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"The whole vibe at Catcha changes at 5pm. There is a different energy in the air as business in the restaurant and the bar picks up. I think after the calm of the day it is a welcome change."
That sums it up so well. Catcha is just an awesome place with a wonderful vibe. As you continue to return you will really get to appreciate the staff.........
thanks for sharing
Beauty of a report so far. You like to post like I do with some words and a picture to capture and relate what you are talking about. Look forward to continuing to follow. Hope my report in January does us Canadians justice! :)
Your pictures are marvelous!
Not often someone shares their perfect day with perfect strangers, thanks. You relay the vibe, the stream of consciousness of your day as it flows from dawn through the ebbs and flows of drink, food, smoke and smiles, in a provocative way winding down to rolling into blissful sleep. This report is provoking me to book, damn it!
Chapter 8
“I've got nothing to do today but smile.”
― Paul Simon
Well, what do you do after having had an absolutely perfect day? Of course, there is the see if you can make it two in row approach. Instead we decided to just be thankful it happened at all while quietly hoping that there was not some karmic force at work waiting to deliver a giant wallop when we least expected it.
This day at Catcha started out very much as it had the day before. I love how dark the Gatehouse is. Personally, I find light far more of an enemy to sleep than noise. Not that there was that much of it, but scooters zooming, dogs barking or stereos blaring aren't likely to bother me at all. I can sleep right through. The gatehouse was cool and dark, so it was not an early start to the day.
Ivan's for breakfast and then to my lounger. As it’s the third day my butt has been on the same chair, it has officially become my lounger. You all can use it when I'm not around, but I'm retaining my claim.
The sea seemed relatively calm, so I decided it was time we went for a swim. Good friends of ours had loaned us snorkel gear, which was at risk of starting to collect dust. I don't know when I became a total fraidy cat about swimming in deep water, but it appeared as though I had. Though a bit of a distant memory, I was a competitive swimmer all through high school. I spent almost as many hours each week in the pool as I did in school. I may not be as fit as I once was, but I'm not at immediate risk of drowning.
I go to one of the lowest platforms at Catcha. Sunshine goes for the giant leap into the sea and comes up all smiles. I tense up and instead end up backing down the ladder. Just like removing a band-aid, entering the water is best done quickly. Instead, I'm drawing out the misery. At the bottom of the ladder and in water already up to my knees I 'jump' in. Sunshine had a pool noodle ready for me. Good thing, because the stress of that stupid ladder has my heart going a treat. I don't know how long we were actually in the water, but a part of me spent the whole time dreading the fact I was going to have to go back up the ladder. I roll my eyes at myself sometimes.
All that said it was still fun splashing about.
It was great to see Catcha from the water. It gave me a different perspective on how perfectly tucked into the cove the resort really is.
We hadn't brought fins, just the masks and snorkels. Next time I will get fins from the office, so moving about is a bit easier. I didn't realize they had snorkel equipment available for guests to use. I might not have dragged my own down if I had known.
Later, when I really examined the water issue, I came to the conclusion that it isn't really the water that is the challenge. The waves pushing me into the rocks freak me out. I am not a big fan of heights and I don't like ladders. So the water itself is good, it's getting in and out that is the problem.
Was it wrong of me to email this picture to my colleagues at about 3pm that Monday afternoon?
We pretty much spent the afternoon in la la land and it was good. I had grand designs on seeing the neighborhood around Catcha, but it was not meant to be. We talk about sand gravity, but what do you call it on the cliffs? Whatever it is, we had a serious case of it.
I am very much looking forward to that being the case. I have heard such great stories on the board of other's interactions (yours included :)) with resort staff and the locals in general and I want those experiences for us too. It is something I thought we might get a bit more of on this last trip, but moving to the West End was like being a newbie all over again. I was just so sucked into the physical beauty, atmosphere and Sunshine's company.Quote:
Originally Posted by booger
I really believe Negril is worth making the effort to get to know. We are in it for the long haul. Part of why we chose Seastar for our upcoming trip is it seems like it will lend itself really well to getting out and exploring a bit more. We've got a few days at Catcha first to unwind. Then it will be time for us to get out onto the road!
