Sunday, February 27, 2011

The Hard Rock Punta Cana Experience...The Dominican Republic Part 3 of 4

 This was our first all inclusive vacation.  When we arrived at the Hard Rock Punta Cana they presented all the ladies with a pink carnation  and everyone got a festive drink.  They also had  table set up with snacks in the reception area for us, which was really nice.  Everyone was so friendly, all smiles!  We had a little look around the main building while we visited with the rest of our group.  (It was a business trip for my brilliant hubby.)

 How cool is this?  Gene Simmons played this axe bass in Council Bluffs Iowa!  We were totally impressed by his guitar case!

 Is this Bon Jovi?
 Very cool, huh?
 There were quotes all over the place, including our room...I liked this one enough to take a photo of it. 
There were wonderful portraits everywhere!
 
 When we were ready they drove us to our suite.  We had a suite because Katherine was with us.  Here you can see the entry, the bar, the hall closet, a powder room and part of the dining room.
 This turned into Katherine's homework station....
 You stepped down into the living room...
 Check out the cool coconut sculpture and funky chair!
 This was our room...
 It was pretty big...
 Okay, it was really big!
 Those double doors lead to a bathroom that is bigger than my kitchen!
 And now to reveal Thursday's mystery....This is the lampshade on the wall beside the bed.  Pretty cool huh?
 When it came time for sleeping or afternoon napping the beds were awesome and more importantly...
 the pillows were rockin!
 I spent quite a bit of time out here...lounging and reading.  This is half of the patio.  I could see the pool and chat with everyone as they walked to the pool while Katherine was working on her school work.
 This little guy came to visit us at night.
 The Hard Rock was full of wonderful shops, bars, and restaurants.  We took the opportunity to try something new.  This is passion fruit.  It looks a little strange.  It has a very intense flavor.  To me, it was like sucking on a crunchy lime x 100.  Katherine really liked it...one seed at a time.  We ate mangu, which kind of looks like mash potatoes and is a traditional staple in the Dominican.  It is made of plantain.  I liked it a lot.  I was surprised that most of the food at the resort was geared towards tourists.  Our wonderful waiter Hector said that on Monday one of the restaurants had traditional DR food. 
 The beach was my favorite part of the resort.  One of the cool things about this resort was how much personal attention we were given.  You see the two girls in the sand with white tank tops?  They were there to make sure we were having fun.  They did sand sculptures where we were sitting watching the volleyball game.  Then when the game was over the girl with the long hair took us out in the ocean further than we would have gone by ourselves.  She showed us how much fun it was to go way out and jump in the crashing waves. 
 This is my brilliant hubby who saved us from the winter for a week... (Thanks honey!)
 This was another one of my favorite spots at the resort.  It was just a few yards from our room.

There were so many things to do at the Hard Rock, but I did a couple things I had never done before.  I went to a disco...and danced with my brilliant hubby! So did some of our wonderful friends that were on the trip with us.  On the second night we were there a lovely lady in our group asked my hubby if he would do karaoke with her, he said no, but he promised he would find someone to do it with her.  So of course he searched high and low...LOL, he asked me...and how could I refuse after he brought me to paradise?  So every night  went to the Karaoke Bar and watched and on the last night I got up twice and sang two songs with her and another friend.  Sadly, you can only see a bit of my shoulder.  I must say it was so much fun!!!

This vacation was like stepping into another world.  It was very luxurious.  I felt special.  It amazed me that so many staff members in this 2,000 room resort knew my name or recognized me when they saw me.  A few times I was asked or my hubby was asked where the other was if we weren't together.  We all had an exceptional time.  I'm usually ready to come home at the end of a holiday, but I was sad to leave on this one.

I have one more post on the DR.  I'll show you a bit of our shopping adventure into a local village and our snorkeling trip.

(Thanks for sticking with me through all the pictures....I'm really using self control, even though it doesn't seem like it....)

