Blazebajan

Yes and just like you I will fight like a lion to protect mine. Nothing that you have said is unreasonable but my feelings on this issue were formed based on what i see in my life everyday. I'm not sure what the situation is where you live but i suspect that if I lived where you live and saw what you saw I might feel similarly.

pgtips

Definately food for thought as I am not that familiar with the system in Barbados. In St Lucia there is more of a mix of children in the private schools,
well the two primary and one secondary that I know of and mixing with other cultures can only be a rich and rewarding experience. Again I would have to point out this boils down to money. The best primary school on the island at the moment is not private but a government school. However there are much less expats on St Lucia than Barbados so they generally just tend to blend in, I do not know if the situation would change in the future if more expats moved onto the island and would feel the need to stick to themselves. Hopefully I will never have to find out.

username 34

what I'm trying to get across is that you are bringing in a racial element highlighting the schools as one scenario.

I for one am not like that - black, white, purple, greeen - I couldnt give a stuff - but it'll be the school and its environment that makes my decision. If that means driving my kids to the private school I will - but dont look at me as if I'm doing it in a discriminatory way.

I understand that Bbds has a lot more racial snobbery than here - maninly because racial integration here is pretty low in numbers in these islands compared to bbds - therefore we have no "competition" or keeping up with the Jones' snobbery..... which is Barbados BIG problem I think.

its sad as I think of us and my children are West Indian .... whereas these many parents keep there children as "expats" by segregating them - and the vicious circle keeps going

Blazebajan

I think of mine as west Indian too no half this of half that, human and west indian I wish it was all that mattered in the world.

I never pointed a finger at you in particular, and perhaps not even at the expats who are just doing what feels comfortable to them. What gets me here are the white locals who have lived here all their lives and still cannot count among their friends a single non white person (and I'm using white as it is defined here in Barbados ie; any one lighter than Halle Berry with appropriate amounts of money and the ability to pretend that racism is dead)

They are the ones who really bug me, after all they are the locals and yet they never seem to mix with anyone but themselves and then the expats just slide right into their cilques and few people seem to think it is strange that they are "hanging with the locals" and yet the only black person to be seen is washing up in the kitchen..
And even if this is just a matter of money and or class shouldn't we be asking why the distribution of wealth seems to flow along racial lines.

Blazebajan

I wish I met more people who thought as you do be sadly the only people I seem to meet have no interest in mixing things up, in becoming part of anything, in seeing what the island and it's people are really like or in translating that experience into something rich and rewarding for their kids, mostly they just live in their gated communities and drive their airconditioned SUV's and complain about how the island is so backward and "If this were London..."

pgtips

Blazebajan, you have indeed given me another insight into Barbados. All we normally hear about is the glitz and glamour, but what you have highlighted is that behind the dazzle of the glitz and glamour Barbados like everywhere else has it's fair share of issues which are smoke screened from the masses.

It has been refreshing hearing from someone who is on the ground and is not afraid to highlight certain, some may say uncomfortable issues.

Unfortunately everywhere in this world there is a great disparity in wealth allocation and this is certainly also the case in Barbados.

Also there is the class issue all over where certain people seem to elevate themselves above others and think they are in a different leauge.

I find this so sad because we all bleed the same colour and we come into this world with nothing and will leave with nothing.

One thing to remember though, it is those that refuse to embrace other cultures and races are the ones who are missing out on one of lifes truely magical experiences and they are the ones to be pitied for living such a shallow existence.

As long as you continue to embrace and welcome all into your life irrespective of colour, class, or creed, you will be one of the ones who will be truely blessed and no amount of money will be able to buy the attributes you possess and the rich colourful relationships you will experience.

Blazebajan

My husband would be rolling on the floor if he saw that, nope I've never been on to be shy about the uncomfortable issues.

Thatks for that post though, I appreciate it

username 34

too true!

they're in Barbados to live the "colonial" life, among expats and do their time with the company and then off back to the UK or US.

we emigrated as this is where we want to be and where we now definately belong. Wow- if they think Bbds is backwards they'd die of fright here !! no water on the mains - live on rainwater collection, no hot water in most houses, no supermarkets, no shops, no newspapers, few cars, people still use donkeys ....

we think Bbds is techno island

shines

Hiya,

I'm moving to Barbados this month, my partner is a white Bajan and definitely mixes with ALL Bajans... I have no intention of being a typical colonial expat. I feel if you move to a new place then you are honour bound to become as much a part of that place as possible. Otherwise you may as well live in UK/USA/wherever and just use a sun bed for warmth!

Looking forward to becoming as much a part of Barbados as I can, my daughter who is nearly 3 will have no memory of here once she is grown and my new baby will be half Bajan so hopefully our transition to a new culture will be swift and fun filled!

Less than 3 weeks to go, can't wait...

Blazebajan

be sure to tell me what your experience is like once you get here

pgtips

Why did you have to post this while I am listening to calypso dreaming of the Caribbean !!!! I hope you have a glorious time and a great lifestyle.
Good luck with the move.

shines

I will do, hopefully things will work out well for us all... Looking forward to the new lifestyle!

S

shines

Thank you soooo much, I'm really looking forward to it, must start packing at some point I suppose

S

trutje

I never ever noticed any racial issues in Barbados. And that's because I have never looked for it! If you can't except the differences in culture, behaviour, lifestyle ,believes and being a minority among most black people, then stay away!
Why move to Barbados?? Because it has lovely beaches beautiful sea and hot weather all year round?
The answer should be NO!!! All of this becomes normal, after a while you don't go to the beach every week. You do get sick of the weather once in a while.

It is all about the locals!! Why live on a beautiful island if the people are not nice!? The atmosphere on the island is because of the people!
We shouldn't complain about the differences, we should learn from it. Because I believe we can learn a lot more that really matters in life from them then they can from us.

Would we like Barbados to develope the same as the western culture? No, ofcourse not!

trutje

I have been in Haiti for a week. Still can't believe it's part of the Caribbean. People should know a lot more about this country and help these people out of the misery they are in