Hi. ... Yeah, this is Las Vegas Cockapoo signing in .... Yep, I'm on a cruise ... with Uncle Dan. While I stayed over at Uncle Dan's house with Mei Mei and Happy, Mom and Dad drove all the way across the country to visit relatives and go to a wedding at Hilton Head Island, SC. Ryan and Connor (my brothers) both said it was a long way to travel to go to the beach from Las Vegas. After all, LA is only four hours away. But, Mom and Dad said it was for a very special occasion so I got to go to "Dan Camp" for two weeks. It was okay. I really like Dan and the Pom puppies.
Arrival on Wednesday
So, after a three day Atlanta visit, Mom and Dad drove down to Hilton Head. On the way, they met Mom's Mom, Gordon and Mom's Aunt Delene. Both cars drove onto the island together and searched for the restaurant that the GPS said was only 500 feet away. Mom says the businesses down there are something like "in cog neeto," whatever that means. So they finally found food and then found Shipyard and then found the places they were to stay for four days.
A walk on the beach with Aunt Debbie and Frank was first on the agenda. Aunt Debbie and Frank were very generous to allow Mom and Dad to crash at their place. Then they drove over to have a wonderful seafood dinner with everyone that was already there for the wedding. It was the first time that Mom and Dad had met the bride, Tiffany. I saw her picture and she's beautiful. Cousin Mitch did okay!
Bike Riding on the Island Bike Paths
The next morning, Mom and Dad took the single speed bikes out for a spin. The island has bike paths every- where and it is supposed to be the best way to get around locally. I heard that all the bikes on the island are almost the same; single speed, blue, bad brakes and no helmets provided. But, what the heck, it's a vacation ... right? So Frank and Dad pumped up the tires and Mom and Dad took off with cameras in hand.
In the section of the island called Shipyard, there are bike paths, lagoons, beach access, a golf course, several rentable condos and a hotel resort called Sonesta. Next to the lagoons there were always signs saying "Do not feed the alligators." ... What's an alligator? ... Anyway, I'm sure I would at least share a dog biscuit or two.
Mom and Dad said that except for the terrible humidity ... again, what's that? ... the island was a very nice place to enjoy for a few days.
Above, there are some photos of the island wildlife. Top left are turtles that come to you when you stop next to the pond. I guess some people feed them. Top right is one of the alligators sunning on a drain pipe. Beneath the reptile is a blue heron that took off when Mom startled her. And the other two birds are a double- crested cormorant and a white heron or egret.
Harbor Town and South Beach
Thursday was a free day for the wedding folks in Hilton Head so Mom, Dad, Aunt Debbie and Frank headed down to the Harbor Town and South Beach sections of the island. This is where there is a big red and white striped lighthouse and a marina filled with really fancy boats. There was some music going on and Mom found this sago palm that had made a large pine cone in the middle of it. Mom and Dad walked around the marina and saw a raccoon rummaging around in broad daylight. He seemed a little old and gimpy, they said, but I'm sure I could have helped him speed up a little.
After their visit to Harbor Town, the four of them drove over to South Beach. Here, there was a really neat restaurant on the water called "The Salty Dog Cafe." Hmm. I'm sure that they weren't eating salty dogs. Anyway, there was quite a long wait to get into the dining room so the four of them ate peel-n-eat shrimp at the bar outside until there was a table available. Mom went shopping for some souvenir shorts and took a few photos.
Near the restaurant, there were about a million bicycles waiting to be rented during the upcoming Memorial Day Weekend. Just amazing! There are only 30,000 permanent residents on the island but on a holiday weekend, there are around a million people there.
After eating a few sandwiches, they piled back into the car and drove back to the condo. Mom and Dad were pooped so they turned in early.
Rehearsal Dinner
On Friday, Mom and Dad relaxed with another bike ride and walk on the beach while Aunt Debbie and Frank went to the wedding rehearsal. At 5pm, Mom and Dad joined the wedding party at the Windows on the Waterway event room for the rehearsal dinner and, afterwards, the "Meet and Greet." The place was situated on the water at a marina and was a very beautiful place for such a special dinner. They ate. They drank. They talked. They met people. And, then they repeated, repeated, repeated.
Mom said it was so nice to see everyone that she knew and so nice to meet those that she didn't know. After all, many of these people were becoming our extended family. I wonder if any of them have dogs.
The sunset seen from the restaurant was exquisite. Mom and Dad sneaked down to the dock to take photos of it. They took so many that it was difficult to choose which one to post. So, here are two of them.
The Wedding Reception
Unfortunately, Mom didn't get any photos at the wedding. She is struggling with a new camera and none of the photos that she took came out due to low lighting. Suffice it to say, she went on and on about how beautiful the ceremony was and how poignant the deacon's words were. It was delightful to see the look on the bride and groom's faces as the wedding march began.
After the wedding, the whole church full made their way across the island back to Shipyard and the Sonesta Resort where their large event cabana was set up and ready to go for a 7 hour reception! The event began with the entrance of the wedding party, all smiles. Next, the first dance and dance with father of bride and mother of groom. Mom said that was when she cried. Aunt Debbie has put her whole life into raising Mitchell and Andrew. It was such a joy to see this milestone happening with such gorgeous pomp and circumstance.
Again, they ate and drank and danced and talked. Later, Mitchell and Tiffany cut the cake after speeches were made by the Maid of Honor and the Best Man ... which happened to be a debonair Cousin Andrew. Mom and Dad left before the garter and bouquet thing but they heard it was hilarious. Apparently, Mitchell went completely under Tiffany's dress and first pulled out a beer! People are weird. That's not really funny. I sniff butts all the time.
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