The covered market in the centre of May Pen is at its loudest and best on Saturday mornings, when farmers from across Clarendon — and from as far away as St Catherine — bring in produce, meat, fish and clothes. Yams, ackee, callaloo, breadfruit, plantains, scotch bonnet peppers and a long line of unfamiliar herbs are heaped on tarpaulins; vendors call across each other.
It is not laid on for tourists, which is the point. Go early (the best produce moves by 9 am), keep cash in a front pocket, and be ready to be teased into a small purchase.