Caribbean [antikvár]

Introduction Here in the Tropics, lush vegetation fills every spare inch of space and the burning sun saps every spark of energy. And yet, however tierce the heat, the peoples of the Caribbean abide by their fundamental mission in life: to enjoy themselves. Without an apparent care in the world, they laugh, sing and dance their way through each day. This effervescent approach to life is shared by peoples of widely divergent ethnic origins and cultures, and it is one of their most endearing charms. On any of the islands large and small scattered by some benevolent god between the Tropic of Cancer and the coast of Venezuela, you come across the same brilliant colours, the same smiling faces (however much the physical features of these islands' occupants have varied through the centuries) and, above all, the same irresistible joie de vivre summed up in the pulsating rhythm of intoxicating, sensuous Caribbean music. This huge archipelago between the north and south of the American continent is comprised of a thousand different worlds. No place on earth offers a greater assortment of exotic landscapes: extinct volcanoes, rain forests, green valleys with plantations of waving sugar-cane, rolling hills, mountain ranges and, of course, the ocean. In the last decade or two it has seemed that this one remaining paradise of modern times is inexorably destined to become a huge secluded haven for tourists in search of sun tans and exotic pleasures. The mythical dimension of these islands, the many legends perpetuated in tales of romance and adventure that have delighted Western readers, appear to be the epilogue of a past now lost for ever. But do the glossy pictures in travel brochures really tell the whole story.!' Has the Caribbean's links with its fascinating past been severed for ever.> Delving into their history we find that every one of these islands has stirring tales to tell. Their "package tour" image is only surface 12