C is for Caribbean!

More precisely D is for Dominican Republic where we spent a week sitting by the pool, reading, swimming and sipping rum cocktails. OK so I speak for myself here. Jonathan spent most of the week drinking beer and dozing under the shade of an umbrella and DJ just loved the Flintstones Club; when we did manage to get him out of there, he thoroughly enjoyed the kiddies pool and was even spotted floating up to the Pool bar once or twice to find Dad!

This is our first vacation in 3 years and we were definitely in need of it. The sun sure did warm us up after a long winter in Halifax. Funny how it's all relative - as we arrived on the tarmac in Punta Cana, the locals were were putting on jackets because it was 'cold' and we were peeling off the layers, basking in the heat :)

There was some cloud cover most days but still plenty of sun to turn the pale Irish skins to a shade of light brown (me) and bright pink (Jonathan) - only an Irishman can sit in the shade wearing SPF30 all week and still get sun burnt!

The resort we stayed at (Melia Caribe) was near the start of a strip of resorts that litter one of the most fabulous beaches I have ever seen in person (soft white sand with flecks of pink coral) and the water really is that turquoise colour you see in magazines. Can you tell I have never been to the Caribbean before?

But the idea of leaving the resort is unheard of. We did stray outside the resort - all of 2-3 metres to a 'marketplace' on the beach but didn't stay very long outside of the protection of the resort. (Armed guards patrolling the beach was a bit of a strange sight). So, we stayed on the resort and ate, drank, sunned, ate some more, drank some more, ate even more and by day 4 realised that just because it is all-inclusive does not mean you have to eat & drink as much as you can. I even managed to partake in an Aqua Aerobics class (those photos have been deleted!)
A different kind of vacation for us and I think next time we may opt for something with a bit more freedom to roam. But for pure relaxation, it has all the ingredients. And the bonus was that since we got home the temperatures have been above freezing (daytime), the sun has been shining and the clocks sprang forward so the days seem so much longer. I do believe Winter is over but I won't be showing off the tan in shorts and Tees for a while yet.


Here's a short vid of DJ chasing the peacocks!