My Mid-Thirties

Today I am 34. And it's a full moon. And I'm semi-drunk.*

While I never thought I'd spend a birthday alone in a foreign country, I have to say it's kind of awesome. I slept in until 11:30 this morning, then took a leisurely stroll down to the beach. Because it was so packed there, I didn't stay. Instead, I came back to the hotel for lunch, and lounged by the pool reading a book until they started some sort of loud water polo game. The noise caused by the crazy drag queen polo referee didn't amuse me, so I got a snack and came back to my room for a nap. I then went back to the beach for a while, showered off the sand and sunscreen, then headed out to a 3-course birthday dinner. I'm considering going back out to sit in the bar or dance in the hotel nightclub, but I don't think I have the energy to chat up my fellow tourists on this particular occasion.

Although, to their credit, most of them are not Americans. I have been hearing a lot of German and French around the resort, along with a few other unidentified languages. When I do hear English, about half the time it's spoken with a British accent. I talked with an Irish woman at dinner, who was (understandably!) impressed with the decadence of the food here. Whatever their nationality, though, I have never seen so many terribly sunburned white people in one place.

I have plenty of time left to be a social butterfly on this trip, so I think I'll end my birthday in the room with the minibar, watching American TV with Spanish subtitles. Since I already finished off the scant quantity of Dos Equis the hotel provided (refills are only every other day, more lies!), I'm left with the liquor dispenser. It consists of tequila (Cuervo), gin, vodka, and an unidentified but strong brown liquor called Trono.** I think I'll stick with my vodka and Mexican orange soda for the night, but you just never know.

Stay tuned for the hangover report tomorrow...

*To be fair, despite the availability of alcohol, I haven't drank heavily so far on this trip. I have, however, drank steadily from the moment I got here. Until tonight when I had 3 glass of Table Red during the half hour I spent eating dinner. Happy Birthday to me.

**Yeah, I'm adventurous. I didn't know what it was, so I took a shot. It's not whiskey, but it's not terrible. My interest is piqued.