Jamaica Photography - M1key - Michal Huniewicz

Jamaica by Michal Huniewicz

For my first trip to the Caribbean, I picked Jamaica. I was one of the 4.3 million tourists that visit the country every year, attracted by the weather, Bob Marley, and (I guess) weed.

Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.
Uploaded on: 2019-04-28.

Jamaica

Welcome to Jamaica

Welcome to Jamaica
The island, located south of Cuba and west of Hispaniola, sports a tropical climate, and lies in the so called hurricane belt.
ISO 200, 23mm, f/4.5, 1/1700s.

Kingston

Kingston
The capital city is Kingston - one of only two cities on the island (other than that, there are villages and towns). The island is divided into parishes, which is a colonial legacy.
ISO 200, 23mm, f/10.0, 1/450s.

Bank

Bank
Founded after the disastrous earthquake of 1692, Kingston initially served only agricultural purposes, but then grew to become a major city. In the 18th century, major offices were moved from the nearby Spanish Town to Kingston by the British. [2]
ISO 200, 23mm, f/10.0, 1/150s.

Ceiling

Ceiling
Once again, I underestimated the size of the country, and decided Kingston should be our base from which we'd venture to other parts of the island. In retrospective, that was a waste of time. It takes forever to move around due to poor road quality and traffic. What's more, our driver got tired and refused to drive, which meant we had to drive the car!
ISO 200, 23mm, f/10.0, 1/60s.

Bank of Jamaica

Bank of Jamaica
Not much goes on in Kingston, and neither does it have a reputation of a particularly safe place. Often, we'd be told to leave an area, as people were concerned for our safety.
ISO 200, 23mm, f/10.0, 1/450s.

Down Town Kingston

Down Town Kingston
I was told to visit a KFC as it's meant to be the best in the world: "first place my family go after stepping off the plane in Jamaica", but I'm not enough of a KFC-connoisseur to tell the difference.
ISO 200, 23mm, f/10.0, 1/250s.

Port Royal Cemetery

Port Royal Cemetery
Before Kingston began to play an important role, it was Port Royal that was the largest city of the Caribbean. Think piracy! Port Royal was home to privateers, who were encouraged to attack Spanish vessels by smaller European powers. Caribbean piracy began after the Spanish began plundering the empires of the Inca and the Aztecs for their gold. [5]
ISO 200, 23mm, f/10.0, 1/640s.

Pirates!

Pirates!
One of those privateers was Henry Morgan, who became eventually the Lieutenant Governor of Jamaica (I though that only happened in Sid Meier's Pirates).
ISO 200, 23mm, f/4.0, 1/2000s.

Port Royal Fort

Port Royal Fort
Buccaneers found Port Royal appealing for several reasons. Its proximity to trade routes allowed them easy access to prey, but the most important advantage was the port's proximity to several of the only safe passages or straits giving access to the Spanish Main from the Atlantic.[5] The harbour was large enough to accommodate their ships and provided a place to careen and repair these vessels. It was also ideally situated for launching raids on Spanish settlements. From Port Royal, Christopher Myngs sacked Campeche and Henry Morgan attacked Panama, Portobello, and Maracaibo. [3]
ISO 200, 23mm, f/7.1, 1/1000s.

Watch Tower

Watch Tower
After Spain was sufficiently weakened, the European states would no longer issue letters of marque to privaters. Many crews then turned pirate. Pirates from around the world congregated at Port Royal, coming from waters as far away as Madagascar. [3] With truly international crews on board, they saw no reason not to attack the ships of any nation – though Spanish ships and the Spanish colonies still offered the richest spoils. Life on board was democratic, which was revolutionary in the early eighteenth century. Meetings and votes were held on all important decisions. The captain only held on to his position if he was popular and successful, and everyone got an equal share of the spoils. Some pirates even dreamt of setting up a pirate nation. [5]
ISO 200, 23mm, f/7.1, 1/1700s.

After Earthquake

After Earthquake
Following Henry Morgan’s appointment as lieutenant governor, Port Royal began to change. Pirates were no longer needed to defend the city. The selling of slaves took on greater importance. Upstanding citizens disliked the reputation the city had acquired. In 1687, Jamaica passed anti-piracy laws. Consequently, instead of being a safe haven for pirates, Port Royal became noted as their place of execution.
ISO 200, 23mm, f/7.1, 1/60s.

Italics

Italics
A building damaged in a more recent earthquake.
ISO 320, 23mm, f/7.1, 1/60s.

