Jamaica Me Want to Go Back

[jenseib]

The Xbox room was great. Several of us would stand right next to one of the wall units and cool down. LOL.


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They have a very nice waterpark area here.


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Oh look…a guy on the roof.


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This is the scratch academy. Kids can make a mixed tape in here. I believe this has an extra cost, which was hefty, but it is very popular.


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The guy who talked to us about it was very passionate about it and I could see how the kids would love to work with him. He would be a lot of fun.


Kiddy pool.


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Spa.


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[jenseib]

Time to tour another room.


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Some rooms had a second room attached for the kids to stay in. I started getting lax with my pictures since I was so hot, so I am not sure if I ever took a picture of one of those rooms.


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Time for lunch. We were having it at Kimonos, which is a hibachi place.


We were served a traditional drink….I wasn’t a fan of it.


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And while we waited for everyone to arrive they were offering massages in the waiting area.


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Once everyone arrived the chefs got started. I think we had a set menu…I can’t remember if were even allowed to choose between steak or chicken or given both.


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For dessert they brought out these, which were good but we had to share them with the person next to us. Marianne and I shared. We tried cutting each in half so we could taste each one.


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When we were done we went and used the bathroom and were just so tired and ready to head back to Sandals. We talked to one person and asked if we could go to the lobby to wait for the buses and she said sure. As we started to walk that way we were stopped and told we had to wait as Beaches had a special treat for us yet. UGH. LOL. We were enjoying our time but we had been going all day in the heat and were now just ready to chill.

They led us to the area with the stage that has the Sesame Street show.


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Little by little everyone trickled in and we waited and waited. The passed out popsicles, but I am not really a fan of those.


We kept waiting and it was starting to become a joke. They told us they were going to give us a snippet of the show but evidently the characters weren’t ready.


Finally it started.. I know my pictures are out of order, so I’ll just post them as is. The show started and a song was sang and a little bit of the show went on and then they went back stage…..OK…then we were told there was some technical difficulties or something…and they started the show again. It was bizarre. Total Déjà vu.



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And they picked one of the guys from our group to go up on stage.


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After that, we headed out and got a gift from Beaches as well. It was this cooler that holds 6 cans and it is long and slim. It was really funny looking and we made jokes about it. When I got home and showed it to Skip he thought it was funny looking too. We used it once and it would only hold 5 beer cans and it was hard to get them out.


Beaches is a great resort for families. There is so much to do plus a beautiful beach. It does have Sesame Street for the little ones, but it’s not in your face. You can choose to do those activities or not. Otherwise you would rarely even see the anything to do with Sesame Street throughout the resort.


We made the short drive back to Sandals where we would have the rest of the afternoon to ourselves. Swimming was number one for all of us.

 

[rndmr2]

I thought I posted a reply to your last update but I guess I didn't.

Thank you for sharing pics from your daughter's wedding, very pretty.

Sandals is a beautiful resort. The rooms you saw were nice.

Funny about that Pineapple Resort that they rioted when they tried to close it.

The few pics you showed didn't look too bad but I imagine those were the best of the lot. That pool was a little sad if that is the main or only pool.

The Beaches Negril resort was really pretty too, nice that they gave you such a friendly welcome.

Cute that they have the Sesame Street Characters. Was that showroom outside? Those poor characters must have been dying in those costumes.

The Hibachi Lunch looked good.

 

[jenseib]

Thank you for sharing pics from your daughter's wedding, very pretty.

It was very simple but very beautiful and exactly what she wanted.

Sandals is a beautiful resort. The rooms you saw were nice.

Sandals are really very nice. They cost a bit more usually than a lot of other resorts, but what they include really makes it worth it.

Funny about that Pineapple Resort that they rioted when they tried to close it.

Yes! I was surprised it was still open. Every year I go to a Sandals certification class and they said a few years ago they were closing the Pineapples and last year it was in the book but they never even mentioned it. I was surprised to see it still listed.

The few pics you showed didn't look too bad but I imagine those were the best of the lot. That pool was a little sad if that is the main or only pool.

Yep, I just showed the pretty ones. LOL. I suppose for some it is luxurious but it really was a dump compared to Sandals.

