The publishers, Leeward Consultants, are busy distributing the new Dominica Food and Drink Guide 2012. Packed with interesting articles, information, photos and listings of places to check out.
At the back of the guide you'll also find the latest Homes and Lifestyle issue.
"There is love in every little thing and each tear is an ocean of love..."
Check out this blog post by Small Axe farm in Dominica Small Axe Farm - Love Drops
For some photos taken at small axe farm click here or click play on the slideshow below.
Well, that's it for another year, it's been a week already since the Nature Island Literary Festival and Book Fair. The festival takes so much planning but is over in a flash. I was really pleased to see an increase in book fair traffic, younger generation attendees and an increase in the attendees for the weekend event workshops.
So thanks to the organisers, sponsors, supporters, volunteers, book donators, local and overseas guests and performers, competition entrants, the media and especially all those who came out in sometimes very inclement weather. It's definitely a festival with a difference in Dominica's annual calendar of events, but with lack of funding and volunteer resource I do hope it is able to continue.
A stimulating range of workshops have been arranged, starting from Tuesday August 2nd. Take advantage of this free opportunity to exchange ideas with experienced writers, poets and playwrights. All workshops will be held at the UWI Open Campus, Elmshall Road, Roseau. Click www.dominicalitfest.com/workshops for further details on the workshops or to register.
The full programme of events for the festival weekend will be published soon but meanwhile do check the website for more information on the invited guests this year.
Click www.dominicalitfest.com.
Geography and directions are not my forte. In the days when I lived in UK and visited Dominica on "far too short" holidays, I had no idea where places were or the directions to some of the most common visitor attractions...errr...like Trafalgar Falls (don't laugh). Driving from Roseau to Portsmouth, my husband would get fed up with me asking "where are we again?" after every village we came too.
It seems ludicrous now, having been back for several years and knowing the island pretty well, but back then (I am soooo embarrassed to say) I did not know Mahaut from Marigot . I still get Dublanc and Dubique confused and I'm sure there must be two Savanne Paille's ;-)
Nowadays, I take driving all over for granted but I can so imagine what it must be like for a first time visitor landing at Melville Hall, picking up their hire vehicle, and being faced with the daunting task of finding their accomodation in somewhere like Wotten Waven or even Roseau.
Anyway, for an island so small, trust me, it's easy to get lost and driving "into" Roseau on the "out" bridge is not for the faint-hearted. So back then, as soon as we landed, I would search out a Sky Views pocket map. Not only were the maps essential for me to get around the island and save the sanity of my husband, but I was always drawn to the images or artwork of Dominican culture and landscape on the front cover. This was way before I came to live here permanently and discovered my passion for photography, so it never even crossed my mind that one day photographs of mine would be on the front cover of these maps.
I have kept a copy of each map since 2005, it's a good chronicle of things that have changed on the island. I just wish I had kept the maps from when I used to visit.
Things have improved a lot from all those years ago and many companies have sponsored much needed road signs but a map is still an essential item if you are new to the island or have not visited in a long time. So thank you Sky Views for literally putting Dominica "on the map" and my images too. :-)
Well it's been cricket fever here in Dominica with our island proudly hosting the third test match, West Indies vs India, at the Windsor Park Sports Stadium. I went for a little while on Sunday and again although I did not always fully understand what was going on, shame on me ;-), I thoroughly enjoyed the atmosphere.
It was an inpsired move by the organisers to offer concessionary tickets to those over 60 and to children as it ensured that the matches were pretty well attended during the week.
I went on the last day, Sunday, and the stadium was packed with an enthusiastic and optimistic crowd. Our Dominican fans really showed some love and appreciation to the West Indies team, cheering them on and when WI got a man out LBW on the first ball the stadium erupted with massive cheering.
Much praise needs to go out to all the people behind the scenes who made this event possible; those who kept the pitch in order, made sure the stadium was ready and not forgetting the sponsors.
Although the match is over, the cricket theme extends this Saturday 16th July with a showing of the hit film 'Fire in Babylon', at Alliance Francaise in Roseau (part of the third Traveling Caribbean Film Showcase).
The film trailer can be seen here.
By the way if you're wondering where the blog title "Cricket Lovely Cricket" comes from, it's from a calypso song "Victory Test Match" by Lord Beginner.
You can hear it here.
I have always thought that to truly appreciate and understand the multi-layers of Dominica, the landscape, the culture and the people, you have to get out of your vehicle. For me that normally means walking but the other day I saw Dominica from a totally different perspective. This time I saw the island from "Ma Honey", a motor cruiser run by Keith (Yardee) and Janet from Titiwi Inn.
