Montego Bay-Day 4

Thursday was definitely the most rewarding day for me.  I was overcome by the beauty of the island and frustrated with how selfish Americans are.  After that day, I no longer wondered why the rest of the world hates America.  It was when we went to Dunn's River Falls.  The ride there was about an hour and a half, so there was plenty to see on the way.  The driver filled us in on the sites and Jamaican heritage.  The thing that struck me was that they build their own houses.  Intead of having mortgages, they start with a two-bedroom house with a bathroom and a kitchen and as they save more money they add to the house until they have a nice-sized family home.  It takes them fifteen years to complete.  They appear to live completely off the land and each other (and tourists, of course).  David and Lo, by chance were with us that day and I heard the driver tell David that the employment rate is about 60%, because people don't want to work. 

When we got to the falls, we were told that if anyone tried to sell us anything to bargain with them and don't be afraid to say no.  Climbing the rocks was awesome.  I thought I might freak out at first, because they told us we were climbing 900 feet, but you could not really see below you.  There were a few stops along the way where the guides took pictures of us:

"Holy shit, it's cold!!!"

 

They told us to use tongue...

This is where they told us to put our arms in the air and fall backwards...they obviously missed the shot, but I think this might be even better!!!



Pink booties aside, this is a great picture!!



The whole group held hands while we climbed the falls, which was a little weird at first, but it was nice because it forced everyone to look out for each other.  It took a few hours to climb to the top and when we finished, the guide asked for a tip (we left our money on the bus, so we lucked out on that one).  On the way back to the bus, we got stopped by someone selling souvenirs.  We agreed to buy interlocking hearts (actually, Ryan did, but I played along) with our names engraved on them.  The price started at $30 and we bargained them down to $20.  Then they threw in two other carved figures, one as a "gift" and we were supposed to offer them something for the second one...which we didn't ask for...what???  Then they kept putting necklaces around our necks, which were also expected to pay for.  Finally, as we were getting ready to go back to the bus to get money (they follow you back to the bus...) a second guy joins us trying to sell us something else.  I honestly believe they could tell Ryan was just miserable at saying no and they latched on...because I did very little talking...Both men walked with us back to the bus and at one point I turned around and the second guy was carving our names into a wooden frog.  WTF??  I was beyond pissed that Ryan bought something else and we ended up paying them $40 for all the "gifts" they gave us.  So much for bargaining!!! 

On the way home, we stopped at Sandals Ocho Rios for lunch.  We ate at the buffet with David & Lo and on the way home I somehow managed to be the only person to stay awake.  I was definitely exhausted, but I couldn't possibly let such beauty go by without relishing in it.  I was so annoyed that I left my camera in the room (I just took the waterproof one...I didn't know we'd be able to leave stuff on the bus...), because I really wanted to get a picture of everyday life in Jamaica.  The whole drive was lined with the ocean, but I was overwhelmed by how green everything was!  It is virtually untouched.  There does not seem to be set neighborhoods or developments and everything appears to be built out of plywood and steel.  The houses are small and run-down.  There are no malls...just small strips of stores that look almost ignored, with their name or what they sell painted on the side.  I even saw a car wash that just had a large wooden sign outside with "car wash" spray painted on it.  In the midst of all the forest, were the mountains overhead and the ocean on the horizon.  There are dilapidated buildings spotting the roadway and the mountainsides and it's not unusual to see women working the fields beside the men (as it should be!!).  Despite the "ghetto" feel, there is still overwhelming beauty.  These people do everytrhing themselves and they are still the kindest people I have ever met (when they're not trying to sell you something, of course).  It's always "good morning," "you good, man?," "no problem, man!"  In America, everything is handed to us.  We work in air-conditioned buildings for a pay check every week, so we can buy things we don't need.  We can hire people to cook for us, to clean for us, drive us around, even shop for us!!  We buy large houses that take us thirty years to pay off-twice the time it takes them the build one the same size-and we spend most of our time indoors, numbing our brains with TV or the internet (guilty!).  And we still find reasons to complain and look down on people.  Our country might be one of the richest, but we indeed are one of the saddest.  We take it all for granted and don't think twice about it.  No question we are "ugly Americans." 

Despite this revelation, I caught myself being an "ugly American."  I complained about the people using our private pool pretty much the entire week.  We splurged on the upgrade and people that did NOT pay a fortune for it were taking advantage.  Ryan and I admit we're a little too anti-social, or socially awkward, as he likes to call us, but you want privacy, you want privacy.  And to have people who didn't pay extra for that privacy invading it, is extremely frustrating.

As soon as we got back from Dunn's River Falls, Calvin showed up with two plates of food-cheese & crackers and finger sandwiches.  We hung out by the pool for a little bit, then walked around a little.  We explored the gift shop to scope out souvenirs, then came back to the room so Ryan could nap.  I sat outside and read a little bit and took pictures of flowers. 

 


As much as I was inspired to write, I was inspired to take pretty pictures.  Unfortunately, I didn't notice the "flowers" setting on my camera until later, so these pictures aren't as great as they could have been! 
There were three peacocks on the resort (two males, one female) and one walked by often!!  He walked by while I was outside and I noticed the hermit crab we had discovered a few days ago crawling around the porch.  It was nice to just sit and think for a while, though. 
We had reservations at the french restaurant at 7pm that night.  The food was actually amazing, which we hadn't expected!!  It was definitely our favorite.  Ryan had jumbo shrimp (I'm surprised he didn't turn into a shrimp!!) and I had beef tenderloin, which Ryan was obsessed with and wished he had ordered instead.  I'll assume we didn't do anything after dinner, because that's where my notes stop, but here's some more pictures...

With David & Lo-who makes us both look fat!!