Montego Bay, Jamaica

If you want to save time you should take a flight to go from Kingston to Montego Bay. But if you want to experience the country, a bus ride from Kingston to MB also works great!! The ride constantly reminded me of home (in India)..... Shreyas said he had never been to a country that is poor and not his home... neither had I. So this was a different experience. Moreover since the climate is so similar, the vegetation is also the same. I was exhilarated at the site of sitafal in a small stall on the road that was similar to the ghats between Mumbai and Pune. And of course the Gulmohar tree!!! Gosh!! It's been ages since I had seen one...

MB was pretty much a touristy place with beaches, restaurants (that served average food for above avg price) and quite some stuff to do. We avoided the beaches and water sports (you can do them in Florida here!!!) and went for bamboo rafting on a river instead. Extremely serene and relaxing. Obviously had to do some shopping. I had to buy my fridge magnet and Shreyas had to buy his shot glasses (can't forget our collections!!!). In the evening we went for a boat ride in what is called the Luminous Lagoon. The microorganisms in this water emit light when disturbed. As people from our boat jumped into the river to swim, we could see the water glowing as if there were fluorescent lights in the water... That was an amazing experience!!!!

Like all good things, this had to end :-(. But, hey!!! If you want to plan a trip to Jamaica, let us know if you need help... I think we did too much research for such a short trip :-) Well, at least I am getting closer to checking items off my wishlist :-)!!!!