Links to my Facebook page (2019-2020)

Panorama of the plaza in Tunja, Colombia, from a trip in 2019

In spite of my resolutions, I haven't posted here since last July, and I will try to be more consistent in the future. I now tend to post more on my Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/mikeespositotravelblog/ with quick references to places I've visited, accompanied by a photo. In the meantime, before my next Blogger post, I'll provide links to several Facebook posts here. Hope you enjoy them!

Havre de Grace, Maryland, where the Susquehanna River meets the Chesapeake Bay, and an important historical site  (2020)

Sunset in Amish Country, PA (2019)

30th Street Station in Philadelphia, PA right before Thanksgiving 2019

Paintings from Roland Richardson's gallery in Marigot, Saint Martin (2019)

An aerial shot of Bimini Islands, Bahamas (2019)

View from the tower in Filandia, Department of Quindío, Colombia  (2019)

Ceiling painting from the house of Gonzalo Suárez Rendón, Tunja, Colombia (2019)

The tourist train that starts in Bogotá, Colombia and continues north to the towns of Zipaquirá and Nemocón (2019)

Shoal Bay Beach, Anguilla (2019)

Returning to St. Martin after 16 years

Chairs set out in front of the Azure Hotel and Art Studio on Simpson Bay Beach

After two research trips to St. Martin in 2002 and 2003 as part of a project with Raíces Culturales, I had the chance to return to the island this year as a tourist with my wife. There are direct flights from Philadelphia, which didn't exist when I traveled there on my first two trips.

The island, as the smallest island shared by two sovereign states, is known by its two names: Sint Maarten for the Dutch side and Saint-Martin for the French side. Sint Maarten is an autonomous entity within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, and Saint-Martin is part of the French overseas department of Guadeloupe. Islanders who hope for unifying the two sides as an independent state prefer to focus on its common English Caribbean roots and use the English spelling of St. Martin to refer to the entire island, regardless of the current state of sovereignty. Out of respect for them and their heritage, I use their spelling unless I have reason to differentiate the two sides of the island.

Tortoises are among the guests at the Azure Hotel and Art Studio

On my first trip, I stayed at the Seaview Beach Hotel, a small hotel on the beach in Philipsburg. On my second visit, I rented a room with a friend who lived on a hill, in a section called Mary's Fancy. For this third opportunity, we decided on the Azure Hotel and Art Studio, a small, hospitable location on Simpson Bay Beach, close to Princess Juliana Airport. Though you can hear the planes take off while on the beach, it is not where the planes fly incredibly low as they approach the runway. That "honor" goes to Maho Bay Beach.

The beautiful blue water in Simpson Bay can be seen from the Karakter restaurant

Accommodations on the Dutch side (Sint Maarten) have a notable advantage to their French-side counterparts: potable running water as opposed to the well water that isn't safe to drink. We learned very quickly the value of having that option, especially because our room had a kitchenette, enabling us to eat in when we wanted.

I wanted to see how St. Martin had recovered from the massive destruction wrought by Hurricane Irma in 2017. By and large, the island looked open for business. The indicators of the hurricane's impact could be seen in damaged cars, a few buildings in partial or complete disrepair, and the second floor of the airport not yet open, but the rebuilding effort after such a devastating storm was a tribute to the hard work of the islanders. Some attractions such as the Sint Maarten Museum in Philipsburg, or artist Roland Richardson's gallery in Marigot, had finished their repairs only shortly before our arrival.

We accidentally went into a new branch of a popular supermarket chain, Super U, on the day of its grand opening in Hope Estate. (No, we didn't win the car) 

There was still plenty that I hadn't seen on the island, so it was worthwhile to return, rent a car and do some sightseeing. For example, I had never visited Loterie Farm, a nature attraction along the road to Pic Paradis, the highest point in St. Martin. Likewise, I wanted to sample the views from the Little Bay Hotel and what remained of Fort Amsterdam, both on a peninsula separating Little Bay from Great Bay.

The entrance to Loterie Farm in the center of the island

In terms of eating, St. Martin is an island that doesn't lend itself to all-inclusive resorts. Even after Irma, enough restaurants have come back to make the dining options considerable, from fast food to high end. We sampled quite a few without breaking the bank, such as a Latin roast chicken eatery called Pollos Hermanos, had coffee and baguettes for breakfast at a wonderful French bakery called Café Atlántico, and caught a soccer game at a small restaurant in the Simpson Bay area that made delicious Colombian empanadas. The town most associated with fine eating is Grand Case, which, while in the process of reopening some of its famed restaurants, still has its renowned "lolos" or seafood restaurants along the beach. Great food, generous portions.

My choice from the ample seafood menu of one of the "lolos" in Grand Case

Returning to St. Martin was wonderful. Not only did we relax and enjoy ourselves, but we were also able to meet with friends that I had made during my first two research trips. For me, St. Martin more than earns its name "The Friendly Island."

A Visit to Riviera Maya in Mexico

A scene from Secrets Silversands Riviera Cancun

We couldn't believe our good fortune! My wife and I won three free nights in an all-inclusive at Secrets Silversands Riviera Cancun on the Riviera Maya, in a contest sponsored by the Travel and Adventure Show in Philadelphia in March 2016. We selected November as the time to go, late enough to avoid most of hurricane season and the increased rain, but before the airfares would go up around Thanksgiving.

