Travel through Jamaica, Suriname, Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago,
Caribbean Holiday Part Two
Day 1
It was -9 C in Houston (or 15 F in the commie units). Luckily my Uber was on time. Technically I got enough sleep, but not really.
Check-in was chaotic, but everything was smooth after that. The flight was delayed an hour for baggage loading - I just hoped mine got loaded!
After an hour's stopover in Fort Lauderdale., we landed in Jamaica. The airport was a bit chaotic, but I was out in 45 minutes. My B&B arranged a taxi, and after dropping my bags I went to eat a leisurely lunch at Peppas. They had some excellent cocktails.
After a glorious 10 hours of sleep, I woke up to a traditional Jamaican breakfast. Ackee and salt fish, fried festival,
I befriended my fellow guest, Marcel. He is originally from Cameron but has lived in Germany for 20 years. He decided to join me on my first tour - a picnic in a traditional Jamaican village.
Our guide David lived in Canada for many years and has a Québécois spouse. He took us to his village, where a bunch of guys were hanging out under a big tree, drinking beers and chatting. We were then taken to a small waterfall where bamboo trees were being cut.
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The next agenda item was a picnic lunch by a stream. The jerk chicken and pork were cooked by locals. Breadfruit was the starchy side. A pretty good meal!
We got back and rested, and then headed to the second tour of the day - the luminescent beach. The phenomenon is described below:-
Luminous Lagoon, Jamaica
It is home to millions of dinoflagellates. At night, the lagoon sparkles and glistens when disturbed, as these microscopic organisms produce an eerie glow, reflecting the outlines of fish and other objects in the water. The Luminous Lagoon is said to be the largest and most brilliant of four in the world, a fact that continually attracts and awes visitors and scientists from around the world.
Then Marcel decided we should go clubbing! He called a cab to go to the Hip street. The clubs there are on the sea, which was very cool!
Day 3
The next day was Christmas. After an excellent breakfast including Christmas cake, Marcel headed to Cuba, and I looked for lunch. There was only one hole-in-the-wall restaurant open. The food was edible but better than no food. The seaside view from the restaurant was nice, though.
Day 4
On the 26th, the B&B owner recommended that I head to Ocho Rios during the day. I had tickets for late evening, so I went to the Knutsford bus station and changed them to the morning. My co-passenger was a professor from Texas! The journey was scheduled to be 2 hours, but we got to Ocho Rios in 1.15 hours. It was a pretty comfortable bus, with wifi at the bus station and in the bus.
My homestay hosts came to pick me up. They are Dutch and very hospitable. I just relaxed that day with beers from them.
Day 5
The next day was my action day. Joe took me to the Blue Hole. This is a place where one gets to jump into the water from different heights. I hadn’t done this in 30-plus years! I also met an Argentinian couple (Mai and Rodrigo) celebrating their honeymoon/ they got married one day before Argentina won the World Cup! Mai was also fascinated by India - especially yoga.
The next stop was the Dunn’s River Falls. It was a national holiday so the place was packed! After some Caribbean time ( a measure of time that is mostly patience), our guide took us up a waterfall. We also had to crawl under a bridge. we formed a human chain and most of us were holding hands while climbing up slippery and rocky ledges. A couple of times Jamaicans approached me and started discussing cricket, a subject I love!
After a tiring and exciting morning and afternoon, my hosts Joe and Rita took me to Scotchies, a Jamaican fast food place. This place was also packed, and I got a fried fish for lunch. The watermelon Red Stripe was sweet and refreshing.
The rest of the evening was spent drinking beers on the verandah. The previous Indian family had left and a German family had taken the adjoining room.
Day 6
I woke up at 5:15 am and Joe gave me a ride to the Knutsford bus station. The bus ride to Kingston was shorter than scheduled, so I had to wait for 45 minutes in Kingston till my guide David picked me up.
We started the Bob Marley tour by visiting his house, which is now a museum. The walls have paintings of his life and family. The tour was called conducted by a Rastafarian. He made us sing Bob Marley songs 😀! Luckily I knew the words for some of them.
