Quote Originally Posted by 541lion View Post
Day 2 or 3 (I think the first 2 days got mashed up together oh well)

...And turn around to hit the shops... After about 5 shops I was noticing something!!! Everyone was selling basically the same exact things... The same wood carvings, the same bracelets, same little bags of coffee, same hats etc..... And then I saw it and it all made sense.. It was one of the shopowners sitting there pulling wood carvings out of a box one by one and sand them down... I remember it clearly it was a square crate the was turned into a box with the help of paper bag looking paper and on all sides was a big red stamp that read CHINA.. As I looked closer I noticed he wasn't just sanding them for looks but also to remove the made in China engraving underneath.... This was a huge let down for me because I wanted a bunch of wood carvings from Jamaica, but those were from China (which I hear owns Jamaica now btw)...
No worries man, even the Chinese carvings are helping the economy, and China does not own Jamaica any more than any other country. Here is a bit I wrote in a thread about "buying junk on the beach" back in February:

"When I started Negril.com back in 1995, there was not a work permit category for Internet businesses. There was not even internet on the island yet so no reason for the category. I had to register the company as a boutique shop that offered "email related services".

http://www.realnegril.com/beingees/behist01.htm

To stock the shop, we went to MoBay and bought wholesale souvenirs at the main craft market there. Boxes were coming off the ship from India at the time and you would "bid" on each box. One vendor purchased a box clearly marked "Jamaica carvings" and when she opened the box in front of all of us, each of the carvings said "Aruba". After about 10 minutes of laughter, she got her money back from the wholesaler, but each box was opened first before bidding resumed.

If you want to really get Jamaican hand made carvings, try places like Dr. Quality and Fay's near Negril Escape. You can place an order and actually watch his progress during your stay. He can even make carvings based on emailed photos. Fay hand makes her jewelry so you can wear a piece of Jamaica home.

But regardless, you are still supporting the local economy when buying any souvenirs, the vendor had to purchase them and you are helping them to support their family. It is the same worldwide, although I would assume Chinese souvenirs are made in China... (grin) "