ABCs of recuperation vacation

A is for the airplane that will transport us to our vacation destination.

B is for basking in the sun on the beautiful, powdery white beach.

C is for the cerveza Cristal and cafe con leche I'll use to salute the end of chemo.

D is for "Dad, Dad, Dad," a phrase Michael won't hear for a week. He'll just be Michael, honey, senor, Canadian dude, etc. . .

E is for Playa Esmerelda, the beautiful beach on which the Sol Rio Luna y Mares resort is located.

F is for all the yummy food I'm going to enjoy on vacation. The resort has two buffets and four a la carte restaurants. I'll be able to choose what I feel like eating at each meal. I'm also excited I won't have to do dishes for the next week.

G is for Guardalavaca, the closest town to our resort. We may rent a scooter one day and go check it out. Or we may not. That's the joy of vacation - you eat when you're hungry, drink when you're dry, sleep when you're tired, do an activity if you feel like it, etc.

H is for horseback riding, which is free at our resort. I love to ride, so I'm going to take advantage of this activity. Yes, I'll be careful.

I is for Internet. The resort has an Internet cafe and I hope it's operational while we're there so I can email my kids. I may also do a quick blog once or twice during my vacation, so check back every once in a while. If it's down, or if I'm too busy enjoying my vacation, I'll post when I get back.

J is for the jellyfish I hope not to encounter in the ocean. But a small coral reef is situated close to the resort and I do hope to swim with many colourful fish while I'm snorkeling there.

K is for my kids, whom I'll miss and from whom I'm happy to have a vacation from for a week.

L is for the lobby bar, where apparently they have a piano player and a drink menu (to help me decide what to try next).

M is for the many mojitos I'll request from the bartenders. (Lots of people have asked me to have a drink for them. I can't let all those people down.)

N is for next stage of my life. This vacation is all about resting, relaxing, recuperating (maybe this entry should be for the letter R) and giving my mind a chance to process the end of cancer treatments so I can move on to what comes next. Hopefully, it'll only be good things!

O is for the warm, turquoise ocean in which we'll submerse ourselves. Maybe it has healing properties. Doesn't hurt to check it out. :)

P is for the palapas under which I'll park my butt. I still need to be careful in the sun.

Q is for quiet dinners. There will be no need to hear sibling arguments or say "sit down" and "eat your dinner." Aaahhhh!

R is for romance. Michael and I can be just a couple again. (There's also a romantica a la carte restaurant at which we hope to get reservations.)

S is for swimming, snorkelling, sand, starry nights, salty ocean and Sunwing airlines.

T is for Tina. I'll be just me on vacation. Tina, Michael's wife. Not mom. Not a cancer patient. Just Tina.

U is for understanding. Michael understands that I need to go at a slower pace and sometimes I get quietly introspective. That'll happen on our vacation. But I know it's okay because he understands.

V is for victory over ovarian cancer and the celebratory vacation.

W is for wow, I'm in remission! And for the warm weather Cuba is experiencing right now (better than this fall weather in London).

X is for xtra special (yes, I know that's not right but I couldn't find an x word). But this vacation will be extra special because of the reasons we're going.

Y is for yellow, orange, pink and purple - the colours of the sunsets or sunrises we'll watch over the ocean. Yippee!

Z is for Zulema. The wonderful guest services manager at our resort. I've contacted her via email and she promised to arrange something "especial" for us to celebrate the end of chemo treatments. I can't wait!


I thought it would be interesting and fun to do this little ABC blog before I left on vacation. Michael and I drive to Toronto tonight to stay at a Park, Sleep and Fly hotel. Our flight leaves at 6:20 a.m. tomorrow morning, so we'll be at the resort around lunch. Thanks for all the warm wishes to have a good time - we plan to do just that.

With lots of love and excitement,
Tina