Rainy Day at Club Med Miches

Club Med Miches

We wake up early and are out the door for breakfast. We go to the main restaurant which offers a buffet of options. My son sticks with his usual breakfast which is a plate of fruit and bacon. I have a waffle and fruit. Everything is delicious and when we leave the restaurant, staff members are celebrating the Dominican Republic. They’re dressed in DR colors with flags and music. My son jumps right in to dance with them.

The beach is calling and we walk a few minutes from our room to the closest beach. There is hardly anyone there and we have our choice of chairs. We choose two loungers under a giant palapa within steps of the water. My son immediately starts his sandcastle, and we spend the next hour building a moat to protect the castle. I tell my son that it looks like it’s going to rain so let’s take a break under the palapa. As soon we’re under, it starts to downpour. We stay mostly dry under our palapa and I’m hoping this is a short tropical rain. After a few minutes, the rain slows down, so we take the opportunity to walk back to our room. 

The rain has mostly stopped so we go back out to explore. We make it to the playground and then another deluge. We seek shelter inside the playground and wait again for it to calm down. When it does, we walk again and find a soccer field. My son wants to play so we play one on one. He’s better than me and creams in soccer. We hadn’t planned on doing this, so I was playing barefoot, and he was playing in Crocs so not the ideal soccer footwear. 

Now to our intended destination, the waterpark! The waterpark is located in part of the kid’s club, but unlike other resorts, parents can take their kids inside. There is a group of children here with the kid’s club staff and my son joins them in the waterpark. Eventually, the kids leave and my son and I have the waterpark to ourselves. It was the perfect size for him. They had a couple bigger slides, but not too big that they are too dark inside. The rain comes back, and the waterpark is a great place to be when it’s raining.

We break for lunch and head to the beach for the Caribbean BBQ. The beach is empty, and it was supposed to have already started. We find out that it was moved indoors due to the rain so we walk to the other side of the property to find it. There are lots of yummy options and I decide on the pasta station. I grab a bowl and pick the items I want with my pasta and then hand it to a chef. He cooks the food with my choice of sauce and pasta. It was amazing! My son says he isn’t hungry, but I get him food anyways. Pizza, fruit, and rice. He eats most of it! What he is most excited for is the coconut drink. There is a man with a machete and a cart full of coconuts. He chops off the top of a fresh coconut, inserts a straw, and then hands it to my son. My son’s smile stretches across his face as he carries it with two hands back to the table. I watch his face as he drinks it. At first, he seems okay, but then he makes the realization that it’s not as delicious as he had hoped. 

We find ourselves in a golf cart and my son is so happy that he can sit up with the driver. He will later tell me that this is the best day ever because of this ride. It’s funny the things that please him. We’re on our way to family archery time but arrive early. We make a detour to check out the yoga hut and then it’s archery time. We are the first to arrive, but then a large group joins. The coach organizes the group at each archery station and then the ones who have done it before can start. We are new so we wait for instructions. The coach teaches my son, and he has three arrows to shoot. Then, everyone gathers arrows at the same time. A girl who is older than my son helps him with his arrows but then proceeds to take his station. This is our first time here so I thought rotating might be part of the experience. Nope. The girl just stole his station, and my son was okay with it at first. He willingly moved to her station, but then it was obvious why she switched. He had a bow with a bead on it that makes it easier to get the arrow loaded. Hers did not have the bead which is why she wanted to switch. I believe the coach organized the new kids to have these trainer arrows and the experienced kids to have the other arrows. My son quickly realized what she had done, and it infuriated him. Meltdown mode was on the horizon, and we left as he screamed I don’t want to ever come here again. I wish other parents knew more about autism. The behavior of this other girl obviously isn’t nice, but not everyone is nice. What she and her parents don’t know is her act of meanness has likely tarnished this activity forever. He will always remember the anger and frustration of her action, and we will likely not be able to overcome it. Yes, most kids can get over this, but not all kids can and just one act of meanness can have a lasting impact on someone. The same can be said for kindness so please teach your children kindness. 

A family party is about to start at the “main garden.” The main garden sounds great, but it’s not on the map. I ask the front desk where this is, and they tell me about the garden at the kid’s club. I’ve seen this garden, and it doesn’t seem like the location for a bounce house. Another guest overhears our conversation, and she tells me the right location, but also says she thinks it will be moved indoors due to the rain. She was right and we find the party in the theater. They had snacks, music, and a small inflatable jump house. My son loves jump houses, but this is one meant for little kids. He has fun, but the party quickly bores him, so we go back to our room. 

We relax on our giant patio and eventually go for dinner. Meals here are very casual which I love. The dress code is very laid-back, and many arrive to dinner in shorts and a t-shirt. There is a theme to each night, but that’s hit or miss if people follow it.  Tonight is Dominican night, so the dress code is to wear red, white, or blue. I chose the chicken cordon blue which was amazing. The meals may be casual, but that doesn’t take away from the quality of the food. The food is professionally plated and flavored beautifully. I’m trying to think of another all-inclusive where I liked the food more and I’m having a hard time thinking of a better place. The food is amazing here, but I also really like French cuisine. (Club Med is a French company.)

We finish our evening with a walk on the beach. The sun is beginning to set so we have beautiful views to end the day. I spot storm clouds in the distance, so we walk back to the room. The storm that comes is intense. I don’t think I’ve ever heard thunder as loud as from this storm. The flashes of light are also intensely bright. I’m worried we may lose power, but we don’t. The storm continues through most of the night.