Julie Vision...Better Than X-Ray Vision (or any other kind of Vision)

My friend Julie (and former college roommate/singing partner/cookie eating cohort) has started her own company: Julie Vision Designs. If you are anything like her (and me), then you may be a little obsessed with accessories...namely, PURSES! Julie's purses are handmade, and SUPER cute! There are designs for everyone, and you have got to read the name of and info on each purse...hilarious! If you are looking for a stylish new bag or the perfect gift, I HIGHLY recommend you check out my lovely friend Julie's lovely purses. Take a peek, and tell Julie I sent you! Just in case the link above doesn't work, here's the web address: http://www.julievision.etsy.com

Our Last Full Day

Today was exceptionally fun. We went on a Catmaran cruise around the island. At our first stop, we got a chance to snorkel with the sea turtles. Very cool, if you know how to snorkel, which Kevin does. It was a bit of a suffocating experience for me. I did get to see the turtles, during my brief stint in the water, but Kevin got to touch a few, and really enjoyed himself. At our next stop, we got a chance to snorkel around a few shipwrecks. Kevin took this opportunity, I did not. He said it was really cool, and got to get up close and personal with the shipwrecks. Next, we stopped for a yummy buffet lunch on the water. The food was delicious, but I must say, the company was great. We met a very nice Jewish family from New York and a couple from Denver, who were way too much fun. We had a great time with them all, and were fortunate to get a chance to meet such great people on our adventures. After lunch, we ventured out into the open water, and sped around out there. Only one article of clothing was lost, and it wasn't ours, so I guess that was good! The captain said that they don't stop to fetch anything that falls overboard unless it screams. Kevin suggested the woman jump in after her red cover up and start screaming, so that they stop and pick it up, but she was not about to do that. We chalked it up to a loss. We are somewhat red from our various journeys into the sun, but are hoping the red turns into a tan soon! We've got to have something to show for this trip! Tonight, on our last night, we are heading back to Brown Sugar to enjoy a final Bajan meal. Tomorrow, we're off to Toronto (in first class...woo hoo!), and then it's back home to enjoy the new year with friends.

Christmas in Barbados

So...I've missed a few days, mostly because I keep forgetting my camera when it's time to blog. I have decided to blog without the camera, because I forgot it again, and also because it's a pain in the butt to post pictures onto the blog (i.e. I don't know how to do it correctly). I will post the pics on FB, so be on the lookout. Here is what Kevin and I have been up to in the last few days. On Wednesday, Kevin and I ventured into the island of Barbados armed with a camera, a taxi driver named David, and a plan. David took us on a tour up the west coast of the island, where he pointed out lots of neato things (like big, expensive hotels, tourist hot spots, etc.). We made a stop at the northernmost point in Barbados, the Animal Flower Cave. It was super cool because the ocean flows right in. You can actually go cliff diving there, or so our tour guide said. We took his word for it. Next, we were off to the Barbados Wildlife Reserve. Kevin was all I about it. I was quite nervous...especially when we got to the bird part. Did I mention that the animals were just roaming free, out in the open, with the humans? No? Oh, well they were. All in all, cool experience, although Kevin had it with me and my paranoia. Then, we went to the Chalky Mount Pottery. We watched a man create a vase from the clay that he created from the mountain. After that, we were pooped, so we went back to the hotel. Again, David pointed out many different sights, and taught us a whole lot about the island's main export, sugar cane, which if you didn't know, begins to be harvested on February 15th. The rest of the day was spent on the beach. However, we did go to an authentic island-style BBQ on the beach, where we ate entirely too much. On to Thursday. We planned to go on this fantastic jeep tour of the island. Key word: planned. We did go, however, we ended up having to leave halfway through, due to my motion sickness. You see, the seats in the Land Rover face sideways, and I guess my stomach just didn't agree with that. I made it 2.5 hours, but then I had to throw in the towel before the off-roading began. It just would not have turned out well for me. Poor Kevin missed out though, on account of my loseriness. Again, the rest of the day was spent on the beach. At night, we went out for Christmas Eve dinner at a restaurant right by the Hilton called "Brown Sugar". It was SOOOOO good!! Best thing we ate on the island. I think we're planning to go back tomorrow night. Today, we decided to spend the ENTIRE day on the beach. Kevin got a really nice tan. I got a really nice burn. It's OK, though, I am convinced it will all turn into a nice even tan....let's hope! There was a very festive Christmas Day parade at 3pm, so that was enjoyable. Tomorrow we are going on a 5 hour Catamaran boating trip, where we will get to swim with turtles, snorkel, and eat a delicious lunch. I'll post again tomorrow, which will be our last official day in Barbados. Merry Christmas to all today, and a Happy Birthday to my mom-in-law, Marsha! :)

