It’s an old hotel that was built on a plantation, its scenery is beautiful and it is well known for being a lovely location to get married. The hotel has a mixture of rooms, villas and suites where most of them overlook the sea and the view is amazing especially at sunset. Service received is great and pretty much everything is at your fingertips as just next door to the hotel is the Halfmoon Shopping Centre (selling everything from diamonds and clothes to arts and crafts there are also pubs and banks in the shopping centre) and there is also the internationally known Halfmoon Golf Course.

The hotel is a little bit pricey but for a chilled weekend alone with no disturbances I would recommend it. There are lots of activities to do such as windsurfing, sailing, snorkelling, hiking, volleyball and tennis. It has its very own horse stables for horseback riding and polo as well as its very own dolphin cove. The things I enjoy most about Half moon is that they allow you to rent bicycles and golf carts to ride around the plantation which is a great way to see more of it as well as to exercise for those who are looking for that.  As for restaurants and lounges there is the SeaGrape Terrance which is the Hotel’s very own restaurant, there is also the Sugar Mill restaurant which is found at the rear the hotel’s golf course.

Another thing I like about the hotel is that when you first check into your room they give you some Halfmoon butter and coconut cookies which taste quite nice and are free.

Having gone there several times before, I know Blue Beat Jazz and Blues bar to be among the most popular night time hang out in the Montego Bay city. The ambience is top quality and while the two burly security guards outside the door gives it an aura of exclusivity, it’s  quite welcoming once you get past the heavy door.

Upon entering, you’re greeted by a lounge-like ambience complimented by plush seating and a contemporary decor which starkly differs from Margaritaville just next door. Usually, I visit Blue Beat for its cool Jazz and Blues rhythms and a choice of drink from an extensive Martini list, however, for the first time I visited on a Saturday to experience their dance themed night. The DJ played his set and even though it was Reggae Sumfest Night 2 in the city, patrons conituously came in and everyone had a good time, dancing to Dancehall, Disco and Hip Hop beats overlooking the Northcoast sea–the atmosphere was fired-up, and the only thing that could kill that is high prices.

Rory enjoys a martini at Blue Beat Jazz and Blues Bar

Fortunately, while Blue Beat’s Martini price list is on the luxury side of the scale, you aren’t pressured to make a purchase, and entrance to the locale is absolutely free–if that’s not enough to warrant a visit then I’m not sure what it. I absolutely enjoyed it, and while the drink I ordered was nothing to write home about, the atmosphere definitely is.

Road side chicken meets fine dining.

Jerky’s Bar & Grill isn’t your typical Jerk Stop. Just from approaching the locale, it feels more commercialize than authentic (not implying that is a bad thing). They have a vast variety of food to choose from ie.) more than just the regular Jerk Pork and Chicken. That includes Chicken Wraps, Salad, Curry Chicken, Spare Ribs and Fish. A full bar compliments the food so you can pull up and have a drink with your friends.

Preparing a lovely dish

The encouraging thing is that the prices are quite reasonable. A Spare Rib dinner was $JA 650 ($US 8 ). Which is on the low side for spare ribs in Jamaica. After you cash, you head over to see your meal be prepared for you. It’s always something to see the chefs chopping your Jerk Chicken or Pork.

After receiving my order of Spare Ribs, I must say I wasn’t quite impressed by the look. “You get want you pay for rushed to my mind”. That quickly changed after I began eating it, it was quite good and well worth the money that I paid for it.

My order of Spare Ribs - JA $650

Jerky’s Bar and Grill is a great lunch stop for people looking to get some tasty Jamaica Jerk Chicken.

Patrons Enjoying Sumfest

Arriving just after 4pm on Friday afternoon, Jamaica’s second city was a hive of activity and after every few paces the word on everyone’s lips was Sumfest, and it didn’t start there. While boarding the bus in Kingston for a 4 hour long drive to Montego Bay, the first thing the bus driver asked me was whether I was going to Reggae Sumfest or not. My answer was, of course, yes, and not surprisingly I wasn’t the only one heading to the much anticipated festival.

