Part Two (The Adventure Continues...)

So the week in Mexico had various events throughout the day to keep everyone occupied and entertained (personally, lying by the pool I was occupied by all the eye candy and the Mexican waitress saying "Here es yur Magarita señor"). One such event particularly sparked Victor's interest - the 'Scavenger Hunt'. At the beginning of the day he wanted to do it and I didn't, then midway through he wanted to just keep sippin’ on Piña Coladas while something inside me said "R.J., you MUST enter!” All of a sudden, as if preparing for war, my game face came on. I looked at Victor and said, "We're going to enter this competition and we're going to win - get out of the pool!" He saw how serious I was, and so we both put our A-games on and entered.

Fifty couples entered. The competition started with a clue that was given to you, which led you to successive clues and/or activities that needed to be accomplished. The first team to finish won. Sounds simple enough right? WRONG!

The second clue led us to a basketball court on the remote corner of the grounds where a coach had a basketball ready for us. We needed to make two 3-point free throw baskets (of a possible 4 attempts total). If we failed, we went to the back of the line which meant a delay of at least 15-20 minutes. I looked at Victor and said, "Can you play basketball?" He said and I quote "Girl, please! I'm a fu*kin cheerleading coach. I can't throw to save my life, you?" I reluctantly looked back at him with a facial expression that surely meant the end of the competition for us both. I was thrown the ball (which I dropped lol) and I gave it a few dribbles as if I knew what I was doing. I bent my knees (remembering something from 7th grade gym class) and shot the ball. Swish. All net!!! I was like, "Holy Shit!" One more to go and we would have it. I focused, aimed and shot - it bounced on the rim and rolled out as a sigh of "Awws" enveloped me. I threw the ball to Victor (which he also dropped lol). He grasped it with two hands and as he was about to launch the thing in the air I said, "Wait! Victor maybe I should go again and take your shots for you (this was within the rules)" He said, "Go, go, do it!" I dribbled, aimed, and with Michael Jordan form...swoosh, all net again! We did it!!! On to the next clue…

After a series of crazy clues and tasks, including kayaking, finding missing letters, solving riddles, singing in front of everyone, and playing hide and seek, we made it to our final clue. It read "Find Malcolm!" (Malcolm was the resort director.) Feverishly we knew where he was and we screamed running towards him, knowing we had almost finished, all of a sudden we heard, "Ladies and Gentlemen, the scavenger hunt is over! Congratulations to RJ and Victor for finishing in first place, both receiving the grand prize award which is an all inclusive trip for two to Club Med Cancun in April!" Victor started jumping up and down and I started screaming as we won the grand prize! It was unbelievable! I knew we'd win I just knew it!

The rest of the week was spent going to parties (the resort had a theme party every night, including the Mardi Gras Party, the White Party, the Tropical Party (where everyone just wore a sarong and nothing else!), a 70s Disco and even a Dog Tag Party (which I was more than ready for). If you put a red sticker on the dog tags it meant you were taken, a yellow sticker meant you were taken, but with a few drinks you'd entertain the thought, a green sticker meant available, two green stickers meant very available, aka, meet me in my room in 15 minutes, and if you had green stickers all over your body it meant "Take Me Now!" I was looking for someone to paint me green lol. Enclosed are a few pics from the week, friends we made, sunsets we experienced, and memories that will last a lifetime. Thanks for an amazing week Victor. It was great getting to know you again.

Next was Phoenix, AZ visiting my ex-roommate and good friend Josh. I stayed in a suite in a posh hotel called the Mondrian in Scottsdale, just outside of Phoenix. The pictures enclosed are of the hotel here (and not the place in Mexico). The hotel was beautiful and very Delano-esque (owned by the same company that owns the Delano Hotel in South Beach, Miami). The first two days I had an hour long Stone Therapy message, a manicure, a pedicure (I know, that was pretty gay, but I rationed that it was important for me to take care of my body after putting it through so much neglect for 7 months) and I finally spent time at the 'Serenity Pool' - a quiet oasis from the hotel with a warm pool, waterfall and quiet area (see picture). It was very relaxing - a perfect post-vacation vacation. The weather was sunny and unseasonably warm in the mid to upper 80s. Perfect weather to sit by the pool and sip on mojitos!

I bought an I-Phone today (yes, I know, the shopping spree continues) and now I'm learning how to set it up (a task that is even harder than the scavenger hunt and should take me into the weekend). As much of a good time that I'm having, I kind of miss my car. lol. Is that weird? I am still enjoying things on my Master Post-Iraq list, like "Go to Baja Fresh for a Baja Ensalada, go to P.F. Chang's for their Salt and Pepper Calamari and Mongolian Beef, and go hiking".

Currently I'm in Los Angeles spending time with my friends Luciano and Eli. We went on a hiking expedition yesterday and enjoyed the beautiful unseasonably warm and sunny weather. I have a few more people to see and then its back to Hawaii.

I'll tell you this - the past few weeks since my return have been interesting in the sense of experiencing life all over again. It's been nice just to see new faces (instead of the same few hundred that I saw every day in my routine in Iraq). It's been difficult making choices (instead of them being made for me) - like in a convenient store or at a restaurant. I have returned with an appreciation for everything. I've noticed that in contrast to others that seem to be complaining a lot about everything, I'm appreciative instead. I'm not bothered by simple stresses. My life seems exciting and new again, and that's pretty cool. Hard to explain, but I hope I can keep this feeling going forever.

Here's the guide to the pictures I attached:

PIC#1 Eating sushi at a posh sushi restaurant called 'Kumo' in Los Angeles . Pictured is my friend Luciano, his sister and I.

PIC#2 My friend Luciano and I going on a hike with his sister and and our friend Eli. The place was called Runyan Canyon. From the top there's a spectacular panoramic view of Los Angeles and Hollywood.

PIC#3 Victor jumping off a rock at the end of our Zip Lining adventure.

PICS#4 and 5 The Mondrian Hotel in Phoenix, poolside.

PIC#6 Friends I met in Puerto Vallarta during a night downtown dancing.

PIC#7 The sunset in Puerto Vallarta was beautiful! This shot was taken by one of the people that worked at the resort (a good MySpace shot, don't you think?)

PICS #8 and 9 When Victor and I ziplined down the mountain/canyon, it ended in the bar, where the bartender offered us some of the local moonshine. These are before and after pictures. It tasted like a mix between grain alcohol and raw ground up hamburger meat. It was painfully disgusting!