The Cayman Islands, located south of Cuba and west of Jamaica, include the islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac, and Little Cayman. The British overseas territory is known to be a major offshore financial centre. Legend has it that Caymanians in 1788 rescued the crews of a Jamaican merchant ship convoy which had struck a reef at Gun Bay during a hurricane, and that the Caymanians were rewarded with King George III's promise to never again impose a tax. The story is, however, much different, and the tax haven seems to have been created in the 1970s when a Cayman Islands' Finance Minister discovered that some people would love to avoid paying legal taxes in their home countries... With the general fight against tax fraud and tax evasion, the Cayman Islands is now in the G-20 list of «Tax havens that have committed to – but not yet fully implemented – the standard»...
"ARRIVING IN CAYMAN"
"GEORGETOWN - Lying largely unprotected at sea level, the Cayman Islands have the dubious honour of having experienced more hurricane and tropical systems than any other region in the Atlantic basin, being brushed or directly hit, on average, every 2.23 years..."
"LANDED"
"GEORGETOWN BUILDINGS - Including the Breezes, Margaritaville, Amsterdam Trust Company, National Museum, Bayshore Mall, Guy Harvey, as well as a church and a bank..."
"SEVEN MILE BEACH - Recently named "The Caribbean's Best Beach", Seven Mile Beach is the most popular area of Grand Cayman. Despite the name, it is only 5.5 miles long and annual erosion has reduced its size"
"MINI BEACH - Seven mile is the most famous, but just across the road there are some wonderful spots..."
"WELCOME TO HELL - And to its limestone formations"
"TYPICAL HOUSES"
"HOUSES OF CAYMAN"
"MANSION"
"INVESTMENTS IN CAYMAN"
"CAYMAN SEAS"
"ICELAND CLOUD"
Posts
55 comments:
Hi Everybody! Cayman Islands are mostly known for being an offshore centre; and, due to John Grisham’s famous «The Firm», a place favourable for money laundering purposes… ;). That fame is no longer officially supported today, as the Islands are not anymore included by the Financial Action Task Force in the list of Non-Cooperative (in the fight against money laundering) Countries and Territories... Actually, no country is nowadays listed, as the last one was removed in October 2006... ;)
Anyhow, for most cruise tourists, Cayman means buying gold and silver or enjoying Seven Mile Beach (actually only five miles long... ;)). We tried to see a bit more and the result is here for you to enjoy! Have a great weekend!!
Blue of the sky and turquoise of the sea delight me!
Hello Trotter. Another beautiful island! The houses are nice. Love the mosaic with the boat in the middle.
Such a great place for vacation.
quelle visite, il y a vraiment de superbes maisons
Wonderful beaches and the water so blue-blue-blue. Who wouldn't like to have one of those pittoresque littel houses?
It does not seem too British as I had expected... sounds like a great place to explore.
Looks like another wonderful place to visit; the beaches look great too.
Quand on voit surtout la première grande photo on ne peut pas s'empêcher de penser à l'océan en furie venant frapper contre les constructions. C'est près, tout près.
that iceland cloud stole the show! :)
Just put me in one of those little pink houses and I will be happy for the rest of my life! :)
Gil,
I used to read a lot of Grisham at one point in my life..now not that often.
These are a wonderful set of pictures of Cayman Islands, and hope to get an opportunity to visit the place someday.
Have a lovely weekend.:)
I like the pretty cottages and all the beautiful blue sea and white sands!
wow Gil, I want to go there..now I am wondering what do you do for a living? Such a dream job and dream place you are going. seriously, they or you should print a book one day :)
Happy weekend Gil..to you and your love ones.
The blue seas and white beaches are lovely. They remind me of when i lived in Papua/New Guinea. I wonder how the houses on the beach would withstand a tsunami. Another lovely sunset. I like the reflection in the water.
Wow - memories!
Visited Cayman before ever I saw Hawaii...
How's Sir Turtle? Still around? Show him, eh!
Aloha from Hawaii my Friend
Comfort Spiral
Now where's that black coral turtle of mine...