Thank you. I look forward to reading/seeing your report. We'll be in withdrawal and needing our fix!Quote:
Originally Posted by Crusher
Book it! Then come back and tell us all about it :)Quote:
Originally Posted by bjritz
LOL - I don't think so, but they might disagree :)Quote:
Originally Posted by CherryNorth49;112867
Was it wrong of me to email this picture to my colleagues at about 3pm that Monday afternoon?
We pretty much spent the afternoon in la la land and it was good. I had grand designs on seeing the neighborhood around Catcha, but it was not meant to be. We talk about sand gravity, but what do you call it on the cliffs? Whatever it is, we had a serious case of it.
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I call it Cliff Gravity (I know, not very original) and I find it much stronger than sand gravity, especially when at Catcha. I love that place, hopefully I can talk Mr. Nutz into a return visit sometime soon, but he really loves the beach...
what a wonderful way to start my day, reading your report. . . . thank you. i feel like i'm right along with you . . .
Here's some of our friends, who we regularly keep in contact with. First of all Garnett, who we met at Couples Negril about 6 years ago. Now we go to their home on top road in Little London. Wife Camesha, daughters Colleen & Carla {who we met when she was just 2 months old} plus we also know some of Garnett's neighbors. Like Clifton, miss Cherry, Rasta Donnie. Paul Sundal, the amazing singing bartender from Club Riu. Carron, at the guard shack at Coco, and of course Lenbert! Lenbert for president! I'm thinking I'm missing somebody.. But , yeah the friends made and to be made are to be treasured and fun! Like Jimmy Cliff said "We all are one" or Bob "One love".. Let's see, as I'm looking at the Calendar.... we are at 17 days. soon come. Oh, I forgot Clive & Judith & children Stacy, mickey, collette & prince. You'll see Clive & Judith's "Cold Beer joint" on the left side of the road, before the bridge on the road to Sav. Stop in, they'd love to see ya. Respect mon'
Catcha is my magic place and the final knock out punch I take newbies to to completely spring them on Jamaica
What separates a perfect day from a just really fantastic day? In this case, the differences were pretty minor. I spent half an hour figuring out what to do when Sunshine's Kobo completely froze up – thank goodness for the guest computer at Catcha. A little later I was walking out to the cliffs with my bag when I suddenly felt a cool trickle down my leg. My chug jug has opened in my bag and soaked everything. Thankfully there wasn't much in it and it was only water, but perfect days don't include pulling your smart phone out of a puddle in the bottom of your bag.
When Ivan's opened to the world at 5pm, it filled up pretty quickly. There was a group of a dozen or so who had come from Hedo and they were a lively bunch. One couple pulled away from the group and as he led his girlfriend to the loungers across from us, the fellow kind of blurted out to me, "Beautiful place isn't it?"
Next thing we know he is down on one knee, with a ring box in hand. We had front row seats. She seemed genuinely surprised and totally thrilled. It caused a great deal of celebration amongst the group and that kind of energy is infectious. Apparently commitment was in the air, as the Night of a 100 Candles also included a proposal that evening, though we only heard about it after the fact. If popping the question is on your to do list, do consider Catcha as the venue.
Sunset was another absolute winner. We were on a real streak.
Dinner was Ivan's again, but that was certainly no hardship. For a change we were on the opposite side of the restaurant that night, seated right along the cliffs. We were in fact perched right above where we had been giggling like fools the night before. That linguine was so good I was really tempted to have it again, but opted for the pineapple snapper instead. I like that the pineapple sauce has a bit more heat than I'd expect so it isn't too sweet. It was a good choice. Sunshine had the pineapple chicken again; he'd found something that tasted good and agreed with his system and he wasn't deviating.
