Aruba Today

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Together we all can be Aruba’s rangers, guardians of our patrimony. Let’s create a consciousness that rock Art is our heritage; yes, much more than just meaningless doodles made by our Aruban fore fathers. Contrary to popular belief it was not created by some underdeveloped cannibal inhabitants of mythical epoch, it does not reflect buried treasure maps. Neither were they meant to just scare demons or bad spirits away. What rock Art in general does provide is means of understanding the sacred as well as the mundane perspective of life “in our case” with what prehistoric Amerindian cultures as a community could regionally and insular have experienced by means of rock art expressions and practices relating to it.
What interesting is that the official native rock artist was often a mystical Medicine Man, teacher, the color pigment mixer and a herb expert, however most probably because of his knowing and communal healing powers and communication with the supernatural world. A continuation of the early shamanic and endemic believes of most tribal societies, most likely remanence which survived from before the migrations crossing Beringia over twenty thousand years ago.
Pecking into the rock to create Petroglyphs was a method to accomplish with a hammer stone or stone chisel. Different pecking techniques created different styles. Incising or scratching with a sharp tool was also practiced. Incised designs are more expressive and detailed than pecked designs. Pictographs are usually created on light colored granite, protected from the elements, like on a Quartz Diorite surfaces or on limestone walls and caves ceilings. Stylized animals, humans and geometric object designs are common subjects. Pictograph pigments and binders were probably obtained from soot, vegetal pigments, blood or pulverized mineral pigment or ochers. While Sea snails could have provided a purple reddish stain. Binders were used to stabilize the coloring material and allow it to stick to the rock. The colors generally used were red, orange, white and black. Red pigment probably came from hematite or iron oxide; orange from a combination of hematite, ocher, lichen or Brazil wood.
Other sources of pigment included white clay, silica, gypsum, chalk, calcium carbonate, and charcoal. Pastels were created from clay mixed with other minerals. Water was used to create consistency but the binding agent could be anything from saliva, to vegetal juices and vegetal oils, to a mix of water and calcium powder, tree gums, even egg shells or fresh guano were employed in many regions of the world. The surface of the rock was sometimes smoothed and abraded in preparation for painting. Tools were sticks or probably brushes made from the tips of agave leaves chewed or beaten to remove the pulp, leaving vertical fibers for painting small solid areas, clear lines, and other fine details. Wider areas could be painted for example with a corn husk or cotton wrapped around the finger or even the finger itself depending on the time frame which these where made. Dots were applied with the fingertips. Entire hand prints could have been created using for example a stenciled design by spraying or blowing the paint around the hand that has been placed with spread fingers on the surface of the rock.
Meet our columnist and at his cozy home and Museum called Etnia Nativa that housing archaeological and colonials artifacts, recycled art, historical furniture and gorgeous gardens. R.V.S.P. etnianativa03@gmail.com or WhatsApp at 297 592 2702

Episode 139: Aruba’s rocks engravers

In connection with sustainable tourism and following the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations, the Minister of Tourism and the ATA launched a recycling bin pilot project. 
These recycling bins are placed strategically on the beach, which will elevate our tourism product. In the past, the Ministry of Tourism and the Tourism Product Enhancement Funds (TPEF) were responsible for the trash bins on the beaches. The TPEF initially explored this project and considered other alternatives in waste management that will contribute to sustainable tourism. Unfortunately, in 2020, the TPEF could no longer contribute to this project due to a lack of funds. Back then, there were 100 waste bins along the beaches. To keep this project running, the ATA jumped on board with funds.
Now, to help develop our tourism product, there are 22 recycling bins available. In 2021, they searched for different options to re-install these trash bins back on the beach while complying with the existing requirements, including new requirements for recycling aluminum, steel, and plastics. It also includes the recycling of bottles by local companies. These recycling bins are new and designed with the colors of the Aruba flag. The sponsors of these recycling containers are local companies and include the sponsor’s logo. It is essential to dispose of your trash by putting them in containers and not on the beach. Keep in mind that this waste that ends up on the beach will eventually end up in the ocean with all devastating consequences for marine life.
Tourism is the driving force of our economy, and that is why we should invest in it and take care of it.

Recycle Bin pilot project

The Department of Public Works (DOW), will start removing the water hyacinth from the Bubali Plas, with the approval from the Arikok National Park and Department of Nature and Environment.
Due to the magnitude of the Bubali Plas, the DOW has decided to use heavy equipment to complete the task more efficiently.
It entails routine maintenance work carried out every year. The cleanup of the water hyacinths helps maintain a good water flow and the water quality in the Bubali Plas. It also protects the flora and fauna of the Bubali Plas.
This maintenance work is vital for the habitat as the water hyacinths have grown out of control and are covering a big part of the water surface. It blocks the sun’s light from reaching the water, which reduces the oxygen level in the water. Without this routine maintenance, the Bubali Plas will deteriorate to a level where the flora and fauna will also disappear.
The routine maintenance work will take between 2 and 4 weeks.