If you happen to have a minute and thirty-five seconds to view my lovely daughter's first every youtube video, she would really appreciate it.  It is an original poem, set to music and pictures with her narrating...it's wonderful!  (Not that I'm bias.)



Thanks, soooo much!  I <3 all of you!
What holiday have you taken that you didn't want to end?

36 comments:

  1. Oh my goodness I sooooo have itchy feet now. I want to travel somewhere exotic!

    I would never have guessed it was a lamp shade btw ;)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Looks like you and your family are having a wonderful time! Good for you Sharon!

    Sometimes I simply do not want the weekends to end.... :)
    xo Catherine

    ReplyDelete
  3. hi miss sharon! wowee more cool pictures! its like im on that trip with you. how cool is that!all those music pictures are neat and you even got a guitar on the pillow. way cool! mostly i love that lizard picture. you should of brought him home for a pet. ha ha. cant wait to go on that next part of your trip with you. :)
    ...hugs from lenny

    ReplyDelete
  4. What a wonderful trip! I'm thinking a vacation to the DR doesn't sound so bad. And I loved all the pictures, so thanks for sharing. :D

    ReplyDelete
  5. I love reading about your vacation! I must go to DR some day. I'm in Florida, so it's not a long stretch.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Looks like a blast… I’ve been without internet access, so I have not been a round—hopefully that’s problem is fix. Thx for sharing.

    Awesome pics by the way… I want that guitar.

    ReplyDelete
  7. It sure looks like you had an amazingly great time!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Wow! It sounds like you were in the lap of luxury. Good for you for doing karaoke and dancing at the disco. I think it's hilarious that people were around you making sand castles to make sure you had a good time. lol. The beach looks beautiful. Don't apologize-- I LOVE pictures and I want to hear all about your trip! Looking forward to Part 4.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Katherine did homework on that wonderful vacation??? She has a lot of will power. Awesome photos, Sharon - looks like an amazing place!

    ReplyDelete
  10. So glad you had such a special time...


    I was at Casa de Campo years ago and absolutely loved it.


    Michael

    ReplyDelete
  11. I went to the DR when I was in high school and I've always said I wanted to go back. It's such a beautiful country. Looks like you guys had a fabulous time!

    And congrats to the poet daughter. So much talent in your family :)

    ReplyDelete
  12. I am so intrigued by that towel/swan/loch ness creature showered in rose petals? by that BIG BATH! LOL!!! What the...>?!?!?!

    Yay for your hubby!!! And Yay for doing karaoke too!! LOL!!!! Awwww it does look like paradise! I do like the two ladies there to ensure you all have FUN! LOL!!!!

    I need to be home to watch your daughter's video cos I'm at work at the moment and sneaking this in!!!!

    Lovely pics - beautiful!!! Great to know that such paradise still exist on our planet! Take care
    x

    ReplyDelete
  13. Wow, you really know how to vacation. I'm glad you didn't hold back--those pictures are fabulous. It's wonderful when you get to see and try new things with people you love!

    ReplyDelete
  14. What an experience it must all have been for you -- no wonder you didn't want it to end!! As for your question, you already know the answer, because you have been following my travelogue posts for the past few weeks. But I'll say it anyway: I didn't want my recent vacation to India and all the sightseeing to go on and on... :)

    P.S: I never guessed the mystery picture from your last post was a lampshade... it looked more like a view down a powerful microscope :).

    ReplyDelete
  15. It's great to be able to read about your trip! And I love all the pictures.

    Enjoyed the video!

    ReplyDelete
  16. I so, so, so want to be there right now!! :-)

    Your daughter's video was wonderful.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Oops! That Mr. O is actually me (Shannon O'Donnell). My husband was logged in and I didn't know it. LOL.

    ReplyDelete
  18. Awesome pics! Of course I love all the Hard Rock ones! :)
    Good for you for getting up there and singing! I love doing that.
    And tell Katherine she has a lovely speaking voice to go along with the lovely poem.

