Posted by Yardie Luke on October 7, 2011 under Jamaica Travel | 
South Florida will sizzle again this November as the 10th Annual Grace Jamaican Jerk Festival, the largest Caribbean food festival in the United States, gets underway at the lush and spacious Markham Park in Sunrise [Florida] on Sunday, November 13, 2011.
The event, which has grown in size and popularity, now boasts over 18,000 patrons from various cultures and age groups. Each year throngs of families and friends flock to the Grace Jamaican Jerk Festival for the delectable jerk foods and the explosion of Caribbean culture, which have become the hallmark of this award-winning event.
“We take pride in producing a festival of this caliber and continue to work diligently to improve the event. Our goal is to produce an event of the highest quality, delivering satisfaction to both patrons and sponsors,” said Eddy Edwards, Chairman of Jamaican Jerk Festival USA Inc.
Title sponsor, Grace Foods, the leading Caribbean food manufacturer and distributor, will add spice more spice to the event with its culinary delights. Step into Grace Kitchen with Chef Mazie Miller whose cooking demonstrations will wow patrons, as she displays some of the tastiest Caribbean food products by Grace.
More info at Jamaica Jerk Festival
Posted by Yardie Luke on July 4, 2011 under Jamaica Travel |
PASSENGER trains will begin service today from Charlemont via Linstead, Bog Walk and Spanish Town in St Catherine to coincide with the month-long closure of the Bog Walk Gorge.
Chairman of The Jamaica Railway Corporation (JRC) Barry Bonitto announced on Friday that the trains will run between Monday to Friday with two trains departing from Charlemont at 5:30 and 7:15 in the morning and one from Spanish Town scheduled for departure at 6:25.
The afternoon trains will depart Spanish Town at 3:30 and 6:15 and Charlemont at 2:20.
Children travelling from Linstead to Spanish Town and vice versa will pay $75 and adults $150, while travel from Angel to Spanish Town will attract $50 for children and $80 for adults. Executive coach passengers will be required to pay a flat rate of $300.
According to the JRC chairman, plans are afoot to increase the number of trains in the coming months based on the commuting demand.
But although the JRC said today’s service signals phase one of the phased resumption, Transport Minister Mike Henry yesterday said that the move was not an official return of rail service, but a continuation of the test run which began in April.
According to Henry, the service “is in no way shape or form reflective of the pending official roll-out of the rail service, beginning in St Catherine and Clarendon.”
He said the rail-testing is to help with transportation needs between Linstead and Spanish Town while the gorge is closed to facilitate the completion of a pipe-laying project by the National Water Commission.
“The use of the trains during the continued testing period would be of additional assistance in minimising the commuter inconvenience from the closure of the gorge,” Henry explained.
The minister said with the passenger rail service absent for almost two decades, a lot of very detailed applications were relative to the resumption exercise. He said these would not be rushed, “and the actual roll-out will take place soon enough”.
One critical element of the overall resumption, he said, was the recent restoration of the integrity of the old May Pen Bridge in Clarendon, to accommodate the passage of trains across the structure.
A similar focus is on the long-collapsed Sandy Gully Bridge in St Andrew, which has to be rebuilt to facilitate the return of rail service to Kingston.
However, the Sandy Gully project, which has a one-year time-span, has no bearing on the first phases of the resumption between May Pen and Linstead via Spanish Town, according to Henry.
Meanwhile, the JRC has urged Jamaicans to refrain from further vandalism of the tracks.
“…being closed for some 19 years, there has been vandalism to our property (and) we are calling upon all well-thinking Jamaicans to assist us and work with us to ensure that the safety and integrity of our tracks are protected in order to maintain the safety of our passengers,” Bonitto said.
The gorge will be closed to vehicular traffic for a month. The alternative routes are through Barry or Sligoville.
Posted by Yardie Luke on February 18, 2011 under Jamaica Travel |
BY MARK CUMMINGS Senior staff reporter cummingsm@jamaicaobserver.com
Friday, February 18, 2011
FALMOUTH, Trelawny — After years of planning and two missed dates, the Georgian north coast town of Falmouth yesterday welcomed its first cruise liner.
