Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Highs & Lows: Our first full day in Martinique.

We're going to do a different type of post tonight. We just finished discussing our personal "highs" and "lows" after our first day in Martinique and reflected on our initial impressions. Jean-Marie recorded a few of the student responses...

Joann: "The classes we attended at the university really connected to the political science classes I've taken at Colgate. It was interesting to hear local accounts on the lasting effects colonialism has had on Martinique."

Sean: "Breakfast was good but next time I need to get more baguettes. Overall the food is decent. Classes were ok, I enjoyed the history lesson."

Ashlee: "I absolutely enjoyed taking classes at the university, especially the creole lessons. Being a linguistic minor, I find the information both pertinent and fascinating. I also love the baguettes and the fruits. And the warm weather that doesn't exist at Colgate!"

Lorva: "I had such a great time today! Je comprends beaucoup et j'apprends beaucoup. I enjoyed the Creole lesson and comparing it to Hatian Kreyol. I never want to leave!"

Spencer: "Today, I learned so much about the culture of Martinique. My favorite part of the day was learning Creole. The language is very similar to French in its sounds but the sentence structure is completely different. I am looking forward to learning more."

Josh: "This place is pretty awesome. It was cool to learn about the history, culture, geography, and most of all the political issues of Martinique. Hearing about the strained relationship between France and Martinique was interesting. The country seems to be very dynamic. I am so excited to see the rest of the island!"

Chris: "Mom, I think I'm starting to understand why you get up every morning to run."

Felix: "I really enjoyed the different types of lessons all about Martinique. I enjoyed going to class and also learning some about the rest of my classmates. I think I learned a lot about Martinique culture that I would have never known just reading about in a book."

Leah: "To Mom + Dad- I'm not sunburnt yet! I also was able to successfully order a meal IN FRENCH. Clearly this was the highlight of my day."

Ryan: "Mom + Dad- You were right (as usual)... Martinique is gorgeous! Today we learned about the history, geography, and economy of Martinique and we had a 3 hour Creole lesson. I ordered my dinner in French and the woman actually understood me! Miss you!"

That's all for now! Tomorrow we will be going on our first excursion to the Northern part of Martinique. Details to follow.

A demain!