Hi Gil! Thanks for this splendid trip to the Cayman Islands. Another series of great photos, nice collages, I like so much the blue seas and the beautiful houses there!
Have a very nice weekend :-)
Looks beautiful, and congratulations that you placed your money there, lol !
What can I say! "Wow" is sometimes just enough! And I couldnt miss your posts even while I am on the road - in the sacred ancient UNESCO heritage city of Anuradhapura in Sri Lanka!
You have such breathtaking photos!
I love how blue that water is, Gil - it looks like a beautiful spot.
That hurricane hit ratio is hard to believe! No wonder there are so few tall trees :)
This is a very interesting post. I hope to one day visit here.
You kindly asked where I were...; her I am, back in the blogging world!
Yes, I missed Jamaica, but have now seen it! ... and now Cayman! Your cruise was a very complete one! Did you miss any of the islands?
Thanks again for a very complete coverage!
ADORE the "typical" houses, also yours and Mrs. Trotter's photo's ;-)
and the beautiful crystalline water! How lovely.
Thank you.
Happy Weekend!
xox
Constance
Beautiful shots. The island is very scenic. Fantastic tour of the place.
But you can not see our glimmering snow of March in Cayman or springlike Portugal ;)
And today we get more snow, it`s snowing like in Christmas postcards, no any signs of melting.
But I have been organizing my China journey photos and decided to collect them to a new blog. It was meant to be only to my family and relatives, but it is also public, if someone is interested.
Your posts are so well made, thank you also for this trip to the Cayman islands!
I have known Cayman Islands as a boy from my stamp collection. Although you have captured the beauty all around I find some of the snaps hazy (Not sharp. This I am telling because I have been following you for quite some time.
I have a Russian annecdote about aymans and alligators, quite original and made up on thespot as only Russinas can "do" annecdotes.
You picture seem to show more cruise ships than cruise passengers! You were obviously "rolling the boat out" on this trip, Trotter.
It all looks very similar to what I saw when visiting my brother on Grand Bahama Island except that there, nobody used the beaches. We saw miles and miles of empty beaches.
oh, I miss warm weather! It's been cool and windy here in Cairo - maybe I should go to Cayman...
No, I can't - I have to pack!
Our house is full of boxes...
Not many days and we're closer to Lisbon...
Cheers! :)
Ah, the famed Caymans or should I say that which is infamous?
But ur clicks add charm to a place that is otherwise known for financial sleaze!
Bravo! Commendable pics!
Sorry I haven't beem around. Never heard about that island before but it is gorgeous. I like mini beach and the sand on the beaches is so white, Beautiful The small white houses look a bit like some here
You are coming everywhere. Amazing
Wonderful photos - Iceland cloud is stunning! Have a great weekend, and thanks for your comments on Moscow Daily Photo :)
Thanks for these lovely pictures...I was one of those who only thought of the Cayman Islands as a place for hiding one's assets...lol... The place is beautiful! :)
Very pretty. the fact that it's a hurricane-prone area amazes me. Hell doesn't seem like a nice place to be at! The Houses are really very beautiful and huge! Have a wonderful weekend. Going to write in my March entry for reading soon :)
Wonderful pictures. Your each and every post is always special and amazing for the spectacular shots of the places. Great post.
Fantastic photographs of the Cayman Islands.
Joyce M
i love all the blue i see here.
paz
Looks like you had a sunny day in paradise. Great place!
A mythic place so far...
You got one heck of an awesome collection again!
Thanks for all the beautiful insights to this gorgeous place!
Hi Folks! I see that though John Grisham is much more popular than the FATF, most people didn’t even notice the financial odyssey of the Islands… ;)). Anyhow, far from Hell, I’m glad that you enjoyed seeing the pictures of the tiny wealthy island in the region!! And much obliged for keeping commenting at Blogtrotter 2!!
