Our Jamaican Honeymoon Adventure - Day 4

So this was a long day, and thus is a long post.  Feel free to skim, or approach this entry how I approach the menus at Denny's: by solely looking at the pictures.

Andrew yells at me for laying on the bed in a wet swimsuit,
but the look on my face accurately portrays my absence of care.

August 21st, Day 4

The fourth day of our trip had a very relaxing start, as we had scheduled a massage in the morning.  Being newlyweds, we were each given a complimentary 25 minute body massage at Charlie's spa on the resort.  This was particularly exciting for me, as I have never had a professional massage before.

After a hearty breakfast (and a mimosa) we headed up what seemed like 1,000 steps to get to the spa.  We had to fill out a questionnaire on arrival, which asked had we eaten food or consumed alcohol in the last hour.  When we checked both boxes, Monique (the spa receptionst) sounded surprised that we had already been drinking before 9 am.  I guess reading that last sentence back, it does make us sound like raging alcoholics, but my theory is that they wouldn't provide mimosa ingredients at 7:30 am if they didn't want you to get a head start with your drinking.

I can imagine if you've ever had a relaxing massage that there was either very soothing music playing, or that there may have been a sound machine emulating things like a babbling brook, the rainforest, or ocean waves crashing on a rocky shore.  I have no experience to compare this to, but I can't think of a better ambiance then actually laying in a shady gazebo on the ocean hearing actual waves crash against the rocky shore.  Despite the really greasy feeling afterward, it was just as relaxing as everyone claims it to be, and Andrew and I enjoyed feeling pampered to start our day.

I had to shower to get all the oil off of me, but then we packed our bags for the afternoon cruise we signed up for (recommended to us by Dave Parker, thanks again!) and made our way down to the beach.  Today was the first day we experimented with laying in the sun, and it was neither refreshing nor comfortable.  I only endured for about 30 minutes, but the silver lining to the raging heat was the immediate cooling sensation from the ocean water.  Before you commend me in my bravery of submerging in ocean water, let me just clarify that I merely bounced on my inflatable raft until I got fully wet.  Thanks for the vote of confidence, though.

One of the nice things about this resort is that, whilst on the beach, the bartenders provide you with a blue flag.  They consistently make rounds to ask if people need drinks, and they also come to you anytime you wave your little blue flag.  It's definitely a promotion of laziness, not even having to get up to get your own beverage, but it was very convenient.

We went back to the Pallazzina for lunch, and Andrew was really excited to order the Pad Thai, and I ended up ordering sweet & sour chicken.  Maybe I just haven't brushed up enough on my Oriental cuisine, or maybe I don't know what it's really supposed to taste like, but I found it interesting that the best sweet & sour chicken I have eaten came from Jamaica.

Since we planned ahead enough to pack our bags for the catamaran cruise, we headed straight from the beach to the lobby, where we were to depart to the other Couples resort, Tower Island, to set off on our trip to the dock.  Once we got to the lobby, we got ready to hop on the bus to the other resort, when the driver asked for our voucher.  Yes, we did have it…in the safe in our room, which was like a mile away.  We had a driver take a company car through the narrow walkways and roads in the resort to expedite the process, so it was kind of nice that we were the only ones from our resort heading over to the cruise.  At least our forgetfulness is only holding us up, and not others.  Once we got the voucher, we got on the bus to the other resort, where we were chauffeured by a driver working at the resort.  And we are alone as a couple, so you can see where this is headed...

"Hey mon!  You just married, ya?  I show you de best for less!  I give tours of de REAL Jamaica, mon.  We see de bobsledding, and Mc Jagger's house.  We even see de place Bob Marley lived!  Only $70 for tree (three) hours of de real Jamaica, are you interested?"

