From
Syrena Exposed — A Traveller's Guide
The origin of the name "Syrena" is a matter for conjecture. It may refer to the Sirens, the beautiful mermaids of ancient Greek legend who lured unwary sailors to their deaths. This is the motif which the modern tourist board promotes in reference to the women who were brought to the island in the eighteenth century to serve as wives and concubines for their pirate captors. Yet a recently discovered Spanish map shows "Sirenusa" already in use in the early 1600s.
The modern spelling has two explanations which also invoke Greek mythology. One is that the island is named after the nymph Syrinx, a virginal follower of the goddess Artemis who gave her name to the term for reed-pipes. It may also derive from the Greek word, of identical etymology, for a spear-case,
syrinx
. This would be in reference to the warlike Carib people who occupied the island before the arrival of Europeans. The tradition of enslaving women began with their raids on the more peaceful Arawak tribes of the region, for captives to work in the fields producing cassava.
The earliest Europeans arrived in 1692, fugitives from the destruction by earthquake of Port Royal, Jamaica's notorious haven for buccaneers, smugglers and other desperadoes. As well as refuge, the island offered good anchorages and an ideal base for attacks on shipping and settlements throughout the Caribbean. Colonial rivalries at the time had provided a bonanza for the freebooting fraternity, and the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713 which brought an end to the War of the Spanish Succession unleashed upon the region thousands of unemployed seamen and soldiers. This was to be a new golden age of piracy, when rogues such as Blackbeard and Black Bart terrorized the seas. They became so emboldened as to attack towns and plantations on the American continent, as far north as the Carolinas and even Virginia. As well as material plunder, the pirates took hostages for ransom.
In the egalitarian spirit of their profession, a source of profit which they did not generally exploit was the African slave trade. When taking over a slave ship, it was common practice to liberate the human cargo, who would then join the raider's crew. As a result, many of the pirates were themselves freed or runaway slaves, and any man who knew the ropes — was proficient in sailing skills — was held in higher esteem than the landlubber of any race or creed who did not.
On the other hand, one of the means employed by Syrena's chieftains to keep their men in line was to provide them with women. Prostitutes were imported from Europe and African slavegirls from neighbouring colonies. Because living standards were primitive, for regular replenishment of the stock females were kidnapped from passing ships and from distant settlements. Those who could not bring in a decent ransom, and the occasional woman of class who caught the eye of the captain, were taken back to Syrena as booty. They endured the hardships of day-to-day existence and adapted to their new lives, and as conditions gradually improved families were raised and a community was built. Their children were fully immersed in the swashbuckling culture. Sons followed in the profession of their fathers, and even some girls took to the sea in ships. And although few modern Syrenes can authentically trace their heritage back so far, almost every native claims one of these hardy females as an ancestor.
Under French rule from 1722 to 1763, and thereafter a British colony, the island eventually lost its fearsome reputation as an outlaw sanctuary. Although smuggling continued, most inhabitants turned to legal occupations — commercial seafaring, fishing and boat-building. In the twentieth century, by the time tourism had emerged as the major industry, the population was in decline, from a peak of 2000 in the 1850s to no more than a few hundred a century later. However, the acquisition of a leasehold by the Cimarrón Corporation in 1954 meant a new lease of life. Spearheading this revival were returning descendants of the pirate pioneers. They brought with them the old spirit of buccaneering brotherhood... and inspired the unique attributes of modern Syrene tourism.
Part Three
On our first morning in Syrena, we woke to a chorus of songbirds. Kate seemed in an equally chirpy mood. But I must have dozed off again, because when my eyes opened once more she was not in the room. I could hear her talking to someone. Still drowsy, it took me a while to focus. A baritone voice answered. I didn't get up. However, the bedroom door was wide open, and I could see out onto the balcony. The outline of Kate's naked figure was fuzzy through the billowing curtains.
She was talking to a man standing on the next balcony. I could discern only a few words, but they certainly spiked my curiosity, in particular "so beautiful."
After a few minutes Kate came in, looking very pleased with herself.
"Getting acquainted with the neighbours?" I inquired.
"Ah, you're awake," she said.
"Obviously," I replied, unable to hide my irritation.
"What's up, dearest?" she asked, without even trying to hide her amusement. "Bad mood?"
"Me? No. Why?"
"Well, you seem to be in a grumpy."
I told myself that I was still tired. Unlike Kate, I have never been a morning person. But she knew what was making me so testy.
"Yes, I was talking to our neighbours."
"I didn't hear a woman's voice."
With a mischievous glint in her eye, and in an ever so slightly superior tone, she continued. "Well, him anyway. Actually, we met them last night, in the restaurant."
