Nice, love all your photos!
Nice, love all your photos!
So cool. I wanna stay there someday. Thanks for this report it's really great.
More please :)
Thank you for your post it really helped me make up my mind in how long that I'm going to stay in PA and 3 days sounds like enough time for me.
But I am looking frwd to visiting PA.
fabulous photos...
I think crocs have been eradicated from almost every river in Jamaica other than a handful on the south coast. I don't think I've ever heard of even a sighting on the north coast.
No I have never heard of crocs on the North Coast either.
Sometimes manatees can be seen of The coast by St Ann's Bay.
B
Thanks for the comments... yeah, I certainly hope there were no crocs in there! There were people in the river walking the rafts back up, so I definitely doubt it.
Here it is....a shot of the jerk sausage from Pushcart.....man it was good! Yum!
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Mmm, that DOES look good... I'll have to try that in November!
Yum! On the list :)
We called up Chucky, a driver we were friends with from Negril. Explained where we were at, told him we needed to get to Negril, and offered a price. "Yah Mon." I don't think he really knew what he had gotten himself into. It was the absolute farthest part of the island away. Chucky apparently left Negril about 10 pm, a five hour drive to get to Port Antonio about 3AM, slept in his van for a few hours, picked us up at 7AM, and then the 5+ hour drive back to Negril. Uggh. Tough way to make a living, and barely at that. Once we heard what he had paid for gas for the trip, after expenses he really was making virtually nothing on the trip for the lowball price we had agreed to. We ended up giving him significantly more than we agreed upon, more in line with what a couple of local Boston Beach taxis offered, and really a much fairer price. He was happy, we took him out to lunch, and arranged to be picked up for our airport return in a week and a half.
White Sands is our normal place. Love it there, the price is right, love the people there, AC, fridge, all I need is there there. However, it was booked up until the last 5 nights of the trip, so we had a total of 6 nights to explore. We probably would have tried another place anyway this trip, since we had always wanted to try a stay on the cliffs. First time traveling in high season, we were afraid of hotel availability, but really did just fine. We had internet at Great Huts, so we used that to book our first stop, Sunset on the Cliffs. $62 a night for Sunset on the cliffs, what a deal! We booked three nights. I think we were upgraded, with an oceanfront room with the best view I have ever seen out of a hotel room. Absolutely beautiful. We took a great picture of the Sunset from our bedroom and posted it for our friends to make everyone jealous.
The view at Sunset on the Cliffs is amazing. I like the beach, but it was a nice peaceful place to hang out during the day, good swimming. Breakfast, which was free, was very good. I really want to like the place, but there were enough issues that irritated me that I can't really recommend it. First of all, having to pay for things that should be free. $3 per day for the safe? Having to pay for internet, and a bad signal at that? No fridge in the room? I think I had heard that I could have asked and gotten one for $10 per day. Not happy with that, especially the fridge part. And my bad, I probably should have asked, because I really missed my cold water late night/early morning after a night of drinking. As others who have stayed here have mentioned, hot water is an issue, although I think we figured it out. Best we could tell, you need to run the hot water an insane amount of time. Like a half hour. We finally learned this when the 2nd person in the shower, after we had ran the water crazy long already, actually got a full on warm shower.
The air conditioning was the last straw. I need my AC! It really wasn't THAT hot, but with no fan in the room, I need my damn AC! Anyways, this was our second night there, a Wednesday night, and of course we had done the bar crawl that afternoon, and it had continued well into the evening. Get to bed, and around 2 in the morning, the damn AC dies. Crap. Too late to call anyone, and now wide awake after screwing with the damn remote for an hour trying to fix it. Try to get back to bed, but no luck, its just too damn hot. The warm water didn't help. Should've bought a fridge! No, I just laid there, either hungover, still drunk, or probably both, tossing, turning, and sweating until morning. Just a miserable night. Went to the management in the morning, and they were very nice. Appologized, and gave us the room next door. We moved our stuff, and finally comfortable, took a nice nap that afternoon. Everything seemed fine, but there must have been some sinister plan that air conditioners only break after midnight. And of course, that night, AC # 2 breaks on me. This time, instead of the hot air, I was awoken when it started raining from the air conditioner onto the bed. Camera got a little wet on the nightstand, but aside from that, no damage. Pushed the bed and nightstand away from the AC, and back to bed. There will be a puddle in the morning, but I'm getting my sleep!
