by Kally B.
Yellow
January 31, 2018
Headline: A World of Suprises
Author: Lorenzo Camusso
Source of Article: The Voyages of Columbus 1492-1504
Three Vocabulary Words:
1. Botanical - Relating to Plants
2. Madrepores - A Stony Coral of the Genus Madrepora
3. Yuca - The Starchy Tuberous Root of a Tropical Tree. Used as Food in Tropical Countries
When Christopher Columbus landed in the Caribbean Sea, he came into contact with natives of the islands. These natives were very different than the people in Europe. One Columbus landed, he noticed some very unusual plants, animals, and inventions created by the natives. Most of which we had never seen before. One plant, the tobacco plant, the natives were smoking. Columbus and the other Europeans thought of this as a bad custom. Another invention Columbus's crew came across was a hammock. They noticed it inside a natives house. They described it as a net like object, hanging from the ceiling. That hanging net is now a very popular hang out and camping bed, that is used in the lives of many people.
Some suprises Columbus and his crew encountered are...
> Yuca
Yuca is a cassava root plant that is native to the Americas.
> Maize
Maize was found in the Central America area, and is very similar to corn. It can be used to make tortillas and other breads.
> Tobacco
Tobacco was brought back to Spain with Columbus, but was not used until around the 1700's in Europe
> Hammocks
Hammocks are still very common and are very fun and relaxing for many people around the world.
> Manioc
Manioc, or Cassava is still consumed in many tropical areas across the world.
> Palm Trees and Coconut Trees
These trees were so different than the trees in Spain and any of the trees they had seen before.
These macaws are beautiful birds that have many different colors. They are normally 35 inches and have a wingsapn of around 2.5 - 3.5 feet.
Coral Reefs were a completely foreign animal to Columbus and his crew. Some of the islands he landed on were in fact made of coral and sand.
Chili peppers are a very popular food and spice that originated in Central America. The type of pepper found by Columbus was the red chili pepper
> Cotton
It is also supposed that Columbus found cotton on the Caribbean Islands. However, according to some stories from natives, Columbus and his crew were wearing cotton when they arrived at the Islands. This has caused lot's of confusion and debate on where cotton originated. Some believe that it was brought back with Columbus from the Americas, and some believe it was discovered in Asia.
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