I am from the TCI but have been living in Canada for the past decade. I cannot fully express how much I appreciate this article! I have been studying anthropology for several years now and I have only recently thought of looking at the TCI culture. Food being an important component to many cultures, has often been forgotten. This piece allows people to see how neighboring countries can effect one’s diet and also how “traditional meals” change.

However, I would just like to point out that that the term traditional is not static. Although the influences of American fast food can be perceived as infecting the traditional diet, foods such as baked macaroni as you pointed out have generally be accepted by many families as being traditional. What should be stressed is that people should be able to pass down the huge variety of meals down from one generation to the next rather than getting stuck in this new tendency of simply not cooking.

All in all, I love this article and I am planning on sending it to my family as a reminder of what it is to cook TCI food! Thanks for sharing it!

LaTavia