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Post by wdw1972 on May 2, 2023 17:14:42 GMT -5
Who/When/Where:
Who: Sue (64), DVC Member
SB (65), my husband
Linda (65), my childhood best friend
Wiston (60’s), Linda’s husband
Dates: May 3 – 8, 2023
Resort: Disney’s Hilton Head Island Resort
Experience: Very Experienced – 28th stay at Hilton Head
INTRODUCTION:
This is our annual beach trip – always at Disney’s Hilton Head Island Resort since Hilton Head has gorgeous beaches (better than Florida in my opinion). We also love the dining here – particularly the restaurants in the Serg group. We miss the years of doing this trip with Chris/Amanda/Ari and Pete/Judy, but still enjoy it when it’s just the 2 of us. In fact, I’d enjoy it as a solo trip – but it’s a good trip to share w/SB because it’s laid back and we have room to spread out.
This year my childhood best friend Linda (the one who backed out of Food & Wine due to a foot problem, leaving us stuck at OKW instead of where we wanted to be – she & hubby went to Hilton Head instead that week) reached out asking about my future trips. She was hoping to find a time/place to meet up. Hilton Head is really the only opportunity, since WDW seems to be a challenge for her physically (and I prefer only going there with people who just want to do the same things as us – she’d be shopping, wanting big dinners, etc). At first, she had a craft show she was doing the weekend of our trip, but planned to go to HHI Monday and fly home Friday – that would give us Wednesday pm, Thursday and whatever part of Friday to spend time together. That was perfect, as then SB & I could have a calm “just us” last couple of days before going home.
The next update was Linda telling me she’d switched to a different craft show (she makes beautiful earrings, artwork, etc – very talented) so now they’re flying in Tuesday and will leave the following Monday when we do. We talked about what to do on the trip – she & hubby had enjoyed renting electric bicycles last trip, but I don’t think SB has ever ridden a bike and I’m not interested in taking time away from the beach or relaxing around the resort for that – but I did tell her they should do it if they want to. Wiston will definitely want to fish – whether SB accompanies him at all is up to him. At this point sitting on the beach sounds better to him but that could change up until the moment we get in the car to start the drive, lol. I mentioned the Comedy Magic Cabaret – they felt it was too expensive so we’re not doing that. SB & I did it last year and will probably do it again next year – we don’t need to do it every year (I mainly mentioned it for them). We did agree to do Captain Mark’s Sunset Dolphin Cruise, so I booked that for Friday night (our middle night).
We have our favorite restaurants and frankly in 5 nights it’s not possible to visit them all. Linda & Wiston also have places they like, so hopefully there’s enough overlap in there. I’m at the point in life where on trips like this we should all be doing what we want to do vs doing what other people want. Where those things match up we spend time together and where they don’t match up we say “see you afterwards”. We can also visit and have drinks/snacks on our porch if we have down time in the evening.
They’ve rented a VRBO over by Folly Road (about 6 miles away maybe). I put Linda’s name on our reservation so I can get them a parking pass for Palmetto Dunes & key card to enter the Disney resort gate. Shelter Cove Harbor does live music on Thursday nights, so we might check that out. Last January Top Dawg Tavern was a very pleasant surprise, so we’re planning to eat there on Friday, which is also Cinco de Mayo. It’s also just a short stroll from Captain Mark’s boat.
I doubt we’ll bother with any of the resort activities (they conflict with beach time mostly) and won’t be shopping like I usually do on the January trips (when the beach isn’t an option). I imagine I’ll have less “down time” than usual, and since I’m no longer interested in staying up late to finish trip reports I may end up posting some mornings rather than evenings. We’ll see how it goes.
The plans so far are:
Wednesday 5/03: Drive to HHI, Kroger, Poseidon
Thursday 5/04: Beach, Skull Creek Boathouse?
Friday 5/05: Beach, Top Dawg Tavern, Sunset Dolphin Cruise
Saturday 5/06: Beach, Frankie Bones?
Sunday 5/07: Beach, Brunch somewhere
Monday 5/08: Hilton Head Diner, Drive to Gainesville
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Post by kzrooster on May 2, 2023 17:40:11 GMT -5
I sure wish you had picked Vero Beach for your May trip…. I’d love to meet you and your SB…..
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Post by Brian5581 on May 2, 2023 19:25:49 GMT -5
Enjoy!
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Post by wdw1972 on May 3, 2023 21:44:25 GMT -5
DAY 1 – Wednesday 5/03/23
Who: Sue (64), DVC Member
SB (65), my husband
Linda (65), my childhood best friend
Wiston (60’s), Linda’s husband
Plan: Drive to HHI, Kroger, Poseidon
Actual: Yesterday Linda & Wiston arrived in Hilton Head. They made a trip to Nectar where Lindo got biscuits and honey. I mentioned I always get the tomato hand pie and she said she almost went with that, lol! They spent the night at Townplace Suites and move to their VRBO today.
