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This trip started off as many other trips have, with a HITCH and a GLITCH!
Traveling solo this go round meant that I could leave the kitchen sink at home [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/bannana_purple.gif[/img] [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/bannana_purple.gif[/img] so I toted one tall upright and a duffle with space for stuff to bring back.
In the fall, AJ flies out at 10:30pm, during daylight savings time it 11:30pm. Guess they didn’t change their clocks cause we didn’t board until 11pm on my 10:30pm departing flight
We arrived at MBJ late, and as I started walking, I felt dazed and confused [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/dizzy.gif[/img]
Just when I thought I knew they way around, there’s more turns, new fixtures, light colored walls and renovations galore.
I met and chatted with several people on the plane that were headed to Negril. 3 ladies were staying at the Rayon as well.
After a small amount of money exchange and gathering my luggage, I proceeded to begin my first New Years Holiday in Negril.
Upon exiting, my excitement began to build. As soon as I saw my drivers face I would be all smiles, but no such luck!
My driver wasn’t there [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/mad2.gif[/img]
Guess my good fortune from October didn’t carry over 90 days later [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/crazy.gif[/img]
I was hell bent on not paying $80 if I had to catch the first thing smoking. I knew the price I intended to pay my pre-arranged driver. And had a price in mind for whoever would save me from the driver that left me [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/notworthy.gif[/img]
I tried to think [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/70459-idea.gif[/img] of all the transportation information that I have read about in the past few weeks. I remember go-direct had cheap transport, but no one had even heard of go-direct and I remembered that they work under another company, that name I did not know. Drivers keep approaching asking if I need a ride, "No, I don’t" They keep approaching cause my actions are speaking louder than my words [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/cool.gif[/img]
I searched for my drivers number, couldn’t find it. Asked the other drivers if they'd seen his company or not, we were an hour late, maybe he walked off...nope, no one. Its 3 hours time difference between LA and Jamaica and it was 8am in Ja, 5am in Cali. I called one of my sisters for help. “Sorry to wake you but I need your help.” “Baby its okay, let me know what you need.” “I need you to logon to a website and get a phone number for me.” Groggily she responds “Okay baby, just calm down” I hear her feet shuffling across the hard wood floors, but she is not shuffling fast enough for my pisstivity. I hear her turn the computer on and she tries to make small talk while we wait for this cold computer to warm up. I’m not feeling the small talk so she cracks a few jokes. Not werking. I hear her typing, I give her the web address. “Not yet, I’m just pulling up the internet” I let out the loudest sigh, but tell her, “Thank you for helping me” She snickers as usual when I’m mad, cause I can always find someway to elicit laughter even when I'm peeved. Its the laugh to keep from crying defense.
While talking to her, I start walking around the airport looking at the tour desks to see if any of these companies say Affordable Transfers. I saw some people from my flight (heck we’re the only plane in the airport at that time) at a desk waiting for their transportation.
She gets to the website and its like communicating with someone at Dell Customer service. "No that’s not what I’m looking for." "No don’t read the website to me, I need the number." "Okay baby, I’m looking, give me a moment" "I don’t have a moment I’m erked, okay let me calm down, I was just hoping THIS trip would have started a lil better" She’s reading the website again, I’m trying to remain calm. “Just look for the number, I’m sorry for yelling, I’m trying to calm down.” I haven’t been to sleep right, I got off work Sunday morning and hit the ground running, no comfortable sleep and that dozing I did in my empty row on the plane wasn’t beauty rest.
She gives me the number and wishes me a good trip, says that she’ll call me in 2 hours to see how things are going. “Thanks for your help and go back to sleep” “Love you, love you too”
I can’t tell you how bad I felt, after I hung up the phone I reached in my purse and found my drivers business card [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/crazy.gif[/img]
By this time, I walked up to the desk where I saw my plane mates at and asked the cost of transportation. The representative asked how much I was going to pay my other driver and he accepted that cost. I paid him more than he asked and tipped as well. I was thankful to have a ride and a minimized headache.
I called my driver to tell him that I had been left and found other transportation. He asked if he could call me back in 10 minutes, he was going to look for the driver he sent. I told him that I had found a ride, but to please ensure my pickup on my return.
I hopped in the van with the 5 travelmates and headed to Negril [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/bannana_purple.gif[/img]
The driver didn’t know that none of the people on the van knew me prior to the plan ride. He said that I blended in like family and that we got along so well, he couldn’t tell otherwise. Sammy once told me that I could make friends with a brick wall [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/grin.gif[/img]
They were dropped off at the RIU and shortly thereafter, we arrived at the Rayon Hotel.
