The downside of vacations

Wow, did I have a great time in Mexico! We stayed at a fantastic all-inclusive resort in Playa Del Carmen, and I will SO be going back! I didn't do much of anything (no visiting ruins or snorkeling and the like), and it was just what I needed - several solid days of downtime. But I would like to go back sometime and do those things. We were all ready to go back when our time was up, though. Or at least I thought I was ready.

The downside of getting away is having to come back and face all your day-to-day stuff, like work and errands. Worse yet, stuff has built up while you were gone, so now you've got a bunch of stuff instead of just your usual stuff, which you already needed a break from. But oh well. I'm glad I went. :)

My busy-ness getting ready to go and coming back, though, has put me way behind on my TAR recaps! Let's do a two-fer here and talk about the last two weeks!

Okay, last week they started with the flight to Muscat and that enormous incense burner. Everyone got caught up, but Ray and Yolanda showed some signs of splintering.

The SUV drive across the flooded riverbeds was interesting. The local who helped them cross was great, and it was fun watching the Hippies and the Frats try and decide who would cross first. "You go." "Oh, no you go." "Oh, you were here first, you go." I wish the Frats had flooded out, but I figured they wouldn't, because if the river had been impassable, nobody would've been able to cross, which would've slowed the race down considerably. The producers had to know it was passable to have routed the teams there.

Detour: Camel or Watch Tower. I would've picked Watch Tower because I think camels are hard to work with and I'd be afraid of dropping one and hurting it. I was suprised how many people picked Watch Tower, though, since it was the luck one. Mojo switched tasks, which always costs you time. The Frats made me happy by getting lost and losing time.

Roadblock: Dig for Shuwa. I probably could've done this, but if you didn't find something fairly quickly, it seemed like you got pretty exhuasted. Monica's whining I could've done without, though. Just do the task, Mo. The later teams also seemed to have an advantage over the first teams since they could avoid the mounds that had already been dug into. The lamb sounded good, too. Boy, did my heart go out to BJ. He was so exhausted, and that's one of those luck tasks - you just have to happen upon the right mound. Yolanda cracked me up when she muttered about Ray's mama having a pattern and said, "You tell 'em BJ" when Tyler was cheerleading and BJ got irritated. I think Yolie had done had enough at that part of the day.

Pit Stop: Fran and Barry, you rock! I'm so happy for them. I never thought they'd get this far, and now they're in first place! And they won a trip to Rome. Awesome. They deserve it. And FINALLY a non-elimination round! And what perfect timing - just in time to save my hippies. :)

This week.

Okay, my hippies start out with no money or possessions. Good guys Fran and Barry and Ray and Yolanda left them some cashola, but Mojo and the Frats not suprisingly refused. Because they are awesome and fearless, my boys picked up a Bedouin hitchiker who totally hooked them up with gas and food. I gotta admit, I wouldn't have been picking up the hitchhiker. I'm a small, fearful woman who wouldn't be picking up strangers in an Arab land. Good for the hippies for being so open, though! And how fun was it for me to see them board that plane to the dismay of Mojo and the Frats?? Mojo has really been vocal about not liking the Hippies lately. What's that about?

Perth, Australia. I can't tell how I'd feel about a hostel. They just sound dirty. And aren't you sometimes in a room with strangers? I can't see myself actually sleeping in a room with strangers, hoping no one would steal my backpack. And Fran and Barry's room - "The Pleasure Dome." I'm pretty sure I'd be unable to sleep in that room - too many images and not enough confidence the sheets were clean.

Rottnest Island. That biking would've been tiring. Detour: Sand and Sea. I'd have gone with Sand on this one - avoid the luck factor of having to find the right crayfish trap. Not to mention, I might get wiggy and drop the crayfish. The beach brushing was physical, though. No discounting that. And I loved how Mojo screwed up and then complained about their "luck." Uh-uh, Joseph. It's called reading the clue - nothing to do with luck.

Fremantle Prison. It bit that Fran and Barry's taxi didn't show. Did you hear Joseph tell Barry on the ferry that he was taking the first taxi he saw, no matter whose it was, though? Punk. He knows he's a punk, too, b/c he made a point of saying how the cab they took was in their name so Barry couldn't say they stole it. So what? You *would have* so you're still a punk. I loved Jeremy getting frustrated when he couldn't find the tunnels a the prison. If the Frats were Rob from a few seasons ago, they would've bribed MoJo's cab driver and stolen their cab. Just something that occurred to me when I saw that scene.

Pit Stop: You won't believe this, but I was actually glad to see the Frats win the leg over MoJo. MoJo is seriously on my nerves lately. They're jerks. I was sad to see Fran and Barry go down, though. They got so much farther than I thought they would. It was a good run, and they're a great couple.