Grand Cayman

Our second annual tropical vacation with the Smith's was fabulous! This year, the Burton's and the Blocker's joined in. I hope to do more trips in the future with them, it was so much fun. It was a relaxing, fun-filled adventure. Grand Cayman is a beautiful, green, warm, lush paradise. It took time to get used to the island, everything is backwards, the steering wheel is on the right side of the car, you drive on the left side of the road, and if that's not difficult enough, there are several round-a-bouts to navigate through. I'm so glad that I didn't have to drive! The guys did great job getting us around the island. It's a small island, about an hours drive from one side of the island to the other. The Caymanians were the nicest people I've ever met, genuinely sincere and eager to help. Mike hooked us up with an amazing private beach front house in Rum Point. We each had our own bedroom suite. It was so peaceful eating breakfast on the back porch watching the bright blue waves crash. We walked along the white sandy beach collecting coral and shells, it was total bliss! We could walk out the back door, take a few steps to the water and start snorkeling. We saw lobster, sting-rays, an octopus, and numerous brightly colored fish. We all had an opportunity to go scuba diving, where we saw lots of great sea life. The guys were even brave enough to do a night dive. We dined in some nice local restaurants, and sampled the delicious local island cuisine. The highlight of the trip for me was Sting-Ray City. When I found out we were going, I was expecting dry land with buildings, shopping, etc. But I soon learned it was not a city at all, but a shallow sand barge in the ocean. We took a 20 minute boat ride, had 3 minutes of instruction, put on our snorkeling gear, and jumped in the ocean. Seconds later, we were surrounded by swarms of hungry sting-rays. We held out squid, and the sting-rays came and ate it right out of our hands, it was such a thrill! The rays were huge, and they were very friendly, rubbing up on us and letting us hold them. I have a whole new appreciation, they are an intriguing creature. The week went by too fast, and we left the balmy 85 degree weather to arrive in blizzard conditions at the Denver airport. Back to life, back to reality!