I was in no particular rush the following morning and decided we’d just get up whenever we happened to awaken.
That turned out to be 7am. So much for sleeping in.
Oh well. It was a
beeeutiful morning and I’m glad we got out to enjoy it! Leo and took in the sights of CBR in the morning as we walked to breakfast…
You can see why I was quick to book a return trip in Dec., no?!
Breakfast that morning was at Old Port Royale, the CBR’s food court. We found it very quiet, with only a few others enjoying a meal at that hour. One negative: the indoor temperature approximated the North Pole. Leo and I took our tray outside to thaw.
I have to tell you about this breakfast. Leo wanted only a bagel with cream cheese. I had a hankering for some protein, but couldn’t find any way to get some eggs without getting a whole platter. So I went with the Adult Breakfast Platter, described by All Ears as:
eggs, bacon, sausage, potatoes, toast. But that wasn’t all. Oh no. Not all. It also came with a piece of the most amazing French toast I’ve ever had AND a big ol’ biscuit. Good grief, what a LOT of food! I declined the potatoes, gave Leo the sausage, and tossed half the biscuit. The rest went down just fine, thank you very much! Well, aside from the Nescacrap masquerading as coffee. My bad for leaving the real stuff in the car.
Leo and I spent some quality time catching up over breakfast and took our time leaving CBR. We really, really liked it there! Which worried me a little. Could the Poly of my dreams possibly live up to the impossible standards I’d set for it? Might it pale in comparison after our fantastic night in the Caribbean?
I needn’t have worried at all. All those glowing reports you read about the Poly? True. Absolutely, positively TRUE!
I chose to self-park until learning where our room might be located and Leo and I walked into the Poly lobby for his very first time as a guest. We were greeted with an “Aloha” from our registration CM, who was Earning his Ears. He was super-duper nice and didn’t look at all angst-ridden as I inquired about my request for a room in either Tokelau or Raratonga. But he put us in Aoetora. I again asked ever-so-nicely if there was [Iany[/I] way we could get a room in Tokelau or Raratonga and his trainer came over to have a look-see.
“PrincessV, I can get you into Raratonga, but only on the second floor. That means no balcony.”
“NO problem!” I replied. We’re Floridians – we don’t hang out on the hot, damp balcony in September anyway."
Remember that.
No room was available yet, but at least I knew where it would be, and my car was conveniently parked right in front of our building. Bonus!
Char and Harry were due to arrive less than an hour later, so Leo and I changed into swimsuits and headed out to the volcano pool. We even found a pool-side table available!
It’s funny – I’ve never been all that impressed with the volcano pool in my Poly visits for dinner, drinks, etc. But actually swimming in it was a whole buncha fun! SO much fun, I totally lost track of time and only remembered to check my cell 45 minutes later. Sure enough, Char had called – they were pulling into the Poly! I called her back and directed her toward us, then we all spent a wonderful morning swimming. Harry’s been taking swimming lessons and had no fear AT ALL.
I’d bought a waterproof disposable camera for an upcoming Typhoon Lagoon day and pulled it out at the Poly pool for a test run.
Leo really, really wanted to give it a try and had at it, with mixed results…
He got it!
Of course, that was the last picture left on the roll. So much for using it at TL.
We eventually broke up the fun for some lunch at Captain Cooks, where I had the Grown-Up Grilled Cheese so highly recommended by Tracy… and was she ever RIGHT!!!
That was, hands-down, the absolute best grilled cheese I’ve ever had. Yuuuu-uuuum! Char also had the grilled cheese, Harry enjoyed some chicken tenders and Leo went for – you guessed it – Fish Pizza. Maybe it has something to do with water activities?
As we were finishing up, I kept feeling drops on my shoulders and asked Leo to stop doing whatever it was that was spraying me.
“I’m not Mommy – it’s raining!”
AACCK!! I hustled down to get our stuff and made it back unscathed.
Know why? I carry an umbrella. In my pool bag. You may scoff, but WHO kept our things nice and dry? That’s right - V.
Heh heh.
Anyway, we called and found out our room was ready – it was about 1pm – so we walked to Raratonga, conveniently located 10 feet away from the Great Ceremonial House. Took the elevator up a floor… and saw our room right in front of us! We couldn’t be much closer to food, pool or, most importantly DRINKS! We walked in and saw…
Well, shoot. I never did take a picture of the view. But I think some of you can guess. Anyone??
That’s right – we had a lovely view of…. the parking lot! Gotta love those AP discounts. Again, I didn’t really care – our cars were close and I prefer not dealing with valet when I’ve got a 5 year old who frequently wants things from the car.
As for the room – it was
perfect. The refurbished room looked even better than it does in pictures. And I’ve heard sooo many stories about less-than-acceptable housekeeping at the Poly lately, but our room was immaculate.
I believe you’ll notice a serious drop in the number and quality of my photographs from this point on. I could not
believe how much work and energy went into keeping track of not one, but two little ones, particularly when the younger one’s a climber and know no fear. There was precious little of me left for photo-taking, but I did try…
See what I mean?! I only just made it to him before Harry dropped off the side of the bed. (We watched him in shifts, Char and I, so each could at least go to the bathroom in relative peace. It was a definite downgrade in terms of relaxation for me, but a much-needed break for her.)
After taking my turn to use the facilities, I walked out and saw this:
…and laughingly told Harry there was no way he’d fit in that tiny little space!
I was wrong:
That child had more fun squeezing himself into that shelf, as well as into the nightstand.
He and Leo also had a blast pushing the buttons and slamming the safe door closed. Over. And over. And over. My apologies to the folks next door. Something I learned by sharing a room with Char and Harry was this: it turns out my child is exceptionally quiet and mellow. Most aren’t. TFI.
We didn’t spend too much time enjoying our new digs, though, as the MK awaited and we were ready to get our RIDES on!
Next: Where is everybody?!
Tangling those gifts infront of your son & all depending on Mom's answer to the tricky question!!! Oh, the humanity!!! 
Ok, so what was the year? The month was December. This comes under the heading of things I've heard & forgotten immediately! 
I kinda like this room. 
was scheduled to be born that day. She of course had her own ideas, and decided to come on November 22nd instead. I guess she just wanted to make sure we knew who was in charge...almost a year later...she's still doing that. 
Awesome trippie
