10 Years, 12 Nights, 6 Hotels, ONE LOVE - April 2012 Trip Report

[Clarity]

Our trip report was put on the backburner due to a medical emergency. It's been a rough two weeks for me and my family.

Thanksgiving weekend I received a phone call from my mother in New York. My 26 year old sister had been rushed to the emergency room and was in critical condition. I immediately booked a plane ticket home to be with my sister and my family. I don’t want to go into details regarding her condition and re-live the experience. I will say that it was incredibly scary. We didn't know what was going to happen. She was attached to so many machines with a round the clock nurse watching her closely. I was so filled with fear and just praying that I wouldn't lose my sister.

Thankfully my sister has made a full recovery. No permanent damage. With an exception of a small scar, she is going to be just fine. I'm relieved and so grateful that my sister pulled through this. She is in very good spirits and views this full recovery as a blessing, a new lease on life. She's truly a fighter. She inspires me daily and I admire her so much. The entire experience was incredibly surreal and very frightening. It's a reminder to never take for granted the loved ones in your life and appreciate every moment with them. Life is so fragile.

I'm back in San Francisco now and still decompressing from my trip home to NY. This next update will be a short one. Mostly pictures but Markus will be posting a new long update tomorrow. Our goal is to finally wrap this trip report up. Hopefully there will be no more medical emergencies in our immediate future. (knock on wood) I think I've reached my limit with that….


Trip Report Continued…
DAY 10



Today was our designated “chill day”. The only plan we had was to relax and enjoy our time at Catcha Falling Star and that’s exactly what we did…

We slept in. We woke up feeling refreshed to the sound of the birds chirping and the palm tree leaves brushing against the shutter windows. We took a shower together and enjoyed the sunlight streaming in from the open shower roof.

Here are some pics of Pisces for anyone planning on staying there.





We loved it. It’s so cozy, quiet and removed from everything. A few people had asked us about street noise at night because it’s close to the entrance. That was not a problem at all. We didn’t hear anything over the gentle hum of the air conditioner. It’s now our favorite cottage in Catcha. Best price and still with a nice view of the sea from the porch.

Marley, Ninja, Guirigay and Sweetiepie were already at Ivans when we left our cottage. It was already lunch time by the time we arrived, so I ordered my favorite dish (besides Seafood Linguine) The Jerk Trio Platter. It’s an appetizer that also works as a delicious light lunch.

[Clarity]

Brasi arrived shortly after. It was so relaxing just chilling at Ivans bar together enjoying drinks and great conversation.



We also went swimming and snorkeling off the cliffs


Sweetie Pie watching Marley and Ninja floating in the warm Caribbean sea

Markus finally had some time to pull out the sketchbook and draw some of the scenery. He chose to sit on the daybed at the edge of the cliffs and draw Marley’s home. (The Sagi Cottage)

[Clarity]

Sweetness also made an appearance



Marley and I visited Sweetness in her upstairs suite. We all sat together on her balcony taking in the view and catching up.

We really all felt like family and I felt like this trip would never end, like we would all pass our time together at Catcha in Paradise for the rest of our days. This was the first time I had stayed in Jamaica long enough to feel this way. The urge to run to the next party or chase after the next adventure was dissolving. I was just content, relaxed and happy in the moment. I felt no anxiety about anything… it was a wonderful feeling and a gift from Jamaica that I accepted.

That night we had our last dinner together. Markus, Marley, Ninja, Guirigay, Sweetie pie. Marley and I ordered our favorite dinner yet again. The Seafood linguine and I savored every bite.

We had our last Ivans bar party with our two favorite bartenders, Ty and Kevin.



Next up was Tawnee’s Birthday bash right around the corner at Seastar Inn. Unfortunately Guirigay, Sweetiepie and Brasi couldn’t join us. They needed to leave early the next morning.

It was time for another round of goodbye’s…

Which meant more waterworks from me…

You would think that it would get easier after the first round of goodbye’s but it didn’t…

I don’t want to write about this goodbye because it will make me cry and it’s already been a pretty emotional week for me.

