MINISTER OF CULTURE John King is encouraging the public to go out and experience the Crop Over Heritage Bus Tours so they can be better prepared to “take on the rest of the world”.
He was speaking at yesterday’s tour entitled Rum And Sweet Food: A Crop Over Culinary Experience, which began in Queen’s Park, The City and ended at Barclays Park, St Andrew.
“These tours serve a number of purposes; they are an integral part of tourism. And so there is a huge market for it in the world, so I am glad that we’re taking initiatives like this. . . . It also gives Barbadians the opportunity to learn more about themselves and their country.
“I think the more you know about yourself, the more you are prepared to take on the rest of the world as yourself,” he said, adding there was the need to look at every possible income stream given the present economic crunch.
The tour, hosted by the National Cultural Foundation in conjunction with the Barbados Tourism Product Authority and the Barbados Agricultural Development and Marketing Corporation had five coaches for the four-and-a-half-hour event.
Event producer Alison Sealy-Smith said the tours explored Barbados’ culinary heritage and delved deeper into what made things Bajan.
“Our culinary heritage [is defined by] the way it goes back to granny and granny’s granny, and also where it is going with our innovative chefs these days,” she explained.
Patrons were treated to a short skit presented by narrator Tony Thompson, who told of the brams (dances) held at the Queen’s Park Steel Shed and “the fried pork chops” that the girls looked forward to at the end of the night.
After that it was off to Tyrol Cot, where “shop proprietor” John Walcott entertained the guests.
Other stops included the Mount Gay Visitors’ Centre, where patrons taste-tested the premium Bajan rum, Fisherman’s Pub in Speightstown, St Peter, before the culmination at Barclays Park. (RA)
