Thursday, April 22, 2004
Cayman Islands
We took a lot of cruises during graduate/law school as they offered a perfect all-inclusive cost-friendly time-sensitive combination of relaxation and "soft travel."
Recognizing they may have many fine points, we quickly learned cruise ship excursions were not for us. We just had a more enjoyable time researching ports beforehand, deciding what we wanted to experience, then making that happen on our own. Sometimes this meant contacting local operators/guides and other times it meant renting a form of transportation and setting off on our own. For each port I will provide a published synopsis and then post our own experience.
Courtesy of Lonely Planet
"Three tiny islands make up the British Overseas Territory of the Cayman Islands, balanced precariously one side of the enormous Cayman Trench, the deepest part of the Caribbean. While synonymous worldwide with banking, tax havens and beach holidays, there’s much more to this tiny, proud nation, even if you do need to look quite hard to find it. What’s so surprising about the Caymans at first is how un-British they are – it would be hard to design a more Americanized place than Grand Cayman, where the ubiquitous SUVs jostle for space in the parking lots of large malls and US dollars change hands as if they were the national currency. Caymans may lack the dramatic scenery and steamy nightlife of much of the rest of the Caribbean, but in their place you’ll find a charming, independent and deeply warm people spread over three islands boasting many of life’s quieter charms."
We have been to Grand Cayman a handful of times and in our younger days it was one of our favorite destinations as it was our first time experiencing such a feeling of beautiful natural remoteness. Each trip we generally follow the same routine: rent a scooter, drive all over the island, stop at a secluded beach, and pick up a bottle of water from the ladies working in the souvenir shop in Hell. The island hasnt changed too, too much over the years other than it has gotten harder to find a secluded beach. Now motoring through the quiet roadway one can see endless construction sites crawling with doozers building giant houses by the sea. And while more shopping strips have popped up I wouldnt exactly call it suburbia (thank goodness).
Thursday, April 15, 2004
Jamaica
Ocho Rios
We took a lot of cruises during graduate/law school as they offered a perfect all-inclusive cost-friendly time-sensitive combination of relaxation and "soft travel."
Recognizing they may have many fine points, we quickly learned cruise ship excursions were not for us. We just had a more enjoyable time researching ports beforehand, deciding what we wanted to experience, then making that happen on our own. Sometimes this meant contacting local operators/guides and other times it meant renting a form of transportation and setting off on our own. For each port I will provide a published synopsis and then post our own experience.
Courtesy of Lonely Planet:
"Wrapped around a small bay with postcard-worthy snugness, Ocho Rios is a former fishing village that the Jamaica Tourist Board earmarked for tourism in the 1960s and developed in the mid-1980s. With Main St lined with shopping plazas, craft markets and fast-food emporiums, its appeal is not immediately obvious to the more adventurous traveler, but others welcome this ‘Jamaica Lite’ – the opportunity to experience the country without straying too far from the comforts and conveniences of home.
The frequent docking of cruise ships at the central pier that commands the town’s focus gives ‘Ochi’ a decidedly ‘packaged’ feel, spiced up by the incessant entreaties of ‘guides’ and souvenir sellers. However, it has also endowed the town with an international eating scene and two distinct kinds of nightlife: rough-and-ready dancehall clubs and beach sound-systems versus karaoke nights and all-you-can-drink swimwear parties. The choice is yours.
Those who come to Ochi expecting peace and solitude are likely to be disappointed, but the town makes an excellent base for active, solvent travelers who wish to explore the scenic north coast and to partake in slick, well-managed ‘adventures’ such as dog sledding, zip-line tours, horseback riding and waterfall climbing."
Our time in Ocho Rios can be summed up pretty simply:
We took a lot of cruises during graduate/law school as they offered a perfect all-inclusive cost-friendly time-sensitive combination of relaxation and "soft travel."
Recognizing they may have many fine points, we quickly learned cruise ship excursions were not for us. We just had a more enjoyable time researching ports beforehand, deciding what we wanted to experience, then making that happen on our own. Sometimes this meant contacting local operators/guides and other times it meant renting a form of transportation and setting off on our own. For each port I will provide a published synopsis and then post our own experience.