Bob Marley was a generous person, who also had a concert to reduce political violence in Jamaica. In retaliation, 5 gunmen tried to kill him. He survived that attack but succumbed to cancer when he was in his 30s.
I also was taken to the government housing where he was raised and composed his first songs. I got to sit on his VW camper, which is an empty shell now. After that, we headed to Heroes Park, where all the Prime Ministers of Jamaica are buried. Also, the actress who wrote poetry in Patois, the local language, is buried there with her husband.
Our last stop was Devon House, which has a collection of little shops, restaurants and the best ice cream shop in Jamaica. After having the famous curried goat patty, I went for a sorrel ice cream.
I then headed to my Bed and Breakfast up on the hills. Neita's Nest is a very comfortable place and Michele was a lovely hostess. I rested quite a bit after a long day.
Day 7
This turned out to be a lazy rest day. After a lovely smoked marlin fish and breakfast, followed by a yoghurt parfait, I decided to rest and chat with Michele. I headed out for lunch to Triple Zs, a shack-style restaurant with local cuisine. I got goat curry and a Juneapple fruit drink. The Juneapple taste like a cross between apple and pineapple? One of the hosts was ethnically Indian and asked me where I was from. We proceeded to talk about India.
I picked up some sorrel rum, along with overproof rum to sit by the verandah overlooking the hills from Neita's Nest. I sat and had a long chat with Michele, who took me through Jamaican history. Her father was a press officer to the PM and saw many political events up close.
Day 8
I missed out on the oxtail in Triple Zs, so I went to Devon House again to have some. Grog’s restaurant in Devon House had a really good version, along with an excellent planters punch rum cocktail. After lunch, I got picked up and taken to the airport for my flight to Trinidad.
At Port of Spain, I was picked up by the hosts of the B&B where I was staying. The place was exactly 5 minutes from the airport. They asked me to join their NYE party the next day. It was a better offer than any plans I had so I accepted.
Day 9
I woke up early to get a flight to Tobago Island. I got to chat with a young couple who were staying in the same B&B. They were from Jamaica and we talked about cricket and kabaddi (an Indian sport I know nothing about 😀).
The flight to Tobago was 25 minutes. I was picked up by my tour guide, who looked a bit Rastafarian. He showed me the very cheap Indian cigarettes called beedi that he smoked.
Our first stop was the beach. Next, we went to Fort King George. The Caribbean was fought over by the British, French, Dutch, etc. So this fort was located strategically at the top of a hill.
Our next stop was Englishman’s Bay. We went to get a beer at a shack restaurant with a fabulous view. I had the local Stag beer for the first time.
Our next stop was Turtle Beach, where turtles come to lay eggs. There was also some group fishing, where a group of volunteers drags the fishnet in and each one of them is given a free fish.
The last stop was Castara Beach. This was more of a tourist spot, with people swimming and lying on the beach. All the previous beaches and parks were pretty empty, and so looked unspoilt by tourists.
After taking the quick flight back, I was picked up by Veejaintee. I got a quick nap and then their New Year party began. They have a hotel, house and a swimming pool in their complex. I was introduced to their siblings, nieces and nephews, family friends, etc alcohol was flowing freely and there was some good Trinidadian food too. My first exposure to “chutney music” - old Bollywood songs remixed with a modern beat. It was fun and a learning experience of the Indo-Caribbean culture.
Day 10
Since everyone woke up late on New Year's, it was a lazy day by the pool. I tried a Trinidadian “double” - chickpeas in a roti with a spicy chutney sauce. Yum!
In the evening, there was another family party! This time I got introduced to more members of the Singh family. Shiva and Roshnee came from Toronto, which is where I grew up. There was more chutney music and good food. Mutton was cooked on a wooden stove with spices. There also was mango pickled curry, a dal stuffed roti, etc. It was very similar to Indian food, but a bit different.