The boat and crew can be hired for moonlight cruises, fishing, snorkelling or a little coastal siteseeing and that day Captain 'Yardee' took us on a fun trip from Citronnier to Scotts Head. This is a stretch that I drive down many times so I know it well from the road but it was eye-opening and interesting viewing from the sea and I loved this window into normally hidden Dominican life.
We glided by the fishermen in their colourful wooden boats, the young boys fishing on the traditional rafts called pwi-pwi's, our scuba diving operators, coastal hotels, bars and restaurants, lines of houses, the humble wooden traditional ti-kai's and the larger concrete newer additions, the Galion hillside decorated with red African tulip trees, the imposing Pointe Michel and Soufriere churches, watchful like village sentinels, the ongoing sea defence project at Pointe Michel, excited local kids being taken on a catamaran boat trip by Anchorage hotel, and visitors swimming at Scotts Head bay. All this was great to see but I also saw aspects of the island which were not so nice; rubbish and old appliances dumped off cliffs or left on the coast and the quarry, which I appreciate is an economic, "job providing" necessity but I still can't help but wince when I see this scar on our nature island landscape.
But these blots were by far the minority sights on what was a really scenic and relaxing trip and as we headed back home I wondered how much this stretch and the lives of those living and working on the coast, would change over the next few years.
Here are some photos of Dominica taken from the sea. Boat trip from Citronnier to Scotts Head
Growing up in Dominica, it was hard NOT to stay healthy. Luckily for me I had parents, siblings and relatives who made sure our weekends and holidays were filled with river baths, trips to the beach or some rainforest adventure. We walked a lot back then, to school, to friends and relatives homes, to the river and beach, so obesity was not a word heard very often.
Wholesome, home cooked food was the norm (I wish I had paid more attention), normally comprising of vegetables from a relatives "back yard" garden or farm. Not forgetting the juicy fresh fruit, picked straight from trees (don't even get me started on mango season) and the appropriate herbal "bush" tea selected depending on the emotional or physical need at the time. All this formed part of our normal routine and was something many of us took for granted until those things were no longer part of our lives.
But in our race not to be seen as "poor little Dominica" we are fast ditching common sense and adopting some seriously unhealthy habits and lifestyles, imitating countries like USA and UK that we regard as more sophisticated and developed. Meanwhile these countries that we are desperately trying to play catch up with are ironically jogging their way back to a lifetsyle that looks a lot like the one I remember from childhood.
The percentage of our population suffering from chronic non-communicable diseases are rapidly increasing, younger ages as well, and in a country so small, many of us personally know someone suffering from hypertension, heart disease, stroke, cancer, diabetes etc. See DNO article - CNCD's in Dominica Caricom article - CNCD's Alarming Facts
All this makes the promotion of "Health and Wellness" in Dominica a great idea I think. Not only to make us more aware of and appreciate our natural assets but to also promote these to potential visitors and non-exploiting investment partners.
Dominica's 3rd Annual Health and Wellness event was held in May this year and formed part of the Discover Dominica Authority's Tourism awareness month of activities.
I love this event and organiser Terri Henry's passionate determination, sincerity and enthusiastic energy is infectious, so it is always a pleasure to be involved.
This year, chef and best selling author of Caribbean Vegan, Taymer Mason, was the inspirational invited guest and a major part of the 3 day series of events. Another extremely hard working and driven individual, Taymer held various workshops demonstrating how creative and tasty, vegan dishes can be.
A great thing about events held in Dominica is that often they are intimate affairs, so you can usually "connect", meet and talk to people you might not get a chance to at larger events. It was a pleasure to meet Taymer and learn more about the frustrations and advantages she has experienced living in some of the other Caribbean islands. I hope partnerning with others from the region is something Dominica can do more of. We talk of Caribbean unity and I think there is so much we can share and learn from our neighbours and vice versa, they can learn from us too.
Another aspect of the event that I particulary applaud, is that it highlights those who are quietly doing their "little thing" in the background, often for many years. The herb sellers you might pass by without a glance, the vegetarian cafe you never realised existed, the yoga practioners and massage therapists you won't see in the yellow pages etc. It was also nice to see families at the event too; kids with boundless amounts of energy on the bouncy castle.
So the Health and Wellness event overcame it's many challenges and was a success on many levels again this year. But for us who live here, to truly embody healthier living and for "Health and Wellness" to mean something more than the latest trendy tag line that tries to define Dominica to the tourist market, we all need to pay more than just lip service to staying healthy, both emotionally and physically and to take personal responsibilty for keeping Dominica healthy too.
