I feel like I say this every week but... this week was so chaotic! In the best way possible, of course. This past week, we had our "Fulbright Enrichment Week," where all the Fulbrighters from the Caribbean (13 in total) met in Jamaica to discuss our projects and network. But before I get there...
The weekend! Friday, Ashley and I were determined to attend another session of the Mannatt Enquiry, the official questioning of Jamaican officials around the events of the Dudus Coke extradition to the US last May. This Friday was the first day that Prime Minister Bruce Golding was being questioned - a huge event. Unfortunately, we had a tough time getting in (since all the seats were filled) and spent the majority of the time outside with the chatty security guards and the political supporters of Golding - men and women from the garrison of Tivoli, avid Jamaican Labour Party supporters. Once the group found out I was a student, they told me to take notes and began emotionally ranting about why Bruce Golding is the best prime minister in the history of Jamaica. Very interesting (probably more than the events inside). Anyways, after much begging and pleading and needing to borrow clothes (hot pink button-up) from a passerbyer since we were not dressed up enough, Ashley and I finally made it into the enquiry. As expected, it was an inconclusive conversation where no one could "remember" what happened. What was amazig though was that Ashley and I ended up meeting (in a televised interaction) many members of the Jamaican government and the legal team (including KD Knight). They were all very interested in our research and agreed to meet with us later for interviews. This is obviously more relevant for Ashley's Fulbright project, but very enlightening for me as well!
After, I went with Ashley to the Peace Center in Mountain View, a very volatile community in Southern Kingston. The Peace Center is a huge space that is being developed to provide other opportunities for community members. Ashley is working closely with them as part of her project, exploring entrepreneurial options. We had a great time taking a tour of the space and playing dominoes with some of the younger adults :)
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| Peace Wall - One of Four in the Caribbean |
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| Mountain View Crew! Enjoying some fish... |
Saturday, Ashley, Erica and I went to an amazing brunch! To back up, I was lucky enough to have a grad school interview in Kingston a few months ago, conducted by a Jamaican alum. My interviewer was so impressed by my and my roommates' work that he invited us to join his immediate and extended family for brunch. First, it was DELICIOUS - Jamaican and American dishes and lots of fresh fruit. Second, we were able to talk about our projects with a group that was involved in similar work. They were able to provide us with much advice as well as a network to continue our work.
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| Dressed for brunch! |
In the evening, I dragged Erica to a Hindu celebration of Holi. In the West Indies, it is called "Phagwa," but has the same origins. The festival here is a happy one, used to welcome Spring and to have fun with friends and family. We accompanied my friend Rani to her temple's celebration. We began with prayers, around a huge pyre, and then...
Played with colored powder! The festival involves throwing these bright powders on one another :) Too fun!
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| Rani, me, Erica, and Nalini looking VERY pink |
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| Attractiveeee! |
Sunday was a very relaxing day, with a pit stop at the hospital to see my sistren (friend/sister) from work who just had surgery, getting some fresh fish, and an evening visit to the local bar (el negro y blanco). Unfortunately, Ashley and I stayed up wayy too late playing dominos... it's too easy to get carried away with all the fun in Jamaica!
Monday - bright and early - began the Fulbright Enrichment week! Our colleagues from Trinidad & Tobago, Barbados, and the Dominican Republic came to Jamaica. We spent the day presenting our projects one another. Each one was amazing - everyone is so bright and well-versed in their subject areas. As my mom wisely stated, I almost had to wear sunglasses all the time since it was too "bright" in there hahaha :) Projects ranged from photographing unique religions, to counting and characterizing stray dogs, to preventing vertical HIV transmission, to looking at economic integration in the Caribbean, to analyzing Haiti post-revolution. We all found many themes - looking at social and economic forces. For me, it was very personally interesting to learn about the public healthcare structures in the other countries - we were all able to sympathize over the poor conditions and paper-based records!
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| Caribbean Fulbrighters! |
More than anything, everyone was SO cool! We all meshed so well, in terms of personalities. I was entertained for 3 straight days! I love that I have not only found professional connections but good friends! I am hoping to travel to Trinidad as well as the Dominican Republic in early summer to visit the other Fulbrighters since they would be the best tour guides :)
So clearly, the "work" was balanced with much fun. Monday, we took the whole group (yes, 13 Americans) to our favorite local bar for dominoes, drinks, and pool. Tuesday, the US Embassy arranged for us to travel to Ocho Rios for a day. Highlights from the trip...
- We stopped by "Faith's Pen" for breakfast, where there are tons of freshly cooked options
- We spent the day at the Jamaica Grande Resort, which had a water slide... can you spot our friends?
- Jasmine and I took a short detour to the "One Love" Trail - a beaaautiful (hidden) waterfall that falls into the bay. We talked to some entertaining Rastas and enjoyed the view :)
- We went to Dunns River! We did some photo shoots (Jazz and I loveee the camera!), played dominos on the beach, and hung out with my friend (previous tour guide) Ricky...
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| David (Dominican Rep) and me playing dominos! |
Wednesday, we wrapped up the presentations and got our certificates!
We also did a short "community service" project, giving advice to youth from Grant's Pen (a volatile neighborhood in Kingston) on how to pursue the job market and higher education during the recession. The facility (Stella Maris Foundation) has provided numerous options for "paid work" including a tailoring station and a paper mache workshop. Check out the paper mache crab we found!
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| s40 and the crab... |
In the evening, the group went to Gaucho's Grill for a delicious dinner. Sitting at one end of the table, five of us (including the US Embassy Public Affairs coordinator) bonded over games like "2 truths and a lie" and crazy stories from our adventures abroad. I don't think I stopped laughing once during the 3-hour meal!
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| Me and Jazzy being silly |
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| The laughing end of the table :) |
Looking to send our colleagues off the "Jamaican" way, we all went out for the night! We started at the same bar (El Negro y Blanco) where someone bought us a bottle of Hennessy. Clearly a very fun night, of dancing, dominos and more bonding time :)
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| The Hank fan club... |
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| Stephen and the Dominos |
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| Jacob and the Hennessy... |
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| The group at Quad Nightclub! Yayy CARICOM. |
The group sadly departed Thursday for their own countries. Still aching for adventures, Ashley and I (with the help of our friend with a car!) took her amazing professional camera and rode around picturesque spots of Kingston to capture the beauty. We traveled to the different hills and went to Strawberry Hill (a resort in the mountains with a view of the city), where we had wine and finally tried a Jamaican cigar. Pictures soon to come, but here is one for now from google images :) Pretty accurate!
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| Strawberry Hill |
Overall, an amazing week! I can't believe I only have 2 more months of this... definitely planning to live it UP!!
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