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Latiin America Today - by Madeline Schwartz

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Latiin America Today - January 2007

Geography...

January 31st 2007 01:34

Our island is so tiny, Puerto Rico is almost rectangular in shape, and is the smallest and the most eastern island of the Greater Antilles. Our coasts measures approximately 580 km, and if the adjacent islands Vieques and Culebra are included the coast measures approximately 700 km.; can you imaging? You can drive the whole island in 4.5 hours. Here, I would like to demonstrated to you, how we look in the map, please look at the red circle.

Puerto Rico is the principal island of the Commonwealth with United States which also includes: Vieques, Culebra, Culebrita, Palomino (known by some by the Spanish Virgin Islands), Mona, Monito and various others isolated islands. Others are Saint Thomas, Saint Croix, and Saint John which are absolutely gorgeous like “Paradise”. It’s the perfect place for romance!

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U.S. invasion of Puerto Rico

January 25th 2007 01:11

U.S. flag raised over Guayama City Hall.

Well, the story doesn't end with the extinction of the Taíno Indians. On July 25, 1898, the United States invaded Puerto Rico and Cuba by surprised and took the two gorgeous islands from the Spaniards.

Later, Cuba got the freedom with Fidel Castro, Batista, and Chevara. I'm sure that you already know about the alliances with Russia and the political status throughout decades with the Cubans.

As Puerto Rico is a Commonwealth of United States; the nature of Puerto Rico's political relationship with the United States is the subject of ongoing debate in the island and also in the United Nations for many decades.

As a result, we are United States citizens; our currency is the dollar, laws, some holidays and customs from United States. The few remains from Spain are the language, religion, some customs, and traditions.

Spanish troops in P.R.

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Taíno

January 20th 2007 16:28

Let me shared with you a little about our history! The first habitants in the Caribbean Islands were the Taíno, Indians. Archaeologies and historians believed that the seafaring Taíno were relatives of the Arawakan people of South America. They used to life in the Greater Antilles, the Lasser Antilles, and Bahamas (the Taíno from the Bahamas being known then as the Lucayas). They were peaceful people and very religious.

At the time of Columbus's arrival in 1492, there were five Taíno kingdoms or territories on Hispaniola, each led by a principal Cacique (chief), to whom tribute was paid. At the time of the Spanish conquest, the largest Taíno population centers may have contained around 3,000 people or more. The Taíno were historical neighbors and enemies of the Carib, another group with origins in South America who lived principally in the Lesser Antilles. The relationship between the two groups has been the subject of much study because there is so little known about the Carib.

By the 18th century, Taíno society had been decimated by introduced diseases, and forced assimilation into the plantation economy that Spain imposed in its Caribbean colonies, with its subsequent importation of African slave workers. It is argued that there were substantial mestizage as well as several Indian pueblos that survived into the 19th century in Cuba. The Spaniards, who first arrived in the Bahamas, Cuba and Hispaniola in 1492, and later in Puerto Rico, did not bring women. Therefore, they took the Taíno wives in civil marriages, and had mestizo children.

Actually, the Taíno community is extinguished; there are only fragments of their culture.

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Welcome to my blog!

January 16th 2007 21:38

Hola!

I was born in the Caribbean Islands in a very beautiful island by the name of Puerto Rico. My name is Madeline Gomez Castro, recently became Ms. Schwartz since October 5th, 2003 when I got married to Mark

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