Hello from Myrtle Beach

It was a beautiful day - sunny and warm - in Myrtle Beach today. Angie and I arrived just before noon after an uneventful flight.

Okay so getting to the airport was a little eventful since the traffic was slow moving for a while and Angie kept creatively cursing its stop-and-go action. I didn't know if the amount of traffic was normal, how far it was to the airport or how many hoops we had to go through once we got there, so I was relatively unconcerned . . . until Angie started muttered at the traffic.

But we made it in time. In fact, we even had time to take a much-needed bathroom break before we got on the shuttle bus. If we hadn't stopped in at the McDonalds, I was afraid lifting my suitcase would have produced some soggy results.

Once at the airport and through the security checkpoint (where you have to take off your shoes), we easily found our gate and sat down to wait. We even had an hour to spare before the blue and white Delta airplane started its southeast journey. So we pulled out our books and clicked on our iPod shuffles to pleasantly while away the waiting time.

Our little room in Myrtle Beach has a fridge, microwave, full-sized coffee pot and little kitchen sink. While it isn't fancy, it gives us a place to relax and lay our heads. Our even smaller balcony looks out over the ocean and beach. It's triangular shaped, with the widest part being about seven feet long.

We walked and explored our section of Myrtle Beach this afternoon. Officially we're in Surfside Beach, which isn't fancy and is full of touristy shops. Apparently it's quieter too. But we're fine with that since we're not here to party, but to relax.

We searched for a burger place I'd read about on Travelocity and ate lunch on its patio. Then we hit the local Piggly Wiggly (yup that's the name of the grocery store) for a few supplies during our long trek back. By the time we returned to our hotel, my ankles were swollen and my feet were sore. Oh well.

Then Ang and I sat on the beach for about an hour and read our books. We sat in a little tent-like structure that's shaped like half a dome. Finally, the guy who cleans them up at the end of the day asked us to leave. He said, "So, you're going home on Thursday?"

Angie and I looked at him quizzically and said, "No, Saturday."

To which, he asked, "Are you the Hills?"

"Nope," we said. But we knew we shouldn't have been lounging there since he'd read the name on the side of the sun shelter.

We admitted our mistake and then asked about the shelter rentals. Then we asked the cost. I almost gasped when he said, "$30 a day. But we give you a discount if you rent for multiple days."

We started giggling when we got out of earshot. Yeah, we're not going to rent them, but thanks to the Hills, we lounged for an hour on the chairs in the protective little shelter.

A rainstorm hit Myrtle Beach this evening. We saw it coming in the distance. The wind picked up and then it was raining. We're watching it now as it heads out to sea, creating a fog-like mist. The thunder and lightening are creating quite a show. We're marvelling at how it smells like summer.

So hopefully, the rain will pass tonight so we can enjoy sunny days for the rest of the week. Tomorrow, maybe we'll do a little shopping, sit on the beach again (but not in the Hills' spot) and dine on some of the area's renowned seafood restaurants. Heck, we can do whatever we want. It's that kind of vacation. And it's exactly what Angie and I both need.

Tina

P.S. I love the fact that I can hear the sound of the waves hitting the beach as I write this.