Day 2

Rain
It really rained hard all night. So hard in fact, that the water was piled up in areas at the resort (especially outside the door from the hallway of our room) and some streets.

Shower
I took a freezing cold shower because there was not hot water (or, so I thought). The shower works in reverse here, so the hot is cold and the cold is hot. I had it on as cold as it would go! I swear that I let it run both ways, but mom is the one who figured it out. She does a lot of things backwards. LOL

Linda's
We planned on going to Linda's for breakfast because we still haven't gone to the grocery store. However, the taxi driver that we got was brutal! He was upset that he got 2 of us instead of the other 5 people who were going to the beach. He originally told me $2 and then he told me $5 and a few minutes later he said it was an extra $3 because it was Sunday (which made it $8). Well, I made him bring us back to the resort because I refused to play his game!

When we got back, the Security Guard apologized and called his friend who took us to the Flea Market instead (at that time, I thought we should change our plans since it was getting later).

Flea Market
That was the best Flea Market I've ever been to. The prices were really great and I bought myself a new Coach purse for $40 and one for mom for Christmas. I also bought a ring and it was $3 or 2/$5, so I bought mom one too.

Oranjestad
We took a bus to Oranjestad and the Seaport Marketplace. Because the cruise ships were in town, many stores were open, but many were also still closed.

First we stopped for lunch because I didn't want to get a headache from not eating. We ate at the La Pettit Cafe' and mom had a burger and I had a steak sandwich with Gouda. Gouda is a popular cheese here because it's a Dutch Island.

After shopping, we went to the Crystal Casino where I took mom's picture outside and by the time I turned my camera off, she disappeared! I was sooo mad when I found her inside the casino. I told her that she can't gamble any more if she's going to disappear on me in another country!

I shopped some more and then retrieved mom. We stopped for some gelato and then went across the street to another casino. Before leaving, mom won $40.00.

We took a taxi back to the resort, and here I am blogging!

Coco Loco
We got a drink at the Coco Loco bar at Caribbean Palm Village. I had a non-alcoholic Colada and it was as good as the one's I had in Jamaica.

Nap Time
We took a little nap before dinner so we could stay out late again.

Oh, What a Night!
As Frankie Valli would say...

We started out walking to dinner and it downpoured on us. We were in the middle of nowhere and had to take cover under the little awning of a closed grocery store. (Mom wanted to go back to change....I told her that if we went back, we were staying there! I was in the same situation she was in.) We stood there for a good 20 minutes and then made a run to a Chinese restaurant across the parking lot. They called us a taxi, but after a half hour, it still hadn't come, so we had no choice but to walk back to the resort. We were going to just stay there, but the restaurant was closing shortly and it was expensive.

We originally wanted to go to Casa Tua and to Soprano's Piano Bar, but the rain ruined the ambiance. I made an executive decision to go to Smoky Joe's for BBQ and a few minutes after we checked in, it started pouring again! We all huddled in and it took a while to be seated, but we finally shared a large table with another couple. We should have shared a meal, but I didn't ralize how big the portions were until food was delivered to a neighboring table.The ribs were delicious! We have leftovers for lunch tomorrow. We still had to try the Key Lime pie, which they are known for. It was very good (although I like mine better).

Hyatt Regency
The Hyatt is a beautiful hotel. Mom went to the casino and I walked around. I went into a store and a man came in and said "Mary Jo," and I turned around so fast. He was talking to another lady with the same name.

When I went down to the beach, it started to drizzle, so I started heading back. The stairs to the lobby were near the restaurant and a lady started calling to me and told me not to go that way 'cuz it was flooded and raining so hard. She took me through the kitchen and up an elevator for employees to get me out of the rain! I got the unofficial tour. They are very friendly. I guess that's why it's called "One Happy Island."

Occidental
Mom gambled more. I just got a free coffee at the casino and waited in the lobby.

Although I don't like their lobby very much, I did find the pool, which is amazing. They have lots of canopy beds all around it too. So, I take my other comment back. I was really surprised because I know that Occidentals are nice hotels.

Westin
I played about $5 on the slots and then went to listen to the band. The guitar player wasn't their tonight and after about 3 songs, they took a break. So, we left shortly after that.

Wireless
I almost gave up on getting access, but I finally switched servers and connected to the one at CPV.