Courtesy of Lonely Planet:
"Wrapped around a small bay with postcard-worthy snugness, Ocho Rios is a former fishing village that the Jamaica Tourist Board earmarked for tourism in the 1960s and developed in the mid-1980s. With Main St lined with shopping plazas, craft markets and fast-food emporiums, its appeal is not immediately obvious to the more adventurous traveler, but others welcome this ‘Jamaica Lite’ – the opportunity to experience the country without straying too far from the comforts and conveniences of home.
The frequent docking of cruise ships at the central pier that commands the town’s focus gives ‘Ochi’ a decidedly ‘packaged’ feel, spiced up by the incessant entreaties of ‘guides’ and souvenir sellers. However, it has also endowed the town with an international eating scene and two distinct kinds of nightlife: rough-and-ready dancehall clubs and beach sound-systems versus karaoke nights and all-you-can-drink swimwear parties. The choice is yours.
Those who come to Ochi expecting peace and solitude are likely to be disappointed, but the town makes an excellent base for active, solvent travelers who wish to explore the scenic north coast and to partake in slick, well-managed ‘adventures’ such as dog sledding, zip-line tours, horseback riding and waterfall climbing."
Our time in Ocho Rios can be summed up pretty simply:
- We spent the entire day on a gorgeous beach in rented chaise lounges under a palm tree.
- We were approached by an elderly toothless local gentleman who offered to sell us a fruit plate for ten bucks. This is not something we typically do but we figured hey why not. The man disappeared behind a nearby wooden hut and after several minutes of chopping he presented us with the biggest and most magnificent platter of fresh tropical fruit we have ever seen! It. Was. Delicious. To this day we still talk about that fruit plate. We gave him twenty bucks.
- Word spread quickly as shortly thereafter we were approached by another local. This time selling "fresh Jamaican aloe" for five bucks. We should have known better but the fruit thing worked out so well..... Moments later the man returned with a sandy rum bottle containing "fresh Jamaican aloe" (hah, I know) more resembling floating cheese curd than anything else. But we had agreed so we handed over the five dollars. Except then he starts yelling it was supposed to be ten. I have no memory of how this resolved so nothing exceptional mustve happened.
- Walking back from the beach we noticed guards or police of some sort with very big guns standing outside the entrance of a few banks. It didnt really phase us beyond "noticing" it; maybe thats how they roll here. Later we asked my friend from Jamaica if this was the norm and he laughed and said absolutely not and called it "nonsense" they were brandishing weapons.
- Walking through town passersby would, without stopping or looking at us, mumble a single word: doobie?
Costa Maya
Costa Maya
We took a lot of cruises during graduate/law school as they offered a perfect all-inclusive cost-friendly time-sensitive combination of relaxtion and "soft travel."
Recognizing they may have many fine points, we quickly learned cruise ship excursions were not for us. We just had a more enjoyable time researching ports beforehand, deciding what we wanted to experience, then making that happen on our own. Sometimes this meant contacting local operators/guides and othertimes it meant renting a form of transportation and setting off on our own. For each port I will provide a published synopsis and then post our own experience.
Courtsey of Royal Caribbean:
"Costa Maya, once a trading post for the Mayan Empire, is located in the Mexican Caribbean and is best known for its jungles, beaches, lagoons and Mayan ruins. Recent development and modern port facilities are making Costa Maya the perfect port of call. With so many activities, it will be hard to decide what to do first."
Our experience in Costa Maya was interesting. The "port" passengers are shuttled into is a walled city of shopping (our version of hell) and they really discouraged us from leaving this space on our own. So we did. We walked quite a ways to rent a jeep to drive ourselves around the island. We saw lots of ruins-many deserted as I guess these werent stops on an excursion so it was neat to have these ancient places virtually to ourselves-save for some friendly dogs and random locals that would try to situate themselves as your "guide." We actually went for it one time, "what the hey," we figured. I remember it being not so bad though I forget all we learned in those few moments.
Aside from the ruins I remember one of us commenting, as we drove down the narrow roads flanked by spaghetti messes of weeds and bushes, how we could be in the US for all we could tell.
At one point we were flagged down to stop by two "officers" holding large guns. As we began to slow to a stop we began to form our plan: how much money we should offer as a starting point. Wed heard countless stories of tourists being restrained, released only after "payment" (coughs: bribe) is made. As we slowed to a stop the two ominous moustached men simply looked at us and waved us on. Whew!
