In 1903, Dominica’s Governor Hesketh Bell designated a small portion of the island as a “Carib Reserve.” “It seemed to me highly desirable,” he wrote, “that the small remnant of the people, who once owned the whole island, should be permanently guaranteed the possession of their last homes.” The Carib Territory is today home to approximate 3,5000 to 4,000 people of Kalinago descent who live very much like the rest of Dominica’s subsistence peasantry. Because of the uniqueness of their history, however, they have become a tourist attraction. The desire to share in the tourist economy has prompted questions about identity: how do the Kalinago define themselves to themselves and to the world? and how to represent that identity to visitors for whom the few hours they spend in the Territory should be more than the opportunity to gaze curiously and buy one of the handcrafted reed baskets whose design predates Columbus’ arrival? The answers to these questions have brought some conflict to the Kalinagos and their leadership, the Carib Council.

The most common way to experience the culture of the Kalinago is to visit the Model Carib Village. Sponsored by a number of international organizations, this “village by the sea” is a bit Disneyesque: a film introduces the history and culture of the Carib people and a stroll through the model village shows the construction of their huts, offers demonstrations of various cultural activities, and displays handcrafted items for sale. It is, to many people, just a “dead village” where no one lives-a static display that has failed to attract the expected large numbers of visitors.

Irvince Auguiste, former Chief of the Carib Council, has developed what to many seems a radical experiment in heritage tourism. His village, Touna, with a population of 70 people (25 of those school children), welcomes visitors for a tour of a living village. Our group spent the day with Irvince and his small community.

Upon arrival, we were greeted by Irvince and some members of his community in the traditional large meeting space they have built to welcome groups like ours. Thatched with grasses collected and dried during the full moon, as is traditional, they officially welcomed us to their village and explained the philosophy behind the visit they had planned for us. Their goal: to help us understand the Kalinago people’s history in Dominica and show us how they live their daily lives. Divided into small groups, we set out for a two-hour walk around their living community, stopping at various houses where the routine of their daily lives was explained and demonstrated. We hand-grinded sugar stalks from the yard as they do every day for breakfast, explored the contents of back-yard gardens and provision grounds, learned the uses of every plant (even those growing along the paths), watched as delicious cassava bread was prepared for us, saw a demonstration of how to make the traditional Carib baskets (from gathering the reeds to the actual weaving), visited the herbalist’s garden and learned of the various plants used to maintain health and cure illnesses. All this while the life of the community followed its course around us: small children played, older children came home from school for lunch, dogs and chickens followed us curiously. After a lunch of just-picked garden and root vegetables and chicken we swam and floated on inner tubes on the river that gives the village its name (Touna means water village) and chatted with Irvince and his community. It was a welcome alternative to the Model Village.

For more information on Touna Village, see http://www.kalinagopeople.com/index.php?pageid=1&menuid=1