Tomas or... no mas?

The main topic of discussion this week of course was Hurricane Tomas - Would it hit Jamaica?  Would we lose water? power? Would it be a tropical storm or a Category 3 hurricane?  What is going to happen to Haiti?

The days before the "D-Day" were filled with work, dance classes, my business school course, and watching... the SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS in the WORLD SERIES!  Yes, my hometown baseball team made it to and WON the World Series, after over 50 years!  Talk about an event that makes you homesick!!  But no worries, because I got to celebrate with my roommates and our very Rasta friend Benny... he was kind enough to pretend he was excited and even high-five me several times (which does not seem to be a very Jamaican thing).  See to the left for us celebrating the moment of glory!

This week, my course focused on the types of international business strategies companies use.  We discussed that the two generic strategies are either 1) increasing revenue or 2) reducing cost.  My professor argued that in maximizing profit, only one of these can be the focus (he explained it mathematically as well).  We talked about where the "value-chain" could be located - basically, keeping all parts of a production chain at the headquarters, all at the subsidiaries, or splitting it up such that each "step" along the way is produced in a different location where it is the cheapest.  We discussed the difference between treating subsidiaries as independent units, or sharing information between them at the subsidiary level (versus sharing from the headquarters to the subsidiary).  The example my Professor gave was Subway's "Reggae Sandwich" (YUM!) - the product was created in a Subway subsidiary in Jamaica and shared with other subsidiaries around the Caribbean; the idea did not come directly form the headquarters, but Subway's model still permitted the information to be shared.  I cannot believe this was the last lecture - I feel like the course flew by!  But now I get to pick my next fun class :)

In preparation for the hurricane, we bought plenty of canned foods, filled every jug with drinking water, and filled huge buckets with water to bathe.  The news announcements were suggesting water/food for at least 3 days!  Both Ashley and Jazz switched their flights to fly to the US early to take the GREs and visit friends, respectively - leaving me alone to battle Tomas!  So Thursday, the day Tomas was supposed to hit, I woke up early to prepare.  I am pretty sure that every single person I have met to date in Jamaica called or texted me to check up on me, especially since I was alone - SO SWEET!  And I waited... and waited... and waited... no signs of Tomas!

Erica and Krista with our PIZZA!

Early afternoon, my friend Coley stopped by to check up on me since he works in my apartment building.  In the process, I met all his coworkers - very nice guys!  And now I know more of my neighbors!  Coley and his friend Kevin took me out to get lunch at Scotchies (what better to have in a storm than some awesome jerk chicken?).  I then convinced them to pick up my friends Krista and Erica and then the whole crew came over to my place.  Next thing I knew, my apartment was filled with them and some other passerby-ers... we basically had an afternoon of drinks, dominoes, and dancehall music.  Again, no Tomas - just lots of unexpected fun!  The girls and I attempted to make some pizza (with lotsssss of cheese and veggies!) for dinner and spent the rest of the night chatting and listening to new Jamaican music and then they slept over.  Apparently Tomas "hit" during the night, which consisted lots of wind and rain, but I barely noticed, exhausted from the fun-filled day!


Friday was one of the most important Indian holidays of the year - Diwali!  Diwali literally means the "Festival of Lights," as people traditionally light small clay candles to symbolize good winning over evil and to express the "light" within each of us.  The event commemorates the return of Lord Rama along with Sita and Lakshman from his fourteen year long exile and vanquishing the demon-king Ravana.  Growing up, we celebrated this holiday by getting our friends and family together, retelling the religious story, and lighting fireworks!  There were some events planned in Jamaica, but they were canceled due to the storm.

Also, my co-worker sent me this amazing documentary (see link) about Hindus in Jamaica.  I It discusses the difference between "Indo-Jamaicans," who descend from the Indian workers contracted in Jamaica in the late 1800s/early 1900s, and "Indian Nationals," who came over from India more recently as doctors, engineers, and businessmen.  The two groups tend to live in different areas (the former in the rural, latter in the urban regions), which often results in a division in class (the former being lower than the latter).  The documentary also addresses the difficulty in maintaining the Indian traditions when the population is also holding onto the Jamaican ways of life; for example, many of the Indo-Jamaicans in the rural areas consider themselves "Hindu," but don't know much about the actual religion because there are not many channels to learn about it.  Anyways, I definitely learned so much from this documentary!

Celebrating Diwali with Coley, Krista, and Erica at Pushpa's!

So how did I celebrate?  By getting Indian food of course!  I convinced Erica, Krista, and Coley to have dinner at Pushpa's, my favorite restaurant in Kingston.  Coley had never had Indian food before - so I considered it my Diwali Good Deed of the Day to make him try a variety of foods, from chicken tikka masala to samosas.  Verdict:  He loved it!  The only thing he didn't like, however, were the desserts (Gulab Jamoons).  But that's okay - I still consider it a win!

Coley did not like the dessert...

After dinner, Coley took Erica and me to a bar in Grants Pen (which had this hilarious sign).  We spent the evening listening to 90s music (think: Boys II Men, Kci and Jojo, N*Sync... why, I am not sure) and playing PINBALL!  Sadly, Erica and I were terrible compared to the Jamaicans.  Also, I continued by Diwali "Good Deeds" by telling everyone at the bar about the significance of Diwali and making them try our leftover Indian food.  They loved it!

Erica and the Pinball Machine

I love lychees (even canned)

Saturday was the most relaxing day in awhile... as usual, several of my neighbors came by for long chat sessions and tea!  In the evening, our neighbor David, Erica and I played dominoes for awhile.  David beat us pretty badly, but I'd like to think we are still improving our game a little... Afterward, Erica and I had an incredibly long movie session (including "Little Miss Sunshine" and "Never Been Kissed" and "Far From Heaven") as we reminisced about the U.S.  We also indulged in too many "movie" snacks, including (burnt) popcorn and lots of chips, and dug into canned lychees that we had bought (in an effort to satisfy the fruit craving!).

Erica and the POOOOOOL!

Sunday morning, the weather was incredible!  So Ashley (who had just gotten off the plane), Erica and I spent the morning lounging by Erica's pool and getting wayy more tan than we expected!  But it was incredibly relaxing, and we completed the fun by getting Jamaican patties.  Next, Ashley shared with us all the goodies she brought back from the states, including (but not limited to) dark chocolate, capers, olives, curry sauce, a water purifier, a Jamaica flag, a food processor, folders and printer paper, and stir fry seasoning.  Yes, it certainly looks like Christmas (or Hanukkah?) came early this year...

HAPPY DIWALI!!!!!!!

I spent Sunday evening at the University with Rochelle, at the Hindu Society's Diwali Event!  It was absolutely incredible, with a full puja (religious service) for the Goddess Lakshmi.  There were several speakers from Trinidad, Jamaica, and Guyana (all which have rather large Indian communities) who spoke to the significance of the event.  They also served a full dinner, with roti and curries and, of course, sweets to symbolize the blessings.  Afterward, several individuals from the UWI community performed with traditional and more modern Indian dances and songs.  We even got to light diyas (candles)!  It was certainly a beautiful event, and I'm so glad to have been able to attend!!

Rochelle, Me, and Trinity lighting Diyas!