Only I went to work today but left by 10:30. After loading the coolers (the rest of the stuff was already in the car) we were pulling out of the driveway at 10:40. The drive was smooth sailing and we pulled into the resort almost 4 hours later. Andy was the cast member checking us in, and she’s the same one from last January – nice lady. Our villa was not ready but she told me it was only waiting for the final inspection. We decided to wait in Big Murgie’s Den and no longer got there when I received the text with our room number.
We’re in building 12, 2nd floor, overlooking the part of the marsh where you seldom see water (the part coming up to the boardwalk). We face directly west, so we’d find out later that the sun shines right onto our porch. I unpacked our clothes and groceries, and we set up our laptops. Linda & I texted around 3:30 and then SB & I walked over to Poseidon to meet them. I stopped at the front desk along the way because I’d already lost Linda’s parking pass.
We arrived at Poseidon at the same time as them and met up in the Nauti Bar. They had the plastic flaps down since it was pretty windy, so we took a table in the corner of the flaps for a nice view. Our server was great, and all the food was excellent. SB took charge and was ordering all kinds of stuff – it really seemed excessive to me, but it is what it is.
To start he ordered 2 dozen oysters for Wiston & him to share. Linda also ordered the hush puppies and the crab dip w/naan bread. The guys loved the oysters! The hush puppies were huge and they all liked them – I thought they were ok. The crab dip was a hit with the others as well, and very cheesy. Next SB & Wiston shared the shellfish platter – huge platter of Alaskan king crab, lobster, huge shrimp, mussels and more oysters. It was unreal, and they loved it all. Linda got a wedge salad that was very good and I got the pimento cheese spread w/naan bread (my usual). For beverages Linda & I had the house pinot grigio, SB had beer and Wiston had hard cider.
As I said, everything was delicious, and we had a nice time. Then SB decides he wants to order a dessert and orders the key lime pie. The rest of us passed. However, when it came we all tried a bite and agreed it was excellent. After the pie SB was stuffed & feeling miserable. I tried to warn him, lol – but he didn’t listen. Dinner was SB’s treat and then we went around the corner to Kroger.
We didn’t need much but picked up a few things. Linda & Wiston didn’t have the luxury of bringing coolers of food with them so they stocked up for the rest of their stay. Once that was done they dropped us off at Disney, went to their place to drop off their groceries and then came back to join us in our villa. Linda makes jewelry now and brought me some pretty earrings she’d made – along with a pair for Amanda. She’s so talented!
While waiting I walked over to the pool and picked up towels for the beach so I wouldn’t have to detour to the Beach House upon arriving. I had the report updated and SB was starting to nod off on the couch. Linda & Wiston were gone forever! I don’t think they realize 8pm is close to our bedtime (at least for SB), and it was almost 8 before they got back here. I was thinking we’d have spent our time right after Kroger, and then they’d take their groceries home when they left around 8-8:30 <g>.
It's been breezy here today and the wind was blowing on the porch. Thank goodness the sun helped offset some of that, but I put on my Hilton Head sweatshirt to stay warm. Linda came bearing gifts, which was so thoughtful and typical of her! I had something for her as well and we laughed when we each brought the other a special wine glass. She also brought me more of her jewelry, including a necklace that’s just beautiful. I’ll enjoy wearing it!
I went to check the ice cube situation since I’d turned the ice maker on before leaving for Poseidon and it was empty. Really?? Wiston took a look at it and confirmed that what I had done should have generated ice. I looked for an ice bucket but there was none. Wiston came with me and we stopped at the front desk to report the ice challenge. I asked for maintenance to take care of it tomorrow. I also asked for an ice bucket and was given a plastic bag that said ice, lol!
Wiston & I went down to my car and got the fishing rod Linda had ordered and had shipped to my address. He put it in their car while I filled the ice bag with ice in the laundry room, then we went back to the villa. I’d brought a hard cider for him so he grabbed a bottle and joined SB in the living room to watch a basketball game. I had bought some large chocolate turtle cookies at Kroger so he & Linda shared one while SB & I shared another.
I opened a bottle of Mato Bay sauvignon blanc and Linda & I used our new wine glasses. We took our wine out to the porch and sat in the rocking chairs out there. The sun was setting and it was really pretty and peaceful. We sat out there talking until close to 10pm, which is much later than I would have expected but it’s the first night and we were enjoying ourselves.
We went back inside and she & Wiston headed back to their rental. SB continued watching the game but he probably won’t be awake for long. There was a message on the phone – pest control company would be coming by to service the villa around 9 tomorrow. Not a big deal as we’ll certainly be up.
Today was a great start to the trip and it’s wonderful being back here! Tomorrow the morning looks too cool for the beach so Linda is going to make us dutch pancakes and bacon for breakfast. They’ll be here at 9:30 for that. Hopefully it’ll warm up enough for the beach during the early afternoon hours, then we can shower/change and have an early dinner that’s not quite so massive!
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Post by melk on May 4, 2023 8:06:01 GMT -5
Hope you have a great time! I’m following along with curiosity as I’m thinking of booking this same week next year.
