that it hindered business amongst themselves.
The Chinese, given their small number, as elsewhere, had emphasized education, savings, ‘my word is my bond’, professionalism (doctors, lawyers, accountants, engineers, and later, factory operators and financiers), staked out business amongst themselves for themselves, and gradually expanded outward into the other ethnic groups.
The whites and mostly-whites started out owning most of the land, operated the government, schools, and financial institutions. Then they immigrated to Canada and the USA, along with some Chinese, mostly-Chinese, blacks, and East Indians, policy courtesy of the British Commonwealth community of nations.
My Hakka Chinese great grandfather was a teacher, then soldier in China, ran away to Trinidad when Nanking and Wuhan fell to the Chin Dynasty troops during the Taiping rebellion, worked as a contract labourer on the sugar cane plantations, then became a barber, married a Chinese girl who ran a roadside shop. He had four sons and a daughter, plus one natural daughter. All four sons graduated from St Mary’s College and became lawyers/accountants, and the daughters attended St. Joseph’s Convent.
My grandfather was a lawyer, married a French Creole girl attending St. Joseph’s Convent introduced to him by his sister. He was well known for having done much unpaid for work for folks who cannot afford to pay. He got business patronage from the Chinese and French Creole communities, earned plenty, owned plantations and oil lands, and decided to call it quits by age 35, left the assets in the care of his brothers, moved the family (mother, two sons and two daughters) to England, leaving behind two natural daughters in Trinidad. He then left on his own to China near the tail-end of the Chin Dynasty, to fight again, so to speak.
My branch of the family, starting with grandfather, never saw Trinidad again until my first visit in 1984, and again, now. The assets were later sold to my grandfather’s brothers. My grandfather used the money to finance the family in England, and his activities in China, fighting literally to the last penny and last breadth. It was all very noble, but not terribly smart.
We will leave Tobago for Port-of-Spain, Trinidad, this Thursday. I will visit my 100-year old relation Friday morning, then view my grandmother’s belongings (rocking chair and such). There will be a banquet for about 30 people representing the main family groupings (I now count 14 different last names) thrown by yours truly, representing the returning and previously lost tribe.
My 100% French cousin will be showing me places and things (the schools, restaurants, liming places, and the family tree diagram starting in year 1721, eventually leading to my grandmother) this coming Saturday and Sunday, and my Chinese cousins will drive me to San Fernando, where some of the residual assets are. I should soon have enough material for a Michener novel:0)
Here is to ‘survive and fight another day’, Chugs, Jay
P.S. Went scuba diving yesterday, saw eels, sponge coral, turtle, and lots of colourful fish, singly and in schools.
Two British Petroleum employees, a black Trini girl and an English guy, were our companions during the dives and lunch afterwards. The girl is trying to convince the guy to move back to Trinidad with her when her 2.5 year Scottish offshore platform contract is complete. The guy thinks he is hesitating. Silly man.
We will drive to Speyside today, a town an hour and half away, to lunch and hangout with a friend of a friend with a beautiful house. I will continue my study of this micro-economy, and hope to do better with my coconut economy the next time around …
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