1907 Kingston earthquake

1907 Kingston earthquake
Jewish Pirates of the Caribbean...? There is a tombstone in Kingston's Hunt's Bay that has a pirate skull and Hebrew writing! Explanation: The Spanish Inquisition was supposed to identify heretics after the Jews and Muslims were ordered to convert to Catholicism or leave Spain. Many Jews fled to the Caribbean, where they became pirates or privateers taking revenge on the Spanish for the torture of their brethren and property confiscation - by hunting Spanish vessels filled to the brim with Aztec gold, in ships named the Shield of Abraham or Queen Esther. Unfortunately, I only learnt about it before the flight back home.
ISO 200, 23mm, f/7.1, 1/800s.

Graveyard

Graveyard
In a biblical manner, the Babylon-like city of Port Royal with its pirates and prostitutes sank into the sea following the 1692 earthquake. A stopped pocket watch found in the harbour in 1959 indicated that it occurred around 11:43 AM. [4]
ISO 200, 23mm, f/7.1, 1/600s.

What's Left

What's Left
It's underwater now, and you are not allowed to dive here. The strip of the land visible in the centre of the photo is where they used to hang pirates. Apparently, the career of a pirate would usually last only 2-3 years, but some preferred that to a long, boring life elsewhere - or in fact to the life in a proper navy, where they'd be flogged, and have no freedom. [5]
ISO 200, 23mm, f/7.1, 1/1700s.

Fish

Fish
Port Royal would become the harbour of the Royal Navy. The time of pirates was up.
ISO 250, 23mm, f/2.0, 1/60s.

Caution

Caution
Before the Europeans came though, the island was inhabited by Arawak and Taíno peoples. Those have basically disappeared after the arrival of the Spanish, which began in the early 16th century. The Spanish, and the British after them, brought enslaved West Africans after tapping into the Islamic slave markets. [6]
ISO 200, 23mm, f/10.0, 1/60s.

Rasta

Rasta
Those Africans, taken against their will from their homeland to a tiny speck of land in the Caribbean, fought hard for their freedom, and had to redefine their identity. Out of that struggle, came the Rastafari religion as well as reggae music.
ISO 200, 23mm, f/2.8, 1/1250s.

Bob Marley's Beach

Bob Marley's Beach
Rastafari religion (they don't like it when we call it Rastafarianism) was popularised by Rasta-inspired musicians like Bob Marley. This is the beach where Bob Marley used to swim and these are the biggest waves you'll get in Jamaica.
ISO 200, 23mm, f/7.1, 1/1400s.

Anti-Zombie Fortress

Anti-Zombie Fortress
Rastafari is a weird religion. It's an Abrahamic religion, the black people of African descent are the chosen ones, and they must return to Zion - or Africa, after they were forcibly moved by the Europeans.
ISO 200, 23mm, f/10.0, 1/60s.

No Dumpin'

No Dumpin'
They give great importance to Haile Selassie, the Emperor of Ethiopia. Some considered him to be Jah, or God. He himself was a Christian. When Haile Selassie passed away, many Rastas refused to believe in it (how can God die?), while others lost their faith.
ISO 250, 23mm, f/10.0, 1/60s.

Puppy

Puppy
Rastas emphasise living naturally, adhering to the so called ital diet, not washing their hair (dreadlocks), and following patriarchal gender roles.
ISO 200, 23mm, f/2.8, 1/400s.

Holy Trinity Cathedral

Holy Trinity Cathedral
I spoke to an Ethiopian who told me he was almost beaten up by a Rasta after he shared his opinion on the Emperor. The Ethiopians don't hold Haile Selassie in such a high regard.
ISO 200, 23mm, f/10.0, 1/150s.

Ludo Board

Ludo Board
The ludo game derives from the Indian game of Pachisi that was modified to use a cubic die with dice cup and patented as "Ludo" in England in 1896.
ISO 200, 23mm, f/2.0, 1/30s.

Bauxite

Bauxite
Discovery Bay - where Columbus first landed in Jamaica (although that's disputed). Today, it's home to a town where most inhabitants are of African descent - and to a bauxite port. Bauxite gives us aluminium that we use to make drink cans and spacecraft.
ISO 100, 4mm, f/2.8, 1/160s.

Ship from Above

Ship from Above
The ship from above.
ISO 185, 4mm, f/2.8, 1/100s.

Jungle

Jungle
We travelled across the jungle to get to the northern coast.
ISO 100, 4mm, f/2.8, 1/1500s.

