He's enjoyed cold Carib beer, eaten roti and doubles. He loved dining at Tamnak Thai and before he returned to Caracas, limed with friends at Jenny's on the Boulevard.This year was the first time he experienced Carnival."And it was great," he said.He's Ambassador Markus-Alexander Antonietti, Embassy of Switzerland, whose three-year appointment ends next month."I don't live here, but I am always coming here," he said.
He speaks several languages and his English wasn't impeccable but he expressed himself well.Antonietti was in T&T two weeks ago from Caracas for his farewell visit. He was accredited from Caracas to different countries in the region such as Barbados, Guyana, St Lucia, Grenada and St Vincent.He takes up his next mission in September in Prague, capital of the Czech Republic.
Switzerland has a population of close to seven million while T&T's is 1.3 million.He said, "Because in most of the countries we don't have big colonies or a lot of trade but I would say after Venezuela, Trinidad is no doubt the second important country for us for different reasons."
One of them is Nestl�.Nestl� is a Swiss multinational nutritional, snack food, and health-related consumer goods company headquartered in Vevey, Switzerland. It is the largest food company in the world measured by revenues.Nestl� Trinidad and Tobago has operations in Valsayn.Antonietti spoke about his few visits to T&T in an interview on May 14 at the Hyatt Regency Hotel.
Carnival was great
He said he felt guilty that he only tasted a piece of the Carnival this year."It was great. The whole day and the night...the music, the people, the colour, the smell, the ambience...it was great."I got up very, very early and I saw how people played the steelpan and then I was walking in the street and then I was having a few cold Caribs during the day and then we went to the 'Samba ground' as they say in Brazil, but here it is the Savannah and watching and listening to Thank God it's Friday (SuperBlue's Fantastic Friday.) That's what I did and it was great. I like the tune. It was a great experience."He laughed.Antonietti said in 1962 when T&T became independent, his country gave help to the University of the West Indies for its department of international affairs. "We were sending professors, we were taking up the curriculum with them, and that was quite an interesting operation. I am still reminded, when I do some visits here, that citizens from here have had contacts with Swiss professors and through that we got a certain bond which up to today is valid."He visited for a few days and held several meetings.Antonietti thinks the presidential dinner held annually was the finest art of the British tradition in the region.
Better understandingof Caribbean
In this globalised world of today, Antonietti said countries can work together and can do things together."For most of the small countries in the world you need a framework of rules which allows to compete on an even level and which allow to be fair and that's why my country, Switzerland, is in all the international organisations and is always interested in clear rules which allow to makeemarcation of the playing field."I think that is very important," he said.He said that's what he tried to do during his stay in the region.Antonietti said when he was told his mission was in the Caribbean he had no idea about it. He had visited the Dominican Republic but no other island.
He said, "The Caribbean for me was a kind of...you know you kind of have an idea...it is the everlasting sun, the smile of people and I think that's the idea in a lot of people's minds."His stay in the region has allowed him the opportunity to know the people and to realise there are differences in each island."I realised that despite the fact that it might be a small part of the world it is still very diverse and they may have same ideas sometimes, but ways to get to it may differ.He said in the three years he got a very good overview having visited T&T half a dozen times which was more than some of his accredited colleagues from Caracas. He's found it interesting and said he wanted "to go to the roots" to understand why things are the way they are and why problems persist.