As we wandered into Ivan's to settle our bar tab and get some ice, we ran into Rob and Lisa having a later dinner in the bar, along with another boardie from Thunder Bay, which is kind of in our neck of the woods. We stood around and chatted for about 15 minutes until their meal arrived. We settled up and headed back for a little private time.
Sunshine has a travel cribbage board he has been carting around on trips since somewhere near age seven. We ended the night on our patio playing cards and enjoying the sounds of the comings and goings on the road. If you play cribbage, his hand should tell you everything you need to know about how my game was going. I will be demanding a rematch this time around.
Tomorrow we'd be moving down to the beach, but we had miles to cover before we'd start our adventures there.
Chapter 9
“Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray in, where nature may heal and give strength to body and soul.”
― John Muir
Sunshine had been pretty adamant on our first trip that we stick to doing not much of anything at all. Having extended this trip to ten days, he agreed that I could claim one of those extra days for an excursion.
Since there is technically a three hour span of homelessness when you are changing hotels, I thought moving day would be the right day for us to explore a little further afield. Besides, since our move was only really 8km, I thought would could trick ourselves into feeling like we had actually moved some distance by taking a very indirect route.
Having heard about a lot of great excursions on the board, it wasn't easy to decide what we wanted to do. I wanted to get back into hills and Sunshine didn't want the drive to be too long. It would just be the two of us, so we also wanted to choose something suited to that. Pelican Bar looks great, but it seems like the kind of place best enjoyed with a bit bigger group. We settled on the Mayfield Falls river walk and had made arrangements with Kingsley for the trip.
Breakfast at Catcha did not disappoint. Really, nothing at Catcha had been disappointing. The only let down was leaving. With checking out came the moment of truth; it was finally time to add up all those tabs at the bar and restaurant we'd been so carefully ignoring. I have to admit that I was pretty pleasantly surprised. I believe by West End standards, Catcha is in the more expense half, but I think it provides tremendous value.
Kinsgley's timing was perfect as he was pulling in just as we were finishing up. He explained that his other driver Robert would actually be taking us to Mayfield Falls as he also had a number of airport runs booked that day. He was going to take us down to Xtabi to connect with Robert. I was a bit surprised, but given Kingsley's reputation, I didn't think he would pass us off to some fool.
In hindsight, I think I threw Kingsley's plans off a bit as I hadn't mentioned in our emails that we'd have our luggage with us. I don't know what vehicle we were supposed to be in, but I don't think it was supposed to be Kingsley's van. I am deducing this mostly by body language and actions at the hand off at Xtabi, because I sure didn't understand what either of them was saying to the other. I have no idea what Kingsley would be driving that day, but as we set off into the hills, Robert was driving us in Kingsley's van.
I was riding shotgun. Robert proved to be an able driver. Though I am not the best judge as I am not easily frightened by aggressive driving, I only had one holy crap moment, which I think for a couple hours on the Jamaican roads is pretty good.
I was again doing my best bobble head imitation. Robert explained the cane fields and wagons as we passed them by. I was fascinated by the moss that grows on everything, including the power and phone lines. Kingsley called Robert often to see how we were making out. I think on one or two calls, he might have also been giving directions. At one point is seemed like an "Are you sure you want me to take your van down a road with this many potholes?" conversation took place.
Lest you think we spend all of our Jamaican time in a sandwich haze, it too has its time and place. We both really wanted to remember the details of this experience and that is more easily achieved with a clear head. Other than a Red Stripe when we arrived at Mayfield falls, we were teetotallers that afternoon.
As we traveled along the narrow ridge of a mountain top on a road that was not more than two paved tire tracks half of which were washed out I wondered what mystic forces had conspired to bring me here. The mountains were forests of palms, flowering trees and bamboo. Simple homes on sturdy bamboo slits clung to hill sides pitched so steep I didn't know how I'd even stand on them. This was everything I had hoped to see and somehow more. I couldn't quite believe that this road was taking me to a spring fed, tropical mountain stream that I was going to get to walk up. I have no pictures of the drive. We were too busy just taking it all in.
