Mid-March, Todd and I went on a trip without the kids. We stayed at Turks and Caicos Islands in the Caribbean for five nights. The kids spent half the week with Todd's sister Missy and the other half with Todd's parents.
We had our worst car rental experience ever. Budget, you stink! The car they gave us was such a clunker. It was noisy and had power nothing. It lasted 24 hours before we ended up with a flat tire. The spare was flat as well. Luckily, we were only a few blocks away from the office (15 minutes before they closed), and were able to walk over and demand a new car.
Car number one:
The replacement:
Our first day there, we thought we were going to starve. We couldn't find ANY restaurants. We bought some fried chicken at the grocery store for lunch and were overwhelmed by the food prices. Twenty-five dollars for a watermelon! Six dollars for a box of cereal - on sale! I thought we were going to starve on the trip, but we just bit the bullet and spent tons of money to eat instead.
Eventually, we discovered that all of the restaurants were housed within the resorts on the island. They were also remarkably expensive. We decided the locals must not ever eat out. There was a major class disparity that really bothered me. The locals live in poverty, tourism pretty much the only trade on the island, as they cater to all these rich white people who travel to their home. I felt extremely guilty, and wished there were a more visible middle class to make me feel more comfortable.
One night, Todd made the mistake of ordering The Kraken burger. Grilled cheese and bacon sandwich, fried egg, onion ring, burger, onion ring, burger, grilled cheese sandwich. That thing was massive. Someone walked by our table right after it arrived and said, "I hope you're not going swimming tonight. You'll sink!" Thankfully, we had a kitchen in our villa, so he could save the leftovers. He ended up making three meals out of it!
We chose this destination mostly because it was renowned for excellent scuba diving. We were not disappointed. The water was super clear. We saw lobsters the size of dogs! There was a huge variety of beautiful coral. And on one of our dives, we saw a Caribbean reef shark!!! It was an amazing experience. I love scuba diving, feeling like I'm flying, and looking at the amazing world God's made under the water.
We should have reviewed the basics online before our trip, however. This was the first time we've dived in three years, and I was panicking a little before our first dive. Todd was going over everything with me, but I just didn't feel comfortable enough. We got in the water and started going down, and I was having a hard time equalizing. Then I opened my mouth too wide and got some water in my mouth. Instead of swallowing it, I spit it out, along with my regulator! Then I realized I wouldn't be able to breathe under the water, and started swimming back up to the top to start all over. (I could have put the regulator back in my mouth underwater, but I was panicking and couldn't think straight.) Our diving guide came up to the top with me to see what was going on. He said he could see I had a lot on my mind and asked if I would rather go back to the boat. No way! I wanted to dive! He yelled at me a bit, and said I could only come back if I "never, ever, EVER, under ANY circumstances, take that regulator out of your mouth!" Yes, sir. Back under I went, fighting to stay calm so I didn't get sent back to the boat.
I did just fine after that, and felt super comfortable the second day, but that's a good lesson for us, that we really do need to refresh ourselves on scuba protocol when it's been a while since we've been diving.
Todd found a gorgeous shell while we were diving that he grabbed to bring home. Obviously, though, it still had a little creature living in it. On a whim, I suggested he pop it in the microwave and see if that would kill the little bugger. Five seconds in, there was a massive POP! He jumped right out.
One day, we drove around, just exploring the island, and found a great mostly-private beach. There were only two other people on it. We set up our beach chairs and pulled out our books, reading and snacking and enjoying the gorgeous views.
After an hour or two, we decided to stroll down the beach and see what was around the bend. There were shells everywhere - lots of conch - and we gathered up quite a fun collection.
Eventually, we turned around and headed back to our chairs. We were surprised to see someone else had joined us. There was this massive stretch of unclaimed beach, but this lady and her dog had set up camp not five feet from our chairs and bags. Rude! And the closer we got, the more I was squinting to verify my suspicions.... Yep, she was topless. Todd and I weren't sure what to do. We weren't ready to go home yet. We were having the time of our lives on this beach! So we sat down in our chairs, picked up our books, and tried to just ignore this woman. But she made it impossible. She was tossing a ball to her dog and moving back and forth right in front of us. Not two minutes had passed before she had come over to us and leaned down right in front of Todd to pick up a stick or something. And she had the audacity to smile right at us and say hello. She was definitely not going to be putting her top back on now that she had neighbors! I couldn't take it, so we packed up our stuff and left.
But we came back to that spot a few days later and enjoyed the serenity once again. So there!
Our flight didn't leave until after lunch on our last day, so we spent the morning paddle boarding in the mangroves. We loved it! I'm so glad we did that. Usually, we finish out a trip the last day just relaxing and reading, and I always feel like the time drags out and makes for a long day. I loved using our last few hours actively.
