Where I've Been

Marriott's Grand Dunes Resort and Villas in Myrtle Beach - is where we've been for 3 days. Mr. kenju, me, our daughter and one granddaughter (all her siblings and cousins are at camp in the mountains of western Virginia for two weeks.) The weather on Sunday was perfect, but we didn't get there until about 3pm that day. Monday was overcast - as you can see - and we had spent about 20 minutes on the beach when it started to sprinkle. We stayed there for 10 more minutes, hoping it would blow over, but we had no such luck. So, up to the indoor pool and hot tub we went. It sprinkled off and on for an hour, and the sun didn't show its face again until well after we went to dinner. Can you believe that I still got a bit of sunburn?

That crane is hard at work on the third (or it maybe the fourth) building in the vacation villas section of the resort. I haven't been in the villas yet, but Mr. kenju and our daughter were there 2 months ago and they said it is perfect: 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, a full kitchen and nice size living area with a full balcony fronting the ocean. The villas have their own heated pool and hot-tubs with outdoor grilling area and tables.

Here are the two outdoor pools; one is fresh water and the other is a salt-water pool. They also have an indoor pool with hot-tub, and a second hot tub outdoors, as well as a kiddie pool and a water slide, which is a very big hit with children., and some adults. Our granddaughter must have gone down that slide at least 100 times!

When we left there today around 11 a.m., the sun had come out again and it was proving to be a gorgeous day. Isn't that always the case? No one minds leaving the beach in the midst of rainy weather, but most of the time when we leave, it is so beautiful you can hardly tear ourselves away!

I didn't get much sleep last night and tomorrow morning, I have to take my daughter to the airport at 5:00 am. I hope to get to bed early tonight, so wish me luck!

More Odds and Ends

Mel Day made these bouquets today for the weddings on Sunday. Cascade bouquets have been out of favor for about six years, but they are making a comeback now. I have to make one for one of my brides later this year.

Those beautiful "cool water" roses again, with dendrobium orchids, sweet peas and hydrangeas.


This is where I would be had I opted to go to the beach this weekend. Marriott's Grand Dunes in Myrtle Beach is a glorious destination!!

Now, do yourselves a favor and watch this amazing display of young talent!

More from the Beach!

A colorful ending to a perfect day. This doesn't do it justice, of course. The colors were spectacular. Earlier that day, we'd had a horrific storm, with thunder and lightning, and hail was predicted - but didn't materialize. The wind was unbelievably strong during the storm, and steady during the whole time we were there. I got very little sunburn, but I am burned - the wind did it, in spite of gobs of sun block. Next time we go there, I am wearing a floor-length terrycloth robe on the beach! (Click to embiggen)

This is what we saw when we leaned out over our balcony. I suppose when you are there on an employee discount, you are not given beach front rooms. We would have preferred it, of course, but we're not about to "look that gift horse in the mouth!"

Beds of red and yellow hibiscus were everywhere on the grounds of the hotel, as were other flowers. It was truly a feast for the eyes.

This is a flowering palm tree. The photo doesn't do it justice; the burgundy-colored spikes were very pretty.

This little gull was so tame that he walked up to within six feet of our canopy, looking for a handout. We had nothing to give him, so he walked away dejectedly.

Mr. kenju and our son. Everyone got quite a walking workout during our stay. Beach access required walking further than we wanted. The boardwalk went out over the dunes, but then turned right and sloped downward for about 40 feet. This required no stairs to navigate, but it did add quite a few steps to the process. Since we had our own chairs and canopy, and didn't plan to rent from the hotel, we had to go further down the beach to set up than everyone else did. We all needed the exercise, though, so it was beneficial in the long run. Our weather was nearly ideal, save two very strong, but short-lived storms. The rest of the time, it was sunny, clear and breezy. A good time was had by all.

Four Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend

If you are looking for a good place to take your vacation, celebrate a special occasion or just lay about on the beach for a few days - this is THE place! Marriott's Grande Dunes Hotel and Spa (on the left) and the Grand Dunes Marriott Vacation Club (on the right and below), on the Grand Strand in Myrtle Beach, SC. (DO click to enlarge!)

All that is accompanied by miles of flat, white, sandy beach, sunshine and blue/green ocean ~ what more could you ask?

Two outdoor pools: a salt-water pool in the front and a fresh-water pool in the rear, with dozens of tables, umbrellas, lounge chairs and waitstaff always at the ready with drinks or munchies. I almost forgot to mention the outdoor hot-tub!

The corner of the building you can see on the right above houses the indoor pool and hot tub, and behind that - a spa with services to rival those of the best ones (not that I know first-hand....LOL.....we didn't get any massages or facials, etc., on this trip.)

Our bed, replete with mattresses to die for and feather duvets and lush pillows!

Our bathroom, with every convenience necessary, and some that are not necessary, but enjoyed.

We are extremely fortunate to have a family member who is a Marriott employee, otherwise, we might not be able to experience such a wonderful place. We arrived on Sunday, with our older grandson, our son, his wife and their girls and our daughter, Miss Kenju.

