Aficionados of all things Jamaican have reason to lament as the Hollywood International Reggae Day and Jerk Festival, set to take place from noon to 10 p.m. at Young Circle Park this Sunday, has been thrown on the backburner. No roots, no dancehall, no lovers' rock. No curry goat, no oxtail, no jerked anything. It's enough to make an island man cry into his dreads. But rather than have the entire event go by the wayside, the folks at Ginger Bay Café (1908 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood) have elected to carry on indoors. The Hollywood club, already noted for its reggae-heavy Thursday events, provides reggae refugees with the promised land they've been searching for. Well, technically, "the promised land they've been searching for" is about 550 miles south. It's an island called Jamaica. Reggae fans should probably check it out at least once in their lives, like Muslims traveling to Mecca. But if you insist on staying with the baldheads in Babylon, Ginger Bay is about as close as you can get without leaving Broward County. Slap on your loud Hawaiian shirt (you know... the one with all the palm trees on it) and you're ready to party. We're not quite sure how Hawaiian shirts got appropriated for Jamaican festivities, but it always seems to be the case. Doors open at 6 p.m. Call 954-923-1230. -- Dan Sweeney
TUE 6/10
En Español
Spanish para los gringos
¡Hola, amigos! Como ya sabes, hay muchas personas del mundo latino en el sur de Florida. ¿Y tú no hablas español? ¡Qué lástima! ¿Quieres hablar en inglés en su restaurante Mexicano o Cubano favorito? Mala forma -- y el Tamarac Community Center (8601 W. Commercial Blvd., Tamarac) siente lo mismo. Hay una clase de español para principiantes en el centro de la comunidad.
If you didn't understand a word of that, the beginning Spanish class starts at 6:30 p.m. this Tuesday and meets every Tuesday thereafter for ten weeks. You'll walk out at the end, reread the last paragraph, and laugh over how little Spanish the writer really knows. The course costs $30 for Tamarac residents, $40 for nonresidents. The textbook is an additional $20. Call 954-724-2445. -- Dan Sweeney
