The Jamaica I know [Pt 1]

Rosie's hair salon, down the street from the manse. THE place to go for braids.

Albert George Market, c. mid 19th century, in Water Square, Falmouth.

Around Falmouth.

My favorite sign in town: Dee and Pee's Records and Children's Boutique.

Here are some photos from around Falmouth that I took this morning. I'm not sure of the percentages, but I would venture a guess that 90-95% of tourists that come to Jamaica don't make it outside their all-inclusive resorts. Most Americans [in my experience] don't think of Jamaica as a place with something besides beaches, rum punch, and reggae, or an architecture and a history worthy of investigation. I'm not sure why, but it's disappointing.

In any case, I feel privileged to have spent about two months here so far, and hope to come back - even [especially!] to the Manse, with its spotty running water, mosquito nets and bunk beds, porridge breakfasts, and zero AC. At this point, honestly, I would be kind of disappointed if those things changed.

As an almond falls from the tree over my head, and to the sounds of the table saw, I think I'll eat a mango from this tree over here.