the digs

So, as promised, the accommodations.  The accommodations here...are pretty sweet.

There are four other villas here which vary in size--some can accomodate up to 12 guests, which seems like it would be fun for large or multi-family groups--but as we are terrible introverts with no friends apart from our two kids (how much you think we're kidding basically depends on how well you know us), we elected to book Cottonwood Cottage, which is a two bedroom lodging with its own small pool, right above Bluefields Beach.

Kids don't really care about the view, but there's a killer view out every window, and it's just a few short flights of steps down in order to see that view up close and personal.  It's a public beach, but it's incredible how private it feels when you're down there.  I think there was one other family down there this morning, but they left mid-morning for their flight back to the States, and after they vacated, we were the only ones down there.

Kids also don't care about the furniture and stuff like that (and to be perfectly frank, neither do I, really) but even a philistine such as myself could appreciate the attention to local historical detail and the interesting architectural flourishes, like the hexagonal-shaped rooms to maximize ocean cross-breezes, and the high wood vaulted ceilings.  It's pretty neat, honestly.

To be totally, totally honest, here were the things I really cared about infrastructure-wise before I came here.  First, was there wireless internet?  (Yes.)  Two, was there air-conditioning?  (Yes, but you're not spending that much time indoors, so who cares.)

Which brings me to the main point that I love about this place, which is that everything is incredibly convenient.  Want to go to the beach?  Walk down the stairs.  Want to go to the pool?  Walk across the front yard.  Want to eat?  Turn around and there's someone trying to shove food and drinks directly down into your gullet, though in the most charming local way.  Guys, I ate breadfruit chips today!  I thought they were saying "grapefruit chips," and was silently puzzling, 1.) how they could possibly chip and fry a grapefruit, and also 2.) why the grapefruits on this island tasted like potatoes.  The chef, so friendly, and probably sensing my confusion through supernatural means, ran straight out of the kitchen and put this in my hands, proceeding to tell me about at least five local breadfruit dishes and how they are prepared.  Like I said: absolutely charming.

I am taking a lot of pictures (obviously), and the ones from my iPhone I'm loading up to my Flickr account as I go, because, to be honest, there are a lot of pictures.  You can follow along here, I will add new pictures day by day as we go so I don't have, like, fifty skrillion photos to upload all at once when we get home.  Here are some of my favorites from today, but check out the full set if you have some time to kill, you can never see too many pictures of my family in various stages of aquatic submersion.

Next, we're going to talk about the food. FOOD. Mack has some opinions, and he'll share those with you tomorrow.