Wharf Trace, St. Joseph

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On January 1, some West Indian friends picked me up to take me to a dinner at a relative's home high up in the hills where there is no water and no electricity. The nearby cold and clear mountain spring is their source for water, as well as a full rain barrel outside the small 2 room concrete house that was built by the resident.

It was a lovely West Indian meal, all you could eat served buffet style, and many relatives and friends were arriving, eating and leaving all afternoon. The friendliness and gracious hospitality of the host and hostess could not be matched by the finest hotel.

The pictures I snapped en route do not adequately show the very steep incline of the mountainous rain forest. The incline down to their house is so steep that their aging car is left far above on the unpaved roadway. We even had to hang on to each other for stability in walking down from the road to their home! I certainly did NOT want to roll down the hill! The songs of many birds greeted us, and I could not stop breathing in big gulps the wonderfully refreshing mountain air. When it came time to leave, at dusk, truly it was hard to go....

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Photos

View from the road
You can see the top of a house below road level....this gives some idea of the hilly terrain.

homes along the roadside
As we trekked higher and higher up the mountain, I got a glimpse of the typical hillside homes.

Homes on the hillside
This is mountainous terrain, yet there are a few small homes on the hills

Foliage along the roadside
Looking down a ravine from the ascending roadway, this is a top view of the lush foliage to be found in Trinidad.

Walkway to the home
This walkway is much steeper than it looks, and we passed a home and small garden on the right on our way to dinner.

Inside the home
Looking inside the house from one doorway to the other. This is one room of the two in the house. The other room is a bedroom.

Outdoor kitchen- partial
This porch is where dishes are washed with water from the rain barrel or from the nearby cold mountain spring

Encampment of Rastafarians
Coming down the hill and looking across to another hill, you can see a small village called an encampment.

Comments

[Victor]

True West Indian Welcome
Hi, thanks for the postings and the pictures. Sounds like you had a great time and was warmly welcomed. Looking forward to more great entries.

[Linda]

Wharf Trace, St. Joseph
Janet, I took particular interest in this. Hebrews 13:1-2 "...The friendliness and gracious hospitality of the host and hostess could not be matched by the finest hotel...this is one room of two in the house...this porch is where dishes are washed with water from the rain barrel or from the nearby cold mountain spring..."