Special Activities

Sign up for Culinary Travel in 2008 - Join us for a guided tour of Oaxaca Mexico!

The first week, Neftalí Duran, owner of El Jardín Bakery, will guide you through his home city. Enjoy a week of sightseeing, shopping the artisan markets and feasting on the exotic and delicious treasures of Mexico's most diverse culinary region.

For an optional second week, travel to pristine hidden beaches along the southern Pacific Coast around Puerto Escondido, enjoy fresh oysters while sipping piña coladas from coconuts on the shore, or take a surfing lesson on one of the world's best breaks!

Email us for more details!

Jamaica Projects December 2007

Donations for Orphans • Neftalí and Mary, owners of El Jardín, will travel to Jamaica and bring donated clothes, school supplies, and toys for orphans in St. Ann's Bay. Email us to arrange to drop off donated items in good condition.
...Thank you to everyone who has brought in donations so far. We'll have photos from our trip so you can see the children your gifts go to. Come see them at the Café in late December, or online sometime after the holidays.

Micro-Loan Business Development / Blue Mountain Coffee Co-operative • They will visit with Jeffrey Whyte, recipient of a micro business development loan from the bakery, assist with construction of his eco-tourism lodge, and then travel to the famous Blue Mountain Coffee region to meet with other small-scale farmers with the aim of helping to develop a fair trade import co-operative of Blue Mountain Coffee, known as one of the most exquisite and expensive coffees in the world, almost exclusively sold to Japanese corporations since the 1980s.

Jeffrey Whyte (phone # (876) 347.1988) grew up in St. Thomas parish, an agricultural region where he has farmed banana, coffee, sugar cane and tropical fruits and vegetables his whole life. He is available to serve as a personal or group guide to out-of-the-way destinations on the island. He can provide snorkeling and camping equipment, transportation to unique natural areas, hikes and swimming beaches, arrange family home stays or service projects with development organizations like the International School of Jamaica or local farmers. He is using his micro loan to purchase a vehicle to transport visitors around the island and to complete his eco-lodge and farm.