Its all new and exciting here in Saint Vincent!

Author- Macy Penney Cameron

Article- Introduction and first few days on the Island.

My name is Macy Penney Cameron. Three days ago, I moved to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. Saint Vincent is located in the Caribbean. This move is extremely valuable for both my personal and professional growth, and I feel it will help me gain knowledge on many topics of interest that will contribute to future success in my field of work. I recently just finished my third year of university at Dalhousie University. I study at the Agricultural campus located in Truro, Nova Scotia. The program I am in is International Food Business, also commonly referred to as IFB. After my completion of IFB I will have obtained a degree in both Agriculture and Business Administration. In addition to this I will have completed two internships, one which I have already completed where I worked for an NGO in Brussels, Belgium, along with this current internship in Saint Vincent. Having the opportunity to live in various places all over the world has really changed me and shaped who I am today. I am inspired by people and their cultures and want to continue growing my global perspective. In fact, I have already gained so much knowledge about The Vincentian lifestyle, culture, business, and agriculture within the first couple of days. I am very excited to officially start my internship tomorrow.

I did not really know what to expect when moving to the island, but I did know that before leaving for Saint Vincent I had met various people in Nova Scotia who have traveled to, or know people from the island, and everyone told me such great things about the place. After arriving and getting more familiar with the island, I am able to confirm that this is the case. The people are so friendly and the island is like nothing I’ve ever seen! Currently I am enjoying a refreshing glass of water after a long hot day, while listening to Soca music playing loudly from one of the houses on the hillside. I would say I’m settling in nicely and feel quite comfortable in the area I am living. There are many families and older people around who check in and greet us with a friendly smile each morning. Throughout the last couple of days my Mentor Michker Edwards has been extremely helpful and kind in showing Kirsten and I around. I am looking forward to working with her as I feel she is so knowledgeable and I can learn a lot from working with her. On Saturday, we went to the local market in Kingstown where we purchased fresh fruits and vegetables, along with spoke with some local sellers. In addition to this, we drove and hiked up Fort Charlotte which is a historical fort on the Island. An interesting fact about the fort that I read was that unlike most forts the cannons were pointed inland for protection.

Below are a few pictures from the last few days:

You will see some of the local foods we purchased, an enthusiastic and proud seller at the market who asked us to take this picture, and some paintings on display at the fort.