Owia Salt Ponds

I went to the Owia Salt Ponds with two other volunteers a few weeks ago. Owia is located far north on the windward side (east side) of the island. It's an hour and a half walk from where I live. The salt ponds were created during the 1979 volcano eruption here in St. Vincent. When the lava cooled down from the ocean water, it formed big rocks that surrounded a small area for water to wash in and deep enough to swim in.

I hadn't gone swimming since December, so I was excited to go to the Salt Ponds. You have to bring shoes that you can get wet because the rocks are very slippery. We put our stuff down by two big rocks and then walked into the water until we got to the pool. There wasn't much sun when we arrived, but it was really hot nonetheless. It rained for a 10 minutes and then afterward, the sun came out.

Some of the locals came and started diving off of the rocks. I wasn't brave enough to do it, but it was fun seeing them go one after the other.

The waves hitting the rocks was an amazing sight to see. I borrowed swimming goggles from a friend and they definitely come in handy because under the sea is so beautiful. If you stay still, you can see all of the fish moving and they're not afraid to swim close to you. I'm really looking forward to going back within the next few months and I'll be sure to buy some goggles before I go. 

Performing Arts May Never Die

"Your students can learn the arts as well as learn through the arts." 

~ Andrew Miller

Each March, there is a performing arts competition called Primary School Performing Arts Festival (PRISPAF) that takes place in each primary school around the island. The festival is sponsored by St. Vincent's own Ju-C, a non-alcoholic beverage company. All of the students in the school participate and show off their talents. Only three acts are chosen to move on to the next level which takes place in two weeks. Monday was our PRISPAF at Tourama Government School and the students did such a good job!

Below is the performance from my first grade class, doing a folk song called "Carry Me Breadfruit."

Here is a dancing performance from two sisters.

I was so happy to see that the students partake in performing arts and I learned that the school has won the competition two years in a row. I'm hoping we win again as we go into the second round. Even if we don't, like the students said (video at the top) performing arts may never die!