My Jamaica Trip Report July 2008

[Xavier]

I know a few of you do not venture outside the forums so here is my Jamaica trip report for July 2008. It is broken into 4 parts with pictures. I will post each part separately as there are related pictures.

<span style="font-weight: bold">Jamaica Trip Report July 2008 Day 1
</span>
Recently, I spent 10 days in Jamaica. Five days were for my family reunion and the other five days vacation. Below is my trip report with pictures. I tried to capture some of the high points of the trip. I will have more details on some of interesting discussions, hot topics and some random thoughts on my blog.

Day 1
The Spirit flight left late. There was some “drama” in the back of the plane. Two passengers were arguing with the flight attendant over who could sit at the emergency door. This plus the flight attendants hoarding people on the plane like a Jamaican mini bus conductor really heightened the tensions. I think people need to remember airlines like Spirit are discount airlines. No frills. Air Jamaica is slowly going this route.

Arrival in Montego Bay was “non” dramatic however the upgrades to the airport seem to be complete. The last time I was here, 2 years ago there was still construction every where.

I was particularly impressed how quickly we got through immigration. The Jamaican immigration offer was very nice. I asked her about some Chinese construction workers walking around the airport. She mentioned “They were hired to do some thing they THINK we Jamaicans can’t do”. This probably is a top in my blog.

We got outside the airport pretty quickly. Now the drama begins. I rented a mini-van for the trip as I have a big family (wife and 3 daughters) plus we would need extra space for the family reunion events. I typically get my car from a specific company. I have never had a problem. In fact I would recommend them in a heartbeat to anyone. I walked out the airport and they are waiting for me. This time there was no one around.

Well they left the door open for a swarm of sales reps from other rental companies to ask if we needed a car or a cab ride. I waited a few minutes. No one showed up. The rest of the family was getting a little agitated because it was a warm day.

A gentleman from another rental car company came up to us. He asked if I need a car. I told him I was waiting on a car from another company. He offered me his phone to call them. I did and thanked him.

Someone from the rental car company was coming down to take me to the office. When he arrived he realized he could not take us all up to the office. He brought a car and would have to make 2 trips to take us to the office. I asked what happened to the van. He put me on the phone with the owner who explained that someone had rented it and put diesel fuel in it. They were in the process of cleaning out the diesel fuel from the engine and it would be ready that evening. They would take me to Ocho Rios and then bring it later. I was very disappointed and told him I did not want it. To cut to the chase I ended up in a rental office of the gentleman who loaned us the phone. I had to pay more for a 7 seater car versus the mini-van I was expecting. By time we completed the paper work and the car was ready everyone was hungry. The gentleman at the rent-a-car company recommended a place called Scotchies which was just outside Monetgo Bay on the way to Ocho Rios.



We found the restaurant quite easily. It had a great ambiance. I had some Jerk Chicken and festival. My wife had fish. The other family members also had Jerk Chicken. The food in my opinion is more catered to tourist. A real Jamaica would probably like the chicken spicier. My wife’s fish was filleted. She was expecting to see the head and tail of the fish…lol. I think we all agree that this is the perfect place for a tourist to ease into Jamaican food.

Next we were off to Ocho Rios.

The drive was pretty smooth going in. The roads were great. Last time I traveled from Mobay to Ochie they were working on parts of the road. The one disappointment I had was a “secret beach” we had discovered near Run Away bay was now commercialized. There was a stage there with shops and vendors. I know there are probably still many “secret beaches” to be discovered.



We arrived in Ocho Rios right around rush hour. We found our hotel easily. It was called Rooms on the Beach. It is right after the craft market in Ocho Rios and next to Jamaica Grande hotel.



There was a guard at the gate of the hotel. The place was nice and clean. It is not the Ritz but it is affordable and right on the beach. Check-in was smooth with out any issues. We took our bags up to the room took showers and went off back towards my Aunt’s house outside of Ocho Rios. There would be the first event of the family reunion. It would be a “meet and greet” with family members. Also, it would be a reunion with me and part of my family as 2 of my children were in Jamaica 3 weeks prior to our arrival. They were happy to see us, especially their little sister. They did not have a Jamaican accent…lol.. they were still Americans. I met a few cousins I did not know about. I also saw a cousin I have not seen in over 30 years.





After the meet and greet we went back to the hotel. Many other family members there for the reunion also stayed at the hotel. We all would discover the towel “drama”. Through out the whole stay there never seem to be enough towels on property.