Of course we're not.  We, being you and I, have gone over this before.  So naturally, Andrew responds, "Oh man, that does sound interesting!  What do you think, honey?"  Now, I know Andrew doesn't really want to do this, but he has this disorder where saying no to people physically ails him, so he encouragingly looks at me, where I clearly have to put my foot down and be assertive, so I say, "Oh, uh, well…we have this photo shoot tomorrow at 5:00, so, ummm, well- we will think about it and let you know!"  Yep.  That's how I assert myself.

So we get off the bus at the resort and we are so excited to see what it looks like.  They are owned by the same company, but each Couples resort is a little bit different, and we wanted to see if we'd made the right choice by going with Sans Souci.  Life, after all, is just one big competition.

I really liked the decor in their lobby, and the view from the balcony was priceless, however, upon further investigating we think we picked the resort best suited for our interests.  While Couples Tower has a gorgeous island across the bay that you can swim or boat up to, it is pretty exposed to the elements in terms of the water, and it was very vulnerable and choppy.  The kayakers we observed just paddled in circles, and there was virtually no one in the water.  There was also a much larger beach than ours, which can be a + or - depending on how you feel, and thus three rows of beach chairs along the shore, making nice views harder to enjoy.  The rooms were pretty much all in a block together, more or less like a hotel, so there may not have been as much variety in the rooms that were included.

View of Couples Tower Resort

One of the nice things about Sans Souci is that it is very secluded, lush, and private, which is what we were looking for.  The beach is smaller, but there is no interference with the wind, as we are hidden in a bay.  As you can see, the Sans Souci layout is more like little multi room condominiums sprinkled along the resort, hiding between stone pathways, marble stairs, lush green trees and colorful flowers.  There are many ocean front rooms, that we didn't really see with the other resort.

Overhead view of Couples Sans Souci resort

Sans Souci also has three pools: one with a swim up bar, one with a waterfall, and one was a mineral pool. Because there were eight different blocks of rooms, each one had very different layouts, patio sizes, and views.  It's nice because you can elect for a different room each time you visit, so that you never get the same view twice.  We were in the Azalea block (I'M SO FANCY) so we got a nice pool/beach view.

Waterfall pool off of the Balloon Bar

The main (aka non-nude) beach

The swim-up bar located in the main pool

Anyway, I digress!  We had to then board ANOTHER bus to get to the catamaran, and as mentioned, we were the only Sans Souci couple there, which was fine.  We did see the couple we met on the first day getting off the airplane on the boat.  Small world, eh?

We boarded the boat, and had to help load some large crates, which we found out contained liquor.  This was more or less a booze cruise, and I was elated to hear it.  There were three or four Jamaican gentlemen helping to navigate and sail the catamaran, and one of them was DJing as well.  It was like he tapped into my 9th grade dream playlist of objectifying hip hop music, and I loved it- despite the fact there was no Will Smith.  Funny thing about Jamaican DJing- they will add raucously loud sound effects and random recorded phrases in the middle of whatever they're playing, whether it makes sense or not.  It was a little disconcerting at first, and then it just became ridiculously funny.  I suppose DJs in the states do similar things but, you really have to hear it to know what I mean.  To each their own!

We got to see some very cool things, including Mystic Mountain, Dolphin Cove, and the limestone quarry that was blown up in one of the James Bond movies!

Very poor shot of the limestone quarry

We didn't see the sunset on the sunset cruise, but we saw
lots of the sun so that's halfway there

So after a little tour and some interesting music, we dropped anchor to go swimming.  Ummm, what?  No one said this was a part of the tour.  I could tell you that I was brave and that I dove in, or I could tell you that my deep sea documentaries got the better of me and I pansied out.  How about I let you all vote on it and I will tell you what I did afterward.  That sounds more mysterious and excitable.  Oh, and Andrew did a sideways flip off the boat because he's a showoff.  <3

So when I was researching this cruise, I saw pictures of people dancing on the boat, which looked like so much fun!  When everyone made their way back on the boat to dry off, the captain asked for four male volunteers and, knowing that Andrew is a fantastic dancer, I volunteered him.  I could tell that, deep down, he wanted to do it.  Once all four tributes were volunteered by their spouses, I was a little horrified to find out that this was not a fun-loving dance-off, but a drinking competition.  Oops.

