Jamaican Residency

[johng]

Wow Lola,

You have spent a lot of time thinking about Jamaica, yourself and how you fit into your life situations. I have visited JA and Negril many times and have thought, as probably most everybody does at one time or other, how cool it would be to live in JA full time or a good portion of time. The realities as you point out are different than the perceptions.

I have seen many visitors / tourists, especially in Negril that really do not have an understanding of how life would be there. I met a family, husband, wife, two or 3 little kids between 5 and ten years old. They had never been to Jamaica before and had left British Columbia with the intention of moving to Negril based on what they had read and heard about the place. This was back in 1977 or so. They thought that Negril was going to be this utopia with no problems, the land of milk and honey. I remember them telling me that when the immigration officer at Sangster asked how long they were staying they replied "We're moving here" and the officer just chuckled and replied something along the lines of " Oh well maybe yes, maybe no". Too make a long story short after a few days of the tropical heat I could tell that they were not at all prepared for the realities of everyday life in Negril and with each passing day the optimism was replaced with realism. Their stay ended in disappointment after a week or so.

The reason I bring that up is because for every Cap, and Bnewb, Rob, Lola there are thousands that have passed though. Many really good people, some bad people but the place as a home is not for everybody. The best case scenario seems to be a Florida resident who owns, rents a house or apartment in Jamaica / Negril and is able to balance their lives back and forth. For me I have my Paradise North in Maine in the summer but I am pondering, thinking about an opportunity in a tropical climate that is close enough to NYC airports (4-6 hour flights) to be able to have a Paradise South from December through May or June.

We should each write a chapter of our stories and experiences in Negril and Jamaica and compile them. It would make an awesome read!!!