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Sue's January 2023 Hilton Head Trip - Day 4 of 6
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Sue/WDW1972
Jan 14, 2023, 7:41:23 PM1/14/23
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DAY 4 – Saturday 1/14/23
Who: Sue (64), DVC Member
Holli (58), friend & co-worker
Vickie (58), Holli’s best friend & college roommate
Plan: Pinkney Island, Frankie Bones, Cocoa/Smores
Actual: I slept pretty well and didn’t get up until almost 5:30. After brushing my teeth and making my cappuccino I spent time online in bed with the local news on. I checked the webcam and was just in time to see the 2 HAL ships sail into port this morning. My right knee actually feels better, but I’m still better off having canceled myself from the excursion today. Hopefully the improvement will continue.
Around 7 I heard Holli making coffee in the kitchen so I went out to wash my mug and say good morning. SB called – he’s at work today. Evidently around 4am a drunk driver (with a big bottle of tequila) had crashed into our gated entrance. It’s a solid metal fence with tall metal gates operated by an electronic opener. We sublease a building to the local county fire rescue and they’re the only ones who use this entrance – we all use the manned entrance without an actual gate. According to SB the jerk crashed through the closed gate, knocking it down, crossed the interior street and hit our big sign. They haven’t found the other side of the gate yet, the car is destroyed and there’s debris everywhere. He said the driver survived – go figure.
I went in to take my shower & get dressed, and made my breakfast (egg, slice of bacon and leftover Mickey pretzel). I went to put in a small load of laundry and found instructions inside the lid – including how to clean blood. I decided to give it a try, which included letting my shirt soak in cold water for 30 minutes (kitchen sink) before washing. That gave time for the others to finish showering/dressing so I could see if they wanted anything washed.
My son Chris face timed me – they decided to go up to Asheville, NC so Ari could see and play in snow for the first time. When Holli came downstairs she selected St Maarten as the next puzzle we’ll do. While they’re gone I’ll get it started, pulling out the edge pieces, etc. When Vickie came down she did have some stuff for the laundry so she ran up to get it and then I started the washing machine.
We hung out in the villa until it was time for them to leave to meet the excursion. Today should be our trash & towel service, since it’s the 4th day here. Disney internet was still up and down – very frustrating. Just after 9 Sarah (not Captain Sarah) came to do the trash & towel and was just delightful. She told us we’re “easy” – clearly having only 3 neat guests in a grand villa is better than what they experience during the summer with up to 12 people in here! The phone rang, and it was recreation asking if we still wanted to do the excursion. It's cold outside and if anyone wanted to skip it Disney would give a full refund. That was very nice – but Holli & Vickie are still going. Vickie brought the rest of the firewood inside (stacked on the hearth) and I called to order more (the big basket outside the front door).
We walked over to the Mercantile and recreation window together, me on the phone with Michael again regarding the crash at work and an update on my knee. Once we turned the corner we caught the wind blowing in very briskly from the marsh – it was very cold! They went downstairs to sign in for the tour and I huddled in an alcove by the restrooms to finish the conversation. After that I browsed through the Mercantile but didn’t see anything I needed to buy. They have the spirit jersey I’m wearing today – the sparkly one I got at Old Key West last October.
I walked back through the resort and ran into housekeeper Sarah. She apologized, saying she saw we ordered firewood and she should have done that for us. I told her she’d done great, and we brought the firewood in after she left and then called for more. She was happy to hear she hadn’t let us down. I took a few photos around the resort and stopped in Live Oak Lodge to get next week’s schedule of activities. The front desk person apologized and said it wouldn’t be out until closer to noon. Ok – no big deal.
They do coffee in the mornings now, and lemonade & cookies at 3pm. That’s set up inside Big Murgie’s Den where the photo machine used to be. A fire was going in the fireplace and a party of 3 adults were in there – spread out so that they pretty much took up the entire space. I wasn’t planning on sitting there, but I guess if I had been I would have just plopped down and joined the conversation, lol.