Here are the rules: the count of one, cups are up; the count of two, cups are at your lips, the count of three, you drink.  If you spill, you have a two drink penalty.  Enjoy!

So, that was four rum punches in 2:38, and because- and I quote the captain- "I can't believe a white boy can drink rum so fast!", they had a round three, and Mr. Willis won that too.  I'm such a proud wifey.  :-)

After that, we did some dancing, and sailed back to the docking area.  Luckily for us, the bus driver dropped us off at Sans Souci since it was on the way.  Buuuut that meant that our "I'll show you de best for less" driver came to pick us up and we weren't there…oops again.  At least we managed to weasel our way out of either confessing we lied about being interested about his offer, or politely accepting despite our mutual disdain for the idea.  Go, go gadget passive aggressive awkward responses!

We went to the beach for a bit, and hung out at the bar where we met Brian, soon to be our all time favorite bartender.  He was doing the COOLEST tricks while making us delicious drinks, and engaging in conversation about how there are no fat Jamaicans and what reggae music he liked.  We then had dinner on the beach from the Bella Vista menu, which we'd never done before.  We both ordered the beef tenderloin, and also got a calamari appetizer.  It came with tartar sauce, which would not do for me, so I asked if they could put some of the mango chutney sauce on it instead, and because everyone there was incredibly awesome, they obliged, and it tasted magnificent. 

If you look carefully, this is actually an awesome photo
of a guy diving into the ocean

Sunset smiles!

Beach chairs and palm trees at sunset

A kitty came to visit us (there are three stray cats and one kitten on the resort) while we were eating, and while I held my will power, Andrew caved and fed the feline beef tenderloin.  Not only would the cat not move and just stared pathetically at Andrew for the duration of dinner, but another diner chidingly called us out on feeding it, since the cat had now parked by our table and this guy had done something similar the other night and got yelled at by his wife.  Surprisingly enough, all four cats are very trim, almost skinny.  I'm sure they're rarely hurting for a good meal.

We went back to the bar to hang out with Brian.  There was a piano sing-a-long at the Balloon Bar happening the next evening, and we asked Brian what songs he'd like to hear most, to which he replied Great Balls of Fire and Big Bamboo.  We knew one of these songs, but were keen on researching the other one.  As it would turn out, neither of us remembered the name of it when we got back to the room, so we went to bed, planning on asking Brian again tomorrow.

Our Jamaican Honeymoon Adventure - Day 3

August 20th, Day 3

After a slow, groggy, and painful start to the morning (getting used to the Jamaican cuisine was tough at first), we made our way down to the Pallazzina for breakfast earlier than usual, as we had to catch an 8:55 bus to Dunns River Falls.  Being practical, I sported a monokini for this excursion, as I don't know much about waterfalls, but I can surmise that string bikinis and bandeau tops don't fare well in them.

In order to participate in said waterfall climb, we were required to purchase REALLY SEXY WATER SHOES.  The perk is that they say "Jamaica, no problem!" on them.  Andrew got a really nice pair that was black, yellow, and green to match the Jamaican flag, and I (like always) got stuck with whatever color scheme was left in the all too common size 8.  It was hot pink, neon green, and grape purple.  Jamaica, no problem?

Anyway, when we got on the bus, our driver Prince (not sure if that's an alias or his real name, but he was not the artist formerly known, for sure) sat down for a serious talk that went something like,

"You guys, we have a serious problem. *worried looks among couples*  We need a new driver.  *confused looks*  Yeah, mon.  I had way too much to drink last night and I'm still drunk.  *horrified looks*  Yeah, mon.  What we're going to need is one of you to drive the bus today while I navigate."  I'm not sure if you realize this, but in case you don't, here's a fun fact about Jamaica: they drive on the left-hand side of the road.

