Joie de Vivre: trips

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Bermuda

Yes, it's true, we were just in Bermuda for 5 days. I know, so random....who goes to Bermuda??? It was a mixture of a work trip (though there was technically no work involved) and a vacation. I am so proud of Brian and his accomplishments at work last year. He is the hardest worker I know, and it was great to see him being recognized for all of that work.

Bermuda is not a place we would have ever chosen to go, but it ended up being just what we needed! I got to watch Brian relax for the first time in I don't know how long...we were so lucky that this trip fell at the time that it did. Being 7 1/2 months pregnant I was still feeling good and had a decent amount of energy.

We were put up at the Fairmont South Hampton, and this was the view from our room...not too shabby....

And the pool facilities...

The first two days of the trip there was quite a bit of rain, but we didn't let that dampen our spirits! Tropical rain is so different then the rain we get here, so it is more of a novelty. The dark clouds actually made for a cool photo...

Luckily our massages were scheduled on one of the rainy days, so it worked out perfectly. I can't tell you how great it felt to lay on my belly (they had a pregnancy massage table) and how fabulous my masseuse was! Brian experienced his first massage ever and he is now a HUGE fan...he looked like he was going to fall over from being so relaxed :-)

The water in Bermuda was the perfect temperature! Cool enough to feel refreshed when you get in, but warm enough that you could literally stay in it all day. Sorry in advance for the loooooong columns of photos...if I knew how to use Photoshop I would place some of them side by side, or make small collages, but I have no idea how to do it...anyone up for giving me a simple Photoshop tutorial?!?! Anyway, the water photos...

And now for a close-up of the belly....

Bermuda is expensive! We decided it is probably all east coast billionaires who own homes there. This is what most of the houses look like...

We spent most of our evenings attending company events where we actually had a blast...there were some great people to hang out with, and I even hit the dance floor two of the nights. I think maybe that is what wore me out the most! Here is Brian accepting his Falcon Award on the night of the big awards ceremony....Yay Brian!!!!!

And this was our last night at the goodbye beach party...

Well, that's the quick recap...we so enjoyed our time of relaxation, perfect water, and pink sand beaches!

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Ecuador: Quito and Tena

After our time in Cotopaxi, we heading back to Quito for a day and a half before making the trip to the jungle. We didn't do all that much...we strolled around the Old Town, checked out some churches, and the highlight...went to the Equator! What's a trip to Ecuador with standing at Latitude 0-0'-0"?

We started taking pictures of this huge cathedral and then found out it was build in the 1900's, so I stopped taking photos.

This one didn't turn out quite like I hoped...finger placement is a little off.

This one is bit more accurate.

The reason we went back to Quito in the first place was to wait for our luggage....and guess what? It came!!!! We were so happy it only took a few days instead of an entire week to get to us. I guess we were lucky! So with our luggage in hand we headed east into the jungle, or rather the secondary jungle. Getting into the heartland of the jungle costs a pretty penny so we settled for the next best thing. The bus ride alone was quite the experience. Have you even taken a bus through South America? It's pretty intense. Most of the mountain roads do not have guards on them and the bus drivers drive the bus like it's a motorcycle...the experience almost cured me of my fear of flying, almost.

We had a little tire trouble...

So Brian took the time to buy a snack from this cute little guy.

Side note - it always amazes me how Coca cola is everywhere...even in the jungle of Ecuador!

Our day and a half in Tena included jungle exploring, river swimming, and animal watching.

Peter, we took these monkey photos for you.

Porcupine

Termite nest

Jungle trees

Hors devours - popcorn and salsa...random, but good.

We went on a jungle stroll the next morning before leaving for the mountains again. We had to get on another bus, but luckily the ride was only 4 hours so it wasn't too bad.

Next stop was Banos, where we had an amazing time! Banos is situated right below an active volcano, and while we were there it was smoking...scary. It was an awesome place and we had far too much fun while we were there. Stay tuned for the next segment of the trip...

About Us

We love adventure and we love life. Most importantly, we recently had a little girl, who we love SO much! I originally started this blog to document our little and big adventures. Though they may not happen as often anymore, we are on a quest to make the most out of our moments...from day trips to bike rides, to beach days or staying home, to exploring new countries and places.

The French have a phrase, which I love, "Joie de vivre," which means the joy of life. They find joy in all that they do....cheers to adventure and the joy of life!