Today’s visit—-The Cayman Islands, a British territory, are a group of three tiny Caribbean islands, the largest of which is only 22 miles long. It’s located just west of Jamaica and just south of Cuba. Did you know the Cayman Islands used to be dependency of the Crown Colony of Jamaica?
It is known for spectacular white sandy beaches with blue skies that go on forever; great snorkeling and scuba diving; giant green sea turtles; stingray sandbars that provides snorkelers with an opportunity to connect with the sea creatures; flavored rum and rum cakes; and “Hell” a popular tourist attraction which is a group of hideous short black limestone formations. It even has a colorfully named post office, “Hell.” In Hell, there is a man who dresses like a devil and poses with tourists who manages a souvenir shop called “The Devils Hang Out”
The tiny islands are the fifth largest banking center in the world with $1.5 trillion in banking assets and nearly 300 banks. Financing provides 36% of the islands employment, 55% of the total economy, and 40% of all government revenue. There are more registered businesses here than people.
The British crown claimed it as a territory in the 1670s and the first inhabitants arrived around 50 years later.
The nation only recently resumed tourism and we were among the first cruise ships to begin sailing here since Covid began.
In 1863, the Cayman Islands was officially declared and administered as a dependency of the Crown Colony of Jamaica.[20] The islands continued to be governed as part of the Colony of Jamaica until 1962, when they became a separate Crown colony while Jamaica became an independent Commonwealth realm.
The Cayman Islands were named by Sir Francis Drake for alligator-like
marine creatures named, caimans.
During the 20th century the Cayman Islands were called “the islands time forgot.” The population was only 5000. In 1970 there were only 403 visitors and now they welcome hundreds of thousands annually. Today, the population exceeds 65,000 residents.
The Cayman Islands have had their share of trauma with significant destruction caused by devastating hurricane Ivan in 2004 and substantial damage caused by hurricane Michelle in 2001. After suffering from lack of tourism from two years, a large percentage of businesses have permanently closed their doors.
I took a delightful island tour conducted by a wonderful local vendor who has worked in tourism here for 40 years. I booked the tour from the vendor right outside the ship tender dock.
I was lucky to have arrived back on the ship just before a tropical downpour began. It’s always nice to come back to a big beautiful air-conditioned ship with great service and a variety of delectable food waiting.
Please forgive typos. I am tired and will correct when I return home.
This was my 99th nation visited. I have no idea which nation will be number 100!