At this point, people are audibly murmuring, and a few people hesitantly step up to drive, until Prince says, "Ok, mon!  Well you see, it's a manual transmission." Now the bus goes nearly silent when my lovable, pointdexter husband says, "Does the manual transmission shift from right to left or left to right?" halfway out of his seat, ready to cruise in a large tour bus down narrow streets on the opposite side of the road with an old, manual transmission.  Awesomeness.

Luckily for us, Prince was just joshin' us.  We all breathed a huge sigh of relief, except Andrew, who secretly mentioned that he was really looking forward to driving.

We got to the falls, and Prince sat us down for a REAL serious talk this time.  He said that a lot of people are going to try to sell us items after our tour, as we have to walk through a sort of flea market to get back to the entrance.  Apparently, a lot of vendors say that an item is free and thrust it in your hands, and then ask you to pay for it.  He also ran us through the protocol for the tour guides and how we should pay for the DVD accurately, should we choose to buy it, so we don't get scammed.

So the falls were really beautiful, and it was cold, refreshing fresh water, so I didn't have to worry about rogue jellyfish.  PHEW.  The climb was relatively easy, considering it was over 960 feet high.  It was laid out in such a way that it plateaued frequently, so it didn't necessarily feel like you were climbing a whole lot at one time.

Our tour guide was so much fun and made sure that we got lots of fun footage on the DVD.  Each tour guide had a videographer with them with a waterproof camera, so that when we were finished with the tour we could purchase a souvenir of the adventure.  I was amazed to find out that they did not mail the DVD to our room, but gave it to us on the spot as we were leaving!  I suppose they have this routine down to a science, though.

Sure enough, as we left the falls on our way back to the bus, we were hounded by many an eager Jamaican vendor.  Having been in countless flea markets in Florida, I was very used to this environment, but still felt obliged to politely decline.  Andrew has a Canadian maple leaf tattoo on his back, which proved to be a disadvantage for trying to escape persistent vendors.  "Hey you!  Maple leaf mon!  MADE IN CANADA!"  It was highly amusing, but it did result in us getting borderline chased by excitable Jamaicans.

Once we got back to the resort, we hung out at the bar and had lunch at the Bella Vista grill, which was new for us.  I got a bacon cheeseburger, while Andrew got a Jerk Burger, which he raved about.  We spoke with some couples at the bar who *shocker* had the same wedding date as us.  They also introduced us to the vomit-inducing, aesthetically appealing shot that is the Bob Marley.

It looks cute…but it's not

Yeah, I know.  It looks elegant and spunky and super fruity and tasty.  I assure that it is none of those things.  If you have ever had cherry cough syrup, particularly Robitussin, think about what it would taste like if you mixed it with menthol spearmint sore throat spray…that, my friends, is what a Bob Marley tastes like.  Oh, what's in it, you ask?  Grenadine, (not SO bad) banana liqueur, (uhh, gross) and creme de menthe (WTF?).  Apparently there is overproof rum in there somewhere too.  Mm mm, good.  Also, ours were served in martini glasses with a straw, so we were expected to put the straw in the center and suck it up as quickly as possible.  You know, they wouldn't want you to miss that yummy banana liqueur in the middle of all of that prescription medicine.

I'm pretty sure we napped after that.  We made a reservation earlier in the evening at the only restaurant we hadn't visited, which was the Casanova.  Not only was the food amazing, but I have never had more conscientious or careful service in a food establishment in my life.  Our waiter was just perfect, and his name was Euron.  Andrew ordered a bottle of Kendall-Jackson Cabernet, and he also got crab cakes for an appetizer that were very tasty and delicate.  I ordered the lobster bisque, which was soooo good, but served in a unique way.  The lobster and creme fraiche were brought out to me in the soup bowl, which looked odd.  Euron then came by with what looked like a coffee urn with the hot broth to pour atop the other ingredients.  It was kind of neat to see soup served so differently.  Andrew ordered the beef tenderloin, medium, for his entree, while I settled for lobster tail.  I tried a bit of his, and both were prepared to perfection.  We did indulge in dessert (primarily because we still had a ton of wine left) and while Andrew got the bourbon bitter chocolate tart with a Jamaican coffee (coffee with Appleton rum) I opted for the creme brûlée, which was really good.

