MEETING A JAMAICAN ARTIST

               OJAH
Lars told us to walk down the road and see the garden art at one of the houses. Since I like garden art and most others kinds of art, I was anxious to take the walk.
Walking up to the impressive gate of this home made us itching to see more. As a man was passing, on his bike, I asked if he knew who lived there. He said a friend of his and he is just down the road, he will go and get him. We waited, peeking through the gate, snapping pictures, admiring the beautiful flowers that were gracing the inside and outside of the stone wall that was standing guard over this complex.
Soon coming down the road was the man on the bike with his friend.

The owner of the house was OJAH, also known as BUNNY. I preceded to tell him how beautiful his gate was and how much we were enjoying all the flowers in his yard. He was very quiet and gentle. Ojah then invited us into his yard. As we followed him through the gate, through his gardens, passed the four cottages he is in the process of building, back to the home he built for himself five years ago, you could hear the passion in his voice.
He loves to create, make something out of nothing, scrounge for stones, wood, old signs, doors, things people throw away and turn them into art. Turning everything he touches into a piece that catches the eye and is different from anything you've ever seen.
Ojah has made almost everything in his home and is now building four cottages to rent. Most of the furniture was made by him, from found wood.
All pictures I'm posting are works by Ojah.

I took dozens of pictures. I'm posting some of them so you can get a feeling of what we saw. Although the pictures do not do justice to what Ojah has created! It truly was a garden/complex that was tranquil and majestic. ENJOY

Each gate and door in Ojah's complex was unique and designed by him. Each one was a different color which added interest to finding out what was on the other side of it. Most pulls were made from pieces of driftwood or ropes.
Stone was everywhere. He is now starting a stone rail for the porch of one of the cottages. Each stone is flat and he will drill through each attaching one to another with wire. Unique.

The dining room above was entiely made by Ojah, walls with shutters, stone walls, dining set and cieling lamp.  The red porch is on one of the cottages. The sticks coming out of the left wall are really the porch light. Sticks and driftwood are used throughout the complex, readily available on an island.
Most lamps and floorlamps are made from sticks. An exception was the kitchen chandelier~~made with a wooden base and bottles. I love it!

Ojah's front porch was full of art and pieces that he is working on. Every gate on his complex was a different color and style, each unique with details. The art work above the doors in his home caught my eye, something you ordinarily don't see.

The large leaves in the picture below are hiding an outdoor shower! So clever and so refreshing on a warm island!

 Enlarged is the roof to the left trying to show the detail. The palm fronds used for thatching the roofs at Ojah's have all been braided. A lot of work that Ojah had a local braider do.

Ojah's hidden paradise is called DE ZEN~~zen is a way of being. This is a place of tranquility, comfort, seeing things without distortion and peace.

Thank you Ojah for the tour, the insight of making something from nothing, and your company.

THE CRAFT MARKET AND THE BEACH ~ NEGRIL, JAMAICA

          JAMAICA AT IT'S FINEST ~ ~ ~ COLORS ABOUND ~ ~ ~ YAH MON

We walked and walked and walked some more during the days spent in Jamaica. Taxi's were available, but whizzing past everything, in a taxi, has you missing out on the details of the city and the culture.
One day we did taxi to the only fast food restaurant in town, Burger King. Not to eat, but as the landmark to our way to the Craft Market and onto the beach.
The Negril Craft Market is a feast for an artist's eye. Colors of the rainbow everywhere! Yes, there were the usual type souvenirs, T-shirts and knick-a-knacks. A closer look has a person drooling over the paintings. The artist proud and accepting compliments. The carvings, being made as you watch, with a small chisel and hammer, by another artist, willing to have his picture taken.
Bags, rugs, wraps and blankets, handmade by the locals catch your eye and the colors jump out screaming, "Take me home!"

           WE WALKED THE BEACH TO THE RESTAURANT BAR ~ ~ 23/7

Called 23/7 --- they close one hour to clean. We found this place last year and after talking to some people, found out this is a place you can go to sit and relax, without the pressure of continually buying drinks.
After walking the entire beach looking for the place we needed a drink! We alos bought oranges, from the man with the basket of oranges that walks the beach. They were very sweet and refreshing.
We just happened to pick the day that an International Volleyball Tournament
was taking place. We talked to a few of the guys playing and found out two of them were from California. Being from the states we cheered for them. They were really good and won against the Cayman Island guys. When they played the Jamaicans everyone's true colors popped and the Jamaicans won by a landslide! Still fun to watch and relax, talking to others relaxing also.

