CARIBBEAN CRUISING
In the Caribbean Sea, there are many places
from where the folly of the cruise ship
experience can be taken in. But there are
two perches that really give some insight if
one allows the time to watch attentively.
The first is Saint Thomas on the U.S. Virgin
Islands. A strange place, albeit a US
territory. While most automobiles on the
island are non-British, meaning their
steering wheel is on the left hand side, the
rules of the road are Brit and thus
left-hand traffic is the norm. It seems most
participants in this chaos use a combination
of dumb luck and faith-based road rage to
conquer the many blind corners this
arrangement creates.
From any hotel or guesthouse situated on the
harbor-side of the island, the view is
splendid. On the right, the side of the
marina, the practically non-stop coming and
going of seaplanes gives you the instant
sense of being a subject of Buffettania, a
partaker and insider of a country where your
citizenship is legitimized by the amount of
tequila and rum you're consuming.
On the left side where Long Bay is, the
cruise ships dock. While the seaplanes are
rather small island hoppers, these tourist
boats are floating mammoths that dwarf even
the considerable arrival terminals adjacent
the lengthy piers on which they tie down for
the day.
From a distance on the hillside, enjoying a
tropical beverage, it all looks wonderful
and picturesque. The town of Charlotte
Amalie seems a gem. But if you take the
trouble and descent from your spot into
town, the proximity reveals a harsh reality
of aggressive merchandising that would make
a telemarketer jealous.
What appears as historic streets and island
style architecture from afar, turns into an
endless arrangement of t-shirts-, caps-,
towels-, goofy hats- and novelties shops
when nigh. And with at least one of the
floating fun parks in town, its inhabitants
are descending upon these wares like tribes
upon a box of mirrors and beads. It's ironic
to see Asian tourists walk off with trinkets
that have been manufactured in China. For
those with serious spending plans, there are
stores advertising tax-free prices for
jewelry, precious gems, silver and gold.
Even myrrh is available in the form of
cologne, after shave and perfumes. Some
real, some not so real.
On Sint Maarten, the Dutch side of a tiny
land mass shared with the petite French
Saint Martin, a similar scene takes place.
While it has managed to maintain a shred of
its heritage and culture, the same crap is
pawned off to willing tourists. Unlike the 'Havensight
Mall and Shopping Center' on St. Thomas,
there are no air-conditioned strip malls -
yet. Unfortunately they is some construction
in that inauspicious direction.
In the evening, the masses trudge back from
this tropical Trader's Eden to the big boat
with the free food and organized amusement.
And this is where it get even worse.
With much fanfare and tooting of its massive
horn, the ship trumpets its departure to
everyone within earshot. Pretty much the
entire island. And as the sun sets, it
points its bow away from Great Bay and with
a final hoot, picks up speed and turns on
all of its outside lights. This really is a
pretty sight.
But if one would take the trouble and
scooter to the highest point on the island,
one can see the party vessel slow down and
just float, like the captain has parked it
for the night. On board, passengers are
enjoying a refreshing shower after the dusty
shopping and then head for the bar, the
disco or, if you're 'lucky', the captain's
table. It is announced that the next port
will be made by early morning.
From St. Thomas, you can see St. Croix and
weather permitting, Puerto Rico. From
Philipsburg without leaving Great Bay beach,
you can see Saba and Sint Eustatius. Take a
little hike and enjoy views of Anguilla and
St. Barts. But these seafaring landlubbers
believe themselves on a true voyage, a trip
across a vast ocean to a far away port.
While the cruise line is idling the ship's
engines merely to keep the lights blaring,
one could take a rowboat and beat them to
the next terminus.
The next destination: Another haven filled
with shops containing the same gaudy geegaws
and knickknacks that were left behind. As
these boats get bigger, the cash-cow
attitude of the brains behind these schemes
results in much less enjoyment of
destinations that become, eventually, all
the exact same, having lost their culture
and identity and victimized by a tourist
industry that prefers to increase profits
rather than maintaining the local charm and
character that gave them the upstart in the
first place.
Maybe the current economic downturn will
slow this decay to the point of pause. That
would be nice but it is doubtful. While many
consider themselves not rich enough right
now to undertake a voyage this 'lavish',
they maintain a level of wealth unfathomable
to the friendly people who served them on
the islands.
|
|
|
Past Articles:
-
The Next Logical Step
-
Translation of the
communication
from “LEVC”
-
Enrique's Magic - Part 1
-
Enrique's Magic - Part 2
Enrique's Magic - Part 3
-
Broker Than...
-
Home for the Holidays?
-
Enrique's Business: Part One
-
The Power of Profanity
-
Enrique's Business: Part Two
-
Peking Duck
-
Technology and the Rain Forest
-
Fighting Dirty
-
Pieces of the Shuttle
-
Other Side of the Clouds
-
My Lucky Pen
-
Good for Survivors
-
A Swimming Lesson
-
Suddenly
-
Gringo Greenback
|