I didn't take photos of it, but I can highly recommend the breakfast buffet! Anything you might ever want for breakfast is there (even for Europeans) and it is delicious!

More photos tomorrow. I am tired, as you might imagine.

NJ and the Big Apple, Part 2

We saw The Drowsy Chaperone, billed as the funniest musical on Broadway. It was in the Marquis Theater; in the Marriott Marquis Hotel. I have included the photos of the cast, taken from the playbill. The gist of the plot is: a guy who lives alone and is devoted to musical theater, re-lives an earlier Broadway show named The Drowsy Chaperone, by listening to the old LP record of the music from the show. As he listens, he imagines the action of the play, which is acted out in his apartment, and he narrates.

"Playbill.com: The Drowsy Chaperone is about a theatre fan called Man in Chair telling us about his favorite old show, and giving behind-the-scenes dirt about the performers who created the roles back in 1928. You and your fellow actors are really inhabiting two roles. The Chaperone in the silly musical about a wedding is played by a diva of the Golden Age of musicals…Beth Leavel: My character is informed by this woman who inhabits her — her name is Beatrice Stockwell."

If you are interested in reading more about it, go here:

http://www.theatermania.com/content/news.cfm/story/7942

And for more info on Beth Leavel, a native Raleighite, go here:

http://www.meredith.edu/mcnews/beth-leavel-wins.htm

Some of you will remember Georgia Engel (third from right on top row) from her days on Mary Tyler Moore and other television shows. In this play, she is the essential Georgia, and you are reminded of her character on the Mary Tyler Moore Show. This show is very funny and I do recommend it. One character is particularly amusing to me: Danny Burstein (second from left on top row) plays Aldolpho, a larger than life Latin Lover (with a capital L)! Every linehe said had me convulsed with laughter, much to miss kenju#1's dismay.....LOL

We bought our half-price tickets, and had 90 minutes to spare before the show, so we went into the Marquis for dinner. If you go to NYC, do go into the Marriott Marquis. It is a very interesting location, and they have several restaurants; the one on the top revolves and gives you excellent views of the city while you dine. We chose a smaller, less formal cafe and sat down. Not far from us was an older couple, who were chatting with their waiter. He asked them where they were from, and they answered Raleigh, NC. I laughed and marvelled at the coincidence, but I didn't go to their table and tell them. Mr. kenju would have!

As we left the theater, we heard a band playing. In the drive-through at the Marriott, the West Virginia University marching band was playing. They were happy because they had won their game in the NIT that night. I mention this for Jennifer at Open Book, a very proud WVU grad.

After the show, we walked back to the NY Athletic Club, to meet mr. kenju, daughter #1 and My BIL. The party wasn't over, and we were invited upstairs to the tap room, to meet old and make new friends. Guess who I met?

http://www.cbs.com/primetime/survivor10/survivors/bio/tom.shtml

I'll tell you about that tomorrow!

NJ and the Big Apple, Part 1

The Woolworth Building (on the right). At one time, it was the tallest building in NYC.

We left here Wednesday afternoon, with daughter #1, at 3pm, after the plumber worked his magic mojo and stopped the leak under our house. We stopped in DC to spend the night with daughter #2, and continued on Thursday morning to NJ. Our #2 decided to take the train to NYC later in the day, and she was to meet us at the New York Athletic Club about 6 pm.

Daughter #1 has a GP system on her car, and I became a devotee almost immediately. She programmed it to take us to NJ by the quickest route without tolls. We were routed through Pennsylvania Amish country, an area which none of us had ever seen before. I want to go back sometime when we can stop and sight-see! The rolling hills are lovely, and the wide valleys with picturesque farms are quaint and beautiful. We saw some dark red barns, with large round hex signs on them, and silos, and grazing cattle and horses. I would love to see it when the trees are leafed out and flowers are blooming. When we left Raleigh, it was looking like spring had sprung and the farther north we went, the more it appeared to be winter again. Going that route (from DC through Harrisburg and Scranton) put extra miles on the car, but we paid NO tolls and the traffic was light, compared to Rte. 95 (the hellhole).

We arrived in West Orange, NJ at our hotel, the Marriott Residence Inn, and were pleasantly surprised to see that it looked like a fairly luxurious hotel (both inside and out)! Our rooms were spacious and well-appointed, and the stay included a free breakfast. This was a full buffet - not just continental fare - and it was good!

We had to hurry, as mr. kenju had to be at the NYAC by 5:30 pm, for a photo session prior to being inducted (along with his whole team) in his high school basketball hall of fame. His team went undefeated in the 1957-58 season. His brother arrived to drive us into the city and we made it with about 5 minutes to spare, despite the problem of a flat tire. My BIL asked the parking attendant to change the tire for him, and lo and behold when we went back at 11:30 pm to get the car, it had been changed. We were lucky!

Miss kenju (daughter #2) arrived from the train at 6:20pm and we left the NYAC on a quest for half-price tickets to a Broadway Show. Tomorrow, I will tell you all about the show we saw, plus other possibly interesting tidbits about the evening.