Chester Francis-Jackson, Contributor 
Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Anthony Hylton (left), presents outgoing Trinidad and Tobago High Commissioner Dennis Francis with a gift at his farewell dinner. - PHOTOS BY WINSTON SILL/FREELANCE PHOTOGRAPHER
MY DEARS, diplomatic watchers here and everywhere will tell y'all that when it comes to diplomatic personalities, it's usually the luck of the draw. There have been many cases where a rather affable and charming personality has served out his/her tenure, only to be replaced by a sullen, less than diplomatic type A
personality.
Not so with Dennis Francis of Trinidad and Tobago!
Dearhearts, his entry here in Kingston was tentative enough, at the very beginning, as Kingston was still locked in the charm of his predecessor, Pearl Wilson. Well, my daahlings, that he served here twice as long as many of his colleagues, and in the process rose to the fore to become Dean of the Diplomatic Corp, is testament to his skills and temperament. During this tenure, Trinidad and Tobago invested heavily in the Jamaican economy, and inked many
bilateral deals and trade
arrangements.
DIPLOMATIC CIRCLE
Well, my dears, after nearly six and one half years here in Kingston, as his twin-island republic's first citizen, HE Dennis Francis' tenure comes
to an end next week, and
dovecakes, how!
My daahlings, it's been months now since the news of High Commissioner Francis' departure has been made known, and since then, my lovelies, it's been a constant swirl of parties, fabulous receptions, fêtes, dinners and get-togethers that have been thrown in his honour!
Well, my daahlings, to say his official thanks and goodbyes to the many friends and colleagues with whom he interacted over the years, on Wednesday night of last week the outgoing High Commissioner threw a thank-you/farewell reception/lyme, atop the Jamaica Pegasus hotel, at its famed Talk of the Town restaurant, in New Kingston.
Now, y'all know them 'Trinis' and their reputation for throwing/hosting good lymes! Daahling doves, the decorators called in to give the place a makeover for the do, and honeychiles they did and with some fabulous oomph!
Honeys, we are talking café-styled setting here, the colours of Trinidad streaming from every-which-where, libation stations as well as for the fare, set to the side of the great dining area, and thus leaving room to really work the evening, and honeys, did they!
Dovecakes, we are talking social prime time here and nothing but, as indeed, the Kingston high society, and the crème of the diplomatic and consular corps, as well as leading members of the business community and their scions were out in force, and there was no mistaking the personal touch. High Commissioner Francis greeted each arriving guest individually, exhorting them to make this, his last official do, one they enjoy, and pumpkins they did!
No officialdom here, just a very brief thank you from HE, delivered in his fabulous oratorical style, and then it was over to the pleasure of not only enjoying the occasion, but also making the most of it, and children, it was like that fabulous, and nothing but!
NOT ABOUT SORROW
Oh, my word, for a thousand farewells like this one! My dears, if parting makes for sweet sorrow, then nobody told the very many guests gathered atop Kingston at the Talk of The Town, for this one, as pumpkins, believe you moi, this was not a party about sorrow, but more about the celebration of friendships and good times and children, faultlessly so, as the reggae/soca band from Portmore caused more than a few to shake a leg, and in between the sips and thrills there was a fabulous Caribbean fare that complemented the culinary cultures of both Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago, and made for a tasty fare, and refreshingly so!
Those out, sharing in the goodbye festivities, included: former Foreign Affairs Minister Hon. K.D. Knight; the Hon. Burchell Whiteman; Deputy Foreign Minister Senator Delano Franklyn; Senator Dorothy Lightbourne; MP John andUrla Junor; Chief Justice Lensley Wolfe; American Ambassador HE Brenda LaGrange Johnson; British High Commissioner HE Jeremy Creswell and his beautiful German companion Dr. Barbara Munske; Canadian High Commissioner HE Claudio Valle and his fab wife Mrs. Louise Valle.
Also out were French Ambassador HE Francis Hurtut; Spanish Ambassador HE Jesus Silva and wife Sara Silva; Japanese Ambassador HE Hiroshi Sakurai and wife Kinuko Sakurai; Brazilian Ambassador HE Cezar De Souza Lima Amaral and wife Lidia; Chilean Ambassador HE Alfanso Silva; South African Ambassador Advocate Faith D' Radebe and husband Jabulani Radebe; Mexican Ambassador HE Lenora Rueda; Colombian Ambassador HE Dr. Kent Francis and his wife Cecilia; Cuban Ambassador HE Mrs. Gisela Garcia Rivera; Panamanian Ambassador HE Ricardo Mareno Flores; German Embassy Deputy Chief of Mission Mrs Maria Friedrich-Boerger, Acting Charge de Affaire EU Mission Felice Zaccheo; Deputy Head of Mission of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela Madai Hernandez A.; Chris and Michelle Bovell; Joe Matalon; Earl Levy and wife Beverly Junor Levy; Robert MacMillan; Anthony and Jeanne Watson, their son James also out.
So, too, were Ainsley Henriques; the charming Jennifer Lim; Ambassador Dr. Matthew Beaubrun; Ambassador Richard and Marguerite Bernal; Ambassador Lorne McDonnough; Ambassador Maxine Roberts and her sibling; Honorary Consul Ecuador Clelia de Barreto Hunter; Roy and Sylvia Collister; Dr. Charles and Corina Meeks; the oh so elegant Gloria Moodie; Noel and Jacqueline DaCosta; Banker Barry Chisholm; the lovely Mrs. Lois Sherwood; Tunty Barrett; Wilson Look Kin and his very charming wife Delores Look Kin; Clarence Thomas; Hugh and Ouida Dumphy; Andrea Benjamin and her daughter Christina Benjamin; Petrojam's Winston Watson; Nicole Pearson; the elegant Claudia Barnes; Errol Greene; William Lampert and wife Anna Kaiser; and Franz Hall of the Foreign Affairs Ministry, plus a host of others.
