For Spring Break this year my family and I traveled to the newly renovated Club Med Sandpiper Bay.  We’ve been to Club Meds before; this is an excerpt from another blog post that I wrote:

Club Med is one of my favorite family vacation spots because it is all-inclusive and there is so much for the kids to do (and so the parents get to have their own kind of fun). Because our kids are such different ages, it is hard to find vacation resorts with activities of interest to both of them. We have taken a cruise before and with my apologies to the cruising fans, we all hated it. Club Meds are perfect for us. The price is all-inclusive, the food is good and plentiful, the staff is fun and the destinations are sunny. The atmosphere is very casual, kind of funky and very international.

On our first Club Med vacation, my son and I went to Sandpiper, Florida when he was 4 years old. My husband couldn’t take time from work and I wanted a vacation that was easy to do with a four year old and a quick flight from New Jersey. By the second day in Florida we had a routine: we would eat breakfast together, I would drop him off at the Mini Club and I then I wouldn’t see him again until 5:00 p.m. My son made fast friends with several boys his age and had a blast doing all the activities planned by the G.O.s He played tennis, participated in Circus School, built sand-castles, tye-dyed a tee shirt, won a prize in a talent show and was in several theater productions. I had great plans for myself during the day: roller-blading, tennis lessons, circus school, maybe even some golf, but all I managed to do was yoga class every morning before I parked myself by the pool for the rest of the day. Sometimes I found my son at his activities and joined in, but mostly I enjoyed my much-needed time alone.

When he was six years old we went to Club Med in Punta Cana with my husband as well and again my son had a blast. My husband had a great time too playing basketball, working out in the gym and lounging by the pool with me (7 months pregnant). Punta Cana had a lovely beach, good food and a great pool. The G.O.s at that Club were just as fun as at Sandpiper.

Although we really wanted to go back to Punta Cana or try Ixtapa, Mexico, we couldn’t find any reasonable flights.   Sandpiper Bay is near West Palm Beach, Florida, just a short 90 minute flight from Atlanta; flights are plentiful and inexpensive.  For a last minute vacation, it was perfect.  We were also curious to see the new renovations.

I made a short video while at Club Med Sandpiper Bay so that you can see the renovations too:

As you can see, it’s a lovely resort and the renovations were extensive.  This is what I liked:

• There were many food choices.  While red meat and pork were plentiful for meat-lovers (that would not be me), there was plenty of seafood and salads as well.
• The adult only section in the restaurant.  Since my kids were not with us for lunch, it was nice to be able to sit far away from other people’s screaming kids.
• The adult only pool and hot tub.  No explanation needed.
• The “beach.”   It’s still on a river, not the ocean, but I can see a big improvement over the old beach.  They made it wider and brought in more sand.  The effect is very relaxing and soothing for lounging, if not for actually getting in the water.
• The Mini Club.  This is the primary reason to visit a family Club Med.  You don’t get that level of activity and engagement with the children anywhere else.
• The Teen Club.  It’s a brillant idea to have a place for the older kids to congregate and meet other kids.
• There was so much to do: tennis, golf, basketball, sailing, volleyball, pool games, circus school, trapeze, dance lessons and several exercise classes.
• Or there was nothing to do.  There were plenty of comfy places to lounge: in the bar, outside the bar, at the beach or at one of the 3 pools.
• The White Chocolate Bread was still at every meal and still delicious.  This is a Club Med staple and worth every indulgent calorie.

This is what I didn’t like:

