beach Archives - loveRavayna

0 In travel

maracas beach

Trinidad was just such an amazing trip. It wasn’t perfect though- one of the more frustrating incidents was our Maracas Beach day. We’d cleared the whole day, woke up early to prep and load up a dozen people, and headed off in a caravan to drive around the island to Maracas.

As we stopped for snacks and pictures at the overlook en route, we realized that the grey morning mist looked atypically thick. It was still cloudy when we unloaded and sent our driver off, and that mist promptly turned to rain. Fortunately, the rain was warm, so we decided to stick it out, make the best of it, and just have lunch first.

Maracas is known for its shark-and-bake, a Trini fried fish sandwich. Richard’s is legendary, and has always been our favorite. But we had time to kill as we waited out the storm, so we had a progressive lunch and ate at Daphne’s as well. It was yummy, but Richard’s was still my fave- I adore piling my bake with spicy slaw, salted cucumbers, mango chutney, and plenty pepper sauce.

I had used my Silhouette to cut vinyl labels for some covered sip-a-mugs, figuring they’d be useful at the beach, and they were! We used bits of soca lyrics for the personalization, and they made for vacation-long jokes on very handy cocktail cups.

The sun didn’t come out, but it did dry and warm up a bit post-lunch, so we were glad. We walked the beach for a while, and eventually meandered in to wade in the water (and compare tans). Erin won… David lost, as if anyone’s surprised by that.

The water was really pretty nice, and I do hate crowded beaches, so it wound up working out okay, all things considered. It just made me sad that the views were so dreary, because Maracas is stunningly beautiful on a clear day, and I wish I could share that with you.

After a while, storm clouds rolled in again, so we decided to cut our losses before another drenching. I called our driver Kevin, and got him to come pick us up earlier than we’d planned.

And of course, we made a stop at the the fruit stand on the way home from the beach. So much fresh local produce, as well as sugarcane juice, freshly pressed by the friendliest vendor.

We shopped and made friends, until Kevin rounded us up and home we went, to rest up before that night’s fete.

loveRavayna

June 19, 2016

1 In travel

trinidad boat day

While we were in Trinidad, we chartered a small boat for the day to spend some time on the water and go DDI, or down de islands. Motoring off in the direction of Venezuela, we headed towards the Bocas Islands in Dragon’s Mouth, with no real agenda but some good times in the sunshine.

Not gonna lie, things got fantastic real fast. Our boat wasn’t fancy, but it was more than plenty fun- that’s typical Trini style. The weather was absolutely stunning, 85 degrees, and the water sparkled in the sunshine.

The soca music was blasting- David and Craig make a hell of a dj team- and the drinks were cold. The islands rising from the sea made for a beautiful sight, and it was so lovely and breezy out on the water.

Erin and I attempted our very own Titanic moment- rather unsuccessfully, but we were surely entertained. My precious aunt Judy joined us for our boat day- she’s so sassy and so sweet, we all loved getting to spend more time with her.

We spent some time up in the captain’s chair, admiring the views. Wilderness and stunning beauty in equal turn, and as far as eyes could see.

We were very much into the private party aspect of the boat charter. With lots of fetes (big open-bar parties) upcoming, we were all reveling in the open air, considering it our warm-up for the crowds and madness that makes up carnival.

It was pretty much a great big party on that gorgeous water… and in it, too.

In between drinking and diving, I did a little sunning. Reality check: I worked on my tan for six seconds before I decided it was too hot, I was missing the fun on the back of the boat and that my swimsuit sleeves would leave awful lines.

So I tucked my sleeves into my bikini top and returned to the dance party. And on we raged…

It was noisy and rowdy and fun and fantastic, and we all had such a good time! We came across few other vessels, but the ones we did were all happy to join the party.

We were surprised at how quickly the time had flown when our captain advised last dips and drinks, since it was time to head back to land. We had soaked in the sun, and were toasty and tired as we disembarked, met our driver, and headed home for supper.

asos bikini, similar, 2, 3, under $50! | cynthia steffe shift, similar, 2, 3 | vintage earrings, similar, 2, 3 | erin’s bikini: vs, similar, 2, 3 | nail polish

loveRavayna

May 4, 2016

2 In style/ travel

WiW: a tobago morning

I tend to rise early in the morning when traveling. I’m a light sleeper and if you only heard my family’s typical volume, you’d understand why sleeping in is impossible. This morning in Tobago, though, roosters started crowing while it was still dark. I woke David to walk down to the beach with me- he’s no morning person but a great sport, and a sucker for good light.

There’s something about first morning light. The morning was misty, and the sun rises on the opposite side of the island, anyway. But even without a spectacular sunrise, that light just glows, and brightens the world so magically.

I’m sure it didn’t hurt that we seemed to be the only people in Crown Point that morning. We didn’t see a single car crossing the street to the beach, which was totally deserted. The tide was still pretty high, and I went from walking along the sand to wading in just a moment.