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Post by wdw1972 on May 4, 2023 19:19:39 GMT -5
Hope you have a great time! I’m following along with curiosity as I’m thinking of booking this same week next year. We are! Perhaps we'll see you next year - I'm almost certain we will. I need to check the date of Mother's Day and generally try to avoid that falling during the trip only because restaurants become hard to get into that day!
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Post by wdw1972 on May 4, 2023 19:20:11 GMT -5
DAY 2 – Thursday 5/04/23
Who: Sue (64), DVC Member
SB (65), my husband
Linda (65), my childhood best friend
Wiston (60’s), Linda’s husband
Plan: Beach, Skull Creek Boathouse?
Actual: We both slept really well. As usual, the resort is so quiet and the beds are comfortable. I didn’t even get up until almost 6, which is late for me! I made my cappuccino and took it back to bed. We did online stuff and watched some tv.
Around 8:30 I got dressed in jeans and long-sleeve shirt (it was cool this morning) and went out for a walk around the marina. SB decided to wait to walk later so I left him behind watching tv. It was a gorgeous day! Not that many people were out but those who were seemed to be at the Hilton Head Social Bakery. Most tables were occupied and there was a line of people waiting to get inside (it’s very small). Top Dawg Tavern has expanded into a vacant shop next door and turned it into a Kid’s Zone. Evidently there are arcade games & stuff in there. Good idea to get restless kids out of the restaurant/bar, assuming they’re old enough to go off on their own like that. I also saw the new Daily restaurant/market place that recently opened. It serves breakfast and lunch. The outside place across the way (Three Sisters or something like that) appears to have shut down. We’ll see what goes in there next.
I was back in the villa around 9:15 and we hung out waiting for Linda & Wiston to arrive. She texted earlier and was cooking the bacon in the oven at their place. They also have a ninja type device over there to mix the batter. Linda texted just after 9:30 to say they were on the way but were stopping to get Wiston’s fishing license. It’s up to 68 degrees now (almost 10am) so beach time is getting closer. We need to get this breakfast going.
Just after 10 she texted again – they were at Kroger. The fishing license was unsuccessful, and they were getting an ingredient they’d forgotten to get before. I turned the oven on to start heating up, knowing that sometimes DVC ovens work very slowly. We’re pretty hungry at this point and I think SB may be getting a little irritable. He was questioning whether dutch pancake made sense since he’s diabetic. I told him no less sense than the key lime pie last night!
Finally, they arrived, and we quickly got to work. The Ninja thing wasn’t working at first, but Wiston was able to save the day. Otherwise, I would have pulled out the blender. They forgot sugar so we used the sugar packets with the coffee maker. When Wiston went to get them each a coffee from Big Murgie’s Den he brought back replacement sugar packets too. The pancake was in the oven by 10:30. While getting it prepared, we also had a visit from the housekeeper getting our trash and the pest control guy doing the regular service.
While the pancake baked I gathered up our beach stuff (Linda & Wiston had their swimsuits on under their clothes) while they worked online to get Wiston’s fishing license. As we sat down to eat the maintenance guy arrived and said the ice maker wasn’t turned on. There’s a button that’s pretty hidden and it did release some ice. However, I’m not sure when he left if it was back on or off, as not much ice was there when we returned after a couple hours.
Just before the pancake was done Linda realized they forgot the maple syrup, lol! SB & Wiston walked over to the Mercantile and bought a bottle. The pancake and bacon were very good! After eating we cleaned up the dishes and SB & I changed into swimsuits.
We gathered our stuff, and they followed us over to the Beach House. The parking lot had several cars, so I didn’t expect to find a spot under the building. However, it was almost empty down there and I got my usual spot! We walked out to the beach and once we got past the dunes the breeze made it significantly cooler. We set up our chairs and enjoyed the view but never stripped down to just swimsuits. It was fairly busy on the beach but few people were in the water.
At one point 4 or 5 large military (Marine Corps) helicopters flew in a formation overhead – that was pretty cool to see. We noticed lots of people riding bicycles with the wind at their backs, and many of them were walking the bikes back the other way (into the wind), lol! SB excused himself and came back from the Beach House with a frozen pina colada and frozen pina colava (the one with raspberry). He gave one to me, which I shared with him. The other he gave to Linda, who shared with Wiston.
By 1:30 Linda & Wiston decided to head out – Linda was wearing a hooded sweatshirt trying to stay warm. The rest of the trip should be more normal in terms of beach weather. We talked about dinner choices and also agreed that tonight would be an earlier night than last night. Linda mentioned nachos and Skull Creek Dockside has beef nachos on the menu so that might be where we end up. Of course it can change 3-4 times by then, lol!
Pretty soon SB & I decided to head back as well and caught General Hospital as it was starting. I fiddled with the ice maker again, hoping to avoid having to call the maintenance guy back. I noticed the hidden button toggles between a green light and no light when I’d press it with the tip of a knife, so I left it on green and waited to see if anything would happen. This is the first time I’d actually seen the button, so had no idea whether the last touch had turned it on or turned it off.
