First Stop: Georgetown, Grand Cayman
Though we often sail to various Caribbean sea ports, this was the first time for Grand Cayman. With perfect weather, we reached port in the wee hours of the morning. The seas were a little rough so we had to drop anchor on a different side than expected which caused a slight delay. That was fine as we LOVE morning coffee/tea in the Captain's Club!
After tendering to shore, we walked a short distance to the shopping area. There are many excursions to experience, but this is also a port that is fun to walk around. Next time, we will definitely visit the Stingray City! Many guides waiting on shore offered this tour for far less than the ship and it was highly recommended by fellow passengers. You actually get to be in the water with the stingrays. I can't wait to check that out one day! But on this trip, we needed a little downtime.
The tender dropped us off in front of a shopping area. Barry and I were happy just strolling around... peeking in windows. We came across this 12 foot sculpture made of bronze and stainless steel. With a weight of 1.5 tons, the Stingray Trio looks at home along the waterfront of the Bayshore Mall near the South Cruise Terminal.
It was almost as if we were back on Kauai with the wild roosters. When I was a teacher on Kauai, the chickens would run into the classroom, grab a lunch from the area the students left them. Cock-a-doodle-dooing is what makes me thankful we don't hear THAT every mornng at 3am! This little guy was roaming the touristy, shopping area.
One of my favorite things about traveling, is the historical information. There are always interesting tales to hear. A quirky story I heard about Grand Cayman islands is that in 1523, the island was referred to as Los Lagartos, which means a large lizard or alligator. Seven years later, the areas was known as caiman, a Carib word meaning... marine crocodile. Apparently, there were many!
We had a little playful moment... Barry noticed the pirate statue and told me to stand next to it. Since it is rare, almost unheard of, that he would want to take a photo, I hammed it up! We then continued on in search of the perfect tee shirt to replace the clothing we lost in the hurricane. We figure picking up tee shirts to commemorate places we visit will be fun souvenirs.
Running on very little energy, we decided to head back to the ship. On the way, we got sidetracked my rum cakes! A cute little shop that I thought I took photos of but apparently didn't, sold many different types. We ended up buying a variety pack and a giant Pina Colada rum cake. There goes the diet! As we continued back, we passed these fishermen cleaning and selling VERY fresh fish! I wish I could have supported the local fishermen. They had fresh Snapper, Mahi Mahi and even some unusual fish like Lion Fish and Barracuda!
One last look down the shoreline... with our Grand Cayman Island Harley Davidson tee-shirts and the obligatory shot glass in hand, we jumped on the tender. Seemed like and excellent time for a nap!
