The Atlantis ~ The Birthday Celebration continues

Happy Monday all!  What better way to start the week off then with recapping our vacation finale.  We honestly had a blast at the Atlantis in the Bahamas.  It really was the perfect balance of FUN (hello waterpark & lazy river!), deliciousness (fun Bahamian food!), relaxation and down time with long walks around the resort and along the beach.

I didn’t take a bunch of pictures of the Atlantis since I took so many last year when we visited for a day.  If you want to see more pictures of the Atlantis, head on over to our Nassau Bahamas Cruise Recap.

Here are a few highlights from our week long stay…..

Our room at the resort was pretty basic, but, had everything we needed complete with a single cup coffee maker & snacks ~ we stayed in the Beach Towers.

The view from our balcony, however, was AMAZING!

We spent a lot of time sitting in our chairs just watching the waves and people.

Most of our days were spent on inter-tubes on the Rapid River ~ just being lazy floating down the river.  We did stop a few times to eat, walk around the resort, gambling in the casino, napping or to head on over to a ride.  The COOL PART about the river is that you don’t have to leave the river to go to a ride…it’s all interconnected.

I missed out on the ride pictures because I waited until the last day to take them and it was pouring rain.

The “Bridge” in between these two towers is actually called the Michael Jackson suite.  It rents out for $5,000 a night and is booked up for the next 5 years ~ crazy, huh?!

I can’t say enough about how relaxing & peaceful it was to just walk around the resort with the music playing and checking out the waterfalls, fish and aquariums all throughout.

My favorite dining room included wall sized aquarium windows where you could watch the fish and sharks swim by as you ate.

In the afternoon, we headed over to dolphin cay to watch the dolphins swim and play.

They are hilarious during feeding time…they actually jump up on the wall and follow the staff around.

After visiting the dolphins, we would walk along the beach and check out the ocean.  I think this was the most creative spot you could just sit and relax lol.

The water is absolutely beautiful ~ it’s so blue, clear and warm.

When dinner time rolled around, we usually headed over to Marina Village where they have all the fancy Yachts and this really cute shopping center.

This turtle is made out of coconut leaves.

You all know we are dorks and have to pose in these face photo thingys 

I think it’s so funny how the little white pegs at the bottom look like his feet.

And him, well….he LOVES ice cream LOL….this was the bench outside of Ben & Jerry’s.  Can you all believe we NEVER had an ice cream our entire trip? I thought about it often but was either never near here or not hungry when we passed it.

Each day started with Venti Coconut Iced Coffees…..

Plus an egg white omelet with grilled mushrooms, onions and tomatoes.

I would’ve never thought to have mushrooms & onions like this for breakfast, but, it was delicious and something I looked forward to every day.

Plus a fruit plate with mini muffin.

I have to say the thing I MISSED the most this trip was fresh fruit. Snacks usually included a container like this shared with a big soft pretzel or nuts we brought with us.

I think my favorite casual restaurant they had was Marina Pizzeria.

They always had a ton of HUGE fresh salads you could pick from.  They are big enough to share or have as a meal.

Plus BIG containers of watermelon.

You can order pizza by the slice ~ I shared the Bahamian Jerk Spiced Chicken & Pepper pizza with the Husband.  It was tasty, but, SO SPICY!

We also made sure to eat at a Bahamian Food restaurant ~ this one was called Bimini Road.

I totally tasted that hot sauce ~ hottest sauce I’ve ever tried.  I think it might’ve even burned my tongue lol.

BEST DISH of the trip by far ~ ready for this?!?!

Fried Plantains crushed with sea salt, topped with BBQ Pulled Pork & Cheese!

I tried to order the BIG salads as my meals whenever we dined out since I knew we were eating a lot of richness.

This was a Caribbean Jerk Shrimp Salad (look how huge the shrimp are!!!) with a pineapple, papaya, mango, poppyseed dressing &  black bean taquito.

For The Husband’s Birthday dinner #2 ~ we went to the Seafire Steakhouse.

TIP ~ If you ever go to Atlantis, you can get the entire menu in the bar ~ no reservations needed!

We shared this BLT salad…..Um, yeah, it was as amazing as it looks! 

Romaine, bacon!, crispy onion straws, tomatoes, green onions, croutons, radishes….all drizzled in what they called French Dressing (I think it was more like Thousand Island).

I ordered the Jumbo Shrimp with Flamed Vodka Sauce….it came with a sweet buttery almond pilaf rice, bok choy & asparagus.

It was definitely decadent, yet, it all just melted in your mouth.

He ordered the Prime Rib (it’s HUGE!) with Steak Fries that included Spicy Jerk Mayo…..those fries were completely amazing! 

There was something about the creamy, spicy jerk sauce that made them incredible.

After a few days at the resort, we decided to venture out to check out the island.  We took the Ferry Boat (it’s $3 one way) to get to the Straw Market.

You could walk over the bridge that takes you to Paradise Island, but, it would take you about 45 minutes in the heat.

The boat ride is fun because they tell you all about the houses you are passing. 

This house belonged to one of the few doctors on the island and he gets to take a boat to work each day.  How cool would that be?!

This was Mick Jaggar’s summer house.

Yoga Retreat!

This used to be the old Club Med that was in front of the Atlantis.

Condo’s in case you needed a summer home.

Senor Frogs ~ The place to go if you want drinks by the yard!

The Straw Market is totally set up for tourists….there are a bunch of vendors that sell handmade souvenirs.

And CONCH SHELLS ~ We never did get brave enough to try “conch”….I think after seeing it at the Atlantis Aquarium, it scared us

Just when The Husband thought I had given him all his surprises….Our nephews had decorated our house in “40’s” Style for when we arrived home….His face was classic

If you are catching up, you can find out about The Husband’s 40th Birthday Celebration in these posts:

* The Biggest Secret I’ve Ever Kept

* Forbes Island ~ Where it all began

Thanks again everyone for all your great comments on my Guest Posters and patiently waiting for me to post my recap.  It was a much needed break from the computer and I am almost back on schedule.

Coming up next….My Flemming’s Steakhouse & Wine Bar review & giveaway!