The Beaches Negril resort was really pretty too, nice that they gave you such a friendly welcome.

They were so welcoming and fun.

Cute that they have the Sesame Street Characters. Was that showroom outside? Those poor characters must have been dying in those costumes.

Yes it was and I thought the same thing.

The Hibachi Lunch looked good.

It was very good...of course the one we have at home is better, but it was still a fun and good place to eat.

 

[jenseib]

We all got dressed in our suits and decided to meet at the pool today as it seemed pretty happening.


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This gal was a lot of fun.


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The employees were really having fun…and drinking, which I wondered if that was normal, but one of the gal’s told me since today was the emancipation day they were allowed to.


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The alcohol was flowing but I only had a few fruity cocktails. They went around pouring stuff into people’s mouths…but that’s not my thing. I don’t care if others want to do it, but for me…it would make me puke.


After a while I noticed Lenora had left and another gal had too so I assumed they went to the beach. Ellen, Marianne and I decided to go look at the tables set up along the beach and we bought some things….I think I bought a necklace for Claire.


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Then we headed off to Ellen’s room (I think she went to get money) and she gave us the tour as well.


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Nice view.


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I loved this picture.


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As you can see….I really liked the view.


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We then headed to the beach for another swim.


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There were pelicans all over and they would fly by and when they landed it was a total dive bomb. It was hilarious.


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In the distance of this next picture you can see the splash of it landing.


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Ellen says they go blind from landing like this and when they become too much of a nuisance with their flock, the flock will lead them to land but make it so it’s a death landing….as in crashing into something. I have no clue if that is true, but she told me to google it. LOL.


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[jenseib]

Hi Ellen!


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Bad selfie!


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It was time to get out and get showered again for dinner. Tonight we had to catch a shuttle and head over to Beaches where we would have dinner at the Italian place. We really were not feeling up to going there. We debated on skipping it and just chilling. The heat was really bad and the best place to escape that was in the water…but we decided we better do what was right and went and got ready.


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This was on my bed when I got back to the room.


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We had an update to the schedule and what to do tomorrow when we changed resorts and a little gift as well.


We met back in the lobby area….I think Ellen was running a little behind…so we took some pictures.


Lenora and I.


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Marianne and I.


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And then we caught the shuttle over to Beaches once Ellen arrived.


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We headed in and found the restaurant we needed to be at.


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One thing about Sandals and Beaches…most places are open air….just a few areas are actually totally enclosed. A/C is not like what we have in the States either. It’s those wall unit things…they do a good job, but definitely not as cool as central air. I advise lots of sundresses.


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We arrived and got seated and tonight our group was of several people we had met and been chatting with. Kimberly, a gal we had met last night, was seated next to me and we chatted quite a bit. She was hilarious. She just comes right out and says stuff and it totally made me laugh.


I ordered a fancy drink.


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My appetizers.


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So good!


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And my entrée.


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The food was excellent and the conversation was good too. We talked business a bit…got to know each other and asked how long each had been in the business. I was shocked how many years some had been in…20 plus and some were still very new. It was very interesting to hear how everyone does their thing.


My dessert.


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It was time to head out and catch the shuttle back. We kind of left leisurely at our own pace.


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We headed back to Sandals and we decided to meet up…but whatever it was we wanted to go to was now ending. We ended up just having a few drinks and then calling it a night. It was late and we were tired and we had a really busy day with another one scheduled for tomorrow. It was another great day and I really fell in love with Sandals Negril. The beach was great and so was the pool. There is a lot going at the pool, plus other included excursions if you choose to do those during your stay. The resort got an A+ from me. I did talk to some of the other girls who had more dated rooms, so not all have been redone yet. If you don’t plan a lot of time in your room than that might not be a big deal, but I was happy to have a newly refurbished one…and though I didn’t have a view, my location next to the pool and just steps away from the lobby was fantastic.

 

[jenseib]

Aug. 2, 2016


Today we were moving to Sandals Royal Caribbean in Montego Bay. Yes they keep us hopping here, but this way we would be closer to other Sandals resorts and get to experience another place as well.


