Jamaica Farewell

Today we drove back to Montego Bay for our airport departures. Our driver, Richard, arrived promptly at 7 and we set off with plenty of time.

The scenery along this drive is spectacular, the road passing through the towns of Green Island and Lucea (pronounced “Lucy”) and numerous small villages and districts. Locals still speak of the time saved driving on the “new road,” when in fact parts of this "new" road were built as early as 1980.  But the complete new road was a long time coming.  Now, the ride to Negril, once a two-hour-plus ordeal along narrow, windy, rocky roads, can be made in just over an hour.

"Soon come!"

Hillsides and roadside display the amazing variety of Jamaica’s fruits and flowers. Lime trees grow as scraggily orphans beside graceful banana plants or under tall mango trees. Coconut palms tower over the scene, a pile of fallen husks on the ground beneath. Trailing over walls and gates is the ever-beautiful bougainvillea, with great splotches of magenta and red amid the green foliage. Mango trees hang heavy with fruit, some branches actually touching the ground. Here and there a naseberry tree hides an abundance of brown fruit amid its leafy branches. These smallish fruits are not berries, but a fruit that resembles a kiwifruit on the outside, though the similarity ends there. Somewhat fragile, they are not usually exported.

We did hit morning traffic in MoBay, so the last part of our journey was a cacophony of car and truck horns as drivers jockeyed to get ahead of one another, either passing cars in the face of oncoming traffic, or sliding over to the shoulder to create a temporary new lane.

After dropping off Colin and Heather at the airport, I went up to Len’s house to relax before my own several flight hours later. Much as I love airports, they are not my favorite place to spend an entire day. Len’s large garden is filled with most of the major Jamaican trees and plants, so I tried to get sample photos of each while Len fixed a Jamaican-Chinese chicken dish.

Eventually, it was time to go, and I finished my last rum drink of the vacation.  I seldom drink rum at home; in my mind, it is a beach drink or a boat drink.

But I won't say goodbye to Jamaica, I'll be back.  "Soon come!"

[photos coming]