Despite predictions of rain which caused other events to be postponed last weekend, great vibes, fantastic performances, delicious food, lots of prizes – even including $200,00 in cash, courtesy of Swift Car Rentals ambassador, Emperor L A Lewis – decorated the table at Sunday’s Grace Tropical Rhythms Port Royal Seafood Festival held at the Grand Hotel Excelsior. “We would have had more [patrons] if it wasn’t raining in Kingston, St Catherine and Portmore,” conceptualiser Jennifer ‘Jenny Jenny’ Small told The Gleaner . “We are grateful that most people came in the evening after the rains.
The show was outstanding and the reviews are pouring in non-stop with appreciation.” Now in its 19th year, Small shared that the festival has grown “in numbers and in awareness”. “It’s a calendar event that brings out Jamaicans and foreigners.
This year, not just English-speaking visitors, but we had an entire Spanish-speaking group from Cuba. This is the only festival where patrons enjoy boat rides, a tour of a historical site, vacation at Grand Hotel Excelsior, plus a festival,” Small said. It was definitely a night with a difference.
The antics of the self-styled emperor, L A Lewis, morphed from a “live” on social media, where he told fans that he would be making his way to the festival to give away some cash, to that scenario actually playing out live at the venue. As expected, L A Lewis’ arrival on stage caused quite a stir and his cash giveaways were.