We took our showers and got dressed, then checked in with Linda about 4. She’d started thinking of Black Marlin so we said that was fine. They don’t have regular nachos but they do have fish tacos that Linda will like. We confirmed Black Marlin was the choice and headed out. We knew we’d get there first and told them we’d get a table.
Upon arrival I was surprised to see it wasn’t busy at all yet. I expected more of a crowd for happy hour, but perhaps that doesn’t get crazy until season starts in a few weeks (or on weekends). We took a high-top table with a nice view of the boats and water. Linda & Wiston were on their way, but it was taking a while. We ordered drinks (wine for me and hurricane for SB) then decided to order the appetizer Korean chicken bites. They were very good, with a good amount of spiciness!
Linda & Wiston arrived after the food was gone and found us at the table. They ordered drinks (wine for Linda, sweet tea for Wiston). After a bit we ordered food. Mine and Linda’s qualified for happy hour pricing – chicken quesadilla for me and baja flounder tacos for her. The guys each ordered a different burger, which qualified for the 10% discount for staying at Disney. The food was very good, and it was a pleasant dining experience. Linda insisted on picking up the check tonight, so we thanked her. Of the 4 pieces of quesadilla, I ate one, SB was too full to eat one, and Linda ate half of one – we took the other 2.5 pieces back to the resort to add to the stockpile.
We headed back to the resort, with SB & me arriving first. SB was miserably full – he does this all the time. He laid down on the couch. I waited for Linda to arrive then we went walking around Shelter Cove Harbor while Wiston went fishing at the resort. I was expecting more of a brisk walk but it ended up being a very leisurely stroll with a couple stops on a bench to sit briefly. She told me she needs to start exercising and build up distance day by day. I agreed but added to increase speed as well if she’s really wanting it to be exercise to improve her fitness level. With working full time, doing household stuff and doing all her art and jewelry projects it’s not surprising it’s very hard to find time to exercise (especially when the weather is terrible part of the year).
Shelter Cove Harbor was packed with people, all having a nice time. Thursday nights this time of year they have a live band performing. People were dancing, people were sitting enjoying wine or food from the local restaurants. They set up several chairs but also people bring their own chairs. Several had their dogs with them. It’s a really popular, very nice early evening activity.
On the way back to the resort we decided against stopping at Hilton Head Social Bakery. SB doesn’t need any of that and neither do I – plus I’ve already tried several of the items over the years. Linda decided she could hold off as well. We saw Wiston fishing in the marsh and said hello as we continued up to the villa. I poured us each a glass of wine and we took it outside to some cushioned rockers they’d relocated up to our floor while working on the floor outside Big Murgie’s Den. We enjoyed listening to the band performing over at Shelter Cove Harbor and could hear them perfectly. They played songs we remembered, which made it even better.
Eventually Wiston showed up and wanted to go fishing near their rental. It made sense for him to drop Linda off and then fish, rather than having to come back later to pick her up – especially since we were saying tonight would be an earlier night. They headed out and I took the laptop out to the porch to finish up the report while listening to the end of the band’s performance. The sunset was very pretty, and the concert ended around 8pm.
Today was a very nice relaxing day. I wish the beach would have been warmer, but we still enjoyed being there. Linda’s pancake idea didn’t exactly go smoothly but in the end it turned out fine – and it was delicious. We ended the day with another great dinner, even though SB feels he ate too much.
Tomorrow is another beach day and it should be a bit warmer. Later we’ll have happy hour/dinner at Top Dawg Tavern and then take our sunset dolphin cruise.
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Post by simbasmom on May 5, 2023 15:35:04 GMT -5
Hope the ice maker is working now. I really sympathize with you about that. That would drive me crazy since I have a habit of filling a every glass half full of ice before I pour my iced tea, soda, or lemonade in it. .
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Post by wdw1972 on May 5, 2023 20:10:14 GMT -5
Hope the ice maker is working now. I really sympathize with you about that. That would drive me crazy since I have a habit of filling a every glass half full of ice before I pour my iced tea, soda, or lemonade in it. . It is, but it works slowly. Thankfully I'm not needing much ice this trip. The cubes are slightly too big to fit in my water bottle so not using a bunch there!
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Post by wdw1972 on May 5, 2023 20:10:44 GMT -5
DAY 3 – Friday 5/05/23
Who: Sue (64), DVC Member
SB (65), my husband
Linda (65), my childhood best friend
Wiston (60’s), Linda’s husband
Plan: Beach, Top Dawg Tavern, Sunset Dolphin Cruise
Actual: Last night I thought the band ended at 8pm but soon they started up again, playing a great mix of songs. It sounded like there was still a big crowd of people enjoying themselves over there. For me it was nice enjoying it from my porch. I ended up going inside just before 9, reluctant to leave the music but tired of sitting in the dark <g>. SB was still awake, still watching sports-related stuff in the living room. I fixed my cappuccino mug and put water in the coffee maker for morning, then got into bed with my laptop for a while. Lights out was 10pm.