• The restaurant doesn’t do “theme nights” anymore.  Now there is international food at every meal, but it was nice to have French Night or Italian Night.   The restaurant used to decorate to reflect the country and the food was elaborately displayed.  My son (at the age of four) tried frogs legs on French Night.
• The renovated Family Club Room: the way the kids’ bunk bed cubby is configured, it makes the whole room chopped up and claustrophobic.   The bathroom is tiny and there is no lid on the toilet (I was sure something was going to fall in there).   Next time we will spring for the Deluxe Family Room with a real bedroom for the kids and 2 bathrooms.
• The bar was very far from the adult pool.  By the time you got a drink and walked all the way to the pool, the ice had melted.
• The towel exchange window was basically in the parking lot, far away from the pool or beach.  It took me 2 days to find it.  It just doesn’t make sense.
• I have mixed feelings about “feel” of the renovation.  While it is very nice and modern, it feels like Miami.  This is a criticism of the new Club Med in general because I could have been at any American resort, vs the old Club Med, which was very funky, crunchy and distinctly not American.  Remember, I used to be a G.O. back when Club Med still had bar beads as currency and no phones or televisions in the rooms.  All the G.O.s wore pareos and no shoes.  Now they wear golf shirts and shorts.  It’s very different and I prefer the old Club Med ways (but with the updated amenities).  Only old school Club Med vacationers can appreciate this criticism, everyone else will like the Miami vibe.
• With the exception of the Mini Club and Teen Club staff, I found the G.O.s to be just “meh.”  They were not as engaging as G.O.s should be.
• There was no boutique.   Club Med has wonderful boutiques; I have gotten some beautiful pareos in the past.  I don’t know if they are going to add one at a later date or not, but I found the lack of a boutique baffling.

Despite my grievances, it was a great vacation.  My kids had a ball.  My daughter was in the Mini Club everyday with the other 8-10 year olds, the Manatees.   The Mini Club opened at 8:00 a.m., but we usually dropped her off about 9:30 a.m., after leisurely waking and eating breakfast.   She played all day and then we picked her up at 5:00 p.m. only because the Mini Club closed at that time–she would have stayed all night.   This was her first time at Club Med and I knew that she would love it; she’s very active and she prefers being with kids rather than adults.  As you can see from the schedule, the kids are busy all day:

I was a little more worried about my son.  The Club has a teen lounge, Latitude 27, but kids this age come and go as they please and it’s up to the kid to decide how much they want to be involved.  Luckily we met Wren, the G.O. in charge of Latitude 27, as soon as we checked in so my son felt comfortable checking out the lounge.   By the second day he had found a gang of friends to hang with in the lounge and around the Club.  He ate breakfast with us and then he was gone for the rest of the day.  Sometimes we happened upon him playing water polo or sailing on the river, but he was having too much fun to notice.

With both kids occupied all day, my husband and I had rare time to ourselves. We exercised, sailed, ate lunch together–in the adult only section of the restaurant–and laid around talking.  We never, ever, ever get to do that for days on end.  It was fantastic.

The song attached to Club Med’s new campaign is addictive and perfect for dreaming of sunlit skies and sandy beaches.

Listen.

I can practically feel the fruity drink in my hand.  Aaaah….we’ll be there again soon!

© 2011, Funkidivagirl.com. All rights reserved. Republished only with permission.

We are having a ball in South Carolina; today I captured our time on Folly Beach.  My poor husband was determined to fly a kite.

© 2010, Funkidivagirl.com. All rights reserved. Republished only with permission.

Stepping off the plane, New Mexico was a shock to our senses.  Immediately we noticed the clean, fresh smog-free air.  The weather was sunny and warm, but not humid and stifling like in Atlanta.  And the sky….we could see for miles!  My kids could really play the game “what shape is that cloud;” something that is hard to do living in a city like we do.  The architecture also was different from anywhere else that we had been, starting with the airport and continuing into Santa Fe.  Driving around Santa Fe’s commercial district we were surprised to see familiar stores looking very un-familiar as adobe buildings.  We screamed out the window and pointed: “adobe McDonald’s, adobe IHOP, adobe Starbucks, adobe Target!”  Once we left the commercial area, all we saw was desert–which we expected—but as it gave way to tress and mountains the higher in elevation we climbed, that was less expected.   All of it was beautiful and so different from the canopy of trees that makes up Atlanta’s landscape.

We vacationed in New Mexico because we were fortunate to be invited to Jane Fonda’s ranch, which has quite an interesting history.  Besides Jane, our housemates were her daughter, grandchildren and their father.  And I can’t forget Jane’s constant companion, Tulea.

The house is amazingly beautiful. (more…)

© 2009 – 2011, Funkidivagirl.com. All rights reserved. Republished only with permission.

I recently spent 3 nights at the Ritz-Carlton in Key Biscayne, Florida.  As I have posted before, my family has enjoyed a couple of different Ritz-Carlton resorts over the last year, but this was my first time at this particular location.

Did you know that you can book vacation packages on the Ritz-Carlton website?  I booked my flight and hotel as a package for considerably less than if I had bought them separately.  The only drawback to this arrangement is that the reservation is paid in full at the time of booking and is non-refundable (however, travel insurance is an available option for purchase).  I was emailed my travel documents; it was all very straightforward and easy.

