Murph's Trip Report... new places, old faces and ROOKIE mistakes!!!

Nov 23rd has finally come!...

Plane ride was same as usual… Maine to Philly slept the entire way… then the excitement starts when you know everyone getting on to the next plane is heading to paradise… all smiles… each with their own story. Where they’re going, where they’ve been, family trips, weddings- it’s always fun on that leg of the trip.

Landing in MoBay and Im in the zone… “the get me out of this airport asap zone” I walk right by all of the Club MoBay workers holding up there little signs for all of the VIP arrivals… when wifey points one out to me. Holy Snikeys- it has our name on it! I see her smile and know she was up to no good! I love wifey and her little surprises… the young gentleman rushes us through everything nice and fast. Note to anyone bringing items down to Jamaica- using Club MoBay gets you around all of those silly questions… “are these 40 pairs of youth sized sneakers for you?...” So the gentleman asks do you want to go to your taxi or to the lounge… Hmmm the thought of free drinks completely dissolved my previous mindset of “get out fast.” Now Im on island time… we sit and drink red stripes and rum punches. We also fill our bags with their snacks. Before we leave the lounge we both filled our huge insulated cups to the brim with rum punch. Back home we call these “road sodas.” So off we go with our sodas to meet our new guy… Linston. But not before a quick stop at the duty free shop for some Appleton. $17.50 was the price.

Linston met us with a big smile. No rush rush hurry hurry for this guy- he’s as laid back as they come and as safe a driver as it gets. Quick stop in MoBay to exchange some loot and we’re off! This year we decided to bring our blender which was a wonderful decision- so one of our missions was to grab some fruit. So we stop off in Lucea at the market- as we landed in on a Saturday. The market was busy but we managed to find everything we needed. Cost was $15US for pineapple, papayas, mangos and lots of bananas. It was also the first time I’ve had a pineapple carved up for me- that’s a real treat to watch. Getting back to the car Linston got a ticket for 100J he laughed to the officers saying ‘he cant get security for that cheap’- as the officers were hovering around his car until we got back. We all laughed.

The vibe was perfect, Linston drove nice and slow and was accommodating to us in any way.

We arrive at Coco and the wave of accomplishment sets in… finally… we are here in Negril… we did it again… feeling grateful and blessed we walk into the office. Wifey and I have a little plan we have been executing perfectly recently… book the cheapest room in the joint, then when you get there try to upgrade to the best room in the joint for the least amount possible. Usually places are more than willing to get you to upgrade and this indeed was the case! We see our “deluxe” room and decide to see the beachfront suites and… yes... the Honeymoon Suite/ Coco Villa. Beachfront was $40 extra per night, Honeymoon was $60 extra per night. So I do some finagling and got the Honeymoon suite for $60 per night with one free night= bringing the upgrade to $45 extra per night. Done Deal! Here are some pics of our home for the next four days

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Getting to Coco at around 4pm we ran and jumped in the water as fast as we could… you know how that feels- once you hit that sand and the warm water… ahhhh….

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Quick change and call to Linston as its Saturday night... we gots things to do and people to see!!!

Oh ya...this is gonna be good!
Bring it Murph...

So loving this report! Great pictures so far and your descriptions are perfection. Linston is such a nice dude!! Anxious to hear more. I am counting down the days for the big trip! At this point, even waiting in line at customs sounds good to me. LOL

Lol Yetta, I am right behind you.... In more ways than one!

Murph, Been thinking about you guys! Wondering how the trip was
& if you're freezing back in Maine!
It is COLD in the Motor City! Can't wait to feel the warmth of Jamaica! Soon come!

So funny, I was verbally saying aaaah right along with you just thinking about that water.

Awesome upgrade!

Off to a great start..........!!!

Great start and very nice pics...Soooooo cold here, it's nice to transport the soul to a warmer place :)

Very nice start! Ready for more!

We have been waiting for this. So far so good, I can feel that water and taste that rum. Too bad we didn't get there at the same time but we don't go until March. We decided we went too early last year so by the time the cottage at Xtabi was available it was March. Its going to be a long winter. Can't wait to hear about Treasure Beach, keep them coming. G and J

Great report so far,please keep it coming!!

Good stuff. Looking forward to more.

Whooo-ahhh! A new Murph trip report! Your off to a great start - looking forward to the rest.

Thanks guys.

hey WestEnd! Hey canadaG and Mike D...Oh yeah she's bitter cold out... but Im loving every second of it. Being an avid snowmobiler... its great for us as all the lakes freeze nicely- which are pretty much our highway to anywhere (even to work!) Then with this big storm a comin... we're off to the races. I do love my snow just as much as I love that warm sand...

