Yeah Man! Jamaica Me Crazy!

Wat a gwaan?

Me Irie. 

Taking a trip away from reality although does not eliminate all the life huddles permanently. It does help relax and revitalize you in readiness for some aspect of real life. 

I have never been on an actual vacation. All my trips away from home has always been for a reason (weddings, family, school etc) never just to relax and enjoy the scenery. Picking Jamaica as my first real vacation was not intentional. Myself and my partner in crime, as usual wanted somewhere affordable with an all-inclusive tag but we also wanted somewhere with high ratings of fun, safety, good food, hygiene, good customer service and most of all good quality/ quantity of booze.

Well we (she) found it in Runaway Bay, Jamaica. An all-inclusive package at the Gran Bahai Principe (GBP) Resort. It was a long and fairly hot ride from Sangster International Airport, Montego Bay to GBP Resort, Runaway Bay but being recieved with a cold drink was welcoming. 

A 5-day  all inclusive trip to Jamaice was worth the bill. The tours and excursions made it worth the bill, the time, and the experience. 

Hiking up the Dunns River Falls took approx. 45mins and 15mins back. I wish I could describe the experience in words but all I can say is it was awesome. Scary, tiring but it was so much fun. If you ever get the chance to visit Jamaica, make sure to do this. Here is a breakdown of my days and the excursions I went on. 

Day 1 was not uneventful except for the long line to cross the immigration desk st the airport. And our driver to the resort felt it would be ok to drive us to the gas station to pump gas and across the street to pick up his female friend at the bank. I would think having our flight landing time, factoring in the long line, he would have thought ahead and purchased gas before getting to the airport. Anyway, this didn't ruin the day. I was looking forward to food after a long day and didn't care what happened so long as I get to the resort safe. 

Day 2 

Soaked in the sun all day and ended the day with a fairly ok dinner at the Japanese restaurant. For me, the decor in the restaurant is the only link I could make to Japan.

Day 3 - Supper Fun Day

Did the Dunns Riiver Tour and Chukka Catamaran Tour (Party Boat) - these two are my favorite, highly recommended.

Day 4 - not so good. 

Woke up with a bad migrane (blaming this on the all day partying and late night. Woke up very early to make sure we get breakfast and catch the 8:45am bus to the Horseback Swim & Ride excursion. We made breakfast and was in the lobby by 8:30am but we didn't make the 8:45am bus that was apparently there and left by 8:35am. The driver got to the resort, picked up 4people instead of 6 and went on his way. This is a lobby with different people waiting for different buses to different excursion/ tour locations. I personally assumed a driver driving an unmarked bus picking up strangers would announce (like the previous day and other drivers did) his company name and ask for passengers going to "XYZ" location. No, that would be too much to ask. 

Anyway, the horseback ride was fun, didn't like any of the pictures taken by the guide so I didn't pay for any which is ok by me. I enjoyed the ride and would do it again if the opportunity arises.

I was all watered out and just wanted to do nothing which by the way is exactly what I did for the rest of the day. Still had the migrane when I got back from the horse farm but a nice and long bath with followed by lunch and then longing helped reduced the pressure.

My personal recommendation when vacationing in Jamaica: 

Dunns River Falls tour, Chukka Cat Tour, Bug spray: insect repellant, your preferred lotion, sunscreen and lots of energy. 

Gratitude to the Chukka Cat Crew, for a very good time and all the Gran Bahai Principe Staff that kept the rooms decent, made the nice foods and most of all, were always friendly and ready to help. There were some not so perfect occurrences but these were things I could live with.

Jamaica was fun, I would definitely be doing more of this. 

This is the first of many to come. 

Next Stop; Jinan, Shandong, China

New Dawn, New Day, New Life

Within a short period, I went from one of the highest/ happiest moment to one of the saddest moment in my life. In a period of a week, my life as I knew it and as I planned it came into place and fell out of place. 

In light of the new development, my heart is fixed on progressing. I have taken a conscious decision to make my life about me (this is new for me). A conscious decision to be happy, strong and confident. 

I guess there is no other option for me but to be happy and strong. What else do you do when you get a joyous news that fills you with so much happiness and in less than a week you are hit with one that takes away the happiness. 

Well here is what I did, I cried so much eventually tears stopped running, didn't eat or drink for some days to the point where remembering the previous minute was a chore. Then, it hit me, that I don't do we'll being sad and miserable. My beautiful smile is allergic to misery. So here I am, it is very hard but I will make it a daily mission to be true to myself, strong and happy.

This TERN is on a roll, the sky is no longer the limit. It is just another gate to another adventure. 

Sitting at an airport gate, heading to NC to visit my mother, I look back and realize there is just this life and I am going to live,  laugh and love till I can't no more. 

For those that know me personally, you know my mother is everything to me. I called her sobbing like a baby to share my sad news and here is her response (To those who know my mother, I am sure you can predict her response). 

      "Adunni, no need to cry. May God continue to bless you. You wil never know sorrow. There is no reason to cry, please wipe your tears, take a shower and give thanks to God for everything." 

I do know my mother and somewhere deep down I anticipated that response but I couldn't help thinking she didn't hear me due to my endless stream of tears. So again sobbing I told her what had happened (play by play). She said "Oko mi (My dear), I heard you the first time. This is not the time to cry but a time to get closer to your God, ask for forgiveness, strenght and happiness. 

I did as she said and till the end of time, I will continue to say my mother is one of a kind. She went through the same ordeal and always wished she had someone then to help when she needed it the most. I will always love you (Iya Hajarat); may your days be long in good health and wealth. 

These past couple of weeks she has been there like a mother should, like a sister should and like a friend should. She  raised me to be strong and dependent but still held on tightly when I needed her the most. 

This is why I am taking time out of no time and spending money I don't have, flying to NC, to visit her, and other family member that have always and I know will always be there for me. 

Enough of the sob story. 

Before China, I will be in NC for 5 days to return Monday night. Then I will be heading to Runaway Bay, Jamaica (long over due vacation) with one of my all-time favorite. 

So you see why I am loving it 😃

Not a lot of trips before China but I know this is the begin of many more to come. 

I will try to update before Jamaica, if not, see you before the big MOVE