And on the seventh day...

Sunday - August 8, 2010

After a day like yesterday it was nice to have a quite, relaxing day back in Falmouth. And by quite I mean QUIET, Jamaica is one of those countries where everything comes a halt on Sunday and everyone celebrates the Lords day. About the only busy place in Jamaica on a Sunday are all the churches and they are just about as loud as the sound system party on Independence Day. I hear that per capita, the ratio of people to church in Jamaica is one of the highest in the world! It was good to catch my breath but also kind of sad to realize that this would be my last week in Jamaica.

Saint Elizabeth Adventures!

Saturday - August 7, 2010

As my time in Jamaica winds down, there aren’t too many places I haven’t visited but Saint Elizabeth was one of them. So I called my friend Nevil who hooked me up with a whirlwind tour around the south coast. First stop, Black River and the Great Morass Swamp. A great safari boat ride into the mysterious swamp awaited and we spotted a few endangered American Crocodile. The maze of mangroves stole the show though. Next stop, YS Falls – a less touristy version of Dunns River Falls with steeper waterfalls. It will never cease to amaze me how thick the jungle is here in Jamaica and how these trees grow right out of rugged limestone. The rainwater seeps out of the ground forming rivers that turn into spectacular falls feedings these forests. Beautiful…. A quick drive through Bamboo Avenue and we hit the grand finale of this trip, a tour of the Appleton’s Run Factory. Located in the middle of a lush valley of sugar cane, this dirty industrial factory billows out smoke and rum. The tour was a little anti-climatic, with the highlight being the free rum of course. Thanks Nevil for helping make all this happen, it was great to see Saint Elizabeth and the south coast of Jamaica!

Happy Independence Day!

Friday - August 6, 1962

August 6, 1962 marked the birth of Jamaica as an independent nation, free from British rule. Yep, another holiday in the same week! Hey, I’m not complaining. The holiday was marked with a big celebration in Water Square. First the politicians spent most of the morning giving speeches about change and hope… For some reason it doesn’t matter where you are in the world, all politicians start to sound the same. Next came the marching band and police marching in uniform. As the day progressed Water Square began to fill with smoke, as all the jerk stands competed for hungry customers. With the sun setting the volume went up on the festivities as Sounds Systems (10 foot tall speakers) began to crank out dance hall music and the street party really started. You could feel the base from the music a few blocks away at the Manse! Who needs fireworks when you have a sound system like that?

Pulling it all together

Thursday - August 5, 2010

The report is starting to take shape and I’m feeling pretty good about how I am structuring it. A traditional planning document would most likely not be that helpful to the folks here at Falmouth Heritage Renewal and end up gathering dust on a shelf. So I am taking a little different approach by designing a document that works well as a whole, but can also be taken apart and used as separate documents for power point presentations. Individual street profiles capture the over all flow of the key streets in the historic district, while the recommendations section is broken down into three individual parts. It is all coming together and I am hoping it will all be useful for those making decisions about Falmouth’s future. We can only hope.

Just Keep Swimming...

Wednesday - August 4, 2010

Enough said about the closure not happening. It stinks but there is nothing I can do about it. Despite the fact that it screws up most of my mobility study, the show must go on. So I will have to work with the data I have and do my best to pull together a Mobility Report that is both useful and informative. After two months of observations I definitely feel I have a good handle on traffic flow and volume. Having well-organized street profiles for the primary roads in Falmouth is information that should be useful for FHR. Now it is just a matter of sharing that information with easy to understand graphics in an organized report.

NO CLOSURE – Now What?

Tuesday - August 3, 2010

Well its official, I just got the word that there will be NO August closure of Water Square at least while I am in town. The powers that be (UDC, NPA, TPC, ect…) could not get their acts together so the basis of my traffic study, doing a before and after study of traffic flow, is out the window. Pretty frustrating, we’ve been talking about and planning for this traffic closure for over a month. For a moment I really thought they might actually pull it off. But I guess that was wishful thinking. Still, I hope they do the closure and take it seriously enough to collect data. As for my mobility study I will have to make the most out of the data I already have. Should be interesting.

Happy Emancipation Day!

Monday - August 2, 2010

Sunday marked a special day in Jamaican history – August 1^st is Emancipation Day, the day that slavery was abolished throughout the British Empire. As one would expect this is a national holiday that celebrates freedom in Jamaica and Monday is the official day off!

So what to do on a day off, especially with Peter’s son, Rommel and a few of his friends hanging around looking for something to do? Good thing I brought that soccer ball with me. Not sure what it is about kids and a ball, but magic - an afternoon of entertainment without even trying. They spent the whole day kicking that ball up and down the street. Made me realize another one of Falmouth’s big needs, a place for kids to play. Sadly there aren’t too many parks or green spaces where a kid can kick a ball, and just be a kid. Another thing to be more thankful for back home. Still, it was great to see everyone having fun, and that soccer ball definitely is one of the best things I brought to Jamaica, next to the mosquito net, of course. Unfortunately, I don’t think it will be making it home with me though as I think it has found a new owner.