Firstly, we'd like to apologize for our recent absence... There was a snowpocalypse that pretty much owned the East Coast. Ellen was trapped under 8 inches of snow and 2 inches of ice and had to walk to the grocery (uphill both ways) to get her beer. But, the sledding has been prime!
sleddddddding!
So, back to business. What did y'all think of Lithuania? "Meh," says Pinky.
We've been thinking about what region we haven't visited in a while. Haven't been to Central or South America in a bit, but if we're planning for longevity, we've gotta stretch those out. We really need to knock out some of those island nations. Maybe we'll do a Caribbean week soon or something.
For today (blizzard of the decade, day 4) let's tune in to some island music! Wanna head to St. Kitts and Nevis? Pinky's parents like to vacation there and his mom just takes pictures of goats.
we can almost feel the tropical heat from here!
Native Americans have been hanging out on the islands for about 5,000 years. When Columbus pulled up in 1493, the Kalinago people (Carib) had been there for a few hundred years. The French and English made their way to the islands over the next couple hundred years. Unlike other islands, the indigenous population allowed the Europeans to settle there. Bad idea. They were massacred shortly afterwards.
we don't blame those europeans for not wanting to leave
The Brits and French used the islands as the center of their Caribbean expansionist efforts. Even though the Spanish kicked them out for a minute, the British ended up taking full claim in the early 1700's. Though they're geographically super close (2 miles apart), St Kitts and Nevis were governed as two separate islands until the late 1800's. Then the British were all "This is dumb. Shack up with Anguilla." This colonial/territorial/governing arrangement lasted for a little under 100 years at which point Anguilla split off and became it's own British state (where it remains today). But St. Kitts and Nevis are still stuck together.
i don't think you need a spyglass to see that guy's head...
Nevis claims they don't get the support they need from St. Kitts, and it seems that there's a good bit of resentment between the two. Maybe St. Kitts dumps on Nevis because they're jealous about Alexander Hamilton. He was born there around 1757 or so and ended up getting his face on the American $10 bill. We all know the federalism stuff and the duel story, so let's move on.
just seeing his face makes us want to go buy crap at dollar general.
Nevis has tried to split off, but the referendum failed. They still are constitutionally allowed to succeed, after a few provisions are met. Will it happen? We dunno. Ok, so St. Kitts and Nevis achieved independence in 1983 (the same year we were born) and became the youngest sovereign state in the Americas. Yay for our birth year buddies!
Ok, let's tune in and see what's happening down there. Enjoy!
Note from the Snowed in Editors: Do yourself a favor and just listen to another station. It started out with some decent reggae this morning, but is just awful narcissistic club music right now. Check back later in the afternoon and enjoy something else for now. We'll be in Seychelles...
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