Robert Lalah, Staff Reporter
Left: The hustle and bustle of downtown Kingston. Right: Miss Myrtle weighs a hefty piece of yam in the Coronation Market. - NORMAN GRINDLEY/DEPUTY CHIEF PHOTOGRAPHER
BELIEVE IT or not, there are only two weeks left until Christmas, and the goose and other things are getting fat. This means that if you still haven't decided which brand of hair remover to get your Aunt Hilda, it's time to get cracking.
Yes, it's the crazy shopping season again; time to blow that Christmas bonus on things you don't really need. There are so many places to shop these days that it really is a task deciding where to go. In fact, if you drive and know which routes to take, you might never have to even leave your car. Although, the prices charged by some of these mid-street peddlers may leave you seriously considering just getting Junior a six-pack of two-ply toilet paper to play with this Christmas.
But don't worry. There's a place you can go and get all your shopping done and at prices you won't believe. You know where I'm talking about; downtown Kingston of course! Stop screaming.
Downtown has always been famous for great deals but, over time, a growing number of persons have started to shy away from the area in favour of more swanky, supposedly safer malls uptown.
BARGAINS GALORE
But, during a recent day-long expedition in the area with photographer Norman Grindley, I realised that you really can't beat the atmosphere, deals, or the colourful people you come across downtown.
We got to King Street about 10 o'clock in the morning. By then all the stores were already open and the sidewalks were packed with shoppers. The store windows were decorated for the holidays. One store even had a giant blow-up Santa Claus in the doorway. Now it's customary for stores downtown to have loud music blaring from inside, but now the music has been changed to that of the holiday variety and this, coupled with the Christmas breeze, makes for a festive atmosphere.
But by far the most unique downtown deals were taking place right on the street sides. "Sale out pan di floor mat dem! Hundred dollar give you three face rag!" was the bellowing advertisement of one pertinacious peddler. An overloaded male vendor was offering female jeans pants for $350 a pair, while another claimed to have authentic Italian perfumes for less than you can get them "inna any store uptown". We found $30 toothbrushes, $20 curtain rods and deals on other things I can't discuss here.
FAMOUS CORONATION MARKET
But it being so close to Christmas, we wanted to see what was happening in the famous Coronation Market. Almost everyone has at some time visited this market but, again, out of fear of the area, many persons have stopped shopping there. But why? Are there cleverly disguised bandits pretending to be frock-wearing vendors, waiting to pounce on unsuspecting shoppers? We wanted to find out.
We got there about midday and went right in. The first person we came across was Miss Myrtle, who has been selling in the Coronation Market since 1977. She said she has managed to stay around for so long because of the care she shows each customer.
"When somebody ask for 10 pound of yam, dem must get the 10 pound! Don't give them nine and three quarter pound! And you must always pick out the best and give to them," she said.
When asked if she ever felt afraid in the market, Miss Myrtle gave a dismissive shake of the head. "No sah! Not at all. Nobody trouble anybody in the market, so nobody have anything to fear."
Despite her chirpy personality, Miss Myrtle's life is no bed of roses. She lives in Clarendon, but travels to Kingston on a Sunday and goes back home on a Thursday.
"So where do you sleep?" I asked.
The woman jerked her head to the right.
"See mi bed there," she giggled. Miss Myrtle was gesturing to a piece of cardboard with a sheet on top of it. "It tough, but we used to it."
We spent a while in the market and found the atmosphere, and people, quite inviting. We left and headed to the St. William Grant Park in Parade.
When we got there, it was full of activity. A few men were sitting around a table playing dominoes, an alarmingly slim man was sitting beside a rather large female in the shade of a tree, and a box juice vendor was leaning against his cart just shooting the breeze.
It turns out that the juice vendor is Orville Lyons who, according to him, is one of the contractors who helped build some of the most famous buildings downtown.
"Is me help build the Seabed Authority you know man. Mi build hotels in Montego Bay and help to build the wharf as well." He gesticulated wildly as he spoke.
Orville said he was once in high demand from clients in the United States, but decided to leave the profession altogether because he didn't feel he was being treated fairly by his employers.
"The greatest joy is to work for yourself. Them cannot pay me for the wisdom I get on the street. I decide I not working for anyone again. And I am better off," he shouted as curious onlookers drew closer.
"I am a jack of all trade," he shouted, to which a smart alec in the background whispered: "And a master of none."
We noticed that just across the road from the park, the doors of the Kingston Parish Church were open. We went over there. Inside the church is as majestic as churches get. A clergyman in a purple robe was conducting a service with a handful of elderly persons. Inside the church was otherwise silent and an unexpected respite from the hustle and bustle outside.
Heading back into the heart of the business district, we found it just as active as it was when we first got there that morning. The Christmas shopping season is indeed in full swing downtown and the deals cannot be beat. By the way, after a day of shopping, the Kingston Waterfront is an ideal place for you and yours to kick back and relax.
