Yes I know I'm almost exactly three weeks late on this, but it's here, isn't it?
Obviously, Husband and I returned from Jamaica safe and sound and with sunburns fading. I've had worse burns, but I don't remember any quite so painful. Since the tops of my thighs were so badly burned, every time I bent, lifted, turned, or straightened my legs was agony. Activities involving these movements include sitting, standing, walking, dancing, climbing stairs, getting dressed, and sleeping. Yes, sleeping - how many times do you change positions, or even simply shift, while you're sleeping? Result: I went several nights with only a couple of hours of sleep, leaving a very tired, pained, and helpless Rosie. And if any of you make any Rosy Rosie jokes, I will officially ban you from this blog!
To add insult to injury, I also severely burned underneath my flip flop straps, making walking anywhere a trick. I've finally figured out how it happened: when I put on my sunblock, I put it on before slipping on my flip flops. The straps rubbed off the sunblock, and the sand sloughed off any remaining smudges of it; then I kicked off my flip flops when we sat in the sun, leaving those poor unprotected stripes on top of my feet at the mercy of the Caribbean sun. Now, what did we learn about sunblock-application sequence?
But, in the words of Kate Gosselin, I think that's enough negativity, don't you?
Let's turn that frown upside down.
That's a smile, not an upside-down frown!
Jamaica is always a good idea. For our first trip as a couple, now-Husband and I went to
Sandals Royal Caribbean; for our honeymoon in 2005, we went to
Sandals Whitehouse. In fact, to own it, Jamaica is the only place I've ever been outside the United States! While I hate to be a walking advertisement, we are fond of an all-inclusive vacation, and Sandals has treated us well in the past. This time we went to a side of the island we've never been to before, and tried the
Sandals Grande Ocho Rios.
Ocho Rios is in the rainforesty, northeastern part of Jamaica so, while it did rain pretty much every day, the grounds were absolutely spectacular with bright gardens and lush foliage. Besides, it gave me a chance to catch up on the reading I'd been neglecting. I polished off
Interpreter of Maladies (Lahiri),
The Department of Lost and Found (Winn Scotch), and
Mansfield Park (Austen), so I am now able to say I've read everything of Jane Austen. Admittedly, none of these were light enough to be called "beach reading," but that's just how I roll.
Our room was on the Manor side of the resort, which was a little more secluded and private. But not too private - we had the regular company of one of the stray resort cats who had deemed our villa and the ones adjacent to be her personal territory.
Once we got a chance to explore the resort, we found that there were actually two sides to it: the mountainside resort (the part where we stayed), and the beachside resort.
The mountainside resort had the best pools - including this two-level wonder, complete with waterfall and waterslide:
Both Husband and I took a turn on it on our last day, and while it looks tame, it picks up speed awfully quickly! Husband made a fantastic splash on his run, and I cleaned my sinuses with chlorinated water on mine.
But who goes to Jamaica for a pool? (Other than the scads of people who spent literally their entire week camped out around it of, course.) No, no, you go to Jamaica to see this:
In contrast to most of our vacations, we took it pretty easy this time and mostly used our stay to relax beachside and to drink and eat entirely too much. (Ah, rice and peas! Ah, Jamaican beef patties! I shall miss you!) We did, however, work in three trips of snorkeling in water that looked like this:
That's right! Be jealous! The reefs were really beautiful too, full of colorful fish and bright corals. However, since we failed to bring an underwater camera and chose not to buy the underwater disposable camera at the resort gift shop for $25, you'll have to be satisfied with this above-water shot:
Look closely - there are lots of little stripey fish in there!
Every night we'd get drinks at one of the bars and walk out on the pier to our favorite evening spot and have our very own personal cocktail hour. Here's what it looked like (complete with the only picture of me you're ever likely to find on here, courtesy of Husband):
We also spent our 4th wedding anniversary there (Happy Anniversary Honey!), and celebrated with dinner at our favorite restaurant, complete with a full bottle of champagne. And then, just because we could - and because it was free! - we had a second dinner at the other evening-attire-required restaurant on the resort. How often can you go to Italy and Thailand in three hours?
However, as all things must, the week came to a close, and we bid goodbye to Resort Kitty, Banana Leaf, Colorful Fishies, and Waterslide Pool. Jamaica may always be a good idea, but sometimes you're just ready to come home.