When we arrived at Mayfield Falls, Robert parked in the upper lot and walked down the hill with us.
We paid our entrance fee and bought a round of beer for Robert and ourselves and then we were introduced to our guide Dennis. He showed us to the lockers and change facilities. I had water shoes, but Sunshine needed to rent a pair. I believe they were $6 to rent. I only had a $10 bill and shop keeper didn't have change. "I'll have change when you come back," she says. Hmmm, I wonder how many people actually collect on that.
It was low season and as we were the only ones there, we were getting a private tour. Once we were ready we met the last member of our little party. Andy we would be our photographer. Knowing they did the photos along the walk was part of why I choose Mayfield Falls. We got home from Negril last year with exactly one picture of the two of us, which was a selfie of us bobbing in the sea. I figured even on an off day we were likely to do better than that here.
It is a bit of walk from the start of the trail to the actual river, but it is not very taxing. It gives you a chance to look across the valley.
Dennis pointed out various interesting plants along the way. Coming from a place that becomes a frozen wasteland each winter, I am fascinated by things that grow in places where they thrive all year round. At one point, he pulled out a cocoa bean pod and gave us each a couple of the nibs. The white flesh around the nib was sweet and almost gelatinous. The nib was bitter: very, very bitter. It was so cool to be able to try it.
We reached where we would enter the river and headed down the hill.
The river is spring fed and cool but not at all cold. You can feel the mineral content, it is almost like softened water. The river walk takes you up a series of small waterfalls. Each has its own character. There are opportunities for massage.
The swimmers answer to a tread mill. Dennis dared us to swim all the way to the far side of the pool, but the current is actually too strong that close to the falls. Its force ebbs away pretty quickly, so you aren't really in any danger of being swept away.
I could have laid here all day. It felt like the river was playing with my hair and the sound of it just below my ears was magic. All under the canopy of giant bamboo stands and trees I couldn't hope to name.
There were hidden nooks behind the falls.
I have to say that Dennis was awesome at guiding me through the whole experience. I am not the most coordinate person and can be a bit unsteady on my feet in the best circumstances. His descriptions of what was happening under the water gave me the confidence to keep stepping boldly. When I missed he had a firm grip and pulled me along in spite of myself.
He and Andy made a great team. It was like a well rehearsed dance. Dennis would be directing us this way at that and then all of a sudden he'd be pointing a direction and there would be Andy up a hill side or on a rock or in a tree ready to take our picture. Getting us to smile was not a challenge.
that's a very smart move cherry, using the time between hotels for a trip . . .enjoying it all . . .
Thanks for this report Cherry. Would Mayfield be appropriate with six and nine year old daughters?
Loved Mayfield! The guides there are wonderful! Keeping everyone upright and safe, your camera dry, and taking pics the whole way! Thanks for sharing this!
Cherry and others can weigh in, but I would probably say no, at least to walk the whole falls area. It's a bit of a workout climbing some of the falls, at least for a six year old. Although I am proud to say my 70 year old Mom made it! The kids will certainly enjoy playing in some of the falls, though, even if they don't walk the whole way. And it is gorgeous, as well as a pretty drive through the country. So I will change my answer to a solid maybe.Quote:
Originally Posted by Oncedeported
look at that GRIN on Sunshine! glad to know you got out and about --- now i know why you didn't answer me before --- you DID get a private driver and hang out! Woot woot!
my son climbed Dunn's at 6 alone - well he climbed with another group while i took pics from the side (bad mommy lol) --- kids are more nimble and have less distance to fall down --- sounds like it could be just the exhausting day every kid needs --- don't forget there's YSL Falls tooQuote:
Originally Posted by Oncedeported
At one point, you can actually swim between the levels of the falls in a series of tunnels. Sunshine was totally game.