After taking a few more photos outside I returned to the villa. Laundry was done so I folded the stuff in the dryer and left Vickie’s pile at the stairs so she could grab it on her way up to her room. I set up my pillows in the living room – one behind my back since Disney still seems to believe throw pillows are covid-infested health risks, and one on top of the coffee table. I got the frozen washcloth from the freezer and propped my legs up on the coffee table and laid the washcloth over my right knee. I don’t know if that’s what made the difference, or I had suddenly hit the healing point, but I felt so much better after doing this last night and still felt good this morning.
At 11:30 I decided it was time to get up and start sorting the puzzle. I was nearly done with the initial sort when Holli & Vickie returned at noon. They’d had a nice time but said it was very cold in the wind. Only 4 guests took the tour. The naturalist provided binoculars for everyone and they saw some birds. I’m glad I skipped it, lol! Vickie was hungry so we left to drive over to Frankie Bones for lunch.
The bar area was very busy, but we got the only empty booth. The bar area is just prettier in our opinion – the menu, food and service is the same throughout. We ordered wine and lunch. Vickie got the turkey reuben, which came with a pile of shoestring French fries. Holli got the Saturday special – chopped steak w/mushroom gravy and mashed potatoes. I had the warm goat cheese salad. Everything was very good – Holli & Vickie especially loved theirs. Mine is an item I’ve had before, and next time I’ll go back to the meatball sliders or cheeseburger sliders (or the schnitzel). We settled the check and headed out.
We made a brief stop at Kroger to restock some nibbles for later (I saw fresh veggies in the cart – clearly that’s for them, not me <g> and some more chorizo. I got a few small pieces of cheese to take home, and on the way out Vickie grabbed several copies of the weekly add to replenish our fire newspaper supply.
Back at the villa Vickie went up for her nap and Holli & I worked on the puzzle – with a brief break for me to update the report. This 500-piece puzzle goes a LOT faster than a 1000-piece puzzle. It won’t take long at all.
We worked on it a while, then Holli decided to take a break. I continued for a bit then asked her what time it was – it was approximately 3:15. With 2 HAL ships in port, it was time for them to sail. Holli pulled it up on her tablet and I used my laptop so we could both watch Rotterdam sail away. After that we had to wait for the ugly Celebrity ship (pretty inside, but butt-ugly on the outside) and then a Princess ship who sailed away playing the Love Boat theme on the ship’s horn. Finally it was Nieuw Statendam’s turn – which is the ship Fran & I will be on in 55 days.
Vickie was up somewhere after 4 and by then we were back at the puzzle table. We finished that up and just after 5 headed over to the campfire pit for Cocoa & S’mores. We were surprised to find the pool closed/locked and were told it was closed all day. Guess it’s because of the weather. We took the ramp up and were told the event was in Community Hall because the wind kept blowing the campfire out – they couldn’t keep it lit.
At Community Hall pretty much every table was taken and there was a line of people back up to the door. There were no s’mores without a campfire, and people were coming out with cups of hot cocoa and Disney cookies. That’s not what we had in mind, so we left. Back in the villa Vickie lit the fire (she’d set it before we went over) and we changed into comfy clothes.
We set up this evening’s nibbles – cheeses, crackers, chorizo, almonds, grapes, and raw veggies w/dip. Once everything was set and wine was poured we played Phase 10 (card game). I started out winning the first 2 rounds instantly, but in the end Vickie was the winner. It was fun, and we finished up around 7:30. After cleaning up we retired to the fire in the living room.
Since internet has been so hit or miss here I decided to end the report now and if anything significant happens later I can include it in tomorrow’s report. Today was another great day – it’s so nice being here and both Holli & Vickie are so appreciative of being invited. As a dvc member one of the big plusses of membership is sharing it with friends, and I’m thrilled to have them along since we travel so well together. Yes, I could come solo but I enjoy their company. I wish the weather had been warmer, but it’s not the end of the world. Frankie Bones was good for lunch, and as always the time spent in the villa is the best!
Tomorrow we didn’t make any set plans. We’ll head over to Coligny to visit a few shops, and will probably eat lunch somewhere, but it sounds like they’re looking forward to dinner being in the villa like tonight. We have a 1000-piece puzzle that hopefully we can do in a single day!