Before the scheduled 8:00 am arrival of the vessel, Voyager of the Seas, at the newly constructed Falmouth Shipping Pier, hundreds of Trelawny residents — including scores of students — lined Seaboard Street to witness the historic moment.
Shortly after 8:15 am when the ship with its 3,500 passengers and 1,500-member crew inched closer to the pier, then made its final stop, the larger crowd erupted in cheers, many gazing in awe.
Joy Laesch, who heads the Trelawny Art and Craft Association, told the Observer that she shed “tears of joy” when she realised that the ship had, in fact, docked at the pier.
“I just stood there (on the port) watching the ship coming in the harbour and I thought I was dreaming. But as it came closer and closer and stopped and as I saw passengers hanging out (on the ship) and waving and persons on the ground waving back to them, it became highly emotional for me. I tried to hold back the tears, but I couldn’t… my emotions were too high so as the baby (ship) docked, I just burst into tears,” she recalled.
Added Laesch: “My hands were filled with water (tears) so I just used it to wash my face. It was tears of joy because we were waiting and have been preparing ourselves for this moment, and now it’s happening.”
The construction of the Falmouth Cruise Shipping Pier — a joint effort of the Royal Caribbean Cruise Line and the Port Authority of Jamaica — has long been in the making. However, work on the multi-billion facility did not begin until roughly three years ago.
But it was not smooth sailing for the project as several issues, including work stoppages, and environmental concerns delayed the start-up date for cruise ship arrivals.
Cruise officials told the Observer yesterday that more than 90 per cent of the passengers disembarked the mega liner.
A significant number of those, the Observer was told, visited attractions outside of Falmouth before touring sections of the town, which was transformed into a ‘small cultural village’.
For the most part, the parish’s rich heritage was on display as a slew of craft items, local dishes and traditional music were showcased.
Passengers also toured the town in tram carts and horse carriages, which were popular in the town during the colonial days.
Tourism Minister Ed Bartlett, who along with several political representatives were on hand to greet the passengers, told reporters that the day’s activities went smoothly.
“The new port of Falmouth is a statement of the readiness Falmouth is, for prime-time cruise tourism because this port and its facilities are going to be the finest of its kind not only in the Caribbean, but in the entire word,” he argued.
And, Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports Olivia ‘Babsy’ Grange said she, too, was pleased with the day’s proceedings.
“I am very impressed with what I see here today and I want to make the point that for the first time, Jamaica has started on the right footing,” she said.
Several passengers who spoke with the Observer commended the stakeholders and residents of Trelawny for the warm reception.
Over the next few months several cruise liners are scheduled to make weekly calls at Falmouth, including the Oasis of the Seas — the world’s largest cruise ship — which will make its maiden visit on March 22.
Read more: Jamaica Observer
Posted by Yardie Luke on November 11, 2010 under Jamaica Travel |
MONTREAL, Canada — Air Canada says it will charge passengers CD$20 for a second checked bag on its Caribbean flights beginning in January.
Canada’s largest carrier said yesterday that it adjusted its checked-bag policy to match other airlines. Its main competitor, WestJet, announced a similar charge last week.
Air Canada said the extra charge will not apply to Air Canada Prestige, Elite, Super Elite members and Star Alliance Silver and Gold members.
The new rule is in effect for any domestic flights purchased after November 10, the airline said.
Economy class customers will still be able to check one piece of luggage in for free in addition to carry-on baggage.
The current policy also allows for a car seat and stroller to be checked as additional pieces of baggage free of charge.
Air Canada flies to more than 170 destinations around the world from 60 Canadian gateways. It is the world’s 15th largest commercial airline and serves 31 million customers annually.
SOURCE: Jamaica Observer
Posted by Yardie Luke on November 5, 2010 under Jamaica Travel |
FORT LAUDERDALE, September 15, 2010 – South Florida will sizzle again this November as the 9th Annual Grace Jamaican Jerk Festival, the largest Caribbean food festival in the United States, gets underway at the lush and spacious Markham Park in Sunrise [Florida] on Sunday, November 14, 2010.