It looked like a really cool experience. I was caught up in the moment and just like that I was announcing that I wanted to do it too. I should know better. I didn't have any swim goggles with me and I don't love having my eyes open under water. Dennis explains what is going on down there and with a deep breath I go down. I push forward and as soon as I encounter the darkness of the tunnel I panic. The smart answer would have been to keep moving forward, but panic and smart aren't often used in the same sentence. Instead I try to back out the way I came all while trying to surface. Rather predictably, this resulted in my head meeting the rock with a rather alarming amount of force.
Dennis had at one point explained that all the guides were trained lifeguards. When I emerged sputtering from the water I felt like I was in good hands. He wasn't happy jovial Dennis, he was lifeguard Dennis and until he was satisfied that I hadn't hurt my head or neck, he was in charge. It was all pretty reassuring. Being mostly embarrassed at having done it, I was eager to just move on. He offered to go through the tunnel with me, but I'd had all of that kind of fun I was going to have that day.
Not to about to let minor head trauma interfere, when we got to the next pool I was eager to jump right in.
There was more adventurous perch, but based on my love of ladders and heights, I sure as heck wouldn't be headed up. Sunshine was in his element. Someone said cannonball and that was all the urging he needed.
Another group had caught up with us at this point. We'd kind of been dallying along. At the top of the falls is the washing machine, the largest falls on this stretch and the top of the river walk. The water is just pounding down. It is pretty awesome.
We posed for the penultimate photo op and then had a few minutes on our own.
I did not want to get out of the water, but our time was done. I certainly never felt rushed in the tour, but I figure we had dragged the experience out as long as humanly possible. Andy disappeared to get on making photo magic and we took the slow jaunt back to the start.
It was along this walk that I have my only complaint about the whole experience. Our guide started up with the subtle sob story. I know he works for tips and I had factored that into my costs for the excursion. We planned to treat him very fairly for his time. What I didn't need at that was a lesson in how expensive things were for Jamaicans and how they were barely surviving. These are things I do want to here, but educating me wasn't his purpose. This was a poorly veiled attempt to guilt me out of my money. It made me want to give less, not more. But we didn't. Those five minutes of conversation did not undo the magic spell cast by the river.
We arrived and after changing walked back to the shop where we had rented Sunshine's shoes. Turns out it was the photo shop as well. We went back into Andy's office. I did a bit of a double take as I just didn't expect to encounter the widescreen Dell setup in the tin roofed cottage in the jungle.
I'd planned to buy the pictures all along and I was really happy with what I saw. Now we just had to negotiate the price. Andy directed us back to the lady out front. She started at $35. I my mind I had planned to pay $30, but I wanted to give $10 of it to Andy directly, as he was the guy who'd spent the time doing the work. So we start our little back and forth.
"$35! No, no, no, I'm not paying $35."
"Okay, for you a special deal, $30."
Well that was too easy. She clearly still sees me as an easy mark.
"You know all I have is a $20 bill. I will give you $20 right now and we have a deal."
"No, no, no, I can't do it for $20."
"Well a $20 is all I have, as I don't seem to have any change. That is the best I can do."
Her eyes squinted at me a bit at that point. We both know I'm talking about the change she didn't have for me when we rented to shoes. In a rather resigned tone, she agreed to the $20 and sent Andy back to burn the CD.
I followed along for one more look, as we wouldn't see the pictures again until we got home to a computer. He handed me the CD and I handed him a $10, "Thanks for taking such great pictures." His face split into the biggest, sincerest grin. He'd done his job well and not asked for thing; he'd earned it. After all the wonder of the day, that might be the moment I cherish most.
We got a curt goodbye from the women on the way out of the shop. We passed by one last time on our way out about 10 minutes later. She was sitting on the porch with Andy and we got a big wave and warm smile, with a shouted, "Hope to see you again!"
The walk back up the hill to the van almost killed me. We found Robert sitting under a tree, playing dominos with a couple of other taxi drivers. We told him to finish his game as we admired the country side.
