Ive been back almost a week and are still feeling the effects of swollen ankles and a sinus infection. In other words it was just another trip homeso please bear with me while I try to make some sense here.
It was the first time in about 9 yrs that I had flown AA and they have improved a lot I am happy to say. The flight out of JFK was only a half hour late. LOL Touch down at Mobay at the far end of the new wing and then it was a LONG walk to the immigration hall. I was pleased to see only a few people there and got through with no fuss in a short time.
NOTE to you first timers: fill out the ENTIRE immigration form including the departure section on the bottom then sign and date it. They will give you that part back. DONT lost it as you need it to exit the country.
From there it was another long walk back to the new customs hall to claim my bag and clear customs.
NOTE to first timers again: Once you have your bags go to the people in the little booths. They are for folks who have nothing to declare and you all have nothing to declare, Right? Right! LOL
From there it was through the doors and over the superclubs lounge to pick up a registration card and then find Timair. He told me we had to wait a few for some other people which gave me time to step out for a smoke. 10 mins later we are off to the domestic terminal and a few minutes of paperwork we are in the air. Yeah!!!!!!! Smooth flight and I even got to take the controls for a couple of minutes. Very cool!
Quick cab ride and about 45 minutes from touch down Im in the lobby. Room was
not ready but I could care less. LOLThe first person I run into is Matt the Mayor who has been there since late Feb and he tells me he is hosting his last Heinken party on the beach that afternoon. What a GREAT way to start the week off!! Got some lunch and than got my room. I booked ROH private room and ended up with 1126. Ground floor ocean view prude side about 4 doors away from Sandals. A long walk to anywhere but its on the beach and thats fine with me. LOL
Note to first timers and everyone for that matter:: If you get a ground floor room check to see if your window is locked before heading out for the evening. I always kept it locked but found it unlocked a couple of times. I can only assume the housekeeper opened it to air the room out and forgot to lock it.
The Heinken party was a blast with a bunch of people sitting around a table trading all kinds of jokes. Good,bad and some really really nasty dirty ones. LOL
And thus began a fun and sometimes fuzzy week where each day seemed to last 48 hrs and I cant always remember what happened on what day.
The Shagettes rolled in on Sat. They are 4 ladies who are part of a nov group the Bosum Buddies who decided to have a girls week out.
Since I was going to be there at the same time I was elected/drafted to be their escort.
Tough job but someone had to do it. LOL Naturally I had to make up an ID badge saying Official Shag Escort to wear on my lanyard along with the room keycard. They got a grin from it and it served as a good icebreaker for meeting people the rest of the week.
They set up camp on the jetty with their banner ,balloons and an assortment of odds and ends including Lavonda,a real knock out of a blowup doll. LOL
Boston Mike and his lovely wife Patty arrived on sun the 8th and what a wonderful couple they are!! Nice,generous,funny and fun to be around they brought the energy level up a notch or two just by being there.
Some random highlights of the week include:
spelling out "HI" using naked bodies while a helicopter made a low level pass by the beach.
Lora(Shag#1) wearing nothing but an orange safety vest trying to wave the same helicopter in for a landing during another pass.
The episode involving Long Dong Romeo(not his real name) and his girl friend on the raft. I guess you had to be there for that one. LOL
Having dinner with Mike & Patty and 11 new friends under the stars on the main pool patio.
Taking second place for most original outfit at the PJ party in my canvas nail apron with assorted lotions in the pouches.
Mike getting first place for his box containing a rare albino Irish wild python
Singing in the piano bar with Craig & Sherry from NH and Bill from CT on a couple of nights. None of us could sing worth s--t but 4 lousy voices did sound better than one. LOL
Going to Robyn and Clark's wedding on the beach one afternoon.(Tues?)
A very sweet fun couple from TX. Reception was in the game room of the piano bar and then it continued down at the prude beach bar with a few hrs of drinking and joking around. I think I missed dinner that night.
Listening to Liz(Shag#2) scream ALL the way down the water slide was priceless.
Dozing in the hot tub by the main pool on a beautiful afternoon while the water jets massaged my back felt sooo GOOD