[Xavier]

Re: My Jamaica Trip Report July 2008

<span style="font-weight: bold">Day 2</span>
The hotel provides a continental breakfast. It is not your typical continental breakfast but it is free. It consisted of toast, coffee, tea, orange drink, and other pastries. Get there early as it goes fast.

The day started out with us relaxing at the hotel pool and then the beach. While at the pool I observed a lady picking up almonds on the grounds at the front of the property. I asked her what she used the almonds for and she said she makes almond drops. She mentioned they are very good.

The plan for the day was to have a picnic at Somerset falls. We had to change that plan as we later learned that the road going to Port Antonio was pretty bad. My Aunt suggested we go to Cranbrook Park.

My Aunt’s house was the meeting pointing for everything. After meeting at my Aunt’s house we were off to Cranbook Park and Adventure trail.

The road to the park was rough.

The price to enter the park was US$10.00 per person with children 12 and under US$5.00. We were assigned a tour guide. His name was West. The first part of the park tour took us around the gardens and West explained the names of the plants and how some of them were used in Jamaica.




The second part of the tour was the best but could be a little grueling. It was a 2 mile nature walk along the river that ran through the park. West kept telling us at the end of the walk we would be rewarded not giving us a clue as to what we would see. There are a few rest stops along the way. The children were amazed by the “shame ooh lady plant” we saw along the way. They touched the plants and watched them close up.



I thought we were the only ones on the trail until we met some ladies coming down. They told us the secret. The trails lead to where the river starts at the top of the mountain. One of the ladies mentioned she did not bring a bathing suit so she stripped naked and had a swim at the lagoon at the top of the river. They described how beautiful the watering hole was.



Children in the group were tired and so were some of the adults. A 2 mile walk up hill is not the norm for many of them, especially the ones that live abroad. The description from the ladies gave us a little burst of energy. We wanted to see what was at the end.





When we got to the ‘River Head” it was amazing. Water was coming out the side of the mountain and there was a lagoon. It was just as the ladies described. The water in the lagoon was inviting. The water come out of the hill side was an incredible site. I thought to myself…People say there is no God. They must be crazy.







We spent some time at the river head. Not everyone could take a dip in the lagoon as we never knew this was in the park. Soon it was back down the hill. The walk back was faster than going up. Part of it is going downhill but the other part was the cold water energizing everyone.





We went back to the hotel and got ready for dinner. Yes we need to ask for towels in the room.

We walked to a plaza a few minutes from the hotel and had dinner at a Chinese restaurant. The name was Dancing Lions. Jamaican Chinese food always tastes different from regular Chinese food. The food was excellent. It brought a good end to day 2.

[Xavier]

Re: My Jamaica Trip Report July 2008

Day 3
No one wanted to get up. After the long walk up to the river head at Cranbrook
Park they were tired. However, the mention of Dunn’s River got everyone excited. That was the first activity for the day. Enough said, I think the pictures here will best describe Dunn’s River Falls.













The day ended with the main event for the family activity. It was a family dinner at Almond Tree restaurant. Everyone was late as usual. We had a place reserved on the terrace overlooking the sea. It was lovely however the night was humid.



The sea breeze did eventually help. Dinner was good and as usual we ended the night with our vote on where the next reunion would be.

Day 4
No one was able to wake up. I needed a real breakfast so I headed out to a 'hole in the wall' the forum moderator Magic introduced me to at a Jamaicans.com Bashment in 2004. It is a small fishing village across the street from Sky Castles just outside the Ocho Rios Town Centre. The place had changed. There was now better building and parking. There was no ackee so I got callaloo and “earth food”.

The rest of the morning into the mid afternoon was spent by the pool and the beach. Later we went off to my Aunt’s house to say a final good bye. After the final goodbyes we went to eat at “Ultimate Jerk” which was across from Green Grotto. There was a cricket field behind the restaurant. There was a cricket match.

[Xavier]

Re: My Jamaica Trip Report July 2008

Day 5
We had an early breakfast and then checked out of the hotel. Check out took a while. Next we headed to the town centre to get some Mothers patties. We were going to Negril for the second half of trip so I figured it would be best to eat. We made one stop on the way…river rafting on the Martha Brae.

The drive to Trelawney was smooth. We followed the signs from the main road to the Martha Brae river rafting location. It was Monday. The place was empty. We later found out that the cruise ships normally come in the middle of the week. Most of their customers are from the cruise ships. It took us less than 10 minutes to get on a raft. We would leave our car and go down river.