We didn't drive out the way we drove in. I was starting to wonder if I had lost my mind when nothing seemed familiar. This route took us through Sav-le-Mar. I hadn't been joking about not having any change. I needed a bank machine and was planning on going to the RBC ATM near the roundabout in Negril. Robert knew where the RBC branch was in Sav and as it has a machine as well, he took us there instead.
I wish I had taken a picture of the sign posted on the locked door to the bank machine. "Closed Tuesdays from 3:00-3:30." It is of course Tuesday and it is 3:02. We went back to the van and said as much to Robert. He couldn't believe it so got out to check on it himself. He rattled door enough to have the security guard wander around the corner and confirm that yes indeed, the bank machine was closed. What are the chances?
We'd both expressed on a couple of occasions how much we enjoyed visiting his country. As we were passing through a more residential district, Robert asked me if I would want to live in Jamaica. I had to pause. I went with an honest response. "I don't actually know if I would. I don't think I know Jamaica well enough to answer that yet. Living someplace is very different that being a visitor."
He seemed to take my answer in stride. Kingsley called again to see how our return journey had been. We were happy with our trip with Robert and I told him so.
Before I knew it we were back in Negril. With a stop at the ATM and another at Shamrock's our excursion for the day was done. We'd move to a hotel only 8km away from where we started and had taken more than five hours to do it. We headed into CocoLaPalm to get checked in and hopefully down to the beach in time for the sunset.
That is exactly it. I didn't want to give it away :)Quote:
Originally Posted by Seveen
I am looking forward to doing a more of it this trip.
I want to say yes, because it would be a magic experience at those ages. I would say you were good for sure with the 9 year. For a 6 year old, I think it very much depends on the kid. Some kids seem to be part monkey - that type of child would be in their element. I think it would be important that she be confident in the water and a decent swimmer. You could join my swim team in the development program starting at age 5. There were certainly 5 year olds in that group that I would have no qualms about taking on the walk. There were a couple of times where Dennis was practically lifting me up the falls. His task would have been much simpler with a child. He actually could just lift them over the more challenging parts.Quote:
Originally Posted by Oncedeported
I hope that helps!
Hey Farmer, that is a perfect example of the difference between 10 trips and 2. I hope 8 more visits from now, we'll have our own list!Quote:
Originally Posted by rocknrollfarmer
Yea CocoLa Palm. SWEET! Your river walk pictures are So Nice!
love your negotiation skills --- I've learned to use them every where --- Sears, Home Depot, supermarket ---- one of the best things Jamaica has taught me --- HIGGLE!
Your report certainly inspired me to book. I have been travelling to Negril for years but have always travelled during the off season. I have been increasingly curious about a trip at either Christmas or New Years. Well, this week I booked us a trip over New Years. Let the countdown begin!Quote:
Originally Posted by bjritz
Loving your report! So much so that I"m starting to regret going go Barbados this December instead of our usual Negril trip. I knew I would miss going to Negril but its starting to be painful! May just have to find a way to get back sooner! Keep posting.. I"ll suffer through it. :)
Chapter 10
“Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy.”
― Benjamin Franklin
We arrived at CocoLaPalm and they were expecting us. For the first time in the trip, someone wanted to see some ID and get my credit card information. I needed to put $100 deposit down for 'incidentals' which would be refunded at the end of the trip if we hadn't used it. I have a foot note on that detail. Other than at Catcha, we were paying in cash everywhere, including Coco; it keeps spending under control. When we checked out, they refunded the deposit. However, exchange rates weren't going our way and by the time my credit card had its fees, we were out $19. So minor really, but if I had known that was going to happen, I would have spent $100 at the bar rather than paying cash for our Red Stripe.