We had to be packed up and our bags were whisked away to make the transfer as well..


I met Lenora for breakfast.


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I took a few food shots…Some things were so strange to me and others were normal. Compared to Disney…the food was comparable. I found most everything I tried really good and I never went hungry.


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My plate.


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They had mango on the buffet all the time and I was in heaven. We love Mango but it is so costly that I don’t get it often to eat at home. When I do, Claire eats the whole thing in one sitting.


I think this was Lenora’s plate…..it can’t be mine…it’s way to healthy.

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After we were done we went outside and were taking pictures and just enjoying the beautiful views….and saw this guy.


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I was so hoping to see a peacock!!! Yay!!!!!


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One guy said his name was Rasta….not sure if that is true or not but he kept calling him that.


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People who were brave were feeding him and he would jump right up and take the food.


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I am sure if I had tried I would have lost a finger.


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Lenora asked me to take a picture of her and to be sure to get the white bird on the railing in the shot too. I totally laughed. It wasn’t…”get that beautiful ocean in the background in my picture”…but get that white bird. Hahahaha. I kept teasing her about it.


It was time to head to the lobby area and get ready to leave. We all bundled in and then we needed to find our bags that were waiting out there and take them to one of the buses to be loaded.


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It was a little bit chaotic, but we got it all settled and were on our way.


Along the way there is all sorts of things to see…cows, goats, chickens, donkeys…it was kind of neat…but I never got a good shot.


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There was a lot of construction along the way and we were told that people often run out of money and then live in these half built houses. Most are made out of concrete…..I supposed to withstand the weather. We also commented on all the brightly painted homes in Jamaica. In the US…you would see something like that and think UGLY…In Jamaica…oh look at that cute one over there. LOL. Different culture and it makes it acceptable. LOL.


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And soon we were pulling into Montego Bay…with the threat of rain!


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OOOOH! I forgot to mention….there was a hurricane out in the ocean and it was predicted to hit parts of Jamaica…but luckily it died down and we just got mega rain instead.


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We headed inside and were herded to a room.


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I tried to take a bunch of pictures as we went. Many of us used the restroom and stretched a bit before going into the room.


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It was threatening rain and because of this our schedule had been changed a bit. Instead of heading right off to tour rooms, we were going to have some class. Actually in the original schedule we were emailed the class was supposed to have been yesterday and I was glad it had been changed.


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They had some snacks out waiting for us too.


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I found some seats towards the front and sat down. The class was interesting, but a lot of it was similar to the yearly class we have to take that is offered in local cities. (I typically attend in May or June when one is offered for my area).


After a bit I got antsy and needed to stretch so I headed off to the bathroom. When I came back I waited in the back a few minutes…just to stand and to not interrupt the current speaker.


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I then made my way back and sat for the remainder of the class.


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[jenseib]

After the class wrapped up it was time for lunch and we were going to the main buffet.


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Again I took some pictures.


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I had waited for the line to die down a bit before getting my food.


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And then found a seat.


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After lunch we had a little bit of time before our tours were going to start. We took a look across the water and the new over the water bungalows they are building. These are super popular and though at the time not finished they are booked out very far in advance and super pricey.


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Unfortunately they were not ready for touring yet so we never got to see any inside.


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This is the RIU next door.


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After lunch we gathered around again and signed up for our dinner locations for the next 2 nights and got some paperwork and then we were heading off in groups to tour this resort.

Going on the room tours is mandatory…it is the reason we are here and we had to sign papers that we would do everything offered for the most part. Because it was raining today they did allow people to bow out. A few actually did, which I was shocked. We were here for this very reason and though down time is nice, this was not a vacation. That being said, I got the feeling some people were there for just that reason. Some brought their spouses and said they were in business together but I found out accidently from talking to one husband that he has nothing to do with the business at all and he was just along for the ride. Another lady had her daughter with her…a girl probably about 12-14 years old. I am not sure how she got to bring her as there was no way she was in this business.


Our first stop was to take the boat over to their little private island.


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They handed out umbrellas but didn’t have enough for everyone so I tried to crouch under someone’s if it was raining hard.


