19^th November 2014

Grand Turk

Now here’s a place we’ve never been before, and after the events of last night we weren’t sure if we were even going to make it!

There’s a certain feeling of sadness mixed with enormous dollop of compassion generated throughout the ship at the broadcast of two simple words over the tannoy…’Code Alpha’…this means that some poor soul’s holiday of a lifetime has just turned into a nightmare. The term ‘Code Alpha’ is used to indicate there is a medical emergency on board and the announcement continues by directing the medical team to the location of the incident.

Last night there was one of these dreaded occasions which resulted in the captain needing to turn the ship around to head for the nearest port…Costa Rica…in order to obtain the very best of treatment for the patient involved.
We were told this would involve a detour of several hours, and just before we retired to bed the expectation was for a much shorter visit to Grand Turk as a result.

So imagine our surprise, and of course delight, when we awoke the next morning already alongside our berth at our original destination. Unfortunately the detour hadn’t lasted long as the patient had passed away shortly after the manoeuvre to get him ashore.

Our delight was somewhat short lived……

Anyway, our first impressions of this island were mixed. It looks idyllic with white sandy beaches fringed with shade giving palms. The facilities here have been built and paid for with money from the cruise lines and it shows…This is a manufactured destination with lines and lines of sun loungers on the beachfront, then behind the obligatory huts selling souvenirs and expensive beer there’s a swimming pool complex to rival any major resort hotel.

Oh well…let’s give it a go. We commandeer two loungers and set off for a swim.

The sea is lovely and warm and we’re in for an extra special treat. Within minutes we’re surrounded by shoals of fish, all shapes, sizes and colours. They’re really inquisitive and gently nibble at your fingers and toes if you keep still. We spent quite some time with our new piscatorial friends and it was really a lot of fun.
Unusually I was quite content to sit for some time enjoying the sun afterwards, but when midday was finally a couple of hours behind us it was time for lunch.

We found a very welcoming bar a little further along the beach, away from the main area, and settled for a platter of conch fritters and coconut prawns, followed by nachos….well, who could resist? It was great and we were really looked after by our server.

At the end the bill wasn’t too bad either and we tipped our very attentive waiter well and left….but that wasn’t to be the end of it and a bigger surprise was yet to come.

As we walked across the sand we were called back by our waiter. He told us that he was really grateful for the tip we’d given him, and although he had nothing to give us in return, he thought we might like a memento of our visit. He then produced a Grand Turk Yellow Pages and with a huge grin he handed it over.

What can I say? Now either most of the other visitors to his bar don’t treat him very well or he’s taking the mickey!!

Well I can tell you I’m fairly certain it’s the first one of these options. Why do I think that? Well as we sat enjoying our meal we were surprised at just how much whining and whinging some of the other customers indulged in. We heard some really nasty things said and this was probably what prompted us to show this lovely guy that we, at least, appreciated his attention to our needs.

I really do despair of the behaviour of some of our fellow holiday makers who rarely understand that standards are not the same all over the world…and neither is the food.
Yes it’s hot and sticky…but it’s not his fault.
Yes the food may not be to your taste…but it’s not his fault.
Yes you may have been bitten by one of the local bugs…but…ok you get the picture.
You may be older in years folks…but you’ve never really grown up, have you?

TWIT

Anyway we had a really nice day here in Grand Turk…made all the better to know at least one resident appreciated our visit and made us feel very welcome. This may not have been our ideal destination, but it was certainly good enough.