Andrew and I at the Casanova restaurant

After dinner, we were still wiped out after a long afternoon of climbing, so the hay we hit.  Keep your eyes peeled for my recollections of day four!

Our Jamaican Honeymoon Adventure - Day 2

August 19th, Day 2

I uncharacteristically woke up early because I was so darn excited to see the view from our beachfront room.  There was not a cloud in the sky on this glorious morning, and it was just as hot as it appeared to be.  We got our beach bag ready to go with the necessities (towels, sunscreen, bug spray, books, journal, sunglasses, etc.) and headed down to the breakfast buffet.  There really wasn't an item you would want that they didn't have, and some items you would want but would have never known they had.  They had eggs, sausage, french toast with mango syrup, almond croissants, bagels, fresh fruit, yogurt, smoked salmon and marlin with various cheeses, and the best Jamaican Bacon (I like it also because it rhymes :-P) you'll probably ever find.  They also had an omelet and waffle station manned by a chef, along with juice and liquor to make mixed drinks, and even champagne to make mimosas.  Mmmmm…

After breakfast, we found a nice quiet corner of the beach that was unoccupied.  It was nearby a very fruitful tree that was growing directly in the beach water it seemed, and our beach chairs were under a cozy and convenient white trellis.  I did take some beach photos, but again, nothing that does the view justice.

Little birdies hanging out by the water tree

As we were lounging on the beach CHILLIN' OUT MAXIN' RELAXIN' ALL COOL there was a woman on the resort staff who approached us and asked if we would mind her taking a photo of us.  I was a little in awe, and very flattered!  My immediate reaction was "Man, they must think we look awesome if they want to photograph us.  Maybe they'll use the photos for promotional purposes!"  We posed for a few beachfront shots and, to my horror, the lady proceeded to photograph every other couple within a two mile radius.  Le sigh.  There goes my modeling career…

I had feared this moment would arrive, and sure enough it did.  Andrew eventually asked "Do you want to go in the water?"  Pretty harmless request, all things considered, and I did want to say yes, but all of the mysterious deep sea fish documentaries I watched had me hesitating.  If only I could get some of the floating rafts the other couples had…it was then that Andrew pointed out that our beach chair covers were flotation devices.  GENIUS.  I got the best of both worlds, as my peace of mind was intact while I was able to float alongside my adorable hubby.  (Whilst stressing about his safety should he encounter an urchin, or jellyfish, or stonefish, or Portugese man-of-war, or shark, or…)

After beach lounging we made our way to the Pallazzina restaurant where we had breakfast, this time to enjoy some lunch.  While the salads and desserts were buffet style, the lunch entrees were ordered, and I decided upon grilled snapper with pesto rice.  It was covered in a tangy parmesan cream sauce that was to die for!

After booking an excursion to Dunn's River Falls, we went to the beach party.  The staff had set up tons of beautifully decorated round top tables with an astounding buffet of countless types of food.  There were pork and jerk chicken carving stations, a la flambé desserts, fresh coconuts to drink out of, salads, sushi, seafood, pasta…everything!  

We are lousy at taking our own photos...

We then had the pleasure of watching the astounding pre-show featuring a fire dancer from Africa and the Dynamite Brothers.  As it would seem, I took way too much video, but here is a small highlight of their amazing performance.  They also came back for an UNBELIEVABLE juggling routine, followed by juggling swords and flames that were likely 500 DEGREES IN THE CARIBBEAN SEAS WITH THE HOT MAMIS SCREAMIN' "AY PAPI!"  It really was incredibly impressive, and I have a decent video but it's too large to post here. :-(

Then we got the opportunity to hear the main performance from the Silver Birds steel drum group.  This is just a small clip and it really doesn't showcase their talent, especially their lead player.  She was so incredibly fast when she was playing some of the other more demanding pieces, it was really cool to hear and also super fun to watch!

