Day Seven

Today we went on an excursion to Blue Hole, located in the hills of Ocho Rios at Island Gully Falls. Blue Hole consists of a few waterfalls and pools of fresh water reaching over 25 feet deep.  On the drive there we learned that in Jamaica, instead of slowing down for a tight corner you can just honk the horn repeatedly to let people know you are coming. We found that to be pretty funny. The road was along a gully with a steep drop and no guardrails, very different from Canada. Once we arrived at Blue Hole we met our guide for the tour, ‘Captain Morgan’. We were surprised to see that there was more than one swimming hole and waterfall since all we saw online was the one area.

BlueHole seemed to be more environmentally friendly and sustainable than Dunn’s River Falls. Workers did not clean the rocks so they were still covered in algae and clay, making them more slippery in spots. There were also no steps carved into the rocks for us to walk, other than a few ropes to hold onto while walking, it was a natural setting. There are also far less visitors to BlueHole as there are to Dunn’s River Falls, making it less destructive and invasive to the natural environment.

After the hour and a half journey through Blue Hole we walked back to the parking lot where our bus driver would be waiting for us. We got to experience “Island Time” again for hopefully the last time. After multiple phone calls our driver showed up an hour and a half later and returned us safely to our Hotel.

We are sad that our trip has come to an end but are happy to be heading home to have some Canadian food.

Jessica Tabbert

Last Full Day in Paradise

Today was our last full day in Jamaica and we spent our free time doing some excursions and soaking up the rays. We started off our day by heading to Blue Hole, located in Ocho Rios. The taxi ride there was one of the most “thrilling” drives yet; jam-packed with uphill tight turns, speeding, and lots of honking! Once we arrived at Blue Hole we were faced with climbing up yet another waterfall. This time, however, we had the chance to jump off cliffs, climb in caves, swim in water holes, and swing off the rope swing. Those who were brave enough jumped off a 25 ft. cliff at the end of the tour. We may have got a few scrapes and bruises but it was well worth it! After gathering our belongings and saying goodbye to our tour guide, Captain Morgan, we began the wait for our taxi driver. You would think we would be used to “island time” after being here for a week, but us Canadians are so reliant on time and we soon grew impatient. The taxi driver arrived fashionably late, an hour and a half behind schedule. 

Once we made it back to the hotel we sat down for a well-deserved lunch. Next we headed straight for the beach to make the most of our last day in Jamaica. The beach was covered with crabs today so a few of us attempted to catch them. We were unsuccessful. There were huge rolling waves that tossed us around in the water. After losing sunglasses, hats, and bathing suits, we learned that the ocean always wins. Kim may have swallowed half the sea, but she not so gracefully returned it.

We finished the day with a nice group dinner, reminiscing about our week in paradise. There was non-stop laughing and many memories made. This is a trip that won’t be forgotten.

Katie Benson

Day Six

The day started with a late breakfast, where I grabbed a plate and headed to the conference room to meet with the group. We then began delving into our research and breaking down our final report. The initial stage consisted of breaking apart the short and long-term goals. The core topics discussed for The Fern Forest Eco- Village consisted of: The non-profit children’s camp containing an ‘eco-tented’ idea; as well as a donkey ride up the mountainside for a sightseeing tour combined with the third and final topic being the organic farming and gardening attraction.

The donkey tours up the mountainside are to bring in a revenue stream for The Fern Forest as a whole, due to the uniqueness of the donkey rides as a tourist attraction. Donkeys also provide a means to transport tourists in a fun way through The Fern Forest and an ‘eco’ based approach with regards to compost the donkey’s waste products. The organic farming and garden add to the attraction and further the educational and ‘eco’ ideals. The non-profit children’s camp will continue to be improved upon as an attraction and provides a learning outlet for underprivileged children.

The conference meeting continued after a brief lunch and a surprising twist of Linda Piper and Natalya Brown bringing in a fellow traveller to present our work to. Later that night, we had the chance to visit with Natalya’s cousin the vet, in order to further our research with donkeys and to verify our proposal. The night finished off with an authentic Jamaican dinner.

Dessert consisted of a choice between a chocolate coffee cake and Lychee cake.

Robert Smaill

An Authentic Jamaica Dinner

Greetings from the sunny island of Jamaica! We’ve got a day and a half left of our trip and, up until this point, it’s been a great experience filled with adventure, friendly locals and of course, great local cuisine. Today we started our day with breakfast by the ocean and moved up to the conference room where we had the opportunity to work in our groups and begin to examine the information we’ve gathered so far. Our work session was capped off with a presentation of our business ideas to a guest from our resort that happened to also be a successful Canadian lawyer, banker and entrepreneur. Talk about a real life Dragon’s Dens.

After spending the remainder of the afternoon by the pool I threw on my classiest island garb and piled into the safari van with the rest of the group. We drove 20 minutes to a gated community situated in the Jamaican hillside, where Natalya's cousin has his home. Awaiting us was a traditional Jamaican buffet filled with jerk chicken, curried mutton, rice and beans, pig tails, breadfruit, festival and fried fish. For dessert we had a choice of chocolate coffee cake, Lychee cake and watermelon lollipops.

Well that’s it for me tonight, a full stomach and the sound of the ocean waves crashing outside my room has me ready for a good sleep, but stay tuned there will be more to come!

Andrew Holland

Day Five

Today we visited Breadnut Hill Primary School in Saint Ann’s Parish to give the kids school supplies we brought from home. The only playground for the kids was the dirt road that led up to the school and a small yard at the back of the school. The ground was rocky, and there was no play equipment around so the kids made up their own games. The school itself only consisted of a few small buildings. There were no walls within the buildings so different grades were separated by blackboards. The classroom size was smaller than a typical classroom in Canada, but with just as many kids so the desks were very close together with not much room to walk. The classrooms were only equipped with old fashioned blackboards and notebooks for students to take notes in.

  

During our visit, we taught the kids a little bit about Canada: the temperature, landscape, winter activities and sports, animals, and our favourite Canadian foods. We were expecting the kids to have some misconceptions about what Canada is like, but the majority of kids were fairly well educated about Canada. Some of the kids mentioned they even had relatives that live in Canada. We also asked the kids if they could tell us about Jamaica. They told us the colours in the Jamaican flag are green, black and yellow, the capital city of Jamaica is Kingston, and Jamaica has fourteen parishes which is equivalent to our provinces in Canada. They also sang the Jamaican national anthem to us.

 

What struck me most was how welcoming, friendly, and polite the kids were without being told. They listened to their teachers, greeted each of us by name when we spoke to their class, and one class even got into a line to shake all of our hands. The kids were very loving and gave a lot of hugs! When we were leaving, many of the kids asked if we could please come back tomorrow, which made it even harder to leave. Visiting with the kids was as fun and moving for me as it was exciting and informative for them. This venture was by far my favourite part of the trip!

Jenna Turcotte