1-20-16

January 19th: Just a couple hours on the island & we already LOVE Punta Cana! We wasted no time after checking into our hotel to find the beach. 

I posted this on Facebook… Beach (noun); A place of rest, relaxation & tranquility.

Pretty much sums up the feeling that came over us once here!

Yep…this palm tree & the setting was like a postcard!

It however was not THEE favorite palm tree Bob promised to show me while in DR. For now though…it's my favorite!! 

Drinking some fresh coconut water & putting our feet in the ocean.

Admired the star fish being sold by a local.

:-)

We're stoked to be here & can't wait to enjoy paradise tomorrow!

1-19-16

 24 hours in Miami (part 2).

Yesterday afternoon we took a bus out of the city to the Everglades...

There we traded in our bus for an airboat & off we went into the swampy canals.

We were in search of Alligators! Bob & I had never seen one in the wild & we were excited. Fingers crossed we'd see one today.

Because of the temps (it was VERY cold) the guides were not optimistic about spotting an alligator. In these conditions alligators usually lay under the water to keep warm. On warm days they're soaking in the sun on the grassy banks.

The Everglades were massive! One canal was 8 miles long. Originally the canals were trenched in an attempt to drain the water & develop the land. FAIL…now it's a popular alligator tourist area.

"There's one!!!!" I'm nervous. Can you see him?

Here's an up close & personal view. "Yikes!"

He is BIG…look at his head from his tail!

We found another one!! Now this alligator gave me a scare. He had his eye on me & was waiting until the boat pulled a little further forward...then he jumped. I screamed!!! :-/ Wouldn't you?! 

We cruised the Everglades more…looking and looking. Happy we found 2 gators in the wild. Now look closely at the photo above. In the trees on the right side…a giant Iguana! Wow!

Then to a show by the Gator Boys. Here are the actors!

And this guy was the star! :-)

Um…no thanks!

As tame as you may think this alligator was…he wasn't. This was no joke & you should never try this at home! One trainer lost his thumb recently. :-(

Not sure I'd turn my back on this alligator after embarrassing him in front of an audience. Crazy! We were able to talk with the trainer after the show. Florida gets at least one call a day from someone needing an alligator removed from their yard or premises. I guess AZ folks live with rattlers and FL folks live with gators.

Now we're off to Punta Cana, DR this morning (1/19). No, we didn't take a cruise ship…but did pass by the long line of ships on our way to the Miami airport. It was a fun 24 hours!

1-18-16

Made it to Miami! I flew the red-eye & got in early on January 18th. Bob met me at the airport & we took UBER to the beach. Above is the view across from our hotel.

We booked 1 night at the Colony (behind the white car) in the Art Deco area of Miami Beach.

We had 24 hours in Miami to see some sights so we hit the ground running…

Lifeguard stand on the beach across from our hotel.

Lots of sandy beach to the south.

Lots of sandy beach (plus colorful high-rises) to the north! Funny birds. :-)

This was my 1st time to Miami & was excited to see where Bob spent time when he was based 7 months in Miami 3 years ago.

We used our favorite form of transportation; City Bikes. Ate a yummy breakfast outside at The News Cafe. It was so entertaining just people watching!! 

Near the cafe was a beach "gym" with locals doing random workouts. Check out the guy in orange shorts!

We walked in some shops. This famous picture is done with individually molded construction men. We also liked the various rock climbing figures on the left.

Strolled to the southern point of Miami Beach.

Rocky Pier.

And another cute lifeguard stand. All of them along the beach are painted differently. We walked by Bob's crash pad (no photo) and then took a tour bus to the Everglades in search of Alligators.! (those photos tomorrow). :-)

1-17-16

Bob is in Florida now & I'm taking the red eye tonight to meet him in Miami. On Tuesday we're flying to the Dominican Republic for 3 days! Bob took this photo 4 years ago when he was based in Miami & had frequent flights to the islands. These 2 unique palm trees in Punta Cana with the white sand & turquoise water was one of his favorite spots. I'm so excited to see this in person. I'm a lucky girl! Thanks, honey for planning our mini vacation!

1-16-16

So the plan to find snow yesterday was to take our friend, James skiing for his 60th birthday. We asked him what he wanted for his BIG day and he said to ski. Wish granted! :-)

By 5am we were driving towards Pinetop, AZ to Sunrise Ski Mountain. I had made a nice bed in the back of our Forerunner for Bob to sleep (at least it helped a little) and James was happily our driver.

When we arrived it was cloudy but clear. Great views from the top! Bob & James were a good ski pair cruising down run after run after run.

After only a couple long runs (yep…just 2) I hung out in the lodge with hot chocolate. I was having knee pain & just didn't want to create a bigger problem. I was not unhappy with my view though! The snow was so pretty.

Glad we did this crazy day trip and happy that Bob & James had great conditions. They had a blast!

Cheers and happy birthday, James!

1-15-16

I "HEART" Bob…

As if getting back at 12:30am wasn't hard enough for Bob; I had him get up at 4am to hit the road for a 4 hour drive. And as if Bob hadn't had enough snow flying around the country this week; I had him take us to find snow!

I "<3" Bob!

Details on "why snow?" tomorrow. ;-)

1-14-16

 Bob has had a busy week of flying. Here is cold Colorado Springs.

What is all that white stuff?! ;-)

Bob gets into Phx @ midnight for a good stretch home! Yay!