Calling All History and Heritage Aficionados

… From Travel Educator Bob Fisher

The contextual nature of all travel

The very nature of travel involves experiencing new realities, gaining new perspectives, and creating a new personal frame of reference on the world – perhaps even on life itself.

Travel is always contextual whether the “destination” you are visiting is just around the corner or much farther afield.

And the context of the destination is an essential element of the travel experience. Like theatre, it is the setting – and frequently the “set”. It is what determines the meaning a visitor derives from the destination. And the context is the amalgam of circumstances in which the destination has evolved.

History and heritage are the key connectors to the past; but it is also the historical context that allows us to understand the challenges of the present, and even more importantly, to predict the future.

This is why the increasing number of engaged and participatory travellers, who by the way are demanding more “bang for their buck” and a more meaningful travel experience, vigorously engage in the context when they travel.

New technologies of all kinds allow us to focus our interests on the kind of travel experience that resonates with us.

This is especially true when it comes to history and heritage.

Colin Old’s ingenious and ongoing history and heritage project

Colin Old is the Communications Officer of one of Canada’s most intriguing national historic sites, Bethune Memorial House in Gravenhurst, Ontario.

For more information on this site and to listen to a chat between Colin and me about Dr. Norman Bethune, the “unlikely hero” who was born in this small town but went on eventually to become a key figure in Mao Zedong’s Communist Revolution in China, go to “Norman Bethune: A Doctor Without Borders”.

Colin’s Google National Historic Sites maps

Using the magic of Google, Colin has begun a project that is ongoing. It is also a project that provides a very “traveller-friendly” tool to all those who love to experience history and heritage through the medium of travel.

For each of the national historic sites that Colin identifies in his interactive Google maps, he also gives a brief and concise description of the site. In essence, Colin is providing an historical and literal roadmap for exploring fascinating, meaningful, and grassroots sites.

To see the sites that Colin has identified, click on the links below.

The Google technology also allows you to zoom in or out, to add your own comments, to forward the map (or individual historic sites) to friends and fellow historical-heritage travellers. The maps are also topographical so that you can get a “bird’s eye view” of the physical landscape of the featured region. And finally, you can also save each of the maps in your own personal Google map folder.

Photos and Wikipedia articles may also be brought up when selected from the dropdown “More” menu.

Also, bookmark this webpage because more such Google historical roadmaps from Colin will be added here.

Eastern Ontario

North and West of Hamilton, Ontario

Kingston, Ontario

Central Ontario

Other resources

National Historic Sites of Canada

Traveling Journalist of the Month: April Thompson

Welcome to a new feature here at TE, where we highlight journalists who see travel as the most experiential form of education. Whether as an activist, writer, or musician in the Brazilian band Batala, April Thompson learns and educates:

http://jopeters.blogspot.com/2010/01/most-amazing-and-adventurous-young.html

Travel Educator Bob Fisher Part of “Canada Magazine” Launch

Bob Fisher of The Travel Educators is Canada Correspondent for a new magazine:

Canada Magazine

The online, electronic version of the prototype issue.

Best wishes to the staff.

China Then China Now

… From Travel Educator Bob Fisher

Cultural and other walls

After a first-time visit to China, including of course an exhilarating day on The Great Wall of China comfortably and delightfully embraced by a Saturday afternoon swarm of citizens of this great emerging nation, I have been pondering the role, function, and meaning of walls in general in human society.

Why do we build walls? What are they really all about? As travellers, what intercultural skills are at our disposal — if we are lucky or so inclined — to transcend cultural walls? For the truly intrepid traveller a borderless world, conceptually especially, is the best of all possible scenarios.

Historically walls have helped keep the “barbarians” at a safe distance and ensure the sanctity of hearth and home. But they also have been structures that can deprive and oppress those within. However, even though walls exclude the “outsider” or contain the occupants, they can also have an inclusive function.

Notwithstanding the excesses and necrosis of feudalistic societies, throughout history walls (or borders) have also served to protect and preserve primary cultures; contain, delineate, and define a collective ethos; centre a culture; and engender introspection while at the same time providing a safe glimpse of that which is away and beyond. Personal walls, figurative and literal, can also assure privacy and intimacy; perhaps our greatest luxury in many parts of the world.

But it all depends on the nature and purpose of the wall.

