Thoughts and Reflections...(-:

Thoughts and Reflections

Over the course of the semester, this blog was a very unique and challenging experience for me at first. However, I do want to take this time to congratulate my GEOG 2007 Urban Geography lecturer, Dr. Priya Kissoon for in this short space of time, molding us into critical thinkers, pushing us to explore a method least expected to disseminate information.  My blog sought over the 10 weeks, to highlight different modes of transportation in, around and out the city of San Fernando. The reason I chose to invest my time in transport is because San Fernando, apart from commercialism, is known specifically for transportation. It is a city that never sleeps as people are always commuting day and night. I thought it was important to inform the wider  public about the history behind most of our transport modes,  the reasons for transport and what our own people felt about transport. As a young aspiring Geography student, I learnt a lot from these 10 posts and having witnessed these movements frequently in the city, I never thought about it from an Urban Geographer perspective. My colleagues as well conducted this same assignment  highlighting different urban phenomenon and it was very interesting to see what they came up with. Three blog entries that stood out most for me were:-

Avinash Narine's blog entitled ''Mobility in the City" 

http://urbanmobility17.blogspot.com/
Morissa Rodney's blog entitled "Urban Lifestyle......" http://urbanlifestyle1992.blogspot.com/
Karina Chickoree's blog entitled "Urban Traveller"  http://urbantravellertt.blogspot.com/ 

Avinash Narine and I did the same topic when it came to observing and evaluating mobility in the city. In his case, he looked at San Juan and I looked at San Fernando but we both undertook different perspectives. What I realized was that wherever you travel, wherever you may end up, travelling from city to city is inevitable and changing. It was good to read Avinash's blog because in relation to mine, he took on a very personal approach and posted entries that were very interesting such as the Greener Alternative. It showed that he took time to notice such an alternative and suggest ways in which consumers can save the environment. 

In Morissa's blog, Urban Lifestyle, It was very interesting to see how she highlighted different aspects within cities from an Urban Geography perspective. I must also praise Morissa for her top quality photographs and execution of her blog entries. Morissa's architectural photos were amazing and she was very effective in taking you to that place when you began reading. One of her  entries that stood out to me dealt with Transportation and mobility in the city. In this entry, Morissa mentioned that mobility shapes cities and this is very true. This is seen in the size, structure, layout and movement of people. Mobility also influences the perceptions and minds of individuals as they link certain characteristics to a city based on the levels of mobility seen. This is where Morissa's view on transport struck me.

Lastly, Karina Chickoree's blog also included an entry looking at mobility in the capital city of Port of Spain. She looked at places in which persons can catch various modes of transportation like the Bus Route and Taxi stands. She even went further to look at Head Offices of transport and mobile police patrols all of which, I did not highlight much of in my blog. Karina's blog stood out to me simply because she refers to herself as the Urban Traveller. What I like most was her perceptions of movement as an urban traveller where she sought to see things solely through her lense as she moved from place to place herself through the city. I adored her passion very much for travelling. Great job Karina!

Thank you to my colleagues and international supporters who commented.

Until next time,

Shaniece Mitchell

Geography and Agribusiness Major.

University of the West Indies, St. Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago.

2013