10 Attachment(s)
Our recent trip to Accompong
One trip that I have wanted to take for awhile is to Accompong Town. We used a trusted red plate driver (who will remain nameless) who quoted us $180 for the whole day trip. We were picked up at 8 AM sharp and made one stop on the way for gas, a bathroom brake and a little snack. Another stop closer to Accompong for some photos of the beautiful scenery. 3 1\2 hours later we entered the town. We stopped at the visitors center which was padlocked. There were a number of males hanging around looking to be our “guide”. Our driver was familiar with Accompong and knew a guide that he had used before. We drove into town and to buy a little time to contact the guide. We drove up to see Marshall's old house. When a fellow driving what appeared to be a new Lexus 300 approached our driver and demanded to be our guide, some words erupted between the two ending with “clot” this and “clot” that. Our driver finally got the phone call from our guide who would meet us near the visitors center in a few minutes. Mark Wright took us across the street and asked for payment for the tour, $50 US each. Whoa, I thought that was pretty steep, especially from what our driver said it should be. But we were not coming all this way for nothing, so I ponied up a hundred dollar bill. The tour started at the cemetery viewing headstones and graves of Mark's relatives. Then on to take a look at the church. He was giving us a short history lesson on Accompong as we headed back to the main road. At this point an older man about my size came up and started yelling at us that we couldn't use this guide as he was a thief. Then he proceeds to pull out a plastic name tag that identified him as the Colonel (Ferron Williams). As he opened is jacket, I saw that he was carrying a pistol. I was later told that he was a former police officer and he was legally allowed to carry. At this point he was yelling at me, and actually grabbed my arm to pull me away from “the thief”. A small group of males had gathered around and were taking photos and video of the incident. My wife told him to “take your hands off my husband”. I told the Colonel that if he had been at the visitors center this would not have happened. With me still in his grasp he was now yelling that we should be going to the police station in Maggoty. He kept calling Mark a thief, at which point my wife said that we had already paid him $100 for the tour. Now the cat was out of the bag. The Colonel walked away and Mark made a big deal in front of all the others that he was giving us back our money. We proceeded to walk out of town and into the hills for about 45 minutes. We paid Mark $25 for the tour and when we returned to town he took us to see the Kindah Tree and other sites. He asked if we could go back to the original deal ($100 US) to which I indicated not a chance. We passed a man who had Accompong currency for 1000J and even though I am a paper money collector, declined. After seeing all there was I encountered the paper money seller again and offered him 500J for his bank note, which he accepted. At the end of the tour I gave Mark another $15. Now from what I understand, a portion of this money is supposed to go back into the community for keeping the place in tip top shape. During the tour Mark kept pressing the issue with local residents that the Colonel was the one thiefing the money, not him, to which all agreed. I spoke with a Canadian women who has lived in Accompong for 2 years and she said the same thing. So, as we were leaving, I told our driver about the whole scene and he was appalled. He said he would not bring any more tourist back to Accompong until things settled down. Apparently the Colonel is up for reelection next year and most people want to vote him out. And our driver also was really mad at Mark for charging $100 for the tour. We stopped for peppered shrimp at Middle Quarters on the 3 hour trip back to Negril arriving about 5 PM.
In my opinion a trip to Accompong is not worth the money or aggravation. What was supposed to be a trip to understand the community and culture turned into a disaster. NO ONE that we encountered in Accompong put forth a good impression of the town and it's rich history. We were told that a few days earlier a bus load of tourist were turned away when the visitors center was closed. The Colonel is supposed to have a position of prestige, but from my first hand experience he has disgraced his position by laying hands on a tourist a creating a threatening environment.
Regards,
Bob
Attachment 53880
Attachment 53881
Attachment 53882
Attachment 53883
Attachment 53879
Attachment 53885
Attachment 53884
Attachment 53888
Attachment 53887
Attachment 53886
7 Attachment(s)
Re: Our recent trip to Accompong
Re: Our recent trip to Accompong
Wow. Sorry to hear about your poor experience Bob. But thanks for the heads up and the photos.
Re: Our recent trip to Accompong
Thanks for the honest report! My visit through your photos was a much more enjoyable experience. Thanks for posting!!
Re: Our recent trip to Accompong
sorry to hear about your troubles. I have been to Accompong town twice in my travels and all was well. tour rate is 25 US just in case anyone needs to know. what I find interesting about this area is that it is a sovereign nation within Jamaica.
Re: Our recent trip to Accompong
Thank you for your review. It was most helpful. I always wanted to visit that area, but not now.
Re: Our recent trip to Accompong
Quote:
Originally Posted by
pabloalto
sorry to hear about your troubles. I have been to Accompong town twice in my travels and all was well. tour rate is 25 US just in case anyone needs to know. what I find interesting about this area is that it is a sovereign nation within Jamaica.
