Bloggers and Hostels in Jamaica

You know I always rave about meeting the coolest people in Jamaica right?  Well they aren’t always Jamaican – I’ve also met some of the most awesome people from all over the world because of the island and this blog.

I spent part of my last trip in Runaway Bay reviewing some places to stay on the north coast.  While there I was communicating with Natalie Gerald, a travel blogger I got to know through the internet over the past little while.  She was staying in Ocho Rios at the same time I was in nearby Runaway Bay so we made plans to link up.  I LOVE meeting people for the first time that I’ve been corresponding with.

Natalie was staying at the Reggae Hostel right on Main Street in Ochi.  I’d never heard of it so this was news to me and I was interested in seeing it.  We made a plan to meet one evening at the hostel for drinks and let me tell you, Natalie is a real cool spirit.  That’s her on the far right and the girl in the middle is another travel blogger from France who was also staying at the hostel.

So this hostel is really easy to find on Main street right across from the casino in Ocho Rios.  The entrance to the hostel is up a walkway on the side of the building, at a gate leading into a secure courtyard.  When I went into the courtyard I was surprised to see so many young, foreign travelers all sitting around a table eating, listening to music and just having a nice time.  These kids were from everywhere and all the different accents were cool to hear.  Natalie introduced me to them all as she had gotten to know them during her stay at the hostel.

The coolest part of the whole place is this thing called the Peace Wall inside the courtyard.  It’s one entire wall of the building where guests are free to leave a tag, a drawing, or write whatever they want!  So of course I tagged it with Jamaica My Way and so did the other girls with their own blog names.

The little shop at the hostel was closed and I wanted a drink so Natalie, myself and a dog that hangs at the hostel walked all the way over to the Rubis gas station to buy a flask of rum.  On the way back to the hostel I stopped at my car to get a piece of pizza for our loyal follower, the dog lol.

After a couple hours of visiting I decided to start the drive back to Runaway Bay and turn in but that wasn’t the last I saw of Natalie.  She and I, along with another girl we both met separately but ended up knowing Natalie, all met up for lunch at John Crows on Main street.  It was so neat meeting these people I knew from Facebook all in the same spot.  Small world!

The morning after our lunch date Natalie was leaving the island and I was leaving the north coast.  She needed a ride to the airport but was having a hard time finding one for a 6:30am airport run.  So I thought what the heck!  I had to pass through Mobay anyway so I might as well do it at 6:30am!  I picked her up at 5:00 am in Ochi and we enjoyed a beautiful Sunday morning drive on the north coast highway watching the sun come up.

Of course no drive of mine would be complete without a police story.  Just outside of Mobay we encountered a huge random police roadblock and of course they pulled me over.  At 6:00 am on a Sunday morning.  Weird.  The officer was taking his time telling me what he wanted so I told him to hurry it up because my passenger had to catch a flight lol.  He made me reverse all the way back to his superintendent for no reason.  Once I backed all the way up to that guy he looked inside the car and told me to go be on my way.  Okay.  I still have no idea why that happened.

Anyway, it was a pleasure meeting you Natalie!  I’m sure we’ll meet again and happy travels!