Heineken Regatta 2012, What What!

I had a HUGE weekend with a lot of my friends from the Spouses Organization, and it was a blast! It was actually a little too much fun, and I am still recovering! 

On Saturday, we had a brunch for one of our friends that is taking a leave of absence from the island. We are sad to see her go, but it was good to get together one last time in her honor. We had brunch at this delicious place, The Taste Factory. It has tons of French pastries, quiches, etc. Here are some pictures of us there: 

From the left: Rita, Rose, Lyssa, and Lara

From the left: Lyssa, Lara, Ally, Me, Jamie, Allyson, and Jackie

After The Taste Factory, a few of us went shopping until it was time for the movies. We went and saw "The Vow," and it was fabulous! I think we all cried! I highly recommend it!

Then on Sunday, we all went on the Lambada boat for the Heineken Regatta! YAY! It was very fun, but I wish that it would have lasted longer! It was really cool to go around the island on a big catamaran. 

Here is a picture of it:

I wasn't really sure what we would be in for because there were like 65 people on the boat, but as we got closer to all of the action- I gradually figured it out. I don't know much about sailboats or even racing sailboats.. but here is my take on it: There were tons of sailboats, and they were all racing in a line. There were various giant buoys all along the ocean where the sailboats would have to go on different sides of the buoy or even make a circle around them. It was kinda crazy to see such big boats maneuver that quickly on such big waves in the ocean. It didn't seem like they were going that fast- until we caught up with them. You could actually see the different boat crews on each sailboat working very hard. It was very windy that day too, so I am sure that they were working even harder than I know. We actually got pretty close to them, and at one point- I felt like we were in the race. Needless to say, it was an exciting day!  

The following are pictures that Jackie and Lyssa took and posted to facebook. I am going to put my pictures at the bottom, just so I don't take credit for any pictures that I didn't take. 

My hair got in the way but this is Jackie, Me, Lyssa, and Lara

We are passing by Cupecoy- where the school is

Cupecoy- from a distance

We look so happy!

Acting silly and doing my zumba moves

Here come the sailboat pictures

Lara, Rita, and Me

Pretty ocean!

We were on the front of the boat! 

Jackie and her husband, Mark

Here are some pictures that I took (the color is not as great in mine, but oh well):

Lyssa, Lara, and myself 

Me and Lara

Silly picture!

Lara, Jamie, Jackie, Lyssa, and Lyssa's husband, Josh

Silly pic!

 Not really sure, but I think this could contain a sail...

Gorgeous water!

Big sailboat turning

Go go go!

Jackie and Mark

Lyssa, Lara, and Jamie

This is their version of Titanic "I'm the King of the World!!!"

Huge Coast Guard Ship!

Well, that's about all folks! 

Sadly, Ryan had to miss out on the Heineken Regatta fun due to lots and lots of studying. His COMPS are this Friday, March 9th! He has been preparing for a long time, so I know that he is going to do amazing on them! Ryan and a lot of the other students are already planning fun things to do after their COMPS, so I am sure that I will have more pictures to post after this weekend! 

Please keep Ryan in your thoughts and prayers as he takes his test on Friday. 

I hope that everyone has a great week! Stay tuned for more pictures, in case any of the other girls took some that are "blog worthy." :) 

Getting Ready for a Big Weekend!

Sooo look and see what I am going to do this weekend! I am SOOOO excited! Unfortunately, Ryan can't come because he is studying for his COMPS, but I have promised to take lots of pictures for him. He is very busy studying, and he is ALMOST DONE! I am going on a boat with some of my friends here on the island. I am super duper pumped! I just thought that I would share the promo video for it to give ya'll a taste of what it will be like! Stay tuned....

Here is an update from this past week and weekend: 

Ryan, Tim, and Aaron

We went back to Karakter and had tapas on the beach. It was awesome, as always with delicious food and live jazz music right on the water. I love that place! I also love our waitress that we always get there. She looks like a real-live pirate! I will have to get her picture next time that I go! 

Isn't the little fire that they give us for our table fun? See the yachts in the background on the ocean? They are everywhere for the Regatta. 

Last Saturday, I went with Lara and Lyssa (two of my favorite spouses) to Philipsburg because they were on a mission to have their makeup done for their weddings- both being this spring/summer. Turns out that there is a legit MAC store here, and the best part is- THERE IS NO TAX! Yes. That's right. We had a blast and we even went to the only "wedding" store here on the island. It was quite a place but they ended up having some pretty veils which was what Lyssa was looking for. Check it out:

See the awesome mannequin in the background of the wedding store? It was pretty fancy.

After about 3 hours in the MAC store, we went to the Green House for some much needed nourishment and refreshment! 

These two pictures are from Allie's baby shower a couple of weeks ago, but I couldn't remember if I ever posted them. 

And here I am after waiting on Lyssa and Lara to get their makeovers. We really were there for a loooong time, but it was well worth it. 

On a random note, I got my hair done by this Italian guy here on the island, Walter. He is very nice, but it took me by surprise the first time that I went to him. He gives neck, shoulder, and head massages while he does your hair. I don't mean just a little rubbing and patting- I mean he gets all in your personal space and rubs your neck until you are a puddle in your chair. Needless to say-it was awesome, and I am now used to having my personal boundaries violated. I guess it is a European thing, but I don't mind as long as my neck is being rubbed! 

I casually asked him if he had heard of or seen any famous people here on the island lately for the Regatta, and he said that Donatella Versace was just here staying on the French side at La Samanna. Not bad, eh? He also said that a few months ago, there were a few NBA players with their girlfriends staying at Porto Cupecoy. I thought that was interesting. Who knows if any of it is true, but I thought that I might as well share.

 Here is his very modern salon:

(Keep in mind, that I am sitting on a purple couch with diamond rhinestones in the upholstery, while I take this picture) That red chair is where I sit while he does my hair. Different, but it works. 

Lastly- I will leave you with even more random pictures of our "Electrical Room" doors here at Aqua Marina- where we live. Every time that I go down to the bottom floor when I am bringing in groceries, I see this sign. Isn't it creepy? But then, the more that I look at it- I find it disturbingly funny. Maybe I have a sick sense of humor. Oh well. 

Please note the picture of the man with a lighting bolt coming towards his neck! Is this supposed to stop children from entering the room? I am so confused, but I still think that its a funny picture. 

So there it is and I will hopefully have lots of wonderful pictures to post after this exciting weekend. Ciao Baby!