Wednesday, October 28, 2015

#LiveFromSandals Day 3

Day three, Day three... The START of our broacast!! I packed my bag up with all of the essentials, Laptop, Go Pro, 2nd Waterproof Camera, iPhone, cables, folders, live copy read, pen, schedule... DJ's pack super light. Headed downstairs to broadcast central and started the day. Good news, everything was working. Dave didn't manage to break things back home. Yay! So proud.

We had a great first show. I was able to chat with Desmond, Sheldon and Sheena- One of the chefs, bar managers and restaurant managers here at Sandals Barbados. Desmond told me not to worry about all the great food that I'm eating- he promises that all the pounds fall off as soon as I step off the plane back home. Sheldon told me the secret to delicious Barbados rum punch is the Barbados water that they use ;) One thing that I've noticed about the great staff here at Sandals Barbados is that not only are they all super nice and happy, they all truly love what they do. They are really passionate in their craft and it really shows in the great work that they do.



I also had the pleasure to chat with the very lovely Marissa who works at the Red Lane Spa here at Sandals Barbados. What a better way to relax while you are on your vacation than with getting the Spa treatment. Thanks to all of you for keeping up with all of my social media posts, I'll be visiting Marissa a little later today to get a facial!! YES! I won the social media contest against the other radio stations here. Whoop Whoop! Thanks guys!! One of my new radio friends, Mimi, stopped in for a pedicure yesterday. If you're here celebrating something with your spouse, don't forget to sign up for a couples massage!

<--- It was a little humid on our first broadcast day. Don't mind that sweaty, melting mess that is standing next to the beautiful Marissa.


After the broadcast, we headed over to the Mariner and Dino's for some lunch. Me a burger with Curly fries and Nate a pepperoni pizza. We set up shop at a table on the beach and enjoyed. After waiting the appropriate 30 minute myth, we headed over to our favorite pool. The pool where the swim up rooms are is certainly for those that are looking for quiet, peaceful, alone time. You can float around on one of the Sandals rafts or just swim around solo. There is a small bar by this pool that you can grab a drink at, or we had one of the staff members find us in the pool and ask if we needed anything. Floating around this pool has been a fun fun time and I can really see where getting a swim up room would be perfect for the couple that is looking to get that private time in.

After getting some good float time in, I had to get all cleaned up to check out the Robert Mondavi wine tasting party. I watched a video on Robert Mondavi and saw how his wines were selected to be apart of the Sandals company. You can only get his Twin Oaks signature wines at Sandals Resorts. My favorite is the Cabernet Sauvignon, def my drink of the trip.

After dinner, I met with my husband over at Soy, where he was getting a Sushi appetizer before our dinner at Bombay. That's the great thing about Soy; I've noticed a lot of people heading over there to start their nights and then move on to another restaurant after. There's also the option to keep ordering more and more sushi to try and get full on that. We left from Soy and went to Bombay, Sandals Resorts first and only Indian Restaurant. Now, my husband loves the spicy food. Me on the other hand, I like super mild. Sandals Barbados has been EXCELLENT with making food that is perfect for my dietary needs as well as for my "Lisa is a big fat ole weenie" needs. Have I ever mentioned that bread is my enemy? I could eat bread all day, every day- and call it a day. I started my meal at Bombay with a shrimp appetizer and Naan.     Oh em gee... the NAAN (bread) was to die for! Literally, I want Naan to be part of my last meal. That stuff was the real deal. YUM! When the main dishes came, they lit candles in canisters and set the food on top of the canisters. Nate had mutton and I had the Butter chicken dish. All of it was great!! I was so full that I couldn't fit any extra in for dessert. 





We went for a little walk around the resort after dinner, cause Fat. I needed to walk off that big dinner! We new the big Carnivale show was going to start on the beach around 8pm, so we headed over there. We didn't realize just how big this show was! They had buffet tables set up everywhere, with tables all on the beach. They had a really pretty set up with a couple of the hobbie cats and canoes with food in them. We decided to sit back at Schooners Seafood Grill (Which was closed on Monday) and enjoy the show from there. It was great to see the whole crowd get involved with dancing and a conga line. There was a juggler and "Dragon Man" as well, who was rubbing fire all over his body!! And I mean ALL OVER! YIKES!! After a long day of fun, this is where we ended our evening. It was time to get some rest so we could have a great broadcast day 2.  Remember to check out www.kstarcountry.com to win your own 4 day/ 3 night Luxury Included vacation for 2 to any Sandals Resorts, with round trip coach airfare on American Airlines.







Tuesday, October 27, 2015

#LiveFromSandals Day 2

After traveling on little sleep the day before, and having an amazing day in the sun, we slept like babies. After rolling out of bed, we headed down to Bayside restaurant. I looked for Zack Morris and Kelly Kapowski, but they must be hanging out at a different Bayside. Bayside is a buffet style restaurant with many choices to pick from. Nate has been asking around for the recipe to the Chicken stew they had.


 After  breakfast, we slipped into our Swimsuits and took a quick shuttle over to Bridgetown. From there we went with the Jolly Roger guys on a snorkeling trip. We had a wonderful time swimming with turtles and seeing sunken ships! It was a blast, I've always wanted to swim with turtles!


Blondie- Our Jolly Roger Captain. 

Cruising Back to Land with Rum Punch in Hand


THE BLACK PEARL!!