The ride was amazing. I think they should put a bed on the rafts. Along the way there were vendors on the side selling their wares on the river bank. The man who piloted the rafter down the river was very friendly. He told us how the rafts were built. He told us about the river. He even took pictures of my family. I always wanted to do this and it was worth it. I recommend anyone who visits Jamaica to try it.



At the end of the trip while waiting to be driven back we were entertained by some teenage boys diving off a close by bridge into the water. On the ride back up the driver saw a car. He mentioned that it was Usain Bolt’s car and that he did not live far from the river.



We got to Negril late. We were hungry so we stopped a Cosmo’s restaurant. The food there is always good. After dinner we headed to our place of stay…The Whistling Bird cottages on the seven mile beach…we stay there every time we go to Negril. The welcome was great. We could not wait to hit the sack after a long day.

[Xavier]

Re: My Jamaica Trip Report July 2008

<span style="font-weight: bold">Day 6</span>



Whenever I visit Negril I go for 1 reason…to relax. I try to go there when it is very slow. Before spring break or after spring break. Before Jamaica Carnival or After Jamaica carnival, either time, is slow. Whenever there is a big concert in Monetgo bay or Ocho Rios it is slow. Our time was perfect. Sumfest was in Montego Bay and that meant “Negril would be slow.



The Whistling Bird is the prefect place to relax. The property is on the seven mile beach with a prime view. You can enjoy the beach and people walking along the shore all day. On day 6 all we did was hang out on the beach. It was a way to wind down from all the activities from the past few days.

During the day we saw different members of the staff on the property. We have been visiting for years and they are like family. Even the staff members who no longer work on the property came by to visit us.

We went back to Como’s for dinner that evening.

Day 7
Today we were going to visit the lighthouse. I had always heard about the lighthouse in Negril but never visited it. We had breakfast on the property and then went to the beach. My children never got bored with the beach. They could spend all day there.




The plan was to get in a little beach until about 3.00 pm. Then we would head to the lighthouse. Lily on the property called ahead to the light house to inquire if it would be open today. She told us to ask for Mr. James the lighthouse keeper when we got there.

The drive to the lighthouse took us pass “downtown Negril” and the cliffs. We could see the lighthouse from the main road. The side road leading to it is unpaved so the ride is a little rough. Mr. James, the lighthouse keeper, was at the foot of the lighthouse talking to 3 ladies that were leaving. We greeted him and asked if he would give us a tour inside the lighthouse. He agreed. The children were thrilled. He told us about the history of the lighthouse and also about the many instruments inside. We followed him up the steep spiraling staircase to the very top. The view on the top was amazing. The water was blue as far as the eyes could see. We could see the famous Blue Castle. We also saw Rick’s café. That would be our next stop.







Ricks café was not too far from the lighthouse. It was late evening so the parking lot was full. With the permission of a homeowner, we parked in his yard across the street from the cafe. There was a reggae band playing music. The place was crowded. Most of the people there had gathered around the diving area. There were tourists diving from the cliffs. There were also the “expert” Jamaican divers performing for the crowd. They were the main attraction for most of the people there. I was more drawn to the tourists who were diving in. There was a lady who was on top of the platform who went back and forth. As she stood on the plank she looked over into the water then shook her head. She was not going to dive. Her friends kept encouraging her. She went back to the edge and looked over again. She withdrew again. After about 10 minutes contemplating and 5 people passing her to dive she approached the platform again. She finally jumped in.





There were also a few belly flops by tourist divers. You cringed every time you heard it as you knew they would be in pain. It was getting dark and we were getting hungry. We would eat on the property today. The food is always well prepared. It is cooked to order and served in the dining area on the property. We had Lobster and Fish. It was an enjoyable meal.

[Xavier]

Re: My Jamaica Trip Report July 2008

Here is the final installation of the trip report. The video links are at the end.

Day 8
I woke up the next morning determined to get a few good shots of the doctor birds on the property. I had been trying to do so for days without any success. They come out in the morning and late evening. I was able to get a few pictures that morning.



The plan today was to go to the Kool Runnings Water Park and Anancy Village. We had breakfast at Calettes then headed off to the water park. The parking lot of the park was sparse. There were 3 buses in it. There were 2 groups at the entrance totaling about 70 people. Luckily they were still working on their “logistics” so we went to the front of the line.



We first took a tour of the Anancy Village. It an exhibition of artifacts of Jamaican culture.






Next it was off to the water park. The children could not wait to get in. The main feature of the park is the 3 big slides. I took a chance and rode 2 of them. The last one I could not handle. We had lunch in the park. The food price was medium ranged. The food court is in a 2 story building. The back of the building faced inland to the mountains. We ate our lunch on the second floor. I could see the dark clouds coming from in-land. It was going to rain soon. After lunch is was back in the water. We wanted to get in before the rain came.