Driving in Jamaica... passing, oncoming traffic, pickup truck full of soldiers...
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On the way to Negril
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View from our room at Sunset on the Cliffs
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Really, is it possible to get a better view from your bed?
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We seem to end up on the cliffs regularly when we stay in Negril, but with our hotel here, it was nice to get closer and check out the West End a bit. Our first stop was to visit Connie at 10 square feet of Texas, and her brother Tayon for my favorite chicken. We take a route taxi, and between chatting and not paying attention, we thought we knew where we were when the taxi stopped, but in actuality, we were lost. Oh well, we had to be close, and this is how fun nights get started. It was just down the road, we figured, and started walking. When we saw Canoe, we realized we had been walking in the wrong direction. Oh well, we're here, so we stop at Canoe for a rum and ting and a red stripe. There, chat up a few guys, and they decide to join us as we try to make our way to 10 square feet. Nice guys, 1 older, who had been in town a bit, and 2 younger guys, just got in town, and both had there own pints of overproof, which they were drinking straight. This should be a good time! We make a little bar crawl out of it. We were farther away than we thought, so we stopped at Mi Yard, and I think two other places before 10 square feet. Had several at each place, of course. Kept going, I think two more bars, before coming back to 10 square feet to end the evening. Well, we ended the evening. When we said goodbye, the younger guys were talking about heading to the late night, even though they could barely stand. The older guy was heading to Mi Yard for food, and trying to get his friends to join him before they fall drunkenly into traffic. Everyone made it home ok, but things were certainly dicey by the end of the evening. The end of the night was very hazy, and when we awoke the next morning we were missing our cigarettes and some other accessories. At the bar crawl the next day, we stopped again at 10 square feet of Texas. Connie had wrapped up all the stuff we had forgotten the night before and handed it to us. I love Negril!
This trip we were in Negril for two Wednesdays, and did the One Love Shuttle (The Drunk Bus) both times. This is just such a great deal all around. A fun time, a great way to meet people, see new places. The last week it was getting crazy crowded, with 2 crowded busloads of people. Add in the fact that it was a rainy day, logistics got a bit tough, but no matter, it was still a great time. Happy to hear that they expanded the days, and I certainly hope to be back on the bus in November again. The first bus trip worked out especially well for us. We still had three days coming up where we had not booked a hotel. We mention this, and soon learn that one of our fellow bus passengers was Jim Hurt, AKA Boombastic, owner of Seasplash! He told us he'd give us a great deal and upgrade us, so sure! Saved us the trouble, and it turned out to be a really great place.
Our last day on the cliffs, we get a little relaxation during the day, and a nice nap that afternoon. Yellowman is playing on the beach that night, so that was the plan for the evening. Wife is tired of Jamaican food, so we start the evening with a pizza at a small restaurant just up from Sunset on the Cliffs. I forget the name. Decent, nothing special, but not bad. After that, wander up the road a bit in search of a bar. Stop at a place or 2, and end up at Seastar. We had been there on Saturday nights, but never during the week. Decent crowd at the bar. A Winnipeg Jets game was coming on the TV, and pretty much everyone there had on Winnipeg stuff to cheer them on. Seemed like it could be a nice place to hang out. Unfortunately, the people there, in general, were just unfriendly a-holes to anyone without a Winnipeg shirt on. The owner was nice, just the Winnipeg fans at the bar. My wife, when she gets chatty, can charm anyone and have a good conversation. Except at this bar. No one was especially rude - just no one was remotely friendly. Probably a good thing. I'm a Washington Caps fan, and Winnipeg is now in our division. Since that is the case, it really helps to have a reason to dislike a team, and until that night, I had no reason to dislike the Winnipeg Jets. Now, screw em. I hope they lose every game. Except maybe against Pittsburgh. Maybe.