Shanghai: welcoming the world… this time on its own terms

In the exponential world of travel and tourism — considered by many to be the largest industry on the planet — there is no shortage of new players. Everyone wants “a piece of the action”; and why shouldn’t they? Walls are being breached all over the planet, thanks in part to a 21st-century approach to the marketing of travel and tourism.

As one of the newest, most entrepreneurial, and multidimensional destinations reaching out to this global travel market, Shanghai is marketing its distinct history, heritage, and contemporary culture in ways that may seem paradoxical, or even incongruous.

Who would have imagined that the largest Communist state in the world would be instituting free markets (of a sort) and competitive, capitalist marketing strategies? And who would have imagined that Chinese cities would be competing with each other for foreign visitors. A colleague in China tells me that there is a joke going around that “Every taxi driver in Beijing can discuss world affairs with you, while every taxi driver in Shanghai can discuss the stock market.” He also suggests that while Beijing is more a political city, Shanghai is more a commercial one; a city in which the citizens are more “practical.” However, he also reminded me that every Chinese city has its own distinctive character. But there is no doubt that these two cities, not unlike tourism destinations in what is a whole new world of diversified travel and tourism, are competitors for tourism revenues.

At the time of my visit, the city was in mega renovation mode as it also prepared for its really big moment on the world stage — Expo 2010 Shanghai. (And by the way, it has been reported that the world-famous Cirque de Soleil, a Canadian institution and creation which was conceived in Québec, will “co-create” the Canada Pavilion at Expo 2010 Shanghai.)

Shanghai is also a city in which you sense a personal and collective self-determination you might not have expected. And if, as I did, you take the opportunity to talk to locals, many of whom speak English and are more than willing to engage in dialogue with you, you will understand what I mean.

With the Mission Statement of “Better City, Better Life,” Shanghai has committed itself to what promises to be the largest World Exposition ever. More importantly, it has committed itself to urban renewal in which I hope that people really do come first. Furthermore, it has committed itself to a greener way of life, which without a doubt will be a major challenge.

When we toured the Expo site, I must admit to wondering how on Earth they were going to get this mammoth undertaking finished in time for the opening on May 1, 2010. However, given precedents such as the Beijing Olympics, the workforce available, and the hierarchical and centralized nature of Chinese government, I’m quite sure this world exposition will go down in the record books as one of the most successful, perhaps even “the best” to date.

I say “one of the best” advisedly because, although I was very impressed with Shanghai’s ambitious and long-term strategy of becoming a major player on the world stage — perhaps even giving Hong Kong a run for its money — my only caveat to the Shanghai Tourism Department is that the “bigger is better” mindset is not necessarily in the best interests of any destination. This may sound pedantic but bigger is not always better; better is better. And of course what is “better” is open to debate; however all parties concerned (including visitors to Shanghai) will need to apply their own judgement as to the validity of the ethical conundrum of harmonizing quantity with quality. Please don’t get me wrong; I was very impressed with a lot of the initiatives I saw in the works in Shanghai, but, to be quite frank, I was also concerned that China might fall into the trap of becoming derivative, succumbing to Dysneyfication, and emulating the worst of Western civilization. And what a pity that would be given China’s thousands of years of history, cultural, art, and philosophy. But as it has been said in reference to other nations, “Judge me by my culture, not by my government.”

However as a leading destination within the booming tourism industry of “The New China,” Shanghai historically has been a familiar face and international city since the 1930s especially, a whole other story that is being told boldly and explicitly in Shanghai today. But today it is also a revitalized and enterprising city that knows what it wants and how it is going to get it.

To many around the world, this new no-nonsense business culture of travel and tourism from the People’s Republic of China may seem at first glance somewhat befuddling or even disconcerting. After all, the emergence of China as a global, political, and economic power does, at first glance, seem to turn things upside down. There may be very good reasons (of national self-interest) that make people fear a new world order. Empires do decline.

But as the old saying goes, time marches on. And if I were a hotshot marketing executive in Shanghai, I might also be tempted to throw into the media mix, the equally familiar “Everything old is new again.”

A 21st century frame of reference

According to the Shanghai Statistics Bureau, the city had a population of 18.88 million by the end of 2008. Beijing is the runner up as China’s second largest city (after Shanghai), with more than 17 million people. While travelling in China, you always have to remember that this nation has a population of 1.3 billion people, the largest in the world, and that those numbers have many implications and ramifications. On the other hand, I rarely felt overwhelmed by masses of people. In fact, as was also my experience in India, I never felt that this was a faceless nation, which can be the impression one gets “from afar.”

