What does it mean to go on vacation with your kids? Are you traveling to explore a new city and see all of the things? Or is relaxation a necessary requirement, because there’s just not enough time throughout the year to just sit and rest? Well, this geeky parent and his incredible wife took what our amazing kids said to heart last year when they said, “We just want to rest and have a pool.” So, we took a trip to the Caribbean and landed in Barbados.
Why Did the Kids Want Rest and Relaxation?
After our incredible trip to Italy last year, it was clear that our kids needed a break from walking to explore a city. Despite Bologna’s incredible porticos that provided shade for most of our walks, both kiddos expressed a desire to get back to traveling somewhere and being able to enjoy a pool. This is a fair request – and we do try our best to give the kids what they want. For example: We were planning on visiting Spain two summers ago, but the kiddos really wanted to go to a sleep-away camp.
One happy and one not-so-happy camper later, it was clear that sleep-away camp was a one-time thing. The year before that included a trip to Lisbon, Portugal, which was our first international trip as a family, and it’s safe to say that that experience set an extremely high benchmark for travel. So, when we searched for destinations for this summer, Barbados became our landing point. Additionally, Meghan’s parents also joined us on our rest and relaxation journey, which was another international travel first for us.
Back to the kids wanting a pool. They love being spending as much time in the pool as humanly possible every day, while then vegging out with music, a book, TV show, video or board game. It’s the perfect balance they were looking for. This notion for rest and relaxation was also appealing for Meghan (awesome pre-K teacher), and her parents who are used to various cruise or bus tours that can be more go-go-go. So, sitting beachside with a sensational view, lounging on a chair with a book or crossword puzzle, it became the ultimate serene spot for everyone’s needs.
The Beauty of Barbados
Barbados is beautiful in more than one way. Yes, the view from our back deck was stunning and provided a sense of calm we’ve all needed. But the people of Barbados are incredible. There is a sincerity in their kindness that cannot be overstated. Walking down the street to our favorite local market, many people who passed by would say, “Good morning,” or “Hello.”
When we wandered around Bridgetown, we were trying to find a spot to stop and eat. We were at an intersection and someone simply asked if she could help us with anything. We told her we were trying to find a place to eat. She told us she was going to a great spot for lunch and we could follow her, if we wanted to. We felt so grateful to have found her and she took us to a great spot, Freedom Park Lounge, that served the best wings I’ve ever eaten in my life. Not only did I love them, our kids agreed with the “best wings ever” sentiment, while they also enjoyed their beef and shrimp tacos.
Getting to Bridgetown, and other places, is more unique than other destinations we’ve been to. “ZR buses” are these white vans with a maroon stripe down the middle and they can take you to various spots around the island. They’re constantly honking their horns at people walking to see if anyone needs a lift, even if they’re not at a bus stop. Now don’t get me wrong, these aren’t your everyday horns or honks of frustration. These are the friendliest horns you’ll ever hear. I’m not sure if every single van was fitted with this exact horn, but you’ll never get tired of hearing them. We heard them constantly and they always made us laugh or smile.
On top of that, we took a trip to Oistins Fish Market. We’re talking about fresh fish being served at a variety of different places. Yes, the Oistins Fish Fry on Friday nights is supposed to be an incredible party atmosphere with music, dancing, karaoke, and plenty of food and drinks, but we decided to go for a more low-key atmosphere. If you want phenomenal fish, go to Sea Water Front at Oistins. The staff was kind and patient as we decided on what we wanted to eat. Definitely recommend – it will not disappoint!
About that ZR bus trip down to Oistins, the driver that took us down saw us walking back and stopped right next to us, saying, “Come on, I’ll take you back.” It’s the simplest gestures to feel like someone saw us, knew we had a long way to go, and stopped. And that feeling was synonymous with every place we stopped into, every person we spoke with. The kindness we experienced was second-to-none, and adding that to the beautifully chill vibe we had, it made it extremely difficult to leave at the end of our trip.
Experiences We Will Never Forget
We swam with sea turtles. Let me say that again: We swam with freaking sea turtles. Never in my life could I have imagined being in a position where we could experience that with our kids. We booked a 2-hour snorkel cruise in Carlisle Bay with, again, an exceptionally kind Captain and guide (diver) who shared his experiences with finding sea turtles for his guests, while Meghan’s parents could also watch through a glass bottom to see the trio of sea turtles we saw, along with hundreds of fish.
This was an experience where watching our kids excel despite frustrations meant a lot. Our daughter did not want to wear a life vest, but we decided this was necessary as it was our first adventure into a body of water. Our son got frustrated with the mask filling up with water, which took some adjustments to fix while in the water. Ultimately, they powered through and made their way at warp speed as soon as the guide announced he was going to bring sea turtles in our direction.
It’s difficult to quantify how incredible this moment was. We were in the water for an hour, hour and a half, and the surprise of a sea turtle brushing up against your stomach without your knowledge will definitely take your breath away. Knowing the turtles were comfortable enough to be that close is a surreal experience. Also, we saw three different shipwrecks and the underwater views of the seafloor were crystal clear.
Separation of Technology (or Not)
I was the fortunate one to not have an e-sim card attached to my cell phone, which meant it was very easy for me to leave my phone behind whenever we left our home. I brought it along on some occasions to track our walks or picturesque views, but for the most part, I was happy to leave it behind.
Leaving my phone behind gave me the freedom to enjoy the moment. There were times when I wished I could’ve taken a photo, but I liked not having the attachment on most days; I could just fully immerse myself with whatever we were doing: walking to the grocery store, finding a place to eat, or looking at different shells along the beach. Although I love photographing our adventures, it was important to be present in the moment without trying to capture every single moment.
On the flipside, TV shows or movies provided a great opportunity to spend quality time with the kiddos. Although I was interested in the books I was re-reading, shows like Just Add Magic or movies like The Lord of the Rings were excellent distractions from said books. There were many days where I wanted to occupy the same space as my kids, and despite my best efforts to read whatever I was reading, Just Add Magic was just too darn interesting.
Takeaways from Our Trip
Family trips can be unique, entertaining, and relaxing. They can be on-the-go, walking everywhere every single day. But one thing is getting clearer as the days and years go by: Our kids are 11 and 12, and they’ll be 18 sooner than later. It feels like our time is limited to go on family trips. On the flip side, it’s safe to say that finding balance on our trips might be the way to go moving forward.
Next year we’re going to try and mix relaxation and exploration into our journey, and go into our vacation with that mindset. We could’ve adventured more in Barbados, but we chose to wander less and relax more. Another takeaway is the fact that travel days are not relaxing for the kids. They’re stressful or uncomfortable and that’s something we’re taking into consideration, as well.
We also loved traveling with Meghan’s parents, so we’re up for that again. Plus, we have friends who might want to join us. Our kids loved being with their “Nana” and “Pop Rod” on vacation, and they enjoyed traveling with their Aunt Lori when we went to Lisbon. So, we’re going to try to expand our travel groups to include those we know the kids will adore being around.
Do you or your family travel? Where have you been to? What are the best parts of traveling? Share your thoughts with us online.
Until next time, happy parenting and happy geeking.
