A Little Honeymoon

The essence of pleasure is spontaneity -Germaine Greer

It wasn't our first, and we didn't have the luxury of time. But, our honeymoon, as brief and spontaneous. would prove to be the sweetest, and most memorable. But, we are hopeless romantics, and so for us, we could have been anywhere after our dream wedding, in some little dingy motel, and we would have felt like we were honeymooning in a million dollar suite.

Duty called us back to return home, and we had barely three days for a 'window' must have, once in a lifetime tradional honeymoon, to go someplace, enroute to our home then, North Carolina. Masters of improvisation that we always thought ourselves to be, we were not going to miss out on a chance to 'sneak' a trip 'anywhere', for the books, to call our honeymoon. Silly perhaps, a feat no less. We were excited to find that our flight could take us to our favorite city, San Francisco. Perfect we thought. It was thirty years ago when we were last there, together. To return meant to re-live our youth, the beautiful memories we have made, and to be able make new ones. But, instead of staying in the same hotel which still stood in the same place, we would try something more quaint. Adventurers that we are, we were raring to explore new places.

We were in luck at the time of our travel, it wasn't peak season. We drove the coastline to Point Reyes Station, approximately 45 miles north of San Francisco off Highway 1 along the west coast of California, and there was vacancy at "One Mesa". It would be our love nest for the next three days. It was a charming cottage with a single bedroom, with a private bath, a fully equipped kitchen, and living and dining area. It overlooked a garden like the one artist Monet would have painted. Inside was Provincial colors of French blue and ochre, with decorations of mixes of white washed antiques, local arts, that created an atmosphere of French country charm. It had a stained glass door, and we were greeted by Van Gogh's cheerful Sunflowers and a French styled day double-twin trundle bed and hand-woven Moroccan carpet. Our bedroom was wonderfully cozy with vivid French blue, and we had an inviting down comforter atop a queen size bed.

"When love is not madness, it is not love"-.Pedro Calderon de la Barca

You are lucky if you got the honeymoon you dreamed of. Some have had to wait due to a variety of reasons. Others just need to have a semblance of a honeymoon to keep the flames of marriage burning. It doesn't have to cost you a ball. You just may have to be creative to make it happen and make it memorable. Either way, if you decide to do it, fly somewhere, or just hop to another town, (hire a nanny for a couple of days), here are a few ideas.

1. Learn some massage techniques. Maybe buy a book to help you and read it on your way to your honeymoon. In fact, both you and your partner should get into it. That's what togetherness is all about.

2 Get some aromatherapeutic mood massage oils, like Lavender, Jasmine and Patchouli.

3 Take along your favorite music and have it playing softly in the room.

4 Have candles to help create mood. The soft flickering glow has always been the main point of romance. You can arrange with the hotel where you will be staying to order and place the candles in your room

5 Bring the right (ok, sexy) lingerie, even if you may not need it.

6 Wear your spouse's favorite perfume or cologne, if that's all you plan to wear.

7 Have bubblies - for the bath and for sipping in the bath. This is one event that you may never be able to do again, so don't compromise on quality. You want to have the finest French champagne (California Champagne is good too) and the best bubble bath

8 Enjoy a romantic candlelit dinner, if you can, on the balcony of your hotel room and continue with some fireworks for some excitement.

9 Stay-in one evening, watch a romantic movie and just cuddle up.

10 Take a long beach stroll at sunset and have the hotel set up a picnic for you on the sand with blankets, candles and champagne.

11 Hire a twin bicycle, or drive around town - stop at the local markets and buy fresh flowers and fruit then find a peaceful place where the two of you can just enjoy each others company.

12 Go for a hike in a wooded area; take along a picnic of strawberries and cream, and wine for a private toast to your marriage.

13 Have the hotel fill your room with fresh fragrant flowers like Roses, Hyacinths or Gardenias every time you smell those flowers you will remember your honeymoon for the rest of your life.

14 Don't forget to have a camera (and video) at hand at all times - capture unexpected moments along the way, and record them forever.

15 Wake up extra early just to watch the sun rise together - especially if you have a spectacular view like rolling hills or the ocean.

16. Say "I love you" a million times, and get used to telling each other how much you esteem your partner.

17. Keep a journal of your honeymoon, your advenrture, and make sure to bring back a souvenir. a token you found together.

Anyone can be passionate, but it takes real lovers to be silly.-Rose Franken

You know you're in love when you don't want to fall asleep because reality is finally better than your dreams. Dr. Seuss