I Just Got Back From Jamaica
What a trip.
The last time I was in Jamaica was 1999. I was anxious to get back...there's something about the people, the sun, the water, that has always had a calming effect on me. Living in the city can be stressful. I know both my girlfriend and I needed this trip. We took off on a Saturday morning, just before the 27 inch snowstorm hit the Northeast. Direct flights are nice. We landed and were greeted by Anita, one of our hosts, who would drive us from the airport in Montego Bay, to Negril. It's about an hour and a half ride. Instantly, I was taken back to how beautiful the country was, the smell of wood burning. The people. The water. The cliffs. The poverty. On the drive, we meet Anita's husband, John, who is one of the nicest people I've ever met. He and Anita met while John was in the British Army. He's also a former boxer. My girlfriend is very excited. I guess I am too. We arrive at the place we are staying, Freedom Villa. There we meet up with my friend Jeff, who goes to Jamaica every year. We also meet Nate, and his wife Missy, Dave, who works for Jeff, and his girlfriend Jackie, and a friend of Jeff's, Jenny. They are all really good people. Jeff has a deal set up where we have the entire house to ourselves. It includes communal areas, a kitchen, and 5 bedrooms, each with their own bathroom. All of this for $25 bucks a day, per person.
Freedom Villa
The Jungle
That day we relax, pick up loads of groceries, and enjoy a few beers.
The next day we head across the street to go to the beach. It's our first real full day of sun. I've never been the biggest fan of water or the sun. Something about Jamaica makes things different, I guess. We all got plenty of sun that day. I loved being in the water, it's so blue and clear. It's peaceful. We spend time at a hotel beach across the street, because John knows the owner. A lot of the beach is privately owned, so it helps to know people. We also spend time at the Boat Bar, where Johnny, a bartender, rolls spliffs and smokes with anyone who wants to. I try a drink called the dirty banana, a mixture of rum, bananas, Tia Maria, Bailey's, and ice.
Walking to the beach
First dip
Catching some rays
Boat Bar
Swimming
The next two days are rainy and overcast. We spend most of the time relaxing, playing card games, and walking along the beach in sweatshirts. We have lunch at a nice restaurant called Mom's. Something about the food is so much different. It's mostly organic. Not a lot of preservatives in their food. And the juice is amazing. It's more solid, less watery, than the juice in the states.
Tuesday was Valentine's Day. Jackie and Missy decided to have a Valentine's Day party. They picked up 12 bottles of champagne, more beer, bottles of orange juice for mimosas, candles, and we got pizza. We spend the night partying, dancing, drinking and singing. I played DJ. Karen, a friend of Anita's, hangs out with us. She's in the same situation as Anita, a German lady married to a "Bleck Juhmacon" man. We talk about the status of the Jamaican economy, government, crime, poverty, and weed. Karen has some race issues. She has concerns about my girlfriend and myself. In a roundabout way, I tell Karen to mind her own business. I've been living on earth for 30+ years. If I decide to have kids, I think I'll be ok. I attributed Karen's rambling to alcohol. She did have about 15 glasses of champagne.
Partying it up
Our 5th day saw us up in the morning. We had talked to John and had decided to book a tour to three places. John was going to take us to the Black River, Y's Falls, and the Appleton Estate. It's much better to go on a tour with people that you know. With John being our guide and driver, it made it all the better. For some of us, we were hurting units, especially, Dave, who spent his night drinking Jagermeister, a gift from Anita. The weather was beautiful. It's about an hour and a half to our first stop. We stop off for patty's, veggie and meat. It's interesting to see the people who live in their environment, hustling to make a living. On the way we see where Peter Tosh, the musician, is buried. We arrive at the Black River and go on the tour. It's a boat that takes you along the river, while your guide explains what is going on. It's called the Black River because of the peat at the bottom of the river. The weird thing is, is that the water looks so dark, but it is crystal clear. This was further proven when our guide took a plastic cup, dipped into the water and it was as clear as tap water. There are all sort of wildlife and vegetation, which included crocodiles and mangroves. The crocodiles are not as aggressive as in other countries, but they will still bite you if given the chance. At one point in the tour, we pull over and are informed that if we want to go swimming, we could. Dave and Missy do, much to the horror of all other tourists on board.