This is a common misconception that "it is a sovereign nation within Jamaica". This is part of the current problem. When Jamaica was granted their independence from the United Kingdom on 6 August 1962, Jamaica encompassed the entire island which included the Cockpit Country containing the town of Accompong. The Maroons are Jamaican Citizens witnessed by the fact that they have Jamaican Passports. They have been allowed semi-autonomy in self-government at the pleasure of the Jamaican Government.
Outsiders and some Maroon agitators want to believe that Accompong Town is like a Vatican City etc. to further their own private agendas like the LUMI get rich quick scheme. https://proudjamaica.com/accompong-r...investigation/
This has become more prominent since the election of the current Colonel who is kept in power by buying votes using these people's money. This Colonel will entertain any schemes and follow them until they go bad and then claim he never supported them in the first place.
Accompong Town and the rest of the Cockpit Country will continue to enjoy the semi-autonomy until such a time as the Jamaican Government feels it is necessary to stop it and take over governance for "the good of the Maroons". It will be a sad day and not go down easily but if they stay on their current trajectory of thievery of visitors, it may happen sooner than later.
Peace and Guidance
Re: Our recent trip to Accompong
Nice pics, anyway.
Has anyone read "The Book of Jamaica" by Russell Banks? https://www.amazon.com/Book-of-Jamai...5990450&sr=8-1 . Accompong plays a major role in the novel.
I haven't been to Accompong, but I've run into the general theme of Jamaicans practically fighting one another for who gets to take the white mon's money (e.g. to be a guide, or whatever). If I go I will do like I do other places in Jamaica which is to go by myself and say "no thanks, I'll just explore on my own".
Re: Our recent trip to Accompong
Quote:
Originally Posted by
rtitle
Nice pics, anyway.
Has anyone read "The Book of Jamaica" by Russell Banks?
https://www.amazon.com/Book-of-Jamai...5990450&sr=8-1 . Accompong plays a major role in the novel.
I haven't been to Accompong, but I've run into the general theme of Jamaicans practically fighting one another for who gets to take the white mon's money (e.g. to be a guide, or whatever). If I go I will do like I do other places in Jamaica which is to go by myself and say "no thanks, I'll just explore on my own".
Yes, I met Russell Banks when he was staying at my friend, Rubber's house, in Accompong Town. In fact, Rubber is a main character in the book. Since you haven't been to Accompong Town, I will just chalk up your statement "no thanks, I'll just explore on my own" to naivety.
Because Accompong Town is a semi-autonomous region and governed by rules established by the Town Council and the Colonel, all visitors are required to sign in to the Community Center on arrival and the taking of an organized tour is expected. There are varying degrees to this law's enforcement. For instance, I can show up and I am treated as a citizen and have no requirements. You, however, would be standing out like a "sore thumb" and most all the members of the community would stop you from self-exploring and show you to the Community Center to register. After all, this is how they make their money not from lone wolfs wandering around not being escorted and especially not paying.
Re: Our recent trip to Accompong
Quote:
Originally Posted by
rjonsun
One trip that I have wanted to take for awhile is to Accompong Town. We used a trusted red plate driver (who will remain nameless) who quoted us $180 for the whole day trip. We were picked up at 8 AM sharp and made one stop on the way for gas, a bathroom brake and a little snack. Another stop closer to Accompong for some photos of the beautiful scenery. 3 1\2 hours later we entered the town. We stopped at the visitors center which was padlocked. There were a number of males hanging around looking to be our “guide”. Our driver was familiar with Accompong and knew a guide that he had used before. We drove into town and to buy a little time to contact the guide. We drove up to see Marshall's old house. When a fellow driving what appeared to be a new Lexus 300 approached our driver and demanded to be our guide, some words erupted between the two ending with “clot” this and “clot” that. Our driver finally got the phone call from our guide who would meet us near the visitors center in a few minutes. Mark Wright took us across the street and asked for payment for the tour, $50 US each. Whoa, I thought that was pretty steep, especially from what our driver said it should be. But we were not coming all this way for nothing, so I ponied up a hundred dollar bill. The tour started at the cemetery viewing headstones and graves of Mark's relatives. Then on to take a look at the church. He was giving us a short history lesson on Accompong as we headed back to the main road. At this point an older man about my size came up and started yelling at us that we couldn't use this guide as he was a thief. Then he proceeds to pull out a plastic name tag that identified him as the Colonel (Ferron Williams). As he opened is jacket, I saw that he was carrying a pistol. I was later told that he was a former police officer and he was legally allowed to carry. At this point he was yelling at me, and actually grabbed my arm to pull me away from “the thief”. A small group of males had gathered around and were taking photos and video of the incident. My wife told him to “take your hands off my husband”. I told the Colonel that if he had been at the visitors center this would not have happened. With