 After getting back to land, we took the quick shuttle back to Sandals Barbados, where we sat down for lunch. I went for the Fish Sandwich with Curly fries. Nate Had Jerk Chicken- Let's just say, we haven't had a bad meal . I'm going to come home so much heavier. (Desmond, one of my chef friends here, told me once I get off the plane it all melts away.)

After lunch, we pretty much had the day to explore the property. Nate and I love these wood rounds that are hanging from the ceiling near the Calypso Bar. They remind us of all the wood rounds we used at the wedding.
We decided to grab some drinks and take a walk down the beach. The beach is semi-open to the public, but you really only see Sandals guests walking around. 


Prob one of Nate's favorite things at Sandals Barbados- The self serve Coffee Machine. He's Been filling up on Double Shot Espresso's every chance he can. 

 Dinner Time!! For our second night, we decided to have dinner at Portofino's Italian Restaurant. We're really starting to get used to these romantic, quiet, private, dinners for two. We both enjoyed Some Robert Mondavi cabernet sauvignon with our dinner. I had the Grilled Salmon Tomato pasta :)

We decided to stop by Cafe de Paris (Because you haven't heard me talk about Paris enough from our Honeymoon). At Cafe de Paris, you can grab an assortment of fresh baked treats, ice cream, shakes, crepes and more throughout the day. I opted for a cookie while Nate got a shake. Since it was a little cooler, we found a private spot by the fire pit and water fall to end our night. Little known fact, Nate and I created our own wedding playlist. We hand picked every song that our guest heard that day and have them all saved on spotify. We pulled up our playlist and just enjoyed the music and memories as we sat in total relaxation. 



Remember to check out www.kstarcountry.com for your chance to win your very own Luxury Included Vacation! 

Monday, October 26, 2015

#LIVEFromSandals Day One


 The morning started pretty early for us, a 2:30am shuttle ride from Lone Star Executive Limousine to the airport for a 5am flight to Miami. When you have to leave at 2:30am, do you sleep or do you just power through? Since I love sleep, I opted to get 3 hours of good nights rest.

"Hey! Let's get Breakfast at the airport," I said. Ha. I'm so silly. You know what's open at the airport at 3am... nothing.  Really, nothing. Luckily I carry a "mom bag," you know- a bag that has everything you need. Crackers, band-aids, tylenol, pepper spray, duct tape... the essentials; I was able to eat a healthy cracker breakfast.

At 5am, we were off to Miami. Nothing too exciting here. A very nice man switched seats with me so that I could sit next to Nate. Later that nice man woke me up snoring! Ha. One of my fears. I don't want to be the person snoring or drooling. My husband got a great pic of me sleeping, mouth wide open and all. I'm a sexy sleeper.

We landed in Miami and finally sat down to eat a good breakfast. While in Miami, I couldn't quit singing The Will Smith Miami song. Over and Over and Over again. To the point where I made Nate listen to it... and then did a dub smash. Ya know, airport layover killing time stuff. You can find the  dubsmash on my instagram.


FINALLY, around 2pm (EST time) we landed in Barbados. Let me tell you, the first thing that I experienced were the friendliest people. We checked in with the Sandals desk who took us over to our shuttle. We had a fun, short (maybe 15 mins) ride to Sandals. It was entertaining and fun to see our driver drive "On the wrong side of the road" ;) Also, if you're a fan of The Funny Farm, you know what a "Whoopty-Doop" is (Roundabout). They have several here. I could just hear the words Brave Dave would be saying.

We arrived to Sandals employees singing to us "Welcome to Sandals"- what a wonderful welcome. We had a VIP check-in, went to our rooms, took pictures and squealed with excitement. We then met back up with our crew and toured the whole property.





Did you know Sandals has Love Nest Suites? Also butler suites? They are AMAZING! What a perfect way to celebrate that special occasion.









We had a nice reception soon after our tour to get to mingle with some of our other radio guests here at Sandals Barbados. During our reception, some of the great entertainers came out to dance for us. They were superb. I wish I could move like that! One of the guys told me about the show that would be taking place at 9pm, so I made a mental note not to miss it.








After our reception, I had time to throw on a nice dress, pull my hair back and throw on some heels. We were heading to the only restaurant where "Resort Evening Attire" is required- Butch's Chophouse. Butch's is a traditional steakhouse. It was very nice, not something that I was expecting at a resort. Not only was it very nice on the inside, it was very romantic and the food was delicious. This Texan gives Butch's an A+++++ . We enjoyed the Mondavi Cabernet Sauvignon with our meal and just had a romantic evening talking to each other over our meal. While sitting and talking after dinner, we noticed men dressed like monkey's rolling around outside. We then noticed that the show was about to start. We walked out and found a table up front to enjoy the show. The host was grabbing participants from the audience to learn to dance to "Sexy Dark Chocolate." Let me say, she could MOVE. Girl had some dance moves. It was all good fun and all the guests enjoyed every bit. There were smiles from ear to ear everywhere. We saw men perform on stilts, a limbo contest and much more. I smiled and smiled all day- see my husbands instagram for proof of that. 










Day one in the bag. It was an amazing start to our Live From Sandals Broadcast. Leaving Paradise is going to be hard. Check out www.kstarcountry.com to find out how you can win your own Luxury Included Vacation from Sandals.