It is also significant that the median age in China is 34.1, and that the one child policy is still (more or less) in place. As one pundit recently said, this is a major challenge to China because “It will get old before it gets rich.” This aging society factor is something we understand well in North America, but the demographics in China are exponentially more of a challenge.

To give a little more numerical perspective, the armed forces in China (also the largest in the world) have 2.3 million enlisted members. In terms of China’s literacy rate, 90.9 of the people can read and write, an enviable achievement. And by the way, there are 253 million Internet users in China. The issue of the Chinese government’s blocking of websites, however, (including initially, by the way , yours truly the Philosophical Traveller) is just one of the major issues that the international community is monitoring. In an address to students during his recent visit to Shanghai, President Barack Obama criticized what he referred to as internet censorship, while addressing students, while at the same time praising freedom of expression and political participation.

(Readers and Internet users may also be interested in the China Internet Project’s website China Digital Times, but as is always the case in the media world, caveat lector.)

Also, in terms of the global travel and tourism industry, it is important to factor in that China’s economy is ranked third in the world, behind that of the United States and Japan with a GDP of $4.4 trillion.  And a United Nations World Tourism Organization study in 2007, found that that China will produce 100 million outbound tourists by 2020; thus becoming even more of a player in the competitive world of travel and tourism.

China would appear to be adapting to the passage of time, and other global events, such as the most recent worldwide recession. On October 1, 2009, it celebrated “Sixty Years of Brilliance”; the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China.

And by the way, the Chinese Communist Party was founded in 1921 in Shanghai!

Timeless China

Whether time heals all wounds, as the saying goes, is of course debatable but time and history are also relentless. And the city of Shanghai, as a kind of New China prototype, is striving to take advantage of the 21st-century frame of reference in which it finds itself. At the same time, it is not turning a blind eye to the past; but in many ways is integrating the past with the present.

Images and Imagery of China

For visual narratives of Shanghai, Beijing, Xi’ian, Hangzhou, Suzhou, and Fengjing, visit my Flikr site using the links below.

Surreptitious Shanghai

Contemplating Four Chinese Cities

Grassroots Beijing and Environs

Video Moments in China

Classical Ballet With a Chinese Flavour

Jazz Ballet Chinese-Style

The Art of the Chinese Acrobat

Chinese Lotus Dancers

Wild at Heart: Black Hills Wild Horse Sanctuary

…From Travel Educator Allison Milionis

It’s the kind of place horse-crazy girls dream about: paddocks and an open range full of horses of every color, size, and shape. My friend Karen Tweedy-Holmes and I arrived at Black Hills Wild Horse Sanctuary just after dusk on a warm October day. It was too dark to see that our cabin was across from a paddock of fillies  but we could sense them. We stood outside our rental car breathing in their scent, a sweetness that gets stored in one’s olfactory memory under “favorite things.” We could hardly wait for the sun to rise the next day. When it finally did come up over the low hills, we made a beeline to the fence and cooed our greetings to a small band of shy but curious young horses.

The Black Hills Wild Horse Sanctuary, also known as IRAM (Institute of Range and American Mustang), is a short drive out of Hot Springs, South Dakota, a charming hillside town 53 miles south of Rapid City and at the base of the Black Hills. Western movie makers can’t make up this landscape: windblown buffalo grass, groves of cottonwood trees, the meandering Cheyenne River, expansive sky, and bands of grazing horses. Paints, sorrels, buckskins, and bays roam land that was once home to Native Americans and centuries before them, the great Columbian and woolly mammoths. Prairie dogs abound, as well as mule deer, rabbits, and coyotes. Every so often, a bald eagle will leave her cliff side nest to soar over her prairie domain.

Had Dayton O. Hyde not rushed to purchase this exquisite land, there would be houses not horses dotting this landscape. In 1988, a developer was eyeing the property for residential subdivision. At the same time, Dayton was looking for the perfect piece of land for a wild horse sanctuary. A rancher and conservationist, Hyde had witnessed the horrific Bureau of Land Management (BLM) roundups, killings, and abuse of the American mustang. It was inconceivable to him that the wild beauties that roamed federal land could be obliterated from the west, or worse, languish in government-run holding pens for the rest of their lives.