Black River
Mangroves
We stop and have lunch; chicken, fish, rice and peas, salad, and fruit punch with ginger root. We then proceed to Y's Falls. It's a natural waterfall and is best seen after the rainy season. I wasn't really interested in swimming in it. I watched after everybody's stuff while they took turns on rope swings and wading in the very cold water. At the gift shop, my soccer shoes weren't cutting it, so I broke down and purchased some flip flops.
Y's Falls
Our third and final stop was the Appleton Estate. We started out in the bar, sipping rum punch. We were advised to drink it slow, because it is blended with 4 types of rum. Let me tell you, it was strong. Our tour guide, Hugh, then proceeds to tell us everything about Appleton rum, how it is made, the different types, etc.. We end our tour with a visit to our very own bar, where we are allowed to sip all types of products made by Appleton. Not only are we allowed to taste all products, we are allowed to stay there as long as we want. We spend the next 45 minutes downing shots of everything. I feel warm. We are then given complimentary sample bottles of rum. At the gift store, we purchase more bottles of alcohol to take back to the states.
Boys will be boys
It's time to head back. John stops off at a local fruit stand. We pick up bananas, peppered shrimp, mangos and papaya.
It was a really good day.
The next couple of days see us picking up some trinkets, sunning ourselves, drinking, eating and just enjoying the trip. We go out at night for dinner, catch the sound of the ocean and enjoy our vacation. One day we head up to the cliffs, at a place called Xtabi. It has a beautiful view. I pick up a chicken patty on my way. I've become addicted to those things. Unfortunately my girlfriend decided one day to go without suntan lotion and paid a hefty price.
Xtabi
Patty
Shipwrecked boat
Too much sun
Taking it all in...in flip flops
Nate and Missy were set to leave on Saturday, a day before everyone else, so we decided to go out and party it up on Friday night. We listen to live reggae at a bar called Alfred's and dance while consuming many beers.
John was kind enough to make us all breakfast on Saturday. He made us a traditional Jamaican breakfast which consisted of ackee (an African fruit that is poisonous when unripe but edible when ripe) and saltfish (very salty indeed), Jamaican dumplings (deep fried biscuits), and callaloo (very similar to spinach), and we also had papaya, watermelon, pineapple, and small Jamaican bananas. We said goodbye to Nate and Missy. Since sunning was out of the question for my girlfriend, we decide to head to the grocery store to pick up more juice. On the way we meet Charlie, who informs us that he is a real rasta. He wants to take a picture with us. All for the low fee of 100 Jamaican dollars (about 2 dollars US). I oblige. Saturday was also the day of the donkey races. The races were raising money for charity. About nine teams raced twice around a short track dressed up in all manner of costumes. Some of the donkeys had minds of their own and just didn't feel like going around in a circle.
Jamaican breakfast
Saying goodbye
Donkey races
Charlie and me
One of the many flowers of Jamaica
Our last day, the rest of the gang left before we did. Our flight wasn't scheduled to leave until the evening. We said goodbye again. My girlfriend and I went to the boat bar, had more dirty bananas, stopped off and got patties and just spend the time enjoying the water. It was a perfect ending. John and Anita came back after dropping the rest of the guys off and drove us to the airport. We left Jamaica where it was 80 degrees to land at JFK where it was about 18 degrees. Talk about a change in temperature. All in all, it was a great trip. It's nice to be around people who have such a humble outlook on life. Jamaica does have problems..crime, poverty, an aggressive anti-gay policy. There are bugs and mosquitoes. It's a tourist environment so some of the people are aggressive. They have to hustle to make a living. I've also notice that they are taking US money far more than they used to. But for the most part it is a wonderful place to be. Especially if you seek peace and just want to relax. I did notice, probably more so than most, that people of color, regardless of their nationality, have this sort of connection that cannot be explained. Sometimes I wish I had more wealth so I could do more. I wanted to help more people.
At home, I drift off to sleep with imagery and sounds of jungle, patois, reggae music, boys and girls in school uniforms, the smell of burning wood and weed, and the sun shining on my face.