Trinidadian mutton curry
Day 11
I took advantage of this day for a tour around Port of Spain, the capital of Trinidad and Tobago. We went up the Fort St George, which offers a beautiful view of Port of Spain. The ferry terminal with daily ships to Tobago and a nearby terminal which goes to Venezuela. In the evening there was a third family party, Bally Singh’s sisters' place, with a traditional India-Trinidadian goat curry prepared in a wooden fired pot. There was more Chutney music. I had to translate some of the Bollywood songs, which many of the Indo-Trinidadians don’t speak (but sing to).
Another interesting combination they had at this party was Parr whiskey with coconut water. That seems to be a particular cocktail mix here.
Day 12
This was a quiet day, so I went to the nearby mall to do some souvenir shopping. As was to be expected, Veejaintee invited me to dinner at their place, even though they were having a family moment. I got a hearty meat soup.
And then I headed to the airport for my flight to Suriname.
The airport in Paramaribo was basic, and quite far from the city. We got a taxi with a female driver at 2 a.m. This was a little nerve-wracking because the crime rate is high in these countries. The road to the city was basic as well.
Day 13
There was a morning tour of Paramaribo- a city with a blend of Dutch, Indian, Indonesian and aboriginal influences. The Zeelandia fortress and the Hindu temples were the architectural highlights of this city. The Protestant church was decent too.
I tried some of the Chinese Surinamese food, which didn’t particularly stand out. The staff in our hotel was friendly and placed the order. She was of Indonesian origin but didn’t speak Bahasa. Her grandfather had migrated to Suriname.
Day 14
This was a lazy day in Paramaribo. I had to go to the airline office to make some payments for the ticket I bought out of Guyana.
I had lunch at a restaurant shack by the river Suriname. One can see the various cultural influences in the country in their food. The Surinamese beer was decent and cheap.
Day 15
This was a day of adventure. At 3:30 a.m., I had to get up and get ready. At 4:15 a.m., my minivan taxi came to pick me up. They picked up a few other passengers on the way to the border river crossing.
The border crossing was a bit disorganized, but not too crowded. Since I didn’t have a yellow fever vaccine, some money had to exchange hands to make the problem go away. Our diver took my photo to pass on to the driver on the other side.
The boat ride across the river border was not very comfortable but was quite short. After passing through customs and immigration, the minivan driver on the Guyanese side found me using the photo sent to him!
View from the Courantyne River ferry crossing from Suriname to Guyana
The journey into Georgetown was relaxing. It rained a bit, but the roads and facilities were far better than Suriname. In the minivan was an Indian from Delhi named Asad, who did part-time work in the Indian Embassy in Suriname. The villages didn't have names - they were all numbered!
The cows remind me of India - On the highway to Georgetown
The Hermandstone Lodge Hotel in Georgetown was quite nice. I got a patio lunch with lots of cold beer. I was warned not to walk out of the hotel due to the crime rate in the city, so had dinner there too.
Day 16
There was nothing planned for that day, so I talked to the hotel staff and arranged for a car to the Promenade Gardens. I had asked to be taken to the Biological Gardens, but the driver took me to the Promenade Garden. He talked to someone there who charged us, even though there was no payment required.
The gardens were quite nice, with plants and influences from everywhere. There was a Gandhi and a Vivekananda statue, along with Chinese-style structures.
Day 17
I had a Georgetown city tour booked that day. An Indo-Guyanese lady named Shivana (from Touring Guyana) was my guide. She took me to the “ I love Guyana” sign. That was followed by a visit to a traditional indigenous hut, made with local straw and wood. The local market was next, where Shivana bought us local fruit and cookies.
We went to a local church, and then a takeaway restaurant called Shanta that served Indian-influenced food. The last stop was the Biological Gardens, which was as good as claimed. The first Guyanese president's (Chedi Jagan) body is buried there. There were a lot of ponds with lotus flowers. The highlight was the manatee, a marine animal that looks like a cross between a pig and a small hippopotamus.
I had a few good rum cocktails to finish the day off!
Day 18
An early morning flight from Georgetown was delayed, which meant I would miss my connecting flight in Miami. Luckily there was one flight left in the day from the nearby Fort Lauderdale airport, which was only 35 minutes away from Miami airport.
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