A short flight from Atlanta, a 30 minute taxi ride from Miami International Airport, and I was in Key Biscayne in no time.  Check-in was not so pleasant as my room was not ready (at 4:00 p.m.) and the desk clerk seemed confused and unsure about her duties, but at least my wait was nice in the opulent hotel lobby.

Finally I made it to my room and while it was very nice and newly renovated, it was small and dark; I wouldn’t be spending much time in this room.  No matter, I had come to Key Biscayne to be on the beach anyhow.   The bathroom, by contrast was a very nice size with a separate shower and bathtub and nice bright, lighting.  I had requested a balcony and received one; it had a “bay view”—the bay being way off in the distance—so it really was a view of the front of the hotel.  Since I wasn’t in my room but to sleep, I didn’t sit on the balcony at all.

(more…)

© 2009 – 2010, Funkidivagirl.com. All rights reserved. Republished only with permission.

We’re on another road trip to Florida; this time to Orlando to see our favorite mouse.  The problem is, everyone has the same idea and traffic is ridiculous.  If you follow me on Twitter, you would see that I’m not handling it too well either.  The kids, they’re fine; it’s me who’s going crazy.  So in an effort to get my mind off the fact that we have traveled five miles in one hour, I made a video and did a Skirt! 24/7 interview.

Road Trip Beats

24/7 with Funkidivagirl and Family

Skirt! is one of my favorite monthly newspapers; I always read it from cover to cover and I particularly enjoy the 24/7 page.  I have known a couple of people featured: Gretchen Hollingsworth of Paddywax Candles, Britt Menzies of StinkyKids, and I was happy to read about my Twitter pal Tami of Talking With Tami in the latest issue.

But since I have yet to be featured on the 24/7 page, each moth I interview myself.   While stuck in the car, I thought it would be fun for all of us to answer some of the 24/7 questions.  (”All of us” means me, husband James and 7 year old Girly; The Boy was being all “teenage-ry” and didn’t participate.)

Words I live by:

James: “The difference between me and you is that I make this look good.” -Will Smith, Men in Black

Me: “It is not enough to do your very best; you must do what is required of the situation.” –Cathy Hughes

I can’t live without:

Girly: Marcus (my stuffed dog)

James: music, my iPhone

Me: sunshine, sleep, Eboost

One thing I never want to do again:

Girly: be sick in the hospital

James: leave for Florida during Spring Break late in the morning

Me: be a teenager (although it was much easier than being a parent of a teenager!)

If I could be totally wild:

Girly: I would stand on my head all day

James: quit my job and coach AAU high school basketball

Me: be a beach bum in St. John

The most important thing I ever lost:

Girly: the cutest dog (Tiger Lilly, a therapy dog who helped me when I was in the hospital)

James: my Grandfather’s WWII uniform

Me: my trust in people

I’d like to learn to:

Girly:  knit

James: speak Portuguese

Me: play the guitar

I wish I’d known:

Girly: Funkidivagirl before I was born

James: that Google was going to be so big (I would have bought stock)

Me:  that I might have wanted a third child

Something most people don’t know about me:

Girly: that I can dance really good

James: that I am irrationally afraid of birds

Me: I spilled my guts already

My first job:

James: a paper route for the Oakland Tribune, as a teenager I worked in a deli and my  first “real” job was for Wild West records

Me: a Keebler Elf, as a teenager I worked in a candy shop and in college as a Teaching Assistant

Never…..

Girly: forget to Twitter once a day    *(now that’s funny..is she our kid or what?)

James: start the day without a game plan

Me: be afraid to speak your mind

I’m guilty of:

Girly: eating too many sweets

James: keeping my phone on during the whole airplane ride

Me: speaking my mind maybe too much

If I were a super hero/heroine I would:

Girly: be Animal Girl and translate animal talk

James: go inside people’s minds and look at their motives

Me: be Funkidivagirl and save the world from mediocrity.  Oh wait…I already do that!

And now, for the rest of the car ride–QUIET!

We finally made it to Disney World after a very long drive.  You can read all about our vacation in How To Do Disney World Like Funkidivagirl.

© 2009 – 2011, Funkidivagirl.com. All rights reserved. Republished only with permission.