Susu,
My dearest poet visitor, thanks for the rhyme… Blue always delights me, though this year it seems that reds are taking advantage at the European football championships; but that won’t last, hopefully… ;))
Regina,
It must be in the genes: as I was born in an island there is this compulsory trend to visit islands all over the world… ;). The pirates’ ship is homage to the old Pirates of Caribbean, led by the (in)famous Francis Drake... ;)
It’s a nice place for a vacation, but it’s better to avoid the hurricane season!!
Olivier,
Les gens du fric savent bien comment l’utiliser dans les sanctuaires fiscaux… ;)). Alors, commence à revoir tes investissements… ;))
Ingrid,
The blues are wonderful, though I don’t remember a dark blue as the blue of the Aegean Sea... And for the houses, ok! But just imagine being caught by a hurricane every 2.23 years on average... It turns fast from paradise to hell. What a nightmare...
Thérèse,
It has all the condiments for being a British Overseas Territory, though the neighbourhood with the United States tends to substitute tea with coca cola... ;)). But all in all is definitely British... ;))
Keats,
There are always interesting things to see anywhere you visit; in the Caymans it’s easy to see it all, as the place isn’t too large. Actually, if you look carefully at the second picture, you’ll notice that you may see the Caribbean Sea also on the other side of the island...
Hélène,
C’est ce qui est arrivé avec le cyclone Ivan en septembre 2004; beaucoup de bâtiments ont été détruites et presque 90% des constructions ont souffert des dommages… Ce n’est pas facile de vivre dans une île que reçoit des cyclones chaque 2,23 années en moyenne… Il doit avoir d’autres raisons pour y vivre ; peut-être le fait d’avoir le plus haut niveau de vie des Caraïbes… ;)
Neelima,
I also loved that one!! Did you notice that a dormant volcano started its activity below one of the glaciers in Iceland? Hope things don’t turn to the worse, with the melting of the ice and the consequent floods...
Lynn,
I can imagine that you would love to live in one of those lovely houses; but then imagine how could you survive without the snow and the freezing temperatures you experience every winter... ;)
Celine,
I think that anybody somehow connected with law has read Grisham’s books at a certain point in life... ;)). «The Firm» open the road for the success and I must confess that it was an amazing experience reading it; could hardly leave the book before the end... ;)
With all the travelling you have been doing, I’m sure that one day you’ll land in the Cayman Islands... ;))
Pat,
The sand is gorgeously white and the sea has some amazing blue/turquoise colours! A paradise in blue...
Diane,
You lived in PNG; incredible place it seems!! They surely won’t stand a tsunami; actually the hardly resist the average hurricanes the islands receive every 2.23 years on average... The Iceland cloud was an amazing finding; Nature has its secrets... ;)
Cloudia,
Aloha! It seems you travelled a lot before settling in Hawaii... ;) The turtle farm was damaged by Hurricane Ivan in 2004 and moved across the street; Mr. Turtle wasn’t available... ;) And you also won’t get the black coral turtle of yours this time... ;))
Pietro,
Glad that you liked all these pictures. The place (with its houses, beaches and all the rest) and the weather were fine enough to make it possible!!
Gattina,
I was just thinking that I had to find a place to tell you where you should carry your millions to; now I found it... ;)
Replies, Part Two:
M.Kate,
You’re always wishing to go and I’m always telling you to start packing; I’ve to find a better way to make you fly to all those destinations... Picture flying ;))
There is a long story to manage travelling in your life. Running the risk of being boring, I’ll repeat the answer I gave some years ago to a young Singaporean:
«OK. Let’s try some “Rules to Improve a Young Man’s Capabilities to Travel”:
1. Begin with the reading: “Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man” or better “Portrait of the Artist as a Young Dog” will do;
2. Choose a career which allows you to travel a lot – concierge is not recommended! ;)
3. Start hitch-hiking – see references at “Blogtrotter Revival” or, safer nowadays, embark on a Student’s Exchange Programme;
4. Get an occupation where you get paid for travelling – for the purpose of enjoying trips, working as a travel agent seems to be only a last instance’s option;
5. Build your Travellers’ image: Marco Polo, Fernão Mendes Pinto, Vasco da Gama, Cabral, Magalhães – aka Magellan -, Columbus...