    ReplyDelete
  19. I love your pictures! The lampshade, so cool!

    Passion fruit, yeah it has a punch doesn't it. My favorite drink here is passion fruit green tea with coconut jellies(sort of like the bubble tea).

    Your daughter's video was really good! I enjoyed it so much!
    My favorite vacation is a toss, really. I loved this little island south of China..your pictures reminded me of that place. The other is last summer in England! Totally took me by surprise how much I LOVED it there.

    ReplyDelete
  20. What vacation would be complete without the lizards on the hotel wall. We went to Maui twice, Didin't want either one to end. Now I want to go back!

    ReplyDelete
  21. Hello! new follower here. I love your blog! and I love love love the pictures! Looks like you had a fantastic vacation. ONe of these days, I vow to have one just like it. Have an awesome week!

    ReplyDelete
  22. More wonderful pictures! I love the hotel's and all the pictues, sayings and momentos that go along with it. Even though you were volunteered, I'm glad you had fun with the karaoke. Island food! Great! Katherine's video is wonderful!

    ReplyDelete
  23. Wow, it all looks amazing. I'm ulta jealous. ;)

    Cute roomy, btw (I'm talking about the lizard).

    ReplyDelete
  24. Looks like an amazing trip all around.

    And, that was a cool lampshade!!

    ReplyDelete
  25. We went to Sierenis Hotel, Punta Cana and loved it.
    My favourite all time trip I didn't want to end was kayaking around Cockburn Island, Ontario. A close second would be Costa Rica. And then DR. Loved it there!

    ReplyDelete
  26. The lampshade???? I was so wrong!

    Wow, it's just gorgeous!

    ReplyDelete
  27. WOW! Fantastic, Sharon! I was in Punta Cana a few years ago, and it was lovely. But nothing like this!

    ReplyDelete
  28. Hi Sharon .. as you say clever hubby - but what an amazing place - sounds like royalty .. and such fun.

    Love seeing the pics and hearing the 'gossip' .. and am looking forward to the last instalment .. no wonder you didn't want to come home ..

    Cheers Hilary

    ReplyDelete
  29. Sooo cool! I love all the pictures and views! I'm trying not to be jealous, but it truly looked magical. :o) And a mosaic guitar! I'd have been in heaven. lol

    Thanks for sharing! Tell Katherine good job again from me. :o)

    ReplyDelete
  30. Sounds like you had a wonderful holiday. I love the gecko!

    ReplyDelete
  31. Ohhh.. I SO want to be there right now! Wonderful pictures! Thanks so much for sharing :)

    ReplyDelete
  32. All inclusive vacations are the best. I’m looking for one of those for our vacation this year. Since I work at a hotel, I normally get special discounts and so I do the work of a travel agent for my family, but this year I’d like to have someone do the legwork for me! LoL

    Great pics by the way! The pool shot makes me envious! ;-)

    ReplyDelete
  33. What a wonderful vacation, Sharon! I especially loved the gecko (we had lots of those in Hong Kong -- my mother would feed them) and I'm very proud of you for doing karaoke. :)

    Hope the adjustment back to real life is going well. :)

    Amy

    ReplyDelete
  34. Hey Sharon,
    Thanks for dropping by. I really did have fun and those shirts were totally cool. You should try doing a 5K walk one of these days. :P Have a great weekend!

    ReplyDelete
  35. That was some amazing vacation, Sharon. No wonder you din't wanna' come home. I'm afraid they woulda' hadda' drag me out, kickin' an' screamin' alla' way.

    As to your question, "What holiday have I taken that I din't wanna' end?" Retirement. I'm lovin' it.

    ~ Yaya

    ReplyDelete
  36. this hotel is awesome, if you are going to Punta Cana and want to know about every adventure that you can enjoy while you are there visit our blog
    Punta Cana Adventures and you will find more info about the subject.

    ReplyDelete