A few quick facts about the area: Riviera Maya is a more recently developed resort area to the south of Cancun, which stretches to Playa del Carmen and the park X-Caret, and further south to the ruins of Tulum. You would still fly into Cancun International Airport and pay for a shuttle to take you to your hotel. As there is no other significant development in the area aside from the beachfront hotels or the town of Playa del Carmen, the only practical ways to access Cancun or other parts of the region from a Riviera Maya resort are via taxi or a guided tour.

Our having only three nights meant that we decided not to go to Chichén Itzá, Tulum, or any other long guided tour, so as to be able to make the most out of our all-inclusive resort. The staff at Secrets Silversands Riviera Cancun is exceptionally friendly and helpful, and the food nothing short of spectacular.

We realized when we arrived that the temperature of the pool and the sea in general was colder than we had envisioned. It may have been due to the time of year, which featured some cool breezes, or it also could have had to do with the area's latitude. It is farther north in the Caribbean region than Punta Cana, Jamaica, Puerto Rico or the islands of the Lesser Antilles (such as St. Martin). People who have gone to Cancun and Riviera Maya at different times of the year may have had different experiences than ours.

The beach immediately adjacent to the resort was convenient for having drinks delivered to you, and ideal for sunning./We noticed that the water was full of seaweed and not quite as appealing, which led us to look for another beach to visit. Our first thought was a place called Playa Maroma in between our resort and Playa del Carmen. Playa Maroma has beautiful, powdery sand, but the same issues with the water existed, making it more appealing for water sports or swimming with dolphins in a pool next to the beach than simply going into the sea to swim.

We quickly left Playa Maroma and headed via taxi and ferry to Isla Mujeres, where we spent an afternoon. There we found the beach we were looking for: beautiful, with calm waters ideal for floating or swimming, but it wasn't the famed Playa Norte that is talked about so much. The beach we found is a three-block walk from the ferry terminal and is called Playa Centro. I noticed that the beach at Playa Centro was wider than Playa Norte and the water was calmer, at least where I could observe. Playa Norte is good if you book a hotel on that beach and can just take a few steps from your room to go into the water, but for our purposes Playa Centro was ideal.

Playa Centro, one of the beaches on Isla Mujeres

Obviously, if we had had more time we would have explored more of the area, but for a short, relaxing vacation, we were more than satisfied with our experience. Our goal is to return for a longer stay and visit the ruins and other attractions there.

Latin and Caribbean recordings map on Google Maps / Mapa de grabaciones latinoamericanas y caribeñas en Google Maps

For years I had wanted to write a book compiling what I had researched regarding world music, especially Latin and Caribbean music, but with a recent upgrade of Google Maps, I found a better solution: post the information regarding recordings and styles of music on a map, according to their location. This will continue to be updated as I learn more on the subject, but I believe that it finally has enough information to share with all of you. The link to the map is listed below. 

Por muchos años tuve el deseo de escribir un libro compilando lo que había investigado acerca de la música mundial, especialmente latinoamericana y caribeña, pero con una mejora reciente de Google Maps, encontré una mejor solución: poner la información acerca de grabaciones y estilos de música en un mapa, según su localidad. Seguiré ampliando el mapa mientras aprendo más sobre el tema, pero tiene suficientes datos para poderlo compartir con todos ustedes. El enlace al mapa se encuentra abajo.

https://www.google.com/maps/d/ edit?mid=zX6KP5pPw6Jw. kq1ngryvXotI 

Bibliography and discography of Latin American and Caribbean music - an ongoing project

Grupo Etnia performs Andean music at the Festival of the Sun at the National Museum of the American Indian, part of the Smithsonian in Washington, DC

One of my favorite pastimes is listening to music from Spain, Latin America and the Caribbean. Over the years I've developed some favorites. While I like mainstream music like salsa and merengue, I especially like to highlight styles of music that may not get as much attention, so as to level the playing field a little.

In the future I will highlight books, CDs, videos and other materials related to this subject, and intend to make this a recurring theme without any set deadline or limit. I hope that you enjoy these as I post them.

Check out my Twitter account @meesposito and my Facebook pages "Mike Esposito's Travel Blog" and "Folklorelatino" (in Spanish) or more information related to travel and culture.

What makes the island of Saba special

The small planes that land on the short runway of Saba

I visited the Dutch Caribbean island of Saba in 2002, only spending two days there, but the images I picked up on my trip stayed with me to this day. I've tried reading about Saba in other articles and even consulted a book called Island Wise by Janis Frawley-Holler, which describes lessons that the author learned while visiting several small islands, to see if I could put my finger on its elusive character, even compared to other small islands. In those accounts, I didn't find the quality that I was looking to describe, so I decided to try myself.

My purpose for visiting St. Martin, Saba and Statia in 2002 was to study the islands' music and interview local musicians. It required considerable preparation and even then there were unexpected events that changed my plans somewhat - mostly changes in the schedule that were not too difficult to overcome.

I tried very hard not to idealize Saba, which has problems like any other place on earth. In spite of the fact that crime is almost nil, I know from my own experience that people are in close quarters there, know each other's business, sometimes don't get along, disagree on one issue or another, may compete with their neighbors for some political favor, or face issues that may not be a problem in a larger society, such as the unavailability of items that may force them to go to nearby St. Martin to purchase them. I tried to be an impartial observer for the short time I was there.