Again, I slept really well – and didn’t get up until just after 6. SB had just gotten up then too. It’s so comfortable here, I stay in bed longer than normal! I made my cappuccino and edited a report from work before settling down to do online stuff. Around 8:15 I got up to get us some breakfast. SB had a ham sandwich, chips and lemonade. I ate some of the leftover pimento cheese on naan bread (he had one as well).
We changed into swimsuits, packed the cooler and were out the door by 9;20 for the drive to the Beach House. Hardly anyone was here again, which is nice. We set up in the same area as yesterday and spent 3 hours enjoying the beach. It was cloudy but we also had periods where the sun shone through. The breeze was slight and the temperature was perfect – not hot, not cool.
I walked down to check out the water – pretty chilly! A couple work issues came up that I was able to take care of from my beach chair. SB had his headphones and listed to music on his phone. Eventually the clouds thickened to the point no sun was getting through and the breeze made it feel somewhat cold. At 12:30 we packed back up and returned to the resort.
We parked down by the pool since we were getting SB something from Tide Me Over and he felt it was too long of a walk (not kidding – how ridiculous). They were doing Cinderella trivia by the pool, but not many people were there. Of those who were, most were wearing sweatshirts and long pants.
At Tide Me Over we ordered him the club sandwich and he got a cup of coffee while we waited for the sandwich to come out. We sat on the barstools facing the pier and I was surprised how comfortable they are! When the food came we drove back to our end of the resort and went up to the villa.
Linda had been texting – the went a couple of places before hitting a thrift shop she’d found when it opened at noon. I let her know we were no longer at the beach and suggested we meet here and walk over to Shelter Cove Harbor around 4-4:30. Already there’s a big crowd and live music outside San Miguel’s – we could hear them from outside our villa. Top Dawg may also get very busy since they’re doing a Cinco de Mayo thing starting at 4.
At 2 we watched General Hospital and basically just puttered around the villa this afternoon. We had Dr Phil on and his show was about horrible people doing hate crimes against Latino people. This kind of nastiness is not entertaining to me, so around 3:30 I headed out for a walk. While over at Shelter Cove Harbor Linda texted to say they were coming upstairs (they were at the resort).
I headed back and they were in the room along with the trash guy. SB was in the shower so I let him know the others were out in the living room. They’d gone to a thrift store and found a lot of great bargains including a Tommy Bahama baseball cap for $10 and a Tommy Bahama dress for me at $7. They also did some other shopping and got a couple slices of pizza at Guiseppe’s.
Once SB was dressed we walked over to Shelter Cove Harbor. Linda was struggling, and she explained it was the neuropathy and tingling in her feet. She’ll be seeing a specialist later this month. We got to Top Dawg Tavern and although there were several empty tables when I walked by about 20 minutes ago now it was nearly full! We got seated at a table for 4 and the table next to us was so LOUD! It wasn’t worth trying to move. With Cinco de Mayo everything was mobbed – much busier than I’ve ever seen. Down at San Miguel’s they were mobbed (standing room only) since before 12:30!
We ordered drinks – beer for SB, wine for me, tea for Wiston and maybe water for Linda. Wiston ran back to the car to get some Alleve for Linda, and then we ordered. I got the filet bites which were excellent again. SB got the pot roast which he really enjoyed. Wiston got the pulled pork sandwich and said it was excellent. Linda had a chicken Caesar salad, which she enjoyed. After settling the check it was only 5:30 but we headed out – it was clear they wanted to turn the table!
As we stepped out from under the cover I felt a raindrop! We moved across the way and I checked the weather to learn we’d be having rain until 9pm! Big green clouds were on the radar. The dolphin cruise is on an open-air boat. There is a lower level that’s covered but I don’t know if there’s any seating and it definitely wouldn’t be enough for all the people up top. This was starting to suck.
We wandered a bit and got ice cream cones at the ice cream shop. When the rain stopped (temporarily) we sat on the wall and Linda called Captain Mark’s. He agreed to move us to tomorrow night, which I thought was very nice of him! We’ll have another chance to do the cruise without getting rained on, lol!
We headed back to the resort and although we weren’t hungry at all Linda said we could drink, lol! When we got there however, she wanted coffee – she was cold. Wiston had one of his hard ciders, Linda made her coffee, SB didn’t want anything and eventually I poured a glass of wine. Linda & I were at the dining table and eventually it got hard to hear each other with the guys close by in the living room so we moved out to the porch.
Linda switched from coffee to wine and we cut up a small plate of cheese & crackers. We each took a rocking chair and it was very pleasant out there. It looked like the rain stopped but checking the weather I saw it wouldn’t stop for good until noon. Around 8:30 Linda & Wiston decided to head out and we talked about tomorrow’s plans before they left.
By 9 SB & I were each settled in – him watching games in the living room and me watching HGTV in the bedroom. Today was another relaxing day. I wish the weather had been better – I’ve never been here in May and had such crappy beach weather! We’re enjoying the time with our friends though.
Tomorrow Wiston will go fishing in the morning rain or shine. We’ll meet for an early lunch at Frankie Bones and then hopefully head to the beach for 2-3 hours if the forecast holds true. After cleaning up we’ll reconvene for bruschetta and cheese/charcuterie in our villa before going over for the sunset dolphin cruise.
