The synopsis of the scenario

This is my final blog on with regard to the double edged sword for the foreseeable future. It has been quite a ride and i thank all who went the full way. The intention of the my blog was to reveal the deeper nature of the pros and cons of the informal sector in urban areas. I think that we as a Caribbean people neglect this and i hope that my blog made you think deeper some of the things we pass by everyday. The lives of the people.

It was interesting to see that some other blogs were related to mine. For instance Alicia’s Blog on street vending is directly related to the informal sector in most cases. It should be noted that the informal sector is more than just street vending. This is is a point that links to my blog that people have a misconception on. In one of her blogs I like that there was a community of vendors selling together and i think that is a nice find. From the research that i did and the pictures i took in my informal sector that sense of space was not always there. It was quite the opposite in some cases because some people even fight for space within the informal sector to sell their goods. 

Siobhan’s Blog was very interesting and the pictures were captivating. A particular blog of hers that got my interest was the one on gated communities. Its walls really do separate and with the rise of gated communities in Trinidad and Tobago the segregation grows stronger. The amount of land that we possess is limited to 5128 square km with each new gated community a huge chunk of this place is cut out. If we take this into consideration with regard to urban areas it not only segregates but limits the space that is actually available. I think this limited space leads to harsher conditions in the informal sector leading into the persons finding a living from it having to find new ways to work around the lack of space. One of my blogs even showed that vendors have moved to the traffic lights on the highways to maximize profits.  

Another blog that caught my interest was Chanels blog on urban nightlife. It was both a refreshing and reveling read. I like hearing about the nightlife from someone young and who actually lives it and its much better when put into a geographical perspective. She had one blog related to food. This blog I think relates to mine in that some of the persons that sell this food are actually members of the informal sector. I wish i could have gotten to delve deeper into the activities of the informal sector at night even more. 

Overall from reading my peers blogs and working on my own i see that there is so much in the urban space that is taken for face value and not investigated. I like that we got this assignment to do as it has proven as not only fun but quite informative. There is so much to learn with regard to urban geography and many perspectives to view it form. I think the term double edged sword applies to it as well. I look forward to reading though all the blogs at a relaxed pace. I hope this journey has opened your minds eye and i thank you for taking the initiate to come along for the ride.

Thanks

Ananda Ramlocahn