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4 things you'll observe when you land in Kingston

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This post is inspired by my trip last month [April 2018] back to Kingston from Toronto. I cannot generalize that these observations also apply to Montego Bay as on my trip back I observed that the crowd heading on the Montego Bay flight were majority White and tourist-looking. This differed from the Black majority Jamaican-looking crowd that was boarding the flight to Kingston. That said, here are 4 things that I observed that I believe is quite typical and culturally interesting en route to and entering Kingston. 1. Carry-on space will be limited. If you are travelling to Kingston be mindful that there will be a lot of carry on luggage on the plane and that carry on luggage space will be limited. Jamaicans tend to travel heavy either taking stuff for others on the island or acquiring worldly possession that are unaffordable in Jamaica. There are also those who take back goods to resell to the Jamaican market. 2. Clapping or applauding when the plane lands. It is pred
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Trench Town

If you are coming to Kingston, Jamaica in 2018, you have reason to be delighted that you selected the New York Times 24th must-visit city for 2017. As Dreisinger (2017) puts it, Kingston is a "cultural  destination, not just a stopover to the beach".  Dreisinger further lists Kingston as the city for eating local cuisine and dining at various restaurants taking in Jamaican music visiting museums That said, if you want to see urban space that gave birth to most of Jamaica's popular music, you may want to check out the Trench Town Culture Yard. According to the Jamaica National Heritage Trust (2011), "Trench Town Culture Yard is located at 6 & 8 Lower First Street in Trench Town" and is today a a small museum that presents the history of Trench Town along with artefacts, "instruments and furnishing used by Tata Ford, Bob Marley, Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer". In addition to this, visitors can make use of The Casbah Cafe and the Lion of Judah
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Kingston Book Festival 2018

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If you are a tourist or visitor interested in books and literature, then there is a biennial book festival in Kingston, Jamaica that maybe of interest. The Kingston Book Festival is a Kingston-based weeklong event celebrating local books, authors, and writing. So in addition to consuming Jamaican music and food, consider the festival to feed your mind with Jamaican stories and books. As the poetic Cooke (2018) puts it, "Reggae Month ends and the multiple day Kingston Book Festival begins, the throb of drum and bass succeeded by the rustling of pages." So I went to check out the final day of the festival that featured a book fair which for 2018 was held at Hope Gardens. I must confess that I am not much of a picture-taking person and prefer to just experience the moment rather than document it as I experience it. Hence, for Kingston Book Festival 2018, I was too engrossed in conversation at the different booths and viewing the books available that I forgot all about
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Visiting UWI Mona Research Days: An event for the mind

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In February, the birth month of Robert Nesta Marley, there is another reason to visit Kingston city. Let us say that you are the type of tourist interested in more than just entertainment and want to venture into an inspiring and intellectual space to see the research and innovation being undertaken within Jamaica. So apart from listening to music and entertainment, perhaps you want to talk with some bright minds and young academics within this developing country to find out what problems they are studying and trying to address. Or you are simply interested in learning more about the university and its technological and research output and contribution to the region? Well, Kingston is definitely the place to be and early February is the month to visit Jamaica. Discovering one of the leading research university on the island, the Universty of the West Indies, Mona Campus, should be one of your priorities. For free of cost (minus your travel expenses), you can attend the many events
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How safe is Kingston?

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A big question for those visiting Kingston is "How safe is the city?" In this post, I attempt to address this question. I know objectivity is at stake with this question and that the Jamaican government and tourism companies would want to present a crime-free image. Clearly, my own objectivity will be questioned as I want you to travel to Kingston. However, I plan to tackle this question as best as I can while checking my bias and presenting the information with sources/facts. BACKGROUND   I am actually embarrassed to address this question and definitely wish it never had to be addressed. But last week in the Jamaican press, it was reported that the US Embassy issued a cautionary travel warning for Americans visiting Jamaica ( "Americans  warned to 'exercise increased caution'" ;  Richardson, 2018 ) . In my opinion, I attribute this action as a direct response to the death of an American citizen in December 2017 (" Police identify American mu
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3 Things to know about Kingston Jamaica

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When you think about Jamaica, you can be forgiven for thinking about sand, sea, and sun. After all, that is the dominant image of Jamaica that big tourism businesses want you to see. However, if you want to go beyond the coastal natural beauty to exploring the culture and life of Jamaica, your first stop should be our capital city, Kingston. For the intellectually inquisitive, I present in this post this list of 3 things to know about Kingston city. 1: Pirates "Ahoy, mate"  If you are crazy about pirates, then you may want to know that Jamaica served as one of the homes of the notorious seventeenth-century buccaneers, otherwise known in pop culture as the pirates. And if you watched the movie "Pirates of the Caribbean", you may want to learn about the real history of the people and the setting that is fictionalized and glorified in film. If so, Kingston is your destination of choice. The city is next to Port Royal, the home of buccaneers or pirates like the
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About me and why I am starting this blog

I am going to be honest with you. I am starting this blog for two reasons: 1) to share my passion for my birth city and the place that nurtured me for my early years and my university years 2) to make money as a potential travel consultant to those visiting or planning to live in Kingston. In essence, I want to share my passion for Kingston city, the Jamaican edition, and hopefully, get paid for it.  With that in mind, I want to offer those who visit this blog information that I hope you find useful, relevant, and even informative about my special city. I plan to post at least once a month on events in Kingston or historical information or other cultural information about this special city. This creative city of Kingston is home to great music and several fantastic genres of music. It may not have the beaches, but it is a good city. And you will learn more about it from me within the next few months.  I also promise you that I will post credible sources and links rega
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