by Scott Leonard with Zoe Alexander
Island hopping on a sailboat makes it 
a challenge to meet people. There are basically three types of islanders: locals, tourists, and transients. I would classify this last group as those staying longer than a week, but not residents. This includes the sailors and younger adventurers seeking work in the bars, restaurants, and boat yards. Thankfully, there is an online morning “net” for the sailing community that allows us to connect about activities, security issues, weather, items to trade, etc.
While traveling the Caribbean, one of the hardest vegetables for us to find is lettuce. And topping the Three Little Birds’ Endangered Species List is arugula. It’s impossible to find- and happens to be one of Mandi’s favorites. Last Friday the net provided us with an invitation to a kids outing – a 
tour of the local Rastafarian Farm on St. Martin. We were excited to discover that they grow arugula!
I had no idea what to expect, but it sounded fun and we really wanted to meet other sailing families with kids. So we suspended schooling for the day and went along. We were given a private tour of the farm (see a short video of the trip) and encouraged to sample various types of produce such as peas, local fruits, and even a plant that is toxic until ripe (I actually had a taste of that one, I should get a badge for that). The farm is part of a Rastafari Church where, in addition to traditional fruits and vegetables, they grow a variety of medicinal plants. The Dr. Seuss-like Annatto plant was impressive. The bright color makes it popular in Caribbean cuisine as both a dye and a spice and it keeps mosquitos away as well.
One of my goals for our
trip was to expose the boys to different cultures. Visiting the Farm not only helped them learn about local agriculture and customs, it was also an unexpected visit with the Rastafaris. We learned that they avoid modern or conventional pharmaceuticals and instead use what nature provides. It was really interesting to see all the varieties of plants and learn about their medicinal properties and preparations. You have to admire the generations of Rastas who have lead healthy lives without the advantages of Western medicine. This experience gave us a taste, literally, of how resourceful islanders can be; something we don’t take for granted now that there isn’t a grocery store on every corner!
And while the day at the farm was a treat, the highlight of the tour was their arugula. It was freshly picked and delicious (you’ll see that we ate it that night with burgers and we didn’t even miss the fries). We also purchased some other lettuce and chives (a great source of vitamin C). The other benefit was that we met some boat families. One of the families actually helped us break into our own boat when our keys were stolen – but that’s a post for another day…
Click here for a link to the video of the trip to the Rastafarian Farm
