Hey mon from Samsara! This is Margaret again, guest blogging while on vacation at the Samsara Cliffs Resort. Today we rode the shuttle to Legends Beach Resort in order to experience the legendary Seven Mile Beach of Negril. We also wanted to walk into town and check things out. Our driver Gregory had told us that people would try to sell us things, and he promised if we said no it would be ok. “No means no,” he said, “They will respec’ .”
Gregory was somewhat right about that. We left my sunburned husband in the shade and the three of us girls walked off down the beach from Legends. Within minutes we had been offered the chance to buy everything from bracelets to “smoke” to boat rides and jet ski rides. It was crazy! We did fairly well with saying no until one guy convinced us to come look at his wares, which were really some very interesting carvings. While my daughter’s friend was choosing a gift for her mother, a lady came up and started rubbing aloe juice onto my shoulders which were getting a little pink. She kept mashing the pulp out of the aloe leaf and smearing it on my shoulders, then she worked her way down my arms, around my back and on my legs. She applied aloe to my daughter’s skin too. The whole time she kept up a running explanation of the benefits of aloe to me, and explained that it heals sunburn and protects your skin from the sun. You don’t need to wear sunblock, just aloe…according to her. I thought she was being very kind to share this little native secret with us, so imagine my surprise when she wanted $25 dollars for her ministrations. What? I politely explained that I hadn’t asked her for the aloe service, and she had not told me there was a charge before she started applying it. We argued back and forth for a while and finally settled on $10 as the price for my first lesson in How Things Work outside of rural Ohio where I live.
We continued along the beach, amused by the encounter and considerably more wary of these vendors’ tactics. The girls took a dip in the ocean to cool off and just then two young boys on horseback came riding down the beach. The horses were a beautiful bay color. I did not recognize the breed but they were very cute. I snapped a couple of photos and was putting the lens cap back on my camera when the lead boy rode up and asked if we wanted to ride. I said no, so he demanded money for letting me take his picture. What? I had a 100 JA bill in my pocket so I gave him that and he tried to get more out of me but I rudely told him that was all he was going to get and sent him on his way.
Hot, tired, thirsty and slightly culture-shocked, we headed back to Legends for a dip in the pool, a delicious lunch and lots of ice water. The water at both Legends and Samsara is absolutely delicious. You do not need to buy the bottled water, as what they serve in glasses tastes great.
After lunch, the girls wanted to relax at the pool, so my husband and I set out to walk into downtown Negril and see how that went. Again we ran the gamut of people soliciting us, but it wasn’t nearly as bad as us girls had gotten on the beach. Note to self: have burly husband along next time you walk on 7-Mile Beach. We stopped at a market to get drinks and wandered up a side road where I bought a beautiful fresh canary melon for 300 JA and some odd little fruits that I don’t know the name of. I need to ask Melvin about them. The fruit vendors offered my husband the chance to buy a “bud,” which he declined. “Maybe next time?” the older guy said hopefully.
“Maybe next lifetime,” I retorted and the guys thought that was hilarious. They congratulated my husband for having such a good wife and told me to keep up the good work.
Everyone in town was friendly and it was so interesting to see the different little shops and how these people live. You evidently have to be very self-sufficient to survive around here, and I noticed a lot of repurposing of materials. We ended up taking a taxi ride back to Legends as my sandals were giving me blisters (500 JA). Tonight we are going to eat at Ciao Jamaica, the restaurant across the road from Samsara. I think we’re going to go to sleep early too…we are beat from the sun and all the fun.
The girls at the beach at Legends Beach Resort in Negril
Here's the photo that cost me 100 JA