Poem-tree Culture: Dis Poem founder

We've previously mentioned the Dis Poem festival coming up, but in this Gleaner feature, Takura "spills the beans" about the motivation and formation of the event

http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20120325/arts/arts1.html

Italain Job: Uniting North & South in Portie

When Piedmont native Gianmaria Pedroli first set foot in Portland, he fell victim to a familiar malady - he was spellbound.

"Negril and Mobay nice," he declares, " but I never see anything like this place." The effect was so gripping that Pedroli decided to stay, and that meant he needed to support himself. So, what's a well-thinking, northern Italian man to do in such circumstances? - Open a pizza joint, "My sister in Italy has a bakery, so this is natural progression for me."

menu fold

Natural progression ,but some unnaturally hard work and effort to get the place up and running. but since October of last year, The Italian Job has been serving customers of all types from its location in downtown Portie. Though Portlanders are not strangers to pizza, Pedroli has helped ease the transition (and cover economic and stylistic bases), with an interesting "dual-style" approach. "By the slice, I sell the Neapolitan (or southern) style but I also do my traditional Tuscan style for whole pizzas".

A section of Downtown Pt Antonio

its working "Little by little" thus far, he says and adds that, at this point, his local traffic exceeds that of the overseas visitors. he further balances the menu with several budget items (cheesy dogs, etc) that start as low as J$100 to keep customers coming in and the cash register ringing.

Redroli works diligently with his staff of six to keep service high at the sit-down/take-out combo. "I mix in the Jamaican and Italian way of working," he says.

He is still revelling in the incidence of "first-time thrill”when people discover his food and enjoy it not having tried it before, and is now anticipating the introduction of delivery service. "I bought a small scooter; there is demand out there, especially among working people." he will also shortly introduce dessert. 

Italian Job is open Everday till 10 pm; 29 Harbour Street; call:291-4310

Navy Island Clean-Up II: Through the Vines to the Cliffs

The numbers were slightly reduced from the previous outing, but not the energy and communal spirits that pervaded the first Navy Island Clean-up over a week ago.

This time around, heavy overnight rains rendered some tasks unfeasible, but work nonetheless continued apace on bringing some semblance of order to the fabled resort island.

By the time the first wave of volunteers set foot on the shore, the sun was fully dominant, and only the sodden walls and floors of the main building provided any evidence of the previous downpour.

With leaves and debris collected and even some new planting in progress, a small band headed west to the beach, passing by the former hideaways of the rich and famous, now uniformly in ruins, and the massive concrete basin that awaits resuscitation as the swimming pool.

Machete, weed whacker and chainsaw-armed crews meanwhile set about removing excess branches and limbs adjacent tot he main resort house

this writer then took the opportunity to trek through the dense overgrowth to reach to the honeycomb cliffs at the island's northern end, a vantage that opened up the entire Folly area and the peninsula to the east.

Not unlike some dramatic scene in an  adventure movie, of the type Errol Flynn frequently starred in, with the crashing surf, providing the soundtrack.

Reverie ended, it was soon time to board the boat, say farewell to Navy Island and head back to the Errol Flynn Marina. but the separation is merely temporary. We'll be reunited on Saturday, March 24, when the next clean-up is scheduled. Why don't YOU join us?

Pimento Lodge: Commanding The Heights

travel along the sweep of Portland's  spectacular Long Bay and the surf, wave after wave of liquid azure crystal, dominates. The sea hurls itself against the accepting shoreline.

Journey up the short, steep hill that runs off the main "square" however, ans a different perspective emerges. The water appears calmer, almost as if one could walk on it


From the balcony or from the expansive pool deck of the Pimento Lodge hotel, if you look down at the Caribbean, closes your  eyes, then open them again, its not hard to have visions of some Mediterranean hilltop villa say, in Italy or Greece.


Billed as "a boutique, family run hotel born of a Jamaican/German partnership" the resort first took shape just about six years ago, when owner Lloyd edwards and his wife returned home after living for many years in the UK as well as in Germany


He had no prior experience in the hospitality industry, but he knew he had a gem of a property on his hands that could be transformed, with not inconsiderable amounts of capital and  sweat equity, into an attractive resort.

Six years later, with the aforementioned stunning poolside panorama, Afro-inspired artwork (by artist Katapul) and eight "suite-sized" guest rooms, Pimento Lodge stands ready to welcome all looking to add that critical extra dimension to the splendid but  well-worn "sun, sea, sand" vacation experience.


Visitors can choose from any number of accommodation packages, from room only, to all-inclusive. and hey, as long as you don't test the wicked undertow, sun, sea and sand is a short hop down the hill if you still desire.


