Have you looked at yourself and screamed? Well, do I have a story for you.
@CaroleeKaufold (1853)
United States
April 18, 2007 8:46pm CST
August 1992, Thom and I decided to take a quick trip to Club Med Cancun. Thom and I left New York on Sunday, and stayed over night in Houston. That was because I wanted to spend a good part of Monday at Club Med. I didn't want to miss a minute on the beach.
We got to Cancun about 10:30am and went straight to the Club Med property. The beach at Club Med is the best one in Canucn. It is at the end of the curve of the beach and many of the other hotels go on around the curve. Club Med must have been one of the first hotels built in Cancun, before it was the place to go. The ocean gently kisses the shore at that point, while just a few hotels down the beach have the red caution flag out, because the surf gets rougher.
Club Med is know as the "I'll meet you at the beach and bar" kind of resort. There is so much to do, and the programs are filled with excitement and fun. But the room are BASIC. When we got to our room, well, it was standard. On the left there was an open area for the sink and beyond that was a toilet and shower-no door. On the right, was shelves, a safe and 4 hangers -- no door. Further in the room, on the left, was 2 twin beds divided by a small night table. On the right side was another twin bed against the wall that had a large mirror on it. The last part of the room was 2 steps down and had a sliding glass door that opened to a tinny balcony.
From the balcony you could see the beautiful ocean, if you bent 15 degrees, turned your head 4 degrees and didn't sneeze. LOL. Well, we hit the beach as soon as we put our stuff in the shelves, in the safe and on the 4 hangers. My thing to do is just sit in a lounge chair, as close to the water and dream about being in Bermuda. Thom's thing is to take a walk and see the other hotels. We both had bottles of water and we were ready to be beached.
About an hour later, 2 ladies tapped me on the shoulder and said they thought I better get under a tree, as I was getting red. With their help I moved my chair back and told them thanks. But I didn't dare tell them I was a travel agent and should have been following my own advice and brought sun tan lotion. After a long while Thom came back and he was looking very tan, and very tired. We returned to our basic room and wanted to take a much needed nap.
Thom was looking at me, but he figured he better keep his mouth closed. (27 years of marriage, you know). We soon found out that the air conditioner was not working and they didn't have any fans or other rooms. We had to take towels to bed because we were really sweating. Thom hit the bed and was asleep before I had a chance to complain. (He also knew, I would be complaining in short time.)
I tried the bed next to him, too hot. No breeze there. I tried the one on the right wall, nope to hot there too. I opened the sliding door, only heat came through. I put papers near the air condition hoping for a down draft. The room was getting darker and I was twisting and turning. Like a Chuck Berry song. I was using the towel like I just got out of the shower. I finally fell asleep. Thom got up to get ready for dinner, and turned on the light. I opened my eyes and screamed. Across from me, was puffy eyed, red face person with a towel around their head. Thom ran into the room to see what was happening, and dropped on the floor laughing.
I was looking at myself in the mirror on wall next to the bed. I was wrapped in the towel, my face and my eyes were swollen for the heat and the sun. I couldn't leave the room for dinner. And never got to the beach again. I did get out of the room again, to take the taxi back to the airport on Thursday.
Oh, by the way, Thom had a good time. So did Laura! It was his dream vacation. He got to walk, snorkel and tan. I got to peel and learn how to sleep on a small bed looking at myself.
6 people like this
12 responses
@sensesfail (2251)
• India
19 Apr 07
Well i wasn't lucky enough to have such an experience as this, my brother was lucky though.
we once got these comb and trim your hair things.All you got to do is just comb your hair and this brush has blades embedded in it which trims your hair.I tried the brsuh first and it worked fine for me cuz i did it myself.My brother on seeing this thought that i was pretty good at it or something that he asked me to do it for him.
I considered it an honor to do it and started doing it.Suddenly things went way outta control that i was manipulated and was not able do what i wanted to.Things went worse and i tried to cover it as far as possible but it just made things worse.I never told him a word about it until he had a look at it himself.He did scream his head off and it was so funny.Everyone who looked at him asked him what went wrong.lol.
1 person likes this
@retardedrugrat (4791)
• Canada
19 Apr 07
LOL. Your story reminds me of when I first flew out to Canada for three weeks when I first met my partner in person (we met online)
He worked at a park run by his Dad. It was a private park for employees of a huge company called Magna. It's a big place, three baseball diamonds, a huge lake with little jetties and everything. Just beautiful. Anyway ...
My first full day there, I got dressed in shorts and a vest top with tiny thin straps, because I figured it would get warmer during the day.
The sun did come out, but because there were clouds too, I figured I'd be okay. I even said to my partner that I didn't think I'd get a tan, and he agreed lol. He said that the sun wasn't out long enough to heat everything up. *Rolls eyes*
6pm that evening, he finished work and we headed back to his parents home which is right next to the park. Within an hour of arriving home, I was as red as a lobster. My face was swollen, my arms and legs were bright red and sore. I was so badly burnt that my partner had to jump in the shower with me and wash my hair because I couldn't lift up my arms to do it myself.
