It's All Good in Antigua Part 2

This is no long-awaited sequel, but I thought December would be a nice time to offer up more on our tropical honeymoon five months ago. Thing is, it doesn't feel like winter in Sitka. No snow, near 50-degrees and some sunny days. No snow flying past the window, slush in my boots, or a poofy jacket to heft loaded with scarves and mittens. I guess I don't need a mental vacation from winter to remember warmer places, but c'mon...the free drinks alone give cause for reflectin'!

Andy did extensive research for where we should spend our newlywed indulgent getaway. Resort or no? All-inclusive or not? Typical age-range? NO KIDS. Big enough for variety, but not thousands of guests. Where in the warmer hemisphere? Again, we recommend The Sandals resort chain if that's your thang. Here's some pics from the lovely grounds.

We liked to poke fun at the poor dolphins spotted with bird poo! Just outside our door the gardens were incredibly lush.We were set in just a wee bit from the beach. Our lil' building looked just like this one below, which I snapped while coming in from snorkeling.
A lovely part of our room was the bar area. Hunter and Lincoln, or liquor fairies, always kept it stocked. Honeymooners get a trophy if they consume everything, including the bottles of booze, during their stay. We wanted to make our butlers proud and contemplated the feat. Then we realized it's impossible because it all gets restocked and replenished as soon as you feel the buzz!We also left the resort twice for excursions. Every Sunday night an island party bumps at Shirley's Point. It's a gorgeous cliff-top setting for visitors and neighbors to BBQ, jam out and walk along trails filled with cacti (in the Carribbean??). We went with a couple from NY and the sunset was lovely. Behind Andy along the peninsula is an estate that belongs to...Eric Clapton. He's been known to show up and play on Sundays at Shirley's Point. Total gimmick sale-hope I bought into!Highlight of the excursion was the legit steel-band reggae machine pumping out music. There was about a dozen people working drums of all sizes.Wanna hear a sample? I just loved watching the local guy who danced in front of the band the entire night.

Then another group came on and Andy had his cheesy reggae fill. Me? Lapped it up all the time. I mean this guy has PASSION for his pop song. The video is crap to watch because people kept walking in front of me, but there are moments you hear and see the talent.

We heard excellent live music throughout the trip. A reggae performance of Prince that would bring you to your knees. Unfortunately, nearly all song selections everywhere on the island were behind the times. We revisited the music scene from several years ago. The most current tune we heard was Black Eyed Peas "Tonight's Gonna Be a Good Night." We heard it so much, in stereo or performed, that it's basically ruined for us.

So as we gear up for our next travel adventure to Nome, Alaska along the frozen Bering Sea, we'll remember our special time by the pool as a newly married couple. I wonder if G2 will act as our Butler and stock a special orange cooler wherever we go on the snowy tundra??? Probably not, so these last images will have to do!

It's All Good in Antigua part 1

It's already been 3 months since our honeymoon, and yet, it's only been 3 months since our honeymoon. The post-wedding trip feels like another world away.

We loved our long time spent on Antigua (an-TEE-guh) , a British island in the south Caribbean. We bought into the all-inclusive resort set-up and after experiencing how awesome it is, we'd recommend The Sandals resort chain without hesitation. No need for a wallet; food and drinks everywhere without any money exchanged. It was a freaky, freeing feeling. And we flew first-class!! It was a lot of travel so that made the journey and time spent flying very enjoyable.

We got a butler with our honeymoon room. Two in fact: Lincoln and Hunter. They split shifts. Did we need a butler? NO. Could we have managed ourselves? YES. Did we like the special treatment? YOU BET. Benefits to having a butler include:

• a carry cooler to take with you everywhere (the envy of all non-butler guests)
• dinner reservations pre-made every night and tables with best views
• you want a cheese plate to go with your wine while you get ready for the night? Call Hunter and you'll have a delivery in no time!
• round-the-clock room service, not that we ever needed it!
• breakfast set-up at the room every morning
• surprises like romantic baths, Kenny G music and candles! Can we say CHEESY?

Oft' heard statements made by the Gorns:

• this food is SOOO good
• what drink should I get this time?
• I'm sooooo full
• did you remember the room key?
• you call Hunter on the cell phone, I don't want to!
• It's really hot
• we didn't need a butler, did we?
• those people are so skinny! They probably don't eat cheese and pizza
• I'm never going back home
• you really got stung by that jelly fish?? (okay, only said once by Amy to Andy)

We weren't complete sloths, but it got close. Through Sandals we went snorkeling, kayaking (Andy's main workout as we paddled into this warm wind and rain across the bay and he did most of the work), couples massage, work out (just barely), zip-lining in a rain-forest on the Island, and went to a locals spot for a weekly steel-drum band reggae show. Mostly, though, it was the tough decision of deciding to go to the pool or beach, and what to wear to dinner.

This is our first morning and Andy's skin is already glistening from the heat. Hunter reserved for us great seating next to the pool and right by the swim-up bar. We'd get served by a roaming waitress AND the bar staff in the pool! We also had our cooler stocked from the unlimited supply of beer, wine, champagne and booze in our room. Hunter always made sure we were seated on the best lounge chairs, under an umbrella. There were times we'd go to the pool without notifying our butler, and then we'd be seated further away--rough life!That's Lincoln! At the butler reception. He used to be a DJ in Jamaica, and he had the social personality out of the two.Alaskans have a hard time staying in the direct tropical sunshine. That's why you'll always see us with a near-empty drinky-drink in our hands.Local drink of choice kept stocked in our cooler on the go. Our other butler, Hunter, was the one who paid attention to details and set-up romantic gestures like swan-formed towels and floral arrangements we'd discover returning to our room. It was sweet but mostly we giggled at the cliche!We changed our appearances by day and night. It was funny to see young couples water-logged after being outdoors all day, and then look around that night's restaurant selection and we'd all be transformed for a few hours.Here's Andy luvin' the Tex Mex at OK Corral while we watched the sun set. The open flame kitchen was in the middle of our seating area so we had two blasts of heat...Mother Nature and Food prep.And the sweat continued the next day when we left the Resort for zip-lining. You can't see the lines, but we played among those tree tops behind Andy in this photo. It was nice to see some of the Island and change the scenery, but we also had to exchange money (American dollars) for beverages...what a foreign concept!! There was a great crew of Brits doing the 9-line course with us. The workers said Andy and I were naturals at flying between trees. I can't wait to do this again someday. While I discovered a love for zip lining, I came upon my other love... hammocks sprinkled all over the Resort grounds!

This has been a TON of content for one blog post, so I'll end now and continue later with scenic pictures, our excursion to Shirley Point and video-oh of legit reggae.

*Amy

Final Installment

Sitka is awesome! What a wonderful start to our new chapter. Doesn't hurt that the weather is, frankly, AMAZING. More on that transition and other tellings later on. For now, here's a bit more to share from our happy wedding day.

Two Months

The Gorn's will reunite on their two-month anniversary this Friday, as their first month married was spent apart. Some official photographs to share from the wedding reception. More to come from other parts of their joyous day.