Travelling to the Caribbean for the first time in 2022 was a real privilege. The world was just opening up again following the pandemic, and though we did have to test ourselves before boarding, we did not have to wear masks, which was a relief in the heat!
One standout destination from that trip was our day in Jamaica. The ship came into port at Falmouth, but, being the itchy-footed travellers that we are, we couldn’t hang about on the beach (stunning though it was!). Instead, we hopped onto a rather fancy air-conditioned minibus for a five-hour tour of the local sights.
What a day! Our local guide was excellent: funny and warm and clearly enjoying showing off her home. No detail was too small for her to explain, from the flora to the school system to the history of the island. It was fascinating to learn about somewhere so far from home, and yet in some ways, so close to us too.
We toured the Georgian town of Falmouth, stopping at St. Peter’s Anglican Church, which is the oldest building in the town, dating from 1796. Stark reminders of the island’s colonial history came in the surprisingly familiar architecture, and the odd statue of Queen Victoria, before we left the town centre and travelled out to St. Ann, Jamaica’s largest parish.
There, we got a true flavour of local life and customs. Roadside barbeques were common, as was loud, uplifting music. We made frequent stops to admire the scenery, such as the lush foliage canopy of Fern Gully, where the road is cut through the rock and spindly trees tower overhead.
We then travelled to Shaw Park, where the views of stunning Ocho Rios were worth every minute of the journey. Jamaica is a wonderful textural contrast of verdant green and azure blue scenery, mixed with the earthier, grittier nature of the town centres and urban living, making it a true pleasure to explore.
A shopping trip for locally-made souvenirs and a meal stop for the classic jerk chicken with baked sweet potato finished off our day in spicy style! One of our favourite parts of travel is doing our best to leave the well-trodden tourist trail behind, and get a flavour of local life, and we really feel that we accomplished that in Jamaica.