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Post by wdw1972 on May 6, 2023 20:44:30 GMT -5
DAY 4 – Saturday 5/06/23
Who: Sue (64), DVC Member
SB (65), my husband
Linda (65), my childhood best friend
Wiston (60’s), Linda’s husband
Plan: Beach, Frankie Bones?
Actual: After sleeping well again I was up just before 5. I wanted to be up by then to watch the coronation coverage on tv. It’s so full of pomp & circumstance – interesting but at the same time a bit much for simple me. The ceremonial silliness has meaning to some people, but to me it’s theater. That said, I enjoyed having it on the tv while I did online stuff.
SB was up by 6, and I once again had my cappuccino in bed. Breakfast was more leftover pimento cheese on a few crackers for me. SB had a ham & turkey sandwich along with more of the chips. I was going to throw a load of laundry in but there’s no laundry detergent in the laundry room. Today is trash & towel day so maybe they’ll leave one – if not I just won’t do laundry here.
Around 8:15 I took a break from the coronation and took my shower. It was taking forever for the royal family to appear on the balcony, so I eventually gave up. I stopped at the front desk and got a bottle of laundry detergent, then returned to the villa to start the load of clothes. The royal family had finally appeared, so I got to see that before heading out to walk over to Kroger.
In Kroger I bought some cheeses for Holli to thank her for feeding the cats while I’m away. During the walk back I called Judy (of Pete & Judy fame) to wish her a happy birthday and catch up with her. Unfortunately she never got around to booking anything for Food & Wine this year so we’ll have to look forward to 2024.
Back in the villa Linda texted to say they were going to Fish Haul park after all and didn’t want to do lunch at Frankie Bones. She suggested doing it for dinner before the boat thing tonight but SB & I are going to stick with the original plan of early lunch & hopefully a little beach time. We were planning on doing bruschetta tonight (with the Frankie Bones lunch, not doing another big restaurant meal) but now she wants to do it on Sunday – as a light lunch after the beach and then we’d eat dinner out somewhere. That will work.
I moved the laundry over to the dryer and hung a little while before we left for Frankie Bones around 10:45. We made excellent time, arriving just before 11. Linda had made a dinner reservation for them at 4pm for the outside patio and I’d let her know Frankie Bones was not on the water so the patio would be in the parking lot. I took a couple pictures and sent them to her along with a couple pictures of the bar area once we got inside.
We took one of the booths in the bar area and enjoyed a nice lunch. There are 4-5 things on the menu that I really like and today I went with the meatball sliders. SB stuck with his usual – spaghetti & meatballs along with a Caesar salad. I had a glass of wine and he had ice tea. The Caesar was excellent – fresh and cold. The warm sourdough bread was also excellent! My sliders are always great and I managed to eat all three of them by skipping the top of the bun (the bigger part) on two of them. SB filled up and took 1.5 meatballs and some spaghetti home for another time. It comes with two very large meatballs. I pointed out it’s good we got the lunch menu because dinner would have been an even bigger portion.
After settling the check we drove back to the resort, arriving shortly after noon. The sky was starting to brighten so maybe there would be a hint of sun at some point. Today is Kentucky Derby day so SB chose to stay in the villa watching and betting on horse races. He enjoys that. I’ve been going back & forth about next year – stick with this same week or push it back a week? Pushing it back means we’d miss the Cinco de Mayo craziness and he’d be home for Kentucky Derby, but we’d also have Mother’s day craziness to deal with on our final full day. It also would put me a week closer to the next trip leading up to Memorial Day weekend. I have about a month to decide,
Around 12:30 or so I changed into a swimsuit and drove over to the Beach House. It was an incredibly disappointing experience. The clouds never let the sun peek through at all, and it was rather cool. I sat up near the dunes (away from the water) and it still wasn’t warm enough to take off my swimsuit coverup. After a little while there I gave up and put my chairs back in the trunk and went up to sit by the pool. That really wasn’t a whole lot better – and other than a couple kids in the pool the other 6 or so adults were fully clothed and/or wrapped in towels.
I read until about 2pm and then gave up disgust. There will be no sun today, despite the weather forecast. I drove back to the resort and changed into the clothes I’d worn last night. Based on the forecast I only brought 1 jeans/shirt to wear the night of the boat ride, so I’d be wearing them again tonight. At least the boat ride should happen, although we won’t see any sunset. Hopefully we’ll see some dolphins.
At 3 I ran down to Big Murgie’s Den and got us some cookies. I wish they still had the delicious cranberry walnut cookies they had in the early days but those are long gone. What they have now really isn’t anything special, but SB was craving something sweet. He had an oatmeal raisin and I had a chocolate chip cookie. They were both actually pretty good.
Around 4 I poured some wine and moved out to the porch with my kindle. SB was asleep with the Kentucky Derby coverage on the tv in the bedroom. Linda & Wiston were probably headed to Frankie Bones for dinner at that point. Earlier she’d texted photos from their day at Fish Haul Park – including a couple alligators which were exciting for people from Boston to see in the wild.
