Dear Jamaica. It’s been a while. The euphoria from last fall’s trip to Jamaica has died down and I’m back to the daily grind.
Since I moved to Japan in 2015, I’ve been asked many questions about Jamaica that have left me stumped. Sure, I know about Bob Marley (a little) and that coffee grows in the Blue Mountains, you know regular, degular stuff. But I am embarrassed to admit that I am ignorant when it comes to the deeper questions about Jamaican history and culture.
Living abroad has opened my eyes to just how information-starved I am about my own country and people. What’s the story behind the birth of Reggae – the Jamaican musical genre that has the whole world rocking? What’s the real history of the Maroons? The Morant Bay Rebellion? How did Jerk come about?
There are places in Jamaica I’ve never visited, food I’ve never eaten, activities I’ve never tried. Why? Well, like most Jamaicans, I was too focused on making a living to enjoy the paradise I lived in. While tourists frolic, locals are busy trying to make it from day to day, the majority lacking the time and resources to enjoy glorious Negril sunsets, pristine beaches on the North Coast, adventures on the South Coast, or nightclubbing in Kingston. It’s not that we don’t want to, but as someone recently tweeted “I may live where you vacation, but I can only afford to vacation where you live”.
I’m going to change that. From now on, tripping around Jamaica is high on my priority list. Travelling the world is great but nothing beats travelling the nooks and crannies of my own country. I’m making it my mission to become the ultimate local explorer. I want to immerse myself in the stories of old Jamaica as much as I want to enjoy the beaches and the waterfalls. I want to be a dry land tourist.
The Jamaica that has the whole world in awe shouldn’t be out of reach of ordinary Jamaicans. Sadly, a lot of it is. When the choice is buying groceries or ziplining in the mountains, you’re going to choose the former. Now that I’m able to vacation where I’m from, it’s time for me to discover the intricacies of the alluring Jamaican brand. It’s doubtful that I’ll ever be able to afford the Jamaica I see on Instagram and in travel magazines. But over the next few years, I hope that I’ll increase in knowledge and appreciation for the history and the culture of Jamaica land we love.
This was a really interesting post. I can totally understand how you didn’t know every detail about Jamaica. It’s the same for most people I think. I’m from Scotland and I get the same thing whenever I travel abroad. People expect me to know about clans and tartans etc, but it doesn’t work like that. As you say, we’re too busy trying to make a living. Sometimes the tourists learn things about a country that those who are native to that place don’t.