Trinidad & Tobago

Calypso in the Kitchen

Audio File: 
Transcript: 
"It's Saturday!" That is Ruby's first thought when she wakes up. Then, she hears the movement of the steel pans and pots hitting the stovetop in the kitchen. Ruby's mom is getting ready for the aunties, the uncles, and cousin Shaun to visit. "Ruby!" Ruby's mom both sings and shouts her name. "It's time to get up!" A new sound emerges from the kitchen. Calypso music is playing, and Ruby hears the steel pan drum. Now the day has officially begun.

Papa Bois: Protector of the Forest

Audio File: 
Transcript: 
(Caribbean music steel pan music plays) Papa Bois was traveling through the forests of Trinidad in the Caribbean islands. Papa Bois' beard of leaves rustled against his face as he walked amongst the trees with his goat-like feet. He is known as the Ancient One and never met anyone like himself, but that was okay because he felt no difference between himself and all the living things in the world. Papa Bois was very old and had seen many things in the past, but he was also large, strong, and muscular. Sometimes he would change in different forms when needed.