My first visit to Jamaica was more than a memorable one. Traveling to this beautiful country with four other friends to experience the 9th annual Dis Poem Wordz & Agro Festival hosted by Food Activist and Poet Ras Takura in Portland, Jamaica. I was also there to visit a college friend from Kingston who I haven’t seen in a couple of years. I was between both cities for 5 days and I have to admit that the timing of the trip and the memories I have from visiting have added a new perspective to my well being. There are so many perks to mention from this trip, the first being that the entire trip was FREE. If that aint Divine, then I don’t what is. It was the perfect time in my life to receive this research and travel grant in partnership with my friend Alisha who’s a photographer (pictured below). 

Other obvious perks were the nature scenes: mountains, rivers, waterfalls and beach everywhere! A close third was the food, organic everything!!! My body felt like a new woman after eating vegan for the first 4 days, including fruits for breakfast EVERY day. I added chicken on the last day, that good ole Jerk Chicken! Last but not least was the culture and creative expression I witnessed during the trip. From Rastafari to entrepreneurs, artists, farmers, activists and every day hustlers. I absorbed every minute and at times having the phone out just to take a picture was not worth the distraction. The memories are priceless honestly.

For the official storytelling about the festival, here’s a link to the published article in The Reader or view this image below (page 8-9):