Despite the rain and inevitable muddy conditions, patrons came out in scores for Reggae Sumfest International Night #1 no doubt eager to see acts like Gyptian, Etana and Chris Brown. However, it wasn’t until a couple hours after the gates opened that the patrons came out in their numbers as only an hour or so after starting time, when we arrived, the ground were still rather scant.

Chris Brown Performing at Reggae Sumfest

My night was pretty much made with Chris Brown’s performance–it was all too evident the amount of effort he put into wowing the crowd with hit after hit and hard hitting dance move after dance move. Gyptian was also a crowd pleaser, and although I was looking forward to it, Etana’s performance was all too familiar–I felt like I had seen the very same thing two years ago, when I first saw her perform at the 2008 Reggae Sumfest.

Newcomer Hezron did pretty well for himself and was kind enough to pose for a photo with me while I unfortunately, missed Protoge’s performance.

With long band changes, and only a couple sterling performances, Reggae Sumfest International Night #1 was stolen by Chris Brown and his high energy, high impact crowd pleasing performance. There is no one that could have outdone him that night, and it was an incredible lack of foresight for the promoters not to allow his performance to end the show.

While Jah Cure performed his hits, and the crowd was told to get ready for Queen Ifrica and Tony Rebel later on, only the dedicated fans and perhaps the press stayed on to see the show wrap up.

Patron Enjoying Gyptian's Performance

Although I’ve heard many regular patrons of the festival say this year’s three day Reggae Festivities was the best one yet, I can’t honestly come to that conclusion having only attended one night. However, I did have a terrific time, so terrific that I was little troubled by my muddy feet and the dewy night air. If I was promised another night of hassle free entry and exit to the Catherine Hall Grounds, Chris Brown’s and Gyptian’s performances as well as the wonderfully laid back atmosphere–I would definitely do the whole night, all over again.

Sumfest 2011? Can’t wait!

Getting in

Upon arriving at the venue, I was are assured of my safety. I passed countless amounts of Guards each equipped with their own security dog. When I reached the entrance to my surprise their was no crowd or even a line.  I was inside the venue within minutes of arriving.

Reach

The first thing that caught my eye were the massive amounts of booths that stretched along  the entire field. I quickly circled the area, trying to soaked in all that I could. I passed booths such as Digicel, Red Stripe, Craven A & Wata. After quickly surveying the area it was time to find my spot and soak in some of what Reggae Sumfest 2010 had to offer.

Grounds

The area as expected was quite muddy ( due to rainy weather), it was never really unmaneuverable but just enough to make you think twice about your next step. I spotted a vacant area albeit right next to a mud puddle which I claimed to be my own.

Music

Now on to the meat of the matter: The Music

The first two artists I saw  pretty much came and went. Steels and Hezron, the latter being a little more noteworthy than the first. Following Hezron, came Protoje who was the first artist that got my juices following and looking forward to what was to come. Protoje liven up  the crowd with his “Junior Going”-type rhymes and beats.

Following Protoje, was Gyptian. He pounced onstage most definitely dressed for the part in this jet-black blazer. Everything changed as Gyptian took the stage. Not only did people raise from their chairs but so did the energy level of the night. As he performed his old school hit “Serious Times”. Though everyone was patiently waiting for his current monster hit “Hold Yuh”, Gyptian finally gave into the crowd but not without a price. We only got a taste of “Hold Yuh” , but his entire performance made up for it.

Gyptian - Good Performance

Following Gyptian, was Etana.

Etana aka. The Strong One started strong; mixing her regular songs with music from different genres. That was a big stand out for me. I personally  love to see artist mix and match their talents. Etana rocked to the undeniable song of the summer “Wavin Flag – K’Naan” and also her original hits: “I am not Afraid” & “Roots” which the crowd really appreciated and made her know. Though as it relates to Etana she was probably a victim of her own success. I had high expectations of Etana, so the “decent” performance that she gave just wasn’t enough for me.

Etana - Decent Performance

Following Etana, was Chris Brown (CB).

