We want to say upfront that we aren't "resort" vacationers! (During Margaret's many years in the travel industry, one of the hardest things for her to do was to "sell up". The destination is the treat, right? A hotel room is just a place to shower and rest at night, right?)
All that said, this was our first trip traveling with both dogs, and the hotel's literature guaranteed we'd have one of THE most puppy-friendly hotel experiences available. (It turned out to be true!) The resort complex is enormous. After check-in we found our room in the Azalea building at the far end of the property, a single story, eight room structure with tennis courts behind us, but no other close amenities. Hmmmmm.. We carted in our bags and dog supplies. Then we opened up the shade covering the patio door, and stretched out on the lounge and chairs provided, drinking in the most amazing view of the ocean, clear from the foothills in the east to Stearns Wharf and the marina beyond to the west.
The room had a luxurious king bed, with a bench at the end (better access for short legged dogs!) plus a large desk and seating area. Not interested in anything the hotel had stocked in the honors bar, we removed all those uber-expensive items, stored them on top of the armoire and refilled the fridge with our own bottled water, sodas, velveta cheese to disguise Sassy's allergy pill, the canned pumpkin Nica prefers mixed into her dry dog food, and Margaret's favorite non-dairy coffee creamer! (Hey, if you are packing a cooler, why not???) One of the nicest features next to our building was the beautiful fountain that could be heard throughout our building. We also appreciated the stake marker with a prayer for peace printed in various languages that stood just two doors down from us.
We fed the dogs and allowed them to get acquainted with their new surroundings. Then we heard a b-i-i-i-g-g-g boof from a few doors to the east - it was our first sighting of Molly, an eight month old yellow lab. We just had to take a picture of her in all her magnificence, illuminated by the setting sun. Not long after, Bourbon, a huge chocolate lab, crossed into our patio space from the other side to say hello. We'd definitely found a traveling dog mecca!
As the sun got lower and lower in the sky, thoughts of dinner began to surface. Nica and Sassy were still a little wired in their new surroundings - and at least tempoarily, very territiorial - not quite ready to sleep peacefully in their crates should we go out. As we were a bit tuckerd anyway, we decided that the luxury of room service one night was worth it. Before long we were dining on chicken picatta, with fresh steamed brocolli and mashed potatoes. Knowing we had a full plate of activities ahead of us on Sunday, we closed up the patio slider against the evening chill, got into our comfiest sweatsuits and curled up in front of the television for a relaxing evening in.
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