Jamaica Me Crazy

We are back home and our vacation to Jamaica was perfect. Really. Perfect. We couldn't have asked for more. We stayed in Montego Bay at a magnificent resort. 10 out of 10. And that's saying a lot considering how much G and I have traveled - alone and together. We also drove to Ocho Rios to climb Dunn's River Falls. I was nervous (ok.. downright scared!) about the climb but with my aqua socks and the friendly Jamaican guides offering their hands for stability, I made the climb. G on the other hand, loved every minute of it. He couldn't have been happier to leave his wife with the guides, to explore the water falls on his own! The most exciting part of our vacation was the result of a fast friendship with one of the chefs from our resort. After discussing my favorite recipes and of course, raving about the jerk cuisine, he invited us to go shopping at a local outdoor market. We accepted and decided to meet the next morning outside the gates of our resort. Well, to our surprise, instead of driving in a car, we took a cab, which was actually a mini bus, with about 10 seats. And on our way to the market, we picked up about 15 people....yeah, think of a can of sardines. Ha! Crazy. We made it to the market and I was overwhelmed with the amount of goods sold. There were so many vendors haggling over prices and so many exotic fruits and vegetables. Our friend led us around, explaining everything and of course, helping me buy the necessary spices to make a mean jerk meal. The only bad part about shopping at the market was that I didn't take any photos! It was so crowded and we were moving so fast - not to mention, we already stuck out like sore thumbs (especially G!) - I decided to just enjoy the moment. I think our friend appreciated that too. Afterwards, he invited us to his house, where we met his uncle, an artist, and enjoyed a herbal drink together, that he said would
"keep da lead in da pencil" for G!

Here are the spices. I'm looking forward to experimenting:)