Well, the weather sure went south today….literally. Early in the morning the temperature was in the 40's, but with the wind chill factor, it might feel much colder. On our way out for the morning walk, we decided to change from our shorts to jeans. Good thing Bill thought to bring them when he packed on the ship. This weather seems much like what we have at home this time of year. Even the humidity was low today.
Near the lobby entrance, there was a sign welcoming Grandma Irma for a 90th birthday luncheon. Obviously, this hotel is not strictly for Covid positive guests. We sure hope that Grandma goes home with fond memories, birthday presents, and nothing more, like the virus. We bet that when the family booked this venue for her special day, they never thought it would be under these circumstances. The good news is that the affair was held in one of the convention rooms, well away from the hotel crowd.
So, we went off in search of iguanas and lizards falling from the palm trees, due to the frigid weather. Darn it….. we have yet to see any iguanas around this entire area. Is it possible they have been removed? One day we did see a lizard, but only one. The one critter we saw this morning was a squirrel, who held his ground while sunning under a tree. We got as close as 2 feet away from him, taking pictures, until he scampered up the tree. Truthfully, we don't feel that it is that cold, since we are used to it in northern California. But the animal life here must suffer when the temps drop like this. Tomorrow is predicted to be even colder.
Today we went to Coral Ridge Drive, and turned left just to see what was down the road in that direction. Turned out it was a series of gated communities. Very nice area to live it appeared. Eventually the street name changed to Nob Hill Road, and we continued to Parkland Reserve, another large community. Then we decided we were not going to run into any more strip malls, so we headed back.
Bird watching was super on this walk, as the waterway follows it for quite a ways. Spotting a hawk, we watched while he dove head first into the canal. Wish we could see what he had snagged, but it appeared something had hold of him. The bird struggled several times to get airborne, and after three attempts, it flew off. There was nothing in its claws, but it did appear he looked injured. What had attacked him? Possibly an alligator? There were signs all of the way warning of snakes and alligators, so they are here, even if we don't see them. Now we are on alligator watch as well.
There appeared to be several folks checking out at the hotel. We wonder if the Princess ship was in port today, since the Canadian couple had planned to re-board it. We have not seen them, so we assume they tested negative. Then later in the afternoon more folks were arriving, possibly more Covid related stays.
Time for lunch, we worked on reports and photos afterwards, then took another walk. Since it was so windy and cold, there wasn't one person at the pool. What we did see, were scores of fallen palm fronds everywhere we walked. We needed to be more aware of these suddenly falling, because they are large and that would hurt if it fell on your head.
By the way, our room never did get fully serviced. That's when we remembered the letter we got upon arrival. Reading it closer, it said we would not get any housekeeping services for the entire duration of our stay. Didn't notice that a week ago. But someone did give us extra towels and cleaned the bathroom. The bed was left unmade. If we requested a fresh set of bedding, we could do the changing ourselves. Not a big deal. Calling for more necessities like coffee, tea, creamers, sugars and cups, it arrived within minutes, hanging on the door. Except they forgot the coffee pods.
Dinner was two cheeseburgers with side salads made with romaine lettuce only. It arrived at 6:30pm, but without some salad dressings. We did talk to the dining room manager, who said we could order anything we wished from their extended menu. Like we said, we learned these things a week later. A few more days, and this will be another memory…….we hope.
Bill & Mary Ann
Sunday, January 30, 2022
Report # 43 Marriott Hotel Saturday - January 29, 2022 Sunny, Windy & Cool 53 degrees Day #7
