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Day Four ~ After a couple of hours in the gym, we have lunch and then head to the beach.  The first thing we do is take photos of each other.  I'm sure you'll get really bored with these.

I swear Pete has a different bathing suit for each day.  They all look really hot on him.

I've only got the one blue bathing suit.  I've GOT to go shopping when we get back home.

The resort had their Members' Party at 5:00 today, so we decided to go and see what that was about.  There was of course the usual tables filled with the souvenir stuff the locals were hawking.  There was a guy and I think his wife playing music and singing, accompanied by a synthesizer.

The source of the music is out of the picture on the right, but folks were moving with the rhythm.

Yeah, this is just what I wanted to do, get up and dance with a beer in my hand.  Are those kids old enough to drink?

This went on for a couple of hours, with announcements about changes in our resort, etc., etc., and then ended with what we were all waiting for, the drawing of prize tickets from the hat.  It was fun watching the reactions from those with a winning ticket.  Our numbers never came up, and Michelle guaranteed me that she was giving me a winning ticket.  HA!  Following the meeting, at 7:30 there was an Aruban style buffet at the Sunset Beach Bistro.  But before that, we had another sunset to watch.

 This one had strong possibilities.  Just sitting on the beach, not a care in the world, what could be better.

Of course, one of the lures of the Members' Party was the fact that they had an open bar.

So, here we sit, after the party, with a free drink in hand, ready to watch the sun go down before we go to dinner.

  Could I possibly get any more relaxed?  In my shirt pocket is a pen and paper to take notes at the business part of the Members' Party.  I didn't write a single word.  But I was prepared!  Ha ha  Most meetings have been like that.

We did decide to go to the Sunset Beach Bistro for the Aruban buffet.  It was only $19.95, plus we had a coupon for a free bottle of wine there.  During the dinner they had a rather good Latin Show.  There was the usual muscular guys who were very acrobatic, and could really wield those fire brands, not to mention doing some impressive balancing stunts that were very entertaining.

After the show they posed for photos and applause.  This is only about half of the troupe.

Day Five ~ Back to the beach for a photo shoot and a few hours of reading before Happy Hour, with a few dips in the beautiful Caribbean to cool off.  These sunny days have been fantastic.

The sun was really beating down today.  I didn't last long and took to the water.

Time for another mojito at the Pure Beach pool bar.

 They keep using different glasses.  I guess it depends on which bar tender you get.

 This evening Pete made a bag of popcorn in our microwave to eat on the beach.

 Different cameras seem to get quite different results.  This was a shot Pete took with his camera . . .

. . . and this was taken at roughly the same time with my camera.  They seem to process light differently.

I suppose by now you are wondering if there is anything else to do on this island.  Well, actually there is a lot to do, like a sunset dinner cruise, a snorkel trip by boat to various great diving spots, an island tour which visits the ancient petroglyphs in caves on the far side of the island, and of course there is Divi Island, an all inclusive day at a fun park on a small island near the airport where you can spend all day, sunning, snorkeling, eating, using the water slides, and a score of other things.  But we have been coming here every year since August of 2002, and we've done all of those things, some a couple of times.  This year it just felt really good to just relax on the beach, read, swim, watch the sunsets, and go for a leisurely dinner at one of our favorite restaurants, like Fished and More for fabulous seafood, or Hostaria Da' Vittorio for great Italian food, or the Thai Restaurant, or Blossoms in the Westin Hotel next door for great Japanese or Chinese food.  Then there is Pepper N' Salt for tapas.  There is even a great Argentine restaurant next to Fishes and More that features a tango show.  If we find ourselves really craving a good steak, that's the place to go, but mostly we crave fish here, because it is so good here, and so hard to find back home.  There are lots of other great choices for dining.  And if you are into the night scene, there are places for the younger set to party until the wee hours if you like.  As for us, after dinner we go back to our room and watch one of the TV shows Pete brought with him on his computer.  When we lived in California, there were a lot of great shows on HBO, but since we never purchased any premium channels, we never saw them.  Now you can download them from India, and we have watched all of OZ, and are currently watching Prison Break and Six Feet Under.  It is so nice to be able to watch these shows consecutively, and without commercial breaks.

Well, I see that I'm at 4.5 MB, so I'd better close here.  There is more to come in Chapter Four.

Cheers!  Ron