Check in was a breeze and the porter showed us to our room. I had been disappointed I wasn't able to book a junior suite but as it turns out I needn't have been, because we ended up in one anyway. Yippee! Seriously, this room is huge. It is a big octagon, with a beautiful double vaulted wooden ceiling. The two queen beds couldn't have taken up 20% of the floor space. There was table for four, a couch and a big wet bar. The bathroom had a big open closet, double sinks with something like five feet of counter between them and a double shower. You could practically park a car in the bathroom and still get ready in the morning. The balcony was huge, with a table and four chairs and two loungers. We were towards the street side of the property, overlooking the Coco fountain. The fountain made great white noise, so we didn't really hear the street. The greenery in the centre of that section of the property is so lush. I was totally in love.
We did make it down to the beach in time for sunset.
It was another winner, at least from the beach.
Given these clouds, I don't know how the view would have been on the West End. Looks like we moved just in time!
If you are ever looking for me in Negril, if it is around sunset I can reliably be found facing west just taking it all in. Which was exactly were Mamade11 found us. We swapped stories of the day and she suggested perhaps later we might share a few beverages around the hot tub a little later. We agreed to the concept. We each went our own way for dinner. We'd been in Negril for six days and hadn't had any barrel jerk yet, so our plan was to head across the street to Best in the West.
Walking back to the room, I discover that the bushes are filled with Christmas lights. It isn't fully dark yet, so we aren't getting the total effect. You should know that I have a real soft spot for Christmas lights. When I say Christmas lights, I mean real lights, not those crap LED things the stores are full of these days. I kind of feel like I've found a kindred spirit when I see someone else still doing it old school by using the real lights.
I walk out on to the balcony and it looks like we are perched above a twinkling carpet of Christmas.
I might have actually squealed. There might have been clapping too. So not only am I in this amazing room overlooking a jungle, they've covered it in bright, multicolored Christmas lights. I don't think anyone on earth could have appreciated that particular room any more than I did. Everything is coming up Cherry. :cool:
Sunshine eventually dragged me back off the balcony, but only for as long as it took to walk across the street, order chicken and bring it back to my twinkly balcony. The chicken was good. Though we were relying on a year old memory, I still think Step-a-side is better.
Now that we are down on the beach, we can get back to one of our favorite night time activities, standing with our feet in the sea, drink in hand enjoying the night air. On our way back we reconnect with Mamade11 and decide it's time to take action on that hot tub plan.
We had a great evening with her and Frank. Mamade arrived with a bottle of over-proof rum and a jug of juice. Though I know I've had rum punch that included a little over-proof, I'd never mixed it on my own. Yikes, that stuff is not for the faint of heart. We hung out for a long time in that hot tub, solving all the world's problems while simultaneously solving none. What a great spot! The tub is huge and totally tucked into the trees. I hate pool setups that make it feel like the whole resort is staring at you from the rooms. That kind of greenery takes time to grow, even in the tropics. I wonder if the person who first had the vision is still around to see the plan so beautifully realized.
Eventually the fun of the day had caught up with me and I was ready to call it a night. We say our goodnights and head for the room. I'm not handling the transition very well. It is all getting a little spiny.
So we have three potential explanations for why it is now my turn to be worshiping the porcelain gods. I may or may not have sustained a minor head injury at Mayfield Falls. I did just spend 2-3 hours hanging out in a hot tub. While I was doing that, I was drinking over-proof rum punch, essentially for the first time. It's my story, so I'm going with head injury. It was clearly time for bed. Stick a fork in me, I am done.
Isn't Coco great! Andy gets most of the photo credits on this one, but we got a few :oQuote:
Originally Posted by Jim-Donna
I am still such a novice! I've got to give myself a pep talk every time. A few more trips and maybe I'll manage to bring the skill home too...it would help save to get back sooner. :DQuote:
Originally Posted by Seveen
LOL - clearly a head injury :) Can't wait to see Coco all lit up for Christmas and get me some more of that chicken...
