Some time in 2003 I decided to head back to school for Fashion Design and Merchandising. While there I met and made lasting friendships with a group of 7 girls. In 2005 we decided to celebrate our graduation with a trip to Nassau, Bahamas.
I don't remember the amount we paid for this trip (I think it was around $850, flight & hotel), it wasn't a whole lot. My friend booked us through Travelocity. This was a short 4 or 5 day getaway.
We arrived in the Bahamas in the evening, it was raining and the sun was beginning to set. After checking in at the Nassau Beach Hotel, we found that our rooms were on the lower level (AKA basement). I remember walking through a hallway door with a cracked window. We made jokes about it looking like the perfect place to commit a crime. There were 2 of us to a room, our 7th friend hadn't yet arrived. Our rooms were dark, a little dank and with a number of plumbing issues. In any case, we showered and got dressed for dinner.
By this time it was dark and pouring outside. We crossed the grounds of the resort shrieking with umbrellas and arms covering our heads. Slightly damp from the rain we arrived at the building that housed the various restaurants. Being that we were all on a tight budget we searched the menus on the window (mainly looking at prices). Everything seemed pricey so we decided on a steak house.
Once seated, we perused the menu trying to decide what we wanted to eat and how many drinks we would order since we were splitting the check evenly. All I remember seeing was dollar signs next to every meal I considered. Damn, it wasn't going to be easy.
When the waitress came over to take our order she came with a bottle of champagne in a bucket of ice. We didn't order that. She gestures over her shoulder to 2 gentlemen at another table. "It's from them", she says. One of the guys is a young, light brown skin man with a round face and short curly black hair. The other man was an older, white haired Caucasian guy with glasses. Well okay then. We all smiled and said "thank you". The waitress then adds, "he says your meals are covered. Order whatever you like." By this time, I'm sure you know our eyes were as wide as saucers. Did we hear that correctly? Our meals are covered? As in paid for?
Some of us stuck to what we were originally planning to order just in case it was a fluke. I stuck with the grilled chicken, I could still afford that if the dudes dipped out on us. Others went all out with the surf and turf meals. Our dinner totaled somewhere around $600. They paid.
After dinner, "T" (as I'll refer to the young man as) asked us about our plans for the evening. We had none. He told us he had a limo waiting outside to take us to Atlantis (Atlantis is a huge resort/casino on the island). By now, my antenna is all the way up. Let me step back and talk about myself for a minute here. I'm a very careful, PARANOID individual. I don't trust easily - especially not 2 strange men who just randomly spent $600 on us. My friends were down, and of course I went along with them. I figured there's safety in numbers, right? Besides, what was I going to do if I didn't go with them? Nothing.
To be continued!