DOW will remove water hyacinths from Bubali Plas

By JOE REEDY AP Sports Writer
INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — Kyler Murray’s first NFL playoff start quickly turned into a nightmare.
The dynamic quarterback and his Arizona Cardinals teammates had about the worst start imaginable in Monday night’s 34-11 loss to the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC wild-card round. By the time the Cardinals got their initial first down, they were trailing 21-0 midway through the second quarter.
“We didn’t even make it a game,” said Murray, who completed 19 of 34 passes for 137 yards and two interceptions. “I put a lot on my shoulders. To play the way I did was disappointing.”
The Cardinals went three-and-out on their first four possessions, the first time that’s happened in a playoff game in at least 10 seasons. They were outgained 180-40 in the first half and averaged just 1.5 yards per play, the second-worst average in a playoff game over the last 20 seasons.
Murray was under pressure from the start. He was sacked twice in the first half and was nearly brought down for a safety in the second quarter before throwing an ill-advised pass that was picked off by David Long for a 3-yard touchdown return to make it 21-0.
Murray was unable to find any success throwing downfield. He completed only one pass beyond 15 air yards on eight attempts, and 11 of his 34 attempts were passes behind the line of scrimmage.
“It just got out of hand early. You have to be able to run the ball on those guys. When you get into a passing game, they have three of the best pass rushers along with good players on the back end,” Murray said.
The Cardinals came into the game 10th in the league in rushing, averaging 122 yards per game, but were held to a season-low 61 against the Rams. Murray had a season-low two rushing attempts and gained six yards.
“I just think overall as an offense we were just out of sync on a couple of things early that could have changed the game,” coach Kliff Kingsbury said. “We never got in a rhythm and they made some big plays.”
Arizona’s only touchdown came midway through the third quarter when James Conner’s 2-yard run capped a 12-play, 75-yard drive to get the Cardinals within 28-8. That drive also marked the first time Arizona crossed midfield.
“When you have negative play after negative play, it’s just hard to get yourself out of that,” wide receiver Christian Kirk said. “Once we did get on a roll in the second half we started doing some good things, but it was just too late.”
The blowout loss continued a trend during Kingsbury’s tenure — fast starts to the season before collapsing down the stretch. Arizona won its first seven games and was the NFL’s last unbeaten team, making it one of the early favorites in the NFC.
At 10-2, the Cardinals had the NFC’s best record and a two-game lead in the West before they lost four of their final five regular-season games and fell to the fifth seed.
Defensive lineman J.J. Watt was activated off injured reserve before the game after undergoing shoulder surgery in late October. Despite his return, the 11-year veteran couldn’t hide his disappointment over the result.
“From what we were capable of doing and showed what we can do, there’s no other way than to describe this as a failure,” Watt said. “You get to enjoy the highs but you have to live with the lows. We started the season great and finished terrible.”

Murray’s first playoff start a nightmare for Cardinals

By ASTRID SUÁREZ Associated Press
BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — For decades renowned Colombian author Gabriel García Márquez kept the public from knowing about an intimate aspect of his life: He had a daughter with a Mexican writer, with whom he had an extramarital affair in the early 1990s.
The closely guarded secret was published by Colombian newspaper El Universal on Sunday and confirmed to the Associated Press by two relatives of the Nobel Prize-winning author, who is famous for novels like One Hundred Years of Solitude and Love in the Time of Cholera.
García Márquez died in Mexico City in 2014, where thousands of his readers lined up to see his casket in a concert hall. He was married for more than five decades to Mercedes Barcha and the couple had two children named Rodrigo and Gonzalo. They lived in Mexico City for much of their lives.
El Universal said that in the early 1990s García Márquez had a daughter with Susana Cato, a writer and journalist who worked with García Márquez on two movie scripts and who also interviewed him for a 1996 magazine story. Cato and García Márquez named their daughter Indira: She is now in her early 30s and uses her mother’s surname.
Shani García Márquez, one of the writer’s nieces, told the AP that she had known for years about her cousin Indira, but had not mentioned her to the media because her parents always asked her to be discrete about her uncle’s personal life.
Gabriel Eligio Torres García, who is also a nephew of the Colombian writer, said he has been in touch with Indira Cato through social media, though he has never met her in person.
“My cousins Rodrigo and Gonzalo told me about her casually during a reunion,” he said.
Other members of García Márquez’s family, cited by El Universal, said they had not spoken about the writer’s daughter previously out of “respect” for Mercedes Barcha who died in August 2020. Torres García said that Indira Cato’s mother, Susana, had also been discrete about her daughter’s lineage, to keep her away from the media spotlight.
Indira Cato is now a documentary producer in Mexico City. She won several awards for a 2014 documentary on migrants passing through Mexico.
García Márquez’ family said they didn’t want to share her contact information because they were not authorized to do so, and the AP could not contact Indira Cato independently.
“She leads a very artistic lifestyle, like many people in this family,” said Shani García. “It makes us very happy that she has shined on her own.”