Smile of the Day

Jacquie showing off his swimwear

     Jacques, who wanted to be called Jacquie (like Jacky only Jacques-y), was on the stage wearing nothing but a flower in his hair and a wrap that was tied not around his waist, nor around his hips, but the wrap was tied much, much lower.

     He mentioned a French phrase which translated to smile of the day which then further translated to the butt crack .  The wrap was supposed to tie in such a way that as much of one's smile of the day was as visible as possible!

     Jacquie was the chief GO – gentle one – in charge of the entire Martinique resort, and he was providing orientation for the latest arrival of vacationers, a plane-load of folks from Toronto.

    I was twenty-five, unattached in every way, and all I had said to the travel agent was that I wanted to go someplace warm – I needed a break from the cold cruel Buffalo winter. It was not until the plane landed that I heard of this particular resort's reputation as a hot spot for wild swinging singles!

    Jacquie's orientation was in the open air theater just off of the main patio/lobby/bar.

    Just past the theater in one direction were the rooms we would be staying in – there were no single rooms – if we did not come with a room-mate, we would be assigned one of the same sex and language; the rooms had no locks or keys – but there had never been an instance, Jacquie  insisted, of theft or molestation.

    In another direction was the dining room – tables of 8 were seated every breakfast and dinner – a forced meeting, for me, of 14 strangers every day – which turned out to be entertaining and allowed me to meet people from all over the world; lunch was served on the patio buffet style and we could take the food wherever to eat – our dishes and utensils could be left anywhere and picked up by the staff.

     The beach was in another direction, and a little further off was a smaller, private, nude beach.

      Every night there would be entertainment in the small theater, and at midnight, a nightclub at the far end of the resort would play music and have dancing and alcohol until dawn. It was not unusual to have people from the nightclub walking to their rooms to go to sleep when the sun was rising passing folks who were already up and heading to the beach!

     There were also all kinds of sports available – for lessons and/or participation – from snorkeling and sailing to biking and tennis – there were beach games, competitions, and singles get-togethers that involved silly drinking-game icebreakers.

      Jacquie said that in spite of all the opportunities for fun, there were also a few rules – no drugs were allowed in the resort, “Just look at the beauty of this place! Why would anyone need drugs to get high?” I agreed with him there, but doubted his sincerity – I was soon to find out that there were plenty of drugs of all kinds accessible throughout the resort.

       Another rule, was no nudity – except at the nude beach – but I was sure that if Jacquie's wrap had slipped off at that moment – down beyond the last of his smile of the day – he would have enjoyed that immensely.

       And the final rule – no sex on the beach! This is actually more difficult than it sounds what with the place's reputation for swinging singles and yet forced room-mates in each room – if you can't have privacy, might as well do it on the beach. However, during my stay, I did not observe anyone breaking the no nudity except on the nude beach rule or the no sex on the beach rule.

      After orientation, it was too late in the day for sunbathing. The sun sets early and quickly on that Caribbean island. My assigned room-mate had not arrived as yet, so I went for a walk and approached a couple I recognized from the plane – they were about my age – Pete and Diana. I asked if I could hang around with them until dinner since I did not know anyone else. They said sure. Diana looked like a Barbie Doll while Pete was not quite a Ken. He wore socks with his sandals. 

      Pete asked me if I was eager to try some of the marijuana that was rumored to be so good there? I replied that I did not do drugs. Mmmm, he thought for a moment and then asked if I would be partaking of the island alcohol, also rumored to be quite good? Again, I replied in the negative – I was not an abstainer at home, but it seemed wise, based on my newly acquired info about the island's reputation, to choose not to drink in Martinique. Pete did not ask me any more questions.

      The three of us went to dinner together and sat with five strangers, We introduced ourselves and told where we were from.

       I quickly picked up on the fact that asking folks what do you do for a living? is an American inquiry which is frowned upon by other cultures – people are so much more than their jobs! – I try to remember that even now, decades later, when being introduced to someone new.

       A young American woman who was sitting directly across the table from me had already been at the resort for a few days. She had her shirt open to the waist, and although you could see that there were bare feminine attributes inside the shirt, she was not exactly exposing herself. Pete commented to Diana that he'd like her to try wearing her shirts that way.

      Sometimes nowadays I wear my shirt like that - but only in the house - and when I look in the mirror - the effect is not at all like that of the young woman at the table that first night in Martinique.

114 20150424 Smile of the Day, Martinique