6. Like Bruce Chatwin, make choices: Sotheby’s/Sunday Times Magazine or “Have gone to Patagonia”? Buy or travel?
7. Choose your motto: “Navigare necesse est; vivere non est necesse” (Gnaeus Pompeius – 108/46 BC - aka Pompey the younger, commanding frightened sailors during a severe storm – “to sail is necessary (or precise); to live is not necessary (or precise)”);
8. It works? You will be able to quote Benjamin Disraeli: “Like all great travellers, I have seen more than I remember, and remember more than I have seen”;
9. Doesn’t work? Why not trying to join the Salvation Army?…» ;)))
Eye,
Thanks for taking your time even while travelling to drop a line at Blogtrotter!! This time I’m quite jealous: the sacred ancient UNESCO heritage city of Anuradhapura in Sri Lanka looks an awesome place to visit. Maybe one day I’ll make it to Old Ceylon, like the Old Portuguese navigators, who left so many Silva surnames over there… ;))
Paul,
The blues are awesome in the island! But it’s true that for a flat island like that it must be too tough to experience such a terrible hurricane ratio… No tall trees, no tall buildings also…
Ron,
I’m sure you’ll make it one day; sooner or later… Actually, you’re much closer to it than I am… ;)
Peter,
Glad to see you back blogging and commenting! Look forward to seeing you in Portugal; if I don’t manage to get to Paris earlier… ;)
This time it was a cruise of Western Caribbean; I still have one to make of Southern Caribbean and there are still some Eastern Caribbean Islands that have not yet been visited; but I’ll make it… Rather sooner than later… ;))
Constance,
The sea is gorgeous; the houses are nice, but the mansions are awesome… ;). As for the rest, it’s just time to enjoy… ;)
xoxo
Rajesh,
A flat island is difficult to be scenic, but the blue of the sea, the white of the sand on the beach and the lovely houses they have over there, make it a handsome tourist destination! With nice and decent people around, it will be a lovely place to live; except for the hurricane ratio… ;))
Leena,
Fortunately, no snow over there… The only disadvantage is that there were no pheasants also; only the blue jaguar… ;)). Incredible that you’re still catching such an amount of snow the day spring makes its official appearance in the calendar…
I look forward to seeing your China pictures. They must be gorgeous, as always!!
P.N.,
Now that you mention, I remember an old friend who also had a stamp collection withy stamps from the Cayman Islands… ;). It’s true that some pictures don’t look so clear as previously. Maybe there are two explanations for that: the first refers to the collages; they downgrade the quality of the pictures… The second maybe the fact that I’m enlarging the pictures after upload and probably they don’t stand that exercise… ;) For the rest, the camera is still the Canon G9 and it seems to be working well. Unless there was also some haze in the air in the Caribbean, which is something we shouldn’t exclude...
Replies, Part Three:
Stuart,
One day I’ll hear that anecdote in front of a glass of beer somewhere near London… ;)
Glad to see that things are improving and life is getting back to normal!
As for the cruise passengers, with more than four thousand aboard, we don’t need so many in the pictures… ;))
Ted,
Probably all those you see on the beaches were either people from the several ship cruises anchored there or people using the resorts in the Island. Most of them from ships, the remaining few from the resorts… ;) I wonder how it would look like if ever, by any chance, there is a day without cruises… Furthermore, now I remember, the day we were there was also a bank holiday!!
BLOGitse,
Hi Voyager! Can imagine all the packing around you; fortunately, the last time we did that was in January 1988… ;)
But with regard to cold weather in Cairo, I assume you’re complaining about some 17º Celsius; you’re looking much more Brazilian (from the Northern part of the country) rather than Finnish… ;))
Rakesh,
Famous or infamous it will always be what it actually is, though they always say they are willing to complaint with the best practices... ;)) Financial sleaze is a polite way to put it... ;))
Anyhow, there is some British charm in the area, provided that you forget the basis for its subsistence... ;)
Marja,
Wow! Great to see you back here! Your Christchurch Flower Festival post brought so many good memories back...
