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Getting Here

Troubled Times B oliviawasn’t theonlynation inSouthAmericagoing through troubled times. Immigrants fromEurope had once flocked to South America. But this trend began to reverse during the second half of the 20th centu- ry, as one country after another in the region went through political and economic crises. Military dictators seized power in several nations. And the economic collapse that Alarcón experienced also spread through oth- er countries. Most people who chose to leave resettled in a nearby South

Guyana and Its Neighbors

A traveler visiting almost any part of South America will hear most people speaking Spanish or Portu- guese, and will see mostly Catholic churches. But in a corner of the continent bordering the Caribbean Sea are three tropical countries with very diverse languages and cultures. Guyana, Suriname, and French Gui- ana were once colonies of Britain, the Netherlands, and France. These

European nations brought in slaves from Africa and India to work on plantations. They also enslaved native South American people. All these groups intermixed. Richard David immigrated to America from Guyana when he was ten years old. He has a Christian father, a Muslim mother, and Hindu grandparents. “That’s not uncommon in Guyana,” he said. The foods and culture of Guyana are most similar to Caribbean islands that also once had European plantations worked by slaves. Salt fish and bake, a dish of salted cod and fried bread, is one very popular food in this region.