Mike and Caroline December 2 - 11
This was our third trip with the Winter WWW gang after several visits without groups. Despite the increased airfares, I was able to find an incredible value on Delta by checking for online bargains twice a day. For just a few hours one day a fare was posted that was about half of what I had been seeing. It required that we stay in Jamaica for a couple days longer than we'd planned but we thought we could handle that inconvenience so we quickly locked it in. A quick email to DennyP (who always has the best rates) and we were set.
Flying from the frozen northwest gives us a lot of frequent flyer miles for our trip. A couple hours to Salt Lake City, four hours to Atlanta, overnight in Atlanta, and then the first Delta out to Mobay. Reverse the process on the way home.
Our flight arrived in Mobay on Saturday at the end of the noon rush. We were sitting near the back of the plane. Hence the immigration hall was packed when we got there. But when we got to the front of the line 45 minutes later there was almost no one behind us. After a short wait at Superclubs we boarded a cramped van with two other couples and hit the road. We enjoy taking the bus because it gives us a chance to meet other visitors and to unwind a bit after the flights.
The days and nights tend to run together so instead of providing a chronology, I'll just comment on our overall impressions.
Roll The Dice
We usually book OceanView Nude rooms but comments on the message board convinced us to book ROH and hope for a great assignment. My Bad!! Despite smiling and asking nicely we ended up in room 1257 overlooking Sandals and next to the Boulevard. We woke early every morning to the sounds of roaring motorcycles and car horns. And since I was recovering from a foot injury, the short walk to the nude beach and hot tub became a trek. In the future, we'll pay the premium for an OVN room.
Positives
No art auctions!!
Hot water on demand!!
Roots Explosion playing quietly during dinner so we could converse. We now realize what truly talented musicians they are.
Very good after dinner entertainment including a wonderful, energetic woman R&B singer (forgot her name) and Brothers of the Drum African drum dancers who wore us out just watching them.
The water balloon artillery whose volleys of water-filled "messengers of destruction" kept the sightseeing boats a few yards farther from the beach.
Food
We've always enjoyed the selections of food available. We tend to graze at the buffet with a bite or two of everything. After nine nights, though, it gets a bit repetitive. Pastafari is still wonderful.
Entertainment Coordinators
Until this trip, we've always considered the ECs to be a loud, intrusive annoyance. It seems like they've turned down the volume and this trip we actually enjoyed them, especially Foxy who is really a great entertainer and a funny lady and Sharlene who took the stage on talent show night and blew us away with the power of her voice. We hope she gets a chance to develop that talent and that we hear more from her on our next trip.
Agustus
When friends ask about our trips to Hedo, somehow Agustus's antics always become part of the conversation and we always look forward to his interactions with unsuspecting newbies. One afternoon during a particularly heavy downpour we had an opportunity to have a semi-serious chat with him. He told us proudly that he's famous because people mention him on American websites. He told us that he loves his job and his people (especially the ladies). He said that he tends the beaches mostly for the ladies but that it's OK for the men to use them as long as they're nice to the ladies. He also said that he's very worried about the health of his elderly mother.
We also saw one very awkward moment when one guest tried to give Agustus a tip. Agustus refused the tip, of course, but he was obviously concerned that his refusal might insult the guest. Folks, no tipping means no tipping.
A Few Negatives
Towels and Linens! We never knew how many towels and linens the maids would or wouldn't leave.
Tableware! When we sat down to eat, we always had to look around for a spoon, a salt shaker, a sugar bowl ....
We thought that the energy level of the crowd was down a little from previous years. Fewer PDAs, fewer people on the nude cruises.
There were only a handful of royal blue togas evident at the toga party probably indicating that most WWWs had gone off-campus to avoid it. Years ago, the toga party was a wild time usually ending with a couple hundred naked people singing bawdy songs in the main pool. Now it's degenerated to a yawn. They need to find a way to re-energize it.
Epilogue
As the sun goes down over two feet of snow and the thermometer approaches zero, we think about our old friends, new friends, and friends-to-be and say "See y'all next year."