Published: March 27, 2008 06:32 am            

Travel: Capping off a Jamaican visit

NEW CASTLE, Pa. — Johnny Cash once had a home in Jamaica, about 10 miles east of Montego Bay.

Noel Coward and Ian Fleming also had Jamaican residences.

I discovered this while on a tour of the Cinnamon Hill golf course with instructor, Herman Marsh. He pointed out Cash’s winter home, which can be seen from the fairway of the 14th hole.

“The first nine holes are on the flats near the ocean,” said Marsh as we started our tour via golf cart of the course. “The back nine are higher up in the mountain with some spectacular views of the ocean.”

Besides the Caribbean panoramas, Cinnamon Hill also holds some of the most fascinating sights golfers likely ever will encounter while engaged in their favorite pastime. They include an old stone aqueduct that leads to a now-defunct sugar mill, a waterfall behind the 15th green where a scene from the Bond thriller “Live and Let Die” was filmed and an old cemetery near a hole aptly named “Dead and Gone.”

Nearby, the 1780 Rose Hall Great House was the residence of Annie Patterson, a.k.a. “the White Witch of Jamaica.” Born in Haiti, Annie is said to have learned the black arts from a voodoo princess. At 18, she married John Palmer, the wealthy owner of Rose Hall Plantation. Three years later, Palmer died, supposedly of yellow fever, although legend has it that he was poisoned.

Two more husbands came and went, along with Annie’s penchant for flogging her slaves and taking lovers from overseers and their charges before having them dispatched when they no longer pleased her. Annie’s own death came about in December 1831, when a slave-lover named Takoo strangled her in her sleep.

Restored to its original grandeur, Rose Hall Great House is open for touring. The imposing structure is one of only 15 that survive of the approximately 700 great houses that once dominated the island’s sugar plantations. In 1831, a slave rebellion resulted in the looting and burning of a majority of the island’s plantation mansions. Annie’s Rose Hall was spared because rioters feared the ghost of the infamous “White Witch.”

Later that day, on a drive to Harmony Hall, four miles west of Ocho Rios, we passed by Dolphin Cove, the most visited marine attraction on the island, where visitors can swim with bottlenose dolphins and, unbelievably, with sharks.

For those interested in seeing Jamaican art, Harmony Hall displays the work of close to 60 painters, sculptors and carvers in a building that originally served as a mid-1800s Methodist manse.

The first floor of the building houses Toscanini’s, one of Jamaica’s finest Italian restaurants and holder of several awards for superb food and excellent service. Brother and sister Lella and chef Pierluigi Ricci operate the charming eatery that features an ever-changing menu depending on what fresh ingredients are available.

For an over-the-top dining experience, try the Luna Di Mare Restaurant at the Rose Hall Resort and Country Club.

During the meal, the food and beverage manager sent over five exotic drinks for my dining party to try, with exotic names like Sweetsop Bellini, made from sparkling wine and sweetsop ( a Jamaican fruit) puree. We also got to try a six-course tasting menu from the resort’s premier Three Palms Restaurant, unfortunately booked the evening of my visit.

General Manager Dermot Connolly had the executive chef prepare for our table delights that started with cream of pumpkin soup and ended with a dessert sampler. It was definitely an evening to remember.



Dave Zuchowski writes for the New Castle (Pa.) News.







IF YOU’RE GOING ...

Jamaica





•For more information on Jamaica, call (800) 233-4582 or log on to www.visitjamaica.com.

•For a place to stay, why not try Rose Hall Resort and Country Club? For information, log on to www.rosehallresort.com. or Beaches Resorts www.beachesjamaica.com.

•For more information on the Luna Di Mare Restaurant at the Rose Hall Resort and Country Club, visit www.rosehallresort.com.

•To learn more about Rose Hall, visit www.rosehall.com.

•For more information on Harmony Hall, visit www.harmonyhall.com.

•Apple Vacations is offering its seven day, all-inclusive Jamaica vacation flying nonstop from Pittsburgh to Montego Bay, now through April 19. The package includes air fare, meals and beverages, hotel accommodations at a number of resorts scattered over the island, taxes, gratuities, non-motorized water sports and land transfers. Air only options are also available. Call (800) 517-2000 or visit www.applevacations.com.

        

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