The last hurricane dropped many trees.  Some continued to grow.  This one on the beach made for a beautiful picture.
Below~~~one of the cute cottages across the road from the beach.

RASTAS

WHAT IS A RASTA?

Rastas are people that accept the existence of a single god, called Jah, who has incarnated on earth several times, including in the form of Jesus.
Rastas are not only black people, although it does have roots in black empowerment and  back to Africa movements. Many Rastas welcome a multi-ethnic Rastafari movement.

Ganja is a strain of marijuana viewed by Rastas as a spiritual purifier, and it is smoked to cleanse the body and open the mind. Smoking ganja is common but not required.
Many Rastas limit their diets to what they consider pure food. Most are vegetarians, although some eat certain kinds of fish. (Bet not a Wisconsin Friday Fish Fry!)
Musician Bob Marley is the most well known Rasta, and many of his songs have Rastafari themes. Reggae music, for which Bob Marley is famous for playing, originated among blacks in Jamaica, and thus is unsurprisingly deeply interwoven with Rastafari culture.

We came in contact with many Rastas in Jamaica, and many people that consider themselves Rasta, in their heart. When asking a Rasta what makes them so, the answer usually comes with the words PEACE, LOVE, UNITY. Some also explained to us that they ate fruits, vegetables, and some fish.

          SOME RASTAS WE MET IN JAMAICA

                                                              Stomach, who got us a calm taxi
                                                             driver for the trip back to Montego
                                                              Bay.
Sis and Lars, our Hosts.

                                                                                                    Rasta selling herbs downtown.

Ojah/aka/Bunny**an artist
                                                       
                                                     
Young man we met one day, on one of

                                                       our walks. His hair was neatly wound  
                                                         around his head. Most Rastas have
                                                         dreads started when they are young.
                                                        It is not mandatory to have dreads. This young man's dreads came to his calves when down. His hair was very neatly wrapped around his head. Many times the dreads are put up into a colorful hat like Pooka has on below. These hats are chrocheted and are plentiful at the Craft Market.

Poocka-Rasta, but also believes in being a Cosmic Force.

On the right is Arville and his granddaughter (posing with me.) Arville is a true

Rasta in what he believes and eats. He owns a small bar in the neighborhood.

Winnie, an interior designer, was one of the few women we met while walking. She lives down the road from where we stayed. Winnie has a beautiful garden and she was so kind to take us on a tour of it. Winnie lives with her dog, Babes, who is a great protector.

WHERE WE STAYED IN NEGRIL, JAMAICA

On the West end of Negril you will see the lighthouse, naturally the highest point in Negril. Walking down the road farther west passing the lighthouse, passing the Whoopee bar (which is an outdoor thatched construction, with hammocks to relax in and goats to watch,) we continued to find Hylton Ave.
The road turns to gravel, the walk is easy. It's sunny, the air smells fresh and the scenery is green. We soon find ourselves at the gate of White Bird.
This being the home of Sis Hylton and Lars Anderson. The rental home they built next to their home is where we will be staying while in Jamaica.
       The lively colors on the house are Rasta colors. Yellow-Red-Green

                          Our Host and Hostess~~Sis and Lars

Goats are plentiful in Negril. We met them while walking, whether up the paths in the cliffs or walking into town. Sis has a nanny and a kid in the yard, in back of the house. They graze across the road, in the woods, during the day.

Some goats come in herds, as those coming down the road with their herder. MaryLynne and I stepped off of the road to let them pass.

Sis's yard is abundant with plants, trees (many bearing fruits), flowers and vegetable plants.  Amazingly, many grow as bushes, like the cocoa plant and the poinsetta. Parrots flew in screaming each day. I waited patiently to catch the picture above, he seems to be looking down on me from his perch in the tree.
                                                      
                                                               This sign on the water treatment
                                                             building: THE DROP YOU WASTE
                                                                      IS THE DROP YOU'LL THIRST FOR

Lars and his buddy Sizzler. Sizzler was a constant on our porch at night, watching, working, keeping tabs on everything that moved in the yard and on the road outside the gate.

Walking down the lane to catch a taxi into town (Sis and Lars) was an adventure in itself. We would undoubtedly meet other people. Some also going to the corner to wait for a taxi, some children going to school; one woman carrying a large pan of pumpkin pudding to sell at her friend's store.

Many men on bikes, some on motorscooters, others just walking, walking, walking, to where--maybe nowhere.

The house we stayed in while in Negril, Jamaica. Interested in information on renting this home in Jamaica? Email me: nancramer@hotmail.com