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Here's what the
Toronto Star (www.thestar.com)
had to say about us:
Nov 22, 2003
Drumming up some support for
Trinidad's music
HEATHER GREENWOOD DAVIS
Steelpan music is to Trinidad what maple syrup
is to Canada: a home-grown product found around
the world but best enjoyed at its source.
And as any Trinidadian will tell you, you
haven't truly visited their island unless you've
enjoyed it alongside the music they are famous
for: steelpan (or steel drum).
Now there's an option for enjoying the music of
this lively island alongside the natural beauty
it has to offer.
Crosswinds Villa Bed and Breakfast, located
in the beautiful Santa Cruz valley, offers
visitors to Trinidad the chance to hop out of
the epicentre of Port of Spain and spend a few
nights in serenity with one of Trinidad's
original panmen.
Owned and operated by Joe Lendor and named after
his first award-winning steelpan band,
Crosswinds offers six large suites on a huge
property. Each suite comes with its own private
bathroom and patio.
Now 71, it has taken Lendor almost 30 years
to travel in a complete circle. In 1967, Lendor
was a farm hand on the very lands where
Crosswinds now stands...
First introduced to the instrument as a child,
Lendor would become a legend for his talent playing the steel drum
in Santa Cruz. As his love for the music grew, so did his family.
With five children to support, he chose to keep his passion a hobby
while concentrating on earning the money necessary to support them.
At first, that meant picking fruit and tending the
yard for the owners of the land. Lendor went on to work as a
dishwasher at a large hotel in Trinidad and a chef at a hotel in St.
Croix before leaping with his family across the pond to the United
States where he waxed floors and worked in factories in New Jersey
to make ends meet.
Through it all, the music remained a constant. He
would start bands in each new home and sign up to play gigs in local
venues. Over the years he would perfect his skills of playing,
tuning and arranging the instrument.
"All my life I wanted to play this music," he says,
recalling that he was often given strange looks in America when he'd
show up to perform with what looked like a selection of shiny
garbage cans. "But when they heard the music they couldn't believe
it," he recalls.
When he returned to Trinidad five years ago, his
children all grown up and each successful in their own right, Lendor
believed it was finally the right time to realize his dreams.
Guests get all the benefit.
Lendor spends his days sharing his love of country
and music with them.
"I play whatever they like," he says. "Mostly it's
the back-in-time melodies: Stardust, Greensleeves, that sort of
thing."
Both Lendor and his wife Grace live on the
property, and appropriately want their guests to feel at home —
almost.
"We do the cooking and (can arrange to) take them
around," Lendor explains pointing out that the villa is less than a
half hour away from key attractions like the north coast beaches,
Port of Spain, golf, restaurants and more. Drive a little further
and you can visit the ASA Wright Nature Centre, The Caroni Bird
Sanctuary and Pitch Lake. A package is currently being arranged that
will allow villa guests to participate in an eco tourism/bird
watching package with a top tourism operator on the island.
Guests are also treated to steelpan concerts in the
evenings and sometimes have the pleasure of the soft music wafting
in during the day, if Lendor is struck by the mood.
"When it's in your blood, sometimes it feels like
you should be doing it all the time," he says.
Even if you never leave Crosswinds, you'll find
plenty to keep you busy.
Step out onto your veranda and you'll be greeted by
a banana plantation backdrop and the sweet aroma of tropical fruit
trees and beautiful flowers. A swimming pool, Jacuzzi and landscaped
gardens are all on site.
"It's better than going to the Hilton. If you go to
a hotel, all you do is swim in the pool and go to your room. But
when you come here, we take you around so that you can really see
Trinidad. It's like a family thing you know?"
A stay at Crosswinds Villa always includes your
room and breakfast. Other meals can also be arranged. Nightly rates
range from $80 to $100 U.S. except during Carnival in February, when
they are $120-$140 U.S.
A special spa day package is planned for Feb. 25 to
help you recuperate from the jump up in Port of Spain. Transfers and
car rentals can also be arranged.
To book a stay at Crosswinds Villa, call them at
1-868-676-1840 or 416-785-2192 or visit their Web site at
http://www.crosswindsvilla.com.
This article was reproduced with the permission of Ms. Davis. |
