Call or email for assistance planning your trip: +1 (212) 203-0064 | reservations@moonjamaica.com
The name "Folly" predates Mitchell and his ill-fated mansion, as made clear by Folly Point Lighthouse, which was built and named in 1888. Apparently the name refers to Baptist minister James Service, who once owned the property, having acquired it piece by piece.
Blue Hole is also commonly known as the Blue Lagoon thanks to a 1980 Randal Kleiser adventure film of the same name starring a teenage Brooke Shields. This Blue Lagoon has no relation to the film, though locals will make the connection erroneously.
Reach Falls (8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m, Wed-Sun., US$10 adults, US$5 children under 12, US$4.25 residents), or Reich Falls, as it’s sometimes spelled, is located in a beautiful river valley among the lower northeast foothills of the John Crow Mountains.
Two local guides/lifeguards have been employed by the UDC since it opened the attraction officially in early 2007. The UDC’s lease on the property extends from a little below the main pool to a little above it, and unofficial guides will be turned away from the main waterfalls area on either side of the leased land.
The Portland Art Gallery (9 a.m.6 p.m Mon.Sat.) is located inside the old Railway Station by the Banana Docks on West Street, about a 10 minutes’ walk from the Main Square. Hopeton Cargill, whose work includes landscape paintings, portraits, and commercial signs, is the gallery director.
At the Jamaica Palace Hotel (tel. 876/993-7720, 7 a.m.9 p.m daily), the late Sigi Fahmi established a large collection of Ken Abendana Spencer paintings for sale. A Portland native, the late Ken Spencer was one of the most prolific artists in the country’s history.
Philip Henry (tel. 876/993-3162, philartambokle@hotmail.com) is a talented artist who has prints, portraits, and sculpture for sale in his small home studio. Call or email to set up an appointment.
Michael Layne: considered by many the top ceramist in the parish and has exhibited at galleries in Kingston countless times. Layne was born and raised in Portland, studying at Titchfield High School and then going on to Edna Manley College in Kingston to concentrate in ceramics.
Carriacou Gallery (9 a.m.5 p.m daily) features work of co-owner Barbara Walker, in addition to many other local artists.
