Ozinga Family Cruise Day 4

Wednesday dawned with our ship in port at Jamaica.  This was a new country for me to mark off my list.  I was excited to see a new place and explore as much as a cruise excursion will allow. 

All 6 of us decided to take the same excursion this day, so we met up on the ship to debark.  The port in Montego Bay isn't very big and there is NOTHING around it once the ship terminal is passed.  We were loaded onto a bus for a 30 minute drive to another parish.  In Jamaica, a parish is the same thing as an American state.  Each one has a capital city and really is just like a mini-state size wise.  The drive was beautiful with hills calling to us on one side of the road and the waves teasing us on the other.

When we reached the horse ranch, we were matched with horses and began our trail ride up Black Mountain.  It's named that for the family that has lived and farmed the mountain for a very, very long time.  I had a beautiful bay named Scrumby for our trek.  The fields, the mountain, and the valley were all so green!  We live in a drought stricken state...green is a huge bonus at the moment!  Our horses were mostly retired race horses, so it was nice to ride something with a little spunk and not a trail worn poor soul.  The views of the Caribbean from the top of Black Mountain were beautiful.  As we ended our trail, we rode along the beach.  There just aren't words to describe the glory of God's creation!

Isaac and Omar

Base of Black Mountain

After we had some water, our guides pulled about ten of their horses that enjoy water, and we remounted to take the horses out for a swim in the sea.  I've watched movies with horses that go swimming and seen pictures, but I've never been in a location that was appropriate for horse swimming.  I certainly wasn't going out swimming with my mount last summer in the croc lakes in Zambia!  I rode Wyle E. Coyote out into the sea and we swam and swam in the cove.  It was just thrilling!

Wyle E. Coyote and me.  He's an Appaloosa like my sweet Dixie Girl was!

 

Eventually it was time to head back to port where we hailed a taxi to take us to Margaritaville.  Mom's one request was for a new shirt from Jimmy Buffet's version of paradise.  I quickly ran in, made my purchase, and then we browsed a few other shops nearby before heading back to port.  The folks in Jamaica are so desperate to make a sale that it's incredibly uncomfortable for the shoppers.  I wasn't pleased with their forcefulness in the least and was ready to hit the road very quickly!

Jamaica is stunning, and I felt safe the whole day, despite pushy sales clerks.  I'd like to see Jamaica's jungle and waterfalls some day too.