A final farewell ‘Post It’ from Grand Cayman Islan

Never say never and all that but I am sad to say this will be my final ‘Post It’ story on the Caravan Club forum. I wanted to write to tell those that have followed my past 107 stories, from 2013 – 2016, of our travels that we are fine and well but this will be the last one. Unfortunately it was not a trip away in our motorhome but I hope you enjoy it anyway and a glimpse into Caribbean Island life.

I have always written the stories with family & Club members in mind to share with them our experiences of mainly Continental travels. I have seen the photographs  that accompany the stories as a large integral part of them, even though all the restrictions of size & Wi-Fi connection difficulties made them time consuming to produce. Unfortunately with the recent migration to the new forum in late 2016 it has meant that all my stories are still there but none of my photographs are with them and the odd ones that are attached are not mine. Despite repeated efforts to understand why I have had no response at all to date.

For a long time now I have been asked by friends and family to post my photos on Instagram and I have finally taken the plunge and am very much in the learning stages. If you want to see our future travel photos you can find me on there as RKT480 and for those that do not have an account to view them I am sorry. I could see some of my friends before without an account by searching on Google for his username but don’t seem to be able to do that with mine.

So explanations given now for my final ‘Post It’ story. Sorry about the lack of really good photos but now that the size limit for uploading has been reduced even further from 2mb to just 500kb I simply do not have any from the phone to show you. I only learned of that today.

On 19th January, 2017 we set off from a cold and blustery East Yorkshire heading to Heathrow Airport where we would stop the night at the Thistle Hotel adjacent terminal 5 for our morning flight the next day to George Town, Grand Cayman Island in the Caribbean. It was to be our first actual flight for almost 5 years and our first flight of 12 hours, something we were not looking forward to because of the fight duration. The arrival there was what it would all be about. Our son and his partner moved there earlier in 2016 this was to be the first time we had seen them both for quite some months and we were excited to be making the journey. The flights had been booked since July and as the day drew closer we could not wait for it to arrive.

Next morning we departed the hotel in -4ºC temperatures for the short walk from the reception to the unmanned electric ‘Pod’ which would whisk us and our luggage to the terminal. This was a new experience for us and I must admit it was a really good service taking 5 minutes to make the journey. The Pod was a small egg shaped single carriage capable of taking 4 adults and their luggage directly to and from the hotel and car parking area to Terminal 5.

After stopping off on the way at Nassau in the Bahamas to let passengers off this only British Airways direct flight to the island  finally arrived late afternoon to bright sun and blue skies with a temperature of around 28ºC, where it remained for the next 2½ weeks.

After spending some time going through the Islands Customs formalities, where you had to declare everything you had brought  and paying the 22% import duty on our items, we had what you can imagine to be a fantastic greeting. Seeing their smiling faces and that they looked so healthy made the lengthy flight well worth it.

The Island is often referred to as a tax haven, but I am not sure that is true or a fair description of this idyllic Caribbean paradise. Yes there is no income tax for individuals working there but as you can imagine everything else is quite highly taxed to create revenue for the Government of this British Overseas Territory. Once we got over the shock of the prices of things, deciding to ignore them and just enjoy ourselves with our family once again, we absorbed the simple pleasure of just being there for the 17 days.

The island  was discovered by Christopher Columbus on 10th May, 1503 on his final voyage to the New Word. The sea around the island owes its extraordinary clarity due to the fact there are no rivers or naturally occurring fresh water anywhere on the island. There are many wrecks on the reefs surrounding it and there are reportedly 365 separate dive sites around the islands. One for each day so you can see why it is a diver’s paradise. In fact there is not a lot there apart from the beautiful beaches, crystal clear warm seas and abundant access to all manner of water sports and hobbies. The food was also a major feature in that we ate out quite a lot and never had a poor meal once, the first time I think we have ever experienced that over a two week holiday. It is clearly focused on its tourism industry with numerous cruise ships arriving every day but Sunday. The shops all close on a Sunday still, which was quite nice for us. On one day we had 7 ships with 19,000 passengers anchored off George Town and the capitol was buzzing with visitors.

So what did we do? We spent the whole holiday enjoying the beaches, waters, sun, food, great company and exceptional weather. We enjoyed walking along Barkers beach, in the only national park, where we collected shells from an almost desolate beach. Watched the sea water spout up in the air at The Blow Holes. Enjoyed lunch of Lion Fish tacos at the Tukka sea front restaurant with exceptional views from their balcony over the bay where the Wreck of the Ten Sails perished in 1794 on the reef. The Queen visited in 1994 to lay a commemorative stone so we can say we had stood in her shoes. The last time I could say that was when I went aboard the Royal Yacht Britannia when it visited Hull on 17th July 1981 when she officially  opened the Humber Bridge.