Saba is not your typical Caribbean island. For one, it sits like a gigantic boulder in the middle of the sea, and has only one beach at Well's Bay which is submerged for much of the year. Much is made of its airport which has one of the shortest runways in the world on the only flat area on the island, appropriately named Flat Point. This very small area is at the very end of Saba and is surrounded by the sea, so making a precise landing was crucial. The plane had to fly parallel to, and very near, a high cliff on the island before landing, and it appeared as if the right wing were going to get smashed by the edge of that cliff. What was more striking to me than this image was the fact that the airplane only needed half the runway to land; it felt like a cross between a plane landing and a helicopter landing.

Many people who visit Saba are divers who want to explore the richness of its underwater life. I was decidedly a landlubber, so I was more inclined to go hiking, which has its own rewards in the variety of plants and microclimates. At dawn I took on the hike to the top of Mt. Scenery, the highest peak on the island, accessible from 1064 steps carved out of the rock. Toward the top, the terrain becomes a humid cloud forest with many varieties of ferns that benefit from the continuous mist. The top of Mt. Scenery is often covered with clouds, so the purpose is not the view but rather walking through the forest.

Saba makes an effort to standardize the color and construction of houses, all of which have a gingerbread look. (Because of this uniqueness, the island had tried applying to UNESCO to make their island a World Heritage Site.) Besides the quaintness that this look creates, what also struck me was how incredibly clean the whole island was. I don't have even a recollection of a discarded piece of paper on the ground anywhere. We who are used to seeing trash, litterbugs, dirty restrooms and the like can't help but be impressed. Another observation I made was that at nighttime the island got incredibly dark. Not that I felt unsafe, but I tried to imagine what it must have been like in a small village many years ago before street lights were the norm.

What also was noteworthy was that people felt comfortable to be more direct with the visitor, engage him/her in conversation, and wave at them even if they were strangers. Once in a bar, a young man came up to me and asked me if I would find some time to play soccer with him. I didn't get to do this with my schedule, but it just seemed interesting that he would ask me. Expats who lived on the island for any length of time exhibited these characteristics themselves. There was one expat couple whom I approached to ask where someone lived. They were inside their house - the man of the house was on the computer - but the door was wide open so I peeked in and asked my question. The result was that I felt like part of the island within a short time and enjoyed engaging in conversation with both locals and visitors.

I rented a car and recall a few interesting details. First, the gentleman who rented me the car picked me up at my hotel and took me to where I would pick up the car, but asked me to sit in the back because he had a passenger in the front - a lamb! After I picked up my car and started driving on the island's winding roads - necessary because of the extremely hilly terrain - I saw an abandoned car that had crashed into the side of one of the concrete barriers and concluded, correctly or incorrectly, that it was a visitor that had tried to drive too fast around the hairpin turns.

While in St. Martin waiting for my flight to Saba I had the chance to meet an 89-year-old woman from the sister island of St. Eustatius (Statia), who engaged me in conversation. I don't recall her name now, but when I was on Saba chatting with a 76-year-old banjo maker named Alwyn "Buck" Caines, who had moved there from Statia many years ago, I asked him if he knew her. He said yes and commented enthusiastically, "Could she dance!"

Though the island feels isolated, the people do keep up with what is going on, particularly through cable TV. One gentleman, learning that I was from Philadelphia, talked to me about how the Philadelphia Phillies were doing and how one of their star players was not playing to his potential.

One evening I went to a bar in The Bottom to see a group perform. They were Caribbean-style rappers who called themselves the Destruction Band. The bar crowd was very small and I felt sorry for the rappers, who would have felt more at home in a larger venue. These places are usually for the locals and will generally not draw a crowd anyway. When I left the bar, I was approached by a young man who asked me to give him a ride to the town of St. John's. Normally he would have had to walk the entire way back to his house unless someone happened to be driving in his direction. On an island like Saba, there is no fear of giving someone a ride even if you don't know them.

The two days went by very quickly and the next stop on my Caribbean tour was the nearby island of Statia. When I finished with the rental car, I could just park it at Saba's small airport and leave the key in the ashtray, as there was no fear that anyone would steal it. I had meant to give a CD to Glenn Holm, Saba's director of tourism, but had forgotten to do so, so when I got ready to leave I just left it with a gentleman at the airport and asked him to get it to Glenn. The takeoff from the small airport was smooth and actually the landing at Statia was rougher than at Saba because of some strong crosswinds that seemed determined to push the small aircraft off course.

Probably the most interesting observation that I took from my trip to Saba is that Sabans are hard-working people but laid back at the same time. These seem like contradictions but they don't have to be. We in the northeastern part of the US seem to associate hard work with nervousness, packing too much into our schedule, rushing meals and running around, and can learn a valuable lesson from the Sabans regarding how to pace ourselves.

Check out my Twitter account @meesposito and my Facebook page "Mike Esposito's Travel Blog" for more travel-related information.

Montego Bay and the NAJASO Convention - July 18-21, 2013

Jamaican Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller addresses the NAJASO Convention

Diana and I returned to Montego Bay on July 18 from Kingston in the afternoon and arrived 30 minutes late at the Secrets Montego Bay for the NAJASO conference welcome. The mayor of Montego Bay, the Director of Tourism, the Governor General of Jamaica, the president of NAJASO and others gave speeches. Afterwards was a cocktail reception and music by The Mighty Beestons, this time with bass and drum set added. Diana dropped me off at Sandals Carlyle at about 10:30. My room number was 303. Showered, tried to sleep but was too hungry, so went down to the bar/restaurant area for a late snack of chicken fajita wrap. Room 303 has a balcony with a nice view of the Hip Strip (toward the south) and the small beach to the right.