Yeah, I love being a good influence! I expect at some point we are going to want to see Negril at high season, but for now we are really into the low season rates. I'm expecting some more of your awesome pictures when you get back. :cool:Quote:
Originally Posted by justchuck
Hahaha! When I started this, I never considered how cruel it might be to others; it's getting me all psyched up but I'm into the single digit fidget. :eek: If I where you, I'd look into that getting back sooner thing. Like justchuck!Quote:
Originally Posted by shell
I hoped you see things my way :) You are going to love it, what a great place for around the holidays! My mouth is watering thinking of that chicken...Quote:
Originally Posted by 2nutz4travel
Damn Cherry, can this trip report get any better? :)
Sorry you were feeling under the weather...hot tubs and overproof don't mix too well :(
Love the TR, love the pictures, glad you had a great trip.
Chapter 11
“Turn off your mind, relax, and float downstream.”
― John Lennon
Our first full day on the beach started well after dawn. With our complimentary breakfast vouchers in hand, we made it down to the restaurant with minutes to spare. We contemplated upgrading our order, but decided to just go with the bread and pastry basket. It's a pretty decent continental breakfast basket. I'm pretty sure there was fruit, too.
Then there didn't seem to be much more to do that find a pair of loungers and set in to enjoy the day. Food came to us from the vendors, the most memorable of which was slice of ginger bread, which is one of Sunshine's most favorite things.
Coco certainly has a beautiful stretch of beach with is so deep. There is lots of shade available. I think even at high season, it wouldn't feel all that crowded. I would guess the resort was at least 65% occupied while we were there.
As the afternoon wore on, the staff and Coco started getting setup for a sunset wedding. We had front row seats for the setup and as the wedding guests started to gather we wandered off to find less conspicuous seats. We thought we might have a sub with the sunset and doing that in the middle of someone else's wedding seemed rude. They could not have asked for a better sunset on their wedding day.
There is a third member of our traveling party. His name is Bristoe and if elephants needed passports, his would be impressive. He doesn't get out quite as much as we do, but he certainly seemed to be having his own party with maids each day. At all three properties, when we returned each day it was to find him in a new pose. I'm a sucker for flowers and thought this was adorable.
We had originally tried to book into Idle Awhile, but they had no rooms available. We could still check out the restaurant though, so we headed over to Chill Awhile for dinner. We tend to eat really late so are often one of the last groups seated at whatever restaurant we are eating at. We were finding on this trip that often meant the best tables were reset and waiting for us.
I ordered the Shrimp Rundown and Sunshine had the Lobster Thermadore.
He was in heaven. I was glad the restaurant wasn't busy, because he was having trouble not audibly enjoying his meal. Mine was just alright. They were nice shrimp, though I'm not sure they had been deveined as well as they could have been. My experience with rundown is it is not a spicy dish, but it should still be flavorful. This one was a bit bland. The bill gave me a bit of sticker shock, but we had just had shrimp and lobster beach front. Maybe if I had enjoyed my meal more I would feel we'd got better value. The service was very good, but there was only one other table occupied, so no one was being tested.
For a time every evening we'd fall into the period where our rhythm became very simple. We'd head down to the beach to put our feet in the sea.
We are never purposely in past our ankles, but every once in a while, a particularly big set of waves catches us out and manages to soak our shorts. We bring down our drinks and move about on the edge of the surf. If you stand still in matter of minutes you'll find yourself sunk into the sand up to your ankles. I let that happen again and again. We talk about everything and nothing. Either the call of nature or an empty cup chases us away. If the bar is open, the solution might be simple. If not, it might be a trip back to the room. Then we repeat. When we eventually call it a night, we are a little salty and a little sandy and it's all irie.
Aww, thanks Lorax :o Negril gives me such good material to work with!Quote:
Originally Posted by Lorax2
I have certainly learned to treat the over-proof with the respect it deserves! I'm hoping that is a lesson I don't need to learn again.
I go with the head injury too but I'm sorry you weren't feeling good after the rum :( I have always been told hot tubs and alcohol don't mix - but in Jamaica I've been known to break my own rules when it comes to rum!!!
I am so enjoying your report!!! Bringing back great memories.
But..... will we have to wait until next year to hear how much fun you have this year - maybe some sneak reports!!!