We move on, and after a few more bar stops, we make to to Jamaica Tamboo, where Yellowman is playing that night. We shared a taxi, and ended up hanging out with two twenty-something women heading to the show. We sit down, and I head to the bar to get a drink, leaving the three hot chicks alone at the table. Sensing the opportunity, a manager approaches and askes if they would all like to meet Yellowman. Of Course! I don't think he was too happy when I came back and followed them. Met Yellowman, he was very nice, posed for pictures, and was very friendly. Put on an excellent show. Dancing 5 feet away from Yellowman at the beach. Does it get much better than that?
At No Limit Bar, during the One Love Bar Crawl
"What a pretty bird!"
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"Let me get a closer look..."
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"Ahhhh!!!!!!"
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Me and Yellowman
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King Yelloman live at Jamaica Tamboo
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The next morning, we check out and make out way to Seasplash, on the beach. When we booked with Boombastic on the bar crawl, it was pretty informal. They had our reservation and all, but had not gotten word about the upgrade. No problem. The standard rooms were actually really nice. A bit small, but a great comfortable bed, and new everything. Unfortunately, no fridge. Damn, I can't spend another hungover morning drinking warm water! We mention this to the front desk, that we had been promised an upgrade, and after confirming this, we were moved into a really nice suite. This was just wonderful. They really did treat us well there, and would definitely recommend and stay there again. I wish they would put a small fridge in the basic rooms, and this might take over as our normal place. Nicest beds of the trip, and a great place to stay. Decent location, although I prefer a bit closer towards town. The bar was completed our last night, and was very nice. Certainly a place we could hang out at.
While we were in Negril, over at Breezes, the nice all-inclusive, the band Little Feat was having their "fanfest." They do a four night stay at the resort, playing a show every night. Heard about this, and it seemed like something cool to check out. Unfortunately, it wasn't going to be as easy as I had hoped. The band had taken over the resort for the four days, with no day passes available. In order to go, you needed buy the package for the entire four days. $450 per person, double occupancy. $900 a night for my wife and I. Just crazy. Our place is $60. Are we eating and drinking $840 worth of food and drinks??? Hell no. So that was not an option. And it was sold out, so even if I had wanted to, no luck. We tried just showing up, but no luck. No one was allowed in that wasn't a guest. We actually considered renting a boat to just hear the show, but didn't have much luck. About to give it up, we decided to try one last hope. A friend of ours works in the music business, and knows one of the opening acts for the show. A quick email, we did not expect much. Imagine our surprise the next day when we get an email with a manager's phone number. Give him a call, and he'll meet us and give us a pass for the last night's show!!
We meet him that afternoon, and head over early evening. It had been a long time since we had been in an all-inclusive. Nice, of course, but just not the same feeling as being off the resorts. Just a different vibe, not the interaction with the people that you get off resort. But for an evening, it was very nice to indulge a bit. It was the "Outdoor Party" dinner day, apparently, with a very nice buffet set up. Lobster, roast pig, all sorts of stuff. All you can eat, of course, and we did our best to take advantage of this rare situation living the upscale life. Top shelf liquor, but we really didn't take advantage of it. I've gotten set on my Rum & Ting, and my wife does better with beer, so we didn't get our money's worth (or non-money's worth) that way. And they ran out of Ting early, which was disappointing. Another example of why the all inclusive resorts are just not right.
The show itself was wonderful. Great performance, lots of guest stars. Between the atmosphere, performance, and venue, certainly one of the better shows I have ever been to. I've never been a huge Little Feat fan, but have always liked their music. I wish they would have played one night at Alfred's or the Jungle, however, just for the fans that cannot afford the entire package or have friends in the right places. But if you get a chance, their fanfest on the beach is a really great show. Musically, it was great. We picked a good night, when they played their "Waiting for Columbus" album with all the hits on it. Lots of fun, and nice to experience a night at an all-inclusive. We certainly drank our money's worth. At the end of the night, we walked out towards the street to find a taxi. We knew what we wanted to pay for the ride home and put the money aside. We quickly found a driver that agreed to our price, and we headed home. Home for the night, we check our pockets, and the cab fare was still there. Huh? How did we pay the driver? We must have paid him something???? It turns out that yes, indeed, we stiffed the driver. We apparently gave him just $2, not the fare we agreed on. He saw us a few days later and explained all this to us, we apologized profusely, and paid him, double the fare for his trouble.
