Labadee, Haiti - Tuesday 11 December 2012

Labadee from the boat



The Ship from Labadee

Beautiful weather – well into the 30’s with a nice warm breeze.

Labadee was not what we expected.

This large area of land is leased from the Haitian government to the Royal Caribbean Cruise Co. for 99 years. It is not actually the village Labadee which is located some distance away. Instead we visited a manufactured complex with concrete paths , uniform signage and only tourist events and shopping.  When the ship leaves, the ‘new’ Labadee just closes down.



Lamy, our guide

First up we went on a very gentle historical walking tour.  Although the guide was repetitive and had many homilies, the tour was well worth it.  We learnt many fascinating historical facts including the role of the French, Brits and Spaniards in the ‘colonisation’ of the Caribbean.  This added significant colour to the ‘plastic’ space.

During the tour I checked our tickets for the next event again.  To my horror I realised that instead of the coaster we were booked onto the Dragon’s Flight (zip) line.  Apparently the longest zip line over water (800m) and 170m high.  We decided that it was fate and went along with it.

There are four extreme moments of trepidation. 



• The incredibly bouncy ride up the mountain in the open back trucks
• Sitting down in the harness and bouncing in mid air
• Just before the guide releases the cable – and you’re off
• Hitting the brake hard at the end of the run

Overall however, great fun and we are quite comfortable doing another one.



The Aqua Park

Lunch beckoned and then we thought we’d try the Aqua Park.  Yes I swam.  The water was very warm and welcome after the heat walking around.  The Park consists of numerous inflated climbing toys including slides, a seesaw, trampoline and an edifice named the iceberg.  Some we managed alright, but upper body strength wasn’t enough for some, plus Rebecca’s excuse is that she was sore after the boxing yesterday. 

This is also why I had to carry the backpack.

A short lie on the beach with a Corona followed.



Spot the Corona

Then we did some souvenir shopping, largely avoiding the outside stalls as the vendors are ferocious – calling out to you and trying to coax you into buying by whatever means.

Back to the ship for a much needed shower and a wave to Labadee as we departed port.

A slightly better showing at general trivia, an early tea and then a very poor showing at 70s disco trivia.

I need to note that the food here is superb!  We’ve eaten in the general dining area at night and enjoyed every morsel.  Great service too.  I’m just fascinated by the logistics of how well they can cater to thousands of people so well.

Discovered some cool towel animals when we got back to our room. Decided to have an earlier night and missed the game show.