100 Connections

How many connections can and an all female Throuple make on a single vacation?

Three American girls can joke about making "love connections" on an international vacation.  What woman doesn't want a man with a sexy foreign accent to whisper sweet nothings in her ear? 

Take your pick, a romantic Italian, a Greek God or a Charismatic Croatian, any may show what a true lover is all about.

We all secretly desire this, especially if our boring American men rather watch a sports game than tell us how beautiful and sexy we are.

However, once on this international adventure, three American women realized, it's not only about the "romantic connections," but all the other connections that can be made. 

There are so many interesting and intriguing people that cross our paths, ultimately you begin to realize the connections are limitless. 

I decided to prove this and the three of us kept mental track of our one on one connections while we were on vacation.  Early into the trip I made the decision I would write "The Connection" blog, which soon morphed into "100 Connections." 

Some connections were strong and made again and again. Others were brief encounters.  Many had a story.  A funny story. I also have great photos which I will add when I arrive home and I will repost the link when completed.

These connections all began over a week ago at the Daytona Beach Airport.

1. Uber to Daytona Airport.  "I have a big hole you can throw those in." He said while taking our bags and opening his very large trunk. As "I want to feel the heat with somebody" blasts on the radio.

2. Our Delta check in agent.  He gave us
2lbs for free on our over sized bag and moved our seats together "I'm pulling double duty...see ya ladies the gate." He informed us with a smile. 

3. The girl that let Lisa sit in her seat next to me.  Three ladies sitting all together on our Italy/Greece adventure.

4. The dude behind Lisa who wouldn't let her move her seat back and held it, when she and I tried to push our seats backs.  Lisa almost started a brawl on the airplane. 

5.  The guy at the rooftop hotel infinity pool in Venice. Eye contact was made, followed by a huge smile.

6/7. The bartenders, Victor and Enrique, at the roof top bar.  They offered up wine samples from an earlier event.

8/9. The intimidating security bouncers at the hotel..... what happens when two of three drunk girls, try to inconspicuously take an extra large bottle of Champagne from a bathroom, wedding cabinet?...anyone? Don't let those security cameras fool you! Marriott is no joke.  Lucky for us connections #16/17 were there to help save face.  (My numerology is a tad out of order) 

10/11. Neena and Don on the Venice Wine tour. (MI connection #1 & #2)  They were our favorite married couple.  Ironically, they were also on our cruise.  We had a lot of really cool chance encounters with them.  Dinner, drinks and lots of laughs. Coolest married couple ever.  It is amazing the things a 20 year old married couple will tell a few "30something" year old girls.

Neena & Don
Coolest married couple! 

Neena on far left.
Connection 36, Noelle, on far right

Our memories with these two
Spread far and wide.
Loved These two! 

12.  Tina, another women on the Venice wine tour.  She had an ex she met on Bumble who was a serial cheater.  He had 7 other women he dated during his 2 year relationship. Tina became friends with his ex-girlfriend after they both dumped his sorry ass.  Most delightful story I have heard in a long while.

13.  Alex the bartender in Venice at the end of our wine tour.  He had very nice words for the "American Beauties."  He flirted with all of us. An on going theme for this trip.

14. Lady on Hotel boat.  She and I bonded over 3 little girls, sitting across from us, all dressed alike. So well behaved. She and I happen to have  all boys, the little girls were a novelty.

15. Italian Bumble connection.  Need I say more?  Apparently, I am a hot commodity on the Italian dating apps.  My Bumble connection met all three of us, and than he and I had an unofficial date.  Although, he was younger, he was very much a gentleman.  Sweet nothings were whispered in my ear.  I very much enjoyed every last bit of that and his beautiful piercing blue eyes.  The most intriguing part is we were forced to communicate via our phone translators, his English limited. It forced us to connect on a brand new level.  It was by far the coolest date I have been on.

16/17. Canadian Couple we drank Champagne with at the rooftop bar.  Not only were they immensely entertaining and engaging, but they "got" us.  We shared a lot.  Including some of my blog "highlights."  ie: Legs4Ladies.  This was their rendition below.

Taking Legs 4 Ladies to an entire new level!

17.  The smokin' hot boat driver on the way to the cruise.  He was probably the hottest Italian to cross our path.  I think we would have skipped the cruise to extend our hot boat ride.

The First Class Boat ride that keeps on giving!

18.  The "Time out" concierge dude.  We finally get on the cruise ship and one question about our key cards and room number gets us seated in "Time Out."  He didn't help us, but we obediently sat in time out until we worked things out ourselves.

18/19.  Hot tub connections #1 & #2, comedic couple. "Is this the other pool?" The hot tub they were in was the "Adult pool" They were from Madison, WI. I reconnected with them later on in the cruise at the Sushi bar.  Darcy & Theresa were on their honeymoon.  I took their numbers.  Most definitely our funniest couple on the cruise.  