I was most looking forward to his performance, I am a huge CB fan from the release of his first self titled debut album I was convinced. I always viewed CB as a singer more than a dancer / entertainer, my oh my was I wrong. He did all of this hits from new to old such as “Ain’t No Way”, Kiss Kiss, Run it & Yo while dancing and doing all what CB does best.

Chris Brown - Great Performance

During his performance, he called up a young lady who gratefully snapped at the chance to be serenaded by CB. He of course performed the appropriate “Take You Down” which got all of the females in the crowd going  hysterical.

After all of the bump and grind was finished, which as a male CB fan I was quite grateful for. He did what I thought was the “icing on the cake”. CB began to “deejay” and dance to not only current hip-hop hits but to LOCAL DANCEHALL hits such as Clarks – Vybez Kartel, Straight Jeans and Fitted -Vybez Kartel & Shabba Ranks – Tinga-linga-ling. Plus Other Jamaica influenced  songs such as Major Lazer- Pod De’ Floor & Brown Skin. This was by favorite part of the entire performance. CB then closed the show with Forever.

Chris Brown - Great Performance

I honestly feel Reggae Sumfest made a mistake, allowing CB to perform in the middle. As nothing could follow that energetic performance.

Following Chris Brown, was Jah Cure. From the start of his performance he fought a losing battle, it was almost impossible for someone so mellow to follow that CB performance. The vibe and energy garnered was lost and some persons even began to leave. Even his signature song “Longing For” only  got the crowd to slightly rock. He carried through making the best of his situation.

Jah Cure - Weak Performance

Ideal for vacationers who want to really explore Jamaica’s beautiful scenery

Montpelier also known as the Jungle Outpost, is the most rural of all the Chukka Caribbean locations. The bus journey through the jungles of Montpellier feels like a Safari tour in itself.

After reaching you will be separated into which tours you are doing for the day. I got geared up ( with my helmet, gloves and safety harness). Then I went to my first tranverse, upon reaching the first traverse I was greeting with safely spiels. The most important instruction “Don’t touch anything, just relax and have fun”.

Upon reaching my turn to Zip, I placed my camera in my shorts pocket. After zipping half across I look behind and saw my camera stumbling down the hill behind me. One of the tour guides later retrieved my camera for me . Zipping over the rivers and landscape is definitely a relaxing experience. You feel as ease, it doesn’t go too fast or too slow but at the right speed to put a smile on your face.

One thing that Chukka Caribbean Adventures has going for them, are their experienced and professional tour guides. Never during the tour do you feel that you aren’t safe or that the tour guides are not in control. Also a plus is how funny they are, sometimes you find yourself laughing through the entire traverse. The guides have found the right mix between comedy and professionalism.

What to Bring:

1.) Carry a backpack, To put your camera and any other valuables in.

Check out this Zip Line Video:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=CiybNIP9DTU

Ideal for vacationers who want to really explore Jamaica’s beautiful scenery

Upon reaching this location I felt at ease, coming off the bus the first thing I noticed was the beach. The location looked inviting and calm. I went through the usual process of registering and signing the wavier, After I signed my wavier I got geared up and my guide ( Jamal) directed me and the other riders to the ATV’s. Upon reaching the ATV’s Jamal introduces himself and goes around the line trying to guess where everyone is from. To be fair he got a couple right, though he guessed that I was from Canada.

The ATV’s looked surprising clean, when I boarded my ATV Jamal gave us the safety spiel (where you are shown the hand signals and also how to operate the ATV), After the safety spiels you are off and ready for your practice run. If felt great to finally start riding.
After everyone handled the practice run fine, we finally got going and we began our ATV Safari. We rode through dusty roads, up and down hills, through rivers and even through a village. The latter being quite an experience as the children from the village actually came out and waved to us. There are a couple pit stops along the way for the riders to not only catch a breath and relax but for the Guides to share interesting facts about the lovely island of Jamaica. We were given a first hand view of Jamaican Bamboo (Suicide Plant), Ackee and even what makes Jamaican Patties.