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We got on the boat and I noticed this swing on the water just off the coast…it was really cute.


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Off we go!


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This resort is very near the airport so we saw quite a few planes.


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I tried for some better shots of the bungalows.


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[jenseib]

A look back from where we came from.


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We got off the boat and gathered on the island.


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Food arriving for the restaurant on the island.


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They have a pool and beach over here.


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Another plane.


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And a parrot!!!!!


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Our tour guide told us about the island and the things offered…..one being a clothing optional beach!


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No thanks! If course we were all cracking jokes.


And we headed to the Thai restaurant.


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We were told the hours and that the boat back the mainland stopped running at a certain time….of course they would not leave you stranded there, but I think the time was to be sure people didn’t linger too long at the restaurant….something we actually did one evening. LOL.


A few shots around.


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We then got back on the little boat and headed back so we could tour some rooms.


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The rain had actually stopped for a little bit.


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Right here at the dock is where you would sign up for the different watersports.


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I love this shot of this couple on the swings.


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[jenseib]

Time for more room tours.


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This resort seemed bigger to me than the one in Negril, but others thought this one seemed smaller. I never did look to see online if it gives the acreage.


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More rooms…I will admit, this day I was tired and they started to all blend together.


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I believe this is the room we were all oohing and ahhing. We had not yet been taken to our rooms, but I think we knew the room number…or something along that line….one girl realized her luggage was sitting in here and it was her room. She was so excited!


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I believe that is the spa down there.


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And moving on.


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It was raining off and on still. At times it would be nice and sunny and then a little later it would downpour.


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You could get some fast food type options here and we did have some lunch from there the next day.


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I may have my pictures out of order…I didn’t realize till too late that my cameras were off on their time stamps and my phone went to local time. So when weeding through the pictures…I typically upload them and then edit the albums to go in order…but when the time stamps are not all in sync with each other it doesn’t line them up right.

At one point I started taking less pictures of the rooms too because I was wet and feeling blah.

 

[dizneeat]

Thought I had commented on your last update, but I guess I never posted it.

To cut things short - as always I love all the little detail you take photos of. Sandals looks really beautiful. I remember the wedding pics of your daughter but now seeing all the other photos I understand why she chose it.

This is a REAL work vacation - lots of touring but such a beautiful vacation spot.

 

[jenseib]

Thought I had commented on your last update, but I guess I never posted it.

To cut things short - as always I love all the little detail you take photos of. Sandals looks really beautiful. I remember the wedding pics of your daughter but now seeing all the other photos I understand why she chose it.

This is a REAL work vacation - lots of touring but such a beautiful vacation spot.

We really were moving quite a bit..of course it was all interesting and not horrible, but it made for tiring days.....but I still enjoyed it all.

 

[jenseib]

Continuing our tour around Sandals Royal Caribbean.


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Our tour guide was pointing out each building and naming them all off and had a huge list of rooms we had to visit. It really was overwhelming.


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I kept trying to get pictures of the hammocks but it was so windy that they blew all over…this was about the best I could get.


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They didn’t have snacks out for our tour today but they did have a drink station. I wonder if they would have had the snacks had the weather been better?


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As you can tell by the sidewalk…it’s raining again.


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Another cool room with a soup bowl tub.


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I believe there was a wedding cake out here…I think they were out there eating it at that time??? I can’t remember for sure now.


mbay3 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mbay2 by Jenseib, on Flickr


On to another room.


mont94 by Jenseib, on Flickr


My pictures turned out awful in here. This was actually a nicer class room but I felt they were dated. About 10 years ago this probably was the style, but now it isn’t.


mont95 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mont96 by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

[jenseib]

Moving on…..


mbay4 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mont98 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mont97 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mbay5 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mbay7 by Jenseib, on Flickr


One thing bad about Sandal’s properties….they for the most part do not have elevators. Most of the buildings are 2 stories high, but a few are 3. I personally hate climbing stairs and it was taking a toll on me as the day went on.


mbay8 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mbay9 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mbay10 by Jenseib, on Flickr


We were still touring rooms when someone came and found us and said they were waiting on us to go to the next resort. All the other groups had been done touring for a bit but we still were not finished. I knew it felt like we were going slow, but it also seemed like we had a really long list of rooms to see.

