Jamaica / Negril Yehaa Man !!!

Yehaa Man!!!! Summer 2007 saw Jamaica as my destination for the summer holidays, a country of a thousand colours, with dream beaches and wonderful seabeds (an important thing considering that I am a diver almost always in the water), but above all a very lively and at the same time fun nightlife, all aspects very appealing to someone like me who loves to have fun while visiting a foreign country. Departure from Milan, with Livingston, not bad except for the delay on departure, first 2 hours then 4, delays announced at check-in already completed and therefore a long wait in that empty terminal, terminal 2 from which all the charters leave. The staff were nonetheless kind and, as European regulations require, we were offered the classic snack before leaving for Montego Bay with a stopover in Cuba.

The journey is a long haul, even though we fly out during the night; between the flight, the stopover in Cuba and the transfer from Montego Bay to Negril by bus (about 2 hours) 16-18 hours pass, but who cares, we're going on holiday..... Negril, our hotel is aimed at a young, unpretentious clientele, the Merril's II. The rooms have air conditioning and a fan, but are very damp, the buffet meals are sometimes repetitive, but the location is excellent, 10 metres from the sea surrounded by palms and flowers. The beaches have a blinding white (nearby you can even sunbathe naked) and among the most beautiful of all is Long Bay, the typical tropical beach, bordered by coconut palms, flat sea, coral reef (a bit far) and very white sand. Not least the constant presence of the local people, absolutely friendly and not dangerous as someone in Italy had described them to us.

Along the edges of the beach file the improvised stalls selling everything...... everything believe me.... snacks based on local products and jerk pork, but also handicrafts and any souvenir branded Bob Marley!! Jamaica is famous for the rasta style of living, the real one involves, besides relaxing by smoking some marijuana plant, living in a solitary way, with very very long rhythms.... a style that has almost disappeared on the island except in the Blue Mountains. Real rastas are becoming extinct, I saw quite a few people attached to the bottle, and not only, but the important thing for them is.... RESPECT....

If they greet you, greet them back, if they offer you something you don't fancy, simply answer no thanks, you just must not ignore them, and so it is typical to hear back No Problem!!!! Dives, Deep Plane, The Throne are just some of them, the sea is very beautiful and calm, what struck me most are the red starfish visible even with just a mask. In front of the Merril's a boat run by MAMA's (a lady with 2 rowdy sons) takes you to the little island to the right of the beach, where for about ten dollars you can even eat a lobster on the beach, sitting under the palms. The little island is opposite the legendary 5-star hotel for nudists and swingers, who cause no bother at all to those outside the resort. July did not seem the ideal period for Jamaica, yet we had 10 days of wonderful sunshine.

Towards sunset the beach fills with small and annoying invisible insects, so it is essential to bring repellent from home. Among the various excursions to do, certainly the waterfalls, and Bob's house recounted, or rather sung, by the local guide; 2 hours from Negril you go up a very beautiful stream, among waterfalls and jungle, all followed by the expert eyes of local guides, truly beautiful!!!! In the evening several reggae parties are organised on the beach, you pay about 2 dollars and enter delimited stretches of beach where music, alcoholic drinks and marijuana reign supreme!!!! Tired of the usual dinners at the Merril's we opted for some more expensive little restaurants with a lounge style about 10 minutes away by taxi on a beautiful promontory, bookable on site a day in advance. The myth of the big bamboo......

I saw a few American women of around 90/100 kilos strolling with some Jamaican guys, nothing more.... not wishing to be biased, the opinion is unanimous with that of my wife, mind you!!!!!! Jamaica was a long-held dream, especially its people, those who stayed there and did not leave for America or elsewhere to live, the people who are content with little and live at the slow rhythms of those who have made time their best friend. The territory, on the other hand, in many respects and in morphology is similar to other Caribbean places, I advise you to give it a thought, it deserves it!!!!