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More report to come...

Can't wait to read more

Looking forward to more. Love the start.:)

Did you make it to Treasure Beach?

So its Saturday night… and we head to Ivan’s. Dinner was delicious- we split the Seafood Linguini and crab cake appetizer. Out of the corner of my eye I spot the infamous duo Sunny and CherryNorth! I hate talking to people while they eat- so I decide not to interrupt- as I was sure I’d run into them again.

From there we walk up the lane and head to Seastar.

“SEeeeeStttttaaaar in the west end…. SEeeeeeaaaaSttttttaaaarrr… good times and good friends.” Funny that song always reminds me of Dirty Dancing when they sing that corny song about the lodge “Hearts, hands, and voices… voices, hearts and hands…”

Anyway… we make it right on time- buffet was winding down and Steven West was about to come on stage. We dance our tails off and LOVE his music. Actually that reminds me... we bought his new CD and I haven’t unpacked it or played it yet… bonus! Of course… all good things come to an end and when the old American classics start playing- that’s our cue to peace out. I just can’t put myself through it... I’ve tried and failed every time. We head out the iron gates of Seastar and head down the lane. A quick walk to Eddies for a little fireside chicken and chat. I love sitting by the fire, always have-always will… so of course Eddies draws me in. That and the tasty tasty chicken! We had a long day and decide to cab it back with Dancing Ronnie. We get the best sleep ever and wake up to this….

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We can hear “OOOOOoooooorange juice” guy…. “AAAAAAAaany fruit?” lady and of course “CCCCccccccccccciiiiiggggartte” Smokey! All these sounds were enjoyed right from our bed- making it the perfect way to rise n shine!


A slow walk down to breakfast for some Ackee & saltfish- that was exactly what I needed.

And then comes one of the ROOKIE MISTAKES!!!! So bad... I cant believe I let this happen to Wifey!!! I was right there... I could have and SHOULD HAVE prevented this

DARN YOU!!!!!!!! You just had to stop there, didn't you?! lolol

Hahaha. That's not fair murph

Soon come back please!

SWEET BABY JESUS THE HORROR!!!

To watch this unfold in front of my very eyes...

She slipped right off and plunged into the deep dark unapologetic sea…


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Luckily I was there to capture the moment of complete horror on her face…
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We are not new to Negril… but we are new to these damn floaties. At CoCo La Palm they’re freekin everywhere!

Well this was Wifey’s first attempt at the floatie mount… after much practice she got it down just fine.

awww your wife is so pretty.....great photos..

HaHa! She really looks horrified. Great stuff man!

She looks like she's having an absolute blast! Keep it comin'!

She's radiant, enjoying her fun in the sun!

(My last experience with a floatie was Shamu at Catcha.....wasn't so pretty!
But that's another story!)

Murph my wife would kill me if I told the story of her falling off the kayak in Negril last year and the fact she couldn't get back in it for almost 15 minutes. I so wish I had my camera but I don't think I could have taken a picture because I was in convulsions from laughing so hard! Love the report, keep it flowing...

Opps I guess I just told it. ; )

Sitting on these floaties in warm water under the hot sun... warm sand... cool breeze... cold stripes... stingrays frequently just swimming right by us... this is why we're here! This is why we've worked our arses off and cut back on other things in our life... and its ALL SO SO WORTH IT!!!

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Bonus round!... Not sure if anybody remembers when I collected $ for my co-workers' "Big Bamboo Fund"... but low and behold those chumps only went through 1/2 of the $300US I raised for them. Well we arent about to let that go to waste- so we head over to Treehouse for drinks and lunch... and more drinks.

We also take full advantage of our little friend... our new collapsable cooler! Always full of stripes and ice- just like god intended. I recommend this technique

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For dinner- we again decide to head to the Best End and get dropped off at Canoe. We love starting our West end journeys here.We had some of Kirby's Famous 7 rum punches and for the first time evah we split the Lion Fish- which was as good as everybodys been saying it is! We head out the road and pop into to see Connie at Jenny's. We meet some cool peeps in the 'stupid zone' and share some laughs and some cake.

