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Jamaica 1997

To celebrate our 25th anniversary we went to Jamaica for a week. We stayed at the Sandals resort in Montego Bay (Mo Bay). Sandals is an "all inclusive" resort that caters to adults. There are six Sandal resorts in Jamaica.

All inclusive means you pay one price and everything. The food, drinks, snacks, scuba diving, snorkling, wind surfing, etc. are all FREE. You were not suppose to tip, but we did. We left on a Wednesday and flew non-stop from St. Louis to Mo Bay. A shuttle bus took us to the resort (tip the driver). The first night our room was the pits. Very small and too close to the disco. We asked and were moved the next night to a much better room (first floor - ocean view).

The beach was great. Mo Bay has the largest beach of all of the Sandals. It also has the most returned guest of all the resorts. If you are going only one time go to Mo Bay.

Sandals has a policy that you can visit the other Sandal resorts and eat, drink and play for free. There are three Sandals in Montego Bay area (Sandals Inn, Montego Bay, and the Royal Jamican). The Sandals Inn is the low cost resort. The beach is a public beach and it is across the street (not recommended). We did visit the Royal Jamican. Its beach is small, but it does have a private party island with a nude beach. We had dinner on the island one evening.

We met some people at our resort and decided to share a cab and visit some of the other resorts. Our first trip was to the east side of the island. We decided to play golf at the free Sandals golf course, near Dunns River. NOTE - not everything is included, in all inclusive. At the golf course, drinks, golf carts, club rentals, balls, tees and caddies are all extra. After golf we went to the Ocho Rios resort for lunch, and then to the Dunns River Falls.

Our cab ride was WILD. It cost a $150 to hire the driver and his cab for the day. He drove like hell. They drive on the left side of the road, and the driver we had used a finger gesture to let other drivers know what he thought about their driving. It must be a universal thing.

The golf was OK. I felt sorry for the caddies. These people are very poor. Nice guys. We tipped them $20 each. Dunns River was a blast, but you get snagged for a guide ($15), river shoes ($5), and a park entrance ($10).

Our next trip was to Negril. The roads in Jamaica are terrible. The trip takes about an hour and a half. Again we shared the cab with some other friends. This time the driver and cab cost us $120 for the day.

Some of the drivers must pay a kick back to Sandals because they park inside the resort. They are the first ones to grab you if you want to go somewhere. That is how we hooked up with the first driver. However there are also cars that line up outside the resort. They usually charge less. This is how we met Boom. Boom was his nickname. He used to play soccer, and I guess he had a strong kick. Boom was a nice man and a very good driver. If you go to Mo Bay, and need a driver, find Boom.

Claudia looks for sunken treasure.

Negril is know for the seven mile beach. During this trip Claudia took the short Sandals scuba test, and went on two dives. I was certified in 1975 and love to dive. I went on 4 dives. Negril had the best diving and snorkling. I saw bigger fish and we snorkled on an old English wreck. We also tried wind surfing. If we every returned to Jamaica I am going to stay at Negril.

The food throughout the trip was fantastic - almost too much, and you can really get used to those rum drinks.

One last bit of tourist advice. If you want to buy souvenirs, don't buy them at the resort. Have Boom can take you to a shopping center. Much better prices. If you want to bring home some Blue Mountain coffee, go to a grocery store, and if you want to bring back some Jamaican rum - buy it at the airport. Each person can bring back three bottles.

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