Sue/WDW1972
Who: Sue (64), DVC Member
Holli (58), friend & co-worker
Vickie (58), Holli’s best friend & college roommate
Plan: Pinkney Island, Frankie Bones, Cocoa/Smores
Actual: I slept pretty well and didn’t get up until almost 5:30. After brushing my teeth and making my cappuccino I spent time online in bed with the local news on. I checked the webcam and was just in time to see the 2 HAL ships sail into port this morning. My right knee actually feels better, but I’m still better off having canceled myself from the excursion today. Hopefully the improvement will continue.
Around 7 I heard Holli making coffee in the kitchen so I went out to wash my mug and say good morning. SB called – he’s at work today. Evidently around 4am a drunk driver (with a big bottle of tequila) had crashed into our gated entrance. It’s a solid metal fence with tall metal gates operated by an electronic opener. We sublease a building to the local county fire rescue and they’re the only ones who use this entrance – we all use the manned entrance without an actual gate. According to SB the jerk crashed through the closed gate, knocking it down, crossed the interior street and hit our big sign. They haven’t found the other side of the gate yet, the car is destroyed and there’s debris everywhere. He said the driver survived – go figure.
I went in to take my shower & get dressed, and made my breakfast (egg, slice of bacon and leftover Mickey pretzel). I went to put in a small load of laundry and found instructions inside the lid – including how to clean blood. I decided to give it a try, which included letting my shirt soak in cold water for 30 minutes (kitchen sink) before washing. That gave time for the others to finish showering/dressing so I could see if they wanted anything washed.
My son Chris face timed me – they decided to go up to Asheville, NC so Ari could see and play in snow for the first time. When Holli came downstairs she selected St Maarten as the next puzzle we’ll do. While they’re gone I’ll get it started, pulling out the edge pieces, etc. When Vickie came down she did have some stuff for the laundry so she ran up to get it and then I started the washing machine.
We hung out in the villa until it was time for them to leave to meet the excursion. Today should be our trash & towel service, since it’s the 4th day here. Disney internet was still up and down – very frustrating. Just after 9 Sarah (not Captain Sarah) came to do the trash & towel and was just delightful. She told us we’re “easy” – clearly having only 3 neat guests in a grand villa is better than what they experience during the summer with up to 12 people in here! The phone rang, and it was recreation asking if we still wanted to do the excursion. It's cold outside and if anyone wanted to skip it Disney would give a full refund. That was very nice – but Holli & Vickie are still going. Vickie brought the rest of the firewood inside (stacked on the hearth) and I called to order more (the big basket outside the front door).
We walked over to the Mercantile and recreation window together, me on the phone with Michael again regarding the crash at work and an update on my knee. Once we turned the corner we caught the wind blowing in very briskly from the marsh – it was very cold! They went downstairs to sign in for the tour and I huddled in an alcove by the restrooms to finish the conversation. After that I browsed through the Mercantile but didn’t see anything I needed to buy. They have the spirit jersey I’m wearing today – the sparkly one I got at Old Key West last October.
I walked back through the resort and ran into housekeeper Sarah. She apologized, saying she saw we ordered firewood and she should have done that for us. I told her she’d done great, and we brought the firewood in after she left and then called for more. She was happy to hear she hadn’t let us down. I took a few photos around the resort and stopped in Live Oak Lodge to get next week’s schedule of activities. The front desk person apologized and said it wouldn’t be out until closer to noon. Ok – no big deal.
They do coffee in the mornings now, and lemonade & cookies at 3pm. That’s set up inside Big Murgie’s Den where the photo machine used to be. A fire was going in the fireplace and a party of 3 adults were in there – spread out so that they pretty much took up the entire space. I wasn’t planning on sitting there, but I guess if I had been I would have just plopped down and joined the conversation, lol.