The last time I was in Jamaica was 1999. I was anxious to get back...there's something about the people, the sun, the water, that has always had a calming effect on me. Living in the city can be stressful. I know both my girlfriend and I needed this trip. We took off on a Saturday morning, just before the 27 inch snowstorm hit the Northeast. Direct flights are nice. We landed and were greeted by Anita, one of our hosts, who would drive us from the airport in Montego Bay, to Negril. It's about an hour and a half ride. Instantly, I was taken back to how beautiful the country was, the smell of wood burning. The people. The water. The cliffs. The poverty. On the drive, we meet Anita's husband, John, who is one of the nicest people I've ever met. He and Anita met while John was in the British Army. He's also a former boxer. My girlfriend is very excited. I guess I am too. We arrive at the place we are staying, Freedom Villa. There we meet up with my friend Jeff, who goes to Jamaica every year. We also meet Nate, and his wife Missy, Dave, who works for Jeff, and his girlfriend Jackie, and a friend of Jeff's, Jenny. They are all really good people. Jeff has a deal set up where we have the entire house to ourselves. It includes communal areas, a kitchen, and 5 bedrooms, each with their own bathroom. All of this for $25 bucks a day, per person.
Freedom Villa
The Jungle
That day we relax, pick up loads of groceries, and enjoy a few beers.
The next day we head across the street to go to the beach. It's our first real full day of sun. I've never been the biggest fan of water or the sun. Something about Jamaica makes things different, I guess. We all got plenty of sun that day. I loved being in the water, it's so blue and clear. It's peaceful. We spend time at a hotel beach across the street, because John knows the owner. A lot of the beach is privately owned, so it helps to know people. We also spend time at the Boat Bar, where Johnny, a bartender, rolls spliffs and smokes with anyone who wants to. I try a drink called the dirty banana, a mixture of rum, bananas, Tia Maria, Bailey's, and ice.
Walking to the beach
First dip
Catching some rays
Boat Bar
Swimming
The next two days are rainy and overcast. We spend most of the time relaxing, playing card games, and walking along the beach in sweatshirts. We have lunch at a nice restaurant called Mom's. Something about the food is so much different. It's mostly organic. Not a lot of preservatives in their food. And the juice is amazing. It's more solid, less watery, than the juice in the states.
Tuesday was Valentine's Day. Jackie and Missy decided to have a Valentine's Day party. They picked up 12 bottles of champagne, more beer, bottles of orange juice for mimosas, candles, and we got pizza. We spend the night partying, dancing, drinking and singing. I played DJ. Karen, a friend of Anita's, hangs out with us. She's in the same situation as Anita, a German lady married to a "Bleck Juhmacon" man. We talk about the status of the Jamaican economy, government, crime, poverty, and weed. Karen has some race issues. She has concerns about my girlfriend and myself. In a roundabout way, I tell Karen to mind her own business. I've been living on earth for 30+ years. If I decide to have kids, I think I'll be ok. I attributed Karen's rambling to alcohol. She did have about 15 glasses of champagne.
Partying it up
Our 5th day saw us up in the morning. We had talked to John and had decided to book a tour to three places. John was going to take us to the Black River, Y's Falls, and the Appleton Estate. It's much better to go on a tour with people that you know. With John being our guide and driver, it made it all the better. For some of us, we were hurting units, especially, Dave, who spent his night drinking Jagermeister, a gift from Anita. The weather was beautiful. It's about an hour and a half to our first stop. We stop off for patty's, veggie and meat. It's interesting to see the people who live in their environment, hustling to make a living. On the way we see where Peter Tosh, the musician, is buried. We arrive at the Black River and go on the tour. It's a boat that takes you along the river, while your guide explains what is going on. It's called the Black River because of the peat at the bottom of the river. The weird thing is, is that the water looks so dark, but it is crystal clear. This was further proven when our guide took a plastic cup, dipped into the water and it was as clear as tap water. There are all sort of wildlife and vegetation, which included crocodiles and mangroves. The crocodiles are not as aggressive as in other countries, but they will still bite you if given the chance. At one point in the tour, we pull over and are informed that if we want to go swimming, we could. Dave and Missy do, much to the horror of all other tourists on board.
