Jamaica; Yah Mon!

In these last 9 months, my husband has been traveling the world like a mad man and at times I have been privileged to tag a long with him. Basically it's a way for us to see each other and spend more time together. I calculated today that within this 9 month span, he's probably been home a total of 3 months. His current post will be over by October 2012, so in the meantime, if traveling with him from time to time is what we have to do in order to maintain a healthy marriage then that's what we'll continue to do.

About a month ago, we had heard of a potential trip to Jamaica in June. We decided that it was a no brainer, and I would definitely be accompanying Billy if the trip became a realty. As soon as Billy received his itinerary, we went on-line and booked my flight to Montego Bay (MoBay). I left a couples days after Billy. It was the quickest overseas flight ever; 5 hrs total from Reagan National Airport.

Unlike Italy, Billy this time was able to meet me at the airport. It was sweet to see a familiar face waiting for me once I landed. We then preceded to the Palmyra Resort & Spa Hotel, a secluded resort located 15 miles outside of MoBay. I now know for a fact it's one of the nicest hotels I've ever been in my life. Our hotel room was a 1 bedroom apt with a fully equipped stainless steel kitchen, Bosch appliances, marble floors through out, a king size bed with down pillows and cover, with silky white sheets. It definitely put my 1 bedroom apt in Arlington into shame. There was a walk-in shower in the middle of the bedroom with a 360 view, and a bath tub, if you chose to take a bath instead. And to top it all off, the balcony viewed the crystal blue Caribbean Sea. I now believe there is heaven on earth, and it's called Jamaica.

The next 7 days were fabulous. I arrived on a Friday, and on Saturday Billy and I, and his co-workers were ordered by Ambassador Bridgewater to take a break and enjoy Jamaica. She scheduled a tour to Mystic Mountain in Ocho Rios (Ochi). It's a park with zip lining, bobsledding, a pool, and restaurant with gorgeous views of Ochi. We had such a wonderful time that day. We started out with lunch at a elegant restaurant overlooking the ocean, then went bob sledding and ended the day zip lining our way back down from the top of the mountain. The following day, the Ambassador called from Kenya to make sure we had followed her orders and enjoyed our adventure. Now...that's a classy lady.

The rest of the time I pretty much relaxed. When Billy would finish work we would venture out with his colleagues and typically have dinner at what turned out to be our favorite restaurant "Scotchies". An authentic Jamaican restaurant, where the locals eat. That's one of our things when we travel. We like to get away from the tourists and eat real local food, and pay local prices. We tried other places, but we would find ourselves gravitating to Scotchies every other night.

At times, we would do our own thing and separate ourselves from the group, but since we like hanging out with people, we would find ourselves wanting to reconnect with our bunch after a few hours of alone time. The remainder of my time consisted of me sunning, swimming, eating, drinking, and eating some more.

I did manage to get up every morning at 6 am and go running with the hotel staffers. Billy discovered this group of runners after speaking to one of the marketing directors at the hotel. Frank, formed a running group in order to stay active. He noticed there were interested joggers in our group, so he committed to picking us up every morning. Our group ran on the paths of the most gorgeous golf courses in MoBay. The views alone motivated me to get up bright and early every morning.

Aside from the evident amount of poverty and hardships the Jamaicans face, the country and people are beautiful. From the lush vegetation to the crystal blue water, to the friendly faces with genuine smiles. Jamaica captivated me. There is a rawness and realness there that is refreshing to me. I wish I had had more time to get to know the locals and possibly volunteer some place where I could do some good. I believe in time I will have an opportunity to do so. Bidding season is slowly approaching. Billy and I are drawn to third world countries, so who knows, but for now I'll end this journey with a YAH MON!