Three things which I took from the Tour were : Exploration, the Safari aspect and how professional and funny the tour guides were.

Exploration : we traveled through deep rural Jamaica, stopping to pick certain Jamaica fruits and plants along the way. The Safari, initially I was under the impression that we would be riding the ATV’s within a constraint area i.e..) a dirt track through obstacle cones. To say I was proven wrong would be a vast understatement, we drove through dirt, mud and even a river ( where you had to hold your legs up if you didn’t want to get dirty)
Lastly, the tour guides, Our main tour guide Jamal and he was accompanied by two support guides. Jamal was hilarious, he shared jokes with us throughout the entire tour, we even had an impromptu wedding at the top of a mountain. The tour guides really went all out to make us feel safe and at ease.
The ATV Safari was a wonderful experience, I would recommend to anyone who loves the outdoors and doesn’t mind getting a little muddy.

Category : Event
Location: Catherine Hall
Name: Reggae Sumfest Music Festival
Date: July 17-24, 2010
Address: Montego Bay, St. James
Phone: 876-953-5200
URL: http://reggaesumfest.com/
Average Ticket Price: $50 USD
Food at Venue: Yes
Ticket Sales: It is best to get tickets pre-sold at any of these locations; tickets are also sold at the gate.

Summer is the time for fun, sun and awesome melodies that make the season memorable. Every Summer, there are a plethora of high energy and highly anticipated Summer Music Festivals across the waters from Coachella in California to Glastonbury in the UK. However, in our vibrant little island home we rarely ever miss a beat–our very own 4 day Reggae Sumfest Music Festival is the Summer music highlight across the region, and this Summer 2010 that is no exception.

The Music

Be prepared for high energy acts and pitch perfect performances that will sway you through the night until morning. My trip to sumfest 2008 took me by complete surprise–I went completely unprepared with nothing but my ticket money and my two long hands. I stood for the entire night, not feeling blighted in the least as the music was fantastic and the turnout of music lovers surrounding me created nothing short of an easy going and at times rather entertaining atmosphere. In 2008, I attended International Night 1, and was lucky to see acts like Etana, Tarrus Riley, Queen Ifrica, Lil’ Wayne and T-Pain who were all absolutely en pointe.

The Venue

Catherine Hall, St. James is at the heart of the capital, Montego Bay. The venue, like most music festival grounds, is wide open grassy space facing a stage setup. The venue will have tents and booths from sponsors, and vendors selling food and other niceties. The venue is well equipped with non-portable and portable bathrooms that are kept as clean as the guests allow it to be. There will be space to open up a portable chair, or spread a towel, but this is definitely not a tent pitching event.

What to Bring

• Bring your ticket, bring your vibes and leave the contraband someplace far away.
• Take a chair or a blanket to rest your feet between sets, or if you’re hardcore like me you can stand it out!
• Don’t forget your camera to capture those special moments.
• Dress for comfort. Dress for the chance of cold, and dress for the chance of rain. No stilettos or frilly dresses; if it rains there will be mud, and if there is mud it will be on your shoes and possibly, your frilly dress.

At The Event

You’re in Jamaica, so expect the unexpected, or even in some cases the infamously expected. You may see men selling Marijuana in plain view of police [I sure did], but remember, Marijuana and pretty much all other drugs are illegal in all 14 parishes of Jamaica. You may not see the man being harrassed for selling the weed, and you may even see others purchasing from him scotch free–but you mightn’t be so lucky–so be wise and be careful!

You will be searched before entering the venue, so again, leave the weapons and drugs someplace far away.

Be early–don’t listen to what people say about “Jamaica Time” Sumfest opens its gates at 7:30pm and the Show will start at 8:00pm–so don’t be late or you’ll miss your favourite acts.

There is always a chance of rain, especially in the late night into early morning, so come prepared because even if it rains the show must, and will definitely go on!

Having never been to any other Summer Music event outside of the region, Sumfest has become my highly anticipated Summer music fest. So Believe me when I say, you will have fun and you will tell all your friends: Hope to see you there!