Ocho Rios, Jamaica...

I was up before sunrise this morning to catch some photos as we sailed into the port of Ocho Rios...   As many of you know, Jamaica is not one of our favorite islands…it is irritating to constantly fight the gauntlet of repetitive chatter trying to sell you tours, souvenirs and Ganja, while we understand these people are only trying to make a living the barrage is unrelenting…There are however, nice people like Leroy and Richard, locals we have met on previous visits, who are always pleasant, accommodating and helpful.  Cathy and I got off the ship early with the filming crew onboard to explore downtown Ocho Rios. Our first stop, the closest to the ship is the Fisherman’s Village with the beach and boat area…back out on the street we came to the Island Village, a collection of bars, restaurants including a Margaritaville and Starbucks. Next, we followed the Main Street to the entrance to the Turtle River Park which was closed off today…Along came Richard who told us the entrance was closed due to high water from the recent hurricane…Richard then accompanied us to the park entrance a few blocks away. Once at the Park we were able to capture some nice photos of the fauna and flora. Following our tour of the park we headed back in the direction of the ship. The streets were filling up with tourists since the Carnival Horizon was in port with us. Did some shopping and meandered in the Island Village complex before making our way back to the ship…along the road we met Ann, Laura and Bobbi heading out for shopping. The town itself isn't very attractive and can be traffic-clogged, but we made the best of what they had to offer…spent the rest of the day in the Retreat enjoying the nice weather.