Spotty...saving nickels and dimes for that April trip 2014 for sure! But...in the meantime-I'm sneaking away with a few of my dearest loves in just 24 sleeps!
I ADORE your shirt (Mr. Spotts)! Please continue with your pics and posts-I enjoy them very much from here in Illinois-land of corn and soybeans! (tee hee)
Great report, SpottyCatz! I am jealous, you all had sooo much fun together, that's awesome! It's so nice to see familiar pics of Idle Awhile, now I cannot wait to get back there in Dec!
oh Spotty awesome play by play....love the story.I wish I could replay my version but every time I start it sounds dumb so I will wait for my next trip :-). love it.Great pics.
One of the joys of Negril and Negril.com is that old acquaintances can be maintained and friendships grown even though time and miles intervene. That was the case with Bob and Cindy, whom we’d partied with in 2008 and knew that once we were together again, it would pick up where it had left off. And so, during this holiday, whenever the four of us got together, the spark ignited and off we went again. We had brought a bottle of Champers to celebrate with B & C and agreed to share a champagne breakfast at their place on Saturday morning. As I’ve mentioned previously, B & C were staying at Crystal Waters, which if you know nothing about the place, is WELL worth looking into.
The villas are various sizes and shapes and are spaciously laid out with well kept gardens, a pool and a brilliant private beach, I will let Bob answer any questions on the place if you have any, but each villa comes with a person who not only keeps the place clean, but will also cook as well.
There’s one thing about us Catz, that brought us together in the first place and has cemented our relationship ever since, and that is we love to party. We love the weekends, which normally start on Thursday night and if the Saturday and Sunday fall toward the end of a holiday, then we have the added bonus of being on holiday, on a weekend at the end of a holiday.
So on the way for our Saturday morning meet, we called past a store and got a couple of cases of Stripes having already packed the champagne and extras.
Breakfast was excellent, wonderfully prepared and cooked, slowly eaten, and accompanied with laughter, good conversation and glasses and glasses of champagne and bucks fizz. Cindy is also one of the best sub constructors I have ever met, so by the time we finished eating, we all had a rare old glow on! Cindy or maybe it was Bob, I can’t remember, said that we’d finished 4 bottles of champagne with breakfast!!!! HA! Bob had brought Indy produced bottles with him and it tasted as good as anything made in France. The effects were the same as well. There’s nothing like the buzz from bubbles and our smiles were as wide as Negril beach is long.
So food finished, of course it was time to hit the beach and packing up beer, coolers, Bob’s mini music system, sea floaties, water, and everything else needed for an all day session, we bounced our way down to the sand and took over the thatched beach ‘hut’ nearest to the path and closest to Margaritaville, on Bob and Cindy’s own private patch.
Although it was pretty cloudy again, it was still hot and the shade was welcome. These small thatchies, come equipped with electricity, a central bottle opener and on-beach security. I can’t remember (see there’s a pattern here) what his name was, but he stayed around all day and ensured that we were well cared for and not unduly hassled.
As the morning progressed, ice was obtained from somewhere, the drinks cooler got cooler, beer got drunk, Bob Marley sang his heart out and Cindy and me sand danced the time away. We’ll you have to, don’t you. Can’t mix Marley, Stripes, local greenery and sand and not dance!!! Various sellers came past and our little patch of the beach gradually became a focal point for anyone that was in the vicinity.
Lunchtime arrived with the man who had a bike and a box. ‘What’s in the box my man’, ‘Jerk pork and breadfruit’ was the reply. ‘Let’s have a look then’ and so he lifted the lid.
OH WOW! This was one of those moments, where the smell of hot jerk meaty food, hit the senses like a slap in the face with a wet fish. ‘Can we have loads of that please’, and so we did and it was duly shared among those that were in attendance.
Breadfruit with that!
Jacky either getting stuck in or finishing up, can’t tell.
Crystal Waters beach security man called……Bob help!!!
Food done, the beer was almost finished, so Bob went walkabout and returned loaded with more.
