"Gulfing Our Life Away"
My family and I have been coming to the area for nearly 20 years. For 17 of those years, beginning in 2004, my sisters (five of us), our daughters, granddaughters, nieces and one lone nephew would visit Orange Beach for 7 days. We called our trip "AGAS" - All Girls and Stephen (Stephen is now assistant golf pro at Pebble Beach). We didn't let hurricanes (if all was safe) or the great oil spill stop us from coming. As a matter of fact, each year we had custom t/shirts - during the oil spill, it read - "Oil won't spoil AGAS 6!". The average number of family members was between 10 and 15. Our last big vacation was in 2019. In 2020, our oldest sister . . .our "Leader of the Pack" passed away (not virus related), and then, of course, there was the virus, so we did not make our annual pilgrimage. We also missed one other year due to family circumstances. Now, the "littles" are all grown and spread out from NY to CA. This year, there were four of us. When searching for a condo, I knew we couldn't stay at the one we always stayed at due to their 7 day requirement. I found Island Tower in Gulf Shores. A beautiful unit on the 8th floor and booked it immediately for our five day stay. We were absolutely thrilled with our condo. It was comfortable and beautifully decorated, with 3 b/r and 3 baths - each bedroom with a King size bed. The balcony was enormous!!! It was as wide as the 4/br unit we used to stay in. The beach was gorgeous, and the days we were there 9/14 - 9/18, the weather was beyond perfect. We had a fabulous time together. It was just what we each needed . . .a respite from the hectic pace of our lives. If we ever get back to the previous "AGAS" numbers, we'll have to rent the entire 8th floor!!!!