That includes me, so after posting this blog, I'm heading off for a sea bath. See you there!! :-)
Thanks to all those who supported and sponsored the event through financial assistance and long hard working hours behind the scenes. Please do check out who they all were in the various links below.
My posts are seriously out of wack date wise so apologies.
One of our long standing events as part of Carnival season is our Queen Show or Miss Dominica pageant. While few will deny that the winners are hard working ambassadors for Dominica and the contestants all say that taking part in the event is very challenging and great for confidence building and personal development, it may be time to update the format if the event is to remain positive, relevant and uplifting for young woman today.
I'm not sure that scoring women for walking around in a swimming costume is something we still ought to be doing.
What do you think?
I'm STILL processing photos from last year but wanted to get these uploaded as the Creole and Jazz Event is on again this Sunday 12th June (click link for DDA flyer). Last year was a fun, family event and the Cabrits setting was nice. The event line-up was a cool mix of local and international talent - Arturo Tappin, Christian Laviso, Conjunto Puerto Rico, Fanatik and Marie-Claire. Kudos to the DDA team and sponsors for adding something a little different to the annual musical events calendar.
I know many of us are feeling it financially at the moment so it's a shame about the price increase this year to $60EC ($50EC in advance) plus the charge for bringing your own cooler but I'm sure it will still be a relaxed and entertaining event, especially with the fab weather we've been having.
Hmmm...these photos are nearly a year old now. I was trying out a new lens and took FAR too many and couldn't face processing them all.
Anyway from what I remember about the day, great atmosphere and crowd turn out...not so great cricket...we lost!!!
Most who have driven or been driven from Melville Hall airport to Roseau can testify that the drive can sometimes seem long and tedious with the narrow winding roads and even more so at night.
Well my advice next time is to take your camera along.
On my last drive back from Marigot to Roseau I had the luxury of being a passenger for a change so I spent the whole journey amusing myself taking photos of car rear lights, head lights and street lights.
You may get some strange looks from whoever is driving but the results can be some pretty cool abstract images.
It works best when it's very dark, you move the camera around a bit and you use a slow shutter speed. Also try using the camera self timer as well.
Here's some examples of a few I took:
Click for Slideshow - Camera Light Painting effects
With the escalating price of food I am always thankful for the gifts of produce from friends and relatives and had hoped to be "growing what we eat and eating what we grow" by now - (Hope I've got that the right way round!!!).
When I lived in England there used to be a funny 70's sitcom called "The Good Life". The basic plot was "Tom Good ... gives up work ... and he and his wife Barbara adopt a sustainable, simple and self-sufficient lifestyle while staying in their home in The Avenue, Surbiton."
"Goodwill Heights", I figure, is Dominica's Surbiton equivalent, so I also had plans of living a simple more self sufficient lifestyle. Well things haven't worked out as I planned and we're not keeping chickens or growing our own organic produce yet, so I'm very jealous of my friend who has beat me to it. The Sawers are certainly living the "Good Life" here in Dominica, although they may not actually realise it yet :-) and it might seem more like some feverish nightmare some of the time. This is just some of the fab produce I've gratefully received from them.
Hmmm, I'm not sure how they grew the organic chocolate but I'll certainly be looking forward to their next harvest.
I don't always like to take my camera when I'm hiking, especially when hiking with others, but on this waitukubuli national trail hike last year the group was large and spread out enough for me to have some fun experiment time.
I had read about the "not for the faint-hearted" technique of camera tossing, which can create some really cool abstract image effects, but decided "tossing" was not for me and stuck with some less extreme camera movement shots, with the camera firmly held in my hands.
It was a lot of fun and I really liked some of the effects I managed to capture.
Click link to view a picture slideshow of some other movement blur shots
On Friday Nov 19th to Sat 20th, Ross Univeristy held an art and craft fair at their Campus Activity Centre.
Apparently this event has been going for 5 or 6 years now but this was the first year I had heard about it and that was just by a chance passing comment made by a local artist earlier in the year.
It was a nice event - not only an opportunity for much needed sales and promotion for the many local arts and craft producers/sellers but also a relaxed environment for artisans to network and socialise with each other. It was also good for Ross students, employees etc who are often extremely "spare time" challenged, to see and purchase authentic local craft in one location and without having to travel very far. Those who were soon to be leaving the island could pick out souvenirs for friends and family or supporters and lovers of local art and craft could easily browse and shop for work from their favourite or newly discovered artist.
I really enjoyed the event, although the air conditioning was way to cold for me, and I met a few new artists that I did not know about.
