We get in a line of 4-5 people, I think all locals. We get panhandled while waiting by a guy who has a swollen right foot and calf. He has cancer, he can’t fish with his leg, his treatments are expensive. Whatever may or may not be accurate about his story, he is dealing with some problems. I tell him I will help him out. He is getting some sideways looks from some of the other people in line. We get into the ATM and find out the system in Jamaica will not let me access my account with my money in it. I try a couple of times and all I can get at are Checking or Savings. I am not aware of it at the moment but I’m slipping into a great vortex of doom, a nightmare of epic proportions, The Jamaican Banking System.
I’m a little frustrated by the ATM and just as the last attempt is failing I turn around to see a young man with his face plastered against the window staring in at us. I get a little freaked out, we grab our card and go. As I’m walking out I say, “The ATM wouldn’t give me any cash.” I’m thinking my panhandler will be there but as I look around he is nowhere to be seen. I wonder what made him move on, I don’t see any officers around. Community policing? It was all locals watching him work me. Maybe he saw a more lucrative mark, I don’t know but I still wonder…
As we’re walking back Sweetie Pie talks me out of a little panic. I’m having some irrational thoughts about being played. We decide we’ll try to get a cash advance at the hotel and failing that I’ll take my credit card to the bank before the pub crawl and get a cash advance on it. We get back to HSH and talk to Charlie about a cash advance . He tries to be as helpful as he can but there are issues, We talk about several different options that are either a problem for him or a problem for me. He will do the cash advance on the card BUT he says, “Every charge that is rung up on my account is liable for an 18% government tax so you’ll have to pay that too.” We decide we’ll try the cash advance at the bank.
We decide to go snorkeling again this morning. From the moment we start prepping the sea starts to pick up. By the time we’re at the sea deck we have to watch for a minute or two before deciding to get in. It’s a timed entry at the sea ladder, waiting for a nice backwash to jump out. We follow some beautiful coral canyons for a while, when we look up we’re a ways off shore, almost to the boat lanes. We head back toward the cliffs. At one point I feel a grab from Sweetie Pie and we come up. “I just saw a box jellyfish!” she exclaims. A short while later I notice one when I’m almost on top of it. What an adrenaline rush! Probably 4-5 feet away but under the water it looks like it’s right there! We continue snorkeling in closer to the cliff but this gets a little dicey in the rough sea. You don’t want to be too close to the boulders or coral heads in the troughs of the waves. I can hear Sweetie Pie saying things I wish I hadn’t heard before. We head back to the sea deck.
We shower and get cleaned up then we grab some lunch at the restaurant. Fish and Chips and again we have excellent Jamaican French fries. We decide an early nap is a great idea since we’ll be crawling at our typical nap time. There is a nice hammock in the courtyard. We take up residence.
