As is usually the case, the Jamaica CherylLauren adventure was short, intense, and a lot of fun! After a 3+ hour ride experiencing summer rain in the mountains (landslides, and hydroplaning on the curvy roads without side rails, and generally getting used to the idea of driving on the left side of the road), Mom made it to Port Antonio a bit green but very happy to have reached her destination.

6 August is Independence Day in Jamaica, so we got up early to prepare for the festivities of the day; the Longbay Gala. Reaching the Fairy Hill Centre, we were greeted by lots of people decorating our truck in bright green, gold, red plaid, and black.

Our float in the decoration process.

All of the work that we had put in to portraits earlier in the week came to fruition as the truck really started to look vibrant, alive, and a good reflection of past heroes and present stars.

Louise Bennett, "Miss Lou." Jamaican folklorist, artist, and writer. Played a big role in promoting and putting pride back into Jamaican Patois as a legitimate language.

Minutes ticking by, we waited a good five hours before the gala actually started (three hours after it was supposed to start; I think Mom now understands the concept of “soon come”). We were in good company though, and Mom got to meet many of the ladies I work with, as well as much of the community at large.

Mrs. Brown

Once we got going, the hours flew by as our bodies vibrated and bounced with the comically large speaker boxes that were snugly situated in the truck and the similarly large chunks of missing road that our driver could not avoid. Mom was a very good sport! Once we reached Longbay, everybody danced, shouted, and waved pom poms for the judges.

In the end, sadly, we did not win, but it was a fun day! We slept really well that night…

Saturday we checked out the market, met up with most of my fellow Portland PCVs, and kicked it in Port Antonio. That night we went to a funky restaurant built in a very colorfully haphazard way on a steep hill overlooking the bay. We had a delicious vegetarian meal with lots of traditional and not so traditional Jamaican food.

Sunday and Monday we  relaxed and checked out two beaches nearby, Frenchman’s Cove and Great Huts (by Boston beach). It’s always nice to have fresh eyes take in the beauty of this place that I’ve already started to take for granted.

We also got to spend some time with the ladies of Nature’s Handmade Paper.

Ms. Maybell, Ms. Julia, Mrs. Hay, Mrs. G

That night we went into Port Antonio for a last rum & pepsi and some good food in the company of Angie, a fellow Portlander.

Open invitation until May 2012 everyone – come visit!

Had a pretty good week at work. Went to an interesting community stakeholder meeting involving a bio-monitoring project for the Drivers Area Watershed. Had a Warden’s meeting on Friday in Boston. Mostly this involved the preparation and consumption of food, chatting, and watching thunderstorms come and go over the water.

Awesome Portland PCVs (picture courtesy of Angie).

Looking forward to a week away from site (longest I’ve been away from Fairy Hill since May) to go to a training session in Kingston for the Peer Support Network. It will be a good time to take a breather and reflect on all that’s been going on.