We finished up quickly and met to head to the bus. Again, because of the bad weather we were given the option to skip it and stay back. Honestly…a nap sounded really good about now…but I knew I would regret it if I skipped it and this is what I was here for. There were a few more who opted out of the next resort.


We got on the bus and headed to Sandals Montego Bay, which is very nearby.


rc100 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb1 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb2 by Jenseib, on Flickr


They were redoing the lobby here when we visited so part of it was boarded up. A friend of mine has been there since, and I have seen some of her pictures….it looks fabulous!


mb3 by Jenseib, on Flickr


This ice bar had just opened up a few days before we arrived. I love the look of these bars.


mb4 by Jenseib, on Flickr


We stood around a bit by the bar as we waited to be put into groups. We ordered a drink while we waited as we were all pretty thirsty. They also handed us these leather necklaces with a small pair of leather sandals on them. Super cute!!!


We divided up and started touring. We got separated from Ellen and Marianne this time…which was fine….we are all big girls.


mbay11 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb5 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb6 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb7 by Jenseib, on Flickr


I personally liked the look of this hotel better than Royal Caribbean. I am not sure why, but it just seemed to click with me more.


mb8 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb9 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb10 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb11 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb12 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb13 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb14 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb15 by Jenseib, on Flickr


This room had one of those outdoor tubs too.


mb16 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb17 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb18 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb19 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb20 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb21 by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

[jenseib]

This next room was super cool. If I could afford one of these I would love to stay there.


mb22 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb23 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb24 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb25 by Jenseib, on Flickr


I loved the décor and style of the room.


mb26 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb27 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb28 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb29 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb30 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb31 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb32 by Jenseib, on Flickr


We all were doing a lot of oohing and ahhing in there.


Checking out more of the resort.


mb33 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb34 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb35 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb36 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mbay1 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb37 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb38 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb39 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb40 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb41 by Jenseib, on Flickr


Hey dude!!!


mb42 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb43 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb44 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb45 by Jenseib, on Flickr


And another room.


mb46 by Jenseib, on Flickr


Again, this bathroom is dated…..in my opinion….but it was funny because someone else was talking about how gorgeous they thought it was and they hoped they had a room like this. And it’s not bad…it just not is what is “in” right now.


mb47 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb48 by Jenseib, on Flickr


I was trying to play with the shot and get the thatched roof in and palm…didn’t quite come out the way I wanted.


mb49 by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

[jenseib]

We came to a stop…..I think because the group in front of us was still in a room. So we chatted a bit and Jermaine started talking about when he was a kid he lived in Jamaica and these trees (we saw them all over and they had these fruit looking things falling off of them) had almonds and they would pick them and eat them….Really..that is an almond tree?


mb50 by Jenseib, on Flickr


It had like a softer covering..kind of like what a walnut has before it is ripe…and then a shell and under that the almond. Jermaine and Chantelle started picking them and would bite off the covering to get to the shell.


mb51 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb52 by Jenseib, on Flickr


And he got in and pulled out an almond.


mbay6 by Jenseib, on Flickr


I tasted one…yep it tasted like an almond….no wonder those buggers are expensive….they take a lot of work to get one little almond out. Here though they had trees all over and the orange things were fallen all over the ground too. You would have to be careful walking or you could twist your ankle on one.


mb53 by Jenseib, on Flickr


We then spotted a bride!


mb54 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb55 by Jenseib, on Flickr


And time to tour again.


mb56 by Jenseib, on Flickr


mb57 by Jenseib, on Flickr


My ADD was starting to kick in and all the rooms were blurring together so I stood outside…and saw Ellen and Marianne walk by.


mb58 by Jenseib, on Flickr


We then wrapped up the tour and headed back to Royal Caribbean. We were supposed to actually tour one more resort today but we were so behind and with the weather playing with us all day, Sandals decided to take it off the table. A couple of girls did take one of the inter resort shuttles over there later to take a look, but I was too tired to do so today.


