Declan was up early and running along the beach. I read my book for a while and then joined him for a walk up the river to the waterfall. It was still in the shade, but we swam nevertheless in the tranquil pool, diving in from the rocks.
Sunlight gradually crept into the valley, and we returned to town for breakfast at 09:00 hrs. We were joined by Chris and were all side-tracked by the waitress’s ample breasts. We went on to stroll across the series of beaches to the north.
We crossed young volcanic rock and beaches composed almost entirely of shells. The forest inland on our left offered the only shelter from the blazing hot sun. We gambolled in the surf and then sat in the shade of the palm trees. The gorgeous beach was practically deserted. It was like the set of the Bounty advert, the chocolate bar which offered us the taste of paradise in 1988.
The Bounty bar was introduced in the UK by Mars Inc. in 1951. It consists of a coconut filling surrounded by chocolate, which was originally just milk chocolate but with a dark chocolate version introduced later. The 'taste of paradise' slogan has been used since at least the 1980s and adverts usually involve a lot of sandy beaches, palm trees and tropical islands.
We tried to get some coconuts, with no success, by throwing sticks and by trying to climb the palm tree trunks Indian fashion. An ox cart pulled by two healthy looking beasts crossed the long stretch of Playa Grande heading for an unknown destination.
On the way back we stopped at Patricia’s (a Dutch lady) for diluted grapefruit juice and a delicious natural ice cream made from a frozen puree of banana, coconut and blackcurrants. Our next stop was Chico’s Bar which was a relief from the hot sun and sand which burned our feet.
We dozed on our beds for what little remained of the afternoon and in the evening, we tried the third restaurant in town. This was called The Happy Fish or something similar. The atmosphere was that of an expensive restaurant and the music was jazz sung by Billie Holiday.
Eleanora Fagan (April 7, 1915 – July 17, 1959), known professionally as Billie Holiday, was an American jazz and swing music singer. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and music partner Lester Young, Holiday had an innovative influence on jazz music and pop singing. Her vocal style, strongly inspired by jazz instrumentalists, pioneered a new way of manipulating phrasing and tempo. She was known for her vocal delivery and improvisational skills.
We drank lemon juice and ate exquisite conch. Afterwards we sat in the shadow of the Montezuma Hotel Bar and watched the stars and the sea. We soon moved on to the balcony outside Chris’s room drinking whisky and water from our plastic water bottles and listening to snatches of classical music on Chris’s Walkman (Vivaldi’s Four Seasons).
The Four Seasons (Italian: Le quattro stagioni) is a group of four violin concertos by Italian composer Antonio Vivaldi, each of which gives musical expression to a season of the year. These were composed around 1718−1720, when Vivaldi was the court chapel master in Mantua.
The moon started off as a nasty yellow orb on the horizon which slowly rose and went white, casting a white path across the sea towards us. We were all washed out and tired by todays grilling by the sun, so we went to bed, our skin tingling, at 22:00 hrs.
A shriek from Declan started a brief war against invading cockroaches. We repelled them with ease. They were probably attracted by the strong smell of Declan’s coconut oil which he was using as suntanning oil.
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