Yeah mon, Christmas was different...

So, what do you do when you have a big, loving, wonderful family, but you know you need to share the marrieds and grandies with the "outlaws," as we call them (those wonderful in-laws on the other side), or sometimes just give them space to have Christmas in their own way?
This was an "off" year for us, with no claim on or expectations with any of the married kids. So we decided to make Christmas an experiment, and go on a trip - just the four of us who still live in the cruel cold of Dakota du Nord. Of course, we looked for warmth, and somewhere we hadn't been... We made our plans to spend Christmas on a beach in the Bahamas. By way of Florida.


I wish how it sounds was exactly how it was. But don't assume the worst, either.

I can't say it was paradise, or that everything went as we hoped/expected. The Bahamas were unseasonably cold this year at Christmas (so was Florida and most of the country - no secret there); our Bahamas hotel was a bit of a joke. (Don't ever schedule through travelfun.com or thetourcenter.com; we are sorry we did. That's all I'm saying.) But Tim, aka Santa, fixed what he could, and overall the trip was unique, pleasant, and a great learning experience. And amazingly, we were never separated from our luggage, and only had one flight delay that threw things off-schedule - and it didn't mess up anything important. While I'm probably the first to tell what was wrong, I am also the most verbose about what was great and worthwhile about the trip as a whole. So for intimate details, talk to me. The pictures can do the rest.

The view from the first of many hotel rooms...

Notice the tape on the poor baby aligator's snout, so tourists can hold him safely

The Florida Everglades

That big boy was heading over to give me a kiss -- or to take my face off. The guide was pretty clear which was more likely.
At least it was warm in Florida (it got really cold there after we left)







Tim checking out the first conch shell we found. Turns out the Bahamians eat them, so the shells were all over.



Ah, the sea...







One picture of Mel is Florida, the other the Bahamas. Can you tell which is which?






It did get better... But the irony never went away (this sign, however, was not on the beach, but in the alleged longest freshwater cave in the world). And the mangrove "swamp" (clearest water I've ever seen) was a biggie as well.









But for general appeal, the ocean always won. This particular beach, at highest tide possible, is actually one used in filming "Pirates of the Caribbean." Yeah, we thought so too.




But THIS was what we were looking for. We enjoyed this hotel, beach and slightly warmer sun for a day, before sailing into the sunset back to Florida. (FYI, we didn't go on a cruise; it was a five-hour big-boat ride to and from the island. Don't want any confusion there... We still hope to cruise someday.)

One final comment (you knew I couldn't do it, didn't you?): We enjoyed our trip and are really grateful we could go. Our experiment gave us new experiences and new friends. And we learned a lot, including some things about ourselves; especially this: Christmas is for traditions. Christmas is for families. Even if we have to take turns. ☻ So Smile, Mon! And try to visit the islands when Mother Nature isn't freaking out. Oh, and have a Happy New Year!