Biking Down Blue Mountains

The days are passing much too quickly.  I wish our honeymoon here in Jamaica could go on forever:)  We are both feeling so spoiled, and we're loving every minute of it!  Tuesday evening we ordered room service dinner again. This time I chose the "Saumon Fume": Smoked salmon served with caviar, sour cream and capers. I'm not very accustomed to caviar, but I have to say, it was pretty good.  It's definitely a textural experience.  The eggs tasted like condensed sea, and they popped like little water balloons on the roof of my mouth.  The salmon was excellent, especially when mixed with capers and a dab of sour cream. Very good meal!

Afterwards we wandered down to the chocolate bar, which had about 20 plates of chocolate goodies, and a chocolate volcano to coat fresh chunks of fruit. I kept to the solid chocolates and the chococano. We loaded up our plates, walked onto the beach, and enjoyed our chocolate while reclining on beach chairs watching for shooting stars.

The next morning we woke up to room service knocking on our door to deliver our breakfast. It's awesome having your breakfast delivered every morning. We have an ocean-view room on the top floor of our building. Sitting with each other, having meals, completely private, the sounds of gently lapping waves in the background, the distant cries of gulls, and the wind blowing through the coconut trees; it's all very romantic. Like I said... I could get used to this:)

After breakfast we headed off to the Blue Mountains, to take part of a mountain biking adventure.  The ride was about 2 hours, so I was able to really get a good look at the countryside of Jamaica. Mindy said it was just like Tanzania, and I thought it was very similar to the less wealthy areas of China.  But it was beautiful everywhere. The Blue Mountains were gorgeous and tropical. The air was warm, humid, and sweet with the scent of flowers and vegetation.

The bike trip ended up being only one way; down hill.  They brought us up as far as they could go and then guided us down the narrow winding road we had just driven up.  We stopped whenever we wanted to, talked with the locals, took in the views, and looked completely ridiculous in the helmets and pad get-ups they forced us to wear. 

At half-way point, we stopped at a small restaurant/coffee roasting station for lunch.  They served us Jerk Chicken with spicy rice boiled in coconut milk. I asked them about the various gluten sources I needed to avoid, and they assured me none were used.  It was an awesome meal. My lips were left slightly tingly and my whole body was being warmed from the inside out. 

Our meal was finished off with a freshly roasted, ground, and brewed cup of Blue Mountain Coffee.  I drank it black. Not something I typically do; I'm a light and sweet guy. But I could see the oil droplets, filled with flavor, appearing at the surface of the coffee after every agitation, and I had to know its taste. It was great. Very earthy and rich. I didn't even mind that it was black. It tasted that good. And it was grown right there, right around where I was sitting. I could see coffee plants all around me, scattered along the steep slopes.  I had passed many on the side of the road while riding down the hill.  And what I was drinking right now was locally harvested by Jamaicans working for a Jamaican company.  I just love this stuff!

After our meal we finished off the biking tour with a dip in a pool under a waterfall.  I was the first to swim out and climb behind the waterfall, and I dove off of every rock I could find:)  It was a great way to end the trip! I took in everything again as we drove back to our resort, enjoying every scene, knowing that all too soon this amazing adventure would come to pass. Like every other journey before it.  Like every journey ahead.