20.  The Serbia bartender in the "adults only"  area.  He was so open and nice.  We learned so much about his native country.  Do you know where Serbia is?

21/22.  Singer couple in "adults only" Are they married or brother and sister? Of course when they introduced themselves, I had to ask.  Most definitely married, but they sincerely looked related.

23.  The infamous climb to the "WALL Day." Our guide Ivan, he was hot and his name means "donkey's ass" in English.  We were supposed to call him "Evon."  He got to the top waaaay before us.  This is why his legs looked so good.

That's him on the left in the Yellow Shirt.

24. The "Urban" chick, breathing hard while climbing the wall in her flip flops.

25.  "Dad" Carrying a "backpack of bricks." He was struggling climbing the Wall.  I kept him "company" on some very much needed "breaks."  I was so happy, someone was breathing heavier then myself.

26/27.  Wife and daughter of "Dad." They were so happy we were keeping tabs on "Dad."  We assimilated effortlessly with our new "Wall Family."

That would would be "Dad's" Family behind us. 

28. Another chick in flip flops inspired Jess to climb faster, no she ran up the wall, all while motivating Lisa and I.

29.  Beer selling Bum at the Wall.  What better way to make a few bucks.

Beer anyone?  There's 1 left!

30. Guy in blue shirt, looking out for guy climbing in the danger zone.  We literally were convinced the guy was going to fall off the wall to his death.

31. "Michgan Lake" waiter. MI connection #3. He talked to us for 15 minutes, before telling us they didn't serve food yet.  We had to leave immediately. 

32. Our second waiter after climbing the wall.  "You can run as many cards as you want since you are THAT pretty."

That would be his butt behind us. 
Honorable mention for the hot guys at the table behind us.

33. Serbian gift shop owner. She told Jess an inspiring story about Christ relating to the bracelet she bought for her Serbian niece.

34. Hot tub connections #3. Thomas, better known as Mas.  To be honest, I hesitated. "Do we get in the hot tub with a one random dude?"  When we finally sprung up conversation, we learned how mature this 15 year old from the Netherlands truly was.  He was good looking, engaging, and highly educated.  He shared his most interesting American stereotypes, none of which were very good. We truly enjoyed getting to know Mas.  Jess and I agreed, if our boys were as mature as Mas at 15, we did an excellent job raising our boys.  We saw Mas many times throughout the week.  He was one of our most memorable connections.

'Mas' future famous Politician or Lawyer.
You saw him here first.

35.  Mas' mom. We joked she was watching the three of us like a Hawk as we chattered it up with her very underage baby boy. 'Hands OFF, he is only 15.' We didn't know this immediately, as the area was for adults, 18 and over.  Once we officially met Mas' mom, she was both beautiful and lovely. We gushed how amazing her son was and how much we enjoyed meeting him.

36/37.  Hot Tub Connections #4 & #5. Johnny and Noelle.  Also, Michigan connections #4 & #5.  I could write an entire blog about these amazing people.  We had no idea, these two, who we thought were a couple, would actually spend a lot of time with us on our cruise. It turned out they are brother and sister cruising for their aunt's 70th Birthday.  Noelle is a sweetheart, funny and easy going, as if we all knew her forever.  We loved this girl through and through and we all clicked immediately.

Total Sweetheart & Babe!

Johnny, the 25 year old stud muffin.  He had no idea he needed a Throuple of girls to enhance his cruising experience.  I believe we found our token man for our sister wives joke.  Wise beyond his years, he was super entertaining and endearing.  He created quite the reputation on the cruise.

Johnny aka Sexy Legs.
(Stay Tuned) 

38-44. Seven Sloppy Spuring Scott's.  The Scottish Klan.  This crew was ridiculously fabulous.  They had known one another since college and each had the most over the top personality. Two of them were already sick all over their bathrooms from over drinking. Liam is on a hit Broadway show in NYC.  He flushed his friend's undies down the toilet and clogged it as they had been "spurwd" on.  Two got engaged on the cruise.  Our Scottish friends were the best characters.  They were the delicious icing on our cruising cake.

We are missing the future engaged guy -
and the two girls who were sick in their bathrooms.
But, you get the idea!

Check this guy out in Aladdin on Broadway  in NYC.
Liam is going places - keep a watchful eye!

45.  21 yr old asshole from Pittsburgh at "Shenanigans" with the Scotts.  Our soon to be engaged Scottish badass girl, put him right in his place.  Took his ass down a notch. 

46.  19 year old drunk linebacker who was eating with the 21 year old asshole.

47.  Cabbie in Corfu, Greece, Spiro.  He gave us an awesome tour on our drive to the beach.

48. Cabana Boy, got us seated and took care of us at the beach.  "Ladies on 8Euros and you can be served all day long in our comfy chairs. Oh wait do you need an umbrella?"

