First Trip Report - First Time in Treasure Beach

I didn’t sleep very soundly the first night because I kept wondering about what everything looked like outside, plus the goats were up most of the night having a party on our stairs. The anticipation of exploring the area kept me awake too. As usual though, husband doesn’t have that problem so he slept like a log. No worries for me though, I’m just so happy to be in such an amazing house in this great country of Jamaica :cool:

In the morning I learned why the goats were up having a party on our stairs all night – we left the gate at the bottom of the stairs open – lol! We didn’t even realize that there was a gate at the bottom when we arrived the previous night, so we never thought to shut it! Apparently, the goats were given more freedom that night than usual so of course they decided to party it up :D It had also rained the night we arrived which isn’t common in TB. It’s very dry and arid there normally. It sounds like the rain also gave the goats a reason to celebrate. Everyone was happy for the needed rain!

This is the view from the main bedroom level of the home –
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Here’s where the goats stayed up, partied all night and left their mess -
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This is the view from the second deck. The bus was cool to see. I wonder if there's a story is behind it?
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The house is perched up above all the surrounding homes. Notice the gate that we left open our first night. If you are considering a stay here, keep in mind that there are 80 steps to reach the main living level of the home. Barukamba, the house of Mutabaruka –
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There is a lot of art and interesting décor and furniture in this home. We really loved the openness of the house! At night, the lizards would hang out behind the mirror in the bathroom waiting for the light above it to be turned on. When the light was on, the moths would come, which meant dinnertime for the lizards. YUM!!! It was really cool to watch!

Here’s some pictures of the beautiful backyard –
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I was finally able to capture several pictures of the Doctor bird –
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This is a bit grainy, but these Doctor birds were mating in the tree right in front of me. Was it rude to watch and take pictures? They were very noisy!
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We decided to rent a scooter for our visit as Billy’s Bay is a little remote from the restaurants in TB. It’s not really that far – maybe 1-2 miles, but we wanted a quicker option for getting around. I am so happy we had a scooter. It gave us more freedom to explore further and it was a lot of fun zipping around on it.

It’s funny because in Jamaica, the OCD, anxious, over-analyzing, need to be in control side of me is gone. I’m not sure what it is about this place, but I’m sure others must agree and maybe that’s why we all keep going back? Not that I’m an uptight, crazy person at home or anything ;) But things such as insects, birds (which normally scare me – lol), dirt and germs, lizards in my bathroom, riding on the back of a scooter with someone else in control, and other normal tension inducing activities don’t bother me at all. We even had a cat that ran through the house during the early morning and I barely flinched! Those who know me would be impressed by that – haha! I really think we should move here!

Getting the scooter was an adventure in itself. We planned to get it at Smurf’s and have breakfast. Actually, we planned to get two scooters because as previously mentioned, I’m averse to not being in control. But once we saw the size of the scooters, I decided to ride on back. They are a heavier than I expected and I'm more wimpy than strong - lol. I was expecting a smaller type, similar to a Spree and I’ve never driven around on a scooter myself either. It was a great decision. Riding on back was super comfortable and I was able to take tons of pictures from there too!

The walk to Smurf’s from our house was the first time we had been out and about in the daylight. We walked the road with the goats and once in a while a car or bike would pass. It was a beautiful walk and coming from Negril, it was great not having anyone trying to sell us anything or ask us for money :cool: Everyone we saw said hello and smiled and we found that the residents were always willing to help and answer questions without expecting anything more than friendliness in return. This is one thing we loved about this part of our trip!

We had a wonderful breakfast, then went into the bar area to rent the scooter. I think we ended up paying $3500Ja/day for it. As we were about to take it we discovered that it was only ½ full of gas. We didn’t know where a gas station was yet, so we asked if they could fill it up. For an extra $500Ja we had them fill the tank. At first, no one in the bar knew where the gas was. They finally found it stored under the bar in a giant Wata bottle. They poured it into the scooter by making a funnel with a small Wata bottle and we were on our way. It was amusing to observe ;)

