Week 1

It's quite amazing how easy it is to sink into days with no schedules planned. On the flip side, my personal to-do-list seems to keep growing even as I tick things off it.

After the 'last day at work' celebrations last Wednesday, Thursday was spent recovering from the merriment of it all.  Then Friday, Jamie, Rhian and I headed off to Little Cayman for a relaxing weekend.  What an idyllic getaway LC is!!!  I can't believe it took me so long to visit. 

The scenery was so soothing and the perfect spot to ease away daily stresses and put one in a holiday mood.  One thing I did not do well was engage my trigger finger on my camera L  I took it along with me but got so caught up in the moments that I forgot to capture them. 

Note to self: Do better on my travels otherwise I'll have no images to share. I think I'll just start randomly taking pictures (on a daily basis) of scenes and things that grab my attention in Cayman ... hopefully, this will get me in that paparazzi frame of mind.

Anyway, back to Little Cayman ... our adventure highlights included:

• Rolling a spare wheel to the check-in at Grand Cayman, as our landlady notified us that the 4x4 at our disposal had sprung a flat, so we had to take the spare with us to make the change lol.  Then getting to LC and discovering that the spare tire not make the same flight;
• The little 12-seater Cayman Express propeller plane;
• The lovely Conch Club apartment; right on the beach, with pool and hammocks and kayaks (which, Rhian tried and failed to get Jamie to try out lol);
• Cycling to the supermarket to get our provisions on the retro bicycles provided with the condo;
• Getting merry on Magnas Pear Cider whilst catching some rays;
• Rhian cooking us a gorgeous steak dinner;
• Touring the island, driving for miles without seeing another vehicle, getting the 4x4 stuck at the beach (Point of Sand) and having to call 911 to bail us out lol;
• Meeting Greg and John, the island's two policemen, when they came to our rescue and watching them dig our car out the sand J;
• Meeting Gracie, the bar tend at the only bar open 365 days on island and sampling her amazing frozen mango/strawberry daiquiris ... not sure if I had one or five lol ;
• Meeting Charmaine, the island's only nurse, at Gracie's bar and subsequently getting quite tiddly with her;
• Getting tanned BLACK despite slapping on tons of factor 70 sunscreen. Jamie came close to matching my skin tone ... Rhian, not so much lol;
• Realizing that the DJ at the bar on our last night was also the Air-traffic Controller at the airport the next morning lol

All in all, a totally satisfactory and relaxing getaway. 

So, this week, I've been getting my house in order. Financial matters are being taken care off.  The apartment is now officially rented out ... Sid, Julio and Paloma are now in residence J

Most of my stuff's been carted into the attic.  Party invitations for the leaving bash on the 16th have been sent out and RSVPs are steadily coming in. I can't believe that's just next Friday now.  Sept 23rd, departure date, is only 2 weeks away.  So many lunches, dinners and meet up drinks to fit into that time as well.  I need me a social secretary lol

My Advanced Open Water Dive course has been booked ... two dives each this Saturday (10th - Deep Dive and Underwater Navigation) and Sunday (11th - Wreck Dive and Boat Dive) and the final dive next Sunday (18th - Night Dive).  I’ll be glad to cross this off the to-do list before I leave.

The leaving bounty from MCS paid for the dive course.  I've decided to spend the rest of the bounty on either an iPad or an Android tablet.  I can leave my NetBook and Kindle at home and have the one beaut of a device to see me through...whooopeee :)

Today was another beautiful day in Cayman.  I had a Power Plate workout to start of the day.  This exercise style is new to me and what an experience it was lol Getting vibrations running through the entire length of you whilst holding a pose is just the weirdest sensation ever.  Going back tomorrow for another dose lol

After the workout, met up with Marlene at the Ritz  for 4hrs of severe pampering and lounging at the Silver Rain Spa J  We both had gift certs to spend and indulged in the 'Total Escape to Paradise' package ... facial, massage, manicure and pedicure.  It was fun, but truth be told, when you strip away all the environmental gimmicks, the staging and the products, I'd just as soon go to elsewhere for my treatments ... I think the service at the Ritz is a tad over-rated.

These last few weeks are for lux-living in Cayman … the memories will come in useful when I'm slumming it in some village in Indonesia or when I’m groaning from aching muscles after finishing a hike in Peru or New Zealand J