Reserva Indio Maiz

A recent study in the Bosawas biosphere reserve in Jinotega and the RAAN has shown that clearly marking indigenous lands within the reserve is a more effective way of halting the spread of the agricultural frontier than defining the borders of the park itself. The study backs up the concept that the presence of indigenous communities in areas of great ecological importance is an effective strategy in combating logging and clearing of land for agriculture.

It is an important observation, for there is another movement that promotes the removing of all settlements, indigenous or not, from within park boundaries in the name of conservation. This is more or less the approach that has been taken in the Reserva Indio Maiz in the south of the country, where indigenous Rama communities have been uprooted from the park. While the theory may have scientific merit, the reality on the ground is that the government does not possess the will nor the resources to patrol the extensive boundaries of these reserves.

Enabling indigenous communities creates a team of guardians with a vested interest in the vitality of the forests

It also is a step towards a more sustainable income generation from the reserves - community based tourism.

It is common knowledge that Corn Island has a drug habit. Despite what some folks with a vested interest in package tourism might tell you, both the big island and Little Corn are important strategic points in the narco routes to the US and beyond.

What is open to debate, however, is the extent to which the narcotics industry has set up shop in the local communities. The recent arrival of a Colombian panga laden with llello on a remote beach suggests that Corn Island’s habit is more Iggy Pop than Bob Marley.

News reports suggest that within minutes of the boat, which was being pursued by the Nicaraguan navy, arriving on the island, an “avalanche” of local residents arrived in taxis and private vehicles to relieve the vessel of its 1000kg cargo.

By the time the local authorities arrived, less than 80kg remained. Now unloading and moving nearly a tonne of coke in a matter of minutes takes some impressive logistics.

Unlike the big hotel owners, it seems that the local population is quite supportive of the narcotics industry, perhaps a sign that it offers a far better wealth distribution scheme than foreign-owned luxury condos with infinity swimming pools on an island where many still live in rusty shacks.

Dereks Place, Little Corn.

New to Nicaragua? Below is the link to a recent article I wrote for syndication in US papers - it is really a brief introduction to the region and its highlights.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/travel/5828213.html

Here is some video from the Beholden party. Captain Timothy can usually be found practicing his moves around the bars of Bluefields but it is Maypole when he really comes into his own.

mvi_3460

Top: Maypole in Europe. Below: Maypole Bluefields style!

Mid May and the Maypole parties are in full swing, the perfect time to introduce Ritmo Costeño. The concept for this blog is simple – to create a place to discuss life in the Atlantic regions of Nicaragua in all its uncensored glory.

The month of May is one long party in Bluefields as the entire city gets down to celebrate Maypole. The festivities basically consist of a series of block parties with each neighbourhood trying to outdo the other.

Last weekend was the turn of Beholden, kind of like the Bronx of Bluefields, and those expecting mayhem weren’t disappointed.

Bluefields Maypole traditions were brought to Nicaragua by the British, but the local version now bares little resemblance to the wholesome folk dancing of the old continent.

Maypole is a dance of fertility and in Bluefields they take that to the extreme. A young tree is cut down and planted in the middle of the street, where men of the barrio saunter up and get comfortable with the sapling as if it was their señora. There is also plenty of spicy pairs dancing that in the bars of Amsterdam would definitely count as a live show.

In Beholden, there was the usual array of drunks getting funky with the trunk as well as plenty of animated older folks showing that the youth don’t have a monopoly on the moves. But the highlight of the night was the concert on the barrio basketball court featuring past and present stars of the Bluefields music scene.

There is no doubt that in the eventually the Maypole festival will become commercialized and packaged for easy consumption like so many other traditions elsewhere. But the party in Beholden showed that at present, Creole culture is alive and well in the barrios with not a corporate sponsor in site. And in this age of rampant globalization that is refreshing.