In his 2005 memoir, “The Pastures of Beyond,” Dayton, now 84, describes the moment he knew he had to do something about the plight of wild horses. It was early 1988, near Lovelock, Nevada. He was there to buy cattle but something drew him to the federal holding facilities crowded with hundreds of anxious horses. “I stood outside the fence and saw the hurt and dejection in their eyes,” he wrote. “I had grown up with wild horses on the ranges surrounding Yamsi. I had a feeling that, somehow, I was meant to help the animals escape.”

But it wasn’t easy convincing the U.S. government that a non-profit sanctuary was not only in the best interest of the horses, but also the U.S. taxpayer.  Dayton told me it took nearly six months of wrangling on Capital Hill before he received the support of Congress and subsequently, the BLM, to take a large number of horses off their hands.

Within a year, he’d secured the 11,000-acre tract along the Cheyenne and 300 wild horses had been trucked in from holding pens in Northern California, Oregon, Nevada, and Wyoming. As soon as they were released, the horses dispersed over the land and formed small bands, many of which remain intact to this day.

That was over 20 years ago. Since then, the number of horses has nearly doubled – there are over 500 – and Dayton has leased an additional 2,000 acres from a local tribe. Sanctuary operations have expanded to include a volunteer program, personal tours, a cozy rental cabin, and a space for an RV or two. A herd of gentle, rust-colored cattle graze on the lower pastures, their sales providing an additional source of income. A large rock sculpture designed and constructed by Dayton marks the entrance of the sanctuary off Highway 71 and for several miles in either direction large billboards entice Black Hills tourists to “come see wild herds running free.”

Dayton’s initial plan was to adopt out foals born on the sanctuary, and for years the sales raised a good portion of the $300,000 it takes to run the sanctuary annually. Stallions were mated with mustang mares, their hardy and intelligent offspring advertised as a part of the “American West heritage.”

But in the past couple of years, the bottom has fallen out of the horse market and as Dayton puts it, “you can’t give a horse away.” This means that not only are sales way down, but there this a growing number of horses that people can’t afford to feed. They’re being turned out on federal land and in some cases, private property, to fend for themselves. As a result, many starve. Worse yet, many wild horses held by the BLM are purchased by kill buyers and trucked hundreds of miles to a horrific death in a Mexican or Canadian slaughterhouse. There is still a market for horsemeat in a number of European and Asian countries.

“We wish we had a lot more land for a lot more horses,” Dayton laments, “but there’s a limit to what we can do.”

Karen and I had been bumping along with Dayton over high meadows in his big four-wheel-drive pickup. What was going to be a short interview over coffee at the visitors’ center became a four-hour expedition through field and river, much to our delight. He pointed out the roaming bands of horses, describing the personality traits of the lead mares and the origins of some of the more unique markings on the yearlings. He expressed his thoughts about the BLM program and told stories of his first years on the land, when there was nothing more than a small cabin, a corral, and the newly released horses. Back then, stallions were free to travel with their harems.

Now to limit births, Dayton and Susan Watt, BHWHS Program Manager, have separated the stallions and for extra measure are testing out a birth control method called porcine zona pellucida, or P.Z.P. This immunocontraceptive is lauded by Jay F. Kirkpatrick, director of the nonprofit science and conservation center at ZooMontana in Billings, as the best method for controlling wild horse populations.  Kirkpatrick has been trying to convince the BLM of this for years, to no avail.

Mares are given a shot of P.Z.P. in the spring and are unable to conceive for a year. So far, the program has worked well for BHWHS, in tandem with keeping the stallions in far away paddocks.

“We’re going to have a few babies here and there, but we can handle that,” says Susan, 61, pointing to a ridge where a group of horses are grazing near a grove of cottonwood. A few mares have foals by their side and the sun illuminates their shiny, healthy coats.

On our second day at BHWHS, we met Susan in the morning for another tour that included new photo opportunities. She is absolute in her commitment to the sanctuary and believes the best thing they can do is to educate people. She also recognizes that the media is the ultimate conduit for their mission. With the help of Hot Springs’ production company Studio West Management, she’s been promoting the sanctuary to film and documentary makers and has had some success. Several sanctuary locations have appeared in Hidalgo (2004), Into the Wild (2007), and the 1996 TNT television movie Crazy Horse.  There’s a lot of international interest in the sanctuary as well.  Crews from Japan and Germany were on site in early 2009 filming scenes for various television programs about the American West.