As time passed, the music got louder, ’No woman no cry’ began to get sung that bit more confidently and the party was in full swing. Margaritaville next door had begun to fill up with PYT’s who kept glancing our way, wondering what was going on. Anyone who strayed onto ’our’ bit of beach were given a sharp warning from security that it was private and to get back onto your own patch!!! Hahaha, celebs!!!!
Cindy decided to float for a while.
Once the floating was over, Cindy mentioned something about cocktails and disappeared up the path to their villa. Some 10 minutes later and laden down with bags and bottles, Cindy rearranged our bar with an electric drinks blender, rum cream, vodka, fresh orange juice, I’m pretty sure there was rum and loads of different freshly cut fruit.
You know, in my head, I’m sure a neon bar sign appeared on the thatched roof, flashing ‘Indy’s’ at all who passed by.
The first cocktail was very nice, fruity, with a kick of rum and so smooth. My my, mixed with a Jamaican sandwich, life could not get any better. Even the sun came out. So did the word!! I’m sure that the blender could be heard halfway along the beach, as various locals and sellers seemed to appear from nowhere. ‘Is that rum cream?’ ‘Yes it is’, ‘May I have some?’ Bob was generous to a fault and smiles were seen everywhere. The first blender full didn’t last long, so Cindy was at the mixer again. All the time the music is playing and people are bopping about and the neon sign flashed brighter and brighter!!! The second cocktail tasted good, but it kinda curdled with the cream and the fruit and the alcohol tasted that little bit stronger. Jacky and Bob weren’t too keen, so Cindy and I finished the mix and a third blend was made. The rum cream was going down well with a couple of the locals, a little too well really, so the bottle was slightly moved to a safer position on the bar for later cocktail use.
I think it was at this time, that the owners of Margaritaville complained about the party going on next door and how the noise was upsetting their patrons!!!! ()
Bob pointing out the jealous people at Margaritaville!
By now, Cindy was running low on fruit and rum and anything else really, apart from Vodka. So the next few mixes were iced Vodka with a kind of flavouring. Funny really, I thought they were the best, but then again, by now, the neon sign had been replaced with half the lights in Vegas, Bob Marley was really putting on a live show and almost a hundred people were in the place!!!
I have to say that Bob and Cindy are the greatest of fun to party with. The four of us just click and it’s as though we’ve been friends for years, which I s’pose we have really, although at a distance.
By late afternoon, my ‘you’ve had about enough’ alarm cut in (Jacky) and I think remember hugging Cindy and Bob and gibbering all over them about friends and party’s and seeing them later. The day had been so much fun from start to finish and it was now time to glide back to Idle Awhile. I really don’t remember getting back to the hotel, but I do remember what happened when we got back.
Jacky was partied out and wanted to have a lie down for a while, me, I didn’t want the fun to finish. Doh!! So onto the balcony, Red Stripe, natures best, and my music system. ‘ White Bird’ by It’s a Beautiful Day, got the party started, followed by Superfly and Alborasie’s latest album. I didn’t realise at the time, but the music was pretty loud and I was dancing away, oblivious to all and sundry.
Sharing the balcony with us for several days was this chap. He was big, probably 4 or 5 inches across. Thought I would photo him as it seemed as good idea at the time.
Then.
‘Steve…..Steve….STEEEVE’! Jacky’s voice broke through the oblivion. ‘The phone’s ringing!!!’
So it was, Oh dear, gonna get into trouble for the noise, ‘hello’…..‘hello, is that steve?’…. ‘yes it is’, …..‘it’s the bar here, Alex is here to see you’……..Alex? Alex? I don’t know any Alex, wait a minute, through the murk that was my brain, came Brasi, of course Brasi……..’OK, I’ll be right down!!!’
I was well out of it and lurched down the stairs, to the path to the bar. The music from my balcony was well loud from down here, ooooops!
Arriving at the bar and there’s Brasi with that big smile of his, come to say goodbye and give us his CD as a going away gift. He’s talking to Dave and his wife (Lorax2) and I’ve never met them before. So I verbally babble all over them and quickly get Brasi back to the room.
