It is hard to believe that we have been here for eight days.  We are somewhere over the Bahamas, winging our way back to the States.  I wanted to end this blog with some observations and memories that stand out.

While spending time here it became apparent that as Americans, we have come a long way with the fight for smoke free environments.  In the resort and its restaurants, in fact everywhere we went, we encountered so many Europeans smoking but far fewer Americans.  It took readjusting to sharing your dining experience with smokers.  Oh how I longed for a smoke free room.  Perhaps the European diet and propensity toward drinking wine offsets the damage done by smoking.  At least for their sake I do hope so.

Then there are the cell phones.  It seems civilization cannot go more than a few minutes without checking our phones for emails and texts.  So often, couples, here to relax and spend quiet romantic time together, would instead be staring intently at their phones.  So much for quality time.  I know this is a choice and if I actually had service outside of the US, (I might have but I didn’t want to check) I am sure I would have been no better.  Make a promise, next time you travel, turn off the cell phone and talk to people.  At least for a few minutes at a time.  They might be even more interesting than that email or text.

My favorite memory will be the night.  As darkness sweeps away the daylight, the whole place becomes so quiet.  Walking the grounds in the moonlight, palms swaying softly in the ocean breeze, will be my memory to revisit over and over.  One very special night provided us with the added highlight of a lightening streaked night sky.  The backdrop to the evening solitude was “perfecto”.  No photo could do it justice.

We have been pampered for the last eight days but then that is what we paid for.  Still, every once and awhile, a staff member would emerge that was more than just doing their job.  They showed genuine interest and a hope that we would take back favorable opinions of their country, its culture and its people.  They showed a passion for what they had to offer and delivered it with the skill of an artist painting a majestic landscape.  I will remember each of them and their spirit of generosity and friendship.

Thank you Dominican Republic for the memories and the pampering, because after all, everyone can use a little pampering once in a while.