The event, which has grown in size and popularity, now boasts over 18,000 patrons from various cultures and age groups. Each year throngs of families and friends flock to the Grace Jamaican Jerk Festival for the delectable jerk foods and the explosion of Caribbean culture, which have become the hallmark of this award-winning event.
“We take pride in producing a festival of this caliber and continue to work diligently to improve the event. Our goal is to produce an event of the highest quality, delivering satisfaction to both patrons and sponsors,” said Eddy Edwards, Chairman of Jamaican Jerk Festival USA Inc.
Title sponsor, Grace Foods, the leading Caribbean food manufacturer and distributor, will add spice more spice to the event with its culinary delights. Step into Grace Kitchen with Chef Mazie Miller whose cooking demonstrations will wow patrons, as she displays some of the tastiest Caribbean food products by Grace.
More info at Jamaica Jerk Festival
Posted by Yardie Luke on September 24, 2010 under Jamaica Travel |
Mark the date: October 10th 2010 or simply 10/10/10.
It is Carnival Time again!
The 2010 MIAMI CARNIVAL will be held on Sunday, October 10th, 2010 at Sun Life Stadium (Dolphin Stadium) in the City of Miami Gardens. Miami Carnival is a celebration of creativity: an eruption of revelry, colorful and spectacular costumes and pulsating music. It is a time when the diversity of the caribbean community can be seen as people of all ages and races come together to shed their inhibitions and enjoy a release from everyday stress. Dolphin Stadium is home to numerous NFL Super Bowls and major entertainment productions, including Jazz in the Gardens. The Miami Broward One Carnival Host Committee has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (“MOU”) with Sun Life Stadium and its affiliates and the Miami Dolphins organization to secure the Stadium as a venue for the Miami Carnival on Columbus Day Weekend each year. This spirited agreement represents a major opportunity for the Miami Carnival to build the future and sustainability of the Carnival brand at a world renowned venue. MORE INFO
Posted by Yardie Luke on September 22, 2010 under Jamaica Travel |
All passengers making airline reservations for travel to the United States are now required to provide their birth date, sex and passport number, as the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) tightens access to flights operating in its airspace.
The information is required 72 hours in advance of travel.
Tagged ‘Secure Flight’, a recommendation of the 9/11 Commission, came into effect on September 16. The information provided at the time seats are booked must exactly match the data on each traveller’s ID, says a news report on the Homeland Security website.
The move is aimed at cauterising a repeat of the attempted Christmas Day bombing of a Northwest Airlines flight from Amsterdam to Detroit on December 29, 2009. The flight was the target of a failed al-Qaida plot, in which a passenger tried to detonate plastic explosives sewn to his underwear, although the passenger’s name was listed on the ‘No Fly’ list.
The Secure Flight programme is a collaboration of the DHS and United States (US) Transportation Security Administration (TSA).
One of the US’ largest carriers, American Airlines, in letters to their passengers, have described the introduction of the reservation rules as “designed to enhance the security of domestic and international commercial air travel by streamlining the DHS watch list-matching process”.
Reservation
The airline said that all passengers must have Secure Flight Passenger Data (SFPD) in their reservation at least 72 hours prior to departure.
“You will be unable to travel without providing this information,” said American.
Only passengers who are cleared to fly by the TSA will be given boarding passes.
The airline noted that compliance with this mandate will require that any ticket purchase on or after September 15 will need to provide SFPD.
Efforts to get a comment from national carrier Air Jamaica proved futile, as its public relations unit is now based in Trinidad and Tobago.
In the meantime, passengers may go to www.aa.com/secureflight for further information. SOURCE
Posted by Yardie Luke on December 23, 2009 under Jamaica Travel |
American Airlines Flight 331 from Miami overshot a runway while landing during a heavy rainstorm in Kingston on Tuesday night, injuring more than 40 of the 154 people on board. The nose of the jet was less than 10 feet (3 meters) from the water.
The plane’s fuselage was cracked, its right engine broke off from the impact and the left main landing gear collapsed, said Tim Smith, an American Airlines spokesman at the company’s headquarters in Fort Worth, Texas. Most of the injuries were cuts and bruises and none were life threatening.
