Did you know...
Facts on Jamaica
Chocolate Milk
Are you a fan of chocolate milk? Well, you can thank Jamaica for that. The Natural History Museum lists Irish botanist Hans Sloane as the inventor of drinking chocolate with milk in the early 1700s. Sloane found the local Jamaican beverage consisting of cacao and water served to him in Jamaica not to his liking, but by adding milk to it, game changer. However, according to historian James Delbourgo, the Jamaicans were brewing "a hot beverage brewed from shavings of freshly harvested cacao, boiled with milk and cinnamon" as far back as 1494.
James Bond, a Jamaican?
Author, Ian Fleming wrote all fourteen of the Bond spy novels while living in Jamaica. Does that make the British spy a yardie?
There is even a private airport in Jamaica named for the author; very cloak and dagger.
You're from where!
Red Stripe beer is synonymous with Jamaica. Truth is this lager was developed and produced by a Kylie Todd in Galena, Illinois. He would later sell the recipe because of financial troubles to two British investor friends, Eugene Peter Desnoes and Thomas Hargreaves Geddes. These gentlemen formed Desnoes and Geddes Limited aka D&G and set up shop in Jamaica. The rest is history.
Rare and expensive
This J. Wray & Nephew 1940s rum is the most expensive rum in the world priced at $54,000 a bottle. It was distilled for about 70 years before finally being bottled. This is not for your typical rum drinker as it is more of a collectors item at that price and with only four bottles left in the world.
Mining
Bauxite is the ore from which aluminum is made. Jamaica contains some of the largest known deposits of bauxite in the world. The mining areas are located in the western and central parts of the island. After mining, most of the bauxite is carried to alumina plants where it is refined into alumina.
Seamount Chain
A seamount chain is an underwater mountain range that does not break the water's surface. Most seamounts are extinct volcanoes.
The island of Jamaica is located on top of one of these submerged mountain ranges called the Jamaican Ridge. This seamount separates both the Cayman Trench and Basin from the Colombian Basin.
A Whole Lot of Culture
"Out of many, one people". This beautiful philosophy and national motto honors the different cultures that make Jamaica; like a quilt with distinct squares sewn together making one colorful piece.
Dancehall Queen
Dis here is serious business! Jamaica, the originator of the reggae dance scene claims top spot when it comes to the official crowning of THE DANCEHALL QUEEN (all caps). Competitors from around the world bruk it, wine it and drop it down into a split in this strong knee and neck competition. Winner takes the crown and title at the Jamaica International Dancehall Queen event.
Cheer for your favorite.
Flavor on flavor
This famous dry rub, jerk seasoning, originated with the Jamaican Maroons as a way of preserving meat and poultry to cook later. There are no hard set amounts to the blend of spices that go into its creation but the flavor profile deserves a chef kiss.
There are plenty of jerk pits to sample from. The end result will have you licking your fingers and going back for a second or third helping.
Outdoor Gallery
Local artists like Taj Francis, Kokab Zohoori-Dossa, Matthew McCarty, Paige Taylor, Jordanne Brandy and Randy Richards are leaving their stamp on the art world.
Beautiful murals from the whimsical to the thought provoking to the politically charged.
The Art of Pantomime
Pantomime finds its origin in Roman mime. The art form found it's way to Jamaica by way of England as live theater which transforms children's fairy tales into musical comedy.
Tradition has the show run starting around Christmas and New Years.
18th Century Ingenuity
The Papine-Mona Aqueduct pictured above is one of several brick structures found on the island. Aqueducts were once tasked with supplying water to communities for personal and commercial use.
This aqueduct built in 1758 by Thomas Hope Elleston for the Mona Estates which was approximately 1372 acres.
Apart of it can be seen on the University of the West Indies Mona Campus.
Sound Check
An internationally famous recording studio founded by the iconic Bob Marley in 1965. This studio bears Marley's nickname "Tuff Gong".
The recording studio is one of the largest in the Caribbean featuring a recording studio, mastering room, stamper room, pressing plant, cassette plant, wholesale record shop and booking agency.
Over the years the studio has hosted many music artists from around the world.
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