Rae La Soul

Right now, my son is showing me his latest wrestling moved that he has remixed with moves of his own. He’s using the sofa in my bedroom to give him a little leverage to perform it. I’d usually fuss and suggest he’d find something to do than tear up my stuff, like my grandma used to do, but my mind has drifted. Drifted back to last weekend that I spent in another country. I didn’t plan it. I was just sitting at my desk one day lurking the map online and found it. Grand Cayman.

I decided to stay in West Bay — an area mostly populated by locals and mostly shunned by the tourists and vacationers. I wanted to get a chance to live as a local would for the 72 hours that I would be a Caymanian. Although away from the heavily populated area known as Georgetown, West Bay still had a lot to offer when it came to food and activities.

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Grand Cayman was so peaceful. And the sunrises were peaceful as well.. and extremely gorgeous. I think my favorite part was hearing all of the roosters crowing in the mornings. That gave a new meaning to the saying “Up with the roosters.” as my grandmother would say. In GC, they generally roam around freely along with iguanas and dogs. Sunrises on the beach were pretty dope too.

There were intermittent rainshowers while I was there. They were tranquil showers, sort of like the ones I remember my mom asking God to bless her garden with when the summers were extremely hot. I appreciated them. Maybe because they reminded me of my mother. Or because the sun shone while the showers occurred. Or perhaps because after every shower, there was a rainbow. I’m not sure how often this happens, but I’m grateful I got to experience it the entire time I was there.

But I think what was even more amazing to see were the sunsets. It brought the perfect end to the day. I was fortunate enough to be able to view the sunset while on the water. I’m not sure what I love so much about being around water, but I am literally drawn to it. I feel as if I’m humbled in a way that I’m not sure I can explain. And that feeling is something I hold in great regard.

A mind that is stretched by a new experience can never go back to its old dimensions.” – Oliver Wendell Holmes

It was a short, but fulfilling getaway spent on a small island filled with so much culture and heritage every direction there is to look. This was my first time traveling out of the country alone, but it was something I felt I needed to do. Something I wanted to do. I guess a part of me just really didn’t feel like scrolling through my contacts and wasting time soliciting travel partners who always pull out in the end. I wasn’t for it. In the future I’d love to bring my kids here. I think it’s perfect for their first international experience. Once my daughter gets over her fear of planes. :Sigh:

I’ll put together a travel guide on how to spend a weekend in Grand Cayman soon enough, but for right now, I’m still in reminiscent mode. This trip really did something to me. Perhaps it was the fact that traveling solo removed so much fear from so many different aspects of my life and replaced the void with confidence. Confidence that enforces me to rely on myself. To trust myself. To just go with the flow and go. I see so many more solo trips in my future it’s unreal.