After that we headed back to the room to call it a day.  Be on the lookout for my day three post, hopefully I can get it up sooner than it took me to post day two.  :-/

Our Jamaican Honeymoon Adventure - Day 1

Hello wonderful readers!

This is my first official blog post as a married woman, huzzah!  In the absence of my horror film blogging shenanigans, I wanted to take the time to document Andrew's and my wonderful experiences on our 10-day trip to Ocho Rios, Jamaica.  I will continue my horror blogging endeavors, now that pageant and wedding chaos is done, and definitely be sure to keep up with me in October for my first ever prize giveaway!

So back to the honeymoon.  I figured it would be more bearable for us, both mentally and visually, if I broke the trip down into different days and didn't write one enormously long post.  So, without further adieu, here is the exciting tale!

August 18th, Day 1
We thought we were pretty smart to come to Syracuse the night before to stay in the airport hotel to be on time.  Andrew knows me pretty well, eh?  So our first OFFICIAL stop on the way to Jamaica was…*drumroll*…Taco Bell?  Don't judge.  After we woke up the next morning, we were shuttled to the airport to embark on our, not one, but TWO layover journey to Montego Bay airport.  Our first stop?  Charlotte, NC.  We had a few hours until our next flight, so we ate delicious strombolis at Sbarro's and chilled until our flight to MIAMI FLORIDA.

Now, I have been to Florida many times, so believe me when I say that it's not the thrill of the Sunshine State that exclusively excites me, but I have been on a Will Smith Pandora kick ever since Jenna Marbles opened Pandora's box of juicy booty shaking jams to me in one of her weekly blog updates.  I just can't get enough of the station, and anytime one of his songs comes on I kind of fangirl freakout.  I don't know what it is, but his heavily sampled, bass dropping, clean-cut MCing speaks to my soul, and I want to be his BFF.  Okay, this is getting a little personal, so I'm going to shift gears back to the point…

I ONLY CAME FOR TWO DAYS OF PLAYIN'/BUT EVERY TIME I COME I ALWAYS WIND UP STAYIN'/THIS THE TYPE OF TOWN I COULD SPEND A FEW DAYS IN/ MIAMI THE CITY THAT KEEPS THE ROOF BLAZIN'

This is pretty much what Andrew had to endure the entire layover, God bless him, but luckily I had little to no voice after the wedding.  Mild sickness + drinking + heavy karaoke = hoarse whisper.  After the BIENVENIDO A MIAMI layover, we hopped on our last flight of the day to Montego Bay.  There was a very boisterous couple across from me on the plane, who were nice enough, but did not follow directions or any real form of social etiquette very well.  I resurrected my journal in order to document the trip, and the lovely man across the aisle asks me a question.  I was in la la land and didn't hear it, or didn't think I heard it, so I asked him to repeat it.

"Excuse me miss, are you an author?"

I guess this question isn't THAT obscure, as I was writing, but honestly?  Did he really think that?  It pains me to admit that the mere fact that I was actually physically writing probably made his head spin, and he must have thought that such an antiquated form of communication would be the work of fiction itself.  Not to mention that when he looked closely enough,  he could see that I was using cursive.  "What sorcery is this, woman?  This is madness!  You are writing in the Devil's tongue!"  Okay, I'm embellishing, but I was also writing in a purple magnetic 4x6 notebook with hummingbirds on it in size 42 font, so maybe if he'd thought about it for a second, he could have MacGyver-ed his way to a more logical conclusion.

