Christmas dreams in Plastic, Skull ‘cities’

Amrita Ramdin

Six-year-old Amrita Ramdin jumps over the river wall and trails behind her grandmother through the muddy dam, searching for her older sibling. She was dodging the muddy water seeping through the rickety boards lining the dam when she saw several children from the squatting area circling a young man, telling him what they wanted for Christmas.

See, not many people visit Plastic City during Christmas-time, asking children what they wanted for the holidays; matter-of-fact, not many people know about the small squatting area, hidden behind the Vreed-en-Hoop stelling.

These children live among the mangroves, near the river, in make-shift, box-like zinc houses. Their only protection are