And the Weekend is Over Again

However; let us all rejoice, because it's not Monday - it's already Tuesday! And before I get around to sharing about my long weekend spent at the beach...how gorgeous is this sunset from Friday night??

Friday night was a slow evening - I got in my exercise, packed my bag for the mini vacay to the beach and honestly was just a bum. I don't know where it came from but by 10 o'clock on Friday night, I was struggling to stay awake and so after reading a bit, I fell asleep and slept like the dead!

Saturday morning we set out for the beach around 9:00, dropping my sweet pup off for a weekend at the kennel. I always joke that staying at the kennel is his own little vacation; he gets to play outside in the backyard and wander around with no harness on all weekend...heck - he even caught a rabbit the last time he was staying there, eek! I digress...

  

 

A halfway point for the drive was a stop at the gigantic Mormon temple right outside DC. This temple is something that looks like a castle from the interstate and I'd always been interested in getting a look at it - and so stopped in for a quick peek. A quick peek because; I am not Mormon, and so the outside of the temple was as close as I was getting. That said - what a stunning building - I can only imagine how impressive the interior is...

Our drive also took us across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge - which at it's tallest is 186 feet, which allows ships heading out to ocean to glide effortlessly underneath the span. The bridge is quite high and apparently if you'd rather not drive over the bridge yourself, you can get someone to do so for you. I'm terrified of heights...and that just seems silly to me...but hey - whatever you say! The views from the top of the span as you cruise along are pretty spectacular; talk about water...water...everywhere!

Ocean City, Maryland sits on this little spit of land off the coast; literally a barrier spit, called Fenwick Island and one side is bay, while the other is ocean. The spit of land is crammed with hotels, condos, restaurants, beach shops and a million Fractured Prune locations (donuts y'all - delicious donuts) and a three mile boardwalk that fronts a large section of the beach.

We stayed at the Princess Royale; a lovely hotel with gorgeous views, a beach front deck with live music each afternoon and a beach side bar to get tropical drinks for sustaining you throughout your day(s) spent on the beach. I was raised in a family of people who would choose the mountains over the beach any day of the week...and I deeply love the mountains, but I also really love the beach - and it's been ages since I've been to the beach. So, the smell of salt, sand and sunscreen just made my heart thrill...

  

I was adamant that we immediately get down to the beach and I happily strolled through the sand and into the surf and was quite happy to be at the beach. We didn't stay on the beach for long but I thoroughly enjoyed hearing the waves rolling in and the smell of the ocean on the air...

After our beach walk, we set out to catch the bus and go to the boardwalk - and lo - what a crowded bus it was. Everyone had the same idea and before long, we were crammed in like sardines! We hopped off about halfway down the boardwalk and took in the candy kitchen(s), the multiple Thrasher's Fries and Fracture Prune locations, the kites whipping in the wind and seafood restaurants aplenty...

 

We had dinner at a restaurant called Ocean 13 - Yelp indicated the restaurant was new and "hot" - and the food was delicious; as was the locale, we were able to sit outside with a view of the waves crashing in and a delightful sea breeze... I had something called the Ooey Gooey; a peanut butter, banana and honey sandwich with sweet potato fries, and it may have been my favorite meal of the weekend! The location sitting alongside the ocean and the mouth-watering yumminess of my sandwich and fries - I was 100% a fan!

 

As the sun set, the lights of the boardwalk came on and twinkled in the night sky - rides that rolled and spun in the night, flashing and blinking and entreating beach goers to come and indulge in thrills and fried food and perhaps even a $29.99 body piercing?

We did indulge in some salt water taffy from the Candy Kitchen and I announced that there were several rides on the boardwalk that I would never set foot on... We rode the bus back to our hotel and I fell into bed and again...slept like the dead. A pretty delightful way to spend a Saturday.