St. Lucia, Our Family Destination Vacation!
When we stepped off the plane, the island hills surrounded
the airport. The sky was crystal
blue and the palms swayed in the breeze.
The tranquil sounds of steel drums played in the background as we rode
the tram to the baggage claim area, and the warm tropic air caressed our
skin. Welcome to St. Lucia…
Paradise.
As we drove up the palm tree lined driveway to our rental
home my stomach got that queasy feeling; you know the one where you tempted the
milk gods and drank it a week after the expiration date… The
vacation rental was stunning.
It was an actual villa on
the water! White pillars and
hibiscus bushes adorned the front entrance… Why am I feeling so
nauseas? Wow, I have never seen so
many windows in one house. And
there it was… the source of my nausea… hanging out of the farthest
left window waving uncontrollably… my mother!
And then the rest of them came running off the beach… my sister and her 5 children, my father,
my husband’s nephew and his date of the week, and the list goes on and
on… 20 family members
total! It was like a scene directly
out of a National Lampoons’ movie – The Patrick’s Family
Reunion! How did I get myself
involved in this? I mumble to
myself, “why did I agree to this?” My husband catches my question, rolls
his eyes, and says, “because you had one too many sour apple martinis at
your cousins’ wedding.”
Oh, yeah. Now I remember. We were sitting at the table nearest to
the bar. As the drinks poured in,
my family got more tolerable, even pleasant to be around. When it was time to toast, I offered up
some sentimental words about marital bliss and the importance of family. Then the toast turned into babble and
before I knew it, I was inviting everyone on a family vacation. We were having so much fun, why not
continue this at a beach paradise?!
My sister, being the thrifty one of the bunch, mentioned
that we should go camping
because it would be more economical for the entire family and just how great it
would be to cook hotdogs and beans over an open fire. We can fuel that fire with my vodka
tonics because there was no way I was sleeping on the ground. Since apparently this little reunion
trip was my idea (but until someone shows me the wedding video with proof of
this, I am denying it ever happened), I took it upon myself to call some hotels
I researched to find out group rates.
Not going to happen unless we can cram 10 people per 2-bed suites! What next? Since my cancellation of this event
email got rejected by everyone except my husband, it became apparent that this
family vacation was happening. I
asked the family for destination
ideas and the suggestions came pouring in. Well, if you count my brother sending an
email telling me he is blocking me from his inbox and my 90-year old
grandmother’s cartoon of the day as suggestions, that is. My husband and I came across a post
on Facebook about a vacation rental home at the beach. It slept 20 people and would cost a
fraction of the hotel price. It was
perfect. The
villa, as the post described it, was located on the water’s edge and
had a ton of beachfront. There were
plenty of fun outdoor activities for all the children, too. It certainly is cheaper to let nature be
their amusement park! And just
think, I could lay out on the deck and tip my nieces and nephews way below 10%
to fetch my sunscreen or my lemonade since they all range from 5-10 years
old.
We unloaded the rental car and everyone was anxious to show
us around the vacation
home. It was breathtaking, and
my family, well, let’s just say, you want your breath to be taken
away! Each room in the house had a
different nautical theme and when we entered the kitchen, I think even Martha
Stewart would drool. My mom was
already whipping up a feast of her specialties. She looked so happy to be cooking (with
love) for her family. When I saw
the kids playing tag on the beach and my dad reading the paper with that neon
orange zinc sunscreen on his nose, I just had to laugh. They still even sell that? The kids were running on the beach
tormenting everything from the seagulls to my 90 year old grandma resting on the
deck. They buried her glasses along
with many other “treasures” in the sand so they could try out their
new compasses and pirate patches.
As I turned to check out who was floating in the pool, a rogue wave came
across the pool. Did my husband
have his swim trunks on under his clothes?
How could he have gotten in the pool so fast? It certainly did not look like I had to
drag him to this vacation after witnessing that cannonball he just landed. St. Lucia
certainly had quite an effect on my family. With all the craziness my family travels
with, renting this beach house has
turned out to be the best vacation
we have experienced. There was
something for everyone and if you needed privacy, you could sneak off for a
walk on the beach or take a beach cruiser into town. If you asked my thrifty sister, she will
tell you that if you travel with a large family, renting a house is the most economical
option because you can clip coupons from the local paper and buy your own food
at low prices, not inflated room service prices. My mom would tell you that renting a vacation house for the
family was great because it was like cooking Thanksgiving dinner every day and
she loves to pamper her family. My
husband and I agree that I will never make another toast at a wedding again but
if such event did occur, renting the
vacation villa is the best option because in the end, spending quality time
with the family was as enjoyable as it was painful and we will never forget it
(how can I since after a night of cocktails around the bonfire, my sisters and
I walked into town and got matching tattoos). Thank you St. Lucia for a
great vacation!
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