My partner couldn't stop laughing and his Dad caught sight of me later that evening and made a sympathetic face LOL. 3 days later, my face started peeling, followed in short order by the rest of me. I was NOT allowed outdoors for the rest of my stay with being liberally coated in sunblock. It was a painful lesson, but a lesson learned nonetheless LOL.
@emeraldisle (13139)
• United States
19 Apr 07
Well I didn't scream but I wanted to. Oh yes I know that type of burning. I feel with you for that one. The worst one I had my whole face became one big blister. However the one time I came down to Florida I was the ripe old age of 9 and boy was that vacation similar to yours.
We arrived down here and I spent the whole day in the pool. Now since I'm fair skinned and freckled I did wear a t-shirt over my suit. It didn't help. By that night I was so sick. My mom put an ice cube on my back and it actually sizzled. I spent the whole vacation in the room. I was not only burnt (and I got blisters from it) but I also had sun poisoning. I ended up very sick for several days and I couldn't even go to the local Easter Egg hunt because I was too miserable. Not the greatest of ways to spend your vacation but it's really boring to a kid.
I do feel for you and I can just imagine how miserable that trip was for you especially when the others had so much fun. Hopefully next time you'll be smarter and use lotion. I wasn't and I did get other burns and sun poisoning and heat stroke...yeah I don't learn quickly with some things. Now I avoid the sun.
@Shaun72 (15959)
• Palatka, Florida
19 Apr 07
Aww that had to of been awful. I did a couple of years ago.My eyes went crossed. was a side effect of having multiple sclrosis. After having 3 steriods solomedreals. Or i.v. steriods. My eyes went back to normal. Thank God. I was scared that they would stay that way.
1 person likes this
@aprilgrl (4460)
• United States
19 Apr 07
Oh my gosh that has to be very painful. I did that once and I couldn't move or walk so I had to stay in bed and never did that again. As for your husband he sounds like mine he won't say anything and he knows he beeter keeps his mouth shut at times.LOL at least you didn't get a heat stroke just a sunburn ouch.
1 person likes this
@lilaclady (28207)
• Australia
19 Apr 07
Oh dear, you brought back a lot of memories, when I was young as soon as the summer started out we would go and torture our bodies so we can have a tan for the summer, many times we would stay out too long and look like lobsters, anything for a tan, I can't believe how stupid we were, common sense should have told us that burning your skin would do damage....thank heavens at least to day people are told that it is bad but I guess many don't want to listen...today i think a nice pale skin looks so nice... how we change...
@rx4life (1930)
• United States
19 Apr 07
I feel your pain...I had a really bad burn when I was in high school ( approximately 100 years ago) and I couldn't walk ( it was on my feet too), couldn't sit ( 'cause I 'd have to bend my legs at the hip)couldn't sleep ( because I had "done" both sides)..it made just about everything in life next to impossible to do...and then the peeling...I think I peeled until I graduated...but the effects were long enough lasting that I never did it again ( not like that, anyway)... so the painful lesson is one well remembered...and my brother still remembers my lovely face and it's swollen lids!!!!
1 person likes this
@liranlgo (5752)
• Israel
20 Apr 07
Carolee a very very good post you wrote here, and i am so sorry that you had to have this nightmare sun burn at your vacation. I must admit that you wrote it so well, that even though i was sad for you, i just kept on laughing, your humorous writing here is wonderful, the first time i smiled here, was when you wrote: My thing to do is just sit in a lounge chair, as close to the water and dream about being in Bermuda. i was laughing because my dream is to be in cancun, and here you sit on this fantasy island of mine and dream about another dream. Lol.
I know that if i had to go through what you had, i probably cry my whole vacation and make everybody crazy (and believe me i am not a person that tends to cry), next time you go to a vacation, you should tell all of us mylotters, and we will make sure that your hotel does have an air condition in the room, and that it is not broken or anything, and that you will take at least two tube of sun lotion. I had tears in my eyes from laughing when you described yourself at the end of the story in the mirror. I am sorry, but that was funny. Keep on with the good stories:)
@fpd1955 (2074)
• United States
19 Apr 07
What a horrible way to spend your vacation. Talk about NOT practicing what you preach, as far a using suntan lotion. I bet you never go out in the sun without it now. Poor woman, it had to have really hurt you. I am really sorry.
I looked at myself in the mirror and screamed when I was 14 years old. I have naturally staight, yet wavy hair. It was about mid shoulder length, when Mom decided I should have a perm for my school picture in my Freshman year of High School. I pouted the whole way to the hairdresser. This is why I had a nickname of Pocahontas, I pouted a lot back then. Now, I am not sure why they called me Pocahontas. Did Pocahontas pout? I refused to look at my hair at the hairdresser, in case I liked it, I did not want Mom to know that I did. Well, guess what? I hated it. I screamed and cried real hard when I looked at myself in the mirror. Not only did my hair get cut, but I thought I looked like a brillo pad! How was my softball cap going to fit on my head? The only good thing about it was when I went swimming. It dried without having to be styled and blown dry.
1 person likes this
@CaroleeKaufold (1853)
• United States
19 Apr 07
I am sorry that the story didn't hold you interest long enough