Jamaica Part 7 - The Sunset Cruise

It was called a "Sunset Cruise". I was really looking forward to it, too. I had no idea what to expect.......never been on one of those before. The boat was a catamaran with the name "Wild Thing". We all gathered on the beach property of the Sunset At The Palms resort...........I remember seeing the catamaran approaching............I looked at how many people were waiting on the beach............I remember thinking "how in the hell are all of these people gonna fit on this boat?". Not only the Chesapeake Medical Staffing gang were going, but also a few wedding groups as well...........about 120 to 150 people maybe all together..............hmmmmm.

The boat pulled up to the shore and sat there waiting for us to line up and load on..........you need to wade out into the water and get onto the boat via a lowered stairway..........it was a good thing it wasn't very wavy right then......hehehehe.......half of the gang was already loaded. We found a space to sit or stand and get ready to head off.

This was to be a sunset cruise................and we all know Tropical Storm Noel is not very far away.

Looking back at our pick-up spot as we pulled away, It is rather calm.

They were everywhere on the boat........everywhere you looked.............a full load of the fully loaded, if you will........hehehehe.

It did not take very long for everyone to get their "buddy kegs" filled up with their preferred intoxicant.........we were off and running. Me?..............I had a Red Stripe.

Looking out to the west horizon.......this is what I see. There is a very obvious array of clouds. I was wondering just how much of a sunset we would actually get...........but I tell myself "they probably don't let threatening weather stop them at all"...........and I was right.

We were heading along the coastline of Negril, Jamaica...........and those clouds were looking a bit ominous to me. Aside from what it looked like......the weather was warm and the wind was minimal. I had no idea how long this ride would be.........and I always pay attention to my surroundings.............the rest of the group is busy partying their tails off........it is as if either they don't care, have no worries, and everything is perfect...........maybe drinking helps that along. I am not very much of a drinker......one or two beers here and there. I am sober as a judge.......but don;t get me wrong here........I am enjoying everything immensely. I am where I want to be and with who I want to be with. For me, this is what dreams are made of.

I was perched by the railing and I remember thinking, as I looked at the people in my view, how if this thing goes down...they might be too drunk at some point to be able to save my non-swimming butt. The Wild Thing makes a pit stop by pulling into shore to pick up trays of pizza.....imagine that!

We were headed to a place called Rick's Cafe on the coast. They said there will be cliff diving there.......hmmmmm. As we travelled along the coast, I watched as the sea crashed against the walls in front of assorted structures. As you can see in the picture above, some of these places sit high up off the ground. I see this and and reminded about the tropical storms and hurricanes that pass through here. Imagine what this is like during one of those storms.......imagine the sea level rising up over that wall...........wow!

The Negril Lighthouse is just beyond where we are heading. I do not like that cloud though.

We have reached our destination..........that's Rick's Cafe sitting up on the rocks there. This is gonna be interesting.

There was a stairway leading to the bottom of the rocks and I could see alot of people. Chances are.........the grand majority of those folks are inebriated in some fashion.

Years and years of battering waves have formed caves. Jamaican kids climb around on the rocks on the right.....holding up hand made signs that say "Dive Picture $1". They will take the leap off the rocks for you for a buck..........imagine that. At this point, I remember thinking how chaotic the water was in this immediate area. The pilot of our boat did a fine job manipulating and maintaining our position.

We would pull in..........drop off about ten people..........pull out.........and come back to drop off more when the way was clear. Everyone was required to wear life jackets if they wanted to go ashore.

Me and Supernurse stayed on the boat to watch those who dared to go ashore and climb the steps to assorted levels for leaping into the water. Hit the water wrong and pay the price. Bruises and a week of sore butt.........not my idea of a souvenir......hehehe. But jump they did. Good for them! The boat rounded up everyone just as it had unloaded them........several gulps at a time. There was one Jamaican dude that would climb to the top of a tree right above the caves. He would make alot of poses......hamming it up.......and then show everyone his prowess...........diving like it was an Olympic event......right into the abyss below. Everyone would cheer and applaud. I actually did try to take his picture but it didn't work out..........it looked like a crayon mark on a picture of some rocks.......hehehehe.

I looked behind me and saw this sight. Now THIS is what I want to see.............a sunset! Savor the moment...............inhale it in.................enjoy it while you can...............am I a bit dissappointed?........well...........I would have liked a bit more color in my eyes, but I will take this.

There is that lighthouse in the distance.........I wished we could have gotten closer.

Well, we got through this half of our adventure unscathed.......it has been rather good so far.......but we still have quite a ride back..........have we run out of good fortune?

With each minute, the remaining sunset is vanishing...........gobbled up by ominous clouds. Still......it is an awesome sight. I cannot paint a picture like this. This picture is constantly changing......each moment is spectacular.

Sometimes there is a dark cloud hanging over your head. Let's hope this one is a dud........but the sea is not oh so calm anymore.

The sea is awesome. This is the Caribbean Sea.........imagine the history of this area.......pirates.......conquerors.........discoverers............and the nature of this sea remains unchangeable.

Two or three Red Stripes later............it's all good. It is all good anyway. I remember thinking.......gee......if we sank right there on this spot..........what a way to go! How many people ever die doing exactly what they wanted. How many ever die happy?

Nobody died here on this day.............there was more partying to do back at the resort......hehehe.

You want it to last as long as possible. The daylight was fading quickly. And we were not quite near the resort yet. I snapped off as many picture as I could. Fish were leaping out of the water. I noticed that the boat was moving faster than it had been............seemed like a sense of urgency about it............let's all get back before the deluge.......hehehe.................. I didn't care........I could do this 24/7. THIS is better than Disney...........better than Vegas..........better than just about anything.
I snapped away..........I wanted at least one great picture before it all went away.

And there it was................

The clouds looming in the distance, and the ones looming over us...........and the only remaining light emanating from between the two.

We returned to the resort safely. Our excursion was a success and I shall always remember it. Me.....the wife.........and paradise.....................uh........and a boatload of nurses!

I love it!

Next Up: Jamaica Part 8