49.  Cabana Girl served us "Porn Star" cocktails. Photo says lt all!

Notice the Leg Theme going on here!Legs4Ladies. 

50. Gorgeous Greek God, who happen to own the Taxi company. He became a FB connection, and gave out his number. Jess met him on her way into bathroom.  It was probably the coolest way to make a connection. He actually wrote down his name and number.

Something about Europeans & Their Lips!

Tell him LeeAnn & Jess Say "Hello!"

51. Chocolate Tequila Shot bartender. We of course did shots with our Greek God.

Yes - Those are Chocolate Tequla Shots.
Yes - He was a totally nice guy!

52-55. Group of Canadians on line for cable car down mountain who sounded drunk and laughed loudly at their own jokes.

56. Boy Accordion Player with his adorable dog, panhandling by the line while we waited for the cable car.  Not sure who was cuter, the boy or the dog.

This kid was impressive
and he was making money.

57. Dude with 6 Donkeys. (So mad we didnt get a photo)

58. Tammy the seasonal, gambling professor.  I ran into Tammy everywhere.  She was always happy and super outgoing.  She planted a seed to play penny slots when she told me she won $1600.

Tammy & I were besties from the start.
And we're both lucky at penny slots!

59. Auntie D.  She sat next to me at Bingo.  Turned out she was Johnny and Noelle's aunt on the cruise for her 70th Birthday.  Aunt D was awesome in so many respects.  She shock her booty when she thought she won Bingo. 

Her smile says it all!

60/61. Love Birds from NY on our wine excursion. He held her purse, her name is Charlotte York.  He had "a thing" for her for ten years.  She finally started to date him a year ago. They were both charming and sweet.  We exchanged numbers, friended each other on FB.

These two had me at:
'We're from Brooklyn'
This girl will have stories to share too...

62.  Jeep tour guide. Our favorite tour guide. She was bubbly and genuine. Views were forever!!!

63.  Some chick named Christina who got Jess drink card and than it got shredded at the main desk. Her friends man was in the Sexy Leg Contest and he had a Man Bun!!

64.  John's & Noelle's Mom, Jane.  (Aunt D's Sister)  She completed our cruising family for that day.  She raised some outstanding kids!

It's all in the Family at the pool this day!

Shots with Mom & Aunt D!

65-73. All the Men in the sexy leg contest.  We talked Johnny into participating. He, of course won, his many fans cheering him on, including the Scottish Klan from the seating above.

Guess whose Legs Won!

 Legs 4 Ladies 

74.  This Canadian was sitting next to us at the beach during our Jeep tour pit stop.  She was very down to earth, funny and chatty.  We saw her all over after our first encounter. Really wish I got her contact info.

75.   Tammy's son.  He was 19, super smart, but a tad Shy.  Another great person and inspiration to raise great sons. He connected with our other connections as well.  Tammy you did well!!! 

76.  Mike, my married, Journey dance partner. The Phillopeno band played "The best of Journey," I needed a dance partner. He reminded me their are lots of decent men out there. 

77/78. Ormond Beach couple, who know the owner at 95 and Vine, a local Florida wine bar where we live. The World is truly such a small place. 

79.  Singer at the Martini Lounge.  I swore he looked liked  Lenny Kravitz' cousin.

We exchanged Hair product Names

80-83.  Kids/teenage girls on dance floor.  We had fun dancing around them. 

84.  ATT International service guy.  He saved me a bunch of money off my bill. Those random text messages can be alarming.

85.  My engagement ring to myself. I found a personal connection within myself.  I have this thing about buying rings on vacation.  The one I bought in Croatia could be mistaken for an engagement ring. I decided I only want to be married to myself. The ring is cool, the stone changes from Yellow to Pink when its warm outside. 

Staying Committed to Me!

86. Roberto, our Croatian Uber driver. Yes we Ubered in Croatia.

87-91. "Man buns"  We counted atleast 5. What is up with those Man Buns. One was in the Leg Contest of course!

92-95 The four lady lushes. They ordered 3 drinks each.  One to drink at the bar, one for the walk to their lounge chair and one for when they got to their chair.

96-98 Speedo connections. At least one had a Man Bun.

Was aiming for 'hot men' in Speedos
But got 'Dad Bods' instead.

99.  Christopher.  Lisa's finale hookup.  He was from California.  He showed up at just the right time. 

100. Our cruise director who was also on our last tour after the cruise.  He wants to cruise to Africa when Norwegian starts cruising there in 2020.  He told me about the craziest things people tell him.  "Does the elevator go forward?" "Were you with my husband/wife last night. I lost them."

And I'll end this very enthusiastic blog post with a few of my favorite photos from the trip.  As beautiful as this vacation was, the best beauty was within all the incredible people we met, leaving us all with many lasting memories.