My World: Bethany Beach with Jenn

I decided to take this past Friday off. I just needed a break, and spending a week in Seattle did not really count as one. Plus, Anna left that Monday and I finally had my apartment to myself. I was looking forward to sleeping in, watching morning TV shows and doing nothing. But then Jenn suggested going to Bethany Beach for a few days. This was so last minute and unplanned, but what the hell? I said yes!

The toughest part was finding a hotel. Everything was pretty much sold out (I guess people plan their beach get-aways months in advance). But then I found a room at The Addy Sea Bed & Breakfast.

Omg, did you actually believe me? A room in this Bed & Breakfast would have been $400! Instead, we stayed at the Econo Lodge (and even that was $174/night). I have to be honest: I was quite terrified of staying in this motel (?), but was pleasantly surprised. The room was clean, they had great cable channels, and even free breakfast! We were only a few minutes from the outlet mall and 15 miles to Bethany Beach.

Jenn picked me up at 10:30 am on Friday and we set out on our trip. She brought snacks, I brought tapes (Abba, Cheyenne, Olga Tanon) and directions. Surprisingly, I did pretty well as a navigator.

Our room wasn't ready at 1:30 pm, so we decided to go to the beach. But first, we needed food! We had lunch at Mango's. It was so nice to be in an air-conditioned space. The view from the windows was breathtaking, but our waiter, Cory, was a bit on the slow side. Being near the water we both ordered seafood: Jenn had a crab cake sandwich and I had a seared yellow tuna sandwich: both pretty good.

And then we hit the beach! Lucky for me, it wasn't super hot, but I still applied plenty of sunblock: I don't get tan: I get burned! We walked in the water, and then I went back to my chair and Jenn went for a swim.

A couple of times it looked like it might rain, but the weather remained beautiful (at least on Friday).

The beach was not only populated by families, but also by these grasshoppers. They completely freaked me out. But all the nearby children had a blast putting them on their arms or taking their arms and legs off!

1st picture: my shadow (my arms are not short: I'm just holding my camera); 2nd picture: Jenn: happy as a fish in the water

I just love a shot of these houses and the sky. Can you just imagine having a vacation house there?

One thing that I like about having Jenn as a friend, is that she's always ready to eat (just like me). After checking into our hotel and changing (and watching Project Runway), we drove to a very busy Big Fish Grill. The place was packed, so we knew the food was going to be great. While waiting outside I overheard one of the men telling his friends about his wife's favorite dish: pecan crusted halibut with mashed potatoes. I decided that's exactly what I was going to order.

Margaritas ordered, smoked salmon dip tried, our food arrived! It was amazing. My pecan crusted halibut came with mashed potatoes and creamy spinach and it was absolutely delicious. Two people could have shared that one dish, but I was a trooper and finished the whole thing by myself :)

Jenn had linguine with a variety of seafood and white sauce. The food was amazing, the service was amazing; the only sad part: no room for dessert.

Decorations in the Big Fish Grill (The pictures of the food did not turn out too well because it was quite dark inside)

Next morning it thundered and rained. Jenn was disappointed because it looked like there would not be another day at the beach. I was slightly pleased because it meant we could go shopping! But first we had complimentary breakfast at the hotel: again, surprisingly good.

Two hours of shopping under our belts and some purchases made, the sun was out and we were hungry! We decided to stop at the Ed's Chicken & Crabs. It's this shack on the side of a street, but the food was great: Jenn and I shared their seafood "platter" with corn, coleslaw and an order of cheesy fries! I think I worked off about 10 calories by trying to get the crab out of its shell with the hammer :)

Right before hitting the beach, we stopped by and got icecream at Maureen's Ice Cream and Dessert Shop. Below is the children's sized scoop of icecream for $2.50! Best deal ever.