After waking up, I walked downstairs to the lobby of the Terra Nova and sat down at the breakfast parlor. I went through my planner looking at the itinerary for the day. Next, I ordered a full plate of ackee, saltfish, and fried dumplings. Ackee is a local fruit that only grows in one season and saltfish is usually salted mackerel with other seasonings and spices. After I had devoured my delicious breakfast, I headed out of the hotel to hail a cab. I had a friendly conversation with the sprightly taxi driver who agreed to take me to the local bus station. Once I had arrived and gave the driver his fare, I climbed on a mini-bus headed for Dunns river falls, a popular tourist spot with one of the most beautiful waterfall systems in the world. I then headed off to the Blue mountains, the major chain that runs through the eastern one thirds of Jamaica. This chain is one of the longest in the Caribbean and contains Jamaica’s tallest peak, Blue Mountain Peak (2,256 ft above sea level.) I was planning on spending the majority of my day climbing to the summit. It was easily accessible by 7 miles of walking and hiking trails. The summit was cool and clear as I could look north and see Cuba in the distance. I ate my packed lunch of cool jerk chicken, and bean soup in a thermos.
Soon I hiked down and returned to the mini-bus. After we arrived back in Kingston, I was exhausted and physically drained. Once I hopped off the bus and was back at my hotel, I walked around the downtown of Kingston and observed the life of the city. I saw out of place American tourists, hundreds of little shops selling items of all sorts, and thousands of people hurrying through the streets. I ate a small dinner and returned back to my hotel room to go to bed.
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| Dunn's Falls |
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| Blue Mountain Peak |
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