July 19: The breakfast buffet at Secrets had varieties of cheeses, also had a ham and cheese omelet, along with a banana smoothie and coffee, and lots of water. Waitress was nice and called to me when I forgot my suit jacket. 

There was some delay in starting the seminar, but the AM focus was on education. There was some networking time afterwards. At lunch the keynote speaker was the leader of opposition and former Prime Minister.

Arriving at Secrets Montego Bay

Ate escovitched snapper at lunch buffet at Secrets, accompanied by sweet potatoes, salad and rice with peas. Dessert was chocolate mousse and key lime cheese cake with caramelized pineapple. Had lots of Ting soda, rum punch and coffee.

The afternoon was dedicated to tourism. Diana led the panel discussion with the ex-Tourism Minister, Theo Chambers and the rep from the Jamaica Tourist Board. Diana asked me to provide a short testimonial, and I said that my experience far surpassed any other tourism and culture experience that I had. 

Diana McIntyre-Pike poses with Rick Nugent (left) and Dr. Alston Meade

After the end, we stepped outside for photos, and I didn't stay for the panel discussion on Six Sigma because Diana had to leave early. I got back to Sandals Carlyle, showered and went down to the Jacuzzi.

Later I went to the dining area for dinner. One of the waiters told me that there was a dress code and that I needed to wear a shirt with a collar. I obliged and returned. I had two pieces of what tasted like raisin bread and ordered spring rolls for appetizers, followed up by an entree of snapper with rice and vegetables. Dessert was a flambé. Afterwards, I went back to poolside and let myself nap to soft music from the iPod.

Housekeeping had my laundry ready at about 10:20 PM - a pleasant surprise.

Streamer tail hummingbird in the garden at Sandals Carlyle

July 20: Had our 8:30 AM mtg with Christopher Elliott, Diana and Khadine Daley at Sandals Carlyle. Christopher is the General Manager of the resort and Khadine was in charge of media relations.) Lots of good discussion, and we learned that Sandals is also connected with community outreach. Diana and I went to Secrets, we caught the tail end of the young professionals meeting and part of the medical professionals meeting. I met the former honorary consul of Jamaica in Philadelphia, Dr. Alston Meade and had a nice conversation with him regarding how he got his start in the city.  Lunch was buffet style at Secrets with Diana, Theo Chambers and Melida Harris-Barrow of Panama. 

In the afternoon I went back to Sandals Carlyle and rested by getting a beef patty for a snack, lying in a hammock, taking pictures of a hummingbird, resting in the hot tub, lying on a float in the pool, and swimming. Later I showered and got ready for the banquet. The Prime Minister of Jamaica was in attendance. There was lots of dancing in that nice, easy reggae style and we didn't get back to my hotel until 12:30 AM.

July 21: Breakfast at Sandals Carlyle: gave most of photos and videos to Diana (she doesn't have those from camcorder or iPhone). During breakfast she was copying them from my two memory cards to her laptop. We also had a good conversation but I was preoccupied with the time and don't recall it, except that she was also going to copy all the photos for Sandals Carlyle to use, and perhaps some discussion of her upcoming trip to St. Kitts to set up the community tourism network with those islands. She took me to Sandals Royal Caribbean for the tour with Rochelle. There was little time but I was able to see the spa and other parts that Adriana and I may have overlooked last year. I recall mentioning to Rochelle my experiences in Treasure Beach, particularly Jakes and the unique room I stayed in. I hopped on the shuttle and Rochelle continued the tour at Sandals Montego Bay, including the chapel sometimes used for weddings and the restaurants. Sandals let me use a room to change, complete with whirlpool bath -very nice! I had lunch (pizza), a pina colada at the bar and a little beach time before heading to the airport. 

I had dropped a memory card in Diana's car, but fortunately it was an empty one that I had bought in Black River and didn't work in my camera anyway. I had also left my toothbrush, toothpaste and mouthwash in my room at Sandals Carlyle, thinking I was going to return to the room but then time ran out and I forgot that I left those items there on purpose to brush my teeth there and then pack them. My tie, which I kept misplacing at various intervals, had disappeared altogether when it was time for the reception at Secrets on July 20.

Checkin was smooth and I was able to pay for my checked bags in Jamaican dollars. I had to transfer items from one bag to another because the first bag was over the weight limit. I used a skycap for the bags and the tip is $1 per checked bag (displayed on sign).

Check out my Twitter account @meesposito and my Facebook page "Mike Esposito's Travel Blog" for more travel-related information.

Jamaica: Kingston, Portland, the Blue Mountains, and back to Montego Bay

Lunch with Jacqueline DaCosta at the Spanish Court Hotel in Kingston. Jackie helped create the Best Village Competition in Jamaica

Part of a series on a two-week trip to Jamaica in July 2013

7/16: Diana McIntyre-Pike and I traveled from Mandeville to Kingston with Diana driving the rental car. I took part of the time asking Diana questions about Countrystyle Community Tourism Network, her non-governmental organization (NGO) and then fell asleep for about 30 minutes because I hadn't slept well the night before. We had lunch at the Spanish Court Hotel, both of us meeting with Jacqueline DaCosta, who ran the Best Village competition that she and Diana helped establish to reward communities that worked to improve the quality of life of their residents via economic initiatives, conservation and other measures. Diana, of course, was instrumental in arranging this meeting. We later met two people from the hotel staff, one of which gave me a tour of the hotel, which is attractive and geared toward business travelers, before Diana drove us to Buff Bay to stop at her boyfriend's parents, the Bonitto family, who have been married since 1961. At the house I had juice and coffee with fruit before we set out for Charles Town, home of one Maroon community. (Maroons are the descendants of islanders who resisted slavery and established their own free communities.) It was dark when we arrived. 