By 5 the sun was starting to peek out and the clouds were parting. This may be a decent sunset cruise after all. Linda had chicken marsala and Wiston had a filet mignon with crab and they’re both stuffed. It seems everything was delicious though. By 6 I texted Linda to see if they were coming here or maybe parking closer to the boat at Shelter Cove Harbor (since walking could be an issue). In the meantime, SB’s stomach was unsettled, and he was concerned. Hopefully there’s a bathroom on the boat if he needs one.
At 6:15 SB & I walked over and met Linda & Wiston at the middle of Shelter Cove Harbor. We continued to the Holiday (the boat) and arrived a few minutes before Captain Mark, his oldest daughter and her husband. We learned he wasn’t anywhere near sold out, which is unfortunate for him but nice for us. I’d say it was maybe half full or slightly more than that. We chose seats up top and once underway people were free to get up and move around as they wished. The boat moves slowly.
Right off the bat we were seeing dolphins and spent a good deal of time where there was a group of three and assorted singles. Everyone was able to take quite a few photos and all the passengers were respectful of each other (not blocking anyone’s view). Eventually we needed to get moving or we’d miss the sunset. While watching dolphins Captain Mark narrated lots of facts about them. While cruising he narrated about Hilton Head and some of the history, what we were seeing on either side of the boat, etc.
As we approached the sunset spot there was a thunderstorm off in the distance, so we didn’t get to see the sun hit the horizon. The sky was still pretty and compared to the weather all day today and the weather last night we couldn’t complain about anything tonight! A wedding party on a sailboat passed in front of us – the bride was in her wedding dress. Everyone on our boat waved to the happy couple! When we turned around to head back that was the end of the narration, and we were back at the dock before 9. It was a very nice evening, and we’re all glad we did this.
Linda suggested going for a drink, but I knew SB was tired and 9pm is late for me to be going anywhere these days so we declined. We’ll see them on the beach tomorrow morning. SB & I walked back to the resort and turned in for the night. Today was a nice day except for the godawful cloudy weather most of the day. Lunch at Frankie Bones was great and the sunset dolphin cruise was great – I just miss my sunny beach time.
Tomorrow is the last full day and hopefully will be the first decent beach day. We’ll spend the morning on the beach, Linda plans to make bruschetta for lunch and we’d go somewhere for dinner. I’m not sure how it will play out since if I’m eating bread & bruschetta I won’t be hungry for dinner – and I don’t plan to leave the beach by noon! At this point I think we’d be better off skipping the whole bruschetta thing and just doing the beach then cleaning up and going out for an early dinner <g>.
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Post by melk on May 7, 2023 7:02:53 GMT -5
Sorry to hear the weather isn’t cooperating. Hope you get a beautiful day today!
This has me rethinking our trip for next year. Do you know if Memorial Day is a very crowded time? The only time we’ve been there is August and that was way too hot!
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Post by Ellie54 on May 7, 2023 11:35:01 GMT -5
Wow some trip! Hope today is better weather.
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Post by wdw1972 on May 7, 2023 20:45:57 GMT -5
Memorial Day weekend is the start of the peak summer season, so it's mobbed. It's also when the weather turns from very warm to hot/humid from my experience. Sometimes that awful humidity starts right after Memorial Day weekend but sometimes it's during! In the beginning I used to go Memorial Day weekend but got tired of sweating and sitting in traffic. Earlier in May is so much nicer in terms of weather and crowds!
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Post by wdw1972 on May 7, 2023 20:46:26 GMT -5
DAY 5 – Sunday 5/07/23
Who: Sue (64), DVC Member
SB (65), my husband
Linda (65), my childhood best friend
Wiston (60’s), Linda’s husband
Plan: Beach, Brunch somewhere
Actual: I slept well again last night but SB was up a few times. Not sure if it’s something he ate, a stomach bug or if he’s not tolerating his diabetes medication. We have an appointment with that doctor this week so hopefully she can figure it out. I was up after 5 and had my cappuccino. The sky looks good for a change – blue sky, white puffy clouds, and sunshine! It’s a little chilly for the beach but should be nice between 9 & 10.
I checked out SB’s medicine online and sure enough the intestinal problems are a side effect. It’s possible he just can’t tolerate the current dosage but may be ok with half. That will be up to the doctor of course. In the meantime, I asked him if he’d packed the otc med we had for these symptoms and he didn’t think so. I checked his toiletry bag and there it was – so he took a couple. Hopefully he’ll be better soon.
I downloaded the photos from the camera, deleted the crappy ones and then uploaded them to Snapfish. Around 8 I ate part of the quesadilla for breakfast and made SB a bacon & egg sandwich. He enjoyed that along with a glass of milk. He decided to stay back in the villa today rather than risk being on the beach if nature called suddenly. I headed out at 9 and texted Linda to let her know it was going to be only me. In the back of my head, I was thinking Wiston might rather go fishing than sit on the beach without SB.
