Grand Cayman Trip

Way back last October we started planning a trip to Grand Cayman for Blake to do a Continuing Medical Education Seminar and to meet Cindy and Ken there.  It seemed like it would never come! We bought the plane tickets, and paid for the seminar way back in November.  Cindy and Ken have been there twice before and have access to a beautiful condo through Ken's boss, we were able to stay in the condo for free! Finally after what seemed like forever, June  4th arrived and we were on our way!

The map on the left is from my photo app on my phone, showing where the picture was taken.  I really didn't know where Grand Cayman was until we started planning this trip.  The map on the right shows where on the island we were staying.  We stayed in the beautiful Ritz Carlton and it was right on the beach!

Cindy and Ken arrived on the island about 2 hours before we did.  After a nice dinner in a great little restaurant we walked out onto the beach and saw this beautiful sunset.  It was breathtaking!

These are some beautiful photos taken from our 4th floor balcony in our Condo. We watched cruise ships come and go in the beautiful turquoise water.  The resort is absolutely beautiful, inside and out.  The last picture on the bottom right was taken from the 7th floor. The palm trees are getting in the way on 4th floor.  The center picture was taken on our last night on the beach.

There are lizards and geckos all over the island, they say they are the islands version of squirrels.  There were some big, and some tiny, some bright green and some brown.  There were also crabs, big, little, and a variety of colors.  There were also chickens and roosters roaming all over the island.

Grand Cayman is a British Island, so the steering wheel is on the right side of the car, and they drive on left side of the road.  I didn't ever get used to it! The traffic circles were the worst! I'm so glad Ken did all the driving, and he did a great job!  The top right picture is a sand wheelchair Blake thought was funny with its big tires.  I feel so bad that I didn't take many pictures inside the beautiful condo, it was just simply amazing.  Here's the only 2 I took! Blake is eating some chips in the beautiful kitchen.  Funny story about the bottom right picture; Blake turned the TV on for the first time and it was Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, which we watch all the time with Ryder at home.

Top left: Cindy and Blake by a palm tree. Bottom left: Beautiful orange tree that were all over the island. Center top: 2 of 6 lobsters from Blake's all you can eat lobster dinner.  Center bottom: Beautiful setting for a great meal.  Right: Interesting beach with all the rocks, such a contrast from the soft sandy beach at the resort.

We spent a lot of time on the beach.  Blake had class on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday mornings from 7-1.  Cindy and Ken went to Crossfit while he was gone, I got to go for walks and just hang out in the condo.  When they got back we would head out to the beach.  Top: First time on the beach just before the wonderful sunset. Bottom left: I had to get a picture of Blake ready to go out to the beach.  Sandals are not his usual attire! Center bottom: These great floaters are anchored out in the water. Right bottom: I can't even describe how soft and wonderful this sand feels on your toes, I've never felt sand like this anywhere.

Here we are hanging out on the beach.  I called these canopies that cover the beach chairs, covered wagons.  They were amazing though.  We had to put towels on our legs to avoid sunburn after awhile though.  The only way to cool down from the sun and humidity was to take a little dip in the beautiful water.

Blake didn't have class on Wednesday, so we took a little cruise out into the ocean.  The first stop was for a little bit of snorkeling.  The water was pretty choppy, but they said it was beautiful.  I just can't get over the beautiful turquoise water.

The next stop was Stingray city.  It's quite amazing that all of a sudden there is a sandbar, and Stingrays live there.  We didn't really get a good picture of the stingrays, but we touched a couple.  If you look closely, you can see them in the water.

The last stop was looking for starfish.  They saw a few, but not very many.  It was a beautiful little location.

Thursday afternoon we drove out to a Turtle Farm.  It was quite interesting.  There were some huge ones, some medium sized ones, some smaller ones and some eggs.  

Ken, Cindy and Blake picked one up and held it, but I was happy just to take pictures and look at them.  

On our last night there, I wanted to take some pictures on the beach.  We did one of the four of us with the timer on Ken's phone.  Cindy and Blake matched colors so nicely.

Some of the shots of Cindy and Ken, it was hard to quit taking pictures because of the beautiful surroundings, I kept wanting another from another angle.  I think these turned out really nice. Thanks for putting up with me and my picture taking obsession.

This was our 39th Wedding Anniversary! 39 years seem to have flown by when I think back.  Just like this little trip to the Cayman flew by way to fast. Thanks Cindy and Ken for the fun adventures!