While I know it may sound nigh on blasphemy to some, I don't particularly like the Caribbean. Let me elaborate: It is everything you'd imagine- perfect beaches, lots of rum, lots of dancing, lots of sea food. But there's something that just feels... wrong to me.
I haven't yet figured it out completely. It's not all of the Caribbean that feels that way, mainly the ex British colonies; which haven't had much development since the British left.
It kinda feels to me, as if these naturally beautiful islands and islanders are still being exploited.
Maybe I'm not seeing clearly. I am only spending a few hours at a time on each island and arriving by cruise ship. And arriving by cruise ship is probably the worst way to see these islands. Most of the time, you step off the ship into a "duty-free" shopping area filled with shops like Diamonds International, Tanzanite International, Colombian Emeralds, Sunglass Hut, and other such mindless shops, scattered in between by some very touristy bars/cafes/fast food joints.
On some of the islands, St Kitts in particular comes to mind, the islanders push back and try to exploit in turn- A short taxi ride in St Kitts costs US$20 and there is no negotiation. In fact, things can get ugly if you try to negotiate. Over on St Kitts' sister island, Nevis (which many British tourists still frequent) a short taxi ride costs US$50.
The one time I visited Nevis, the taxi driver became angry, because we turned down his offer to do a bit of extra sight seeing for US$75. I got the feeling that he thought we were trying to cheat him. I felt he was the one committing daylight robbery.
All other things aside, truth be told, the Caribbean is often not so different from home for me- lush green foliage, rolling hills, tropical climate, tropical fruit and warm seas. And don't forget- I also come from an ex British colony. So it's nothing to get too excited about, at all. Add to that, the fact that every two weeks I'm back in the same place with an absolute maximum of 8 hours to explore. You can imagine that my options for new scenery and new discoveries become quite limited within 6 weeks. So I just get plain BORED!!
Don't get me wrong, I'm very glad I've seen the Caribbean and not paid the exorbitant prices many people pay just to get to the Caribbean. And the beaches are beautiful, as you can see from the pictures. But there are only a few places in the Caribbean I can say I'd possibly pay money to visit again, after having had a sneak preview.
They are:
1) Puerto Rico- you don't walk into a fake duty free shopping area as you exit the ship in San Juan. Instead, you enter El Viejo San Juan (Old San Juan), and you can walk to the 16th century forts built by the Spaniards to defend the city.
2) Mexico- not strictly the Caribbean, but one of the stops we make is the island of Cozumel. I've also been to Puerto Vallarta and I can definitely say I'd love to see more of Mexico.
3)Haiti- I must admit that I've only seen the little section of Haiti rented by the cruise ship company I work for and only ventured very briefly beyond that area. But Haiti has this colourful untamed feel and I'd love to spend more time there.
4) Jamaica- although it meets all the criteria for places I don't like in the Caribbean, Jamaica has a good feeling to it, even with the poverty. Given the chance I'd go back and explore some more.
And finally- 5) Cuba- this is on my bucket list, I've never been, and it's in the Caribbean. I definitely want to go before it becomes too popular with American cruise ships!
For now, I'm trying to maintain perspective and remember how lucky I am to be where I am.
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| Seven Mile Beach, Grand Cayman |
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| Labadee, Haiti |
I haven't yet figured it out completely. It's not all of the Caribbean that feels that way, mainly the ex British colonies; which haven't had much development since the British left.
It kinda feels to me, as if these naturally beautiful islands and islanders are still being exploited.
Maybe I'm not seeing clearly. I am only spending a few hours at a time on each island and arriving by cruise ship. And arriving by cruise ship is probably the worst way to see these islands. Most of the time, you step off the ship into a "duty-free" shopping area filled with shops like Diamonds International, Tanzanite International, Colombian Emeralds, Sunglass Hut, and other such mindless shops, scattered in between by some very touristy bars/cafes/fast food joints.
On some of the islands, St Kitts in particular comes to mind, the islanders push back and try to exploit in turn- A short taxi ride in St Kitts costs US$20 and there is no negotiation. In fact, things can get ugly if you try to negotiate. Over on St Kitts' sister island, Nevis (which many British tourists still frequent) a short taxi ride costs US$50.
The one time I visited Nevis, the taxi driver became angry, because we turned down his offer to do a bit of extra sight seeing for US$75. I got the feeling that he thought we were trying to cheat him. I felt he was the one committing daylight robbery.
All other things aside, truth be told, the Caribbean is often not so different from home for me- lush green foliage, rolling hills, tropical climate, tropical fruit and warm seas. And don't forget- I also come from an ex British colony. So it's nothing to get too excited about, at all. Add to that, the fact that every two weeks I'm back in the same place with an absolute maximum of 8 hours to explore. You can imagine that my options for new scenery and new discoveries become quite limited within 6 weeks. So I just get plain BORED!!
Don't get me wrong, I'm very glad I've seen the Caribbean and not paid the exorbitant prices many people pay just to get to the Caribbean. And the beaches are beautiful, as you can see from the pictures. But there are only a few places in the Caribbean I can say I'd possibly pay money to visit again, after having had a sneak preview.
They are:
1) Puerto Rico- you don't walk into a fake duty free shopping area as you exit the ship in San Juan. Instead, you enter El Viejo San Juan (Old San Juan), and you can walk to the 16th century forts built by the Spaniards to defend the city.
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| El Morro fort, San Juan |
3)Haiti- I must admit that I've only seen the little section of Haiti rented by the cruise ship company I work for and only ventured very briefly beyond that area. But Haiti has this colourful untamed feel and I'd love to spend more time there.
4) Jamaica- although it meets all the criteria for places I don't like in the Caribbean, Jamaica has a good feeling to it, even with the poverty. Given the chance I'd go back and explore some more.
And finally- 5) Cuba- this is on my bucket list, I've never been, and it's in the Caribbean. I definitely want to go before it becomes too popular with American cruise ships!
For now, I'm trying to maintain perspective and remember how lucky I am to be where I am.