We took a lot of cruises during graduate/law school as they offered a perfect all-inclusive cost-friendly time-sensitive combination of relaxtion and "soft travel."
Recognizing they may have many fine points, we quickly learned cruise ship excursions were not for us. We just had a more enjoyable time researching ports beforehand, deciding what we wanted to experience, then making that happen on our own. Sometimes this meant contacting local operators/guides and othertimes it meant renting a form of transportation and setting off on our own. For each port I will provide a published synopsis and then post our own experience.
Courtsey of Royal Caribbean:
"Costa Maya, once a trading post for the Mayan Empire, is located in the Mexican Caribbean and is best known for its jungles, beaches, lagoons and Mayan ruins. Recent development and modern port facilities are making Costa Maya the perfect port of call. With so many activities, it will be hard to decide what to do first."
Our experience in Costa Maya was interesting. The "port" passengers are shuttled into is a walled city of shopping (our version of hell) and they really discouraged us from leaving this space on our own. So we did. We walked quite a ways to rent a jeep to drive ourselves around the island. We saw lots of ruins-many deserted as I guess these werent stops on an excursion so it was neat to have these ancient places virtually to ourselves-save for some friendly dogs and random locals that would try to situate themselves as your "guide." We actually went for it one time, "what the hey," we figured. I remember it being not so bad though I forget all we learned in those few moments.
Aside from the ruins I remember one of us commenting, as we drove down the narrow roads flanked by spaghetti messes of weeds and bushes, how we could be in the US for all we could tell.
At one point we were flagged down to stop by two "officers" holding large guns. As we began to slow to a stop we began to form our plan: how much money we should offer as a starting point. Wed heard countless stories of tourists being restrained, released only after "payment" (coughs: bribe) is made. As we slowed to a stop the two ominous moustached men simply looked at us and waved us on. Whew!
Wednesday, April 14, 2004
Cozumel
Cozumel
We took a lot of cruises during graduate/law school as they offered a perfect all-inclusive cost-friendly time-sensitive combination of relaxation and "soft travel."
Recognizing they may have many fine points, we quickly learned cruise ship excursions were not for us. We just had a more enjoyable time researching ports beforehand, deciding what we wanted to experience, then making that happen on our own. Sometimes this meant contacting local operators/guides and other times it meant renting a form of transportation and setting off on our own. For each port I will provide a published synopsis and then post our own experience.
Courtesy of WikiTravel:
"An immensely popular diving spot since 1961, when Jacques Cousteau, led by local guides, showed its spectacular reefs to the world, Cozumel lies 71km south of Cancún. Measuring 53km by 14km, it is Mexico’s largest island. Called Ah-Cuzamil-Peten (Island of Swallows) by its earliest inhabitants, Cozumel has become a world-famous diving and cruise ship destination. Hurricane Wilma did some serious damage to the snorkeling sites around the island, but most of the deep-water reefs missed the brunt of the storm. Sadly, the squadrons of eagle rays have dwindled, due to overfishing of the shellfish stocks – no shellfish, no eagle rays."
We have been here a few times but without a doubt the most amazing experience was our first visit which was centered around diving with Ernesto. We had never gone diving before and we found a program that offered an opportunity to get instruction, participate in a dive, and earn our first diving certificate.
Upon arrival we were seated in an open-air hut to watch a diving safety video. The group included Chris, me, and one other older female (not "older" but older than us). Our instructor, Ernesto, then spent time with us going over the facts of the video and explaining the importance of and the meaning behind key diving safety features. Some things, like death, concerned me and while I may have seemed outwardly calm inside I was growing slightly panicked. Ive never been one that liked to proactively (what I then learned was called) "equalize" so even this was weighing on me as we suited up.
After we had our tanks, our fins, our face masks and all that we practiced our breathing and reviewed some basic hand signals (a-ok)! Then it was time to head to the water! Except I couldnt stand. Of course having zero exposure to this, I hadnt expected the "gear" to be so heavy.