Today we planned to explore a beach or two and check out the area. The beaches here are gorgeous and not busy at all. Most of the time we found ourselves all alone with the beach to ourselves :) Here’s some pictures from our first day outing –
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We went to Jack Sprat’s for lunch and since it was dark when we were there the previous night, we now got to see the beauty from our table :D
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This is Billy’s Bay beach, which is across the street from our house. I think it was my favorite beach in this area.
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View of our house from the beach -
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Sunset pictures from our house –
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Love the pictures. Brings back many fond memories. Here is a picture I took at what we called "Irie Beach" which is where I think you took your picture from. It is in front of Hikaro Guest House. I took this picture in 2001.
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Another one I took in front of Golden Sands towards the fishing boat area in 1990.
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And then close to the same shot in 2001.
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Pictures from an old, cheap disposable camera so nothing to compare with yours but the vibe was probably about the same.

More pictures please.

Peace and Guidance

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Accompong

Love the pictures. Brings back many fond memories. Here is a picture I took at what we called "Irie Beach" which is where I think you took your picture from. It is in front of Hikaro Guest House. I took this picture in 2001.
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Another one I took in front of Golden Sands towards the fishing boat area in 1990.
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And then close to the same shot in 2001.
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Pictures from an old, cheap disposable camera so nothing to compare with yours but the vibe was probably about the same.

More pictures please.

Peace and Guidance

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Very cool pictures - thanks for sharing! Such a beautiful place. I can feel the vibe by just looking at them :)

Today we are venturing to Lover’s Leap. First, we are going to Hold a Vibz for breakfast. We both LOVE Jamaican breakfast and could eat them everyday! Today I ordered Ja breakfast and husband ordered a breakfast sandwich. The Ja breakfast was delicious, but the sandwich was the best! We still talk about that breakfast sandwich when we’re at home :D I think we had it 3 times in only 5 days. And they have great juices and smoothies too!

Luckily, I brought a printed map of the TB area and one with the roads heading to Lover’s Leap. We used both of these maps several times and two of the waitresses as Hold a Vibz showed us on the map how to get there. They described landmarks and such since there aren’t many signs along the way. It was another fun adventure heading to Lover’s Leap! I think it took around an hour for us to get there since we stopped a couple times to enjoy the scenery.

It’s nice to be riding on 2 versus 4 wheels on these roads as it’s much easier to avoid potholes -
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Pictures of our journey to Lover's Leap -
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The trip to Lover’s Leap is beautiful and the weather was perfect! We did make one wrong turn, but figured out within a few minutes that we had to turn around. It is located on a 1,700 foot cliff, so the whole ride was uphill with gorgeous views.

These pictures really don’t do it justice. If you are in the TB area for a few days and have a scooter, I would highly recommend this trip. We were only up there for about an hour, so we had plenty of time to explore more TB beaches during the afternoon.

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We were told that this tree only blooms once per year and we just missed it by a week. It must be quite a sight to see it in full bloom. There were three blooms remaining.
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We stopped at a large gas station on our ride back to TB to fill the scooter and buy a snack or two. I love the sea salted banana and plantain chips :D After filling with Texaco gas the scooter went a little faster than it did with the “Wata gas” – lol!

Here’s pictures of our ride back to TB–
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We spent the rest of the afternoon on Billy’s Bay beach and then back to the house for the sunset. :cool:
I really don't know how these views could be any better!

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I love it when the sun drops out of the clouds into the sea.
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More Doctor bird sightings in our backyard. So cool!
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This is the goat hill bordering the house’s property. One afternoon we were in the kitchen and notice three baby goats wandering our backyard. They probably entered through the gaps in the fence. The backdoor leading from the kitchen to the backyard was always opened except for when we slept or when we were away from the house. So when the goats were in our backyard we had to get them out before they entered our house. Husband was impressed when I led them out of the yard without any hesitation. I do think we could live here :D
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As I was writing this trip report today, I googled Hold a Vibz café and read on Trip Advisor than I burned down. Very sad :’( It was our favorite breakfast spot. Even the water glasses are beautiful.
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Today we are heading down to the TB sports park to check out the road into it and if it’s suitable for the scooter. Tonight is the big 6 a-side knockout football match that the whole town will be at and we would love to go! The sports park is a very impressive facility and great for the surrounding community. The road in wasn't too bad, so we are looking forward to the game tonight.
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Ackee tree in front of the house –
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