Adam and I had a wonderful time at Sandals Resort in Antigua!  We dined, drank, took in all the sights, and participated in all kinds of activities.  All inclusive is definitely the way to go if you’re looking for a no worries kind of vacation.

We had a good flight from BWI (Baltimore, Maryland) to MIA (Miami, Florida), then on to ANU (Antigua).  We caught a van that took us directly to the resort.  That was one crazy ride!  As soon as we got to Sandals we were served hot towels to clean up with and champagne to sit back and relax with while we waited to be shown to our room.  Classy.

We had a beautiful Garden View room over looking the small pool for the surrounding room’s convenience.  First thing we did after settling in and changing into our swim suits was to grab a bite to eat at a restaurant right in the sand.  Barefoot by the Sea.  It was great!  We hung out with this nice couple from Michigan and got to know each other a little bit.  After lunch we hit The Big Pool.  Adam went right out to the swim-up bar and acquired us some drinks.

The entire resort was just beautiful.  All the pools were clean and a crisp, cool blue.  The buildings and private bungalows were all painted in different Caribbean pastels and the landscaping was overwhelming, but well kept.  A jungle of beauty.  There were lizards and birds galore, one of which landed on my coke can while I was sitting out on the balcony.  It took a sip of my syrupy, sugary drink, looked up at me, then took off.  I found out later that it’s called a Bananaquit.  Very cute little guy with black wings and a bright yellow belly.

On our second day Adam and I had a couple’s massage at Sandals Red Lane Spa.  It was heavenly!  I’ve had several massages before, so let me tell you, this was fantastic.  It was Adam’s first massage and he just loved it.  We were pleasantly relaxed for the entire rest of our stay.

Along with relaxing in the sunshine, lazing around in the pools, sipping our drinks, and swimming in the bay we also found time to do some activities.  We went to The Cricketer’s Pub to watch the Penguin’s vs. Red Wings game 5.  It was awful!  The Penguins played like crap!  (But we won the cup in the end, ha!).  We took a snorkeling trip which, we both agreed, was kind of terrifying, but the Captain of the boat said that it was rough waters out there for first timers and that we did well.  We also went kayaking.  This mostly yielded some hilarious pictures.  The most fun we had was sailing a hobie cat together.  It’s a small catamaran.  Two hulls, a trampoline in the middle, a rudder, and a 30 foot sail.  We were chased from the shore out into the bay by a storm!  It rained while we sailed out toward a marker buoy, but cleared as we came back in.  It was our first time sailing anything and we did it by ourselves!  I can’t wait to do it again!

A few other highlights from our trip would be dancing together in private on the look out tower with Reggae playing in the distance, having wine delivered to our room, having breakfast, lunch and dinner by the blue-green sea, visiting the adjacent casino and blowing $26 bucks, and watching Adam compete in a dance contest in order to try and win me a diamond necklace.  Too funny!

On our way home we were delayed for 2 days due to a flight cancellation.  American Airlines was very helpful and put us up for two nights in hotels in San Juan, Puerto Rico and Miami.  They also paid for taxi fair and meals.  We ended up having a good time in Puerto Rico and Miami too.  Then back home to real life… relaxing by the pool.

Enjoy the pictures if you haven’t already seen them!

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