I’m used to chilly Pacific waters, so I’m always pleasantly surprised to find the water warm enough to tolerate. That said, this flowy maxi was not the easiest to manage after it had absorbed gallons of saltwater… shocker, I know.

It was so relaxing to stroll along the quiet beach, and just enjoy the peaceful morning. And when we did make it back to the condo, it was for mimosas with breakfast before heading back to the beach for the day with the whole group. Vacation in Tobago was really low key… and that’s the beauty of it.

vineyard vines maxi (similar, 2, 3, 4, 5) // sandals // ear jackets // bracelet, 2, 3 / Santa Fe necklace, similar, 2, 3, 4 // white polish

loveRavayna

April 26, 2016

0 In travel

salt and sand: a tobago beach day

I wouldn’t call myself a beach bunny, and I can be picky about where I swim, but I do love the sunshine on my (well-protected!) skin, salt in the air, and sand in my hair. And the beach at Pigeon Point, in Tobago, is one of the the closest to paradise I’ve found on this earth- warm, crystalline waters just stretch as far as the eye can see. It’s serious beach bum inspiration.

In past years, we’ve taken glass-bottom boats out to the Nylon Pool, a pretty little tide pool on the Buccoo Reef. But we’ve noted the deterioration of the reef and the destruction of the coral from the crowds over the years, and felt guilty about our contribution to the damage. Destroying the environment can take some fun out of the experience, so we decided to skip the group tour and just enjoy the beach instead. Absolutely perfect weather, a cooler of Carib and some rum runners perfected that plan.

One of the best part of our carnival trips is best friend time. It’s a royal pain having your friends a plane flight away, but par for my course. So I’m practically beside myself to have Erin with me for long enough that we actually get over the excitement of being reunited. We have the best time together AND wear the same size… it’s vacation partner perfection!

It feels like serious gravy that we love each other’s husbands, too, and that they are good friends as well. It makes for a very fun group.. on the beach and pretty much everywhere else!

We rented umbrellas and chairs, and reveled in the fact that there were only a few other families out on the beach that day. Most people go to Tobago to recover after carnival madness, but schedule conflicts dictated a beach pre-party for us instead. I adored escaping ahead of the crowds, and having places practically to ourselves.

I also had too much fun disturbing that peace…. like Craig skipping rocks. I hatched an ill-fated water tackle plan, with humorous results. I imagine it looked like birds flying at a window, but it felt like hitting a warm laughing wall.

similar bikini, 2, 3, 4 // vintage kimono- similar, in pink, darks, under $30 // sunglasses, lust! // ear jackets // white nail polish

And y’all know I don’t believe in missing meals. So when a roti shop stop was suggested on the walk back to the house, I was all about the curry goat (plenty pepper, please). And let’s be real- only seaside in the rural Caribbean is a sandy bikini appropriate restaurant attire. Viva vacation!

LoveRavayna

April 20, 2016

0 In lifestyle/ los angeles

a malibu beach day

Despite a scorching SoCal summer, a full agenda and travel schedule have kept us running, with minimal time for relaxing. Though we’re into October, the weather’s not been reflecting that at all- it broke 100` this weekend. So last week, we played hooky one day and headed up to Malibu for a day at the seaside.

We loaded up bags and coolers, packing charcuterie and salads, watermelon and wine, and carefully hiked along the cliff path down to the cove. I unpacked our picnic as David mixed mimosas and managed a little music, and we had a lovely little lunch by the sea.

Though it directly disobeys posted rules, I almost always bring sturdy glass and stoneware on a beach picnic. We pack it back out and take it home to wash- so we’re never leaving broken glass behind and I feel better about not adding disposables to overflowing landfills.

Despite the gorgeous weather, the beach was just about deserted. It was so lovely to feel like we had the whole seashore to ourselves. It’s rare that you get to escape the crowds in Los Angeles, so I treasure these moments of peace among the madness.

The summer heat wave means that our section of the Pacific is the warmest it’s been in decades. For the past few years, I’ve barely gone past wading in the chilly waves, but it was warm enough for this cold water wimp to enjoy.

As a frank side note, part of me thinks it’s crazy that I’m sharing unretouched bikini photos here. As a former pageant girl who used to care an unhealthy amount about other’s opinions of my body, I spent most of my adult life horrifically insecure about my figure. But I’ve reached a point where I literally could not care less- if a lump or bump or lack thereof offends you, just keep scrolling past. In this way, I’m beyond grateful for the wisdom of age- and the cognizance that strong is far sexier than skinny, and to know that insecurity is a waste of time. I work out and eat (mostly) healthy to fuel my body and be fit enough to handle my crazy life, but #badonkadonk. ?

You know the best way to get a bikini body? Put on a bikini and smile.

So that’s exactly what I do, and on days like this gorgeous one- it makes for a beautiful time reveling in the seaside sunshine.

These are the moments…
loveRavayna

October 12, 2015

beach

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