On the way to Kingston, Diana said that in spite of Spanish Town's Spanish colonial buildings, she doesn't take people there because it is unsafe - a real shame because the history of Jamaica before the English occupation deserves recognition.

It may have been at the Bonitto's house or at lunch that Diana explained that she worked at the Holiday Inn in Montego Bay in the early 70s, didn't like the hotel's non-native food selection and had a run-in with her manager over the hotel's policies of discouraging guests from leaving the property to eat. After studying in Germany, she returned and established her community tourism program shortly after that (in 1978).

The Maroon family in Charles Town that hosted me: Oliver, his wife Annette in the center, and two of their children. Tish, the young woman on the right, is a visitor from Oakland

At Charles Town, I spoke with Frank Lumsden, the Maroon Colonel, and then went to the house of a Maroon woman named Annette who had the guest room in her house prepared. She served a dinner with chicken and potatoes, white rice and salad. The kids were watching a video. A young woman visiting from Oakland named Tish, still in college, ate with me and explained that she had visited there on a student program, got along very well with the family and returned. In fact it was the first real experience with family that she had, given her upbringing in difficult circumstances in Oakland. After dinner I spoke with the Maroon woman about the community and the Maroon conference that was held in Charles Town in June 2013. 

I asked Annette about the similarities and differences between Maroons and Rastas, and she replied that you can be a Maroon and a Rasta at the same time. (Being Maroon, of course, is dependent on your lineage.) There was a family in the community with the last name of Douglas who fit that description.

The room was the most rustic of the places I stayed during my visit to Jamaica. A curtain hangs in place of a door between the living room and the bedroom. It did have its own bathroom, also rustic, although in that case there was a door. The woman set up a fan but she had to stretch the extension cord for it to reach as the room itself, while it has a light, doesn't have any outlets. This is one place where you can appreciate how many Jamaicans live - very basic, but what they have they give freely. Not every visitor is suited for this type of experience, but if you want to understand people as they live and not just tend to your own comfort, this is the way to do it. In my view the rewards are substantial.

The Maroon community center in Charles Town preserves the heritage of the Maroons, descendants of islanders who resisted slavery

7/17: I was up early for breakfast at the homestay. Annette served ackee with saltfish, fried green plantain, and cooked green banana with coffee. 

We packed up quickly and went to see Frank Lumsden at the Maroon center. There was no set agenda, simply a tour of the museum and grounds, watching people do a demo of drumming (they do not do kumina or nyabingi drumming, but a style called Kromanti drumming) and learning about some of the frustrations of half-completed government projects. There was ample opportunity for discussion during the visit on topics such as the origin of jerk pork and jerk chicken among the Maroons, the efforts to identify people claiming to be Maroon through their genealogy, and key events in Maroon history. I knew that an American researcher named Kenneth Bilby had spent considerable time with the Maroons, and asked Frank how long it took Ken to earn their trust initially. Frank said "four years" but since that time Ken has returned to the community, most recently at the Maroon convention in June. At the end, while sitting in Frank's office, I had time to play some music from Colombia for Frank and show two videos to the schoolteacher. She wanted her kids to see the Latin video, so I paused it and the kids, the teacher and Frank were thrilled by it. I later purchased another copy of the video and sent it to him. Frank made a point that exposure to this information was precisely what his community needed. That experience was probably the best moment of the entire Jamaica trip for me.

Diana and I stopped at the Bonitto house and then went toward Boston Bay for jerk chicken for lunch. This could be called a touristy attraction due to the in your face attitude of the vendors, though the food was good. We both bought costume jewelry from vendors there.

The coastline was very pretty, and we also managed to stop at the Mockingbird Hill Hotel to talk to Shireen Aga, one of its owners. The grounds are gorgeous and the discussion, although short, was lively. The hotel's restaurant, Mille Fleurs, has a great reputation. Nonetheless, it is a challenge to get visitors to consider staying in that area because of the focus on other parts of the island for tourism.

Flowers abound at the Mockingbird Hill Hotel

I caught another nap on the way to Kingston, but woke up in time to get a quick view of Castleton Gardens from the road. Lush tropical trees from the gardens were impossible to miss.

We stopped at Jackie DaCosta's house in an affluent part of Kingston to wash and change for the CVM TV show Live at 7. (While in Montego Bay at the beginning of my Jamaica trip, I had learned via a phone call that I would be appearing on the show as a guest to talk about my experience with community tourism in Jamaica.) The host of Live at 7, Simon Croskill, was not favorably disposed toward Diana's idea of community tourism and did not hide his skepticism toward the concept, but on the panel we had Carolyn Hayle from The University of the West Indies and myself to defend it, and Damion Crawford of the Ministry of Tourism to espouse the opposing point of view in his support of a more traditional model of resort tourism which, at the risk of oversimplification, could be referred to as "heads and beds." From my perspective I considered the exchange a draw. 

Afterwards it was back to Jackie's house to meet Jackie's husband and have a delicious dinner with stewed beef, shrimp and rice with salad, and coconut ice cream for dessert. Carolyn met us there as well for dinner. There was much more discussion on many topics including international politics, and I wound up checking in at the Indies Hotel, a nice small hotel in Kingston, at 11 PM.

