In Trinidad, from the heights of the Northern Range Mountains on the way to Maracas Beach, visitors are treated to an awesome view at the Maracas Bay lookout staring out across the blue rippling sheet of the Caribbean Sea and the distant islands.

Another attraction is the large sized jars that are on display at the food vendors tents in this area containing bright red things to eat. There are fruits such as local plums, mango slices and local cherries that are pickled or preserved as they called it here.

The colour is a hard enough to get by to sample a taste of these preservatives, but once the red stained fruit passes your lips the taste is tangy, yet peppery, yet sweet – definitely a combination that will take me some time to get used to. I smile at the lady trying to hold back my eye from twitching in reaction to the taste, “Mmmm nice” I say deciding that licking it will suffice.

Preservatives are just one of the weirdest things about the food in the Caribbean, they love to pickle everything making into a chow with salt and pepper and of course a whole host of seasonings.