Travel Memories: Sometimes, it’s the Characters You Meet

Most times, travel is about a destination. But what about the people and other characters we meet along the way? Sometimes, it’s all about them. Sometimes, they help us make lasting travel memories.

I had several ideas and a few half-written posts that I could have used for this week’s photo Thursday but I kept going back to this photo of a Rastaman I took on the beach in Negril. Then I found other photos of people I’d taken and a theme began to take shape.

Sometimes it's the Characters that Make Travel Memories
Negril Rastaman

It was his hair that caught my friend’s attention – she’d never seen locks as long as his. I was surprised how white his hair was since he didn’t seem to be that old. He stopped when I asked what he was selling and gave us an entire lesson on herbs and spices. I ended up buying turmeric, which now I can’t live without.

Sometimes, it's the Characters that Make Travel Memories
Accompong Man

I didn’t have time to speak with this man in Accompong. As soon as he saw my camera, he stopped, posed then walked away. If he’d stayed, I’d have to find a way to open the conversation without asking about the oversized glasses or the flashlight on his head.

Sometimes, it's the Characters that Make Travel Memories
Seaford Town Filipinas

Jamaica has been a magnet for people from all over the world but I’d never met anyone from the Philippines here before. On this excursion, I met not one but two Filipino women. One’s married to a Jamaican and has lived on the island for about 15 years. Her friend had arrived a few months before so she was showing her around. I was surprised to learn that there’s a “large” Filipino expat community in Jamaica.

Their stories about adjusting to life in Jamaica and their observances of us kept us laughing almost the ride back. Each time they saw something interesting, they’d asked the driver to stop so they could take photos. This stop was probably our fourth or fifth. When we got back into the bus, the driver said it’d have to be the last as he’d be late returning to our drop off point.

Sometimes, it's the Characters that Make Travel Memories
Dunn’s River Donkey

All but two of the photos I took of this flower-bedecked donkey and his owner came out blurry because I couldn’t stop laughing. I’ve seen donkeys similarly dressed up but this one just had us cracking up. When I stopped laughing, my friend would draw my attention to something else and we’d both be laughing all over again. We took photos with the donkey wearing these goofy straw hat the owner gave us but those were out of focus. Even the day after, we’d look at each other and burst out laughing about the donkey.

Donkeys are everywhere in the countryside. Farmers use them take them to their farms and produce to the market. In the old days, the donkey operated the machine that squeezed the juice from sugarcane. The donkey in these photos from Appleton demonstrates how it was done then waits to be fed and petted.

Sometimes, it's the Characters that Make Travel Memories
Chef for a minute at Little Ochie

Sometimes traveling alone as a woman has its perks. Like the day this guy decided to make me chef for a minute at Little Ochie. I’m still not sure why he did it. My guess is he saw me chatting with the owner. Whatever his reason, I learned one thing from that minute — I couldn’t be a cook in a large kitchen as I cannot take the heat!

Linking to Travel Photo Thursday and Travel Photo Mondays. Be sure to head over and check out more photos from locations around the world.

Gizzada (Coconut Pastry)

I was out shopping with a friend a few weeks ago, when she stopped at a Jamaican restaurant in her neighborhood (more about that later) to pick up patties. A little take-away place, it had the standard Jamaican fare on the menu – rice and peas, curried chicken, brown stewed fish, etc.

I wasn’t very hungry but the pastries caught my attention, well one in particular: the gizzada, an open tart with a grated, spiced and sweetened coconut filling.

Gizzada
Pinch me round or gizzada

Also known as “pinch-me-round,” for the characteristic wavy look of the edges of the shell, the gizzada came to Jamaica from Portugal, where there’s a similar pastry, called guisada.

Portuguese Jews began arriving in Jamaica in 1530. They were fleeing religious persecution under the Inquisition, which ordered them to convert to Christianity. Jamaica became a refuge for Jews from Spain and Portugual, and by the mid to late 1880s, there were more than 2,000 Jews on the island. The gizzada is one of their contributions to Jamaican cuisine.

Gizzadas are pretty popular with Jamaicans. I remember eating them as a child, and there were always available at the cafeteria at school. They are also popular with Jamaicans abroad so I wasn’t surprised to see them at the restaurant.

I love gizzadas because of the combination of the textures and flavors – crunchy (shell) and soft (filling), the pungent taste of nutmeg and the spiciness vanilla, the sweetness of the filling against the plain tasting shell. Some recipes also use ginger.