Evening at Seasplash
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Another Beautiful Negril Sunset
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Sunset At Seasplash
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Little Feat Fanfest at Breezes
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Hanging out the singer of Leftover Salmon after the show
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Loving this trip report!
This is why you should not send me out to the Valuemaster for snacks when I am hungry.
Smoochies, Chikys, Nibble, Nuggle... pretty much anything with cheese or chocolate and a funny name.
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good timing with the shows! Yellow Man and Little Feat--well done! I went through a period of Little Feat listening--in fact I still have the vinyl in my record collection. Check out that guy to the side of the stage when Yellow Man is performing- that shot is ghoulish! Were there duppies in attendance?
That is ghoulish... LolQuote:
Originally Posted by irieworld
Wow, I hadn't even noticed that. That's just freaky.
But I do swear there are Duppies all over Jamaica... Last trip, during my wife's party, every picture of me had some sort of mysterous shadow in it. We eliminated every possible cause of the shadow, but it stayed there. Our only explanation was that a Duppy was there to enjoy the party.
This one kinda freaked me out as well. This is, in theory, a picture of Luciano at the Jungle. But when I saw this on my camera's monitor, I swore I took a picture of some sort of angel duppy.
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Wow!
I've been enjoying your trip report from the very beginning, Thank you so much for sharing your experiences and pictures! I'm looking forward to your next update!
The recent picture of that shadow man with glowing eyes at the Yellowman concert and this pic you just posted from the Luciano concert definitely gave me the chills..
whoah...:eek:
great report...keep posting photos and tell us some more please
Loving this report! Thanks for sharing...can't wait for more.
Another day, another hotel. After a few days, it was time to move on from Seasplash. Definitely a nice stay. Our last night there was the NFC & AFC Championship games, and they got the bar finished just in time. Very nice! Lots more work still being done, but it really does seem to becoming a great place to hang out. My only real complaint was that there was not much shade on the beach, but that seemed to be an issue at many places during high season.
From there, off to White Sands for our last few days. Unfortunately, after getting 3 straight upgrades, just the standard room. Oh well. Still our favorite place. Great location, great people. Just the basics, but that is all that I ever need in Negril.
The last few days we try to do a little relaxing. Enjoy the beach. Chill a bit. Of course, have a little fun as well. Did the bar crawl again, always fun. Saw friends old and new. Walked the beach a few times, trying to work off all of the rum and jerk chicken that I've been consuming. Just the good life in Negril.
I finally discovered the joys of Rum & Ting on this trip. Oh my, what a perfect combination. I'd had Ting before, but never really mixed it. I would usually drink Rum Punch, or a Rum and Coke. No, they cannot compare with the perfect combination of Rum & Ting. Along with the price, very cheap at most local places. Just buy a small bottle of rum, buy a Ting, and they will provide ice. Can't beat that. Unfortunately, now that I have a new favorite drink, I can't find it. I swear I've seen Ting in stores around home in Maryland, but I searched all over the place for a party we had when we got home. No luck. Finally found some at a Jamaican restaurant, but it didn't look so good. It looked to have sat around for a LONG time - crap floating in it and all. Still, better than nothing, bought them out, and yes, it was delicious. But damn, I really need to find a better Ting connection!
Made it to the Jungle for the first time this trip, to see Luciano. The dance club thing never appealed to me at all, so we had never made it here before. But for live music, sure. As soon as we arrived, I started annoying my wife by constantly quoting lyrics from Guns N Roses. "Welcome to the Jungle! They've got Fun and Games!" I kept going all night with this. "Hey! Do you know where you are??? You're in the Jungle, Baby!!! You're Gonna Die!!!!" I don't think my wife found it nearly as funny as I did. Anyways, Luciano put on a good show. Not a huge crowd, but fun, and even got Francis from White Sands out on the dance floor! I prefered the shows outside at Negril Escape, but still enjoyed the Jungle for live music. Still don't see me showing up on a Thursday night, though.
