Our First Vacation {Part 2}

Read about the first two days - here.

So that night, right before the fire show, the entertainers came around the pool asking for male volunteers, and OF COURSE I'm going to volunteer Sal! He reluctantly went and stood with three other males near the pool. They were to all pick a piece of paper out of a hat, and do what it said to do. The first man had to act out animals, and then it was Sal's turn. He either had to do a Dominican push-up, with someone on his back, or jump into the pool? What do you think he did?

He didn't win though, the guy after him who tried to speak Spanish, but then gave up and jumped into the pool won, but at least my baby tried! The fire show started soon after; you could just see the passion in these entertainers, as they filled the pool. And then, because we weren't tired yet, we went to the club with the friends we had met. Even though the club was pretty dead, we danced the night away, and soon people were coming in left and right.

The following day we went to Ocean World - an amazing Adventure Park, Marina, and Casino, where we were able to book the Royal Dolphin Swim, where we got to swim with dolphins for an hour! It was seriously incredible, and I will never forget it. [if there was ever a time to propose - that would have been it!] 

I think we spent more on pictures and video of our experiences than anything else on this trip, which will be awesome to watch and look at this time next year, and definitely worth it.

We were also able to experience the shark and stingray encounter, which I was scared beyond belief about. Sal assured me, telling me they were nurse sharks though - oh okay, that made me feel better... NOT. Surprisingly, I was more afraid of the stingrays than the sharks! Afterwards, we went to the Sea Lion encounter, and we were the only ones, which was pretty great!

When we got back to the resort, we rested up a bit and then made our way to the pool bar, to relax and enjoy some bingo with our friends! I didn't win, and I'd rather not talk about it!

We called it an early night because the following morning, we would be spending the day on Paradise Island, snorkeling and soaking up the sun. We traveled on a bus for about 2 hours, until we reached the restaurant, from there we traveled by boat for about 20 minutes, until all we saw were huts, that's it, about 9 huts. 

That was just another amazing experience we had, swimming in the sea, snapping pictures of the amazing ocean life at the bottom, from fish to sea urchins and jellyfish. Let me just tell you, I was feeling risky those few days, not only did I swim with sharks at Ocean World, but I held the jellyfish, that surprisingly didn't sting, AND a sea urchin, which was such a weird feeling!

When we returned, after a delicious lunch and a trip to a tobacco hut, we rested and prepared for dinner reservations, that an amazing couple, that we didn't know, gave us! I swear people are 10X nicer everywhere other than New Jersey. I could have lived there, without a care in the world! We attended another show after dinner, which we soon realized was 'the thing' at the resort. 

The day before we were to return to New Jersey, we spent the day on the VIP beach, once again, relaxing, reading, and discussing the days prior. The days seemed to just float away down there, when we were busy. That night they were having a welcome party, or in our case a goodbye party, filled with good food, music, and lights. It was great to see everyone from the resort, just having a good time. I was soon realizing that our time was coming to an end, and I just didn't want to go home. 

On our last day there, Sal and I woke up early to enjoy a couples massage, to get us nice and calm before we had to hop on a plane, something I am not fond of doing. While I laid on the table, listening to Sal giggle when the lady was massaging his feet, I knew we were meant to be there - we were meant to be in DR and enjoy a vacation just the two of us, and we were meant to be together at that time and place. I don't know what it was, but this vacation just assured me that I was where I was meant to be in life, and that Sal was "the one," if you will. I fell in love with him all over again during those 6 days, and I realized our connection was stronger than ever. If you're ever looking to reconnect with your loved one, go on vacation, and just don't think about anything else - your most serious conversation should be - "what time should we wake up to grab breakfast," or "this cabana or that one?"

Adios Dominican Republic, we'll definitely be back!