Crane Beach

We set out for Crane Beach and were not quite sure we were going to make it.  All was good until we hit a detour due to road construction.  We went around in a few circles before figuring out the way.  Earlier we stopped at the post office to mail my mom a postcard.  We grabbed some donuts from the donut lady.  Who knew those donuts would carry us over until we stopped at Cutters.  It is a house converted to a restaurant out by Crane Beach.  They have the best rum punch!  We got to sample it.  Note to self, though, check the marmalade before spreading it on toast.  Turns out it was orange.  I am not a fan and ruined some good toast.

There is a public access to Crane Beach.  Or, you can pay at the resort to ride their elevator down.  We chose the public access which involves walking on stepping stones strategically placed on the cliff.  This beach is supposed to be one of the top in the world.  It is very nice - if it weren't for all the seaweed.  For whatever reason parts of Barbados were plagued with tons of seaweed.  On this day, it wasn't too bad.  The waves were some of the best body surfing ever!  The boys had so much fun they forgot to reapply sunscreen and felt the effects of it the next day.

My eyes are so sensitive to the glare.  I got in about waist deep but could not surf for fear of losing my sun glasses.

 What a wonderful day at the beach!

Harbor Lights

We bit the bullet and went to Harbor Lights.  It is a dinner show on the beach.  

 You sat at picnic tables in the sand.

 We took selfies around the table
 Pumpkin - -

 Peanut - -

 The Big Guy - -

 Yours truly - -

They started the night with a band and balloons.

They got us all up on the sand dance floor.  There were hidden treasures in the sand.  Look what Pumpkin found.

 I was off getting a drink when Peanut and the Big Guy got pulled to the dance floor!

 The Big Guy got tapped to do the limbo.  Wow!  The real limbo dancer was over-the-top flexible.

 Dancers performed on stilts.

 We danced and danced embarrassing the boys.

 Then, it was over.

Transportation was included in the price.  It was nice to hop in the van and get a ride back to the condo.

The follow up feedback from the boys was the evening was cheesy and touristy.  That it was, but still a great night.  The food was good.  We laughed, danced and had fun.  What more could you ask for?

George Washington

Did you know the only country George Washington traveled to outside the USA was Barbados?  We didn't until we went there.  George traveled to Barbados with his step brother who was battling tuberculosis.  One doctor claimed the air in Barbados was healing air.  Anyway, we toured the house George stayed in.  He contracted small pox while in Barbados.  They claim that gave him immunity to stay healthy during our revolutionary war.

 Back when George was there, you could see the ocean from this window.

The tour guide was just lovely.  He asked where we were from.  When we said Memphis, he quickly said, "Z Bo!"  So surprising that the first thought of Memphis was a local basketball player and not Elvis.  In Zach Randolph's defense, he does lots of good for the community.

Vaca Sunday

We got up early Sunday morning with the intention of going to church.  So much for being able to find the church!  According to the map, it was supposed to be right there.  I normally have a great sense of direction too!  We never found it and opted for breakfast.  The breeze in Barbados was lovely.  It is constant.  Probably should have given more thought to the hairstyle.  I needed it to be longer or shorter to fair better in the winds.

Later in the afternoon, we hit a beach that was close by.  It was a tad bit grey out, but did not hamper the time spent in the ocean.

Right across the street from the condo was a restaurant.  We tried it out for dinner.  Their specialty was tapas.  We shared a variety.  I migrated back to my favorite, hummus.  What these pictures can't capture is the sound of the ocean hitting the shore about 50 yards away.  The sound and the saltwater air is just magical!

As is custom on vacation, we tend to only eat two meals a day.  That gives us the right to splurge on desserts, right?  The Big Guy and I shared.  It was okay.  The presentation was gorgeous, though.

Barbados is not a volcanic island.  It was formed from limestone simplifying the water purification process.  As a result, their tap water is fine to drink.  We were so glad to find this out as we all tend to drink lots of water.

To Barbados

Our family vacation this summer was to Barbardos.  Peanut had never been out of the country.  What a great time we had!  I found a steal of a deal out of Atlanta.  So, we drove there to start the first leg of our trip.

Pumpkin battled a respiratory thing during the time he was home.  He was feeling better as we headed on our trip.  Once he put those headphones on, he was out.  I was sitting in front of him and snapped this photo.

We had a layover in Miami.  The Big Guy was wishing he'd brought his fleece jacket as the airport was so cold.  They had interesting sculpture decor in the terminal.

We had time to grab a sit down lunch while waiting for our flight.

We were excited for an international flight.  After all, Barbados is pretty far south.  As it turns out, our plane was an old one.  Peanut sat in front of us.

 The three of us filled up the row behind.

Love the cans we got on the flight!  Little did I know it, but this trip sparked the adventurous spirit in me.  I'm ready to see more of the world!

 By the time we landed in Barbados and went through customs, it was late.

We rented a car online.  It turns out the pics did not match their fleet.  We ended up with a Hyundai Picanto.  It was pretty comical watching us squeeze into that little car.  To top it off, they drive on the left side of the road!  Let the adventures begin!!

Touching

Pumpkin had three weeks for his summer break.  We filled up the three weeks and enjoyed every minute.  For his last week of break, we headed to Barbados.  As we left for the airport, Pumpkin got some kisses and gave some well received pets to the puppy dog.  After the beach, Pumpkin was headed right back up to Connecticut.  Had to get some sweet puppy dog time to hold him over until November.  This just melts my heart.