A former teacher and Alabama native, Susan tells me that her work at the sanctuary is a social, emotional, and spiritual endeavor. Following the death of her husband in 1995, she took a trip to Africa and while hovering over a wild animal reserve in a hot air balloon, she recalled an interview with Dayton on 20/20 that left her instantly impressed by his earnest commitment to helping wild horses.

Susan had an epiphany. “I knew right then what I was going to do with the rest of my life,” she recalls. When she returned to the U.S. she called Dayton and asked if he would teach her about wild horse management. Within the year, she had moved to Hot Springs and was volunteering nearly full time at the sanctuary.

That was 14 years ago. Now, Susan heads the marketing endeavors, manages the day-to-day administrative operations, oversees the volunteers, and also helps care for the animals with Dayton and their ranch hand, Mark.

It’s clear that she and Dayton share a deep love for the sanctuary and the horses. They also share a sense of urgency, and for good reason. It’s a pretty grim future wild horses face, considering the alarming rate that open land in the West continues to be swallowed up by development and farming.  To provide America’s mustangs with the land they need to survive requires a paradigm shift by federal agencies like the BLM. Managing the birth rate of wild horses is on the table for discussion, and there is also a lot of talk by wild horse activists to open more sanctuaries. But as Dayton and Susan showed us, keeping a sanctuary running well is no easy task and not for the faint of heart. The work is back breaking, the winters bitterly cold, fences break down, and there is no end to the heart wrenching pleas to rescue an ill-fated herd of mustangs, or a mare and foal abandoned in a field.

On our last evening at BHWHS, I took a walk along the paddock. Inside, the fillies stood together, relaxed, seemingly content with each other’s company. By next year these horses will be reintroduced to one of the bands running free on the sanctuary’s expansive property.  They’ll maintain their close friendships, living out their days without the threat of a BLM roundup or a Mexican slaughterhouse. They are quite possibly the luckiest horses in the U.S.  I’m pretty sure they know this.

© Photographs by Karen Tweedy-Holmes are copyrighted and published here with her approval.

Randa Abdel-Fatta’s Literary Debut: A Palestinian Girl Down Under

Travel Educator Kelly Westhoff weighs in on a unique young adult book:

http://www.gonomad.com/theerfiles/2009/11/does-my-head-look-big-in-this.html#links

Private school. Culture clash. Adolescence. Serious issues examined by a voice we Westerners don’t often hear from. And you thought your teen years were tough.

Travel Educator Kelly Westhoff Has a Pic in “National Geographic Traveler”

Travel Educator Kelly Westhoff’s photo of her airboat ride on Louisiana’s Atchafalaya Swamp goes big time:

http://www.gonomad.com/theerfiles/2009/11/as-seen-in-national-geographic.html#links

There’s life for us freelancers yet.

Multidimensional Martinique: Where Landscape Shapes Culture

… From Travel Educator Bob Fisher

Generational voices

As we make our way on foot through the highlands of Martinique, I realize that we are also entering the heartland of a distinct Caribbean culture in which the voices of many generations still resonate.

We have meandered through what are called the Creole Gardens, and the complementary and stunning physical landscape in which they thrive. These small private farms on the volcanic slopes of Martinique’s lush interior are intricately and skilfully integrated into a nutrient-rich ecosystem, which in many ways is also the essence of this culturally resource-rich island.

Biological and cultural diversity

Sometimes called les jardins de résistance (the gardens of resistance), these well-ordered plots of land today are models of sustainability and regenerative agricultural practices. They are also representative of a culture of self-determination; and of a deep sense of interconnectedness between a benevolent terrain and the people it has nurtured.

This is the soul of Martinique, fondly known as the Fleur des Caraïbes − the flower of the Caribbean.

But the Creole Gardens are also appropriate symbols for the struggles and ultimate triumphs of the heterogeneous culture of Martinique, a collective self-actualization that that has been in progress for hundreds of years. It is these layers of history and culture that make up the mosaic of Martinique, evoking an historical awareness of the long-ago colonial aspirations of European powers and of empire-building. But at the core of the complex narrative that is Martinique is also the institution of slavery.