 We spent time Loggerhead Turtle spotting at Spotts Bay and were lucky enough to see their heads popping up in the distance as they rose for air whilst feeding on the sea grass there. We walked along Star Fish point where there were still many starfish to be found despite their declining numbers. They looked so exotic in the crystal clear waters close to the shore and we could even pick them up to feel their texture, providing we did not remove them from the water or else they would die within 15 seconds a notice said. Watched the cruise ships at anchor off George Town from the magnificent and famous Seven Mile Beach, where we even managed to capture on camera the setting sun right down to below the horizon on our penultimate day there. What a satisfying sight, which we had missed before due to the low clouds often found along the horizon. Still the rum cocktails whilst waiting were worth it.

I think the highlight trip out was when our son booked us on the catamaran, Spirit of Poseidon, to cruise with others to the world famous Stingray City in the North Sound. We were told that local fishermen used to discard their unwanted pieces of fish from the days catch at a sand bank as they entered the Sound on their way home. This resulted in the Southern Stingrays coming to feed there on a regular basis and then the tourism industry started running boat trips on a daily basis along with the many other independent visitors. We swam and even held the Stingrays in the water. The upper part of their flesh was like chamois leather whilst their underside was just like feeling a Portobello Mushroom. What a fantastic experience and we were surprised at the large numbers present and actual size of some of them, it was only just possible to hold them in your outstretched arms. Our son had recently received a really good present for his birthday of a Go Pro camera so he was able to capture the event above and below the water on film for us to keep for posterity. Seeing these beautiful fish swimming towards you gracefully flapping their wings really was just ‘Awesome’ in today’s frequently over used term.

We also went snorkelling at Rum Point where an idyllic beach setting is well furnished with all manner of facilities and sun beds down by the water’s edge and apart from the drinks and delicious food everything is free to visitors with no requirement to spend a penny! They had placed some rocks not far off the shore to attract the many colourful fishes for the visitors to see. It was here that we discovered Sharon very much liked the rum punches. I was in the Caribbean in the late 70’s when I was at sea on large ships and remember having a cocktail called a Planters Punch. I asked the barman if he mixed them, he said he could but had not personally done so. He added that the drink was a very old Caribbean cocktail which he had not heard of for 20 years. I wish now I had asked him to mix one for me to sip whilst reminiscing of years past, perhaps next time.

I also saw Nurse Sharks foraging on the rocks around the end of the quay where our son lives. The photo is not one I personally took but at least you can see what I had seen. Also large pelicans sweeping the waters of the North Sound looking for food before landing in the tops of the trees on a small island just off the same quay.

We did also try to take in some culture by visiting the only tourist attraction which was a historic property when we visited the oldest standing house on the island, ‘Pedro St. James’. It was also the founding centre of democracy where the newly formed Government met and also had a single cell prison, the only one on the island at the time. It had been in the Eden family, who built it around 1780, until the last family member gave it up in 1954. It was a beautiful stone built house lavishly fitted out in rich mahogany and was now a major tourist attraction, the nearest thing there to a National Trust property. Mahogany trees were once everywhere on the island, with the Turtles, Iguanas and mosquitos, but are now in short supply. Joseph, our personal guide to the house and gardens said they can grow to around 500 years old but the oldest now living is only a mere 65 years old. Three young specimens have been planted in the grounds here and the penalty for damaging such trees on the island today is a staggering £50,000 fine, 4 years imprisonment or both!

We saw lots of Iguanas, in varying sizes, everywhere on the island. There are even some endangered blue ones at the Botanical Gardens on the island which we saved for another visit. Wild chickens roamed everywhere on the island and at our favourite Fish Shack on Bodden Town beach we had the company of two beautiful ones who patiently waited for some scraps at the end of our lunch under the shade of the palms on the beach.

What a life, it really was an island paradise, and we didn’t want to leave. Back at home again on 7th February with a nice tan, which is still with us, we are missing the warmth and our family. Hopefully we shall return again one day but before we do we have many more adventures in our motorhome ahead of us. 2017 is going to be quite a full year for travelling in the UK and on the continent. Sorry I will not be sharing these adventures with you here but please do take the opportunity of checking out our photos on Instagram if you can. A picture tells a thousand words as they say and I will endeavour to add informative captions for those who like to know a little more

So adios, I have enjoyed your company and comments.

Regards, Roy

Photos in order: Spotts Beach, View from Tukka, The Blow Holes, Seven mile beach, Nurse Shark.