Patrick won this Amazing trip to Atlantis in Paradise Island, Bahamas through his work at BBVA Compass Bank!! Because he is doing such an Awesome job! Yay! I am so proud of you honey! We were in Paradise for 5 days! They gave him spending money, took care of breakfast every morning (which would have cost $64/breakfast for two people) had a welcoming dinner, award dinner and bahamian luau dinner which all three dinners incuded an open bar, and they paid for airfare and stay!
It was so Romantic and we had a Blast together!!! A trip I will never forget!:)
Here is a little history tid bit on Paradise Island....it was purchased in the 1980s by
Donald Trump for $79 million, then sold to
Merv Griffin for $400 million. It was last sold for $125 million to the current owner,
Sol Kerzner. The current estimated value of the island is about $2 billion USD.
Atlantis in Paradise Island, Bahamas
The Royal Towers joined by the Bridge. The Bridge Suite, located in the span, is one of the most expensive hotel suites in the world, costing approximately $25,000 USD a night. These suites are filled with luxury and free equipment. (The only people that I heard that have stayed there are Michael Jackson and Michael Jordan- not sure who else!)
Walking in to Atlantis
This is right before walking into Atlantis
When you walk into Atlantis
Walking to our room in Atlantis
Here is what our room looked like!
Atlantis Tid Bit: The Beach Tower, which is the least expensive and most dated in terms of decor and amenities. I heard you might pay slightly more to stay in the Coral Towers, which are more centrally located and, depending on your children's ages, might represent the best combo of kid-friendly and affordable. For kid-friendly
luxury, plus the prettiest views and a gorgeous beach to yourself, choose The Reef. If you're kidless and want plush seclusion, splurge on The Cove!
Atlantis at night...so pretty! This was our first night!
The Aquarium "The Dig" was Huge and Gorgeous!
The Dig is a series of aquariums located beneath the lobby of the Royal Towers and is the world's largest open air marine habitat. Hundreds of different aquatic species can be spotted in the Dig's various tanks such as angelfish, sharks, manta rays (one of which is larger than ten feet), and various types of jellyfish. The goal of The Dig is to provide guests with a taste of life in the legendary destroyed city of Atlantis. If one observes the bottom of the floors in the different aquariums, wreckage and debris scattered about represent the "Lost City of Atlantis."
Aquarium
We had to take a pciture of Nemo for Tegan!
Nemo's Brother!
The Manta Ray was Gigantic!
"Swimmin with the Jellies" -Nemo
The Huge Manta Ray and Scuba diver cleaning tank! (have no idea who that little boy is)
The Electric Eels were creepy!
This was Beautiful, all hand made! It was inside right past the casino of The Royal Towers!
This was the view walking back to out room!
Our toes while laying out on the beach!
This was our view from where we were laying out on the beach!
We had our own private beach! There was hardly anyone on it! (The day before and after there was no sea weed on the beach...this was the most we saw...we found out they clean the beaches every other day)
This was the beach we hung out at...it was near The Cove and The Reef
Paradise right? Isn't the water so pretty!
The Cove pool! It had bar and outside casino. Its kind of funny, we walked up to this pool and thought wow this is where we need to be! We weren't allowed to hang out here...we were told they pay more money than us! haha...we laughed when we walked away thinking if ony they knew we were here on a free trip!:) So we hung out at The Cove's Beach instead!
One of the outside bars we got drinks and food from!
Smooch!
Another one of the Bars we got drinks from! In the center of this bar you can walk down stairs and walk through tunnels of shark tanks!
I couldn't catch my breath to even scream down this slide! Was very fast and gave me a huge weggie!:)
Here is another view of that slide! It's crazy!
Patrick and I got to go on this slide together in a double tube!
One of these slides was part of the lazy river!
I did a super loud scream on this slide!:)
This is coming out of that slide!
Patrick and I did this...we didn't get a picture, this is what it looked like! Was very cool!
Kids would love Atlantis too! So much for them to do!