The courtyard at the Indies Hotel, a small hotel in Kingston

7/18: I had breakfast with Diana at the Indies Hotel, and then we proceeded to Jennifer Lyn's house to pick her up and go to her small hotel, Forres Park, in the Blue Mountains region. We toured both the grounds in the surrounding hills and the rooms in the hotel; it was a clear day so that Blue Mountain Peak, the highest mountain in Jamaica, could be clearly seen. Forres Park has a conference and game room with a view of the mountain right behind. 

One of many ways to relax at Forres Park, in the Blue Mountains region

While at Forres Park we met a couple from Quebec who agreed to represent Diana's organization in Canada. I had a refreshing juice with ginger, and later tried to photograph hummingbirds with the quick shutter speed, though I still had things to learn about taking those types of pictures. We later took the winding mountain road back down to Kingston to drop off Jennifer at her house. We stopped at Diana's brother Raymond's architectural firm to meet him and his business partner and pick up boxes of brochures for the NAJASO convention. We made our way to Heroes Circle so that I could take a picture of the Simon Bolivar statue, which was a gift to Jamaica from the Venezuelan government. I wanted to go to the corner where Simon Bolivar stayed while he lived in exile in Kingston in 1815 (Princess and Tower Streets) and wrote his famous "Letter from Jamaica" detailing his plans to liberate South America from Spanish colonial rule. The area in many ways does not reveal its history and is now a dangerous neighborhood with the streets full of potholes. The house where Bolivar stayed is long gone but there are other old English colonial and colonial style buildings nearby, which, if they were restored, could be converted into a tourist attraction. My impression, just based on my interactions with people during the trip and what I could see of the focus of tourism efforts, is that Jamaica is still conflicted about showcasing its colonial past - the wounds are still fresh after only 51 years of independence - and does not handle this type of historic preservation consistently across the island. Jennifer Lyn had left her books in the car so we swung by her house to drop them off before leaving Kingston shortly before 2 PM.

The Mighty Beestons Mento Band at the NAJASO convention in Montego Bay

We were behind and needed to make up time on the toll road to get to Montego Bay in time for the NAJASO convention opening. (This convention is made up of Jamaicans living abroad who discuss ways to assist the island in various capacities, including medicine.) We stopped for gas in the vicinity of May Pen, and at a drive-through restaurant to order patties and coco bread - a delightful Jamaican combination - for lunch in Clarendon Parish. We stopped in Mandeville and took pictures with Junior, a gentleman who helps Diana with transportation for the community tours. We proceeded to the Mandeville Hotel to shower and change (for me, Room 400, which is a suite that will be remodeled). Diana's sister-in-law runs the hotel. We were quickly back on the road, going to Middle Quarters and then driving to Montego Bay via New Market. We arrived 30 minutes late at Secrets Montego Bay for the NAJASO conference welcome, but still managed to socialize and catch the performance of "The Mighty Beestons" mento band. The band played tunes that delighted the attendees at the convention, inspiring people to dance. In my next and final installment, I will describe the NAJASO conference and how it served to provide a fitting end to my two-week Jamaica visit.

Check out my Twitter account @meesposito and my Facebook page "Mike Esposito's Travel Blog" for more travel-related information.

Traveling through western Jamaica: starting at Montego Bay, stopping at Negril, and proceeding to Black River

An old sugar mill in the countryside west of Montego Bay

After two nights in Montego Bay, I packed up to head for the remaining stops in my Jamaica stay, and Arlene McKenzie, my host at the homestay there, was to drive my rental car heading west and get me to Negril. Along the way, she wanted to show me a sugar mill in the countryside, as well as the undeveloped Fort Charlotte site near the town of Lucea. It is government property and sits on a wonderful location on one end of a bay and has great potential to be an historic place, but has not been restored to receive tourists. There were some odd containers there with the name of a chemical company that look like they were left as rubbish.

Arlene McKenzie observing a cannon at Fort Charlotte, near Lucea

There were plenty of other opportunities to stop to take pictures of the surroundings, and as one of my objectives was to assess the state of the tourist infrastructure, I noted road signs that could be useful for the visitor, such as one sign we saw when we arrived in Negril, sponsored by the Spanish-Jamaican Foundation. The foundation is what could be called the philanthropic arm of the recent surge in investment from Spain in Jamaica's tourism infrastructure. The Spanish presence in Jamaica is not without controversy but from my vantage point, I could only listen to the information I was given as I didn't know anyone who represented their properties.

Sign along the Jamaica Heritage Trail, sponsored by the Spanish-Jamaican Foundation

We checked into the Foote Prints Hotel, a small boutique hotel in Negril. Diana McIntyre-Pike, who had organized my itinerary but was traveling in the British Virgin Islands, had made calls to arrange for a complimentary stay for me at the hotel. The owner, Ingrid Foote Daye, met Arlene and me for lunch, and we took advantage of the opportunity to ask her about her establishment. Ingrid said that her main challenge was keeping up with her utility bills. She had solar panels installed but the utility bill did not go down even after that. She maintains an average 70% room occupancy rate and counts on repeat business. She also gets bookings for weddings and graduations. Many of her clients are Jamaicans. Most of her bookings come through Expedia.com and other online booking sites, but GoGo Worldwide Vacations removed her from their list in favor of the Riu Spanish hotel chain, which tends to build mega resorts like the ones in Punta Cana, and her hotel has a far smaller number of rooms. It is also hard for her to compete with the prices of these all-inclusive mega resorts (her hotel includes breakfast).

