The roof top is a strip club now? how sad!!
The roof top is a strip club now? how sad!!
Last edited by Lapurr; 07-05-2011 at 11:58 PM. Reason: spelling
Shelly, I'll b there in 5 sleeps at CCLP. Some other boardies will be there as well. Come on by for a visit!
http://tickers.TickerFactory.com/ezt/d/4;10765;128/st/20140626/e//k/ae6e/event.png
Dont worry, I have some SICK photos -- just have not figured out how to post 'em properly, but I will get it done, I promise.
Banton's was hopping last nite, lots of locals coming and going. There is something I like about that place -- very rare to find any tourists -- and it's got a good vibe.
I bought a huge bottle of cherry juice, love that stuff. They don't sell it in L.A., or if they do, I have not seen it.
I think I have a life somewhere back home, but I just could not leave Jamaica this time. I had to stay. I don't know what it is that has pulled me in, but there was this little voice in my head telling me that if I left, I would regret it.
Sometimes, when I lay upon my raft with nothing but the crashing of waves or the gentle calling of birds as a soundtrack to my thoughts, I think about my Life: There have been some amazing twists and turns through the years. I think I've been denying for years some latent anger toward my father when his business failed in the first recession back in the 1970s/early 1980s, and we lost our house.
I think I blamed him, unfairly, all these years, and the whole thing kind of stunted my growth emotionally. For years, I looked for escapes -- mainly through Rock music, my biggest love, but also through darker pursuits like drinking and drugs and overeating (can't shake 'em all, guys).
I've been up and down -- lived in a big house in Hollywood Hills with a pimped-out white Mercedes in the garage, and within the same three-year span lived in a garage in a seedy part of town, trading in the last of my CDs and cassettes so I would have enough money to eat.
People always say how funny I am and what a great mood I'm always in -- and it's true -- but there are dark, dark temptations just underneath the surface. Negril gives me a chance to overdo it a bit in relative anonymity and without putting myself in too much risk or danger. There's an excitement about this place, a hedonistic vibe that pulls me as much as the great beaches and beautiful ocean and spell-binding sunsets and, of course, the Jerk chicken.
I've woke up each day without any plans, but god I've been so busy that I have not read a single page of the book I brought along (Jackie Collins, I know, I know, a guilty pleasure).
The days have blended together, it seems like yesterday that I arrived, and the one thing I know for sure is the best is yet to come ..... Like the great Joan of Arc said: "Fear not because you are doing what you were born to do."
THIS, my friends, is what I was born to do. My parents instilled a passion for traveling, and I love them for it. My dad is old, sick and dying. I've made amends a long time ago, but he is my thoughts constantly.
Last edited by gerryg123; 07-06-2011 at 05:51 AM.
WOW!!! Thanks for opening up to us, that's some deep sole searching. I find that Negril has a way of doing that to those that let the Vibe in. Its an eye opener for sure, its not just a party town as others would think.
Fantastic. (As I type this on my blackberry on my way to another business trip), Jamaica is always on my mind.
[url=http://www.TickerFactory.com/]
Gerry I've been devouring your posts while I countdown these last few days until I'm home in JA. Keep 'em coming and that last entry...the power of JA to open us up and really see ourselves. Thanks for sharing.
Sept 4-13 (Birthday Trip) CCLP/Hills
maybe that was the purpose of your extended stay gerry to reflect on your life realise how good and how bad you have had it and what you have now.Where you been and where you are headed and where you want to be and where you want to go.It has also allowed you to reflect on your relationship with your father and look at your behaviour and emotions in a different light and realise maybe he wasn't always to blame.Maybe you could share that with him ifyou have not already.So what now?back to the daily grind?Or are you now a man with a plan?!!
I'm so loving your reports; even moreso now that you've given insight to the man behind the adventure. Glad Negril helped in your reflection.
When I read your story above it brought me back to that very same feeling I had when I realized exactly WHAT I was doing in Negril to begin with. For me though its about the clarity I gain there - no outside noise, very little computer/internet, no TV...no distractions - that help me deal with my "issues" in a more productive way. I'm not sure exactly when I had this revelation...many years ago....
I can't tell you how many times I've extended my trip (I have a friend that one year extended like three times, turning her two week vacation into four!) Sometimes you are just not ready to go. Literally. In 2009 I figured out how stupid I was to book my flight out a day after a huge "party week", so even before I found myself painted into a corner I extended for another week.
"Negril gives me a chance to overdo it a bit in relative anonymity and without putting myself in too much risk or danger."
I think we've all felt that way at one point or another...this is still a relatively new experience for you. But do continue to be careful and take care. Negril is a small town and anonymity doesn't last too long. I can't tell you how many times I've been involved in conversations with locals "gossiping" about the "crazy tourist". Have fun and take care.
Last edited by rastagirl777; 07-06-2011 at 09:51 AM.
It was early this morning, very early. I was in the ocean before 6 a.m., lounging on my raft. Then SHE walked into the water, another beautiful Jamaican, so young and full of spirit (god, ya'all must think I am a cad, but I swear I am just goin' with the flow.)
This girl was no hustler, not even close. A nice girl. No smoke, no drink, dad runs a patty stand in front of one of the nearby hotels.
She has ambition, too, and that's what most impressed me. She is learning to cook desserts and wants to be a pastry chef with plans to get her certification. We did have a tiny disagreement about Tamboo -- her cousin works there, and she thinks it's good, while I gave it a thumbs down -- but for nearly an hour we frolicked in the water together, and we even made plans to meet up this afternoon on the beach.
God I love this town!
It was still early when we parted ways, and I jumped on my motor bike and headed left, toward RIU (it's still weird not being in that place sometimes, I have been there SO many times), and I stopped at Crystal Waters cause some boardies had mentioned it was a nice place. It is nice, though only a couple of units have an ocean view, and I walked around the beach, met a shop guy named Tony, a nice guy.
I headed back and remembered a longtime boardie from the other board had mentioned Samsara as s good snorkel spot off the Cliffs, and BAM, that's all it took -- I grabbed my snorkel gear and whisked to Samsara. Nice snorkeling, though still a lot fewer fish than the canon.
Always have equipment issues with snorkeling. If my mask is good, the snorkel is leaky. If my snorkel is good, the mask gets cloudy. If both are good, my fins are rubbing me wrong in some little spot. I managed, though.
Then I re-upped my scooter at Gas on the Cliffs -- god, that old grouch is tough to bargain with -- cause he has been hawking me all week to make sure I returned it on time. The only friggin' break he would give me on the extended rental was one free day -- on my NEXT visit, lol. Then again, he has no ID from me and no credit-card imprint, so I did not argue too much.
Near the roundabout, I met a fisherman named Patrick, and man this fool is good. He had a big old batch of lobsters and fish and THREE octopuses (or is it octopi)?
Then I got back and Orbitz called with a recorded message something along the lines of "yo fool, your flight takes off in an hour'' and I about crapped myself, but I guess Continental has its own records (bank charge went through for switch to next week), so let's hope so.
Ate my last breakfast at Bar B Barn (waitress is never attentive enough but I've seen worse), packed some stuff (80 percent finished), and now I think I will re-visit the ocean for another little swim. Oh ya, brought last nite's Debar's chicken left-overs to breakfast, still spicy as a MFer.
Will check back soon .....
Last edited by gerryg123; 07-06-2011 at 10:23 AM.
Really loving your reports! Glad you extended your stay too!!!
Posting Permissions