Sure enough, they ended up going to the beach by their rental so Wiston could fish but didn’t get there until around 11. I did enjoy my solo beach outing – did some reading, did some word puzzles, and enjoyed SUNSHINE finally! The weather was perfect, just as it usually is this time of year. It’s sad it took until day 5 (the last full day) before I got to experience it this trip.
The beach was definitely busier than on the previous cool/cloudy weekdays, but it was a nice quiet crowd and plenty of room for everyone. The breeze kept any sweating from happening – the sun was warm but not too hot. I left around 12:30, not wanting to overdo the sun. Rather than returning to the resort I stopped at the Kroger gas station to fill up the tank and then went to Kroger to check out the small cheese pieces. I found one more to add to the collection, paid for it and returned to the resort.
SB was watching tv but feeling better and wanting to eat! I heated up the rest of the quesadilla and then he added some small crackers with hard salami and cheddar cheese. I had a few of the crackers/salami/cheese as well, along with a small glass of wine. Linda & I came to agreement on Skull Creek Boathouse at 4:30 – earlier we were going back & forth with us wanting early and them wanting later. Wiston was catching fish, including a baby shark. It was all catch & release, or SB & I would be going to dinner alone, lol!
SB had taken his shower earlier and I took mine around 2:15 after puttering around online and getting the report updated. After that it was time to pack up more stuff. Just after 3 I went down to get cookies for us and they were doing the cocktails in Big Murgie’s Den. They had a limited cocktail menu but quite a few customers. Those customers also seem to like cookies, as they were almost all gone, lol! I got an oatmeal raisin for SB and a chocolate chip for me – the last one of each of those.
Linda texted at 4 to say they were on their way so we left as well. Skull Creek Boathouse parking is a pain but getting there early we were both able to find parking spots. We met up in the parking lot. I checked us in for a table outside on the patio and we had no wait. When we left an hour or so later the number of people waiting for a table was massive!
We were given regular menus but not the sunset dinner menu. For me the regular menu has little appeal, and the others weren’t looking too enthused either. This place has gone heavily sushi, raw and seafood. It was a better, more general menu years ago. I flagged our waitress down and asked for the sunset dinner menus. She didn’t look happy, but she brought us a couple.
As it turned out the other 3 found great choices on that menu and I was just getting gumbo from the regular menu. We started with hush puppies and Linda ordered some type of sushi that she shared with Wiston & SB. The hush puppies were good – not great, but good. I got a bowl of chicken and sausage gumbo, which was very good (spicy too). SB & Wiston each got the seafood chowder and broiled seafood trio (scallops, shrimp & flounder served w/Savannah rice and green beans) and loved it all! Linda got the garden salad and the salmon meal. She said the salmon was excellent.
They had a couple musicians playing at the edge of the patio, so it was nice to have entertainment. Several people had their dogs with them, including one party where the dog was sitting up at the table – that looked funny! We were too full for dessert and after settling the checks returned to the resort. Linda wanted to use the restroom first and since we had 2 cars, I said to just meet us at the resort (SB & I left then – before 6pm). She later texted saying they were stopping for coffee. Finally at 7 they arrived with Starbucks cups.
The guys settled down in the living room and I thought Linda & I would be on the porch, but she wanted to find an outside seating area. She thought all 4 of us could go. I couldn’t think of any seating for that many, and SB clearly was not interested in getting up off the couch and missing whatever game he had on. Wiston didn’t seem interested either, so I told Linda to just leave them alone and we’d go out.
Outside the villa I told her I’d follow her. I didn’t think she’d be up for a lot of walking due to the foot/nerve issue, and she suggested the chairs we’d sat in the other night – just down the walkway from my villa. We went over there, and it was very chilly. I went back to the villa to get my sweatshirt and when I returned Linda was feeling the chill as well. This spot was in the shade, with a breeze. I mentioned the porch had sunlight to warm it up so we went there, lol!
We each had a rocking chair, and we enjoyed the sunset while spending time together chatting. At one point they guys decided more beverages were in order – hard cider for Wiston and the very first in-villa beer of the trip for SB (we brought 12 and will take 11 home). Wiston & I heated some microwave popcorn for Linda, and I finished what she didn’t eat. I had my wine and she just had her Starbucks.
Around 9 Linda & Wiston headed out – another late night but it was worth it to spend time with them. SB will continue with some games in the living room while I retreated to the bedroom to catch the end of 90-Day Fiance (utter trash but it’s like a train wreck – you can’t stop looking).
Today FINALLY was a typical Hilton Head weather day and it was glorious being on the beach this morning! I wish I had 4-5 days like this, but I guess if you come often enough eventually, you’ll hit some crap weather. Let’s hope this is a one and done and next year will be more normal.
Tomorrow we’ll finish packing up and hopefully be at Hilton Head Diner at 7:30 for breakfast. Linda & Wiston will most likely meet us there. After breakfast it’s the boring ride home, getting settled and then late afternoon I have happy hour at Holli’s house with my January HHI companions Holli & Vickie.
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