This bridge reminded me of the "Shrek" bridge...there were sharks below us and it swayed back and forth when you walk over it!
Hammer Head Shark!
Can you see me?:)
More Hammer Head Sharks!
Patrick pretending to climb out!
Walking through a Shark tunnel
Margarita in my hand and sharks! Fun!
This fishy looked scared with all the sharks swimming around!:)
My Gorgeous Man!
Lazy River...not sure why they call it that, it wasn't lazy at all! It was so much fun, I read it was a mile long!
One of the double slides! Recorded the fastest time!
The Lazy River
The Marina Shopping...these were very cute! It had a Starbucks here, I was very excited about that! The yauts were huge! I guess while we were there Nicole Kidmen and Keith Urban were hanging out in their yaut there!
I thought Tegan would love this bench as much as I did!:)
We went to the casino one night!
BBVA Compass Bank Award Ceremony...Patrick got to go up shake the Presidents hand and get his picture with him on stage. I'm such a proud wifey!:)
Bahiamian Dancing at the Award Ceremony
Isn't he a Handsome Hottie!:)
Intermission at the Awards
Patrick was suppost to make a silly face too!
Smooch!
Patrick's Award
Patrick's Dad had also won this trip too!! Yay! So his Mom and Dad were there too!
It was so wonderful to have them there too!:)
Junkanoo – A party Bahamian style...This was so neat to see!
This included dinner, drinks and some noise makers on the tables. Later in the evening their purpose was revealed when the Junkanoo paraded through the evening party crowd. After they went through we jumped in on a kunga line!:)
Their costumes and music was so Amazing!
In the walkway to the west tower of the Royal Towers is the Dec 26. 2011 costume winner ‘Atlantis Rising’ from the Shell Saxons Superstars Junkanoo Group.
After the Junkanoo Bahamian Style Luau...we did some shopping!
After the Junkanoo...Patrick pretending to be a Peacock!:)
This picture still makes me laugh! People were walking by when Patrick was pretending to be a Peacock! And we are a little sunburned!:)
Smooch!
The King's Chair
Spa Day! We each got Sea Weed Body Wraps and Massages on one of the days worth $175 each! There were fish swimming under the glass when you walked into the Spa!
This is where we relaxed before our Body Wrap and Massage!
Patrick and I waited here in our spa robes together before our Body Wraps and Massage!:) We should have had someone take our picture! Next time! ;)
Pigs swimming in the Bahamas...I didn't get to see this, but I really wanted too! So if you ever go here you should try and see these little cuties!:)
Here is the Story:
The family of brown and pink boars and piglets live freely on the sandy white beaches and even swim in the surf on Big Major Spot Island.
They are such a familiar sight at the spot that locals have named the area "Pig Beach."
And they were snapped by underwater photographer Eric Cheng who stumbled across the unusual residents during a diving expedition.
"We were in the southern Bahamas to photograph oceanic white-tip sharks," said the 33-year-old.
"Our captain, Jim Abernethy, had heard that there were pigs on Big Major so we decided to go and check it out.
"Upon approaching the white sandy beach, it is easy to spot the pigs - both pink and dark brown - laying in the sand.
"You never know what you'll see when you're out tracking down wildlife."
Pigs are omnivorous animals found throughout Africa, Europe and Asia. However one species, the domestic pig (Sus Scrofa), are found almost worldwide as a domestic and feral species.
"I'm not sure how these domestic pigs (gone feral) came to live on this particular beach in the Bahamas, but they are well-known to locals, who have been feeding them for years," says Mr Cheng.
"Because locals bring food, the pigs will run into the water and actually swim out to the oncoming boats, as if to greet them individually.
"It is strange enough to see pigs laying around on tropical beaches of white sand, but to see them then charge into the water to greet oncoming boats is just bizarre."
We Loved the Bahamas!!!
Our flight home! I had to take a picture of the clouds for Tegan! We flew around a lightning storm that was scarey/neat to see!
Hope you have an Amazing Day!
