Jamaica
At first, I thought going to
Jamaica was going to be real cool. After talking with people that have gone in
the past, all I heard from them were typically bad experiences. So, I got on a
couple of tours and saw for myself. First stop was in Montego Bay. If you stay
in the "tourist" areas, it seemed only marginally safe. Once you left those
areas you were not all that safe it appeared. Most of the 'city' was really
dirty, covered with bars and barbed wire and generally unwelcoming. It's really
too bad. If you think drivers are bad in the U.S., then think again! These
people are nuts and they drive on the other side of the road (and rarely pick a
side).
I only stopped in Montego Bay
one time, the rest of my visits there were to the Ocho Rios area. It is nicer
than Montego Bay but I only got to a very limited area of the town and mostly
went away on excursions. They included Dunn's River Falls, Wassi Arts Pottery,
Walkerswood Jerk Country bottling plant, Margaritaville, and a few other places
along the way. One of the best things on these trips was the free rum punch
everyone served and the variety of rum available. I love rum and therefore had a
pretty good time sampling it. Of course I brought some home........
This tour was to an old sugar
cane plantation built around 1755. It is still in very good shape and only
recently not used for sugar. The staff was really nice and fun to hang with.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Sugar Cane Plantation Home |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Pressing the cane for juice |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
WHere the cane juice is reduced into molasses. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Montego Bay from deck 15 on the ship. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
I went back to Jamaica 3 more
times from December 12-Jan 18th 2007. Here are some more pictures of those
trips. Starting with Dunn's River Falls, I went there two times and walked up
the falls the first time. It was pretty cool once I left the chain of people I
got stuck with. There were a ton of people there all going up the falls that
day. After that was an ATV trip up the mountainside. It was a lot of fun and one
of the best trips I took the whole time. We got totally muddy and finished off
the ride with a jump in the ocean. The rocky grotto there was 15'-20' from the
waves and the water was warm. It was a great way to clean up after the ride.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Getting ready for the trip. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Out stop at the middle of the trail. We are about 800' above sea level. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Flowers at the mountain home. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The grotto by the sea at end of ATV trip. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Most of us took the plunge. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
That's me. It is higher than it looks. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The breakwater at the jump point. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Here are a few pictures from
Wassi Arts pottery and the Green Grotto cave.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
A sculptural piece at Wassi Arts pottery. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Scraffitto ware at Wassi arts pottery. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Down in Green Grotto cave. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
At the bottom of the cave again. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