Gizzada


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Crust
  1. 1 cup baking flour
  2. 1/4 tsp salt
  3. 1 1/4 oz. butter or margarine
  4. 1/4 cup ice water
Filling
  1. 1 small coconut, grated
  2. 1/2 cup brown sugar
  3. 1/4 tsp grated nutmeg
  4. 1/2 vanilla
  5. 1/2 tbsp water
  6. 1/2 tbsp butter
Crust
  1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees C. Mix together flour and salt then cut in butter and shortening.
  2. Add ice water to form dough.
  3. Use fingers to blend mixture until it resembles coarse crumbs.
  4. Shape into a ball before wrapping in waxed paper and refrigerate for half an hour.
  5. Divide crust into 4 balls.
  6. Use a rolling pin to flatten balls into 3" circles of 1/4" thickness.
  7. Pinch edges to form a ridge to hold in coconut and sugar mixture.
  8. Put on greased cookie sheets and partly bake crust.
Filling
  1. Combine all ingredients except butter and cook over a low flame for about 20 minutes.
  2. Add butter then fill shells with coconut mixture and bake for a further 15-20 minutes.
  3. Makes 4 gizzadas.
InsideJourneys https://insidejourneys.com/

 

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Nov 10, 2013 – Linking up with Monika Fuchs’ foodie carnival at Travel World Online.

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Crocodile Eggs Make Stamina Punch in Jamaica

Recently, an article in the local paper, the Daily Gleaner, caught my attention. According to the piece, men in the eastern parish of St. Thomas are drinking a stamina punch that’s made from crocodile eggs.

Several things went through my mind as I read the headline: why crocodile eggs, how do they harvest them, how did the craze start, and how long has it been going on?

I shook my head as I dug further into the article. Men, especially those who believe their value lies in their ability to multiply, will do anything if there’s even a hint that it will make them more potent.

It is explains the popularity of concoctions that are considered aphrodisiacs, like Irish Moss, a seaweed-based blend, the aptly titled, Mannish Water soup, made from goat offal (intestines, testicles, head, legs), and Cow Cod soup, which is made using bull’s testicles, and another punch that’s made from the eggs of the hawksbill turtle, another endangered species.

Having had the first three, with no effects, I’ve often wondered if it’s not just all in the head. But my stomach churned just thinking of a punch made from crocodile eggs.

Eggs from crocodile used to make stamina punch
American Crocodile at Hope Zoo

Crocodiles have been around for more than 200 million years. They are farmed commercially in several countries for their meat, as well as their hide and underbelly, which are used to make shoes, belts, handbags, etc. The musk glands of some species are even used in perfumes.

While the meat, which is said to be low in fat and calories and high in protein, is eaten in parts of Australia, Asia, Africa and the U.S., I have no found proof that the eggs are nutritious.

Jamaica’s crocodile species, the American crocodile, is found in the mangroves along the island’s southern coast. An adult male can grow to up to 15 feet long and weigh about 800 pounds, the female about 10 feet and up to 400 pounds.

Crocodiles breed between March and August. Following that, the female produce between 20-70 eggs, which she buries and guards ferociously. The eggs can take up to three months to incubation.

Despite being covered under the island’s Wildlife Protection Act since 1971, Jamaica’s crocodile population is under threat due to encroachment on and destruction of their habitats, hunting and killing.

Under the Act, anyone caught capturing, harming or having any part of the creature, living or dead, in their possession can incur a fine of J$100,000 (US$1,000) and/or a prison term of up to two years.

Sadly, in the minds of these men, the fine and threat of prison, and the potential for loss of life should one of these massive and aggressive creatures attack, take a back seat to their virility. And the government appears impotent to enforce the law.

 

Rundown or Dip and Fall Back

Cooking is as much about skill as it is about passion. Either of these on their own can produce a satisfactory dish; bring them together and you have a delicious meal.

My first attempt at making Rundown, or Rundung in our Jamaican dialect, was for a dinner party I gave. I approached the making of this mildly complicated dish armed only with an inflated sense of confidence. I’m sure I thought to myself, how difficult can it be to?

While I scored on the passion, I bombed on the skill. Fortunately, for me, my guests thought my Rundown was a hit.

