by Anne Evans
Even though I am generally a pre-dawn riser, I adore being awakened by the sunrise, and this is what I awoke to on Day 2 – the first full day of our Rum Point vacation.
Rick and I always start our day with exercise. What a treat to find not one but two yoga mats in the closets of our suite!
Another delight discovered in the closets were fluffy bathrobes. I had forgotten this lovely perk associated with resort living, because it had been so long since our last encounter.
However, one far from delightful discovery was that despite the kitchen being fully equipped with every imaginable appliance, device and dish, including a marvelous coffee maker … there was no coffee! There are no grocery stores on Rum Point, and the closest “market” is an 8 minute drive away
Arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrgh!
OK. Never mind about the coffee for now. With yoga and stretching done, it was time for our daily pre-breakfast walk so off we went.
We noted the quiet streets, devoid of traffic or tourists in what I would deem as the center and cross roads of Rum Point. It’s a whole different world from 7 Mile Beach / West Bay Road.
Our path was lined by majestic mansions, each with an imposing yet inviting front façade ─ and in back, a dock abutting a waterway that leads out to the Caribbean Sea.
Having completed our leisurely morning activities, we enjoyed breakfast on our private terrace – which thank goodness included my coffee!
The original plan was to grab a couple of the resort’s complementary bikes and cycle* around the community; however, we decided instead to do a beach walk and struck out south west from the Rum Point Resort (RPR).
* Just a word of caution about cycling on Grand Cayman: although the remote and residential neighborhood environment of Rum Point makes this a relatively safe activity, cycling can be dangerous almost everywhere else on the Island. You will seriously take your life in your hands to bicycle given the nature of the cars, drivers and roadways.
In this direction, the beach is mostly sand although there are rocky stretches that make water shoes a nice accompaniment to have on a stroll.
On our way back to RPR we stopped at the Red Sail Sports outlet next door to see if we could secure a 2-person kayak for the afternoon. I had done some research prior to arrival and learned they were available at a rate of KY$13 cash per half hour.**
** Another word of caution this time about reserving activities on Grand Cayman Island. Admittedly, in season, you may have no choice. However booking in advance, in my experience, will cost you extra. The booking company used by some/most Cayman business (Book Tours & Activities at Peek.com) is US-based and will charge you in US$. That means you get stung on the exchange rate + a booking fee + US Sales Tax! If you find that as annoying as I do, carry KY$ and chance it by showing up without a reservation.
So after lunch we returned and set off in a kayak together for an hour of blissful paddling around in the sunshine and quiet waters of the Caribbean Sea. The first time we had been kayaking was our first vacation together in Antigua in April of 1994 – over 30 years ago!
Why no photo you ask? I am no fool. I do not risk feeding my phone to the fish!
Following our kayaking, we enjoyed another swim in the RPR pool and then got ready to go to dinner at Kaibo, a waterfront area within or adjacent to Rum Point depending on who you ask.
Kaibo has 3 dining areas: Kaibo Espresso, Kaibo Beach and Upstairs at Kaibo.
This evening we were dining at Kaibo Beach …
because this night they offered their weekly “Barefoot Beach BBQ Menu”.
Almost all restaurants on this Island offer some variation of a weekly BBQ with the focus on Caribbean cuisine and with nearly all of them being well priced, all-you-can-eat buffets. Kaibo Beach’s, however, (although indeed well priced) was served “family style” as opposed to “self-serve.” The former meant that every item listed on the menu was served to you in quantities meant to suffice for and be shared by all seated at the table.
So although we preferred this more elegant service-oriented manner of dining and impressive presentation, the meal was a bit problematic. Given that Rick and I prefer a Paleo diet (think meat, seafood, leafy greens; hold the carbs) we demolished the proteins and left the starches untouched. It would have been quite easy to polish off another helping of the Blackened Red Snapper!
Unlike last evening, this evening I remembered to capture a photo of the sun setting over the Caribbean as we dined. Enjoy.
And the best part of the evening was knowing that we had another full day ahead of us tomorrow on Rum Point.
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