There’s no need to go much further with this. Brasi stayed for a while, more drink and stuff and then Jacky and I went down to Chill Awhile for something to eat. I don’t remember any of this last bit really, just what Jacky has told me since. I wasn’t out of order or anything, I was just out of it!!
So that was our Saturday. Last full day tomorrow and then we go home.
Rise early, treat everyday as though it's your last and your last day as it's your first.
On Sunday, we did what we always do. Taxi as far as the Cool Runnings water park, hop through the fence and onto the beach. Then it’s a brilliant walk through the quiet bit, the undisturbed bit, the bit that was like the rest of it 25 years ago, before hitting the glitz palaces that are the A.I.’s.
A little story about doing this walk quite a few years ago, we got to Beaches or one of them and there were a lot of inmates laying around and we stopped (momentarily) to have a look at the resort. From nowhere, a megaphoned voice, (no it wasn’t Jim), shouted at us, ‘Please keep moving along the beach, no stopping on the beach’!!!! Can you imagine that being shouted at us, we did keep moving, but even the crabs were overtaking us.
Anyway, back to the day, the sun kept coming out and after so many days of cloud, it was piercing hot. Thank god it wasn’t like this all the time, or Jacky would have hardly moved from the sunshade.
Our beach walk is ritual and always finishes off the things on our ‘to do’ list.
At sundown, we went to SeaSplash for our final webcast and to say goodbye to those who were still around. As it turned out, it was another brilliant party. Marcus and Daisy, Bea, Bob and Cindy and ourselves along with Lisa and more boardies who I really can’t remember, (again), danced and sang and generally had a ball. There was even a beach bonfire.
Then all at once it was time to go! Hugs and tears and promises to keep in touch and we almost slipped away, but Cindy came running across for a final farewell and the tears started again and Jacky sobbed and I did that bloke thing, that is gritting teeth and swallowing hard and not looking at anyone in the eyes and suddenly we were on our own, on the road, heading toward the hotel. It was all over, it had been so, so great and it was all over!
What to say to complete all of this.
Before we came back on this holiday, we’d read that Negril wasn’t the same, how it had changed, (for the worse) a lot had said! Well, if Negril has changed it doesn’t matter. We’ve changed, that’s what we do, we mature, in some cases gracefully, in others not so much, but Negril is the same for us as it’s always been, since our first time. We meet new family, and we meet old family. We re-ignite a spark between us that dims in real life. We find ourselves and each other and we become who we used to be.
The team, the crowd, the group of boardies that shared our wonderful experience, have each become part of our life story, have enriched our holiday and given us memories that will live with us for always.
But most of all, we know we will be back, probably in two years, and next time it will be for longer. Negril will call and we will answer and we will see you again.
The Spottycatz.
Rise early, treat everyday as though it's your last and your last day as it's your first.
You see what I mean?!?!?!?! How could anyone not love this fun bunch of folks?!!!
Well, anyone except the jealous folks at Margaritaville! Hahahahaha....I can just see you all having your own celebrity party! Love it!
There was a reason I grouped the four of you together in my report. The connection beyond friendship was easy to see. Glad you got to have the full day experience together. Much love, looking forward to seeing you again!
What's so funny 'bout Peace, Love and Understanding?
Got goosebumps
I hope you two will plan on returning in April...of whatever year...this needs to become tradition.
Big Love to you both <3
Can't believe I missed a good party with my Cindy/Bob and SPOTTYCATZ. How the hell did we let that happen. LOL
Stir IT UP
It happened the day you all left, Tizzy
Steve !!! Your description of the day is awesome to say the least.... we could not have done it without you and Jacky. Perfect recipe for fun and laughter and from breakfast til sundown, the party was on full speed. Kamel is the guard at Crystal Waters, been there for years and a great friend. I will continue our trip report after the Indy500.... a bit busy, but having a great time. Can't wait for you two to come here one May and share the experience with us.
Your the best !!!
Bob & Cindy
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