A little spot of cloudy weather-pros and cons of all inclusives

It seldom gets cloudy on these Canary Islands where the canaries have not yet dared to make an appearance.  Taking advantage of the lack of sun to reflect on our experience here thus far and the pros and cons of all inclusive travel.

This is our second stab at an all inclusive vacation.  Our first attempt was also for two weeks in Varadero, Cuba at what was, ostensibly, a 3 star resort but turned out to be more of a no star resort.  In Cuba if you want a modicum of service you need to go 4 stars, better yet 5 stars if you can afford it.  Those of of you who have read my travel blog on Cuba know that it wasn't an entirely satisfactory experience, both food and accommodation were sub par only the lovely Caribbean waters made up for the hassle.

The Canaries specifically this island called Fuerteventura is our second experience for the same amount of time.  It's not as disappointing as Cuba but it's not entirely wonderful either.  This time the food is plentiful and somewhat appetizing although I haven't felt super hungry.  Meals seem to be expedited fairly fast.  I'm mostly appalled at the amount of food wasted by me by everybody else.  Try something out if you don't like it leave it to the side a waiter comes and swoops it up, into the garbage it goes.  This is repeated many times over for every meal.  Last night I went into the dining room once dinner was over to check how much food was left.  It was a bit surreal actually, I know they recycle some of it but not all can be recycled and a lot of it ends up being dumped.  We are so spoiled in the West, it's the price we have to pay in so-called societies of affluence although right now wherever there is money food is being squandered and wasted not just here.

That's one drawback of all inclusives, hard to know how much food to prepare so there's always too much.  The room we're in is perfectly serviceable.  It's not total luxury, more pedestrian comfort than anything else.  It's got the required bells and whistles but it's not like the rooms they advertise on T.V. for Sandals, Sandals appears to be the ultimate in all exclusive luxuries, I write this tongue in cheek of course never having been there myself.  In terms of what a four star offers there is a level of so-called entertainment.  The kids are well taken care of but 70% of the tourists are retirees, difficult to get them motivated in terms of physical exercise.  Furthermore there's no way anyone would be likely to engage in any sort of water sport, the water in both outdoor pools is so frigid it took my breath away when I dove in.  Enough to give you a heart attack therefore there is never anybody in the pool.  I do all my swimming in the indoor pool which is only slightly heated.  If you want to exercise there is morning pilates, there is also a group class before lunch and exercise machines.  Some people are playing "petanque" today and I did find a squash/volleyball court upstairs.  Might try some squash today.  In the evening there is a meeting place/theater where one can enjoy the drink of the evening usually very light on the booze but heavy on color.  Many do come back after dinner to enjoy a spot of disco dancing needless to say hell will freeze over before we indulge, significant other not a huge fan.

I'm starting to think that these all inclusive vacations are what I would term generic.  They basically


always offer the same things regardless of what country you're in with some adjustments to quality here and there depending on the star rating.  Of course there are always the side excursions to take advantage of with the euro costing us so much a side trip can easily cost us $200.00.  We are doing the tour of the island one and that cost 100 euros which is still $150.00 with our lousy petro dollar, should be all right, will give us a good overview of Fuerteventura where frankly there isn't that much to see.  The island is super dry filled with either black volcanic pebbles or boulders.  Even the yellow sand beach is mixed with black volcanic powder.  The island can't deny it's violent origin. This is probably the last all inclusive I will book.  Perhaps in the early days of Club Med. when all inclusives were a novelty and really put out for its customers but now they're a dime a dozen. Furthermore I prefer a little difficulty with my traveling something to challenge even if it's only booking a trip on a bus in the language of the country.  There is the satisfaction of never having to worry about one's basic needs while on vacation and I don't blame people for wanting, desiring that level of comfort and satisfaction, it's not something I necessarily enjoy.

Regarding the beach it's not that long or wide.  Parts of it have been eroded by the constant pounding of the surf and wind.  We have seen much nicer beaches over the course of all our travels.  Actually it's hard to beat Mexico in terms of beaches and warm waters.  Here you really have to force yourself to go in and since it's always windy outside it's never that tempting.  The people who do go in on a regular basis are the German tourists fans of nudism.  Apparently this area is famous for that.  I had the "chance" to be in the water with some of them.  They're certainly a hearty bunch.  Being so close and personal I was able to observe that most of them male and female appear to shave their nether regions,yes no grey bits allowed and since they're mostly all over 50 I can see that it would be a plus.  After all they want to put their best "foot" forward..haha well I found out something new I really had not been aware of that.  Speaking of nationalities we still have not "bonded" with any French people although we have made some eye contact and said a few "bonjour" to people we habitually see.  I can tell it's going to be a long drawn out process vacation will be over and we won't even have shared a comment ca va. LOL  Have to say the French women are always very smartly dressed especially around dinner time, ditto for the men.  They do go that extra mile to look attractive with the perfume and the jaunty scarves knotted in just the right French way.  Actually feeling sad right now, should not joke about the French after what happened at Charlie Hebdo but freedom of speech cannot and will not be silenced.  JE SUIS CHARLIE. Hope you enjoy this latest blog, know that my blogs are not exactly the typical travel blog but hey that's the way I roll.