On our last day of
the Global Exchange tour, we made a trip out of Caracas into the country
to an area known as Barlovento. We visited a town famous for its
traditional African drumming, Curiepe, where we were treated to a
performance and a wonderful traditional Venezuelan meal (which consists
of rice, beans, plaintains, fried bananas, and chicken, beef or pork if a
person can afford meat). The people were incredibly gracious. I took
no notes, but I did take pictures. The mood was very relaxed,
particularly in comparison to that in Caracas, as there are no elites,
and therefore no social tension between classes, no traffic and no noise
pollution in Curiepe. The village inhabitants are all descendants of
the African slaves brought to Venezuela by colonizing Spaniards.
This first picture was taken on the way to Curiepe when we stopped for a
break. The young man on the right indicated to me that he wanted his
picture taken, and then another one of him and his friends. It looks as
though one of them wasn't so thrilled about the idea. The remaining
pictures were taken in Curiepe.
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