MY FIRST TRIP TO NEGRIL.

First I have to go back to my first trip To Jamaica.........It was Feb. of 1976 and I had won a contest at work so had an extra $1300.00 to spend. Feb. in Toronto is not a very nice place to be so I figured that wow I could take a trip to an exotic Island. I had never been to the Carribean before so I walked across the street from work to a travel agency and picked up a couple of travel mags and took them back to my desk. I perused them both but had no idea where I wanted to go. Jamaica at that time was reputed to be a dangerous place to be so I tended to ignore the beautiful pictures and descriptions of the resorts there (I cant recall if there were even adds in the mag for Negril).
Anyway after looking for a couple of hours my work mate Fernando came over and told me to just close my eyes and he would fan through the pages and I should just stab a page with my finger and wherever it landed I would go. I agreed and we did it. It landed on an add for Trelawny Beach Club Hotel.

I was commited. So I called over to the Travel agency and spoke to a woman there, She asked when I would like to go. This was on a thursday and I said anytime. She told me she would check availability and get back to me. She called back and asked if I could make it for Saturday on a 6.45 AM flight. The trip cost $1210.00 and included breakfast and dinner so I figured its doable lets go for it!

I told my boss that I was going.

Done deal.

I packed the next night and was on my way very early Sat AM.

I arrived on schedule in Montego Bay. When they opened the door there was this wonderful warmth and sweet aroma that flooded the plane but we were asked to remain seated so that a man from the Department of Agriculture could spray the plane. Why I dont know, couldnt be bugs because no bugs could live in the the frozen world I we had left behind.

Back in those days there was no gates at the airport you walked down the stairs onto the tarmac and collected your bags as they were offloaded from the plane.
I got though Customs and Imigration no problem and was directed to a bus for our ride to the Hotel. My first Red Stipe was drank on the bus.

On the way to the Hotel I was shocked to see the poverty and the shacks that people were living in. Little kids with no shoes, ripped and well worn clothing was not what I had expected to see. I was thinking that if this is what Jamaica is like I wanted to skip it and just turn around and go home.

When I arrived at Trelawny it was a very pleasant surprise. Beautiful lobby, tropical plants eveywhere and again that sweet aroma.

My first night having dinner under the stars and listening to the band on the stage while the tree frogs and crickets joined in the chorus was an experience that I will never forget. I was supremely happy with my decision to make it Jamaica for my first trip.

I enjoyed the sun, beach the beer and the vibes for my first full day there then booked a trip to Dunns River Falls for Monday.

The Dunns River trip included stops at a few places along the way and I was all eyes and ears and learning a little more about Jamaica by the minute. After going up the Falls we were taken to a restaraunt in Ochi and I was still learning.

I saw the beauty around me and the easy going way the people seemed to have about them. I was hooked on Jamaica!!

The rest of the week was just fantastic and I decided that I had to return again and it had to be very soon.

I was back again 3 weeks later.

Then again in Nov.

And so it began, 3 sometimes 4 trips a year. and always with a rented car so I could discover and learn more about this Island that I had fallen in love with


In about 1978 or maybe 79 I discovered Negril.

It was suggested by the resident Manager of the hotel, Tony Pasquale, that I take a drive to the west end of the Island and have a look at the only part that I had yet to discover.

The drive took about 4 hrs back then over some pretty bad roads. The first place I went to was The Treehouse. I had a beer or two then decided to walk the beach.

There wasnt a whole lot there back then and the people on the beach werent wearing a whole lot either. There were many who were naked and I thought uh uh not for me.

I left the Tree house and drove though the town and my next stop was either Xtabi or Kaisers, cant remember which for sure.

Another beer and a look over the cliffs to discover that everyone laying on the rocks was naked. Was Negril a big Nudist colony or what?

I drove back to Trelawny in the blackest of nights imaginable arriving well after midnight.

The next day I was telling Tony about my day in Negril and he asked me if I would like to try a few days at Hedonism. He was friends with someone there and got me a comp for a 2 night stay. Who could say no to free?

Now that was a wild few days.

Funny how a uh uh not for me of a few days ago could become a what the hell why not?

So now you know how i discovered Negril.