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There are several sight-seeing
opportunities throughout the
Islands, including historical sites,
nature parks, hiking trials, bird
sanctuaries, underwater reefs, and,
of course, the famous beaches and
lush vegetation. Each district of
the Islands offers its own unique
landmarks and characteristics. In
George Town the places to see
include the Elmslie Memorial Church,
the Legislative Assembly, the Law
Courts, the Government
Administrative Building and, on the
waterfront, the old Courthouse
building which years ago housed all
government departments and is now
being used to house the National
Museum. The National Museum offers
the visitor two permanent
exhibitions - one on the Islands'
natural history and the other on its
cultural history. Also featured are
exhibits on the history of the
building, works of art, and a
changing exhibit featuring subjects
of local and topical interest.
Additional facilities for the
visitor’s enjoyment include a museum
shop and a cafe. The Museum is open
Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.,
and on Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
The Museum is closed on the first
Monday of each month. Entry fees are
CI$4 (US$5) for adults, and, for
children, CI$2 (US$2.40). In other
parts of Grand Cayman popular sights
are Pedro Castle, which is being
restored as a major tourist
attraction in Cayman, and the scenic
cliff land at Pedro bluff; the
caves, slave wall and typical
Caymanian homes in Bodden Town; the
blow holes at Gun Bay and the wrecks
at East End; the Cayman Kai
Development at North Side; Hell and
the Cayman Turtle Farm, West Bay;
and the Queen's Highway, which
opened up the north-east part of the
Island. Another site of historical
importance which will be of interest
to the visitor is the District of
East End's Wreck of the Ten Sail
Park, overlooking the site of the
1794 wreck, the most famous maritime
disaster in the Islands' history. On
her 2nd visit to the Cayman Islands
in 1994, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth
II visited the lookout point, named
the Queen's View, and viewed the
plaque commemorating her visit and
the 200th anniversary of the wreck.
Her Majesty was also the guest of
honor at the official opening of the
Queen Elizabeth II Botanic Park. The
park is located in the outer
districts of Grand Cayman. Access is
from Frank Sound Road, the
cross-island artery about 25 miles
east of George Town. The park is
located on 65 acres jointly owned by
Government and the National Trust
for the Cayman Islands.
For those interested in bird
watching and nature, probably the
most rewarding activity available on
Grand Cayman is a trek on the Mastic
Trail, in the Mastic Reserve, North
Side. The Mastic trail was a
traditional footpath which was
important some 200 years ago as a
route between north and south
coastal settlements in central Grand
Cayman. Originally built by
backbreaking manual labor, the
southern portion of the trail had to
cross a neck of mangrove wetland.
Rocks and mahogany logs were carried
by donkeys to create a causeway, and
the harsh rock pinnacles on higher
ground had to be hammered to make a
passable path. The trail was
restored in 1993 by the National
Trust with extensive community
involvement. Other excellent bird
watching sites include the smaller
Governor Michael Gore Bird Sanctuary
in Spotts-Newlands, Grand Cayman,
which is a good site for wetland
birds in the driest months (February
to April). While not formally
protected, another important bird
habitat on Grand Cayman is Malportas
Pond, in North Side. On the pond's
banks, local farmer Mr. William
(Willie) Ebanks has devoted much to
aiding the recovery of the West
Indian Whistling Duck. Starting with
a pair of ducks and seven chicks in
1990, Mr. Willie now supports over
400 wild Whistling Duck, which can
be seen at his farm in the early
morning and evening hours. Malportas
Pond also supports hundreds of
herons, egrets, Moorhens, and coots,
and is an important natural area
surrounded by largely undisturbed
land. On Little Cayman the National
Trust protects and manages the Booby
Pond Nature Reserve, where about
10,000 breeding Red-footed Boobies
make up the largest breeding colony
for this large seabird in the
western hemisphere. Magnificent
Frigate birds also breed here. The
birds can be viewed through
telescopes at the reserve's Visitors
Centre, which doubles as the Trust's
headquarters on Little Cayman. The
area has been declared a "Ramsar
site" under the international
convention on protection of wetlands
of international importance. Cayman
Brac boasts an elevated plateau
known as "The Bluff" which supports
woodlands floristically quite
distinct from Grand Cayman's. The
Bluff supports some of the Cayman
Islands' most magnificent trees,
including the Mastic and Wild
Sapodilla. The Bluff woodlands can
be viewed in the Brac Parrot
Reserve, where the National Trust's
Cayman Brac district has established
a small trail in the reserve,
connecting to the traditional "Bight
Road" footpath. The trail is
accessible form the Major Donald
Drive, an un-surfaced but drivable
road which eventually leads to a
high lookout at the eastern point
lighthouse. The endangered Cayman
Brac Parrot breeds in the Brac
Parrot reserve and elsewhere on the
Bluff, as do the Red-legged Thrush,
Vitelline Warbler, and many other
native birds. The Brac also teems
with geotropically migrant birds
during the winter months. Exploring
Cayman's world-renowned underwater
beauty is a popular past-time, and
several scuba-diving and snorkeling
operations offer facilities,
equipment and instruction for both
novices and avid practitioners. For
those who don't want to get wet, the
Atlantis II, the successor to the
Atlantis I, the world's first
passenger submarine, is based in
George Town harbor. Atlantis II
takes up to 48 passengers on reef
trips down to 100 ft., while two
"research submersibles" can take two
passengers each down to 1,000 ft. In
1997 a 100-seat vessel, The
Nautilus, which offers full
underwater viewing from its hold,
was launched in water sports
operation seeking to showcase the
Islands' underwater beauty.
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