What was especially good was that 15% of all sales were collected at the end for charity organisations (The Northern District Home for the Aged and CALLS) and to help the Dominica Arts and Crafts Producers Association (DACPA) with their outreach aims.
Many Thanks to the hard working organisers Carole Antone and Lene Larsen and all the others involved. I hope this event continues to grow from strength to strength and maybe it can be publicised a bit more next year. A few residents I have spoken to (including artisans) have mentioned they were not aware of it and would have liked to attend.
Perhaps someone (cultural Division?) can follow it with a Christmas Art and Craft fair. It would be great for more people to consider local arts and craft for their Christmas present purchases. They really need all the support they can get.
Also, I keep hearing about the importance of cultural industries so if anyone happens to be speaking to the PM ;-), please can they ask him to consider removing all import tax, duties etc from arts and craft materials which have to be imported by artisans as it would be a huge help to this struggling sector.
Click to view pictures from the Ross University art and craft fair
Click to view picture slideshow from the Ross University art and craft fair
I saw a guy in Roseau selling these "bits of wood" that he explained is used as a blood cleanser. I got some but my husband pulled a funny face when I got home and said that I had actually paid for these "bits of wood". :-)
Doing some reasearch on the internet I believe it's known as "bitter wood" and has been "used for centuries to fight intestinal parasites, ease digestion, reduce fever and cleanse the bowels. Moreover, it is also said to lessen one's taste for alcohol."
See viable-herbal.com - Bitter Wood
Has anyone ever used it?
One day I will have my own back yard garden but for now I'm always grateful to receive the gifts of fruit and produce from friends and family.
My Uncle grows rambutan in his back garden, here in Dominica. It's delicious!!!
Growing up in Dominica, coconut and a variety of coconut products were part of everyday life. Not only refreshing coconut water and the succulent flesh on Sunday outings to the village of Castle Bruce and an assortment of tasty sweets like coconut tablet and cheese on the way home from school, but also items from all the other parts of the coconut tree; like sweeping with cocoyea brooms, making kites with cocoyea sticks, playing cricket with bats made from the branch of the tree and a young coconut (well several actually) for the ball, hats, cigarettes in coconut shell ashtrays, bangles, earrings and the inevitable, uniquely Caribbean cocoyea stick "licks" for misbehaviour - ouch!!!. I won't even go into the various recipes using coconut, milk, cream, oil etc.
These memories were once again rekindled by the Coconut Art & Craft Exhibition, held at the Old Mill Cultural Centre; an inspired addition to the Independence Celebrations by the Division of Culture. Many of the craft items displayed were made by artisans belonging to the Dominica Arts & Crafts Producers Association (DACPA) - listed below.
It's the first time I have seen an exhibition solely focusing on coconut and it would be great if it expanded into a larger annual "Coconut Fest" event, featuring a wider variety of coconut food dishes and beverages, maybe even a series of workshops and guest coconut craft designers and artisans from other Caribbean islands. Maybe a coconut producing village could host it.
Although a very good exhibition, especially the large selection of beautiful coconut jewellery, and a showcase of some of our gifted artisans, I would have liked to have seen a wider variety of new, innovatively designed coconut craft products; especially products using the stem which I hardly ever see.
I do hope that skilled craftspeople and local craft do not become terminal casualties of the modern age, replaced by machines spewing out cheaper, quicker to produce, souless, mass produced items; but I worryingly often hear artisans lament that it's getting increasingly harder for them to make a living from their craft and the number of people willing and able to pay a fair price for what they produce is diminishing each year. They need all the support they can get so check out the exhibition if you can. It closes on Friday October 22.
There is so much which can be done with this amazingly versatile material. A search on the internet can open up a wealth of inspiration to artisans who work with any part of the coconut tree and nut.
These are a few I noticed. http://www.coconutcraft.com/
http://www.indianetzone.com/1/coconut_craft.htm Some of the DACPA Coconut Craft Exhibitors
Agatha Carbon, Anita Watty, Cecelia George, Henrietta Seraphine, Julien James, Lincoln St. Rose, Vanessa Winston
Update 31/10/2010
I saw these bags at Creole in the park which was just what I was talking about. Handbag photo 1 Handbag photo 2
I went to the first Layou Titiwi Festival in Dominica reunion year 2008 and I remember having a great time and thinking "I hope they do this again next year". The event was jointly organised by the Layou Improvement Committee (LIC) and Waitukubuli Ecological Foundation (WEF) in celebration of World Rivers Day, celebrated in the last weekend of September. Now in it's third year, I think it has rightly earned it's place to be promoted in Dominica's calendar of "must-visit" annual events.
