What are your earliest memories of Kingston?

My first trip to Kingston was dramatic — it was in a JDF helicopter. The army came to pick me up from my home in a tiny village in Westmoreland, as I was being sent to Sandhurst in the UK for officers’ training. I was awestruck at how sprawling the capital was. Country boy come to town!

What do you miss when you’re not in Kingston?

I miss the warmth of the Jamaican people and the unique things you see nowhere else in the world — like the madman walking on the street wrapped in plastic bags!

What are your favourite home comforts?

I am a great lover of art, and it’s comforting having my Jamaican paintings around me. It’s my visual connection to Jamaica in the sands of Qatar.

What would you do if you were Mayor of Kingston for a day?

We need to find a way to get the beggars off the streets. Not just removing them, but finding them meaningful employment.

Share with us the title of the last book you read:

Task Force Black by Mark Urban. (a candid revelation of the secret role of British Special Forces in Iraq).

What’s your middle name?

Keith (and I hate it!)

And the last bit of music that stirred your soul?

Safari by Lorenzo Jovanotti

Which cologne are you currently splashing?

Terre d’Hermes.

What’s your preferred beverage?

Appleton and Coke (with a slice of lime). W

hat was your most memorable meal in Kingston?

Eating a stew peas box lunch from Miss Lilieth’s handcart on Princess Street.

What are your current projects?

Planning my next climbing expeditions — I hope to summit Mount Kinabalu in Borneo and Mont Blanc in France next year.

What upsets you?

People who are habitually late.

Name the last three places visited on vacation.

Tanzania, New York, and Jamaica

Share a few places in your Black Book.

Oman and Turkey.

Complete the following: If I could live my life all over again…

I would be much more of a listener and accept people for what they are and not what I want them to be.

What’s your advice to a first-time visitor to Kingston?

Brunch at Strawberry Hill — the views are to die for. Ask for ‘Milky’ at Fort Clarence on a Sunday — he does a wicked steamed Red Snapper. And drop by Red Bones on a Thursday night – great music and nice vibes.

Finally, what’s your philosophy?

Any obstacle can be overcome — no matter how difficult.