Jamaica is overrated. Don't all gasp at once. I have experienced many islands and there are better ones in my humble opinion. The other Caribbean islands are just as beautiful, serene, tranquil but more importantly not as overcrowded. Jamaica has great beaches and many things to do and see. It is an island geared up for tourists. It is too busy, too many tourists for my liking. It is taking a toll on the island from pollution to poverty. I tried to stay away from the crowds by visiting during the low season and staying in an economical beach lodge in Ocho Rios. At least this way I had the beach to myself. I discovered the beach next door was a nudist beach. That was a surprise on my morning walk on the first day. I quickly retreated to my side of the beach. Apparently, the resort next door is the well-known Couples Resort. The other resort on the island is Hedonism also with a nudist beach. I settled in pretty well, claimed my sunbed, and enjoyed my week here.
I did want to visit the rest of the island though so I booked some day trips during my week's stay. Kingston had to be my first visit. Communication and timings is not really a main concern here on the island. We are in Jamaica so everything is on Jamaica time, which means anytime. Therefore, after 90 minutes waiting I was finally picked up for my tour. It was another 90 minutes to get to Kingston. We drove through fern gully, which is a winding road about 3 kms fully shaded with hundreds of different ferns. Then we hopped on the toll road built by the Chinese in exchange for land and we were in Spanish Town by noon. This place is known to be a dangerous part of Kingston. I guess it would be at night but for now, it was a bustling part of the city in the midday heat. We stopped at Emancipation Park where there happened to be protests about the food stamp situation. Something to do with children's milk etc. Then we headed to the oldest church in Jamaica. This island has the most number of churches in the world per capita. It is in the record books apparently. We stopped by the stadium to see the Bob Marley statue before driving through the market and into an affluent area belonging to the Bob Marley foundation. I explored the grounds trying to take photos as the guard kept insisting I buy a ticket. He was bloody annoying. Nobody on the tour cared to visit the museum so we went for lunch. We were all recommended to try the local pattie place. I stuck with my jerk chicken.
After lunch, we headed to Devon House. I am sure there is a great significance to this stop but all I saw was an upscale food court attached to the back of an historical building. The smells coming from their bakery was enough to give me a damn coronary. The main reason we stopped here was to sample their world's best ice cream. After our fill of pastries and ice cream, we headed back to Ochi.
My next trip was to the western side of the island to Negril. It was going to be a long day but it was the cheapest way to see more of Jamaica while stopping at interesting sites the bonus was having a funny driver and guide. The first stop was at the famous Margarita ville on the even more famous 7-mile beach. We got 3 hours here so I found my sunbed and explored the beach. I can see why people rave about this beach. It really is 7 miles of soft white sand and clear blue water. I did not walk the whole 7 miles but the area I covered it was certainly true. I went swimming and enjoyed using the water-based games in the sea. I somehow managed to get my fat arse onto the trampoline and after a couple of bounces flew off it and into the ocean. I had so much fun. As it was low season, the place was quiet but I can imagine it full of people here and I am not sure if I would like it. I love my little lodge in Ochi, which is right by the ocean, and it is just as nice as 7 mile.
Our next stop was the obligatory souvenir stop run by Indians where everything is 50% off. After that hideous stop, we took a winding drive to Rick's cafe to watch the best sunset in Jamaica also to watch crazy people throw themselves off the cliffs like lemmings. I did not realise this but security checks your bag as you enter as no food or drink is allowed in because they want you to spend your money on their extortionate food and drinks. My bag is always full of snacks and luckily, as they manhandled the lady from our group I managed to sneak in. Snacks intact. I found a brilliant spot by the jetty to watch the divers and settled in for the evening. After a couple of hours of fun watching all sorts of people dive or changed, their minds about diving the heavens opened. Normally the rain comes for 5 or 10 minutes and it's gone again. That is what we were all hoping for but this time the rain came and decided to stay. The sunset was off. It still was a great day though. Just a very long drive back to Ochi.
After a couple of back-to-back days exploring the island, I had a well-deserved 2 days of doing nothing but topping up my tan and swimming and sleeping.
My final tour was to 9 Mile, home and burial grounds of Bob Marley. I learned a lot about the legend. His mum was 16 when she married nearly 60-year-old scouser. He had four kids with his first wife and then seven more with seven different women. His younger brother was shot by police in Miami and is buried underneath him in his mausoleum. It was an interesting place. Everyone on the tour were encouraged to partake in either the smoking, eating or drinking of marijuana. The guide took us outside the compound to a little hut where a guy was selling spliffs, tea and brownies. Prices started at $20 for each item. The guys on the tour went nuts. They bought everything. If I was to try marijuana, it would be the brownies but from the look of it, I opted out. I like my brownies moist. That thing he was selling was dry as sand. No thanks mate…I'll stick with the key rings on sale. The next day it was time to leave and just as I left, it started to rain and continued for some hours.
