The Republic of Trinidad and Tobago (T&T) is made up of two islands off the coast of Venezuela, Grenada and the Lesser Antilles. The combined area of the two islands and numerous smaller landforms is 1,980 square miles. While T&T is a fabulous tourist destination, its primary industry is in petroleum and petrochemicals. Vacationers and job seekers alike are always on the lookout 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.
Occupying 1,841 square miles, Trinidad is the larger of the two main islands. In the early days of its settlement by humans, it derived its name from the Arawak language. There are disagreements over whether it was named for the hummingbird or simply, "island." When the Spanish Catholic explorer, Christopher Columbus arrived, he called it Trinidad, in recognition of the Holy Trinity.
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.
Calypso music got its origin in the 1600s. It was a mixture of West African kaiso music with a strong influence from the slaves of the French Antilles. On the other hand, soca, or "chutney music" as it is lovingly called, comes mainly from the Indian subcontinent.
Four hundred years ago, when French slaves were not permitted to attend Carnival, they invented their own party to coincide. It was called Canboulay, after the French words for burnt sugar cane. Like many big parties today, Canboulay somehow got hijacked by troublemakers who would start slinging insults at each other using songs as weapons. As the party wore on, it would degenerate into the equivalent of a barroom brawl.
The British authorities got involved and tried at first to ban the weapons the gangs used, mainly sticks and torches. When this did not quell the violence, they banned the festivities outright. This riled the ordinary citizens, who loved the Canboulay and were not that worried about the fighting.
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.
Occupying 1,841 square miles, Trinidad is the larger of the two main islands. In the early days of its settlement by humans, it derived its name from the Arawak language. There are disagreements over whether it was named for the hummingbird or simply, "island." When the Spanish Catholic explorer, Christopher Columbus arrived, he called it Trinidad, in recognition of the Holy Trinity.
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.
Calypso music got its origin in the 1600s. It was a mixture of West African kaiso music with a strong influence from the slaves of the French Antilles. On the other hand, soca, or "chutney music" as it is lovingly called, comes mainly from the Indian subcontinent.
Four hundred years ago, when French slaves were not permitted to attend Carnival, they invented their own party to coincide. It was called Canboulay, after the French words for burnt sugar cane. Like many big parties today, Canboulay somehow got hijacked by troublemakers who would start slinging insults at each other using songs as weapons. As the party wore on, it would degenerate into the equivalent of a barroom brawl.
The British authorities got involved and tried at first to ban the weapons the gangs used, mainly sticks and torches. When this did not quell the violence, they banned the festivities outright. This riled the ordinary citizens, who loved the Canboulay and were not that worried about the fighting.
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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