Jamaica was fucking cool. ads and i had a 12 hour stop over in los angeles after a 9.5 hour flight from Tokyo before heading off to charlotte so cory picked us up and we had a very good breakfast at Roscoe's chicken and waffles. we did a quick tour of the studios in LA and then picked up crash at Dreamworks before heading back to their house for a bit of rest. after a mexican dinner we went back to the sirport where we boraded a red eye to charlotte NC and waited another 3.5 hours before getting on a plane to montego bay. by the time we got to jamaica, we didn't know if we were hungry or tired or insane so we piddled around our resort and then took a bit of a drive around the area in our rental car.
SIDE BAR: the rental car joint was insane. on the second story unmarked building there was one woman named Sharon running the entire operation. when she needed someone to bring a car around, she'd use her "PA" system which was Sharon yelling outside of her second story window in a very thick jamaican accent to "brang da kyar round mon." and she moved slower than mollasass. the roads in jamaica leave much to be desired as well. there are potholes the size of texas all over the place and many of the roads are not paved at all. drivers overtake or undertake where ever and when ever they like, and they honk their horns very liberally. they generally drive on the left side, as it is told in the Lonely Planet "da left side is the rite side, da right side is suicide." the speed limit is apparently just a suggestion.
Ads and i met up with Kuniko (sab's ex-roommate) and her friend Shiho who came traveling with her. Kuniko rented or villa in Montego Bar for us. it was a very nice, spacious place. a stones throw from the beach (Dr. Cave beach apparently) and really good jamaican breakfast. the jamaicans eat this "fruit" called Ackee which is a savory fruit that they pick after the ass of the fruit bursts then they soak it in salted water and cook it with a salted fish. it tastes like scrambled eggs. it was weird but good. Shiho and i were all about the jamaican food. Ads eats nothing and Kuniko was a bit weary as well but i thought jamaican food rocked. but stay away from the "rasta relaxers" a drinbk that is 97% rum. made me sick.
We went to Negril on our second day and also drove out to Roaring River or Rolling River where Bob Marley apparently "wash away da bad luck and wash in da good luck." we saw some nice little plants, goats, crops and marijuana plants which apparently "belong to da rasta man." everyone was high there. it was an interesting little trip.
we were led out there by out self appointed tour guid named Kevin. he says he works with the police to aid tourists but he didn't seem to be very helpful when i got pulled over by the jamaican cops. i didn't get a ticket; i think they were more curious about tourists driving around in a not touristy area and i got let off with a warning. Kevin gave us a little tour of the country side and took us to the river area then we parted ways after we "showed him our appreciation."
SIDE BAR: everone in jamaica wants a tip, and i ain't talkin' 'bout on how to keep your toilet sparklin' fresh. everywhere you go, please are asking you to "show me your appreciation." they prey on tourists and expect you to tip them for everything from using the PUBLIC toilets to pointing you in the direction of a good restaurant. Jamaicans are also good hustlers. even the sweetest unassuming little old woman knows what she's doing when it comes to tourists. they make you buy shit you don't even want or ask for. they are super pushy. i think they were more polite in thailand!
on the 26th, we drove out towards St. Ann's bay where Sabrina was getting married. it was a couple hours drive from Mobay (montego bay) and the area was quite nice. the closest town was Ocho Rios where we had to go to get supplies for our villa such as food, drinks etc. we settled in and met up with stuart and his wife and also sab's student tomonori and his weird taciturn friend with the super tight pants. we went on our excusion to Ocho Rios which is a nice little place. we did some souvenir shopping (i got everyone jerk seasoning. i swear the entire bottom of my suitcase was filled with jerk). Sabs had her rehersal dinner on the 27th and i got to meet all of her friends from college. she had some bridesmaids and they were LOVELY girls. i can see why they are all so tight.
the day of the wedding was unfortunately very windy. the weather wasn't espeically nice which was too bad but Sabs looked absolutely fantastic. she seemed to take the entire thing in a stride but i guess that's because it was pretty much the Sharon Shelton show (Sean's mother). The food was amazing, especially the Coconut Chicken Rundown which i am still trying to find a good recipie for. Lots of speeches and toasts, etc. Lots of rum.
we went out to Dunn's River Falls the next day to climb up the waterfall which was pretty fucking cool. the water was initially pretty cold but it's hot in jamaica and you get used to it. we did a bit more last minute shopping and went out for dinner on our last nite in jamaica to a pretty bad restaurant which had a nice view but super salty food coupled with bad service. not a good end. but overall, we had a great time in jamaica. and it was awesome seeing sabs again. i really missed her.
We flew back to LA the next day and had dinner with the family. We went to the rock bottom brewery where we met up with dad and ryan. I took ads all over LA and LBC. we had a big BBQ at the house one nite and a bunch of people came. i ran errands, i saw old friends, i went to the dentist. we also went out to vegas for a couple of days which he seemed to really like. it was nice to see dick and colleen as well.
anyways, we hoofed it back to japan on the 9th and got into narita on the 10th. we were both completely wrecked. 20 days everyday is a lot of time to spend with any one person but i think we both survived it ok.
now it back to the same old grind. i went 12 days straight without a day off when i got back and today is the first time since forver that i have gotten home before 9:00pm. grandpa and i have fallen back into our old routine plus one, i now make breakfast and dinner for him every nite. i had to fight with my uncle just to get one weekend off to go snowboarding with my friends next week. but it's a good thing. it makes me appreciate my time with my friends who i must give much credit to cuz they have been soooooo supportive and kind during the past few months while i have been inaccessible for much of the time. they've pushed back plans, rearranged schedules, and tucked me in at nite. i take care of grandpa and they take care of me. i love them.
to celebrate and give thanks, i'm having mexican dinner nite tomorrow for them and then we will have jerk chicken nite on the 5th. yummy! dinner always brings friends together!
