We flew out to Kingston straight after work, and arrived late, but thankfully we had a friend to meet us at the airport to take us into town and show us around. After some catching up, (19yrs worth to be exact) and a few Red Stripes overlooking Kingston, we went to bed in order to ready ourselves for a long weekend of exploring.
When we awoke we were able to get a better feel for the geography of where we were staying. Unlike Grand Cayman, which is largely flat, our first impression of Kingston was the lush greenery of the Blue Mountains rising sharply up from the bay. It was here that we would be heading later in the day. But first some relaxation. One of the friends we were staying with is (among many things) a yoga instructor and was running a yoga class on the Saturday morning, so rather than jumping in and exploring Jamaica straight away, Bonnie and I opted to join her for her yoga lesson. It was a great experience and very relaxing (except for the odd mango departing its perch and falling onto the corregated iron roof, scaring us witless), and although leaving us feeling physically and mentally refreshed, we would pay for it later on...
Heading out of Kingston we were able to get more of a feel for the everyday lives of ordinary Jamaicans. Although Kingston has more poverty than what we see in Cayman, it certainly does not deserve the bad reputation it has as a dangerous place.
As we had not had an opportunity to get any cash out at the airport the evening before, we stopped at an ATM, where Barn punched in the numbers to get out JA$1,500, which seemed like an awful lot, and he returned proudly to the car, proclaiming that he had just made the biggest withdrawal in his life. Unfortunately it transpired that it was only about US$12, so Barn sheepishly had to ask to stop again at the next cashpoint to add another zero to the withdrawal...
Like many of the other buildings we had passed, it seemed to be floating out from the hillside, but it gave us great views down the valley to the bay of Kingston (which we learned is the seventh largest natural harbour in the world). The food was fantastic, and although they had run out of Red Stripe, they were quite happy for us to break into our own supply...
Once fed and watered we pressed on up the road, past the luxury Strawberry Hill resort owned by Island Records mogul Chris Blackwell and on to the hilltop retreat which was to be our lodging for the night. And what a place it was! We were treated to unsurpassed views down to the terraced vegetable patches and coffee trees and on down over the valleys on one side and up to Catherine's Peak on the other side from the fabulous veranda, where we were able to sit out and dine in the refreshing breeze. We decided to take an early evening stroll before dinner to stretch our legs after the drive and work up our appetite for dinner, and it was bizarre (but also rather refreshing after the heat of Cayman) to walk around the corner and into a bank of fog (well, actually cloud, given that we were at around 5,000ft) clinging to the mountain side.
Climbing sharply above the valley, we were given great views over the old barracks buildings, perched up the hillside, as well as back down towards Strawberry Hill and further on to Kingston. The thick undergrowth offered us some much needed shade, and it was fantastic to be able to stretch our legs in the altitude, but after a while the thin air and our general lack of fitness got the better of us, and we had to turn back before we reached the summit. We eventually dragged ourselves back to the house in time for a fantastic breakfast of Ackee and Bacon, and freshly brewed Blue Mountain coffee, followed by some serious stretching. Unfortunately with the walking and the yoga Bonnie and I had rather overstretched ourselves and were sore for the next few days, but it was well worth it.
After an explore of the gardens and a wonderful Sunday lunch we headed back down the mountain and in to Kingston, where there was just enough time to get showered and changed before heading off for a night on the town. There was a charity evening at one of the bars and we tagged along for what turned out to be a wonderful evening of dancing, Red Stripe and more dancing under the stars in an open air bar/disco. Only in the Caribbean...
On Monday our hosts had to go to work, but they put us in touch with a great driver Mr Paul, who
agreed to take us around Kingston and show us some of the sights.
We started off at the Jamaican National Institute, which was housed in a fantastic old Victorian building in the centre of Jamaica and had some interesting exhibitions spanning various aspects of Jamaican history.
Licensed by the crown they were permitted to attack the Spanish treasure galleons in the name of the crown, and keep the spoils. By the mid 1600s Port Royal was one of the richest Cities in the world, such was the value of captured gold, as well as tobacco, sugar, rum and other less palatable commodities (such as the slaves that were traded as part of the "triangular trade") passing through the port. In order to protect the colony from marauding Spanish ships, a fort was built at the end of the peninsular. Originally named Fort Cromwell after Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector of England, who had a significant role in the development of Jamaica and the West Indies, it was later renamed Fort Charles after the reinstated Stuart monarch.
Unfortunately, a second earthquake rocked the port in 1907 and destroyed much of the rebuilt town, after which the site was finally abandoned. Some buildings survived, although a little less steady than they once were, including the aptly named "Giddy House";
Our next destination was the home of the one person who is most synonymous with Jamaican culture - Robert Nesta Marley (or Bob for short). Yes, like many tourists before us we took a pilgrimage to the home of Reggae, the house of Bob Marley, now a museum run by his wife. It was interesting to understand some of the background to his life, and how his experiences coloured his music. One thing we found out that we did not previously know, was that his father was a white army captain called Norval.
From the house of a legend, we moved to another house, this time a colonial mansion called Devon House, home of the first Jamaican millionaire, which is now a museum, restaurant and shopping precinct.
Given that it was getting quite late in the day we decided to give the museum a miss, in favour of the ice cream parlour on the corner that looked very inviting. And we were not disappointed. We found out that it had in fact been voted by National Geographic as one of the ten best ice cream parlours in the world, ranked alongside Italy's finest. Article for 10 Best Places to Eat Ice Cream
Tired from a packed day of sightseeing, we finally headed back to the house, to get showered changed and rested before taking our hosts back to The Terrace restaurant at Devon House Check it out here for a fantastic dinner where the proprietor David Machado served us with true Jamaican hospitality. Safe to say we rolled home for our final night in Jamaica and our early flight back to Cayman the next morning.
If our hosts are reading this blog, a huge huge thank you from both of us, we had an absolutely brilliant time and will remember it forever. We look forward to having you here to stay in Cayman, although we're not sure the scenery can match what Jamaica has to offer! xxx
