So my last post sounded super Debbie Downer, and seriously? Vacation? Not working? Free food and bevs? Perfect weather? Yea, no room for complaining. In all honesty, I was disappointed not to work because I really do love personal training, I love big shiny gyms and I like people. I was kind of looking forward to working with a new batch of 'em. But all in all, everything turned out okay despite having to accept not working (seriously?). I mean, I did have to "show up" for work each day at 8 am but after 20 minutes of blundering through Spanish with terrible acoustics my first day I asked Hector if I could just work out as long as no one needed training. He agreed that would be fine, and this is how it came to be that I took a vacation where I was paid to show up at 8 am and workout for an hour every day.
I know, guys. Pity me.
After we'd work out, we'd go to breakfast where I fell in love with the omelet station and the pineapple bar and I'd stuff myself silly on these two items. Afterward we'd go back to the room and slather up with SPF 30 before setting up camp at the pool. Oh, the pool. I stayed poolside from about 10-2, with at least 3 more SPF-ings, voraciously reading. I quickly learned there was a "leave a book, take a book" and went through at least one whole fiction novel each day. Matt earned himself resort wide recognition playing beach volleyball and/or life-sized chess games. (Pics to come.) We'd take a break around lunch, and then call it quits again around 4. We'd head back to the room for a nap or to watch the only English channel, CNN (for me, nap > CNN) and then shower before heading down to the bar. On one day, I'm pretty sure we laid down for a nap around 2 and didn't stir again til 6. We slept. A lot.
I know.
Matt had stayed late night at one bar watching an NBA game and befriended a bartender - a local with a penchant for tossing Grey Goose bottles high into the air and catching them moments before they crashed into the ground ` and so we quickly became regulars at this entertaining lobby bar. We'd have a drink or two, wander off to dinner, and then meander our way back to our still-warm bar seats. Here we'd chat with Teo - our bartender - learning much about his life, the traditions of the island (what mamajuana is, and is not) or meeting other hotel guests, sharing our TV and pistachios with them. Around half-time, we'd head up to our room with a "roadie", where Matt would finish up the basketball game and I'd quickly be studying the back of my eyelids. 9 hours of sleep became a regular habit for me.
I know.
Tough life, huh? I tell you what, you hardly appreciate it while you have it. Before you know it you are walking back through the customs terminal at Charlotte International, looking at your cell phone light up with missed voice mails and emails and wondering why it isn't possible to store up all that extra sleep and sun like a debit account for later withdrawals. Our vacation turned out to be exactly what we ordered: relaxing, detached, unscheduled and drawn out. The perfect fulcrum point to a hectic end of medical school and a sure-to-be-hectic beginning of internship. We're both now wondering if the florescent lights in our workplace will give off UVA/UVB to help keep us in the carefree, happy place of this last week. Somehow I think I know the answer to this, but I'll wear SPF 15 this week just to be sure. At least something will smell like coconuts this week, because my beverages certainly will not.
Pics to come.
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