Kalunamoo has been in the Trinidad “shipyard” since the end of May. We returned at the beginning of September to find her non-skid decks painted with other works in various stages of completion. Since then, new interior cushions, exterior sunshades, cockpit enclosure, Max feathering propeller, led lights, galley faucet, bob stay fitting, cutlass bearing, refinished teak work, new covers for the BBQ and aft table, all have been installed, completed or nearly so. There are other things still on the list including stay and main sail repairs and routine maintenance items but all should be completed by the end of next month.
Ok, so that took up most of our time here. You must remember that we are on Island Time which means that the number of hours in a day is much less than 24. In addition, the weather has been hotter than normal (fry egg in sun temps) which, as Einstein Theory of Relativity told us, slows time and work down. All this means is that when you rise at sunrise and do some work, before you know it you’re ready for a nap, maybe some lunch and then get ready for sundowners by sitting on the dock of the bay. Or maybe, it’s Thursday night’s potluck BBQ, or a Friday night music jam, or a Saturday night at the Wheelhouse or Sunday Dominoes, Tuesday Maxi Taxi to Massey shopping, or a Saturday morning trip to the fresh market in Port of Spain. Really, I can’t understand how all this can be done and still expect to get any relaxing boat work done.
But that is not what I wanted to write about. It’s about chocolate. Maureen got me into the notion that chocolate is an essential nutrient for a happy life. Aren’t Candy Kisses sweeter than wine? Apparently so. While the Hershey/Dove/Godiva controversies continue in various venues, sailing in these Caribbean Islands, we learned of the Coca Trees and their beans.
I wondered if the Cocabean is actually where the word Caribbean came from. Most attribute the word derived from the locals. They were known as the Caribs (the botched pronunciation of Kalingo’s) to Columbus and his sailors when they entered the country without any pre-arrival notifications. Of course, without proper paper-work or authorizations to stay they were turned away, but that is another story. In any event, botched pronunciations were the least of the problems. But Europeans were nothing if not persistent and eventually they moved in, cultivated the land. Mostly for sugar, rum and chocolate. Well, the chocolate part never really took off at first but when it did, they managed to send plants to Africa where today 70% of the coca beans now originate.
The problem with chocolate is that from bean to bar, chocolate requires a bit of processing. It’s not like Candy Kisses grow on trees. The natives made chocolate drinks for centuries before Columbus, but I think the Europeans preferred rum. Maybe it was the sailors influence, I don’t know.
Be that as it may, coca beans are shipped to processers in the industrialized countries on a grand scale. The trouble is that the farmers of the beans only earn enough from their beans to wear Lady Godiva’s clothes. The beans of the Caribbean, like the African beans, are exported for pennies and return as relatively expensive candy bars. This has prompted entities like the FairTrade organizations and farmers cooperatives, NON GMO verifications, USDA Organic labels etc. to try and “spread the wealth”. Any resemblance of Colonialism is purely coincidental.
And so, over the years here in the Caribbean (or should I say cocabean?) local farmers are forming co-sops and small local entrepreneurs are producing retail chocolate from local beans. The results are interesting. We have bought and tasted “local” chocolate from Grenada, St. Lucia, Dominica and St Vincent (and from Africa). My favorite is Jouvay from Grenada, (Maureen still likes Candy Kisses) but they all have a place in the realm of chocolate delights. The small batch production limits their export capability but as this generates local income that is not syphoned off the island, we sailors can add chocolate to the ways we can support the islands. Besides, I think it goes very well with Caribbean Rum.
Kalunamoo 