Northside Celebrates Heritage in Fine Style

The District of North Side held their annual Pirate’s Week, Heritage Day on Saturday 15th October at the Kaibo Beach.

This year was the first since Covid-19 and the first for Northside’s new Member of Parliament Johany ‘Jay’ Ebanks, who is also the Minster for Planning, Agriculture, Housing, & Infrastructure.

The Minister spoke exclusively with the Caymanian Times and explained how this year was special after having to forgo the event in the wake of Covid-19 lockdowns.

“We have a new District Committee and this year is kind of a fundraiser; a really a build-up or prelude to next year. We love the turnout and the weather is great, the food is great, so we are pleased,” he noted.

Mr. Ebanks added that previously, he had served on the Northside District Committee for 12 years and since this was his first time taking part as the Minister, he did not have as much time to contribute.

“Despite that our Committee came through and so props to them for making the most of the budget and timeframe. There is a bonfire tonight after the fireworks and the landing of the Pirates is set to take place as well. It’s a good thing we have a beach to accommodate that,” said the Minister.

The pirates arrived at Northside by boat and swarmed the beach to a frenzy of activity from youngsters and inquisitive tourists, who were enthralled by the spectacle.

Chairman for the Northside District Committee, Geoffry Ebanks explained that this was his first time in the role but he had always been involved in the process of preparing for Northside’s Heritage Day.

“This year we have a farm set-up in addition to a heritage grounds, equipped with a cane-press I built. We always have a bonfire, so we are looking forward to sharing our heritage with the people,” he explained, adding that all though funding was an issue, he was pleased with the efforts of the Minister and representative for the District.

“We feel good about next year already, because if we can do this with a small amount of funding, then we will be able to go the extra mile by time we have the next one,” Mr. Ebanks remarked.

Produce featured in the Heritage Grounds included cassava, plantain, sweet potato, peeper, pumpkin, breadfruit and cybill orange.

Tourists at Northside’s Heritage Day enjoyed themselves by all accounts and Jazmin Armstrong; a travel executive visiting Grand Cayman from Texas, took some time out to tell us about her experience.

“We really wanted to do something local and this is exactly what we were looking for. We tried the lobster, local beef and Mahi and really enjoyed all of the food. We love coming to Cayman because everyone is so friendly and we feel safe here,” she said.

Ms. Armstrong went on to explain that she has been to many other Caribbean Islands but Cayman is her favourite.

“Cayman has a sentimental feeling for me because when I was 18 years-old, I came and dove with my uncle, who is no longer with us, so I wanted to come back and get certified as a tribute  to him.”

She added that she would be bringing here daughter back with her the next time.

Keep an eye out for future editions of the Caymanian Times for other Heritage Day updates and dates for the various Districts.