We landed in Montego bay at 7:06 pm, and it was dark.  Huh?  As it turns out, Jamaica doesn't observe Daylight Savings, so they are an hour behind our time, despite being in the same time zone.  We walked down the not-so-glamorous stairs on our way to customs when, hold the phone, my NAME IS ON A PLACARD.  There is a woman legitimately waiting for both Andrew and I like we are VIP rock stars.  I was on cloud 9.  We met Chenice and she talked us through what we would need to get through customs, primarily our passports and customs forms.  Passport- check,  customs form- wait.  Uncheck that item.  My passport was not in my possession!  As soon as I realized it I knew exactly where it was…on the plane, in the seat back pocket.  NOW THIS IS A STORY ALL ABOUT HOW MY LIFE GOT FLIP-TURNED UPSIDE DOWN- NO!  Not today.  The plane is literally only feet away from us; I know it's on there and I refuse to let my negligence ruin our honeymoon!  Andrew, on the other hand, refuses to let me further botch things in a slow-paced fashion, so he runs back to get it for me.  I married a gentleman and a scholar.

Chenice's face returned to its normal color when he returned with said Passport, and because Andrew is extra awesome, he booked us Club Mobay VIP passes to secure us an escort that will let us cut everyone in the customs line and then take us to a fancy club afterward.  UN.BELIEVABLE.  We got to the club and they offered us drinks, sandwiches, and cold towels.  (Wait, those exist?)  We took a little bit of everything, and let me tell you how invigorating a citrus-scented cold towel feels on your flushed American face at 8:00 pm in a Jamaican airport: very.  From here on out, minus tipping and extras, it's all inclusive, folks.  We went across the way to the other club facility to wait for our driver and grab some Red Stripe tap beer.  It's a lot like a light lager, and I'm not much of a beer drinker, but it's Jamiaca, mon!  We had just started sipping when our driver arrived, so we said we'd chug them, to which he replied, "No, mon!  Take it with you!"  Coolness.

We had an hour and a half drive ahead of us, and we were only riding with one other couple, who had the same wedding date as we did!  I know this because it was elegantly bedazzled onto the back of her hoodie.  They were traveling to the Couples Tower resort, while we were headed to Couples Sans Souci resort, so we got off first since ours was closer.

Once we arrived at the resort, we were greeted and shown our room.  It was pretty amazing and so spacious!

Flower petals on our bed?  Tres romantique!

Jacuzzi spa bathtub, yeah mon!

After we settled in, we decided to go exploring, even though it was dark out.  I was a little apprehensive, as I was kind of scared that there would be large and exotic species of spider, snake, or scorpion wandering about in the eve time, but we went anyway, and I just ninja-stepped everywhere to ensure my safety.  We got a look at the main pool, but since it was dark the photo doesn't do it justice. 

We met one of the bartenders, Pete, who made us a special drink called a Stinger, which was quite yummy!  He offered to take us around to show us the real Jamaica if we wanted, which was a separate ordeal from the resort, but we kindly declined, in our wishy washy way of sounding like we're interested.  After perusing the resort, it was off to bed, and I could hardly wait to wake up to a sunlight scoured beachfront view in the morning! 

Day 1, over and out!

New Post, New Family, and RRS #5

Hello avid readers!

It has been well over two years since I have posted to this blog, and while I do love keeping up with the horror movie blog, I have missed the cathartic experience of writing about myself.  Haha.  Or is that a narcissistic experience?  Whatever.  Since a lengthy stretch of time has elapsed, I feel like I should update you on my life, starting with

Ridiculous Random Story #5

This one is pretty comprehensive, as it ties in my pageant background with my current life.

Once upon a time, I won Miss Thousand Islands in 2008.  Little did I know that one of the judges would have a pretty big impact on my adult life.  Deltra Willis was one of those 5 judges who seemed to think I would do a pretty decent job as a titleholder, and then she soon started dating a lovely fellow by the name of Stan.  Fast forward one year to my warm up interview for Miss Thousand Islands 2009, where Stan was on the panel and also thought I could do a great job as a titleholder.  Too bad I was giving up my crown and wasn't actually competing, haha.  Fast forward to my first year on the Miss Thousand Islands board of directors.  I was basically there for talent prep, interview prep, and to voice my opinion, and often ran into Deltra and Stan who were both on the board.  They had mentioned occasionally that Deltra's son, Andrew, was a really nice guy and that I should meet him.  I had heard that before, and was flattered at the offer, but was already seeing someone.