Rundown is grated or shredded coconut that is boiled until it reduces to a thick, custard-looking consistency. At that stage, onions, pepper, tomatoes, garlic, thyme are added and allowed to cook before adding the fish, typically salted mackerel, cod or shad. Lobster or shrimp work perfectly as well.

Rundown – I haven’t been able to find out why it’s called that – also goes by an even more interesting name, Dip and Fall Back. According to the National Library of Jamaica’s website, Rundown was served traditionally in a bowl that was placed in the middle of the table. Each person at the table would dip something starchy, like boiled green bananas or dumpling, into the bowl then fall back to allow someone else to dip.

Communal eating, which might have been holdover from slavery, was likely brought back into play during the war when foods and other items were rationed and Jamaicans had to create other ways to feed their families.

Another explanation is that you dip and allow your head to fall back so that the sauce doesn’t drip. Whatever the reason, Rundown or Dip and Fall Back is a Jamaican classic. There’s even song, Dip and Fall Back, celebrating the dish. Listen to a mento version by The Spinners, a group that’s new to me, and a lively folk version by the Cari-Folk singers.

My mistake on my first try was that I didn’t let the coconut reduce enough before I added the seasonings. I didn’t have annatto seeds either, for that yellowish-red color but it didn’t matter because the meal was delicious. (Annatto is the food coloring that gives Chedder and other cheeses their characteristic reddish-yellow color.) Honestly, there really is no way to fail with anything cooked in coconut since it gives foods such a rich flavor.

I never tried Rundown until several years later. That time, I got it halfway right but I was careful not to say it was Rundown.

A few weeks ago, when I was cooking with my aunt, I asked her to help me make it. She didn’t have salted mackerel so we used saltfish instead. Above is how it looked. For the record, it was delicious.

Rundown or Dip and Fall Back
Serves 4
A traditional Jamaican dish


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Prep Time
3 hr

Cook Time
20 min

Total Time
3 hr 20 min

Prep Time
3 hr

Cook Time
20 min

Total Time
3 hr 20 min

Ingredients
  1. 2 whole coconuts, grated or 2 cans coconut milk
  2. 1 clove garlic, chopped
  3. 2 -3 sprigs of thyme
  4. 6 cups water
  5. 3 stalks scallion, chopped
  6. 2 onions, chopped
  7. 2 lbs. pickled mackerel, saltfish or shad
  8. 3 tomatoes, chopped
  9. 1 hot pepper, Scotch bonnet, chopped and seeds removed
  10. 5-6 annatto seeds or a dash of turmeric (optional)
Instructions
  1. Soak the mackerel or shad in water for at least 3 hours to remove excess salt. You can also bring it to boil 2 or three times, throwing off the water and letting it boil again. Remove as many bones as possible and set this aside.
  2. If you're using shrimp or lobster, clean and set aside.
  3. If you’re using grated coconut, add water and press the liquid through a sieve, cheesecloth or muslin bag. This is the coconut milk.
  4. Boil the coconut milk rapidly in a heavy frying pan until it is reduced to something resembling curdled custard oil.
  5. Stir in the annatto or turmeric then add onion, garlic, scallion, tomatoes, hot pepper and thyme. Lower the heat and simmer for ten minutes.
  6. Add the fish and stir.
  7. Cover and cook for 10 minutes on a medium heat.
Notes
  1. This dish is traditionally served with boiled green bananas and dumplings. Sometimes the green bananas are cooked with it.
Adapted from National Library of Jamaica
InsideJourneys https://insidejourneys.com/

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Jimmy Cliff, Rivers Crossed Tour

Musical acts that open for big name performers, to use a Rodney Dangerfield phrase, ‘don’t get no respect.’ That’s mainly because the audience is so anxious for the headliner to take the stage that they mostly ignore the opening act.

I wasn’t paying much attention to the opening act when [simpleazon-link asin=”B00864489G” locale=”us”]Rebirth[/simpleazon-link]’s Rivers Crossed Tour stopped at Howard Theater in the Nation’s Capital a few weekends ago. And even after local reggae music radio host and show MC, Tony Carr, introduced him, I wrote the performer’s name incorrectly. But [simpleazon-link asin=”B004B6MY94″ locale=”us”]Lost Between[/simpleazon-link], a 23-year old acoustic guitarist from Washington State, got my attention.

