This year, 2012, is poised to become a year of celebration in Jamaica — it is our golden year of Independence. It marks 50 years of a strong, independent nation that has flourished since leaving from British rule in 1962.

TEENage Observer kick-starts the celebration with the presentation of 50 of Jamaica’s historical landmarks and accomplishments.

The first stop was once called the most sinful city in the world. You guessed right if you said Port Royal.

Port Royal presents more than just a chance to discover the wild lifestyle that once flourished there, but an opportunity to experience some of the rich Jamaican history. In the city lies Fort Charles, originally called Fort Cromwell, built in the late 1650s and was once one of the most important naval outposts in the world.

The city, though known for its barbaric escapades, has had its share of tragedies. In fact, its notoriety is as much about the old Captain, Sir Henry Morgan, as the three earthquakes that tried to swallow it in — June 7, 1692; January 14, 1907; and March 1, 1957. All of which restructured the original land mass and coastline.

Fort Charles possesses numerous towers and huge replicas of cannons that were used to fend off enemy attacks from the sea, thereby ensuring the protection of British cargo. Interestingly, the fort’s parking lot is known as Chocolate Hole, which was once a strip of land where chocolate was the only commodity traded.

The Fort’s museum presents a unique way to learn a bit of Jamaican history firsthand. There you can see many tools used in the 17th and 18th centuries in regular households and by craftsmen, as well as, examples of both paintings and handcraft that depicted the lifestyle of the British settlers in Port Royal. Amazingly, the museum possesses a clock which indicates the precise time that one of the earthquakes struck.

Port Royal is also home to the Giddy House, which as the name suggests makes one giddy/dizzy due to its tilt. Built in 1888 as an arsenal, it stored ammunition that supplied two of the Fort’s Batteries.

TEENage highly recommends you visit.