This is what Miki Kidron saw when she sat for breakfast at Neita's Nest on her first morning in Kingston, Jamaica, having arrived all the way from Israel the night before.

It was Art Beat in a heart beat. Miki wanted a dozen of Nancy Burke's Art Beat line of placemats, but she was on her way to Treasure Beach that morning. I had to make it happen for her while pouring water and juice, describing the Jamaican breakfast being served, receiving other guests for an early check-in, serving them and their post-conference host some welcoming Jamaican coffee, and searching for the contact information for the artist before the JUTA taxi arrived to take Miki and Igal off to the other end of the island.

And, Voilà! Between the internet and contacts hosting the annual Liguanea Art Festival where I bought mine a few years ago, I was able to link Miki and Nancy by phone before Miki departed. By then, it was a done deal.

Here, Nancy, 
like Ruebens, puts the finishing touches on her designs before shipping them off for Miki in Israel.

How small this world can be!

If the organisers of the 2015 Miss Universe Pageant knew how much Jamaica has contributed to the world they would have given our representative, Kaci Fennell more than 30 seconds to answer that question.

With more time to ponder, even Dr Hume Johnson's well-researched and well-writen article 10 Things Jamaica has Contributed to the World has stimulated much discussion, with calls for additional inclusions. 

Yes, we are more than a beach, we are a country; a country with a history of thought-leaders who think globally and who act on it, a nation with the fastest athletes, finest rum, the coolest beer, best coffee, stimulating literary and artistic works, great dining experiences, arguably among the friendliest people, and certainly one of the most beautiful countries, with contrasting vegetation, climates and terrain to keep things interesting in even the shortest of vacations.

So, come spend a few days with us in Kingston. We will give you more than a taste of Jamaica. Then you will come to understand what it means when they say, wi likkle but wi tallawah!

Eloy was the first to express an interest in owning an oil on canvas by Ewan McAnuff of the view from Neita's Nest bed and breakfast in Kingston, Jamaica. The paint had not yet touched the canvas, let alone dried. 

That was during a special visit for Eloy when he came to share with his young family, including his seven year old son, the country where he grew up when he was that age. 

Still in touch with some of his childhood friends, it was on the recommendation of one of them that Eloy booked with Neita's Nest. Now, what are the chances of the view from our bed and breakfast being of the same mountainscape as that from his childhood bedroom window?! Serendipity.

Let's back up a couple years to circa 2011. This leading Jamaican artist had been inspired by photos of the view posted on our website, and emailed to ask whether he could come over to paint it. His visits had only just happened, and I was happy to tell Eloy of the plans to capture this amazing vista on canvas.

Eloy and Ewan are not the only ones in awe. The ever-changing moods from morning to sunset, on rainy days and in blazing sun, and the seasonal differences reflected in this landscape have inspired photographers, painters and writers of poetry and prose. 

Late last December when the paint finally did dry, I got a call for an appointment to deliver. Like Santa Claus, confident that he was going to thrill the hearts of many, Ewan arrived here on Christmas Eve with a proverbial ace under his sleeve. It was a year in the executing, resulting in an exquisite artist's impression of the view from our verandah; the view everyone gazes at, talks about and wishes they could take home.

Ewan delivered a masterpiece. The movement of light and air subtly captured in the foliage and wild life are true to his impressionist style. His detailed brushwork tells of the lush and dense forest with its varying shades of green. And the blues of the ever-distancing layered mountainscape did not miss this artist's eye.

As the story unfolds, on the first of February this year, Eloy, having seen a photograph of the painting, replied saying, "Ewan has done a great job! I would like to buy the painting..." and that, as luck would have it, his colleague would be vacationing in Jamaica the following week. Could we get the painting to him, he asked. 

That was no problem for Ewan. A smooth transition followed from Kingston to Ocho Rios to The Netherlands, followed by this update from Eloy, seventeen days after his first. 

