My Years Abroad-Trinidad and Tobago (1)

In May 2008, I left Dubai for a new job, a strange and mysterious country, Trinidad and Tobago. Trinidad and Tobago is located at the northern end of South America. It consists of two main islands and more than 20 small islands in Trinidad and Tobago. Also known as the West Indies, it belongs to the Caribbean island countries. The tropical maritime climate makes the country covered with green, and almost no bare land can be found. Trinidad and Tobago (called Trinidad by many people in China) has an area of only 1/3 and a population of1.2000. The population is mainly of Indian and African descent, and other ethnic groups, including Chinese hybrids, are less than 1/3. First occupied by Spanish colonists, then ruled by European colonists in turn. Since independence, she has joined the Commonwealth. Most people of African descent are slaves sold from Africa by European colonists. Such a complex colonial history makes it difficult for this island country, which is quite mixed with ethnic and cultural traditions, to pursue. The struggle between the colonists left only fortresses and castles. The lack of cultural traditions also makes the divorce rate of adults in this country extremely high, reaching more than 85% according to our driver. This situation should be common in these Caribbean island countries. I remember a newspaper reported that the divorce rate in Jamaica reached 90%. Apart from China people, Indians and Europeans, it can be said that this is indeed the case for more than 80% of the locals I have contacted.

This complicated ethnic situation has also led to nondescript languages. English is a common language, but the English they speak is similar to the dialect in our country. If we listen to them, it seems that they don't speak English, but when they communicate with us, they use English that we can understand, and of course they are mixed with very strong dialects and accents. When I first arrived in Teutonic, I felt very unaccustomed. When I couldn't hear clearly, I asked them to say it again, and I gradually got used to it.

Diet is also a hodgepodge, which is difficult to adapt to. Even the food in Chinese restaurants has become very tasty, losing the characteristics of Chinese food. There is no way. To survive, Chinese restaurants must first satisfy the tastes of many people. The local people hardly turn on the stove, and three meals a day are solved outside. But strangely enough, the local people are full of praise for the dishes cooked by the chefs of our project team. No, it's obviously polite flattery. They eat a lot and always like to eat. The western food in the local hotel is good, mainly seafood and vegetables, especially grilled lobster. What haunts me so far is the shark's fin porridge made by a Chinese restaurant in Trinidad, which we came across occasionally when we were inspecting a project. Shark's fin porridge tastes good and the price is not high, which seems to be 10 RMB. In fact, many people don't eat shark fin. We often find shark fins discarded by fishermen in fish stalls by the sea. If we are lucky, we will find dozens of shark fins. Later, fishermen will deliberately put it aside. If the quantity is large, we will give them dozens of dollars. Under normal circumstances, fishermen will throw these shark fins and other fish bellies into the sea to attract more fish. Teto's cost of living is not high, and it is easy to survive.