Good Tuesday morning. This is a shot in White Horses, St. Thomas, just as the sun was setting.

The other day, during a wander in the downtown area, we spontaneously ducked into a beautiful old church on a quiet back lane. I forget the name, but it is a Presbyterian church. The outside is fairly innocuous, belying the beauty inside. The pews are perfectly maintained dark wood, there are still plaques on the walls discussing the founders of the church (colonists, of course) and exquisite stained windows. There is also an organ that spans nearly two stories high and a marble pulpit for those who take to preach to the flock. We walked around for a bit, taking in this quiet oasis, as a lone woman took down Christmas decorations. Amid the bustle and frenzied consumerism of the downtown area, this is an amazing retreat, regardless of your religious (or lack of beliefs).

As Canada, and most of the US, is in a deep freeze, 340 Jamaicans have landed there as part of a foreign workers exchange program. This group of men will participate in this program as temporary farm workers, where they will be employed for greenhouse crop production, food processing and tobacco plants. Falling under the Canadian Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program, the men will work for eight months.

According to Jamaica’s Agricultural Minister, Labour and Social Security, Derrick Kellier, this program is part of the country’s Jamaica-Canada Employment Program, which contributes Cdn $15.5 million to the Jamaican economy. In 2014 alone, 7,952 Jamaicans benefitted from this program, 90 per cent of them were involved in farm work, while the remainder fell under the “low skill and skilled worker program.” The Minister reminded the “batch” of males (this is how the government press release referred to them) to mind regulations:

The Minister noted that 20 per cent of the workers are new employees, while the remaining 80 per cent are ‘returnees’ or requested workers, noting that “this is a testament to the hard and dedicated work provided by Jamaican workers abroad.”

He implored the new cohort to continue being professional while on the job, so that the programme can be expanded to provide opportunities for more unemployed Jamaicans.

“I am urging you too, to observe regulations as much as possible for your safety and health. I advise you all not to breach rules (such as absence without leave), which will disqualify you and other Jamaicans in the future,” he said.

Good luck to them as they embark on some difficult work during the coldest part time of the year in Canada.

Central post office mid-day, mid-week. Not too busy, not much going on.

This is the Horizon Adult Remand Centre on the outskirts of downtown Kingston.

This is sign in downtown Kingston. There are so many of these- beautiful, vintage signs that sit atop decaying buildings or painted on walls.

I was walking downtown the other day with a friend on this back lane. I wouldn’t normally walk down back lanes, but my friend had worked downtown for a year and knew this particular lane was safe. She showed me a gorgeous old Presbyterian church (we went in and looked around for a few minutes and saw one woman was taking down Christmas decorations); a fire-engine red rum bar and several businesses (the owners urged us to come in and look). Just after the church was this mural. It is beautiful and thought-provoking to me. When was this created? Why? Was it part of a community renewal project? Whose idea was this? What were their intentions? Why is it in disrepair? There are so many scenes like this, especially in the downtown area. Empty storefronts, abandoned carts that once sold food or other goods. They represent someone’s hope for a better life, a bid to start a business and earn some more money. I wonder why they failed. I wonder what happened to them. I have always discussed Jamaica’s entrepreneurial spirit. There is no shortage of that here, nor creativity. I guess it is just a matter of sustaining it, which requires a stable government, strong infrastructure, a safe environment and predictable financial markets, all of which are lacking in Jamaica still, to a certain extent all.

A busy day at Hellshire beach. Happy Friday!

Happy New Year’s Day from Hellshire Beach. This lovely spot outside of the city was packed today with families and groups of friends enjoying a beautiful day off. The vendors were working hard. selling everything from bagged shrimp to drinks to inflatable toys to massage to horseback rides. There was a gorgeous breeze, the water just perfect and an assortment of good music blaring from various speakers. A great way to start the new year.

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Photo courtesy of canada.com

It is the New Year already in Sydney, Australia, my place of birth, so Happy New Year! On a personal note, this has been one of the most eventful (beautiful and challenging both) years of my life on many levels. Although I believe in living one day at a time, and that each day has equal significance, I am happy to embark on a new year. 2015 will be a good year with heavy blessings for all, I believe. Enjoy your day and I want to express my deep gratitude to everyone who reads and engages with my blog.