Guirigay, Sweetiepie and Brasi know how I feel about them. We’ve all been through a lot together. They are compassionate, caring, kind, beautiful friends that hold a very close place in my heart. The connection we all have is one that I can not put in words. I’m so grateful for every minute I was able to spend with them during this trip. (As you all know, Markus had a bit of a bromance thing going with Guirigay…It was pretty hard for him too.)

I still had tears in my eyes as I walked down Seastar lane towards Tawnee’s birthday bash with Marley, Ninja and Markus.

I wiped the tears from my cheeks with the back of my hand and straightened up. “Okay” I told Marley ”it’s our last party together. I’m not going to be sad. I’m just going to enjoy every minute”

We were late arriving to the party and we missed quite a few people, but thankfully the party was still going strong. Here are some pictures from that fun night.


Jim and Donna


Markus and Tawnee

[Guirigay]

It was time for another round of goodbye’s…

Which meant more waterworks from me…

You would think that it would get easier after the first round of goodbye’s but it didn’t…

I don’t want to write about this goodbye because it will make me cry and it’s already been a pretty emotional week for me.

Guirigay, Sweetiepie and Brasi know how I feel about them. We’ve all been through a lot together. They are compassionate, caring, kind, beautiful friends that hold a very close place in my heart.

Every time I read your words you know what I'll see...

The connection we all have is one that I can not put in words. I’m so grateful for every minute I was able to spend with them during this trip. (As you all know, Markus had a bit of a bromance thing going with Guirigay…It was pretty hard for him too.)

Let me see what I can do, It should only take me the rest of my life...

(((((((((Markus and Daisy)))))))))

[Jim-Donna]

It was such a Pleasure meeting you two. How is that little one coming along??

[Clarity]

Thanks Kaycee, Angel, Gerryg123, BillnDonna, sweetness, Spottycatz, Boogs, Marley, Irieworld!

Lol Seveen! You crack me up! Sorry for making you cry..AGAIN! I'd really love to meet you some day!

[Clarity]

Been waiting for this part of the trip. Need to know what we're going to in April. Don't leave nuffin' out now!
And Plug is the man to speak to, yes?

Yes, Plug is the man. He's great and he'll help you out with anything you need. He'll even go to the grocery store and Milo/Marianne will cook a meal for you. The three of them are so warm and welcoming. You'll feel at home in no time. You're going to love it!

[Clarity]

It was such a Pleasure meeting you two. How is that little one coming along??

It was so wonderful meeting you both too!!

We are still working on that and we're hoping for some good news soon! You know that as soon as there IS officially a little one on the way, we'll be screaming it from the rooftops. Believe me, you'll know! lol

P.S. We've also decided to take one more shot at a "Jamaica Baby".*fingers crossed* Soon come!

[Clarity]

So my goal is to finish this trip report before the world ends. That's scheduled to happen this Friday so clearly it's time to wrap this up.

I have a cold and I'm at home sick from work right now. This gives me some time to post a new update and some more pictures. I apologize in advance for typos, I'm kind of foggy in the head from all the cold meds... But here goes...

Day 11 continued...

I agree with everything Markus wrote about Banana Shout. It definitely does have a hippie commune feel to it. I love the bright colors and the entire funky vibe of the resort. There was no one else there at the time, so we really felt like we had the entire place to ourselves.



This was our first time staying in a room right on the edge of the cliffs. It was an amazing experience for us... to step out the door of your cottage and have the beautiful view of the turquoise ocean right in front of you. I loved hearing the waves lap against the cliffs while swinging on the hammock and feeling the warm breeze. This was truly heaven.



We went for a dip in the sea...



And afterwards we enjoyed using the outdoor shower built into the cliffs. It was really refreshing. (We also gave the boat floating by on it's way to Ricks Cafe with a crowd of tourists quite the show...)

Next up was a trip to Fun Holiday on the beach end to say Goodbye to Beachgirl66, +1 and Becky.

[Clarity]

We just missed Maureen by a few minutes but Robert was still there. He gave us a warm and enthusiastic greeting. It was so good seeing him again!

We noticed there was a new sign up and there is room on the back for visitors to sign their names. If you look closely you'll see ours up there:





Wpyogi and her +1 were happened to be strolling down the beach and greeted us. I was psyched to bump into them again and so glad they were still in town. They hopped up on the bar bench and joined us for a few rounds of cold Red Stripes. It was a lot of fun!