Ingrid Foote Daye, owner of the Foote Prints Hotel

While we were eating, we saw a mento folk band walking on the beach with their instruments and we asked them to play. They were based in Negril and called the Sunshine Mento Band. I bought one of their CDs. Arlene added that one of the dances of Negril was called Etu.

The next stop was the Rayon Hotel to deliver a presentation on Latin music. I did not present it all due to time constraints but it was well received and sparked a lively discussion about the need for cultural preservation. The group seemed particularly intrigued about the Native American Pueblos in New Mexico and the way that Mexico promotes its cultural heritage. Arlene wants to introduce me to contacts in Kingston that specialize in the country's traditional music, where she feels that my Power Point presentation would get even better exposure.

Later we went to the Time Square Shopping Mall to visit the stores and see the office of Let's Do It in the Caribbean, a website developer focusing on tourism done positively. I was impressed with how Theo Chambers and Sharon Parris-Chambers, the husband-and-wife owners, mentored the young women on their staff. Theo said that often it is friends and family who tell you that you shouldn't pursue your dreams. The reception from the staff there was wonderful.

Enviable view from my table at the Foote Prints Hotel

Arlene and I were tired after that, so we went back to the Foote Prints Hotel and swam in the bay for a half hour before Arlene left me at Grand Pineapple for dinner courtesy of Alexander Pike, Diana McIntyre-Pike's son and the site's Operations Manager. Arlene visited with some friends and later came back for me. I took her to the bus stop in Negril to pick up a van (like a "colectivo") to Lucea, then I drove the rental car back to the Foote Prints Hotel, the first time I ever drove on the left, and with a car with the steering wheel on the right!

The next morning I took some photos from the balcony, which offered a partial view of the bay.  I swam a little and walked north only a few steps before being offered ganja from Colombia. I knew of Negril's reputation but was still surprised how early and quickly the ganja vendors were at work. I told the man that my wife is Colombian and hates that her country is associated with drugs, and for that reason I would never buy them. Then I turned around and walked south as far as Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville, and was offered cigarettes, ganja and Cuban cigars from another man. I told him I didn't smoke. 

I had breakfast at the hotel restaurant facing the beach, and was offered ganja from a passerby. The waiter gave me advice on how to say no: say "I'm good" twice, don't respond after that, and let them talk to themselves. My conclusion was that the ganja vendors were mildly persistent, but certainly not aggressive, and hardly detracted at all from my positive experience in Negril.

For breakfast I ate ackee, saltfish, dumplings, calaloo and a gray starch called dasheen, after which I got a 1/2 hr massage on the beach from Marlene. At Foote Prints, I met Mike the groundskeeper and Percy, one of the drivers.

Cosmo at his beach bar in Negril

Astil Gage, who heads the community development committee for his home town of Beeston Spring, stopped by the hotel. He would accompany me from Negril to the Treasure Beach region. I took him to Grand Pineapple and then went to Cosmo's Beach Bar next to Beaches Negril for a wonderful lunch of grilled lobster and conch soup with a piña colada. Cosmo, the owner, had lots of stories to tell. He was born in Negril and recalls when the road didn't exist and they had to walk along the beach to get to school. The beach was lined with coconuts at that time. They got water digging around the coconut palms and use lime to purify the water. 

He went to Chicago in 1966 to manage a restaurant and had a dream to go back to Negril to open his own place. The goal was to make it clean but rustic with lots of good food. His spot is along the widest stretch of sand in Negril, along Long Bay. He has changing rooms and picnic tables, and says that he invites people to see his kitchen because he has nothing to hide, and that he is careful where he eats being aware of what secrets some kitchens have (e.g. spoiled food). He has fed celebrities such as Lionel Richie, Teddy Pendergrass, Magic Johnson, Patrick Ewing, Lennox Lewis, Celine Dion, and all the Prime Ministers of Jamaica since he opened in 1976, to name a few.

After leaving Cosmo's, it was back to Grand Pineapple to pick up Astil and head towards Whitehouse and Beeston Spring. I made a wrong turn into Savanna-La-Mar but it gave us an opportunity to see the ruins of another fort. Astil saw Wolde Kristos, the gentleman who would later meet with me to discuss preservation efforts for Bluefields Bay, along the road and asked me to stop so we could chat briefly. An American girl named Heidi Savery was with them, and I learned that she had received a Fulbright scholarship like myself (but in her case it was to Jamaica) and was now a doctoral candidate in anthropology. She was born near Boston but decided that she wanted to be in Jamaica.

A peacock strutting its stuff at Sandals Whitehouse

We arrived at Sandals Whitehouse and Jervene Simpson, the site's Public Relations Manager, was there to greet us and take us on a tour of the facility. I learned about the resort's convention and banquet capacity, the various types of restaurants and accommodations, and the spas and fitness areas, and stores. One cannot help but be impressed by the attractiveness of the surroundings and the attention to detail.