When France abolished slavery in its overseas colonies in March 1818, only 45 years before Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation, a Creole culture began to flourish which would blend French traditions, mores, and a legal and social infrastructure with that of the oral history and traditions of people of African descent.

As was the case on other Caribbean islands, Martinique was part of the plantation economies in the West Indies colonies, of France especially. As a result, many of these islands began to thrive as centres for the export of sugar. But the forced labour of the black slaves on these sugar plantations was cruel and harsh, more so even than that of the cotton plantations of the American South.

And when emancipation came, the people of Martinique, who were then very much a blend of the Old and New Worlds, became the principal source of a renaissance and cultural élan by emphasizing this prodigious and magnificent island’s natural resources, and its intrinsic beauty. As Bertrand Russell said, “extreme hopes are born from extreme misery.” This is the transcendent beauty of Martinique.

Heritage travel

Canadians especially will identify with the island’s biodiversity as well as with its multicultural heritage; discovering layers of meaningfulness and a quiet passion that underscores the resourcefulness and insight that this rich natural environment engenders. And like the Creole Gardens, this relatively small island destination has an abundance of natural treasures as well as historical and heritage sites that both enlighten and entertain.

The hues and shades of the social fabric and natural history of Martinique are also reflected in the preservation and careful maintenance of sites such as the Parc régional de la Caravelle, an extensive 2.5-hectare nature preserve of considerable biological importance given its nutrient-rich mangroves. Nearby is the Château Dubuc, one of the island’s former sugar plantations with spectacular views and seascapes. The château dates from 1773 and today is tangible evidence of the historic and commercial importance of Martinique as a former colony of France. The Habitation Clément, a former rum distillery, today is a wonderful example of the kind of impeccably restored heritage site you will find in Martinique. The estate’s colonial-era buildings, contemporary art gallery, and luxuriant landscapes are worth a half-day visit at least.

A year-round destination, Martinique is known for its excellent infrastructure, accommodation to suit all needs and budgets, golf courses à la Robert Trent Jones, the glorious Tour des Yoles sailing race in August, horticultural travel at its best, and sustainable tourism.

The list of content-rich sites and unique experiences in Martinique is almost endless. But what also makes up the persona of Martinique is its aesthetic qualities and grassroots experiences. Here people and human culture matter, and in the classical French tradition everything is accomplished with finesse and style − especially in the culinary arts. Martinique is a gourmet destination in all respects, but it is also the beau idéal of what has come to be known as “slow food” culture. Local markets, especially the one in the capital of Fort-de-France, epitomize eating well.

The economy of Martinique is strong because of a discerning tourism industry which celebrates the island’s diversity. Agriculture is also a fundamental component of the economy; in particular in the growing of organic foods, the cultivation of bananas, and to some extent sugar cane, which today is used primarily for the production of rum. Fourteen per cent of the active population of Martinique work in the agricultural industry, compared to four per cent in what Martinicans call La Métropolitaine − “Metropolitan France”. Therefore, for those interested in agritourism − one of the fastest growing sectors in the tourism industry − immersing yourself in this harmonious landscape can be a purposeful and enriching travel experience.

Value-added Martinique

The alluring ecosystems of Martinique create a medley of sensory experiences in a landscape that welcomes up close and personal travel. It is indeed “the flower of the Caribbean”, an eclectic, inclusive, and sensory-rich destination where beauty is in the eye of the beholder – everywhere.

And Martinique’s beauty is all-encompassing.

…

Personal recommendations in Martinique

La Savane des Esclaves

This superb attraction is another excellent example of how the people of Martinique preserve and create an in-depth awareness of their heritage. Conceived and managed by Gilbert Larose, a highly committed and self-taught historian, cultural anthropologist, and environmentalist, the Savane des Esclaves is a walk through Creole history and a lesson in how slavery played a key role in the Caribbean.  See La Savane des Esclaves

Habitation Clément

As I have mentioned in the text above, this former sugar plantation and rum distillery is also social and cultural history at its best. It is also an art gallery and, in my view, a wonderful example of how contemporary art installations fulfill many purposes. See Habitation Clément.