Black River
Mangroves
We stop and have lunch; chicken, fish, rice and peas, salad, and fruit punch with ginger root. We then proceed to Y's Falls. It's a natural waterfall and is best seen after the rainy season. I wasn't really interested in swimming in it. I watched after everybody's stuff while they took turns on rope swings and wading in the very cold water. At the gift shop, my soccer shoes weren't cutting it, so I broke down and purchased some flip flops.
Y's Falls
Our third and final stop was the Appleton Estate. We started out in the bar, sipping rum punch. We were advised to drink it slow, because it is blended with 4 types of rum. Let me tell you, it was strong. Our tour guide, Hugh, then proceeds to tell us everything about Appleton rum, how it is made, the different types, etc.. We end our tour with a visit to our very own bar, where we are allowed to sip all types of products made by Appleton. Not only are we allowed to taste all products, we are allowed to stay there as long as we want. We spend the next 45 minutes downing shots of everything. I feel warm. We are then given complimentary sample bottles of rum. At the gift store, we purchase more bottles of alcohol to take back to the states.
Boys will be boys
It's time to head back. John stops off at a local fruit stand. We pick up bananas, peppered shrimp, mangos and papaya.
It was a really good day.
The next couple of days see us picking up some trinkets, sunning ourselves, drinking, eating and just enjoying the trip. We go out at night for dinner, catch the sound of the ocean and enjoy our vacation. One day we head up to the cliffs, at a place called Xtabi. It has a beautiful view. I pick up a chicken patty on my way. I've become addicted to those things. Unfortunately my girlfriend decided one day to go without suntan lotion and paid a hefty price.
Xtabi
Patty
Shipwrecked boat
Too much sun
Taking it all in...in flip flops
Nate and Missy were set to leave on Saturday, a day before everyone else, so we decided to go out and party it up on Friday night. We listen to live reggae at a bar called Alfred's and dance while consuming many beers.
John was kind enough to make us all breakfast on Saturday. He made us a traditional Jamaican breakfast which consisted of ackee (an African fruit that is poisonous when unripe but edible when ripe) and saltfish (very salty indeed), Jamaican dumplings (deep fried biscuits), and callaloo (very similar to spinach), and we also had papaya, watermelon, pineapple, and small Jamaican bananas. We said goodbye to Nate and Missy. Since sunning was out of the question for my girlfriend, we decide to head to the grocery store to pick up more juice. On the way we meet Charlie, who informs us that he is a real rasta. He wants to take a picture with us. All for the low fee of 100 Jamaican dollars (about 2 dollars US). I oblige. Saturday was also the day of the donkey races. The races were raising money for charity. About nine teams raced twice around a short track dressed up in all manner of costumes. Some of the donkeys had minds of their own and just didn't feel like going around in a circle.
Jamaican breakfast
Saying goodbye
Donkey races
Charlie and me
One of the many flowers of Jamaica
Our last day, the rest of the gang left before we did. Our flight wasn't scheduled to leave until the evening. We said goodbye again. My girlfriend and I went to the boat bar, had more dirty bananas, stopped off and got patties and just spend the time enjoying the water. It was a perfect ending. John and Anita came back after dropping the rest of the guys off and drove us to the airport. We left Jamaica where it was 80 degrees to land at JFK where it was about 18 degrees. Talk about a change in temperature. All in all, it was a great trip. It's nice to be around people who have such a humble outlook on life. Jamaica does have problems..crime, poverty, an aggressive anti-gay policy. There are bugs and mosquitoes. It's a tourist environment so some of the people are aggressive. They have to hustle to make a living. I've also notice that they are taking US money far more than they used to. But for the most part it is a wonderful place to be. Especially if you seek peace and just want to relax. I did notice, probably more so than most, that people of color, regardless of their nationality, have this sort of connection that cannot be explained. Sometimes I wish I had more wealth so I could do more. I wanted to help more people.
At home, I drift off to sleep with imagery and sounds of jungle, patois, reggae music, boys and girls in school uniforms, the smell of burning wood and weed, and the sun shining on my face.
posted by Batman at 6:30 AM
3 Comments:
Amazing!
i dont think it's possible for me to express how jealous i am.
oh! That pic of you swimming...that needs to be me.
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