This is 40 - Beach Slothing (Day 2)

Friday, May 1st

So now we all know, jet lag is a bit more of a bitch going West than going East.  I'm sure I knew this before.  I mean, I'm not as affected when I go to London or Paris as I am when I get back home.  I did partially chalk this up to trip exhaustion.  But nope, this jet lag is full-on blamed on Westward Ho.

Though it could partially be chalked up to exhaustion.  Let's be honest here.  But for the sake of my story today, just roll with me, won't you??

I passed out last night around 730p or 8p, so it was anyone's guess as to what time I'd wake up this morning.

I first stirred at 230a.  Makes sense.  It's 730a at home.  I normally wake up around that time on the weekend at home.  But my brain said I could do better.  I woke up again at 430a.  A little better, but still.  Around 530a, I couldn't even try to sleep again.  So I lounged around a bit.  Listened to the waves.  It was nice.

My hotel did not come with a free breakfast (I know, one of my usual necessities), but I went to bed last night without eating (did you see the food served on the plane??).  So I had to get something.  And it actually worked out kind of perfectly.  I wandered downstairs to the Swan Court for breakfast.  It was still pretty early (around 630a), so it was just the early risers.  I chose between a buffet or an a la carte menu.  And I did something I don't normally do.  I got pancakes and eggs and sausage and tea.  It was lovely.

If you haven't noticed, I'm going to be doing an "eating well be damned" kind of trip.  I'm really tired of constantly watching my food intake and such.  So, I may be going balls-out this week.  I'll do better when I get home.  Seriously.  But for now, if I want some shaved ice, imma gonna get some shaved ice.

Which reminds me.  I need to find out when the shaved ice people leave.  But I digress.

I also decided I was going to try to do something I don't normally do.  Leisurely go through this trip.  Normally I am racing from place to place.  I'm trying not to do that.  Today, I sat for a nice amount of time with my tea and breakfast, reading the news and just taking in the sights and sounds from the restaurant.  Lovely.

I had always planned for today to be a Beach Day.  Now, knowing my shaky relationship with The Sun, I was slightly concerned about how this Beach Day would go.  So I inquired with the hotel about renting a cabana.  The price wasn't so bad, so I rented one in a quiet area, overlooking the beach.  I was ready.

Now here's where the whole "best laid plans" phrase needs to be mentioned.

It rained on and off today.  This rain isn't like Chicago rain.  It's a light, cool rain that is more refreshing than anything else.  And it comes and goes.  But when you've paid $75 for a cabana to keep you safe from the sun's harmful rays...rain isn't great.  I guess it's good, because I can still stay outside and keep covered.  But I'd like to come back with a little bit of color.  I mean, I was joking with people and said I'd either come back paler than I started or would be hospitalized with a burn.  I guess (at least for today), pale is the way to go.

That being said, I have been pretty diligent about the sunscreen today.  I have an alarm set to reapply every hour.  Because even under a cabana and with decent cloud cover, I feel like the sun will still be out to get me.  Because it thinks my guard is down.

The thing was, there was no Plan B for today.  I mean, I could have done the Spa Day today.  But the Spa Day was always supposed to be on my birthday.  That meant today was the only day that would be a full-on Beach/Pool day.  So I powered through it.  And honestly, it wasn't too bad.

I listened to some music for a while, then stopped.  Read a magazine, then stared out at the waves for a while.  Read a book on the iPad, then stared out at the waves for a while.  Read another magazine, then stared out at the waves for a while.  I occasionally checked Facebook and Instagram and Twitter, then stared out at the waves for a while.  It was perfect.

Now there were a few little things that didn't quite work so well.  With my cabana comes ice water, a waiter for bar service and pineapple in the afternoon.  And, I got ice water in the morning.  The waiter never came.  Neither did the pineapple.  The bar thing wasn't a huge deal.  I bellied up to the bar after a while for some lunch (pork fries and a Mai Tai.  Don't judge me).  Everyone was chatty and watching the Draft.  Hello, Chicago!!  The pineapple though, not happy about that turn of events.

I have made it very well known that I am planning on eating all of the pineapple in Maui.  When I leave in a few days, I expect a newscast or an article somewhere saying there is now a pineapple shortage.  But I've been here for one full day and have had a wedge of pineapple with my drink.  That's it.  I could have had pineapple for breakfast, but nope.  I was getting a whole plate this afternoon.  And that didn't happen.

At a certain point, I could have gotten up to ask for the plate.  But honestly, I wanted to see how this played out.  The cabana was rented from 9a-5p.  Around 515p, the Cabana Steward (I guess that's what I call him??) came by to clean up.  He asked if I was going to stay much longer.  I said I could move to the pool for a while, no problem.  But I did ask about the pineapple and the lack of bar service and such.  He was very apologetic and wondered why these things didn't happen.  He told me I could stay in the cabana through sunset, since I didn't get these things.  Ummm...ok??

I mean, I stayed, of course. If you want to rent a cabana for the sunset, it can be done for a fee.  But the cabanas were not in any way being used today.  It just seemed like a weird scenario.  As I was in the cabana, I wrote an email to the concierge who helped me set up the cabana rental.  Letting her know what's what.  I'm hoping for either a refund of some of the cabana price OR a free cabana on Monday or Tuesday.  We'll see how this goes.

My cabana was in a remote area (probably why I was forgotten about), but it was right near a beach access, so I was able to watch people come and go on the beach.  Maybe because of the weather today, but maybe because of the beach, there really weren't a ton of people on the beach.  People would walk by on the beach.  Occasionally, you'd see people with towels going to claim a spot, but it was pretty unpopulated.

An older man and his wife got there early in the morning.  They would stay for a bit, then leave.  Then they'd come back.  At a certain point in the afternoon, the guy sees me and we start up a conversation.  

Him: "You know, I see people in these cabanas and they are always gone so early in the afternoon.  You're the only one who stuck it out for the whole day."  

Me: "Of course!!  If I'm paying for this thing, I'm taking full advantage!!"

Then when I was taking advantage of my Extra Cabana Hours, he came by again and was delighted I was still there.  "I told my wife about you!!"  Wait.  What??  And now we're into a little weirdness...

Eventually, the sun set and I left my cozy home for the day.  Even though there were some complaints in the day, it ended up being beautiful and everything I wanted.  I went back to my room and put on some clothes.  I needed something for dinner tonight and I didn't have it in my to go much further than my hotel.  So I ended up at the sushi place.

There, I met a couple from North Carolina.  We talked a bit, while rolling our eyes at the very loud and drunk woman using a selfie stick to take pictures of her and her friend.  I had some edamame and a roll.  It all tasted good.  I know I could have gotten a better deal if I'd ventured out of the hotel, but I just didn't want to yet.  I was starting to fade, and I had an early morning planned for tomorrow.  Oh, jet lag.  You've won.  Again.

And for those wondering about my current sunburn situation...it's a little pink in my chestal region. But nothing too horrific.  Tomorrow is the real day I have to worry about.