We spent today on the island of Jamaica (yah, man) and it was a great day when all was said and done. The first half was sort of stuck in tourist-ville, although that was interesting and we still had a lot of fun. We are, after all, tourists.
Our favorite bartender, Alan, gave us a few pointers about going into Jamaica. First he told us to leave all of our jewelry on the ship and then he told us never to walk along the roads – to always take a taxi. His best piece of advice was to hire a taxi to take us around on a tour and to the destinations where we wanted to go. He even asked a Jamaican co-worker what a good price would be for a taxi driver to do that.
Unfortunately, the cruise line changed its port from Ocho Rios to Montego Bay, meaning the world famous Dunns River waterfalls were a 2 hour drive away. Not wanting to spend 4 hours cooped up in a bus or taxi, we decided to scratch the falls as a destination. Then we were a little at a loss as to where to tell a taxi to take us. So we bought a pass to a shuttle van that takes you to 5 destinations in MoBay.
The first stop was a very primitive “authentic” crafts market. What that really means is a bunch of little shanties packed to the brims with beaded jewelry, wood crafts, etc. The sellers are somewhat pushy but much better than the ones at the Haitian market. There is still an expectation that you will at least look in each person’s shop so we spent a good 45 minutes poking our heads into these cramped booths and haggling. We actually bought some cool stuff, including a hand carved wooden mallard duck and some jewelry.
Then we boarded the bus and were taken to a more commercial “mall” style market. This reminded us a lot of St. Thomas, complete with chaotic driving experiences and a lot of trash lying about. The mall was mostly jewelry stores and trinket shops so we did not spend a lot of time there.
Next stop on the shuttle was Jimmy Buffet’s Margaritaville. For those of you groaning as you read this because it is SUCH a tourist destination, we actually had a fun time. Admittedly, the DJ encouraging young women to dance on the bar tops was a bit much, but the other antics were for the most part very entertaining. We had our photo taken with the friendly parrot, had a balloon crown made by a Rastafarian on stilts and were serenaded by a small band. The food was fine but watching people shoot down the giant waterslide that leads from the top of the restaurant into the blue waters of the ocean was top. The margaritas were good, too.
When we decided to leave, we thought it would be a good idea to grab a taxi who could take us off the main road. Because we were wearing the shuttle wristbands, the taxi drivers ignored us. One, however, who was talking with the doorman heard us ask him for a taxi and jumped in. This caused a little scuffle because technically the taxi driver should have waited in line to get a chance to drive. They finally all agreed that it was OK and Prince took us off on a journey.
First stop was a store for Steve to buy cigars. He asked Prince to take him where he would buy them himself, so he did. It took about 30 minutes for Steve to select and negotiate the price on the cigars. While we waited, Prince bought me a Red Stripe beer and told me all about his 8 children (by 4 different baby mamas) and the story of his family.
We finally loaded back up and Prince took us on a tour of the city – we saw stunning views of the mountains and oceans from the hilltops. Prince took us through the working class (mostly apartments / condos), the poor area (mostly mobile home style huts with sad looking souls sitting outside) and the rich area (where it takes $4 million Jamaican or $1.7M US to buy a piece of land alone). The only place we did not tour close up but saw from afar were the garrisons, which are basically illegal shacks that gangsters have taken from the dirty government officials and claimed. The garrisons are where most of the illegal activities take place and the police will not even go into them. They have taken over rich neighborhoods so the newer developments have bound property owners together to keep them out.
Prince also educated us on Rastafarian and what that lifestyle is really like. He is not Rastafarian but we met one of his fellow taxi drivers who is and he told about the purity of life they strive to maintain and that their goal is love. For example, a true Rastafarian keeps his dreadlocks very clean and neat and would never put honeycomb in his dreads. He also believes in true and committed love to one woman (his “empress”) and does not eat salt or meat. I am not sure how the whole marijuana thing fits into the pure life style but it was fascinating to hear about it all.
The last stop on the tour was the market where the locals shop – very different from the market where the tourists are dumped. While we did not actually get out of the cab, we drove through and Prince rolled down the window to chat (in padway speak) with his buddies. Steve had him stop and we bought a fresh mango from a vendor, who sliced it and we ate it there in the cab. It was honestly the best piece of fruit I have ever tasted. We also saw a woman chop up a coconut with her machete.
To be honest, the ride changed our opinion of Jamaica. While I would still describe it as a very dirty and likely somewhat dangerous place, we saw some true beauty in the place. If you ever go to MoBay, get yourself a good taxi driver and have him take you around – that is the way to really see the city.
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