To Travel is To Live

We are back in travel mode again!  It's about time...seems like forever ago that we were in the ABC islands!  And what a stressful, not-so-fun past few months it has been. My life seems to just be one drama after another, plus I'm growing my holistic nutrition business, Mind Body Healthy , as quickly as I can.  So, we needed a vacation but I didn't have the time or energy to plan a big trip...and we opted for an all-inclusive with a single plane ride away. And here we are at the Reflect Krystal Resort right in Los Cabos, Mexico.  Since we've been to Cabo San Lucas before (twice for me!), we thought we'd stay closer to the airport this time and try really hard to get up to La Paz to snorkel with the whale sharks...reservations are pending! Arrival at the Resort This resort is a member of the AMResorts family, so the Now, Dreams, Secrets, Breathless, etc. Upon first impression of the Reflect Krystal, we think they're doing a pretty good job of livin...

We relocated to a very interesting hotel, Kura Hulanda, in Otraband Willemstad (Otraband is like an area or community, similar to Douglas Glen or Riverbend). The Hotel: Okay, this is by far one of the coolest hotels Bryan and I have ever stayed at!  You walk into reception, kind of thinking, "uh oh, this looks sketchy!".  It's old, it's filled with sculptures and art and really old, uncomfortable-looking furniture.  The floor creaks... Well, then you get your room key and go through reception to the actual hotel area, and walk out into this courtyard that's cobblestoned, with quaint little French-style bistro outdoor tables.  You look right and it's like being in Italy all over again - narrow, curving walkways between rows of hotel rooms. The doors to the rooms were narrow double doors like you see in Europe.  With shutters!  Our room was this big square (not a long rectangle) with 5, yes 5, huge windows throughout!  We think our room was a sta...

It's 3:30 PM on May 2nd and Bryan and I are holed up in our hotel room with the shutters closed and the A/C cranked!  Okay, well, he's right under the covers in bed sleeping and I'm bundled up in a sweater.  Can you believe that I got sick of laying by the pool?!?! Yes, I felt that I'd had enough just sitting around doing nothing and that it was time to get some work done.  So, we came back to the room and I sat outside on the balcony (in the heat) for a couple of hours.  Let me just say...yes, I could definitely get used to working on my balcony in the heat!  I just got uncomfortable in the chair after awhile.  I'd need a real desk set up outside to work at. Anyway, we left Bonaire yesterday, unfortunately.  I really like Bonaire and would go back.  It's more laid back and quiet, except when the cruise ships show up (which happened yesterday).  Otherwise, it's easy to get around and most places are easy to get into for food or whatever. ...

Okay, so we love Bonaire!!!! We arrived yesterday afternoon via air from Aruba.  We are staying at the Divi Flamingo Dive Resort and it's quite fun and cute and exactly the sort of place I love to be at.  The resort is larger than I expected, actually, but there are 2 pools, 2 restaurants, a bar, and a dive shop right on site. The clientele are very much divers, and the hours of the bar and restaurants are very much catering to the dive people.  Which is fine... Prices here a much better than in Aruba, too.  We walked across the street last night for dinner, to Jasmine Garden (an Asian fusion restaurant) and found beer for less than $2.00 US each (whereas in Aruba beer were at least $5.00 US).   The food there was very good, lots of options from Chinese to Indonesian, too! We did, admittedly, drink way too much at the resort bar last night.  The one bartender was trying to teach me some Papamientu phrases but I honestly don't remember them!  Numb...

Alright, alright!  [Pictures to come...] It's been WAY too long since I traveled and updated this blog but I am BACK! Bryan and I traveled to Aruba with friends, Dave and Lexi, for a 2-week 40th birthday vacation celebration.  We're hitting the three ABC islands, in order, so it's gonna be a blast! Flights were good, considering we had the red eye from Calgary to Toronto Saturday morning.  I actually slept!  We didn't get stuck beside screaming kids!  No obnoxious people were giving me dirty looks for being a 'bad mom' (a little side note on a recent flight to Mesa I took alone...see below). Anyway, we arrived, safe and sound in Aruba on Saturday afternoon.  Customs was super easy here - no mystery button to press to see if you were either A) free to clear or B) subject to a complete smackdown by angry officials.  Phew! In all honestly, customs here was the most efficient I've ever seen it anywhere in the world.  We didn't talk to anyone...

Tonight is our last night in San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua.  This small surf town is quite pretty and very easy to get around.  I think it would be fun to stay here a bit longer. We took a surf lesson yesterday with a very helpful and patient instructor named Saul.  He works for San Juan del Sur Surf and Sport here in town. We were driven over dirt roads full of potholes and rust from the rains to Playa Remanzo by another guy who works at the shop.  It was a bit rough!   But, the beach was worth the rough ride.  All down the coast there are surf beaches that are accessible via back roads and still basically untouched. A few higher end homes have sprung up (because, let’s face it, you cannot beat the views) and some small food shacks are set up to keep the surfers happy. But, unless you know where to go and have a 4x4 vehicle, you probably wouldn’t find most of these surfing spots.  Playa Remanzo is the beginner beach. Our waves were...