Well, the World Cup is under way in the Caribbean and the Windies have won their opening match. My Dad would no doubt be happy. Hopefully he gets to see one of the games.
From all indications the host countries are doing a fine job. Sure, there have been reports of some minor hitches so far but overall the reports have been good. There are reports in Jamaica about journalists having to pay high charges for internet access (click here). And there was an editorial coming out of Trinidad’s The Guardian that maybe the visitor expectation may be a little bit overstated (click here). But, overall the tournament is getting top billing around the world.
If this latter situation is true across the region, I would not be too up in arms about this. Sure, we would like to have visitors in the region that would occupy every single hotel room available and then some. But even if we do not achieve that, I think the publicity will bode well for years to come and the region itself will benefit in the long run. The infrastructure in the host country will provide a useful life that will extend for years to come. The service sector in the region appears to have aligned itself to deal with the heavy influx of travelers. This effect can have a lasting impact that will extend beyond the tournament. As I said in a prior entry I hope that the public and private sectors do not allow the residual effect to dissipate once the tournament comes to an end. That way the popular cry to “rally round the West Indies” will extend beyond the cricket pitch.
From all indications the host countries are doing a fine job. Sure, there have been reports of some minor hitches so far but overall the reports have been good. There are reports in Jamaica about journalists having to pay high charges for internet access (click here). And there was an editorial coming out of Trinidad’s The Guardian that maybe the visitor expectation may be a little bit overstated (click here). But, overall the tournament is getting top billing around the world.
If this latter situation is true across the region, I would not be too up in arms about this. Sure, we would like to have visitors in the region that would occupy every single hotel room available and then some. But even if we do not achieve that, I think the publicity will bode well for years to come and the region itself will benefit in the long run. The infrastructure in the host country will provide a useful life that will extend for years to come. The service sector in the region appears to have aligned itself to deal with the heavy influx of travelers. This effect can have a lasting impact that will extend beyond the tournament. As I said in a prior entry I hope that the public and private sectors do not allow the residual effect to dissipate once the tournament comes to an end. That way the popular cry to “rally round the West Indies” will extend beyond the cricket pitch.
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