RTW: Exchange in Chile

Irie, mon!

As the scenery changed to Jamaica, I could not help but feel a bit of relief to get out of Cuba. Yet, I was not too welcome as the customs official questioned me for nearly half an hour before being convinced that I can be allowed access. Makes me wonder what kind of a special treatment is waiting for me in Miami -just hope they let me in the country. Let's see.. passed trough Bolivia, Venezuela, Colombia, Cuba -all U.S. favourites - and now carries a passport issued in Brazil, with no info of entering the country.. Not the best starting point, but keeping the fingers crossed..

Anyway, two things hit me as soon as I landed here, both of which I did know of but were still a shock: I must be the only white person in Kingston (have not seen many in 4 days) and these people speak a non-english (or properly called patois english.. for those of you unfamiliar with it, an example would be "irie" in the headline that means basically alright) that is not within my range for a five-day visit. But other than that I stick out like a sore thumb and understand very little unless people make the effort to switch to real english, Jamaica is "irie". And yes reggae is everywhere, as well as ganja (the marihuana the rastafaris puff ritually, still illegal though).

I ended up staying in Kingston and never made it to the north coast to flock with fellow tourists (though intended to), as I got a major neck pain from shitty ergonomy of the local internet cafes (spent a day answering emails..), I actually could not move anymore. So there was I enjoying Jamaica in the no-aircon -room virtually paralyzed from the neck down.. Lucky I got some relaxants from the pharmacy, now I can move (like a robot, but still) and head for the plane tomorrow. Kingston itself is not all that beautiful, local highlight being the Bob Marley museum.. but here are some shots anyway:

Residencial area around Kingston:



Descriptive statues from the emancipation park (girls can zoom in):



Bob Marley museum:





The Jamaica house, residence of the prime minister (Queen is the english one):



And finally, disappointment to you who were waiting me to get rastas -I'm too fond of the long hair and decided to keep growing it, but I did get cornrows so I did not chicken out totally:



No McD's here by the way (did not do so well here!) though people are major junk food consumers and looks like they have a problem with fat people almost equal to the U.S. -I actually feared for my life when a small 130-kilo Mrs. was trying to get pass me in a local buss..

Best national dish: Patties (kind of meat pies) with salad and bacon
Best national beer: Red Stripe
Best experience/sight: Bob Marley museum

posted by Kassu @ 1:20 PM