That next summer, at the pageant workshop, we were at Deltra's house and I was running a modeling workshop.  Andrew was "supposed" to come but did not make it for one reason or another.  Offered as a nice substitute, were some dashing photos of him and his band, "Bye George".

Deltra kept suggesting we meet, and I found it hard to imagine what he looked like in present day based on photos from his youth.  I found myself not really keen on the idea, as it felt like I was potentially meeting someone the age of the students that I taught.

Seven months later, I volunteered to help with the Miss Thousand Islands Outstanding Teen Pageant.  I was teaching the girls how to model, and helping with talent.  I had also volunteered to sing, and to twirl my baton to a Michael Buble song.  Lo and behold, Andrew was showing up later to do sound.  "Oh brother", I thought.  I was kind of preoccupied with the contestants while he entered, and it wasn't until Deltra brought it up that I noticed him, and boy did I ever notice him.  It was that feeling you hear about in movies, but don't think is really real.  At the time, I attributed it to the expectation of seeing a 16 year old boy with braces, but being pleasantly surprised with the outcome, but I obviously now realize it was something more.

We introduced ourselves, and I ran through both my divertissements.  After the pageant was over, we chit chatted, and then he had to pack up sound and leave.  That was it.  No phone number exchange, no offer for a date, nada.  I wasn't disappointed, I was offended!  Why wouldn't he want to ask me out?  I'm pretty awesome and we had a lot in common!  (See above note: narcissism)  I went home and Facebook stalked him, but wait...he wasn't on Facebook!  It was then I really had to question if I wanted to pursue anyone who wasn't part of the Facebook virtual world.  I then did the most/least sensible thing anyone would do in this situation: I asked his mother for his e-mail address.

Okay.  That sounds crazy, and I have to admit that at the time I felt crazy doing so.  I just kept remembering that feeling I had.  I am not one to ignore these kind of things, and the worst case scenario if I asked was that she'd say no, or he would genuinely not be interested after getting to know me.  If I didn't ask, however, I couldn't help feeling like I would never know what would have become of our acquaintance/friendship/relationship.  She gladly gave me two e-mail addresses, along with his cell phone number, haha.  I am still very grateful to her for forking over her only son's personal information to someone who seemed really desperate!

It took me what seemed like forever to write the perfect, witty, non-stalkerish e-mail.  It was on February 13th, 2012.  We started dating on March 8th, 2012, and got engaged October 1st, 2013.  We will be happily married on August 16th, 2014!

So that's our story.  We have to constantly thank Stan and Deltra for persisting that we get acquainted, otherwise we likely would never have met.  In addition to being able to see these two wonderful people much more frequently, I also got to meet and fall in love with his whole family, including his sister, Deltra Lynne, his brother-in-law, Darrell, his two nephews, William and Zachary, his niece, Deltra Elliott (Ellie), his dad, Jim, and his step-mother, Hildegard, among MANY other family members and friends along the way.  I am so blessed to be a part of this wonderful group of people, and to call this handsome man my fiancee, and soon to be husband:

Oops, wrong photo.  I mean, THIS handsome man...

Again, I am so grateful for my path leading me to find this wonderful soul mate of mine.  Had it not been for pageantry, and the long list of friendships I have made through it, I would not be able to boast about Andrew being the center of my life.  I can now, proudly be added to the list of Miss America competitors that found her husband through pageant connections.

I intend on updating this blog a little more frequently, so keep up with me here, and on www.filmfilteroff.blogspot.com.

Much love,

Corri

New Blog!

Whilst I am in the process of periodically updating you on my life via this blog, I'd LOVE to have you check out my new, useful blog at http://www.filmfilteroff.blogspot.com.  You'll LLLOOOOOOOVEEE it and I'll LLOOOOOVVVVVEEEE you!  Thanks!

-Corri

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