Ya Mon, we made it to Ocho Rios, Jamaica! On this morning, we woke up early, walked a couple of laps around the outdoor track, and went to breakfast. I ate blueberry pancakes, cantaloupe, grapefruit, hard boiled eggs, waffles, and watermelon. Everything was delicious per usual, but we did notice that the dining hall was abnormally quiet... When we went back to our room to get ready to disembark, we realized why breakfast was eerily quiet, we messed up the time zones. We were an hour early, which I suppose is better than being an hour late, so I took advantage of this extra time and took a short nap. Once we got back on schedule with the rest of the boat, we disembarked and took a minibus to Dolphin Cove for our excursion. Here at Dolphin Cove, we did a plethora of activities which included feeding parakeets, holding an iguana, holding a stingray, swimming in the ocean, and of course the highlight which was being in the water with the dolphins. Our dolphin encounter was approximately an hour long, and we were in the water with them the whole time as we learned more about the animals while interacting with them. The whole first half of our day in Ocho Rios, Jamaica was incredible and filled with so many new experiences.
Our second half of our day in Ocho Rios, Jamaica was rocky... We went to Dunn's River Falls! The falls were incredible but terrifying. The Falls span 960 feet tall. As someone who does not enjoy heights, I do not know what my mother was thinking when she signed us up for this excursion. While it was gorgeous, it was even more challenging, and the climb seemed deadly. We free hand climbed the falls with our tour group, our only directions were our guide telling us to keep climbing and the hand of another guest in front of you and behind you. I made it halfway up, I argue that it was the harder half, and then once I saw an exit, I swiftly waded my way to it. My anxiety had enough adventure, and my body needed the break from actively trying to keep myself alive as I pulled my way up from slippery rock to slippery rock, full force water gushing over me, and being waist deep in the water. I forgot to mention, that it was downpouring during our climb, of course, that did not make a massive difference as we were climbing up a waterfall but still. I took advantage of my early departure from the group to grab my phone from the locker we rented to come back and capture the moments in the water with my family.
Dunn's River Falls also offers a beach front, dining, gardens, kid's splashpad, shopping, and ziplines. Unfortunately, we did not have time for anything other than climbing the Falls, but I would have loved to have the opportunity to explore the rest of the park. Perhaps one day, I will come across another opportunity to visit again. From Dunn's River Falls, we were rushed back to our bus for one last stop which was to a shopping area. We were ushered into one of the stores by our tour guide where we tasted multiple rums (chocolate, mango, and strawberry) and browsed the contents of the shop quickly before having to head back to the boat.
I am sure you are asking yourself the very important question, what did you eat for lunch after splashing around with dolphins and climbing almost a 1,000ft tall waterfall. I did not eat lunch, there simply was no time. Once back on the boat we headed straight to get snacks, I had a roast beef sandwich, a slice of pizza, and a slice of peanut butter mousse cake. After we finally ate, we went back to our room for much needed showers. Once we were clean, we got ready for the themed Caribbean night. For dinner, I had Asian-style pork bao tacos (roasted pork belly in a sweet-chili sauce topped with sauteed vegetables and pork crackling in a soft, steamed bun), garlic-herb buttered tiger shrimp (broiled until golden brown, served with jasmine rice, sauteed seasonal vegetables and a garlicky herb butter), a fudge brownie (rich chocolate brownie with sweet whipped cream and caramel sauce), and a glass of white zinfandel wine.
Jamaica was irie. Irie is one of the words that our tour guide taught us which means good, nice, or pleasing. We had an exhausting day in Jamaica, but I am so glad that we were able to make the most of our short time on the island. I will forever have fond memories of Jamaica, its people, but sadly not its food (rip). Thank you for a wonderful visit, Jamaica.
(Yes, that is a shark not a dolphin. Unfortunately, we were not permitted to photograph the dolphins.)
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