me still in his grasp he was now yelling that we should be going to the police station in Maggoty. He kept calling Mark a thief, at which point my wife said that we had already paid him $100 for the tour. Now the cat was out of the bag. The Colonel walked away and Mark made a big deal in front of all the others that he was giving us back our money. We proceeded to walk out of town and into the hills for about 45 minutes. We paid Mark $25 for the tour and when we returned to town he took us to see the Kindah Tree and other sites. He asked if we could go back to the original deal ($100 US) to which I indicated not a chance. We passed a man who had Accompong currency for 1000J and even though I am a paper money collector, declined. After seeing all there was I encountered the paper money seller again and offered him 500J for his bank note, which he accepted. At the end of the tour I gave Mark another $15. Now from what I understand, a portion of this money is supposed to go back into the community for keeping the place in tip top shape. During the tour Mark kept pressing the issue with local residents that the Colonel was the one thiefing the money, not him, to which all agreed. I spoke with a Canadian women who has lived in Accompong for 2 years and she said the same thing. So, as we were leaving, I told our driver about the whole scene and he was appalled. He said he would not bring any more tourist back to Accompong until things settled down. Apparently the Colonel is up for reelection next year and most people want to vote him out. And our driver also was really mad at Mark for charging $100 for the tour. We stopped for peppered shrimp at Middle Quarters on the 3 hour trip back to Negril arriving about 5 PM.
In my opinion a trip to Accompong is not worth the money or aggravation. What was supposed to be a trip to understand the community and culture turned into a disaster. NO ONE that we encountered in Accompong put forth a good impression of the town and it's rich history. We were told that a few days earlier a bus load of tourist were turned away when the visitors center was closed. The Colonel is supposed to have a position of prestige, but from my first hand experience he has disgraced his position by laying hands on a tourist a creating a threatening environment.
Regards,
Bob
Bob,
On behalf of my many good friends in Accompong Town, I would like to apologize for the way you were treated. The trouble is that everyone will suffer from the acts of a few bad actors and that is really the sad part here. Your problems started out by the choice by your driver of a tour guide. Please tell your driver to avoid Mark Wright in the future. He is the person that the police were questioning about the theft of $100,000 Jamaican from the proceeds of a large tour bus when the center was locked and he took it upon himself to collect the money and spend it on rum and gambling.
When there are not proper systems in place to govern your major source of income, the opportunists will step in to fill the gap going rogue for personal gain. There are no real jobs in Accompong Town so, although it is a good place to live, a few thousand Jamaican dollars is a power incentive to take a hike and guide a visitor when the alternative is just to sit around.
Colonel Ferron Williams is pretty much worthless as a leader in the town. He likes to dress up and play leader but he has no real leadership skills. He is malleable and can be talked into pretty much anything. He will be difficult to get out of office. An election does not only take in the residents of Accompong Town but also many of the surrounding communities from
Aberdeen to Elderslie and most in between. Before the election, the Colonel and his supporters and entourage travel to these communities and offer $500 Jamaican for their vote so he loses in Accompong but wins the election in the outlying areas.
Mark Wright blaming the Colonel for being a thief is rich. They are both a thief just one has more access to the money than the other.
This past year the town has gotten polarized much like here in the US. The majority want the Colonel out and a return to governance like they had with the previous Colonel, Colonel Peddie. The minority like Mark Wright, etc. want a "Wild West" style where they can enrich themselves. You just happened to get in the middle of a "power struggle" between members of the minority faction.
I was there on the street when that bus was turned away and it was probably a good thing it was as Mark Wright was racing to catch the bus before it left town as his pockets were empty and his rum glass empty too.
Respect mi fren.
Re: Our recent trip to Accompong
Are you saying I owe them money because my skin is white?
Re: Our recent trip to Accompong
Quote:
Originally Posted by
rtitle
Are you saying I owe them money because my skin is white?
For a man trying to live in Jamaica, you seem pretty obsessed with your skin color.
No. What I am saying is that you have to pay them money just like you have to do at any privately or government owned and run attraction in Jamaica. Try wandering around at Dunn's River Falls or Y.S. Falls etc. without paying. Because you are now an "in between" sometimes resident of Jamaica doesn't give you special privileges like Jamaica is somehow your oyster.
This is what I was referring to as naive.
Re: Our recent trip to Accompong
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Markis
Thank you for your review. It was most helpful. I always wanted to visit that area, but not now.
My friends and I have wanted to take the tour for years but the long drive has been the turn-off. Bob's review was most helpful - it is now a solid no-go.
