Retired banker and publisher
Married with two daughters
Interests : Cars, wine, travel abroad,eati...
Retired banker and publisher
Married with two daughters
Interests : Cars, wine, travel abroad,eating out,keeping fit, playing badminton, music, crossword puzzles, computing
Member since:06.07.2000
Reviews:17
CARIBBEAN CAPERS
A late booking in January for a bargain package deal saw us winging our way across the Atlantic in a Boeing 757, heading for Jamaica. Escaping from the English winter, we touched down in Bangor for refuelling, then headed south for the West Indies. After some 12 hours total flying time we landed at the ‘Island in the Sun’ in brilliant sunshine with temperatures in the eighties. Neither of us had been before and our knowledge of the island was confined to Bob Marley and Reggae music, Harry Belafonte, rum and cricket. Jamaica is rich in cane sugar, beautiful flowers, lush greenery, mountains and waterfalls, and tourism is its biggest money-earner. It is not difficult to see why, with year round temperatures in the 70’s and 80’s, more or less constant sunshine and clean white beaches caressed the warm, blue Caribbean Sea. When we arrived at the airport, we had no idea in which resort we would be staying, but we were lucky as we found ourselves booked in at the Seawinds complex in Montego Bay. It was a little off the beaten track but ideally situated for a quiet, relaxing holiday, with its own restaurants, swimming pools and private beaches, including a nudist beach for those wishing to get an all-over tan! Our rooms were on the 9th floor with superb views over the harbour and beaches and we were able to see the visiting cruise ships, an impressive sight when lit overall at night. Currency used in town was the US dollar and Jamaican dollar, but in the complex, ‘Sharks Teeth’ were the only legal tender (each worth one US dollar or 28 Jamaican dollars). It was confusing initially, but we soon got used to the idea, although it was a bit of a rip-off. In the restaurants it was more convenient to use credit cards. The weather was hot and sunny with gentle breezes day after day and we spent a lot of time on the beach and in the warm sea. Trips were laid on to visit other parts of the island and entertainment organised every evening . Eating out in town at the many and varied restaurants was very reasonable on the whole and we just rang up from the hotel and a private car was sent to whisk us off to town and bring us back after our meal. We did slip up one evening when we booked at an Italian Restaurant 800 feet up in the hills and finished up paying £30 each. That hurt! The only consolation was having a chat to the film star James Coburn and his wife Paula, who were sitting at the next table. As usually happens on holiday, the two weeks flew by and we were soon on our way back, recalling happy memories of the friendly, laid back people who never seemed to get out of second gear. But in that sort of climate, who wants to? It was back to reality when the pilot informed us that it was freezing at Manchester. Having had very little sleep, we were well ready for a rest on returning home, but still retained wonderful memories of this value for money holiday.
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Oct 21st, 2000
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