Pimento Lodge can be reached at:

info@pimentolodge.com

Tel. Jamaica + 876 882 5068

Tel. U.K + 44 (0) 7899 801118

Tel Germany + 49 176 764 764 45

Pimento Lodge Resort,
Rose Garden, Long Bay,
Portland

Surf's Up, Part II

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DC2c6dGDLRo&feature=relmfu

Came across this in a "semi-random search" (if such a thing can be) of Portland links. Check it out. the guys are doing a lot with little.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DC2c6dGDLRo&feature=relmfu

DeMontevins Lodge: History at Ease in the Now

When Britain's Prince Harry visited the island recently, there were accolades and criticisms and outrage, and expressions of mild surprise.
Some of the surprise was registered in Portland, where the venerable DeMontevins Lodge hotel has made almost a tradition of hosting visiting royals, not least of all young harry's Grand-mum, Queen Elizabeth II, on several of her previous visits to our shores.
And who could blame them. The landmark on Fort George Street, with its iconic red brick facade, has been attracting visitors for well over a century. while the area around its ivory-plated front gate sign has been showing increasing signs of blight, the DeMontevins has retained its burnish, even if the overall economy seems to have quietened. The current owner/management dynasty bought the property from its prior owners over two generations ago and have been running it since.

the red brick facade               

The Demontevins building once hosted Port Antonio's original post office.

dining room

These days, in addition to overseas and out-of-town visitors, the hotel hosts weekly live music showcases and big-screen sports viewing in its revamped Tiki bar.

And the owners intend to be making a fair bit of noise - in a good way, of course - in attracting more locals and visitors to the trademark facility and to allow persons to savour the difference in ambiance and service that comes from being well-established and accustomed to rolling out the red - or purple - carpet for dignitaries.


You can reach them at the following:

 info@demontevinslodgehotel.com

Main Telephone: 1(876) 993-2604

Tel & Fax : 1(876) 715-5987

Cel : 1(876) 797-7445

Boston in the News(II): Surf - and School - Is Up

The Jamaica Surfing Association recently received a letter from a few of its members from the North Coast chapter who are seeking support in the form of a grant in order to  fund the construction of  a school near the beach that would benefit children in the Boston Bay area of Portland.

According to Denyse and Tristan English, once children in the area become comfortable with the sea in this sea-side community, they become excited to learn to surf. Therefore, the fund would allow them to combine the children’s love for the beach and love for learning by building their school in a permanent location near to the beach.

“One reason it seems like a great idea to link up with Jamaican Surfing Association is that JSA offers scholarships to young surfers with academic promise. We’d like to give the youth of Boston more opportunities to win those scholarships, accomplishing high marks with the help of our school, which will give both academic tutoring and opportunities to learn to surf,” said Denyse and Trystan.

The duo aim to accomplish this by promoting youth empowerment through a focus on a broad educational program. The course will begin with the ABCs of reading and writing, and cover topics such as Jamaican history, geography, arts and music, environmentalism, nutritional awareness, and physical fitness that focuses on water safety and surfing.

The program, which is currently being run outdoors on the beach, has has a significant impact on the lives of young students. “The students have shown loads of love and dedication towards the school. Children who haven’t had much experience with the sea have learned to become familiar with it by having lessons on the beach, which involved swimming tutorials, diving, discovering creatures and just playing in the waves,” says the duo.

Although these Portland youths enjoy this environment and are eager to learn, Denyse and Tristan are experiencing several challenges that are affecting the smooth operation of their education program.

“We’ve been through tough challenges at times, so that we had to put the school on hold for a few weeks but the children found this unacceptable, and they came to get me at home three days in a row, straight after school! They expressed their desire to study every single day. Three times a week is not enough for them! This is difficult, because at the moment we don’t have our own space. Weather and time constraints don’t always permit us to meet on the beach, so we’ve been having lessons on the grass near a busy main road.”

Both Denyse and Tristan are motivated by the dedication and thirst for knowledge that they have seen in their students, and, despite recent challenges, are committed to the development of Jamaican youth. “Our ambition is to fulfill our students’ desires; they are thirsty for knowledge, curious about the world, and they deserve to have the opportunity to learn! We feel we simply can’t let them down.”

“Boston Bay is a place that naturally invites children of all ages to learn to play in the water. It is also a perfect spot to nurture the next generation of Jamaican Surf Association champions. We want everyone to be able to try surfing, but for those who display talent and determination, we want to help them attain their goals of JSA scholarships and team membership. We will focus on the whole child, so that surf training doesn’t take priority over school work and studies. We want the surfing youths of Boston Bay to be well-rounded: literate, knowledgeable about the geography of Jamaica and other places they may visit in the world, able to handle money and travel, as well as being great surfers. We want them to be active citizens, who are a credit to their community, who will one day come back to help the next group of children coming up behind them.”

For more information, or to see how you can help with this cause, contact the Jamaica Surfing Association at 876.750.0103 or email jasurfas@hotmail.com

From the Jamaica Surfing Assn via surfgirlja