Big Knife

Big Knife
Yes, an important part of Rastafari is smoking ganja - marijuana.
ISO 200, 23mm, f/4.0, 1/125s.

Ganja

Ganja
Due to my lack of manual abilities, someone else had to roll one for me.
ISO 200, 23mm, f/4.0, 1/180s.

Jinny

Jinny
Traditionally, Rastafari women were not supposed to smoke weed.
ISO 200, 23mm, f/4.0, 1/450s.

Caribbean Skies

Caribbean Skies
The use of ganja is justified in Rastafari with Genesis 1:29, KJV: "And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed [...]"
ISO 200, 23mm, f/4.5, 1/1500s.

Lagoon

Lagoon
The Blue Lagoon in Jamaica.
ISO 200, 23mm, f/8.0, 1/140s.

The Protagonist

The Protagonist
Here's my self portrait.
ISO 100, 4mm, f/2.8, 1/1250s.

Folly Lighthouse

Folly Lighthouse
Here's a photogenic lighthouse we found, of course under restoration.
ISO 100, 4mm, f/2.8, 1/380s.

Blue Water

Blue Water
The landscape is spectacular.
ISO 118, 4mm, f/2.8, 1/50s.

Dunn's River Falls

Dunn's River Falls
A popular local attraction is this waterfall.
ISO 200, 23mm, f/4.5, 1/90s.

To the Blue Mountain

To the Blue Mountain
The highest peak of Jamaica is the Blue Mountain Peak. That's where a slightly disturbing thing happened to us.
ISO 200, 23mm, f/11.0, 1/320s.

Blue Mountain Peak Trail

Blue Mountain Peak Trail
Although the country felt safe, local people often told me to be careful and avoid certain areas after dark (e.g. Trench Town in Kingston). For all the peace, love, reggae, weed, there was an awful lot of barbed wires and fences and walls, especially in towns.
ISO 200, 23mm, f/4.0, 1/350s.

Going Up

Going Up
"It's because we, Jamaicans, cannot resolve conflicts without resorting to violence", many people speculated.
ISO 200, 23mm, f/4.0, 1/1000s.

Banana Tree

Banana Tree
When Bob Marley tried to bring opposing factions to negotiate - he was shot.
ISO 200, 23mm, f/2.8, 1/60s.

Path

Path
Anyway, on my way to the Blue Mountain, I met a charismatic police officer, who offered to take me closer to the peak in his 4x4, thus saving me 6-8 hours worth of walking - for a fee.
ISO 1600, 23mm, f/6.4, 1/20s.

Ever Deeper Into the Jungle

Ever Deeper Into the Jungle
He told me how he personally instructed the local community on how to solve problems through talking or legal action. On our way, we stopped in a school where he said he helped to bring a brewing conflict to an end. I though: Brilliant!
ISO 1600, 23mm, f/6.4, 1/55s.

Higher Still

Higher Still
Once we arrived in the national park (where as a foreigner you pay several times more), the charismatic man and his colleagues threw their plastic bottles and other rubbish into what I hoped to be a pristine rain forest. Okay...
ISO 800, 23mm, f/6.4, 1/60s.

Crack in the Bush

Crack in the Bush
We paid them more than half the money so they would pick us up at night upon our return from the peak. Took us 7 hours to do the peak and come back, and we had to walk at night through the rain forest with our phone torches only, for about 2 hours.
ISO 200, 23mm, f/5.0, 1/450s.

Mowgli

Mowgli
Guess what, the police never showed up to pick us up! So here we are, foreign tourists, at night, in the middle of nowhere in Jamaica, and that self proclaimed community leader just abandoned us (and took our money). A police officer. With that sort of role models, I don't see them getting very far for a while...
ISO 200, 23mm, f/5.0, 1/250s.

In the Air

In the Air
There was another thing that did not go so well.
ISO 100, 4mm, f/2.8, 1/800s.

Goodbye Mitik

Goodbye Mitik
My drone has crashed when flying over the highest peak in Jamaica, the Blue Mountain Peak. It was a battery failure. I'm just glad no one was hurt, and on top of that, I managed to retrieve the memory card. The drone is beyond repair. 🙁
ISO 100, 4mm, f/2.8, 1/4000s.

Goodbye Jamaica

Goodbye Jamaica
Well, that was my first time in the Caribbean. Quite a few people messaged me about their bad experiences in Jamaica. I could not help but be a bit disappointed by the people and the culture, but I'm looking forward to visiting other places in the area.
ISO 100, 4mm, f/2.8, 1/640s.