With a voice that sounded like cigarette smoke had induced its huskiness, Tucker sounded older than his years, especially on his plaintive rendition of [simpleazon-link asin=”B000PHX4VA” locale=”us”]The Police[/simpleazon-link]’s, Roxanne. Tucker performed several of his own songs, including the catchy, Cool Kids, before leaving the stage for the headliner.

Jimmy Cliff, Bongo Man a Come!

Tucker got our attention but the evening belonged to Jimmy Cliff. The reggae master came on stage chanting, Bongo Man a Come, his powerful tenor backed by the syncopated rhythms of the Nyabinghi drums. The enthusiastic crowd of fans young and old, inside the theater seemed to double in size as everyone rose to their feet to chant, to celebrate the Bongo Man, who had finally arrived.

Cliff, whose career spans almost 50 years, was on a cross-country tour to promote his latest album, Rebirth, which won the singer a Grammy award earlier this year. He has also been celebrating the 40th anniversary of the release of the iconic reggae film, [simpleazon-link asin=”B000BT9966″ locale=”us”]The Harder They Come (DVD + CD)[/simpleazon-link], which exposed him to a new audience and helped take reggae beyond Jamaica’s shores.

Starting with the early days, Cliff led the audience decade by decade through a musical career that included ska, rocksteady, and roots reggae, introducing each song with the back story most people probably didn’t know.

I had no idea, for example, that two different political groups had used his song, You Can Get it if You Really Want. Though he didn’t name names, it wasn’t difficult to find out that he was referring to the Sandinista National Liberation Front and the Conservative Party in Britain.

Cliff underscored his clear disregard for politics (his explanation of the meaning of politics, poli-many, tics-a blood sucking animal, brought thunderous applause) before performing his protest song, Vietnam, which he renamed, Afghanistan. 

Cliff got his start with Leslie Kong and acted as Kong’s unofficial A&R manager bringing in singers like Desmond Dekker, who recorded his first hit, Honor Your Father and Your Mother. When Dekker introduced Bob Marley, Cliff got him to cut his first songs, Judge Not and One Cup of Coffee, with Kong’s label, Beverley’s Records.

Of the film, The Harder They Come, Cliff said that producer Perry Henzell convinced him to take the starring role of Ivan by telling him that he was a better actor than a singer. Cliff’s performance was raw and energetic, and the film turned several of the songs, like Many Rivers to Cross, Sitting here in Limbo, and You Can Get it if You Really Want, which the singer wrote, into hits.

Cliff’s penchant for musical experimentation might have made him difficult to package and probably because of that, blockbuster success, like that of a Bob Marley, for example, eluded him. And songs, like Let Your Yeah Be Yeah, that he recorded first became hits for other groups.

Cliff ended his first set, which lasted over an hour, with The Harder They Come but cheers from his adoring fans brought him back to the stage with I Can See Clearly Now, from the movie, Cool Runnings, and You Can Get it if You Really Want. Reggae Nights and Johnny You Too Bad ended the show.

At 65, Cliff performed with the energy and enthusiasm of someone younger. It was my time seeing him in person, and I was not disappointed.

Photo of Jimmy Cliff from Wikimedia.

Auntie Birdie’s Pepperpot Soup

Traditions, such as how to prepare certain meals are generally passed from mother to daughter, the older women in the family to the younger ones. Though a very talented cook and baker, my mother never taught me how to cook.

By the time I was old enough to start learning, she’d passed the responsibility for preparing meals on to our helper, going into the kitchen only at Christmas to bake or when we expected company. Then she’d create elaborate meals, which were, of course, well beyond our helper’s capabilities.

Somehow, though, cooking came to me naturally — I can fix just about any meal. But when I decided to feature pepperpot soup for FoodieTuesday, I realized that I didn’t know how to make it.

Sure, I could have used a recipe from one of my cookbooks but that just wouldn’t do, not for pepperpot soup. Knowing how to make it made me think of those family traditions. So I emailed my sister and aunt. I wanted a recipe I knew someone in the family had used.

Auntie Birdie's Pepperpot Soup
A delicious, nutritious soup even George Washington liked.


