Warning! Long entry and no pics of the girls...but nice ones of the parents. :) Joe and I went on a much needed (for me anyway) trip away without the girls last week to celebrate our fourth anniversary and my birthday. My mom came in on a Sunday and we took off on Thursday. We started off with a very early morning to catch a 7AM flight, only to be delayed due to mechanical problems. Fortunately it was a good thing because we were put on a direct flight into Miami and actually arrived an hour earlier than planned.
A funny thing that happened, while we were waiting to have our flight figured out, was that we recognized one of our fellow passengers. We’re pretty sure the woman was the one who picked Sofia up to dance with her last summer, at a festival, and gave her golden fish beads that Sofia still wears around the house and says “the old lady gave them to me.” We wanted to say something hello, but she and her husband were arguing the whole time and then he became more obnoxious by berating the gate attendants and another passenger who had suggested he keep his comments to himself.
Here’s the flower child:
The only downside to our delay (aside from waking up earlier than needed) was that Joe and I had to sit in different rows. Well, it just made my heart grow fonder (cue, for “awwww.”). The flight was uneventful and arrived by 11AM. Our hotel reminded me of a hip European hostel, trendy and furnished by Ikea.
That’s the size of our room. Just the bed and bathroom.
Joe models the cool, see-through bathroom wall
The shower was about the size of our cabinOur room overlooked the tiny pool and the hotel was full of Europeans, including a strange French 12 year-old boy that was running around the lobby in his tidy whities and then seemed to be bathing (complete with a washcloth) by the pool.
Glimpse of strange boyThe
Clinton Hotel South Beach ("a great president" according to our cabbie) was a few blocks away from Ocean Drive and the beach, so the location was great. The ambiance was wanna-be beautiful people, complete with an “intimacy packet” next to the bed (you don’t want to know) and the sexy room sign. So we fit right in….ha, ha.
We had a wonderfully leisurely brunch, complete with Bloody Marys, at “News Café” and spent the rest of the day on the beach.
Self-portraitI wanted to club hop that night as the hotel stay included “VIP” passes to some area clubs, but it was really just a “jump to the front of the line” pass and still pay $20 for one club. In any case, we started the night by having dinner at a seemingly cool supper club called “B.E.D”. But it was very early by club standards, 8PM and alas it wasn’t a club night. We dined next to a Russian woman and her teenage son who played games on his cell phone the whole time, and a mother/daughter from the UK who were apparently out on the town. The music was good, but the video that played over and over was some nature documentary. We made the most of it, dining in “bed” and the food was good.
You can see the Russian woman peeking over at us and her kid hunched over his phone. I’m modeling a chiplote-glazed salmon.
We ordered the four-course special and sampled their Global tapas. Dessert was very good.
Joe was in the mood for sushi, so after dinner, we went to have more dinner. A friend recommended Sushi Samba and we headed over to Lincoln Road. Unfortunately I was stuffed so I just ordered edamane, but Joe’s sushi was excellent. The vibe was very mod and trendy and the music was great. Here’s our old DJ. And the 1920’s soft-porn projected on the walls was almost innocent (topless “rockette” types dancing on the wing of an airplane, for example).
He doesn’t seem pleased by my attention.Despite my desire to club hop, we called it an early night and were in bed by midnight! I blame Fiona waking me up at 3AM the morning we left (and then had to leave the house by 4:30AM).
The next morning we had a quick run along the beach and then breakfast on Ocean Drive (again) and enjoyed our (augh, surprise!) $25 Bloody Marys. They reeled us in by offering a $4.25 breakfast. Should have known there was a catch!
After breakfast we went to our ship and spent the afternoon by the pool.
Hasta luego, MiamiThe cruise was very relaxing and we just ate and drank. Our first stop, the next day, was to Coco Cay, a small island apparently owned by Royal Caribbean.
Joe’s quite the dare devil.The sand was clean and white and the water was a turquoise blue. It was beautiful. After I got over my initial apprehension of drowning, I snorkeled with Joe and saw some amazing fish. Blue and yellow angel fish, a fish I don’t know the name of but it’s in the fancy aquariums and a sting ray. Very, very cool.
Rows of lounge chairs were not very appealing, but it was still very nice.
Our ship in the distanceThe next stop was to Nassau, Bahamas. We rented a scooter and drove to Atlantis, a huge resort with an equally huge indoor aquarium. It was beautiful and had hundreds of fish and a few large stingrays.
We also visited a couple of beaches including Cabbage Beach. The water was calm and a gorgeous shade of blue.
Cabbage BeachThe rest of the cruise was more eating, drinking and Joe losing money in the casino. I had a great time and it was perfect, aside from the fact that I missed the girls terribly after the first day. Thanks Mom for coming to stay with the girls.