We fought rain to get to the homestay in Beeston Spring, up the hill from Sandals Whitehouse. Beeston Spring is an example of what a town can do to better itself, and as evidence won Jamaica's National Best Community Competition in 2010. Astil and I took the winding roads to several locations to take in views and see various houses (including his own) and other buildings, such as a store where young people were engaged in a lively game of dominoes. We stopped at Rena Lawrence's bar/restaurant where my wife and I had seen a local mento band in 2012, and then to a new restaurant called Mix Tea, owned by Khalisa Callum (though her friends have nicknamed her "Green Tea"). This is a delightful place not to be missed. Khalisa is an exceptional hostess and adds countless touches to make eating there a memorable experience. I had pineapple chicken washed down with Ting soda, and Astil had a fish dish. Afterwards I took Astil home and took a wrong turn in the dark going back to the homestay. The wrong turn, however, satisfied my curiosity in seeing that the road ended at the very top of a hill where there was a radio tower, and a house perched right next to it!

Beekeeping is a means for the Beeston Spring community to earn income

The next day was quite intense with the itinerary. A wasp got into the room where I was sleeping, and I kept a light on and decided to write in the meantime. A few hours later Michael Brown, the owner, saw me as I opened the door, got the wasp out and then took me around his garden. It sounded like an impromptu interview so I turned on my camcorder. He was enthusiastic and it showed. He said that his profession was law but his passion was the garden. His father stopped by and continued the tour with other plants.

Michael's wife Lisa made me an ackee and saltfish breakfast with a whole wheat dumpling. I left at 8 AM to get to Astil Gage's house, then go with him to see the tour of the beekeeping business and listen to the local mento band play (they set up in the same place where the bees were). Before that we stopped at the house where Peace Corps volunteer Adriana was staying. My wife and I had met her last year when we did our short tour with Diana.

The Bluefields Bay patrol boat towed in a fisherman whose outboard motor stopped working

We then went down to Bluefields Bay to meet up with Wolde Kristos and learn about his organization, Bluefields Bay Fishermen's Friendly Society, which was founded in 1988. We had a great discussion about planning and fundraising for nonprofit organizations. Then it was time to go out on the patrol boat and see the bay - a great experience for Astil and myself.

We stopped at the Peter Tosh Mausoleum to tour the grounds and meet his mother, who is 95 years old. Then it was off to lunch, which was a delicious crab dish with rice and peas. We stopped to get coconut water and proceeded on to Black River and the Paradise Ocean View hotel, on a stretch of delightfully undeveloped beach. I took a walk on the beach, had some Schweppes Grapefruit soda and then napped. Astil and I later sat with Ken the owner and a friend named Steve who was visiting Black River. Dinner was curried goat with salad, rice and peas, accompanied by some great conversation.

Check out my Facebook page "Mike Esposito's Travel Blog" for more travel-related information.

Role of the Countrystyle Community Tourism Network and Villages as Businesses in Jamaica

Diana McIntyre-Pike, Founder and President of the Countrystyle Community Tourism Network

Diana McIntyre-Pike realized, as she was building her model of community tourism in Jamaica and the rest of the Caribbean, that there was a need for an organization to serve as a liaison between the visitor and the community, hence Countrystyle Community Tourism Network (CCTN) was born as a nongovernmental organization bringing together the various groups that participate in the tours. This group is designed as a membership organization. Likewise, Diana created a for-profit corporation called Villages as Businesses (VAB) to manage the contracts with the groups, a part of the project still in development. 


What Diana wants readers to know is that the combined efforts of CCTN and VAB will create what she calls "an efficient destination management organization to design the community experience tours." She adds that this organization will distinguish itself by "bearing in mind the clients' interests and budget and also making changes as required by the clients. CCTN with VAB will be providing business development support, marketing support and training support at discounted rates [to the communities] since they are members of CCTN." The network integrates the activities of the tour operators and attractions with the logistics piece. Other roles that the combined organizations will fulfill will be "responding to any emergencies and special requests...and dealing with any problems that may occur in a community." 



Any business that wants to grow has to become increasingly specialized in certain areas. For example, a business may hire individuals to handle sales and the ongoing relationship with clients. The workers in the "back room" are focused on creating the product and shipping it, and don't have the time to handle client relationships and drive sales at the same time. Likewise, CCTN and VAB fulfill this go-between function, and have an enormous amount of credibility with the villages, accommodations and tour operators that form part of the network.

CCTN/VAB also play a vital role as advocate for the community, which cannot be overemphasized. Diana notes that CCTN/VAB act as a "'go between' with organizations like Sandals Resorts, Island Routes, and other local and international tour companies and travel agents." Yet this role, while being vital for keeping the whole operation functioning, is the area that tends to be overlooked because it is so seamless and invisible to the client as well as to internal stakeholders such as foundations or government agencies. One essential component of advocacy which I have experienced firsthand, is CCTN and VAB "sticking their foot in the door." Communities often encounter considerable obstacles when dealing with government agencies or funders, due to the uneven power relationship which favors those who control the allocation of resources. Diana and her collaborators have fought hard to gain a fair hearing for sustainable tourism projects, but always insist that those who would oppose unsustainable programs not just criticize but also offer viable alternatives. This is where the truly hard work of advocacy comes in. 

When it comes to politics and especially dividing up the spoils of politics - wealth, influence and hegemony, those who would seek to retain these for themselves and their associates have to create some type of noise to destroy the credibility of a legitimate alternative. If this activity is allowed to be unchecked, politics, economy and the social fabric acquire a dysfunctional nature. The best approach to counter this tendency is to stick to logic, hard evidence and the legitimate rule of law to gain public support for valid ideas, which are more difficult to ignore once their worth has been proven and the public base becomes convinced of the resultant benefits to society. For me, it is exciting to witness the growth of this grass roots initiative to develop a sustainable economic model and channel the enormous power of a well-designed tourism product to go beyond providing leisure and truly create good will between people.