Re: Our recent trip to Accompong
Oh, I thought Accompong was a town. You are saying it is a privately owned attraction, like Dunn's River Falls?
Re: Our recent trip to Accompong
Quote:
Originally Posted by
rtitle
I haven't been to Accompong, but I've run into the general theme of Jamaicans practically fighting one another for who gets to take the white mon's money (e.g. to be a guide, or whatever). If I go I will do like I do other places in Jamaica which is to go by myself and say "no thanks, I'll just explore on my own".
Quote:
Originally Posted by
rtitle
Oh, I thought Accompong was a town. You are saying it is a privately owned attraction, like Dunn's River Falls?
I'm going to assume you're identifying yourself as the "white mon" in your comment...otherwise it's not a "white mon" "theme", it's a visitor/tourist "theme".
And, as Accompong has pointed out...you're definitely not wandering around Accompong Town without permission & a guide. It's literally similar to visiting another country and going through an immigration process...you NEED permission to enter the said country.
There's many other places that you will find difficult to "just explore on your own" around Jamaica also...it's just not as simple as that.
Rob's first visit...they had to go in search of the Colonel for permission & found him deep in a field tending to his land. But, he still got permission & acceptance as that's what you do!! You do not take matters into your own hands and just choose to wander around!
Re: Our recent trip to Accompong
Quote:
Originally Posted by
rtitle
Oh, I thought Accompong was a town. You are saying it is a privately owned attraction, like Dunn's River Falls?
Accompong is a sovereign country inside Jamaica. Comparing it to an attraction is a major insult.
Re: Our recent trip to Accompong
Re: Our recent trip to Accompong
QUEEN MUST PAY
Say monarch has breached 1738 peace treaty; demand end to bauxite mining in Cockpit Country
BY SHARLENE HENDRICKS
Observer staff reporter
hendrickss@jamaicaobserver.com
Wednesday, September 18, 2019
https://www.google.com/amp/amp.jamai...country_175064
Re: Our recent trip to Accompong
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Bnewb
it's not a "white mon" "theme", it's a visitor/tourist "theme".
And, as Accompong has pointed out...you're definitely not wandering around Accompong Town without permission & a guide.
Rob's first visit...they had to go in search of the Colonel for permission & found him deep in a field tending to his land. But, he still got permission & acceptance as that's what you do!! You do not take matters into your own hands and just choose to wander around!
based on our experience in moore town this year, i'm co-signing what lisa's said.
this is how it went for us:
at the base of moore town there was a really nice lady selling jelly coconuts (100j each- cannot beat that!) and a few men sitting on a low wall. warren asked the men what the protocol was and we learned that nanny falls is gated now and that we should first check in with the colonel to ask for the key/ask for permission to visit the falls. we told the men that i was looking to get a history lesson for my kid and the guy who took the lead on filling us in said the colonel would be happy to do that. he then pitched his guide services to the falls and quoted a pretty high fee. warren told him, "they're not tourist-tourists, they're haitian and came here to pay respect and learn our history. you can't give them a tourist price!" the fee came down to 6000j for the 3 of us, plus warren.
we stopped off at a store to get a bunch of beer and soda and wound up acquiring another guide. husband, who is good at getting to the bottom of this type of thing, asked why the first guy thought we needed two guides ("for safety," by which he meant if someone gets hurt one person could stay with us and the other could run and get someone) and if the price was gonna go up from what we agreed on ("no, same price!"). so, we were now a party of 6.
let me backtrack to speak about the colonel for a moment... we really wanted to meet him, so we could pay our respects and so we could ask him to give ti boss a brief history lesson, but by the time we got up to his house he'd already left. we were told he was headed up to some land they owned, where they're setting up a new tourist stop- a parrot sanctuary and fruit orchard. sounds pretty rad to me!
so, we missed the colonel but got a key from someone else...
you can read alllllll about my family's visit in my long-azzzzz thread posted in the port antonio message board. the photos will confirm that they charge all tourist visitors, not just white and asian people.
but to be honest, if i had the experience rjonsun had at accompong, if i couldn't neogtiate a fair price or find a more reasonable guide i'm sure i would've turned around and headed back out without a second thought.
Re: Our recent trip to Accompong
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Rob
A week after Timothy McPherson gave this speech, Colonel Ferron Williams made a declaration that Timothy McPherson does not speak for the Accompong Maroons. McPherson is a rogue actor looking to enrich himself. The money he demanded from the Queen was to be paid in his LUMI non-recognized currency that would be housed in his personal bank in Accompong Town to avoid banking regulations. An elaborate scheme that, if and when it collapses, will put the only thing Accompong Town has (LAND) in jeopardy. It will not be good to be Mr. McPherson should that ever happen.
http://nationwideradiojm.com/75529-2ds/
