Bermuda in Pictures

 

Right now I’m in the midst of unpacking, doing wash, and trying to get my life back in order before returning to work tomorrow. While on the plane I had a chance to organize our pictures so that I can finally order one of those really cool coffee table books that we talk about but never order. Unfortunately, my husband has realized that I’m not a domestic diva. But, at least I won the battle convincing him to “lug” the DSLR on our trip to Bermuda. It was the best decision ever!

While I spend the rest of the evening unpacking, and putting together the health & beauty giveaway box, we hope you all will enjoy a few pictures from our trip!

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I’ll be back tomorrow with reviews of each of the restaurants we enjoyed and back to basics day of workouts and meals.

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Biking around Bermuda

Okay, so here’s a bit of advice for all you gentlemen out there.  DON’T expect your wife to enjoy a 24 mile intense bike ride when you’re on a tropical island.  Trust me…that is NOT the reason that she’s there with you. 

Copy (2) of DSC_0046 (640x426)She would much rather be sunbathing on the beach.  All of those facts notwithstanding, I think our ride, though a little excessive, allowed us to see more of Bermuda than we would have through any other means. 

We awoke at 8AM (8AM…really Ash?) as we had to get to the beach to start enjoying ourselves as quickly as possible.

The view from our villa was amazing in the morning sun!

DSC_0020 (640x426) Copy of DSC_0017 (640x426) I like to shower, shave, make some tea or coffee and ease my way into the day whenever I’m afforded the luxury.  Another point of compromise – she let me shower and shave but I was rushed to the beach with the promise of breakfast and coffee on the beach.

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Copy of DSC_0024 (640x426)I’ve never been a big fan of eating on the beach (I hate it when sand gets all over everything) but in the interest of compromise, we ordered our food from the restaurant overlooking the beach and brought it down to our beach chairs.  The menu consisted of hot tea, egg whites, some grapefruit and rye toast.  I added a little ham to mine for an awesome egg sandwich.

DSC_0027 (640x426)After a few hours on the beach, we decided that it was time to explore the island.  So far, Ash has been a little freaked out by the prospect of letting me loose on a moped, so we opted for bicycles.

IMG_0032 (640x480)  IMG_0033 (480x640)On went our helmets and away we went.  Just a little tid bit for those of you who have never been to Bermuda: IT IS HILLY.  It was also 1:30 and we hadn’t had lunch so our goal was to head straight to Henry VIII restaurant for a nice fish sandwich.

We passed some amazing coves along the way and the views from the road were fantastic.

IMG_0034 (640x480) IMG_0035 (640x480)It was a little further than we hoped but after 45 minutes, we made it and, despite the fact that the restaurant was empty, were pleasantly surprised by the quality of the food.  Ash and I split a bowl of the famous Bermudian fish chowder and we both had the grouper sandwich.  The tarter sauce tasted home made and we could definitely taste the British influence in the cooking.

IMG_2472 (640x478) IMG_2477 (640x478)Our trek continued and we decided that we’d ride all the way to the old British Royal Navy Dockyard

IMG_0038 (640x480) IMG_0041 (640x480)We didn’t know exactly how far it was but we figured that it would be the best way to see the whole west side of the island.  After we got home, we found out that it was 13.4 miles which would have been a great distance had we not decided upon the next leg of our journey.

image We took the ferry from the Navy Dockyard to Hamilton where we continued our ride.

IMG_0047 (640x480) The ride around Hamilton to the north side of the island was great until we found ourselves in rush hour traffic which was DEFINITELY not fun.  Bermuda is a British Crown Colony and follows British traffic law including driving on the left side of the road, using language such as “give way” rather than yield, and having roundabouts instead of intersections.  The latter was what caused the real stress as trying to maneuver the busiest round-about on the island during rush hour whilst simultaneously trying to figure out how to get back to the resort created a little friction between us.  To add insult to injury, we got lost (or I got us lost) and added an additional 3 miles to our ride at the worst possible moment.  The 11 miles that we did after the ferry ride put us at almost 24.5 miles for the day.

DSC_0010 (640x426)All Ashley wanted after the long ride was some yoga time in our villa.

Copy (3) of DSC_0014 (640x426) Copy (3) of DSC_0012 (640x426) I don’t think my bride liked me very much after this trek.

