By Tanya Batson-Savage, Staff Reporter
Colonel Frank Lumsden of the Charlestown Maroon Council (left), smiles at his 'apt pupil' on the abeng, Ainsley Henriques, Managing Director of Heritage Tours (right). Robert Stephens, Chairman, Jamaica Conservation and Development Trust, watches. - Ian Allen/Staff Photographer
TRADITIONAL FOODS, the charm of the mountains and Maroon history are set to combine forces on Emancipation Day, August 1, at 'Fe We Sinting', which is set for Bowden Pen, St. Thomas.
Set in the hills of St. Thomas, above the Rio Grande Valley, 'Fe We Sinting' is an annual community fair created by Bowden Pen residents.
The fair offers a feast of crayfish, dukunnu, run dung, janga, fufu, roast yam and manish water 'washed down' with the sounds of kumina and mento. This year, the festival will also promote the restored Cuhna Cuhna Pass. The trail, which was destroyed by Hurricane Gilbert, had been used by the Windward Maroons in their fight against the British. The historical trail, along with 'Fe We Sinting', was launched last Friday at the Hilton Kingston Hotel in New Kingston.
Although it has been closed for 15 years, the Cunha Cunha Pass provides an access route from Morant Point, St. Thomas, to Titchfield, Portland. Its restoration was facilitated by the Bowden Pen Farmers Association, with financial aid from Environmental Foundation of Jamaica. Cunha Cunha Pass is also a part of the Blue and John Crow Mountains national reserves.
The restoration of the Cunha Cunha Pass is a part of the Bowden Pen Farmers' Association's attempt to rise beyond adversity. According to Linnette Wilks, the Project Manager of Bowden Pen, the loss of the trail deprived the farmers of a very important route for their products. Wilks informed The Gleaner that the development of the trail is a part of an eco-tourism development plan geared at preserving and educating about the nation's natural reserves.
MAROON CULTURE
'Fe We Sinting' will feature Maroon elders talking about their history and culture, Wilks says. Although she stated that there will be "no significant visual motif of the culture" at 'Fe We Sinting', Wilks argued that the Maroon culture is significant to the trail and will be treated as such. She argued that the fair will be aimed at the entire family. "It is very important that the children in particular are kept in touch with their history," she added.
Ambassabeth Cabins, a four-cottage facility at Bowden Pen, was created to facilitate stay-over possibilities for those who want to hike along the trail. The farmers' association is offering three packages for the Emancipation Day weekend. There is a three-day package which features a return trip from Kingston from Thursday to Sunday. Thursday night to Friday morning will feature a midnight walk along the trail, dubbed 'Walk in the Footsteps of the Ancestors'. While the three-day package will cost $6,500.00 per person, one can opt for the midnight walk and Fe We Sinting for $4,000.00 per person. Both packages are all-inclusive.
'Fe We Sinting' costs $50.00 with shuttles being offered from Morant Bay to Hayfield ($200) and Port Antonio to Bowden Pen ($300.00).
