Travelrific® Travel Journal
Picture postcards in prose.™ Check out the blogroll on the front page for official merchandise and other resources!Archive for caribbean
The Heights of Old San Juan
By Linda Tancs
Located in the Old San Juan section of San Juan, Puerto Rico, San Juan National Historic Site preserves and interprets the Spanish colonial-era fortification system of the city. Explore the forts, where you’ll enjoy the views of the highest points of Old San Juan. You can also go meander through tunnels, sentry boxes and WWII lookouts, and learn from the exhibitions explaining the history of the forts. The fortification system defended the city against foreign intrusion and pirate attacks since its inception, with over 500 years of European history embedded in its walls.
Share this:
Bonaire’s Underwater Park
By Linda Tancs
Bonaire National Marine Park is one of the oldest marine reserves in the world. It includes the sea around Bonaire and Klein Bonaire from the high water line to a depth of approximately 200 feet. The area includes Lac Bay, a shallow water lagoon featuring a fringing coral reef, seagrass meadows and the largest mangrove forest in the Dutch Caribbean. Boasting nearly 100 dive sites, the park is a popular diving destination year round, with sites accessible by boat or from the shore.
Share this:
Skyride to Paradise
By Linda Tancs
One of the most scenic attractions in the U.S. Virgin Islands, Skyride to Paradise Point in St. Thomas is an aerial tram ride to Paradise Point, an overlook with a restaurant and gift shops. In less than 10 minutes you’ll be 700 feet above St. Thomas harbor, where the view also includes historic downtown Charlotte Amalie, the island capital. On a clear day, you might even see St. Croix and Puerto Rico. The daily launch is dependent on the weather as well as cruise ship schedules. Check ahead to avoid disappointment.
Share this:
Pigs on the Beach
By Linda Tancs
It isn’t everyday that you get to encounter pigs on a beach. For that kind of unique opportunity, you’ll want to head to St. John’s, Antigua and Barbuda. You can swim with, pet, feed and cuddle well-tended pigs of all sizes on a secluded picturesque beach. Known as Pigs in Paradise, the tourist attraction is reachable via water taxi from the cruise port.
Share this:
George in Barbados
By Linda Tancs
In 1751, the future U.S. president George Washington embarked on a six-week journey from the Potomac River to Barbados with his half-brother Lawrence. The purpose of his trip was to help his brother Lawrence settle there in an attempt to recover from tuberculosis. The Georgian-style home where he stayed, known as the George Washington House, is the oldest residence in the Garrison Historic Area, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The home is the access point for the Garrison tunnels, an underground escape system in the event of a successful invasion of the military base, the largest British garrison complex in the West Indies. The house is open year-round.
Share this:
Underworld History in Jamaica
By Linda Tancs
Between Ocho Rios and Montego Bay in Jamaica you’ll find Green Grotto Caves, one of the country’s most popular attractions. The show caves present the usual stalactites, stalagmites, overhead ceiling pockets and bats. What’s equally compelling, though, is their history. Fragments of earthenware found in the caves identify the first inhabitants, the Arawak, who arrived in the country around A.D. 600. The caves were also used as a hideout by the Spanish when the English invaded and as a hiding place for rum barrels during World War II. Between the two world wars, they were used by smugglers running arms to Cuba. Open daily, the site is located near Discovery Bay, the alleged locale of Christopher Columbus’s first landing in Jamaica.
Share this:
Up Close with Marine Life
By Linda Tancs
Coral World Ocean Park is an educational and conservation center in St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands. The venue is prized for its encounters, like opportunities to experience a diver’s view of the ocean floor and a coral reef without the special training. You can also swim with dolphins, juvenile sharks and sea lions and learn about conservation. Since the park’s opening in 1977 it has been dedicated to coral reef education, research and conservation. In fact, the facility’s underwater observatory was the first of its kind to be constructed in the Western Hemisphere.
Share this:
To the Top in St. Kitts
By Linda Tancs
Mount Liamuiga is a 3,792-foot-high stratovolcano forming the western part of the island of Saint Kitts. As the highest point in the Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis and the entire British Leeward Islands, it’s a favorite trek for hikers who will be rewarded with panoramic views. A bit arduous, the climb is not for the faint of heart. But along the way you’ll see waterfalls, a tropical rainforest and the cloud forest at higher elevations. Consider a guided rain forest tour for an opportunity to explore and spot colorful hummingbirds, lizards, mongooses and monkeys indigenous to the island.
Share this:
Mount Scenery
By Linda Tancs
Mount Scenery is the highest point on the Dutch Caribbean island of Saba. Its name may be a bit of a misnomer, though, considering that the view from the top is often obscured by clouds. But don’t let that stop you from hiking to the summit. The newest hiking path, the Elfin Forest Trail, follows historical footpaths that Saban farmers took to their plantations. Just below the summit, the trail connects to the Mount Scenery Trail. Throughout the trek, you’ll experience the diverse flora that inhabits the landscape, like ferns, bromeliads, air plants and orchids growing on tree trunks in the tropical rainforest environment of the Elfin forest. On the lower slopes, you’ll find secondary rainforests, dry evergreen forests and grassy meadows closer to the sea. A popular option is to hike up the Elfin Forest Trail and descend on the Mount Scenery Trail.
*************
To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
Share this:
Christmas Lights in Cuba
By Linda Tancs
Arguably Cuba’s most famous fireworks festival, Las Parrandas is a nationwide street party culminating at Christmas Eve with spectacular fireworks accompanied by lighted floats, dancing and parades. The festival originated in Remedios, one of the country’s oldest cities, initiated (as the story goes) by a priest who commissioned the local youth to make a joyful noise in the streets to entice churchgoers in the weeks leading up to Christmas. This beautiful colonial town also has a museum where photos, documents and handmade objects linked to the festivities are preserved.
*************
To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
Travelrific® Travel Journal 