After taking a few more photos outside I returned to the villa. Laundry was done so I folded the stuff in the dryer and left Vickie’s pile at the stairs so she could grab it on her way up to her room. I set up my pillows in the living room – one behind my back since Disney still seems to believe throw pillows are covid-infested health risks, and one on top of the coffee table. I got the frozen washcloth from the freezer and propped my legs up on the coffee table and laid the washcloth over my right knee. I don’t know if that’s what made the difference, or I had suddenly hit the healing point, but I felt so much better after doing this last night and still felt good this morning.
At 11:30 I decided it was time to get up and start sorting the puzzle. I was nearly done with the initial sort when Holli & Vickie returned at noon. They’d had a nice time but said it was very cold in the wind. Only 4 guests took the tour. The naturalist provided binoculars for everyone and they saw some birds. I’m glad I skipped it, lol! Vickie was hungry so we left to drive over to Frankie Bones for lunch.
The bar area was very busy, but we got the only empty booth. The bar area is just prettier in our opinion – the menu, food and service is the same throughout. We ordered wine and lunch. Vickie got the turkey reuben, which came with a pile of shoestring French fries. Holli got the Saturday special – chopped steak w/mushroom gravy and mashed potatoes. I had the warm goat cheese salad. Everything was very good – Holli & Vickie especially loved theirs. Mine is an item I’ve had before, and next time I’ll go back to the meatball sliders or cheeseburger sliders (or the schnitzel). We settled the check and headed out.
We made a brief stop at Kroger to restock some nibbles for later (I saw fresh veggies in the cart – clearly that’s for them, not me <g> and some more chorizo. I got a few small pieces of cheese to take home, and on the way out Vickie grabbed several copies of the weekly add to replenish our fire newspaper supply.
Back at the villa Vickie went up for her nap and Holli & I worked on the puzzle – with a brief break for me to update the report. This 500-piece puzzle goes a LOT faster than a 1000-piece puzzle. It won’t take long at all.
We worked on it a while, then Holli decided to take a break. I continued for a bit then asked her what time it was – it was approximately 3:15. With 2 HAL ships in port, it was time for them to sail. Holli pulled it up on her tablet and I used my laptop so we could both watch Rotterdam sail away. After that we had to wait for the ugly Celebrity ship (pretty inside, but butt-ugly on the outside) and then a Princess ship who sailed away playing the Love Boat theme on the ship’s horn. Finally it was Nieuw Statendam’s turn – which is the ship Fran & I will be on in 55 days.
Vickie was up somewhere after 4 and by then we were back at the puzzle table. We finished that up and just after 5 headed over to the campfire pit for Cocoa & S’mores. We were surprised to find the pool closed/locked and were told it was closed all day. Guess it’s because of the weather. We took the ramp up and were told the event was in Community Hall because the wind kept blowing the campfire out – they couldn’t keep it lit.
At Community Hall pretty much every table was taken and there was a line of people back up to the door. There were no s’mores without a campfire, and people were coming out with cups of hot cocoa and Disney cookies. That’s not what we had in mind, so we left. Back in the villa Vickie lit the fire (she’d set it before we went over) and we changed into comfy clothes.
We set up this evening’s nibbles – cheeses, crackers, chorizo, almonds, grapes, and raw veggies w/dip. Once everything was set and wine was poured we played Phase 10 (card game). I started out winning the first 2 rounds instantly, but in the end Vickie was the winner. It was fun, and we finished up around 7:30. After cleaning up we retired to the fire in the living room.
Since internet has been so hit or miss here I decided to end the report now and if anything significant happens later I can include it in tomorrow’s report. Today was another great day – it’s so nice being here and both Holli & Vickie are so appreciative of being invited. As a dvc member one of the big plusses of membership is sharing it with friends, and I’m thrilled to have them along since we travel so well together. Yes, I could come solo but I enjoy their company. I wish the weather had been warmer, but it’s not the end of the world. Frankie Bones was good for lunch, and as always the time spent in the villa is the best!
Tomorrow we didn’t make any set plans. We’ll head over to Coligny to visit a few shops, and will probably eat lunch somewhere, but it sounds like they’re looking forward to dinner being in the villa like tonight. We have a 1000-piece puzzle that hopefully we can do in a single day!
Sue/WDW1972
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