The rain came and it was pretty bad (see video below). I have been in Negril quite a few times and have never seen a storm like this. We huddled in the covered kiddies pool area and tried to keep dry. It was like a mini hurricane. It lasted for at least 30 minutes. See the video.




Once the rain passed everyone was back out trying to go on the slides. They had to wait as the attendants were setting up. They also wanted to be sure that there were no lightening strikes around.

We spent the rest of the day at the park. We got back to the Whistling Bird just before the sun went down. We went on the beach to see the sunset.

We had dinner at Comos that night.

Day 9

We spend today on the beach. I was able to get some more shots of the illusive doctor bird in the morning.





One of the employee’s on property had caught some crabs. The kids were fascinated by it. There was enough from everyone to eat.

The day was just one for relaxing on beach. In the evening we played board games at the bar.

Day 10
The first part of the day I spend running some errand in town with a friend on his motor bike. He used to work on the property. He brought his daughter to spend the day with the kids.

I visited his house . The last time I was there he was doing some construction. He had completed it. He had some goats around the house which I asked him about. One of the goats was to be used for a raffle at Christmas. He would be printing tickets to sell for between $500J to $1000J. He would then have a Christmas party where the winner would be announced. He mentioned that he would make more from the raffle than selling the goat straight up. He would also have a bicycle and a DVD player as the second and third prize. I came to understand that these types of raffle were very popular at Christmas time.

That afternoon a new guest had arrived on property. He was a friend of ,Jim, the property owner. He was also a maroon descendant. We had a long conversation on his maroon heritage. You can read more about discussion in my blog. By the time we were finished talking it was evening. We headed back to the room to start packing as we would leave very early in the morning to get to Montego Bay.

We had “box” dinner that evening.

Day 11
We had an early afternoon flight back to South Florida so we had to leave Negril very early. There is always sadness when we leave. The staff is like family and the place feels like home. They were up early to get us breakfast and wish us off.

The ride to Montego Bay was uneventful. There was a little rain drizzle. Traffic was very light. It was early morning. It was smooth scenic ride to the airport. We sopped at Green Island to see the new hotel that was going up.

We got to rental car agency and waited as no one was there. It was 15 minutes before they arrived. The car was quickly inspected and we were taken to the airport. The flight was on time. As I left Jamaica I mentioned to my wife the next trip will be Barbados. We always plan on going somewhere else for vacation but each year we tend to always go to back home…to Jamaica.

[Seveen]

Re: My Jamaica Trip Report July 2008

thanks for this treat!

[Xavier]

Re: My Jamaica Trip Report July 2008

Ooops forgot the videos

Rain at the water park in Negril
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Whistling Bird Negril Jamaica Tour Part 1 <object width="425" height="350"> <param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/BWuZIH11k3A"></param> <param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param> <embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/BWuZIH11k3A" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"> </embed></object>

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[Laurel]

Re: My Jamaica Trip Report July 2008

Excellent fun tagging along with you ~

Do I know your friend with the motor bike?? Father and Daughter names match??

[Xavier]

Re: My Jamaica Trip Report July 2008

Thanks Laurel...Yes you do know my friend on the motor bike.

[Laurel]

Re: My Jamaica Trip Report July 2008



kool ~

[Jamaicamiss]

Re: My Jamaica Trip Report July 2008

What a wonderful trip you had with your family. Thanks for sharing.

[sistactry]

Re: My Jamaica Trip Report July 2008

bossman, me never know dat dis was up dere, btw, me no dun read yet,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTUv5_HiWrU&amp;NR=1

jamaicans.com deh pan utube, butseeyah~~

[Ja. Jewel]

Re: My Jamaica Trip Report July 2008

Thanks so much for posting Xman.....I really enjoyed your very well done report. Looks like your family really had a great time.....next time stop at the &quot;secret&quot; beach in Duncans Bay before development takes over!

[trelawnysmall]

Re: My Jamaica Trip Report July 2008

Wow, how great it would have been to run into you and your family. When you hit the lighthouse you were less then 5 minutes to my place on the seaside.
BTW, Cranbrook is one of my favorites places in St Ann, truly gorgeous. And where you loaded onto the raft at Martha Brae, right there is where I was married. Then you headed down my way, Ricks is 4 minutes from my house as well. Seems like I was taking a trip down my own memory lane with you.
Thanks Xavier for sharing your story.