I arrived with mom to Montego Bay around noon on a Thursday, Neil, his mom, sister, and uncle came to pick us up from the airport. It was warm and sunny, I needed to take off the layers of clothing I wore when I got on the plane from San Jose, California. Before we arrived I knew the temperature was going to be in the 80's, but actually feeling the warm air with just the right humidity was sort of a nice surprise.
It was mid-afternoon when I took off from the hotel for a stroll in town in my cool FCB (Barcelona soccer club) jersey. Cab drivers stopped their cars to greet me warmly, I return the greeting by shaking hands with them or knocking a fist. Then they started offering me various services and tours. Some even mentioned Jamaican girls or ganja. I politely declined their offers and walk on.
I was first impressed by the luxuriant tropical flowers everywhere, especially the bougainvillea, but also many others with giant blooms all over trees, hedges, fences. I then ran into a small beach with just a few people. The pristine turquoise color of the water was mesmerizing. There were no waves that I'm used to seeing, just small ripples washing the edge of the beach. I realize the reefs lining the shoreline blocked most of the wave forces, making the beach very swimmable and calm, also giving the water the beautiful light blue color. Just then I saw a small car parked by the roadside painted with the same turquoise color.
I walked down the main commercial strip toward downtown, passing many shops, bars, restaurants, and beach resorts. I spotted a few Chinese restaurants along the way, then saw this perfectly scalloped crescent of sand nearby with just a few people there. A cab driver with salt-and-peper dreadlocks told me how to get access to it, then I walked past a vendor in dreadlocks under a tree by the beach with an icebox. I bought a drink from this man, and he sang and danced for my camera spontaneously.
The next day we went to stay with an uncle of Neil in Westmoreland, a rural area two hours to the south. We came back to Montego Bay on the Sunday before the flight back to California. I swam at that beautiful crescent beach, now with a lot of locals and especially kids. A little guy told me where best to avoid the rocks underneath, said "I show you!" Another adventure we had on that day was riding in a car that seemed not to be a real taxi, and by the end of the ride the car started to experience transmission trouble. Just what I saw on many souvenir T-shirts, the local guys like to say "Yea Mon!" "No problem!" with the heavy Jamaican twang.
The north shore area of Mo'Bay (Montego Bay) is experiencing a major development boom. Giant high-rise resorts and shopping malls have sprang up overnight around the golf course and the many mansions built by returned expatriate Jamaicans. Nearby is the Rose Hall estate, one of the largest plantations in the Caribbean back in the day.
The Rose Hall plantation's Great House, now restored, commands a superb view of the coast from a high perch. The house used to have two more wings during the colonial era, but only the main building has been restored. The opulent furnishings inside and the sumptuous formal landscaping outside are unforgettable, as much as the tales of intrigue and cruelty of the plantation owner are revolting. Rare flowers in bloom adorn the grounds among the exotic tropical trees, a few steps from the grave of the former "witch" whose spirits had to be pacified by astrologers.
Along the way we also checked out some new housing developments with Neil's uncles. They are fairly simple and low-budget by US standards, but the good sized lots, bucolic surroundings, and views of the blue Caribbean not far away are quite enticing.
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