Charis and Bryan's Hedonism III Trip, August 20-23 2001
On Monday morning, August 20th, at four am, Bryan and I left for Logan Airport in Boston MA. We checked in at Air Jamaica and sat around for a while, then boarded the plane. I’d brought along a snack of a pina colada muffin in the spirit in our trip, and Bryan had his traditional blueberry muffin. The breakfast they provided was halfway edible, so we were happy. Once we arrived in Jamaica and stepped off the plane, it was like stepping into a sauna! It must have been at least 90 degrees. We only had to wait about fifteen minutes for our bus, then we took a roller coaster-like ride from Montego Bay to Runaway Bay. Our bus driver also dealt drugs on the side, but he was an entertaining tour guide at least. We were able to view the poverty of Jamaica up close on the way to Hedonism III; their main road was barely the size of my rural back Maine roads and there were people roaming the streets trying to sell anything and everything to make a living. It’s a beautiful country, the Caribbean Sea is bright blue and very clear, and the wildlife and forests are amazing. After a short rest stop and an hour and a half of insane driving, we reached Hedonism III. What a lovely resort! It’s very well maintained, the staff is so pleasant, and everyone we met there was really nice. Checking in was very easy. Our room was beautiful - the mirrors on the ceiling were just too cool! I’m definitely glad I read the post that said to bring vinegar to combat the bugs, cause we had plenty of them and it worked. Other than that the room was very clean - the maids were great, we had flowers, champagne, hors d’oeuvres, it was all wonderful!!! Our room was 111, right outside of the clothing-optional pool, the best pool in our opinion cause it’s the least crowded. We headed right off to the nude beach to make sure that we wouldn't’t chicken out. As soon as I saw that not everyone there was a size 2 (and most people were not), I felt more comfortable. It wasn’t nearly as crazy as we’d heard, although this was in the middle of the day. We went for a swim and sunbathed. The tropical sun is much stronger than in the US, so we were careful to use and reapply sunblock. On Monday night, we went to the disco for ‘70s night, which was a lot of fun. I wore a short brown dress with pastel-colored flowers, platforms, a tiara, and lots of gaudy jewelry and makeup. Tuesday was our most relaxed day. We woke up late, had a nice breakfast, went down the waterslide (I lost a contact but I got clip-on sunglasses in the gift shop), went kayaking, had a yummy lunch at the Scotch Bonnet, and relaxed with frozen drinks at the clothing-optional pool and Jacuzzi. For dinner I had a delicious tuna steak and smoked mackerel at the Pastafarai, then Bryan and I and went to bed early. Wednesday was very eventful. We’d tried to go sailing on Tuesday but they’d told us it was too windy with Hurricane Chantal recently passing through, only professional sailors could go out. I’m no professional but I’m a lifeguard and a sailing instructor, so we decided to return the next (Wed) morning when it might be less windy. So we took out a little Aquafin and we were fine heading out to sea because we were on a run, which means that the wind was pushing us. However, the boat wouldn’t tack (turn) because the 40-50 mile per hour winds were bouncing off of the island and coming from all directions. The waves were very high and coming over the sides; my poor fiancé Bryan was turning green (he doesn’t like to sail, he was just humoring me). Finally, I decided to jibe (a more dangerous turn), which enabled us to head inland. We were doing so with the huge waves until finally a monster wave capsized our little boat. We were both fine, but Bryan lost his sunglasses. A guy from Hedo was out to get us in 5 minutes, which was great rescue time, especially considering there was nothing really wrong. It was the scuba diving boat, so we waited a bit to pick the divers up, which was unfortunate considering Bryan’s seasickness. Then we towed the sailboat behind us - you know the weather’s bad when even the instructors don’t sail the boat back in! After that ordeal (which I thought was fun except for the lost glasses and sickness) I put Bryan to bed and went back, when Neil and Fabel took me out on the 16’ Hobiecat. That was great, we were going so fast! We were up on one pontoon for quite a lot of the ride. That day I also went on the glass bottom boat, which was really cool. Going into the watersports area almost every time I ran into a drug dealer. They were everywhere; you have to realize that this is a poor country. They come in on from the rocks on the beaches trying to make a few bucks from the rich tourists. Wednesday afternoon Bryan and I went on the trapeze. The instructors were really nice. The only thing is that you cannot be drinking, which makes sense. Bryan went first and he had a blast. He climbed up the ladder and got on the trapeze while I took pictures. He swung back and forth and then hung from his knees. When he finished up he was really excited and liked it a lot. I decided to try it myself, which was a big mistake. I forgot that I was afraid of heights, which can be a problem when hanging in midair from the trapeze. After jumping on the trapeze I swung back and forth before I decided that I had had enough and told them I wanted to get down, which I did without a problem. Bryan decided to do it again and then we left. That night we were planning to return to the Pastafari, so we made reservations, but we heard there was going to be a bonfire on the beach with seafood. So we cancelled the reservations, looked for the bonfire, found out it was cancelled, and had to reschedule. Our only complaint is that they didn’t let us know. I had the fettuccini and Bryan had the spaghetti, they were both wonderful, as is the tiramisu. We went to bed early again because I wanted to do watersports, and they are either only offered in the morning or when the water is calmer (depending on the sport). On Thursday we woke up at 7 to pack and check out, ate our last great Hedo breakfast, then went to the prude beach. I went on another Hobiecat ride and practiced snorkeling. We checked in at Hedo III rather than at the airport, which saved a lot of time, because the airport line was huge! We went to the hammocks (which were unfortunately not very comfortable), back to the nude beach for one last swim, the glass bottom Jacuzzi, and we went on the 1 pm snorkeling trip and saw some amazing coral and tropical fish. We had lunch at the main dining hall (the smoked marlin, pecan pie, and mango were very good). Then, all of a sudden, it was time to leave. After many more near-death experiences, we were back in Montego Bay. Many people have complained about the bus ride, but other than the all-important fact that it’s unsafe, I’m glad I got to see a lot of Jamaica rather than just the resort. Reality smacked us in the face on the plane - a mother with a baby sat behind us, and it did not stop crying the entire time. Dinner was chicken with pasta, not bad for plane food. We saw the movie Kingdom Come with a character named “Charisse,” pretty neat! The landing was horrible, the pilot must have been new. We arrived home in Hollis, New Hampshire at 1:15, quite tired and much more tanned. A special thank you to our favorite bartender Kevin, to the best sailors around, Neil and Fabel, thanks Kitten, and hi to Terry, Diane, Larry, Melanie, Jeremy, Shane, “Maggie,” and Eva.