The legend goes like this. If you drink from Runaway Ghaut, a ravine that channels rainwater from the volcano to the sea on the tiny Caribbean island of Montserrat, you will one day return.
Rock music is an essentially urban sound, invariably hurt and angry, in love with cars, streets and crowded, sweaty basements. So what’s it got to do with a tiny, mellow and abundantly green tropical island in the Caribbean?
Rendezvous Beach Montserrat reminds us that the world, and more specifically, the Caribbean, is constantly changing. One of the many reasons I absolutely despise the sentiment of “been there, done that.”
Obviously, the struggle is real when talking about the pace of work in New York City. However, working at that pace while remote on the island of Montserrat creates a unique opportunity to keep from burning out.
Imagine waking up, brewing some coffee, and strolling out onto your verandah to catch the first rays of sunshine cascading through plumes of smoke rising above an active, but very chill volcano in your backyard. With the Montserrat Remote Work Stamp , that could all be your before-work ritual.
To be honest, I hadn’t heard of Ziggy’s Montserrat. My first thought was of Ziggy’s back home on St. Croix —the decidedly fun gas station out east where you’re just as likely to find a Carolina-style BBQ, an authentic West Indian plate of smoked herring and provisions, or a dance-off competition depending on the day and time.
Sure, the island of Montserrat is generally quiet. Its population is only 5,000. Plus, nearly half the island is designated as an off-limits exclusion zone. So, finding quiet places to be by yourself or alone in the company of someone else is easy.
(This mixture makes a 23cm (9 inch) round or 20cm (8 inch) square cake)
340g*/12 oz plain flour
½ tsp. Salt
1 tsp. Mixed spice
1 tsp. Cinnamon
100 or 110g*/4 oz candied peel
1 kg/2 lb. dried fruit (preferably
½ kg/1 lb. currants; 225g*/8 ozs sultanas; 225g*/8 ozs raisins)
100g* 4 ozs blanched almonds chopped finely, grated rind 1 lemon
4 tbsp. milk
225g*/8ozs margarine or butter
4 eggs sherry or brandy
225g*/8ozs Demarara sugar.
1 tbsp. black treacle
Method
Sieve together dry ingredients. Mix peel, cherries, fruit, chopped almonds and lemon rind. Wisk eggs, milk, sherry/brandy together. Cream fat, sugar and black treacle until soft. Add flour and egg mixtures alternately to creamed mixture – do not over beat when mixing. Put into cake tin, lined inside with double thickness of greased paper round sides and brown paper and greased greaseproof paper at the bot-tom. Tie a double band of brown paper round the outside of tin, standing well above the top of it. Put in middle of very moderate oven. Bake 3 ¼ – 3 ½ hours at Mark 3 for the first 1½ hours, then Gas Mark 2 for the remaining time. In electric oven put cake in at 300° – 500° F, 150° – 180° C and after 1 ½ hours reduce heat to 275° – 300° F, 150°C. Cool in cake tin, then store in airtight tin. For very moist cake prick cold cake and pour a little sherry at intervals before icing. Cover with marzipan and royal icing.
Gives exact same sized cake as Imperial measurements.
Christmas cake recipe may be made richer by increasing fruit to 1 ½ kg (3 lbs.).
Cake then takes 1 hr longer to bake and the recipe will make one 25cm (10 inch) cake or smaller 13, 15 and 20cm (5, 6 and 8 inch) cakes. Bake at least 6 weeks before wedding.