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Ingredients
  1. 1/2 lb. smoked or corned pork, pig's tail or salt beef, chopped in small pieces
  2. 1/2 lb. fresh beef (boneless, cubes)
  3. 3 cloves chopped garlic
  4. 1 onion (chopped)
  5. 6 cups water
  6. ½ lb. yellow (or other yam), 1 lb. cocoa or (2 medium green plantains peeled and chopped)
  7. 1/2 lb. cream of coconut (or 1 can coconut milk)
  8. 2 cups okra
  9. 1 hot pepper (Scotch bonnet pepper, chopped)
  10. 1/2 red pepper (sweet, chopped)
  11. 1 lb. callaloo/spinach, chopped
  12. ½ lb. cabbage chopped
  13. ½ lb. kale or mustard greens chopped
  14. 1lb flour (1/2 plain and ½ whole wheat) for dumplings
  15. Salt and black pepper, to taste
  16. 2 bay leaves
  17. 11/2 tsp. thyme (ground)
  18. 4 stalks escallions (chopped)
  19. 4 pinches nutmeg
Instructions
  1. In a large stockpot, add pork with a teaspoon of oil.
  2. Braise on medium heat to remove fat drippings.
  3. Pat the beef cubes dry.
  4. When enough drippings have been released, add the beef and sauté until brown.
  5. Add 6 cups of water, cover and let simmer for an hour. Skim off any foam that rises on the top and sides of the pot.
  6. Check meats for doneness then add all greens, including okra. Cook for ½ hour.
  7. Remove greens and puree in blender or food processor.
  8. Return pureed greens to pot. Add chopped onions, yam, coco, bay leaves, coconut, sweet pepper, beans and spices.
  9. Make spinners and add.
  10. Add scallions and other seasonings.
  11. Check taste and add a tablespoon of butter.
  12. Cook for another 15 minutes.
  13. Add shrimp during the last few minutes of cooking
  14. Spoon into a bowl, garnish with shrimp.
  15. Serve hot with rolls, slices of hard dough or other bread.
Notes
  1. Turkey or chicken can be substituted, or left out all together for a meatless soup.
  2. Meats can be pressure cooked.
InsideJourneys https://insidejourneys.com/

Pepperpot soup is made primarily callaloo, a leafy green vegetable that’s a close cousin to spinach, as well as taro leaves, kale and okra – though any green, or combination of, will do.

This mix of vegetables, meat and pepper, lots of it, make pepperpot a delicious and nutritious meal. So nutritious that George Washington had his cook prepare it for his troops. According to a post on Chef Walter Staib’s, A Taste of History, Washington was introduced to a version of the soup when he visited his brother, Lawrence, in Barbados in 1751.

When my aunt emailed me a recipe appropriately called, Aunt Birdie’s Pepperpot Soup, I wrote back immediately.  The recipe, she said, was similar to how she remembers the pepperpot soup that was made in her mother’s kitchen in rural Jamaica.

I knew right away that I wanted her to show me how to make it. I wanted to learn from someone who knew.

Auntie Birdie, my father’s youngest sister, is an accountant and fabulous cook who always shares stories about growing up “in the country,” as most Jamaicans call any place outside Kingston.

As she chopped the greens, Auntie Birdie, who was named after one of her mother’s sisters, reminisced. It certainly feels like life was simpler then, family life idyllic, the foods sweeter.

Most people cooked on a wood fire in a kitchen that was separate from the house, Auntie Birdie recalled. There was no refrigeration then so meats, primarily pork and beef, were cured, or smoked. The meat would be seasoned with pimento leaves and placed on a mesh, called a kreng kreng which hung over the fire. As meals were cooked with pimento woods, the smoke would slowly baste the meats and lock in the flavors. This smoked meat, along with a small amount of fresh beef, would be used in the pepperpot soup.

Auntie Birdie with her pepper tree
Aunt Birdie with the tree that supplied the peppers for the soup

With my aunt and I working together, the pepperpot soup took two hours from preparation to table. The meat would have taken the longest to cook, but in this modern day kitchen, a pressure cooker reduced cooking time by more than half.

I had pepperpot soup last at the Pegasus Hotel in Kingston. It was the best pepperpot soup I’d had in a while. Auntie Birdie’s Pepperpot Soup made me go for seconds.

 

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Escoveitch Fish, Red Snapper

There are certain meals that every self-respecting Jamaican cook must know how to prepare, with his or her eyes closed, if need be. One such meal is escoveitch. Typically, escoveitch fish is reserved for fish but chicken can be used as well. I prefer fish – red snapper or king, but porgies or any type of fish that is suitable for frying can be used.