Back at RC, we got our room assignments. They called groups of people to go with leaders who would escort us to our rooms. It was clear I was not going to be near my friends this time either…which was ok…but the bummer was…they were all pretty close to each other and this time my room was pretty far out.


As I walked with the group to our rooms, the guide put all the first floor people in their rooms, then we walked up to the 2nd and he led them to their rooms…and then there was just me…..and up we went to the 3rd floor. YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING!!!!!!! I hate climbing stairs and I am on the 3rd floor. I seriously was thinking of asking to be moved. I don’t have a medical condition but I will admit with my weight, my knees are going bad…they are painful a lot these days…and then of course all my extra fluff makes me out of breath too….and I would have to climb up these steps just to get to my room UGH! I kept quiet and took the room, but I was not a happy camper.


My room.


myroom1 by Jenseib, on Flickr


myroom2 by Jenseib, on Flickr


The bedroom area wasn’t too bad.


myroom3 by Jenseib, on Flickr


I at least got treats this time.


myroom4 by Jenseib, on Flickr


The bathroom….UGLY!!!!! Ok, not the worst but very dated.


myroom5 by Jenseib, on Flickr


And things were not all working right…no drain stopper for the tub…the shower head was too short and I had to squat to get under it, the water temp was impossible to regulate…it took a bit to warm up…like 5 minutes and then I had my choice of scalding or burn your skin off.


The door to the left is the closet, the door straight ahead is the toilet.


myroom6 by Jenseib, on Flickr


myroom7 by Jenseib, on Flickr


myroom8 by Jenseib, on Flickr


myroom9 by Jenseib, on Flickr


myroom10 by Jenseib, on Flickr


myroom11 by Jenseib, on Flickr


myroom12 by Jenseib, on Flickr


myroom13 by Jenseib, on Flickr


I was club level this time, which meant alcohol and soft drinks in the room.


myroom14 by Jenseib, on Flickr


My friends were all near each other and had rooms near the walk out pools. I was a little jealous. However…my room had a great ocean view….I think I took a picture of it later and will post it when I come across it. I still liked their rooms a bit better and they were closer to everything.


rc40 by Jenseib, on Flickr


rc41 by Jenseib, on Flickr


rc42 by Jenseib, on Flickr


We all got our suits on and headed to the pool. It wasn’t quite as fun as yesterday but we still had a good time.

We then headed to the gift shop and found some things to purchase. We went to pay with our room key and were informed we didn’t have charging privileges. UGH! We filled out the paperwork…but someone must have never turned it in. The gals were slow and not the brightest bulbs…but they did agree to hold our stuff and we could come back later to pay…but it took FOREVER for them to get it set aside with our names on it.


I went back to shower and get ready for dinner….Oh no! Time flew by and I was running very late. I messaged the girls that I was running behind…they said they would wait, but I told them that was ok. They were having a drink and would wait. I quickly got dressed and ran back to the gift shop to pay as we needed to do so before the night ended…and of course I was 3 floors up and far away…so it wasn’t an easy run back to the room and get money type of thing….I paid…again having the slowest girl in the world ringing me up….and met my gals to head to dinner. They were in good spirits but I felt bad running so late.

 

[jenseib]

We were heading to the Thai restaurant so we had to catch the boat over to the island.


rc43 by Jenseib, on Flickr


We got to the dock and it was practically underwater from all the rain. It was kind of weird and I would have thought Sandals would have something better than that.


We moosied over and took our time and took pictures.


rc44 by Jenseib, on Flickr


rc45 by Jenseib, on Flickr


rc47 by Jenseib, on Flickr


rc48 by Jenseib, on Flickr


And we walked in and found a table of people waiting for us. OH no!!!! Once again we didn’t know we were going to be seated in a group. I apologized over and over. They were all so nice and said it was ok….they had made their drink orders and soon appetizers were brought out. It was a bit weird as we couldn’t order them…they brought out a pre-selected plate of them and they were for 2. I didn’t understand why we each just didn’t get our own plate.


rc49 by Jenseib, on Flickr


They were delicious though!