Within minutes, we rushed to the bar at the beach for some rum and soda (that was my order) and a vodka-loda (Ash isn’t very fond of rum so the made a pina colada with vodka instead of rum).   Copy of DSC_0048 (640x426) DSC_0032 (640x426) We swam, laid out on the beach and finished our drinks before heading back to the room to shower and change for the evening.  Copy of DSC_0056 (640x426)Copy (2) of DSC_0057 (640x426) We ate dinner here at the resort’s restaurant, Sea Breeze. It is a highly recommended sushi and tapas restaurant. 

DSC_0062 (640x426)The local Wahoo sashimi was definitely the hit of the evening and the champagne washed it down perfectly.

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We went to bed with dreams of scuba diving and coral reefs.

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Elbow Beach Resort & Spa

Ashley always bugs me about posting from the guys point of view and, given that I’m feeling very relaxed in Bermuda with no pressure from work, I figured that I would acquiesce and give her a little break from blogging.  Yesterday was wonderful.  After a smooth Jet Blue flight, we arrived in Bermuda at about 11AM and proceeded directly through customs to our resort.

DSC_0011 (640x392)Our room wasn’t ready when we checked in so we took the suggestion of the staff and headed down to the beach for lunch.

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DSC_0053 (640x426)Despite the fact that the Rum Swizzles and Piña Coladas looked amazing, we wanted something light and didn’t want to drink yet so we ordered two seafood salads.  They were simple yet amazing,  The shrimp, calamari and mahi-mahi were abundant and the shaved fennel and mesclun  greens were perfectly complimented by the simple dressing of olive oil and fresh lemon juice.DSC_0045 (640x426)

DSC_0050 (640x426)We had the waiter call the front desk and were informed that our room still wasn’t ready so we decided to explore the grounds. 

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We had already seen the beautiful pink sand beach and thus trekked up the steep hill to the pool / fitness and spa area and did a full circle back to the front desk where they told us that our room was indeed ready.

DSC_0061 (426x640)The bellman graciously escorted us to our room and watched our astonished faces as he opened the door.  Evidently, we were upgraded to an amazing 1 bedroom, 2 bathroom suite which, at  over 1200 square feet, is bigger than our little 700 square foot New York apartment.  In addition, we were greeted with some delicious wine and cheese with a welcome note from the manager.

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DSC_0069 (640x426)After unpacking, we made a split second decision to indulge in an 80 minute couples massage. While Ashley LOVES spas; I haven’t ever been as big a fan which, from my experience, seems to be a fairly common male / female dichotomy.  That aside, I agreed to join Ashley for a couples massage as the Mandarin Spa is known as one of the best in the world.  In addition, I’ve punished my muscles lately through a fairly intense workout routine and I knew that a long deep-tissue massage would probably be good for me.  Guys, let me just say that I HIGHLY recommend this experience.  You and your lady are given a private room in which to relax for thirty minutes before the massage therapist comes in. 

Copy of DSC_0009 (640x426)In our private room, this particular spa (I’m not very experienced but Ashley said that it was the nicest she’d ever seen) had, a sauna, a steam room, a tub that was filled with oils and salts when we arrived, and a day bed just for “hanging out”.  Copy of DSC_0006 (426x640)Those thirty minutes were pretty awesome.  After that, the pain began.  All joking aside, the 80 minutes were filled with “good” pain which worked the knots out of our muscles that we didn’t even know we had. Some of these knots have probably been a part of me for at least five years and by the end we both were in a state of euphoria. It was the perfect way to start our vacation.

Feeling so relaxed, we decided to hop in the pool after the massage to swim a few laps. While my wife thought I was crazy, since we had just finished our massages, I was craving a mile swim.Copy of DSC_0014 (640x426) Copy of DSC_0015 (640x426)Ashley joined me for a 1/2 mile swim before deciding that her place was on the lounge chair.

Copy of DSC_0024 (426x640)Though the clouds were quickly rolling in, we decided to head into Hamilton for their Harbour Nights celebration. Copy of DSC_0032 (640x426) Copy of DSC_0033 (426x640) We have to head off to dinner now, but here is a sneak peak into our night.

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