Usually the sand in the Caribbean beaches is incredibly white; my first impression was in 1983 in Cancun and I tell you, that sand was pure talcum powder... Not any longer, after hurricane Wilma in 2005, it seems...
Some houses in Akaroa are similar to those ones aren’t they?
I’m not coming everywhere, anymore; but I would love to get back to the South Island in NZ... ;)
Ashira,
That Iceland cloud was pure Nature at work... ;)
My pleasure to comment on your Moscow blog; and it’s always a delight to be sure that you will reciprocate the comment on my posts as soon as you have the chance to... Not a very widespread quality... ;)
Yvonne,
So, you knew where to go to put your millions protected; now you know the place... ;). But be sure to avoid the hurricane season: June first through November thirtieth... Chances are high that you are caught by one...
Mariposa,
Hurricanes in the Caribbean aren’t a surprise, with an average of 5.9 every year. Plus 9.6 named storms; 49.1 named storm days and 24.5 hurricane days... On average...
Some mansions are absolutely stunning! Many millions stunning, I would say... ;)
Babli,
I’m glad that I may enter your blog without being redirected to some bizarre sites!! And I’m happy that you keep enjoying and commenting on my blog!! Truly delighted!!
Joyce,
I wouldn’t be so generous on the photos; but the place has some wonderful spots to generate some excellent pictures... ;)
Paz,
The blue, the blues... all are lovely!!
Juka,
A sunny day I definitely had. Paradise? Well, it wasn’t lost... but still there is a concept to elaborate on... ;)
G@tto,
In many ways, indeed...
Nicole,
Probably not so exciting as some of the places you visit, but anyhow an interesting spot to discover...
Hi Gil,
wah no words to describe abt the picx...
Superb one, beach, cruise, row house, specially the Mansion its awesome, the Pirate ship, n the finishing touch with Sunset perfect.
Thanks for the comment in Tamil Movie review.
Kven,
Kven,
My pleasure to comment on your blog!
It seems everything was set for a perfect post at the Grand Cayman... Glad that you enjoyed!!
Des roches calcaires ? J'aurais cru des roches volcanique car toutes ces îles sont des anciens volcans n'est ce pas ?
Caïman pourquoi ce nom, je vois bien l'animal statufié. Je vais voir sur Wikipékia.
En Guyane j'ai croisé aux marais de Kaw des caïmans libres ; les caïmans noirs sont protégés. Et pourtant certains se baignent dans les eaux opaques de la rivière de Kaw, j'avoue ne pas avoir osé.
Lucie,
Non! Les îles Cayman sont d'origine sédimentaire, pas vraiment volcanique... C'est Francis Drake qui leur donna leur nom actuel (auparavant on les appelait Las Tortugas, à cause des tortues qu'on y voyait), peut-être à cause des caymans qui y séjournaient... ;)
Today is Monday and a great day to travel to the Caymans
I guess if they have so many hurricanes, then there is some advantage to having a smaller house to bunker down and less to fix once the storm blows over. It must be a scary time though when they do hit.
I guess like most tropical areas, one must go there to relax and enjoy the beaches I love being able to bring my car right to the shore so I can be in close contact to my beach stuff. lol
:)
Lady,
Everyday is a good day to travel... ;)
As for bunkers, it doesn't sound to attractive... ;) Anyhow, I also love to get close to the shore... ;))
Brilliant photo´s!What a beautiful place of the world!
Steffi,
Thanks for your visit and first time comment here! Look forward to reading you often at Blogtrottrer Two!!
Looks like some good relaxation time. Wonderful places to shop and soak up some sun.
Barb,
All that, plus some (in)famous financial practices.. ;))
Hey, I read your tips on how to travel. I like them. I would have a career with travel such as a flight attendent if I could but right now that isn't feasable. Volunteering would be an excellent way to go except for you really wouldn't be sight seeing. Anyway, have a good day.
Barb,
That was intended to go to a young Singaporean going on an Exchange Programme to Northern Finland in winter time... Flight attendant? Only in long haul flights; in short haul, you always sleep at home... ;))
Have a great week!!
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