Sun and Sand

Our resort was said to be at the end of an inlet.

Nothing around us but water, sand and sand dunes.

All rooms were facing the ocean, and all balconies faced the ocean.

There was a bar and a restaurant.

An outdoor and indoor pool.

I read the reviews, did TripAdvisor, etc. 

Sounded good.

From the moment of check-in, we found everyone to be very professional, friendly, and helpful. 

Our room was a small 1-bedroom 1.5 bath condo-type setting with a kitchenette. We had a stove top and microwave as well as all you'd need for a vacation.  It was well stocked. 

We had a nice small balcony and we loved sitting there in the evening.

Or when Chatty Cathy was driving us nuts.

Rick loves seafood. I don't eat seafood. This was seafood heaven.

Since this was his birthday, it was all about him. We ate at a place that was highly recommended by the hotel staff, and it was everything Rick wanted it to be.  If Rick eats a lot of seafood and has drinks, he will get gout. 

He brought his gout medicine - that was his solution. 

He knew he was going to have lots of fresh seafood, and he did. 

Angry Mussels, the best scallops he's ever had, some kind of fish and of course shrimp.  

I had a steak and salad. :-)

I wish I had brought my camera because my phone just doesn't do it.

One evening, I awoke at 2am, but I thought it was like 6am. There were no clocks anywhere. Phones were in the kitchen on the table, charging.

I was going to let Rick sleep, so I went into the master bath and, in the dark, got my toothbrush and paste to bring to the 1/2 bath so I didn't wake Rick.

I brushed my teeth and walked into the kitchen/living area, and I saw out the patio door that it was pitch black out. I went to the table and got my phone, and saw it was only 2:23am.  OMG. I was wide awake. I sat on the balcony and attempted to take a photo of the glorious moon beam on the water. It was spectacularly beautiful. The phone camera speed was not fast enough for me to get an unblurred photo of the moon.  I gave up and left my phone in the room for the majority of the time.

The weather was fabulous the entire time.

Rick's birthday falls in the low season.  Low season is when it's cheaper. The price of the room went up $200 a night beginning on Memorial Day Weekend.  

Normally, low or off-season is not the best weather, but being in the south, it was hot.

It was 80s/90s and low humidity. Can't beat that for the beach.

And since that doesn't last long around these parts, we enjoyed every minute of it.

Soon enough, that dreaded high humidity will be here.

It was exactly what Rick wanted and said he needed.  Swimming, sun, and toes in the sand.  We spent a lot of time at the pool, honestly. We explored the area from dinner time on. We took a wrong turn to a restaurant and saw a bit more of Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina, than we planned to see.

But an adventure. Not a single road signs, and the roads are not straight.

We asked about the signs and the road, and the woman at the front desk told us that is how they keep us there. She laughed.  

I said, "So like Hotel California."  She said, Exactly! You're the first one who got that." (I seriously doubt that)

She said that is the biggest complaint from all visitors. So I guess it wasn't just us. Then criss cross over each other and no signs and it was just a crap shoot. Thankfully, we enjoyed staying at the resort. 

One afternoon, Rick was on the beach.  I was a bit further away. I see all these young women go by him in thongs. I laughed and thought to myself, Happy Birthday, Fella.  

When he came back to where I was he told me that the one girl had her whole butt tattooed. I saw that I said.  I asked if he was reading it since he was staring for so long. He laughed and said, "Yes, that was exactly what I was doing."   I just shake my head.  Enjoy the scenery boy, is my thought.

Rick said, outside of being 70, he really enjoyed this birthday.

That's all I was going for.