Le Tour des Yoles

A yole is a unique and indigenous boat traditionally used by Martinique fishers; and was often used to travel from island to island throughout the Caribbean. It too is social history in Martinique. The famous race Le Tour des Yoles Rondes takes place in August and is an event that draws large crowds of locals as well as international visitors. It is also one of the biggest and most fun events of the year in Martinique. See Le Tour des Yoles. At this site you can see actual videos. For more photos see Images and Imagery in Martinique on my Flikr site.

E-discover and Bruno Dompierre

The Segway has become a popular means of exploring a number of destinations. You can either hike or go by Segway along what is called Sentiers des Caraïbes (The Paths of the Carib Indians) which runs along beautiful beaches on the southern coast of Martinique, through local campgrounds and picnic areas, and through important wildlife viewing and indigenous ecosystems. For more information watch the video The Coolest Way to See Martinique. See also www.e-discover.fr.

Parc naturel régional de la Martinique

On a peninsula stretching out into the Caribbean is a Martinique ecotourism destination that for lovers of all things natural and biological, should not be missed. This regional park has numerous hiking trails that take you through Mangroves all the way to the sea. If you go with a guide, you will also be engaging in one of the best life-long learning through travel experiences in the Caribbean. See Martinique Nature.

Nearby is also the Château Dubuc, another historical and heritage that is not to be missed. The views from this property are also stupendous and despite its troubled history, one understands why the European powers saw this part of the world as a source of wealth. See Château Dubuc.

Agritourism in Martinique

This form of grassroots travel is becoming increasingly popular around the world as travellers become more and more conscious of the important (and sometimes precarious) earth-based resources. One such farm-stay experience is provided by Auberge Le Domaine de la Vallée. See  www.martinique-domaine-vallee.com.

Golfing in Martinique

If you golf in Martinique, the biggest challenge will be keeping your eye on the ball, as opposed to being distracted by the landscapes and seascapes. See www.golfmartinique.com

Le Domaine de Saint-Aubin, Trinité, Martinique

This former sugar plantation is an excellent choice for those who want a quiet “home away from home” experience. It is also a a gastronomic experience. See http://ledomainesaintaubin.com.

Pierre & Vacances

For families especially, this full service and “full program” vacation stay hotel (an institution unto itself in France) will provide for all your needs. See www.pierreetvacances.com

Hotel Bambou

Each individual bungalow is decorated in traditional Creole style and wins my vote for most traveller-friendly accommodation on the island of Martinique. See www.hotelbambou.fr

La Table de Mamy Nounou and Hôtel La Caravelle

Another gastronomic treasure, as well as an authentic, and low-key vacation stay, this unique accommodation on a hillside above the sea and its “bonne table” is for those especially who appreciate quality as opposed to quantity. See Hôtel La Caravelle.

Tak Tak

The Tak Tak “network” (the word is Creole and means fireflies) may be the most grassroots and authentic travel experience I have had in recent years. It is a network of travel suppliers, rural gîtes (more or less the equivalent of bed and breakfast accommodation), and artisans, restaurants, nature/soft adventure experiences, in-depth historical travel experiences, and ecotourism travel. As a collective of service providers, Tak Tak is a low budget alternative to those who appreciate getting a genuine “up close and personal” view of this amazing Caribbean landscape. You may begin your day with a Creole breakfast and you will be hosted and enlightened by Martiniquais people who have a real commitment to the history and biodiversity of their island. And if you don’t speak, French do not worry. The principles and values of Tak Tak embody hospitality. They will manage to communicate with you in your language of choice somehow. What you will experience is an intercultural dialogue on a profound level. See www.taktak-martinique.com

Club Med Les Boucaniers

I have never considered myself a Club Med type, however the Club Med chain has diversified considerably and offers many amenities to many types of clients. This property especially is wonderfully situated, well-planned in terms of its extensive layout, types of accommodation and amenities available, and in the spirit of Club Med a travel supplier that respects your sense of privacy and personal choice. See Club Med Les Boucaniers (Buccaneer’s Creek).

L’Hôtel Carayou

This medium-size hotel directly across the bay from Fort-de-France (and accessible by ferry to the capital) is an excellent location in the laid-back town of Trois Ilets where you can walk to many local attractions and amenities, especially dining.  See www.hotel-carayou.com.

Restaurant 1643

Another slightly off the beaten track gem, this restaurant (and yes the house in which it is located was built in 1643) is quintessential Martinique. See www.restaurant1643.com.