Traveling solo this go round meant that I could leave the kitchen sink at home [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/bannana_purple.gif[/img] [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/bannana_purple.gif[/img] so I toted one tall upright and a duffle with space for stuff to bring back.
In the fall, AJ flies out at 10:30pm, during daylight savings time it 11:30pm. Guess they didn’t change their clocks cause we didn’t board until 11pm on my 10:30pm departing flight
We arrived at MBJ late, and as I started walking, I felt dazed and confused [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/dizzy.gif[/img]
Just when I thought I knew they way around, there’s more turns, new fixtures, light colored walls and renovations galore.
I met and chatted with several people on the plane that were headed to Negril. 3 ladies were staying at the Rayon as well.
After a small amount of money exchange and gathering my luggage, I proceeded to begin my first New Years Holiday in Negril.
Upon exiting, my excitement began to build. As soon as I saw my drivers face I would be all smiles, but no such luck!
My driver wasn’t there [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/mad2.gif[/img]
Guess my good fortune from October didn’t carry over 90 days later [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/crazy.gif[/img]
I was hell bent on not paying $80 if I had to catch the first thing smoking. I knew the price I intended to pay my pre-arranged driver. And had a price in mind for whoever would save me from the driver that left me [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/notworthy.gif[/img]
I tried to think [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/70459-idea.gif[/img] of all the transportation information that I have read about in the past few weeks. I remember go-direct had cheap transport, but no one had even heard of go-direct and I remembered that they work under another company, that name I did not know. Drivers keep approaching asking if I need a ride, "No, I don’t" They keep approaching cause my actions are speaking louder than my words [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/cool.gif[/img]
I searched for my drivers number, couldn’t find it. Asked the other drivers if they'd seen his company or not, we were an hour late, maybe he walked off...nope, no one. Its 3 hours time difference between LA and Jamaica and it was 8am in Ja, 5am in Cali. I called one of my sisters for help. “Sorry to wake you but I need your help.” “Baby its okay, let me know what you need.” “I need you to logon to a website and get a phone number for me.” Groggily she responds “Okay baby, just calm down” I hear her feet shuffling across the hard wood floors, but she is not shuffling fast enough for my pisstivity. I hear her turn the computer on and she tries to make small talk while we wait for this cold computer to warm up. I’m not feeling the small talk so she cracks a few jokes. Not werking. I hear her typing, I give her the web address. “Not yet, I’m just pulling up the internet” I let out the loudest sigh, but tell her, “Thank you for helping me” She snickers as usual when I’m mad, cause I can always find someway to elicit laughter even when I'm peeved. Its the laugh to keep from crying defense.
While talking to her, I start walking around the airport looking at the tour desks to see if any of these companies say Affordable Transfers. I saw some people from my flight (heck we’re the only plane in the airport at that time) at a desk waiting for their transportation.
She gets to the website and its like communicating with someone at Dell Customer service. "No that’s not what I’m looking for." "No don’t read the website to me, I need the number." "Okay baby, I’m looking, give me a moment" "I don’t have a moment I’m erked, okay let me calm down, I was just hoping THIS trip would have started a lil better" She’s reading the website again, I’m trying to remain calm. “Just look for the number, I’m sorry for yelling, I’m trying to calm down.” I haven’t been to sleep right, I got off work Sunday morning and hit the ground running, no comfortable sleep and that dozing I did in my empty row on the plane wasn’t beauty rest.
She gives me the number and wishes me a good trip, says that she’ll call me in 2 hours to see how things are going. “Thanks for your help and go back to sleep” “Love you, love you too”
I can’t tell you how bad I felt, after I hung up the phone I reached in my purse and found my drivers business card [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/crazy.gif[/img]
By this time, I walked up to the desk where I saw my plane mates at and asked the cost of transportation. The representative asked how much I was going to pay my other driver and he accepted that cost. I paid him more than he asked and tipped as well. I was thankful to have a ride and a minimized headache.
I called my driver to tell him that I had been left and found other transportation. He asked if he could call me back in 10 minutes, he was going to look for the driver he sent. I told him that I had found a ride, but to please ensure my pickup on my return.
I hopped in the van with the 5 travelmates and headed to Negril [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/bannana_purple.gif[/img]
The driver didn’t know that none of the people on the van knew me prior to the plan ride. He said that I blended in like family and that we got along so well, he couldn’t tell otherwise. Sammy once told me that I could make friends with a brick wall [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/grin.gif[/img]
They were dropped off at the RIU and shortly thereafter, we arrived at the Rayon Hotel.
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