Once in the water it took some time getting used to breathing b/c it feels like taking slow breaths through a straw. Taking immense comfort in the knowledge Ernesto was mere feet away, I eventually lost myself in the pretty sea life. After a few minutes he adjusted the weights on my belt so I could better control my movement and I remember feeling safe knowing he had noticed this because it meant he was watching and taking care of me. The dive itself was absolutely amazing. It really is a whole other world down there, I cant describe it any other way. Ernesto, always nearby, scooped something from the sand and brought it to me. It was a starfish! I cant recall the details other than at one point I grew nervous and Ernesto was there instantly. He got close to me and leveled his eyes with mine. He motioned he was watching me and that I was ok. I can still remember how he was able to so easily and so immediately communicate this and bring me right back to zen. I happily flipped away and carried on with one of the coolest experiences of my life.
The other member of our trio had some tougher issues. She was at points coming out of the water and crying and while I wasnt privy to their interaction I saw Ernesto was right there with her each time. Its funny-when I began to write this narrative, so many years after the fact, I googled "ernesto cozumel diving" and there are countless reviews singing his praise. In fact, the first result is "Ernesto is awesome!" Awesome indeed!
We took a lot of cruises during graduate/law school as they offered a perfect all-inclusive cost-friendly time-sensitive combination of relaxation and "soft travel."
Recognizing they may have many fine points, we quickly learned cruise ship excursions were not for us. We just had a more enjoyable time researching ports beforehand, deciding what we wanted to experience, then making that happen on our own. Sometimes this meant contacting local operators/guides and other times it meant renting a form of transportation and setting off on our own. For each port I will provide a published synopsis and then post our own experience.
Courtesy of WikiTravel:
"An immensely popular diving spot since 1961, when Jacques Cousteau, led by local guides, showed its spectacular reefs to the world, Cozumel lies 71km south of Cancún. Measuring 53km by 14km, it is Mexico’s largest island. Called Ah-Cuzamil-Peten (Island of Swallows) by its earliest inhabitants, Cozumel has become a world-famous diving and cruise ship destination. Hurricane Wilma did some serious damage to the snorkeling sites around the island, but most of the deep-water reefs missed the brunt of the storm. Sadly, the squadrons of eagle rays have dwindled, due to overfishing of the shellfish stocks – no shellfish, no eagle rays."
We have been here a few times but without a doubt the most amazing experience was our first visit which was centered around diving with Ernesto. We had never gone diving before and we found a program that offered an opportunity to get instruction, participate in a dive, and earn our first diving certificate.
Upon arrival we were seated in an open-air hut to watch a diving safety video. The group included Chris, me, and one other older female (not "older" but older than us). Our instructor, Ernesto, then spent time with us going over the facts of the video and explaining the importance of and the meaning behind key diving safety features. Some things, like death, concerned me and while I may have seemed outwardly calm inside I was growing slightly panicked. Ive never been one that liked to proactively (what I then learned was called) "equalize" so even this was weighing on me as we suited up.
After we had our tanks, our fins, our face masks and all that we practiced our breathing and reviewed some basic hand signals (a-ok)! Then it was time to head to the water! Except I couldnt stand. Of course having zero exposure to this, I hadnt expected the "gear" to be so heavy.
Once in the water it took some time getting used to breathing b/c it feels like taking slow breaths through a straw. Taking immense comfort in the knowledge Ernesto was mere feet away, I eventually lost myself in the pretty sea life. After a few minutes he adjusted the weights on my belt so I could better control my movement and I remember feeling safe knowing he had noticed this because it meant he was watching and taking care of me. The dive itself was absolutely amazing. It really is a whole other world down there, I cant describe it any other way. Ernesto, always nearby, scooped something from the sand and brought it to me. It was a starfish! I cant recall the details other than at one point I grew nervous and Ernesto was there instantly. He got close to me and leveled his eyes with mine. He motioned he was watching me and that I was ok. I can still remember how he was able to so easily and so immediately communicate this and bring me right back to zen. I happily flipped away and carried on with one of the coolest experiences of my life.
The other member of our trio had some tougher issues. She was at points coming out of the water and crying and while I wasnt privy to their interaction I saw Ernesto was right there with her each time. Its funny-when I began to write this narrative, so many years after the fact, I googled "ernesto cozumel diving" and there are countless reviews singing his praise. In fact, the first result is "Ernesto is awesome!" Awesome indeed!
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