Escoveitch refers to a way of cooking, or more specifically marinating fish in a vinegar sauce. Also known as escabeche, it likely came to Jamaica by way of the Spanish.

Escoveitch fish is one of my favorite meals. It is also the only meal my mother taught me to make. I had picked up how to cook everything else, by osmosis I guess but was insecure about my escoveitch fish-making skills. Once I realized how simple it was, I made it over and over.

Escoveitch Fish


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Ingredients
  1. 2 lbs. red snapper or king fish, cut is slices
  2. 2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
  3. 1/2 tsp. whole black pepper
  4. 3 tsp. salt
  5. 1 medium Scotch bonnet pepper, cut in strips
  6. 2 large onions, sliced
  7. 1 tsp pimento berries
  8. 1/2 cup oil (for frying)
  9. 2 cups vinegar
  10. 2 limes or lemons
  11. 1 small chocho (chayote or christophene), cut in strips
  12. 1 small carrot, cut in strips
Instructions
  1. Clean fish and wash thoroughly in large bowl with water and lime juice mixture.
  2. Dry fish, place on paper towels to absorb any remaining liquid.
  3. Mix black pepper and salt.
  4. Rub the fish lightly on both sides and on inside with salt and black pepper mixture.
  5. Put on paper towels.
  6. Heat cooking oil in skillet and fry fish on both sides until crisp and golden brown, about 3-5 minutes.
  7. Place fried fish into a glass dish.
Marinade
  1. In a saucepan, add vinegar, onions, Scotch bonnet strips, pimento berries, chocho and carrot strips.
  2. Boil for 2-3 minutes then lower heat and let simmer until onions are soft.
  3. Remove and let cool.
  4. Pour marinade over fish and let cool overnight, or at least an hour. Marinating overnight allows the fish to absorb the flavors.
  5. Escoveitch fish can be served with a variety of starches - from rice to bammie (a cassava flat bread).
Notes
  1. Paper towels will keep the fish dry so that it doesn't pop when placed into the hot oil.
  2. Escoveitch fish can be made a day in advance.
InsideJourneys https://insidejourneys.com/

I’ve yet to try escoveitch chicken. I can’t imagine how chicken stands up to being marinated in vinegar, what the flavors will be like, but I’ll post a recipe once I give it a try.

 

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The Monkey Jar

The monkey jar has been used for several centuries in Jamaica and the Caribbean though no one knows the origin of the name. (There’s probably an interesting, perhaps even a funny story that could be inserted here.)

Monkey jar
Replica of a monkey jar

The technique used to make earthenware pieces, like the monkey jar was brought to the Caribbean by enslaved Africans. Once here, they adopted European, indigenous Indian and other local techniques that influenced form, function and manufacture.

Made of porous clay, with an oval-shaped body, flat base, a handle and an abbreviated spout, the monkey jar was used to carry and store water. Clay pots were used to keep water cool in the days when there were no refrigerators. Clay is still used today to keep water in communities that have no refrigeration.

Cooling jar
A large cooling jar (seen at Outameni)

Pottery-making is still practiced in Jamaica with local artists using clay that is found primarily in the northeast section of the country. The clay is mined by hand then transported out of the area. Traditional items like the yabba, a large earthenware bowl that first produced in Jamaica around 1692, are still being made. The yabba was usually handmade by women and are either by glazed or left unfinished.

 

A yabba was one of my first purchases after I returned to Jamaica. I’ve used it as a tureen and as a mixing bowl. (Will post a photo later.) The monkey jar above is a replica that I bought at the Hanover Museum last year. I’d love to find an old one for my collection.

 

 

This is my submission to Travel Photo Thursday, which is organized by Nancie at Budget Travelers Sandbox. Be sure to head over and check out more photos from locations around the world.

 

Red Pea Soup

Soup, especially red pea soup, is comfort food to me. I make it when it rains or snows, when it’s cold or when I need a pick-me-up. Sometimes, I make it just because.

I love soup. I love the convenience of it. Even cleanup is simple as there’s only one pot. The only thing to master about making soup, however, is timing. Too little and you end up with a broth; too much and you get something close to porridge. I like mine after the peas and potatoes have broken apart, giving the soup ‘body.’

Soup was a typical Saturday meal in our house. When the butcher brought fresh beef, we’d have beef soup. Otherwise, it’d be chicken, pig’s tail, corned beef, or a combination. And there was always some type of pea or bean – pigeon (or gungo), red, split, etc., vegetables, yam, potato and dumplings or spinners.

