Staff writer - Kerran Monroe
Uptown had their Fashion’s Night Out (FNO) in October. But Down Town just had their Fashion’s Night Out in December, on Wednesday the fourteenth to be exact. Of course, this being Jamaica, and especially Down Town, everyday is a party and Fashion’s Night Out on Wednesday was no different.
There was a sound system at the door of almost every store, with the latest Dancehall tracks on blast. Of course, for those of us who frequent the Down Town area, this is nothing strange for us especially, during this time of year. However, as one would expect, there were even more stores with sound systems playing at their entrances.
The street vendors were not to be left out, especially, the men selling on Beckford Street. I don’t know if business was good for them on that day but if it was not, they certainly were not letting it show. They were just, blowing vuvuzelas and throwing the clothes they were selling in the air, clapping and just making a lot of noise. They say we should love the jobs that we do and we should find our passion, and these young men were certainly enjoying what they were doing. Especially since it is the one day of the year when they get a break from the police, as for the rest of the year it is a cat and mouse game between themselves and the police.
Lively up the shopping
At Big Tree (everybody calls there Big Tree, since the landmark there is a Big Tree) there was a mini concert taking place, courtesy of LIME. There were two females competing in a dance competition and of course this attracted a crowd, I included. What shocked me there though was that one of the females dancing was in her school uniform and I am sure her principal would not approve of her going on her head and gyrating in her uniform. Nonetheless the crowd voted her the winner of the face off.
King Street was blocked off to facilitate all the shoppers of the day. A big stage was set up at the mouth of King Street in front of the St. William Grant Park in Parade, where there was to be a free concert. I did not stay for the concert though, because, one, I was too tired from walking the stores searching for the sale, which I did not find in many cases and secondly I had assignments to work on.
FNO is supposed to be a day when the stores give discounts on their goods, and I did see some nice deals on some clothes items since that’s what I was seeking. However, there were no sizes available in those items for majority of the females coming into the store. It seemed as if females with bigger bodies have to pay extra for their size. Despite this, I actually managed to get a good deal on a pair of jeans and a killer top nonetheless.
