Happy Valentine's Day.
Today we overslept, due to various reasons *wink* and were thus late to breakfast. It's our first time experiencing the late breakfast, which is really more like a brunch. But that was ok.
After breakfast there was a Bocce ball tournament, which is actually what they call petanque over here. So Carl and I decided to check it out and give it a go. The only other people in a similar frame of mind were a young Korean couple and so we started playing. At first they were whooping our asses, but we managed to come from behind and win the tournament 9-7.
When that was over Carl and I decided to check out the badminton court down at the clubhouse, where I whooped his ass 3-1. Carl wanted to make it best out of seven but we were hot and sweaty and needed a drink. There was meant to be a love quiz at the bar, but they didn't get enough people interested in playing so it didn't happen so we went and entered the darts tournament instead. It was a lot of fun. I haven't played darts in years so I kinda sucked, but that's ok cos everyone else did too lol. Oh and it wasn't a traditional darts tournament in the usual sense because we weren't playing 510. Instead there was, right hand, left hand, 3 at once, one-legged and on the floor. So five rounds. The first round you had to toss the darts with your right hand, the next your left hand. And the rest are pretty self-explanatory. Carl came third which was pretty cool.
After the darts we headed over to the restaurant for a snack and watched them setting this up:
See, that's the really awesome thing about this place. With things like Valentine's day, they turn it into a complete event, with everything centered around that theme.
It was then back to the room to have a little bit of down-time in the air-con because it was another very hot day. When we got there, this little fellow swooped by our window and settled on a nearby palm tree:
At first he looked a little drab, but then he spread his wings and flew off and his wings and tail were just this magnificent blue:
It's amazing. It seems like every time I turn around, there's a new piece of wildlife to see.
A lot of people would be unsettled by having this guy cross their path, but I just think they're cute. Lizards, reptiles in general I can handle pretty well. It's only spiders I have a problem with. And so far haven't seen any, though there should be hundreds with the number of bugs here. Despite industrial-strength insect repellent, I have three bites on my left leg. Two on the ankle and one on my knee. Determined little bastards.
We then chilled until dinnertime where we went out to meet up with the Sports G.O team. On the way in, the red carpet that had been set up had been transformed into a lover's lane, complete with cupids:
And upon entering the restaurant, every single woman was given a single long stemmed red rose. Which was awesome and made us feel special. And omg the dessert table. Talk about chocolate fest. I suppose that's to be expected though. There was even chocolate mousse which was basically served in shot glasses. And after the first mouthful I could see why. It was so thick and so rich that you really could only stomach that small amount. And even then afterwards, you didn't even WANT to think about chocolate again for at least another month. Seriously.
The reason we went to dinner with the G.Os was because they were presenting awards and medals for the various tournaments that they'd held over the last few days. So Carl and I each got a certificate and medal for winning at Bocce ball that morning, and Carl got a medal for darts. Turns out he'd been bumped up to winner because the Korean boy and girl who'd gotten first and second had left a couple of hours earlier. And we both got participation certificates for Archery. Yeah ok it's silly, but it makes you feel awesome and of course makes you more likely to go back and participate again.
Once dessert was finished and the last hands shakes, the last jokes exchanged, Carl and I took our winnings back to our room before getting ready for the Beach Party. It was amazing. The spot on the beach directly below Club Med had been completely transformed:
It was an enclave of love with cocktail bar, flashing lights, romantic snacks and live music to dance the night away to. And about half an hour later though, the real reason for going to the beach party started happening:
Yes those are paper lanterns. Basically you were given one paper lantern per group and then with the help of a G.O you were able to light the wick and walk it down the beach. Then, once there was enough hot air trapped inside the lantern, you made a wish and released it into the sky. Ok it was nothing like that scene in Tangled, because these lanterns were a hell of a lot bigger, but it was still awesome.
The sky became filled with these things, looking like brightly burning stars:
It was truly beautiful. But seeing it for some reason made me suddenly and achingly homesick. I missed Mischief and my brothers and my sister. And even though it was like 4am here in New Zealand I wished I could call someone and hear a familiar, friendly voice.
So instead of staying and enjoying the music and booze, I came back to the hotel room and went to bed. To be fair though, it was like 12am here.
And thus Valentine's day came to a close with tomorrow being just another day. Before I go, I want to share one of the shots Carl took tonight of the fountain pool in the main reception area of the resort. It's a really amazing pool:
This place is just beautiful.
Missing you all.
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