Red Pea Soup
Bubbling soup

Soups made from a variety of meats or vegetables are typically found on menus in restaurants, cook shops and street vendors. Expect to see corn, cow skin or foot, chicken foot, crayfish (or janga), fish (popularly called fish tea, not fish soup), pepperpot, etc. The star of any gathering, from weddings to wakes, is mannish water, which is also called goat soup or goat belly soup. It’s made from, you guessed it – goat, including the innards.

Red Pea Soup


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Ingredients
  1. 1 or 2 cups peas (I love a lot of peas in my soups so I usually use 2 cups)
  2. 1 lb. beef or beef bones (or other meat - or leave out the meat for a meat-free soup)
  3. 1 or 2 medium carrots (chopped)
  4. 1 sprig of thyme
  5. 1 stalk of scallion
  6. 1 Scotch Bonnet pepper
  7. 1 tbsp. Pimento Berries
  8. 2 cloves garlic
  9. 1 large Irish potato (cut up in large chunks)
  10. 2 tbsp. coconut milk (optional)
  11. 2 sprigs Parsley (optional)
  12. 2 Bay leaves (optional)
  13. Water – enough to cover peas and meat
  14. Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
  15. Noodle soup (optional)
  16. Spinners (recipe follows)
Instructions
  1. Pick out defective or broken peas and wash. Soak overnight. The next day, drain off the water, pour peas into a stockpot, cover with cold water, add garlic and salt to taste and put to boil. (If you’re unable to soak peas overnight, wash, add enough cold water to cover and put to boil.)
  2. Wash meat and add to pot when water begins to boil.
  3. Cook for about an hour or until peas are soft.
  4. Add seasonings – pimento, scallion, Scotch Bonnet, black pepper, and coconut milk.
  5. Peel potato and carrots, chop and add to soup.
  6. Make spinners (recipe below) and add.
  7. Add thyme, parsley and Bay leaves (tie together with kitchen twine or put in cheesecloth). Cover and let cook for about an hour or until done.
  8. Remove Bay leaves, parsley, thyme and pimento beans before serving.
InsideJourneys https://insidejourneys.com/

Spinners (Dumplings)


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Ingredients
  1. ½ cup flour
  2. 1 tsp salt
  3. 5 tbsp water
  4. 2 tsp butter (optional)
Instructions
  1. Combine butter with flour, blend thoroughly.
  2. Add salt.
  3. Add water slowly and mix until you have a doughy consistency.
  4. Break off small piece and roll between both hands to make the spinners.
  5. Each should be about 2 inches long. Place slowly into soup.
  6. Cover and let cook.
InsideJourneys https://insidejourneys.com/

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The Pink Poui Tree

I’ve written about the poui tree in a few earlier posts. I noticed it in my neighbor’s backyard one week, it’s brilliant yellow blooms covering the entire tree, the next, there was a carpet of yellow petals on the ground. I didn’t know what to make of a tree in the tropics that loses its leaves. I was intrigued.

When I did a little research, I discovered that in addition to the yellow, there was a pink poui. Where the yellow is striking, more easily identifiable and more common, the pink is less so. It’s beauty is subtle.

Pink Poui
Poui Tree

So off I went, looking for the pink poui. Each time I noticed a profusion of pink petals, I’d pull out my camera but as I got closer, I’d realize that it was some other tree. Or, I’d see the real thing but there’d be no place to stop safely.

Weeks turned into frustrating months, one season changed into the next. I’d just about given up ever getting a shot of the pink poui in bloom. One morning as I waited for the bus that would take us on a planned tour, I noticed a pink tree on the opposite side of the parking lot. I didn’t want to get my hopes up until I was sure.

Pink poui
Poui, close up

I walked slowly towards the tree, camera in hand. As I got closer, I noticed that some petals had already started to rain on the ground, a few were on the cars parked nearby. Yes, this was a poui.

I snapped away, hoping the bus wouldn’t arrive before I could finish. It’d have to wait, I thought to myself.

Pink Poui
Poui

I can’t tell you how happy I was to finally capture a pink poui tree. Nothing could spoil my day after that!

 

 

For more photos, please check out Travel Photo Thursday, which Nancie at Budget Travel Adventure organizes. Hope to see you there!