"The delivery has also been successful on this side! The painting is just wonderful! I will be looking to have it framed this week. Will post you a picture once mission is accomplished"  

A delightful end to an intriguing saga, except to say that you too can own a giclée print on canvas or print on paper of The View from Neita's Nest.

Imagine yourself under a canopy of Pink Poui, beside a harem of royal palms with the royal wave just for you, bamboo chimes calling for total surrender!
Selah...

Neita's Nest is proud to be Lonely Planet's Top Choice for Bed and Breakfast service in Kingston, Jamaica.

We are in the middle of the winter tourist season, and it was one of our earlier guests who mentioned the good news to us. 

This is how we have been described in the travel guide:
Lonely Planet review
A delightful art-filled bed and breakfast tucked up high in Stony Hill and with great views from the terrace of Kingston and the mountains. Cosy rooms and a gracious host who welcomes you into the family make this feel like a perfect retreat away from the city. Dinner is available on request (and is recommended).
Read more:

Since then, several of our guests, armed with their Lonely Planet handbooks, have indicated that this recommendation was pivotal in their decision to stay with us.

What a great kick-off to the winter season! Our family and staff say Thanks! And, in good ol' Jamaican parlance, Tenk yu! Tenk yu!

I love the Plumbago and the Lignum Vitae flowers because they are the few plants with blue flowers that bloom on the hot Liguanea Plains on which the city of Kingston lies. You have to travel to the cool hills to find the Forget-me-not or Blue Iris. The Lignum Vitae is our National Flower and it blooms profusely twice per year.

The hard and dense wood from this slow-growing tree has been used here to make mortars and pestles for crushing spices, they can be seen at jerk centres and in kitchens as chopping boards, and sculptors use it for wood carvings. In fact, participants in the Mighty Gully Youth Project founded in 1982 near Old Harbour by master wood sculptor, the late Lancelot Bryan, make magnificent pieces and have the distinction of having been commissioned to create gifts for visiting dignitaries, namely Prince Charles and the late Margaret Thatcher of the United Kingston, and Bishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa. 

We are pleased to have one piece in our collection. 

According to Wikipedia, the wood of the Lignum Vitae has been used in the shipping and railroad industries, in hydro-electric plants, for bearings and gears in pendulum clocks and as a lap in the process of cutting gems. In sports, it is used in making heavy balls for cricket, skittles and croquet, and for security, for police batons.

I missed last year's news that Jamaica's National Flower can fight HIV, but it is certainly worth repeating. As Dr Henry Lowe continues his research and development, we look forward to him taking this cure to the many in Jamaica and around the world who suffer from this disease.

When we ask, "Why visit like a tourist when you can live with Jamaicans" it is in fact a special invitation to come hang and experience with us, or on your own, the Jamaica we love and want you to know. 

Oftentimes we do this by encouraging our guests to take city tours with Jamaica Cultural Enterprises, other times it is by recommending a play such as one of Basil Dawkins' bi-annual productions. The National Dance Theatre Company's summer season is not to be missed, neither should opportunities to go bird watching, to have a private picnic or to attend the free concerts by the Jamaica Military Band in the Royal Hope Botanical Gardens. 

The climatic experience of touring a coffee farm in the cool St Andrew hills or of a lazy afternoon on a chafing south coast beach can contrast like day and night, but each enjoyable in its own unique way.

Jamaica has a long and deep history of the Chinese being an integral part of our society; from indentured labourers to replace Africans on the sugar plantations after the emancipation of slavery, to the beginning of their commercial activities as shopkeepers in villages throughout every nook and cranny of our country, to their contributions in other enterprises and endeavours including the restaurant business, the music industry, education, manufacturing, government and politics.

May Wong, coming all the way from Hong Kong, was our guest here at Neita's Nest this week. She wanted to know where she could go to experience Chinese New Year celebrations in Jamaica. Unfortunately, the main celebration, The Annual Spring Festival Garden Party took place the Sunday before she arrived, but I did direct her to the Chinese Benevolent Association of Jamaica for more information, while sharing with her what I know of the history of the Chinese in Jamaica. 