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Visualize Martinique

(a) Images and Imagery in Martinique

(b) Walking Through the Creole Gardens of Martinique

(c) The Coolest Way to See Martinique

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Other resources

(a) While http://www.martinique.org is the official international tourism website of Martinique, http://www.lamartinique.ca is the Canadian site.

(b) Air Canada has non-stop flights from Montreal to Fort-de-France, the capital of Martinique.

(c) France d’outremer

Martinique is an official overseas département of France, one of four including Guadeloupe, French Guyana in South America, and the island of La Réunion in the Indian Ocean. The island is as much a part of France as Paris or the Dordogne.

(d) Produced by Martinique Tourism, http://www.martinique-bonjour.com has an English link. There is also an English print version of the guide

(e) A link to parks and gardens in Martinique can be found in English at http://www.martinique.org/activities/parks.php. It is part of the “Official Website of the Martinique Tourism Authority”.

(f) This particular PDF site is particularly useful to both repeat visitors and first time visitors to Martinique. See Comité Martiniquais du Tourisme.

(g) For more perspective on the institution of slavery in Martinique and the Caribbean see French Slavery.

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See also … “A Walk Through the Creole Gardens of Martinique”

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A version of this article was first published in Dreamscapes magazine.

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A Multigenerational Trip to Tulum

If the whole family’s involved, there can be more to Cancun than one might think:

http://www.budgettravel.com/bt-dyn/content/article/2009/10/03/AR2009100303436.html?cnn=yes

The Fine Art of Permaculture

… From Travel Educator Bob Fisher

… a podcast with Graeme Calder

To listen to this podcast, click here.

Culture and Permaculture

Culture is one of the prime reasons we travel. And travel as a unique human behaviour — as well as a concept — is always a process. Despite the perceptions of the traveller, the dynamic of travel is rarely an  isolated or one-dimensional event.

In the world of travel and tourism we often talk about intercultural understanding, and travel as a means of achieving universal aims and objectives.

Permaculture is also a conceptual and pragmatic way of interacting productively with the many “systems” inherent in the universe and in human communities. It is therefore a philosophical endeavour, a mindset, but above all it is a common sense approach to land management.

It is also not difficult to draw parallels between the Permaculture movement and the travel and tourism industry, given especially the regeneration of the Heritage Movement in which a return to a grassroots and meaningful form of travel is emphasized.

In addition, the increasing emphasis on responsible tourism (often referred to as green tourism or sustainable tourism) is also for many people a preferred method of travel which follows similar principles and ethics to that of the Permaculture movement.

Permaculture emphasizes the designing of human settlements and sustainable agricultural systems which in turn reflect the natural relationships found in the universe. The movement began as an agricultural phenomenon and quickly became an international movement, and for many a way of life.

Increasingly in the world of travel journalism — a corollary “system” to travel and tourism — many are also striving to go beyond the “Where’s the beach?” school of solely consumer-oriented travel. By emphasizing the advantages of a more integrated, reciprocal, and participatory approach to travel, the travel experience is re-affirmed as the most experiential form of learning.

And as you will hear Graeme Calder explain in this podcast, there are many opportunities throughout the world to “travel” in a Permaculture mode.

Statistical footnote

According to a recent Yahoo Travel/Forbes Traveler.com article, the essence of Permaculture is also statistically consistent with travellers who want a “big trip, low impact” travel experience.

“Along those lines, sustainable and eco-friendly tourism are also on the rise–and affecting people’s travel decisions. A survey conducted by the U.S. Travel Association and Ypartnership in July 2009 shows a 9% increase from 2007 in awareness of “green travel.” Six in 10 respondents in the same survey said they believed environmental programs at travel services could have a positive impact on the environment.

The general idea of such an excursion involves minimizing harmful effects on the environment and making sure the money tourists spend in a country stays there. For example, tourists stay at local accommodations and participate in fair trade, buying goods directly from the makers.”

To read more go to “World’s most unique places to visit” by Becky Chung.

Permaculture Resources

Pacific Permaculture

The Permaculture Research Institute of Australia

The Montréal Bisophere

The Green Barn Nursery

The Permaculture Guild of Montreal

Earthship Biotecture

The 9th International Permaculture Conference

“Common Circle Education – Permaculture Design Course” (Youtube)

“Permaculture in Action – Greening The Desert” (Youtube)