This weekend 25th & 26th, the Layou village was once again transformed into Titiwi village. I was there the Saturday and Sunday, arrived far too early on the Saturday and probably left too early on the Sunday (must listen to the radio more). It looked like Saturday was more of a night time thing and Sunday a more family affair during the day, followed by the requisite "jump up" in the evening.
The activities were pretty similar to last year. The Wacky Rollers crew did a great job, as usual, organising the zip lining for kids of all ages, all sizes, boys and plenty girls too. Only charging a nominal price it meant that for many kids this was a new experience, one they might not otherwise be able to afford. Watching the different expressions coming done the line made me laugh so much. There was also sack racing, football, volleyball, Rodney's Rock boat trips and a new cool addition for this year, the ATV vehicles.
And of course there was LOTS of titiwi. Cute 'n' colourful, palm leaf decorated booths lined the beach and served titiwi in every form imaginable, titiwi pizza, pasta, accra, sancoche, steamed, smoked, pie, lasagne and in some forms I really could not imagine like "Titiwi punch"???
I admit titiwi dishes are not the most attractive and not to everyone's taste so although the spotlight was certainly on this diminutive, translucent gobi fish, you could still get other varieties of fish, breadfruit, provisions, bakes and of course chicken.
The wide beach and river makes an ideal setting and even resident Dominicans, who are not familiar with the area, often comment that they never knew Layou village had such a big beach. Unfortunately the quarry and equipment in the background is a real "blot on the landscape" and ruins the backdrop as well as the environmental message; as does the big barge transporting tarish to wherever.
Overall the environmental aspect and "World Rivers Day" celebration, part of the original festival concept, seemed to have been side-lined this year which was a shame.
I think it's important for residents and visitors to patronise and support "community" events like this one. You don't even have to add the word "tourism" at the end because the way I see it, the benefit and attraction of many of these initiatives, is that they started off as grass roots, "bottom up", community ventures first and foremost, which visitors became interested in often because of their authenticity. They did not start off as disconnected "only aimed at tourist" projects and consequently hopefully stand a greater chance of survival when some crisis or another impacts the numbers of tourists coming to the island.
Mr Lazare and the rest of LIC are doing a great job and I truly hope Titiwi Festival grows from strength to strength and benefits Layou and surrounding communities.
I also hope that as it expands it keeps sight of the key ingredients, (not just the titiwi), that makes it such a popular event for both resident and visitor alike.
Walking, I think, is one of the best ways to get a real feel for Dominica, giving a more “up-close” experience and encouraging a personal connection not easily obtained from a car or bus.
Dominica already has several great hiking trails but the Waitukubuli National Trail (WNT) is well on the way to becoming the ultimate island hike. Broken up into 14 segments and totalling around 95-115 miles, the trail will traverse the island from top to bottom. It is estimated, that once finished, average hikers can complete the whole trail in around 2 weeks.
The success of the trail to bring tangible economic benefits, relies on community participation and support to provide auxiliary services such as accommodation, transportation, food, beverages, guides etc (that is assuming of course we resolve the issue of actually getting hikers in large enough numbers to come to Dominica in the first place). A full understanding of what the WNT is all about, what is planned and what is required from the communities it passes, is therefore crucial.
On 29th August the WNT project team organised a public awareness activity day with various competitions and challenges for all ages; Kiddies Baton Relay event, Negre Mawon Iron Team Hike, Heritage Photography and Literature Challenge etc.
The photography challenge took place along part of segment 5, Emerald Pool to Pont Casse, not the most dramatic segment but a really pretty hike nonetheless; scenic rainforest paths and river crossings too. I am so thankful that my past, my history is rooted on this island and walking along the trail I was happy to recall childhood stories from my Mum and her siblings. They had walked these very same paths before roads from Castle Bruce to Roseau, lighting their way with flambeaus and scaring themselves with folklore tales of soucouyants and lajabless.
I love hiking; it is one of my passions. I love the physical exertion, the onslaught on all the senses, the primal awe it inspires and everything that goes with hiking in Dominica, including sometimes getting very dirty and wet. As with other hikes around the island, I emerged from this rain forest hike, with a renewed respect for nature and a deepening of my possessive love for Waitukubuli.
The WNT is a great idea and I wish everyone involved the very best of luck with it, from those who came up with the initial concepts, to the teams who have to make it all happen. It is a huge amount of work with some serious challenges to overcome but having walked a few segments already I am really looking forward to its completion.
You never know, it may just make the National Geographic Top Trails list one day.
