I long for the pace of life in the islands . . . or do I?
Can’t count the number of times we’ve heard people say, “I need to get out of this rat race!” People heading to a Caribbean island from Megalopolis are in for a big surprise. In a rush to drive 10 miles to your golf course(?) . . . don’t be. You may sit idling in traffic, seemingly forever, for no apparent reason. The cause–a rollover, car crash, iguana in the road? Not necessarily; it’s just as likely that two friends are having an animated conversation, and ignoring the traffic light. By the way, there’s no tee time at that golf course anyway. Making a quick stop at the supermarket or drugstore? Oh no, you’re not. Lines reminiscent of a movie matinee in the days before before TV are the norm. Why(?), you ask. It could be that the customer realized she has a discount coupon–AFTER the full shopping cart has been rung up. Or, two neighboring cashiers have a humorous story they just have to share. Perhaps you’ve just finished eating a delicious meal, and are waiting for the check(?). You’ll have a long wait. Waitstaff consider it rude to rush the dinner check to a table . . . and won’t do it at all until they are asked. What I’m saying in a roundabout fashion is, Type A’s might be careful what they wish. For the rest of us who can learn to go with the molasses-like flow, this sure beats that old rat race.
This is amusing to read and would be frustrating for this new englander 😉 Enjoy the island life! 🙂
Many people travel without educating themselves about the culture in which they are about to immerse themselves.
In this case, adjusting to the slow pace is more than offset by the wonderful, casual attitude of Puerto Ricans.
Dear Doctor,
I am now convince that you are not only a writer or professor, but a real tourist. This is a Great blog. Enjoy your vacation.
Aruba is the only island we visited regularly in the past and similar to your story. Native people were much more relaxed than us tourists. We were told more than once with a gracious smile, “you’re on Aruba time”. We witnessed the local road crew painting a line down the center of the road, not with a huge truck and fancy machinery; but with men holding a roller mop style stick, just taking their time getting it right. Traffic might sometimes be held up for wild goats or a huge iguana crossing the road.
We stopped going to Aruba when it was apparent the island was changing with way too many new shopping centers and hotels being built. I remember our local cab driver telling us “This is just a little rock. They keep building on it, it’s will sink!”.
Hopefully, the Aruban natives will be able to retain the charm of their island slogan “One Happy Island” and keep the pace they’ve been accustomed to.
Your story is so true of isolated areas, especially the islands–be they tropical or polar.
We visit these places, tell others about them, and the next thing we know, a new
generation of visitors arrives. This second generation is more demanding of high end services.
The third generation is even more so. The outcome is that, soon, the place barely resembles the
lovely, isolated area which attracted the first generation of travelers.
So very true. We just recently spoke with a younger woman (probably late 30’s early 40’s) we met in our NH local bar who just got back from Aruba. She couldn’t grasp what we felt about the pollution of huge hotels, unnecessary shopping malls, etc. It’s funny, there used to be a natural bridge on the island that had become a tourist attraction. The natural bridge collapsed bringing headline news to this small island. Now, the tourists come to see where the natural bridge used to be!
Your story is reminiscent of New Hampshire’s Old Man of the Mountain. Visitation is, of course, way down; but, it persists.
It’s to bad that the carribian islands are becoming Americanized. Soon all you will be able to see are concrete canyons and malls. About a year ago some friends went to Trinidad they took pictures and I was shocked, even though I’ve never been back home (I was born there) how much it has changed from what my mother told me. But that’s the way of the world today, if you have open space, build a Wal Mart or a mall.
Dom: Unfortunately, the powers that be (municipal, state, etc.) are always looking for an easy buck. They generally share the trait of congenital near-sightedness.
Some think the community absolutely HAS to bring in a McDs, TacoB,etc., in order to be perceived as a “real town.” Others are convinced that the revenue generated balances any loss in community character. So far, the locals and ex-pats have banded together to block most of the offensive franchises from locating in Rincon. May the force be with them.