|
Courts, KFC and Expensive wine |
|
Rain again today, we were planning to go into Mandeville again today but the hand brake has broken on Dad's gellopy and 'Misa Wayne' a come fix it, "Don't worry, me soon come." He comes with a new cable but has to go away again to get another part. What's amazing about the whole thing isn't that Misa Wayne turns up the same day, much less the same week, it the fact that he can pop into town and get parts for a 20 year car off the shelf, fit and only charge £20! Eventually Misa Wayne get the car fixed and we go into town.
Bruv decides that mum needs a new computer chair. Mum and Bruv finds one they like in of all places, 'Courts', the company that went bust in England own a lot of money but still going strong here in Jamaica. I look around the shop and most of the 'White goods' are American... and they're big, ugly and very unsophisticated.... robust? Now buying a ex-display chair would be one of the simplest things in the world but this Jamaica and time or 'quick' take on a different relativity here. After about ten minutes I get board and remember I only had toast 'since a marnin' and venture off on my own to look for the KFC. I'm gonna have a Jamaican KFC before I leave and now's me chance.
Legends, over exaggeration and rose
tinted glasses.
The meal duly comes and I notice the cup for the drink is supplied empty. Nearby is one of hose help yourself drinks machines but this one has much more choices that the ones I've seen in England. There's something called "Ting", I'll try that. Ting tastes like angry fizzy grapefruit, very angry fizzy grapefruit! I shudder and try a couple of others, most of them turn out to have very bright colours, are very sweet and must be dripping with 'E numbers'... I end up with a very red drink diluted down 10:1 with 7 up and it's still too strong. I amble back to the car only to find Bruv still trying to buy the chair in Courts 30 minutes later!?!?!? I tuck into the KFC.....
The Famous bowl is small bits of KFC with a Bar B Q sauce severed on mashed potato and corn, very nice. I only have a little of it as were going out for a meal this evening. The 'Spicy' KFC turns out to be nothing more than Zinnger stuff we have back home. (I save the rest for later or tomorrow but as soon as it gets into the house it's reheated and served to Aunt Mavis and Sharon without even asking.... You can never argue with your parents, they have the trump card of having done everything for you First!) Anyway still waiting for bruv who's still in Courts 45 minutes now and this after agreeing to purchase the said chair with the cashier! eventually Bruv shouts from the shop to come 'help Im carry the chair to de cyar.' We get the chair home and mum loves it, result! Nice one bruv!
Nothing to do in the afternoon so Bruv get out his Tantrix set and challenges me to complete all ten hands, sets, rounds?!? I do it in less than an hour much to my bruvs annoyance. Rock on! (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tantrix)
|
|
We get to the restaurant It's really weird at first seeing black people fully staff a Chinese restaurant but then I remember where I am. We are shown to a table (a table is vaguely pointed at) and we sit down. The lighting is subdued, very subdued, subdued to the point that no one can read the menus! The waiter Tells us what we want for the starters and we all tuck in, the food is very salty, yes I know I'm captain Salt but even I notice it. The waiter then asks, 'want we want for main course?' and we all reel off what we want and the waiter starts to make off when Beverly asks if he has the order right, (the waiter doesn't have a note book!), he reels off the complete order and only makes a couple of mistakes, which are quickly and nosily corrected and he says "yes, yes, me know man!" Mr P orders a bottle wine for himself and his wife and everybody takes a glassful, 'Just fe taste it man!' The meal is wonderful and lots of happy conversations and laughter. The bill comes and Bruv goes straight into business mode and starts mentally calculating everything. A strange look comes across his face. He gets up from the table and look closer at the bill under a nearby light. My brother and I had pre agreed we'd pay for the meal but that was before everyone else is invited but bruv says we're still in budget. Mr P says 'he'll pay for the wine'. Bruv, ".....er.... the bottle comes to $3,000 JMD (£24)! - silence then UPROAR from everyone! - Moral, always check the prices before ordering anything anywhere! (We check the price later in a supermarket, £5.... 480%, that's some mark up! )
|
|
Beverly rings to say she's home safely indoors and we head off into town. Norma points out a 'Jerk' restaurant and I make arrangements with Norma to have lunch there before I go home. We then find ourselves at "I Scream" (good grief!) parlour and I have the Devon stout and Rum & Raisin, NICE STUFF! I hope I don't get breathalised on the way home! No, I'm not driving, Eazy No!. It's a really pleasant night and we stand outside the ice cream parlour chatting, laughing and comparing Jamaican and British life.... it would have been even more pleasant if were weren't in a busy petrol station in the middle of town! No, but it was very pleasant really and I could have stayed for hours. We get home about 10pm and I put the telly.
|
|
More about Jamaican TV There's an X factor type talent show on TV at the moment with some truly off key signing. The girls are "winding up dem self with their bottom out-a-doors." The fellas look like they've been dressed by blind fashion designers and / or have been to a joke dark glasses shop! The speech on this program is 'potwa' at it's worst and I find it difficult to follow. These seems to a few religious revival meetings on over Easter, come get your self healed or at least have a good old fashioned 'jump up!' - I think they are religious revival meetings, from the adverts, they could easily be illegal raves! Anther advert is for tasty cheese, do you like tasty cheese? Then buy "Tastee Cheese!" in s tin.Yes that really is the name of it! They don't go much for cheese over here and it occupies very little shelf space even in large supermarkets. They do like a cheese called 'processed', which even I think taste like plastic and I'm the junk food king ..... but I still like it! Very little processed food here in Jamaica, nearly all meals are cooked from scratch.
|
|
Observation |
|
|
