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Tastes & Talesof Cayman
Easter Monday: A True Caymanian Day at the Beach
Click here forthis weeks special recipes - Easter Monday Picnic Favorites
Of all the Caymanian traditions of timesgone by, few bring as many smiles and dreamy, faraway looks aschildhood memories of Easter Monday picnics at the beach. Theywere lighthearted, carefree occasions and the first big outdoorfete of the year, always shared with family and friends. If youcouldn't get to a beach, you at least went seaside for the day.That one day was an important part of Caymanian heritage, devotedto enjoying the pleasures of the surrounding Caribbean Sea, fromswimming and diving up conch to watching the annual regatta.
Easter Monday is just another public holidayfor many residents today, but traditionally it was a very specialand much-anticipated celebration. In Cayman, Easter Sunday wasnot customarily a day of elaborate dressing for Church followedby all-day feasting, like it is in Barbados and some other Caribbeanislands. Families attended Easter church services, which oftenincluded special programmes or "concerts" with solos,choral hymns and recitations from the Bible. Afterward, they gatheredfor Easter dinner that was much like the typical Sunday meal-with bun and cheese, of course. Ham, roast beef and turkey rarelyappeared on Caymanian Easter tables. Nor were there any candy-filledEaster baskets, Easter egg hunts or other imported North Americancustoms. Everyone was saving their energy and excitement for thenext day's festivities.
Each district had its own special EasterMonday picnic venues-and special culinary touches. But with theexception of families who lived close to the coastline, gettingto and from the beach took planning and stamina- even in GeorgeTown. "When I was a young teenager, Seven Mile Beach wasso beautiful, wide and empty for miles-and it really was sevenmiles long!" one 75-year old Caymanian friend recalls. "Noone had cars then, and even going by bicycle, peddling over thesandy road to get there wore you out!"
From West Bay to South Sound, families madetheir way to the beach where the annual Easter Regatta was thehighlight of the day. The Easter Regatta tradition endured andthis year's event boasts of being 25 years old, but those lasersand other sleek racing sailboats are Johnny-come-latelys. Oursenior citizens in their 70's remember this event from their childhoodas an exciting offshore spectacle with the majestic Goldfield,the M/V Adams, Lydia Wilson and other working schooners racingclose to shore, and a fleet of catboats dazzling everyone withtheir graceful and agile maneuvers.
In South Sound, Smith's Barcadere (now calledSmith's Cove) was a popular picnic spot but an even more magicalpicnic spot was Sand Cay. It was a wonder-filled day for childrenespecially. Beachcombing on the tiny isle revealed exciting discoverieslike shells and small mysteries from the sea. The surroundingshallows were a wonderland of coral and fish and conch and lobsterwere plentiful. Adults reveled in the Cay's delightful, ruggedisolation and splendid view of Southwest Point. The picnic faremight be simple, like corned beef sandwiches, coconut drops andreal Caymanian lemonade (limeade) made with "lots and lotsof sugar," but nothing tasted as delicious as lunch on thatlittle island.
North Siders fondly remember Easter Mondaysat that Rum Point's magnificent unspoiled beach, long before thedistrict had paved roads and motor vehicles, much less milliondollar condos and resorts. The men would set out early in theirboats to fish along the way -it was almost guaranteed they wouldturn up with old wives, snappers and other reef fish, along witha few conch to cook up on the beach. Women and children wouldwalk along miles of rugged trail, "backing lunch" inthatch baskets loaded with already prepared bread kind and otherpicnic provisions. Children would gather whatever fruits werein season, such as naseberries, soursop and custard apples. Itwas hard work-but nothing was more fun. And that kind of adventureon a remote beach is the substance of many island fantasies today.
My friend Heather Bodden said her family'sEaster Monday tradition in Savannah has long been a barbecue atthe beach in Bodden Town with "all the trimmings." Breadfruitsalad was always a favorite-as was cold Seville orange drink.One of Cayman's often overlooked springtime citrus varieties,those sour oranges adored by Cubans for mojo marinade also makea delicious drink when mixed with water and brown sugar. Dependingon when Easter fell on the calendar, there might even be someearly ripe wild mangos out their waythe tiny, juicy hairykind you rarely see because they disappear as fast as they drop.Since there is only one way to eat them, mangos were a reasonfor everyone to take a sea bath--even if the water was still onlya brisk springtime 82 degrees.
The sea is Cayman's heritage and the unlimitedbeach access once taken for granted is rapidly disappearing. Wemust encourage and applaud any efforts by Government, the NationalTrust or the private sector to create and preserve public beachareas in every district. This is as important for our young peopleas creating new land-based sports facilities. It's just as dearto us older folks: we need to be able to see and touch the seawhenever we feel the urge. An Easter Monday tailgate picnic atthe playing field would be a very sad substitute for that wonderfultradition.
®Barbara Currie Dailey is theauthor of Tortuga Rum Fever & Caribbean Party Cookbook.