Fun in the Sun

Today, Kevin and I actually got a chance to be out in the sun and enjoy beautiful Barbados. We started out by heading to the beach around 10am. The water was so nice and the cool breeze made the 80-ish degree weather even more heavenly. We hung out on the beach for a couple of hours. I almost lost my sunglasses after being hit by a wave whilst out in the ocean, but luckily, Kevin was able to rescue them!

After eating lunch outside, we showered and changed, and headed off to Bridgetown for a little sight-seeing. We read about the oldest Jewish synagogue in the Americas, and it happens to be about 10 minutes from us, so we decided to venture out and see it. Just a little background on the synagogue - It was created during the Portuguese inquisition, by Jews who fled from Europe and ended up in Barbados in the late 1600s. Why Barbados? It was because everywhere else was being colonized by all the European countries. By the 1700s, there were 800 Jews in Barbados, which at that time, accounted for 8% of the population. Not bad! The temple was abandoned, as the Jewish population here dwindled to nothing, but was restored in 1987. It was so neat to see the restored temple, complete with Torah ark and everlasting light. We also toured the museum which is where I learned many of the interesting facts above. Yes folks, the teacher has become the student.

Anyway, I am including the pictures we took today of all of the adventures described above. On tomorrow's menu: Andromeda Gardens, Chalky Hill Pottery, Barbados Wildlife Reserve, and a BBQ on the beach for dinner. This is a little ambitious, so we'll see how far we get!

I Once Was Lost, But Now Am Found

So...we are in Barbados on our honeymoon. At this point, we are truly enjoying it here, but that didn't come easy. Let me give you a blow by blow of our adventures so far, and then maybe my blog title will make more sense.

It all started when we checked our bags in Indianapolis (on Saturday), and they told us that our bags would be checked straight through to Barbados. Even though we were supposed to stop over night in Toronto. We were a little worried, but we got to Toronto, sans luggage of course. We stayed overnight in the hotel with no toiletries, no change of clothes, no nothing. It was fine for one night, we kept telling ourselves.

Our flight to Barbados was FABULOUS. We were in business class, and got such great treatment (I'm talking omelettes, our own personal flat screens with a selection of movies, etc.). As soon as we got to Barbados, the wind was let out of our sails. We were stranded with NO luggage. That's right, the luggage that was supposed to be checked through, was clearly not. We filed a claim and were off to our hotel.

Now, I am going to skip the part where we start panicking about our lost clothes, venture out into the streets of Barbados to find something suitable to wear in the 80 degree weather (since we came in winter clothing), and have a few crying fits (me, not Kevin). I will also save you all the blow-by-blow of Kevin's irate conversation with the Air Canada customer service representatives.

While we waited for our luggage, we enjoyed a nice lunch by the water, I got a massage (much needed), and Kevin got to hang out on the beach and go into the clear blue ocean.

To make a long story short, we finally got our luggage 30 hours later, at around 7:30 tonight. It was like Chanukah when we opened it to find all of our own stuff! We have decided to forget about the last 30 hours, and have decided that our honeymoon officially began when we got our luggage. I am including pictures from the best parts of our honeymoon thus far: the sparkling wine we enjoyed (compliments of the Hilton), our luggage, and Kevin enjoying his first Brandy (not as good as we initially thought it would be). More to come tomorrow...or whenever I get my next chance to blog.