Loews Miami - Day 2 - 9/21/10 & 9/22/10

We were able to check in at 11am and w/ a great view - thanks Andres! I met Mohan (the Director of Front Office Operations) who was very nice. Thea G and I headed up to the 17th floor to unload our things and head to the pool....

View from our room - BREATHTAKING


Pathway to the pool


View from Preston's Restaurant at lunch time


MIMOSA'S


Our first morning at Loews - mimosa's and lunch - we ate Fish Tacos and a Cobb Salad - YUUUUM


South Beach


Wings at the Nautilus Pool Bar


AWESOME shower - I LOVE showers


Downtown Miami at night - my favorite pic


First night out :) Had Hookah at Divine then walked the strip


This sweet foreign guy w/ long hair offered to take our pic!


Ocean is awesome - I must visit her more often


The moon lit up the ocean - amazing view


In the elevator, getting ready for Emeril's, Sushi then walking the strip again


Pathway to pool at night :))

Loews Miami - Day 1 - 9/20/10

I didn't arrive into Miami until 11:30pm on 9/20/10 since I worked all day. Thea G was staying at the Delores so I met her there, we walked on Collins for a bit then called it a night.

View at night of Loews Miami - beautiful

17 DAYS...

And I'll hit up MIAMI BEACH :))))



My Thea Gina is flying to Miami on 9/20 from Milwaukee, WI and we're having our own girls trip. It'll be the first for us so I'm pretty stoked. So stoked I'm thinking that I'm gonna eat Sushi...every.single.day.



This woman was in the delivery room when my mom had me, she drove me around in her convertible while I pretended to talk on my pretend phone, she rode her bike while I roller bladed - we used to hang all the time SO let the fun times begin!

Milwaukee, WI on 7/16/10

The night before the wedding...

So I flew into Milwaukee, WI on Friday, June 17. I was a bit delirious by the time I made it there since I worked the overnight shift Mon-Thur and went straight to the airport after work. I barely slept on the plane (only 2 1/2 hour flight) and I landed at 1:30pm. Brittany, my friend from middle/high school, picked me up and we headed to my Aunt and Uncle's restaurant in Menomonee Falls to have lunch. (That was the only time I'd see Brittany so it was so sweet of her to pick me up)

There were quite a few different people at the house since that's where the wedding reception was being held.


I got to the house around 3pm, after Brit dropped me off, and I went to sleep from 4pm-7pm (just to get a few hours in at least). My cousin got home around 9pm and from there we got things ready for the following morning.


My cousin and I are only 6 months apart and grew up together. Always having sleep overs and visiting each other at our own high school events. (sports and dances) So it was fun to sleep in her old room that we always had sleepovers in. There's a funny story about the time I slept over and slept walked. I ended up taking my arm and clearing everything off of her dress (which is 10 feet tall) and climbed on top of it, simply kneeling facing the wall. My aunt Bessie heard a loud thump so she came to see what happened and saw me. So this night, she was thinking about taking the wedding dress in her room in case I slept walked. I told her not to be silly. She didn't take it and I didn't sleep walk...imagine that for a story though!

Making ourselves beautiful the night before the wedding :)


The beautiful dress....

6/30/10 - Adios, Nicaragua

Preparing for my departure and for the bumpiest bus ride to Matagalpa - hahhaah

Karen and I have matching Passport holders from Victoria's Secret thanks to Karen :)


We were trying so hard to look awake - we failed


Karen's backyard


Karen said, "Kristina, is it bad that I sometimes wish Princessa would eat Deigo's poop so I don't have to clean it?"
My response: "You're disgusting".

Diego playing in the dirt


Princessa laying in the dirt


Subway in the airport - Karen says "We're eating like we haven't eaten for days" then I say, "We're eating like Cochina's Karen"


Goodbye until I don't know when...(January perhaps :)

6/29/10 - I don't look like a GRINGA!

We decided to have a small gathering the night before I flew out so Jamie came over and Manuel, Roberto and some other friends. We had so much fun! Such great memories from Nica

We had dinner with (can't remember her name, it's awful) - I'll ask Karen then type it :)


Karen busted out the rum


SISTER! SISTER!


Manuel made me an ankle bracelet - so sweet


SALUD! (Manuel gave me the blue bracelet on my wrist because it was his and I liked it...aw!)


Jamie and Roberto dancin' it up


Karen teaching Manuel how to dance since she won 2 dance contests the day before - excuse me!


The girls


I love you, sister

6/28/10 - You learn new things everyday

Today was Teachers Day so there were several acts put on in the morning and the afternoon. Karen taught me that when something is supposed to begin at 10am, that really means 11:30am. I would not be able to deal with that. Being prompt is such a big pet peeve of mine!


Karen danced a lot - and won!




Rice with some chicken, bread and hot dogs somewhere in there I think


Karen won another dance contest! - get it, sister


Diego sometimes can be nice without biting but then...


Princessa gets jealous and bothers him...


So they fight whilst on my lap...



Manuel was trying to fix her bracelet she attempted to make back in training


Funny story...so ever since Karen found those mice in her suitcase, Princessa is always looking for more in bags and everything so Karen is paranoid that her bag in the corner of the room may have some since Princessa keeps smelling over there. She starts dumping stuff out and her backpack falls out so Roberto starts to help look and check to make sure there are no mice and then I hear Karen say "Kristina, my applicator just fell out", I say, "What?" and she says, "Oh my God, he just opened the pouch with my tampon in it - Oh my God, he just picked up my tampon" (Karen is no longer looking but laughing so hard while looking somewhere else) then I finally look and I say, "Oh my God, he just smelled it!" HAHA
We are DYING laughing and Manuel yells, "Es Tampono!" because he knew what it was but Roberto had NO IDEA. They're very expensive to buy there so women don't use them.


The boys were genuinely interested and wanted to know how it works so we explained it for them. It's interesting because in the States, such a conversation would probably result in giggles and embarrassment or be "taboo" to just explain to someone but there, they were truly interested and had no idea. Roberto said, "You learn something new everyday" - this is true.


Then they had some fun with it - haha



Gotta love Nicaragua