Sun Beach is again our standard hang out. Always seem to have a good time there. Most of the time we arrive and see Andrew, a regular and one of those unique Negril characters. He has started a little game involving Red Stripes, essentially based on the old "paper football" games we played as a kid. Get on opposite sides of the bar with a Red Stripe. The object is to slide the Red Stripe across the bar, and have it stop with the bottle leaning over the edge of the bar. If you throw too hard, the person simply catches it, and now his turn. The winner gets the beer, the loser pays for the round. It really only works at Sun Beach, with the smooth bar, and only with Red Stripes, with the low center of gravity. But let me tell you, this is the best way of ordering a beer ever. No skill involved, and a lot of fun. I would drink my Rum & Tings, but every time my wife wanted a beer, Andrew was always there to accept the challenge, from either me or her. I think both of us we were about even for the trip, and had a few truly epic battles.
We made it back to the Police Station bar again this trip. We've now been three times, bringing new people each time. The bartender remembered us. I'm not sure how I feel about being a "regular" at the Police Station. Oh well. No one believes there is a bar at the police station. It's not the nicest bar in the world, but for bragging rights, a nice place to get a beer. Apparently the police bar was the most happening place in town after a hurricane years ago, when it was the only place in town open and with power for a cold red stripe. This time we brought with us a group of expat friends who now live in Negril. It was nice to be able to show the locals around to somewhere they had not been before. We had a few rounds there, and then moved on to Red Dragon for some pork and a few more rounds of drinks. A wonderful afternoon, hanging out with good people.
The last few days start to blend together, especially when writing this several months later. Connie at 10 Square feet of Texas had a birthday, and held a very nice party in celebration. Good food, drinks, and lots of friends. Had more beach time, and a night at Alfred's to end the trip.
Arranged again for our friend Chucky to take us back to the airport. Unfortunately, the last time we had saw him, he was dropping us off at Sunset on the Cliffs. So, of course, when the time came to pick us up, he came to Sunset on the Cliffs, not realizing that we had moved on to White Sands! Finally borrowed a phone to call him - we had just given ours up to a local to "babysit" it for us until November - and he quickly made his way to pick us up. No harm done, unfortunately. No excuse about how we missed our flight, and couldn't make it to work the next day. No, the flight was just fine, and back to the real world in the morning.
Overall, another wonderful trip. It was definitely nice to see a bit more of the country, and Negril is becoming home for us. Already booked for November, when again we will be inviting friends and family in what is becoming an annual tradition. Can't wait!
Breadfruit and Octopus. In a bucket. Some fishermen were carrying this around to the local restraunts, trying to sell their catch.Attachment 11899
Montana's, on the beach road. Great food.
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Jamaican Breakfast from Montana's. Finally tried Akee and Saltfish! Not bad!
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Appletin, Ting, and Beautiful Women. Can you ask for anything more?
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Partying at 10 Square Feet of Texas.
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One of our favorite Beach Bands. These were the guys we hired to play for my wife's birthday party in November. Great to see them again.
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A drum and bass combo. Never seen that on the beach before. They were excellent!
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Moving on from White Sands.
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Seastar Saturday night. This 99 year old TOTALLY stole the show that night!
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Love the sweet 99yr old lady! She looks like she was having a blast and partying it up!
Please Jah, let me be just like that lady when I'm 99!
I understand exactly how you feel about rum & ting! We love it! We have tried lots of substitutes for Ting... The closest is Mello Yello (my friend Jason calls it a Rum-ello) or Wegman's diet grapefruit soda. I live in Frederick, MD and we've found places that carry Ting; usually the Latin markets in Gaithersburg have it. It sells for about $1.50 per little bottle, so it isn't cheap. Look around Wheaton in the specialty markets!
First picture you were in , I thought you look familliar, and i must have met you or saw you as i was at the Luciano concert at the Jungle, and around Negril the same time. Oh and jerk sausage! so good and I just found it at another place last week!, Scotchies has it!
I think that was the lady who was at all (?) the Tuesday concerts at the Jungle this year. :)
Thanks... I finally found it! "Caribbean Market" in Takoma Park had Ting, in cases! I walked in there, and knew I found what I was looking for when the had Cow Foot Soup for sale! I felt like I was back in Jamaica as soon as I walked in, and finally found my Ting connection! As well as all of the jerk spices that I brought back from Negril. Maybe next time I wont need to check a bag!Quote:
Originally Posted by sher
And love hearing about the Jerk Pork. I'll definitely have to stop in Mo Bay next trip, if both the Pork Pit and Scotchies have it.