I am not super familiar with Thai food, so I got suggestions from friends and I think I had 2 different dishes combined into one…it was a little spicy hot, but it was very tasty.


rc50 by Jenseib, on Flickr


We hadn’t done much with the group of people we sat with tonight so we all introduced ourselves and before we knew it we were all laughing hysterically and telling stories….the one guy (he and his wife own a business together) was just hysterical. He had the funniest jokes and he had an accent which just made them even funnier. His wife would just shake her head…she says she hears these jokes all the time and they are not funny anymore…which made them even funnier.


We had a waiter take a group photo.


rc51 by Jenseib, on Flickr


Ellen and I started getting silly and were taking really funny selfies and sending them to our co-workers. Then Lenora and Marianne joined in too. The co-workers were sure we were drunk…but we were completely sober. We just were having a good time.


Dessert then came out.


rc52 by Jenseib, on Flickr


We talked some more and noticed the restaurant was empty and we looked at the time…..we were now about 30 minutes past the time the last boat was supposed to leave….ooops. We were having so much fun we totally lost track of time. We quickly left and made our way to the dock and headed back to the resort. What a fun evening it had been.


When we got back, we found out friend Kim outside of a bar and we sat with her and talked a bit.

We decided to head inside one of the bars and get some drinks. We had such a fun bartender.


He asked us a little about each of us and what we like and said he would make us each a drink.


Video

He was proud of his drinks!


rc53 by Jenseib, on Flickr


I don’t remember what we each had…but mine was something fruity.


We sat outside a bit and chatted.


Some of our friends were over at karaoke in another bar so we decided to head there next…and they were pouring shots.


rc54 by Jenseib, on Flickr


We all had one….I thought they were pretty weak….and gross! Tasted like raspberry medicine. ICK.


And the singing began!!!


rc55 by Jenseib, on Flickr


I am the world’s worst singer and I can’t carry a tune…but I will sing in a loud group of people…just not in a mic!


Ellen however is not shy.


rc56 by Jenseib, on Flickr


rc57 by Jenseib, on Flickr


This is just how wonderful we all sounded…..LOL.


Video.

Yeah…we were awful!


We had come in at the tail end of it and the DJ said he was moving back to the other bar to play music…OK then…we’ll go too.

We headed over and danced and laughed and just had so much silly fun.


rc58 by Jenseib, on Flickr


rc59 by Jenseib, on Flickr


rc60 by Jenseib, on Flickr


rc62 by Jenseib, on Flickr


And then someone asked for some kind of shots and we watched him make them.


rc61 by Jenseib, on Flickr


rc63 by Jenseib, on Flickr


And some selfies as we waited.


rc65 by Jenseib, on Flickr


rc64 by Jenseib, on Flickr


rc66 by Jenseib, on Flickr


He then lit them on fire and it was super cool looking.


Video

rc67 by Jenseib, on Flickr


rc68 by Jenseib, on Flickr


The guys working there were just really fun and nice too. Some of them…there job is basically to have fun with the clientele. Fiddy was one of them and he was dancing with us and he was super fun. He said he works long hours though some days but his job is pretty fun.


We finally had to wind it down and head off to bed. Tomorrow was basically a free day during the day and Britney and I wanted to go snorkeling. We all said our goodbyes and Marianne and I talked a bit more before heading off to our rooms…me making the horrid climb to the 3rd floor and soon I was drifting off to sleep!

 

[KarriTigger]

Thank you for posting this! I'm about to start Travel Agent training...and I'm interested in FAM's (I mean, who isn't!) and this is a neat way to see one...in pictures. Thank you!

 

[Grumpy's Wife]

Those drinks look fabulous!

 

[jenseib]

Thank you for posting this! I'm about to start Travel Agent training...and I'm interested in FAM's (I mean, who isn't!) and this is a neat way to see one...in pictures. Thank you!

Good luck. It may take a couple of years before you qualify for any. Most places have requirements you have to meet in order to go to them, but they are super helpful...but you are also extremely busy during them too. The one I just did in Universal had us going 10-12 hours a day.

Those drinks look fabulous!

I am not a big drinker but my favorites were when they made me a strawberry/mango daiquiri.