Of course, I pulled from our home library, Easton Lee's book of poems, "From Behind the Counter" to authenticate for her some of the early history. We talked about the contributions of the Chinese Embassy to Jamaica through the Confucious Institute at the University of the West Indies' Mona Campus here in Kingston, the lovely new highway from the Norman Manley International Airport, the controversial Chinese Garden being built in our Royal Hope Botanical Gardens, as well as the projected development of Goat Islands.

As I went off to sleep that evening, I wondered whether further contributions could not be in the area of a sustained public relations awareness campaign on the rich history and culture of the Chinese in Jamaica.  highlighting, for example, their contribution to the development of Jamaican music, as was featured at Tribute to the Greats by Kingsley Goodison last year, and of course, staging a festival to take place in the streets in which we can all celebrate Chinese New Year. 

Perhaps when our Chinese Garden is complete.

Here is what Fodor'sTravel has to say about how it is done in other countries:

You can call it the Spring Festival, Lunar New Year, or Chinese New Year but they all refer to the same thing: one of the world’s biggest annual celebrations. In cities across the globe, colorful and joyous spectacles featuring parades, fireworks and cultural performance ring in the start of a new year according to the traditional Chinese lunar calendar. In 2015, Chinese New Year falls on Thursday, February 19, but many places will host parades and festivals over the weekend, with some parties continuing through the end of the month. With their unique traditions and crowd-pleasing festivities, these celebrations stand out from the rest, so get ready to eat some dumplings for good luck and welcome the Year of the Sheep.

By Annie Bruce for Fodor'sTravel
See more...

So, May, thanks for reminding us that this is Chinese New Year, and to you and all our former Neita's Nest guests who have visited from China, as well as those who visit us online... 
                          Happy Chinese New Year!

I vividly remember that mid-April morning back in 2013 when Julia stood on the verandah of Neita's Nest, looked to the hills in front, and said, "My mother would love it here!" At the time, Julia was taking time out from volunteerism to celebrate her birthday here at Neita's Nest.

Then, on January 18 this year, just days after was wondering how she was doing, I received an email that started like this: "Dear Michelle - remember me? I had a lovely stay at you guesthouse in 2013. How are you?..."

Of course I remember you Julia, I replied. True to her word, Julia was making plans to return with her Mom, Una. In doing so, she became our first repeat visitor for 2015, and the first to receive our special gifts; a discount on her stay and a magnetised miniature reproduction of Ewan McAnuff's oil on canvas of the view from Neita's Nest. 

We couldn't think of a better way to honour our repeat guests and while celebrating our 5th anniversary as a successful Kingston bed and breakfast.

Needless to say, Una stood on the verandah on her first monring and exclaimed, "What a view!!!"

Imbibing on Chardonnay or Coconut Water, guests chatted away in the kitchen with Kush, getting tips and suggestions, and just watching chef passionately prepare the 3-course meal. 

Kushite's Vegetable Cuisine was the fare for Neita's Nest's first Guest Chef Evening with Kush himself delighting friends and family. 

Kush created a menu based on what we had in our kitchen. We got off to a flying start with Curried Pumpkin Sambusas served with a Double Apple Salsa.

Enter the entree: a Cajon-spiced Tofu with Catalogue-Stuffed Yam Balls, served with a citrusy Nile Salad. 

Kush was keeping secrets when he named this dessert Cheesecake in a Cup. There was nothing cheesy about this final course.

Think Toasty, Nutty, Spicy, topped with a Creamy, Fruity, Tangy and more spicy flavours popping, bursting then melding in a seamless blend!


Mama's vintage glassware glimmered with the Kingston nightscape.

Here is the best part of all. Kushite Vegetable Cuisine will be creating a dessert just for Neita's Nest, and gifting us with the recipe. So, future guests of Neita's Nest, you will have a new and delish dessert to look forward to - a token of appreciation for the opportunity of being our first guest chef!

The treat was ours, and will be yours.