From there we head to one of our favorite spots... NO LIMIT BAR. As we are walking we keep running into familiar faces and they keep asking "you going to the party?" Im like "Were going to No Limit" They be like "Yeah THE PARTY". I didnt think much of it until we got closer and heard the beats. People were everywhere, Ive never seen No Limit this crazy. Girls dancing all sexy right in the road... people were drizzunk! Actually super drizunk... so when in Rome? hahaha From there we headed over to say hello to Elvis at Peewees and he explains to us whats going on with our friend, the Crabman. So sad to hear, but lets just say that the warnings of 'Do not go there' should be listened to.

Some good advice, that worked so perfectly for us... was to print out all trusted taxi's phone #s on one small pocket size sheet and laminate it. Being tanked and being real late- it worked out perfectly and I went through the list one at a time. Donald came and picked us up. Donald is cool sheet- we kept his card form last reach and do recommend using him.

Donald drops us off and says "Hope to see you guys soon!"

Well... thats when the BIGGEST ROOKIE MISTAKE OCCURS!!! Donald didnt realize how fast he would be seing us again!

Great report!

OMG that bathtub...just had to say that
great report, great pics. can't wait for more...pics of that bathtub :)

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Originally Posted by murph

We meet some cool peeps in the 'stupid zone' and share some laughs and some cake.

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STUPID ZONE!!!!!! Can't wait to spend some time there in February.

I like the way you guys roll. Hitting all the right spots on the West End. Looking forward to reading more.

Here you go jenb! The only other one I could find. And remember kids... its not the size of the tub that matters... its the MIRRORS! ;)

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Haha, thanks murph

Sounds like you're having a blast, keep the reports coming :cool: I'll be reading while we brave this miserable storm that's coming our way.

Loving your report, can you share the story about what is going on with the crabman? That was on out list of places to eat.

For now Bentleys is closed. Keep him in your thoughts and prayers. Lets hope he will get better and get the shop open once again!

Hey murph, been following your trip report, great read and informative so far. We'll be in Negril on the 24th of Jan for our first trip. We're staying at the White Sands the first night. You mentioned a few places like the "Party Zone" I'm thinking there are some places we should make sure we see. Is that the real name of the place the "Party Zone"?
Look forward to reading the rest of your report. Cheers.

T&A no kidden its cold up here, not sure it got up to the normal high temp even once in the past 4 weeks and a whole bunch of below zero temps is enough already. where you all from, we are up in the fox valley

rennie69... oh man you must be getting excited- first trip! The 'stupid zone' not party zone.. is just a little section off to the side of Connie's Country Western Bar/ also known as Jenny's. Just a little area that you can go get 'stupid' in :) I would recommend doing as I always do.. pick any night... cab it to Canoe around 3pm for happy hour then stroll up the west end just stopping at every place on the way. Before you know it you will be making friends and having blast. This would be called the 'West End', one of Negril's other gems (beside's the beach, etc). Have fun!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by rennie69

You mentioned a few places like the "Party Zone" I'm thinking there are some places we should make sure we see. Is that the real name of the place the "Party Zone"?
Look forward to reading the rest of your report. Cheers.

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You are probably thinking about what Murph referred to as the "Stupid Zone". The Stupid Zone is the outdoor "smoking" lounge at Jenny's/C&D Country Western Pub. Connie, the proprietor, generally doesn't allow smoking indoors, so she directs patrons to this outdoor area. Awesome place to hang-out (the restaurant/bar and the Stupid Zone).

EDIT: murph beat me to it!

I stand corrected. Yes getting very excited. Reading as much as we can about Negril? Actually finding myself waking up at 3 in the morning with Negril on my mind. Sometimes even logging into the forums because I can't get back to sleep :-)

I forget how fun the west end can be. Last couple of times down to da rock has been with rookies, so they are naturally attracted to and comfy with the beach. I enjoy the trip reports and being able to "see" Negril through someone else's eye's. The next time someone tells me how beautiful the snow is, I will hit them over the head(kiddin) with my snow shovel. Man, I need to get outa here.......

Back to the trip report....

Our second HUGE ROOKIE mistake... we completely wasted $1,000!...

We make it back to CoCo. Hammerstiened- rum n tingin it. Feeling good- after such a fun partay. I think we were so happy to get back we COMPLETELY FORGOT... to eat! So we all got a good laugh... As 5 minutes ago Donald says "Hope to see you guys soon" ... "Bet you didnt think it was gonna be that soon!" So he swings back and takes us to the corner bar for some sweet sweet fried chicken. You know how when your drizunk things just taste sooo gooooood... well this was indeed the case. $1000 Jamaican was the price for the ride back up to the West end and back to beach.

I reach into the fridge for a little bit more cake pop a couple more stripes on the porch and we call it a night!
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