Passports...Check
Formal Dress...Check
Tanning...Check
Waxing...Check
Pedicure...Check
Laundry...Check
Clean House...Check
Pick up Grandma (aka worlds best spoiler)...Check
Formal Dress...Check
Tanning...Check
Waxing...Check
Pedicure...Check
Laundry...Check
Clean House...Check
Pick up Grandma (aka worlds best spoiler)...Check
Cruising was a brand new experience for Paul and I. We had heard so much about cruises...the food, the towels folded into animals, the room service, the entertainment, the food, the desserts, the food (did I mention the food?). And yet I still had NO idea what we were in for. Thankfully, we had experienced cruisers as our companions. The Mariners and the Wilsons are seasoned in this department.
Thursday afternoon 6 adults and 9 suitcases crammed into the Mariners vehicle and headed to the airport.
Five hours of flying plus a 1 hour layover (and 2 hour time difference) landed us in Fort Lauderdale at 9:40 p.m. Hailing a cab for 6 adults and ALL our luggage was comical. But the suburban was definitely the way to ride. ALL of our luggage fit nicely in the back.
The Mariott was a welcome site where we knew clean comfy beds awaited. Trying to save on money, the 6 of us decided to rent one room. We would sacrifice with the double beds and sofa pull out. Someone could even sleep on the roll-a-way mattress. We would be snuggled up for the first night of our adventure. So, you could say we were all a bit surprised to find ourselves in a room with only ONE King sized bed and ONE sofa sleeper (size Double). AND NO roll-a-way beds!!! How do 6 people make this work? The newly weds (Trisha and Chris) snuggled on the very uncomfortable double pull out bed. The prego mama (Adrienne) would sleep in the King sized bed with me next to her and Paul on the outside (hugging the edge of the bed with all his might). Where was Jared? He was the "biggest man" (only figuratively speaking) of us all and volunteered to sleep on the floor next to Adrienne. The two very small cushions from the love seat made his bed. The cushions ended at his knees! What a good sport! Hopeful "Goodnight" wishes were extended to one and all. Then we each tried our best to get whatever sleep we could in the awkward/uncomfortable situation.
After a quick and successful shopping trip at Marshalls, we packed our new finds and ran to our chariot (aka shuttle) which take us to our long awaited destination.
Thursday afternoon 6 adults and 9 suitcases crammed into the Mariners vehicle and headed to the airport.
Five hours of flying plus a 1 hour layover (and 2 hour time difference) landed us in Fort Lauderdale at 9:40 p.m. Hailing a cab for 6 adults and ALL our luggage was comical. But the suburban was definitely the way to ride. ALL of our luggage fit nicely in the back.
The Mariott was a welcome site where we knew clean comfy beds awaited. Trying to save on money, the 6 of us decided to rent one room. We would sacrifice with the double beds and sofa pull out. Someone could even sleep on the roll-a-way mattress. We would be snuggled up for the first night of our adventure. So, you could say we were all a bit surprised to find ourselves in a room with only ONE King sized bed and ONE sofa sleeper (size Double). AND NO roll-a-way beds!!! How do 6 people make this work? The newly weds (Trisha and Chris) snuggled on the very uncomfortable double pull out bed. The prego mama (Adrienne) would sleep in the King sized bed with me next to her and Paul on the outside (hugging the edge of the bed with all his might). Where was Jared? He was the "biggest man" (only figuratively speaking) of us all and volunteered to sleep on the floor next to Adrienne. The two very small cushions from the love seat made his bed. The cushions ended at his knees! What a good sport! Hopeful "Goodnight" wishes were extended to one and all. Then we each tried our best to get whatever sleep we could in the awkward/uncomfortable situation.
After a quick and successful shopping trip at Marshalls, we packed our new finds and ran to our chariot (aka shuttle) which take us to our long awaited destination.
My expectation were high. And yet I had very little idea of what exactly to expect. I suppose I thought we would get to the cruise terminal and just walk right on to the ship. Not the case. It was just like getting on a plane. Security. Security. Security.
(Adrienne got into trouble for taking a similar picture. The security guard insisted that she erase the picture from her camera. He wouldn't let her go until she had proven that it was gone. When asked why, all he would say was that it was a security risk. He wouldn't answer any other questions. OKAY...)After all the security screening, we were given our room key and allowed to board the ship. Whew! We stopped by our "state room" to drop off a few things (the rest of our luggage would be delivered). My expectations of the room were unrealistic. Of course the room wouldn't be as big as a regular hotel room. Yet I had hoped it would be. The room was TINY!!! So I was disappointed. A little. The bathroom (sink, toilet and shower) was DEFINITELY a "one butt" bathroom. If I wasn't careful, I would hit my elbows on the walls of the shower as I washed my hair. The pushed together twin beds had about a foot of walking space around them. MANY of my experienced cruising friends told me that the room was the place where the least amount of time would be spent. So, with that advice in mind, I covered up my disappointment and met the rest of the our crew-sers for lunch.
The Wind Jammer (the 24 hour buffet) had a huge assortment of food. This was far superior to any buffet I've experienced! The food was exceptional! The variety was unmatched! The fruit was amazing and FRESH!!! (and beautiful)
The Wind Jammer (the 24 hour buffet) had a huge assortment of food. This was far superior to any buffet I've experienced! The food was exceptional! The variety was unmatched! The fruit was amazing and FRESH!!! (and beautiful)
Our dinners were served by Shaun, a man from India who has an expectant wife waiting for him. Spending 7 months at a time on the ship, he will be away from her for most of her pregnancy. Waiting on people like us.
And even though Paul gave me a really hard time about dressing up every night for dinner, when all was said and done, we both really enjoyed our "fancy" evenings.
With all the eating I was doing, I was very grateful to have the Formal Night on the second night. My chances of fitting into my fitted dress were still pretty good on the 2nd night. My dresses grew slightly less fitted as the days wore on.
The boys were off doing their own thing as the girls prettied and pampered. We were ready for our dates to pick us up at 5 pm for the pre-dinner show. But where were our dates? None of them had a watch, so were unaware of the time. Fine. The three dazzling beauties would go to the show without our dates. They can meet us there.
I felt like a Princess. I haven't been that dressy since Prom. When our handsome dates met up with us, we were complete.
Look at these handsome men!
And these HOT mommas!
Dinner was always follow with a show. Comedians, Magicians, Dancers, Singers and Ice Skaters entertained us until our eye lids were too heavy to hold open anymore. At which point, we retired to our cave (without windows, it was very difficult to distinguish night from day) until it was time to meet up with our crew-sers again. Waiting in our room every evening to wish us "sweet dreams" was a different towel creation.
Grand Cayman was our first port.
Snorkeling at Sting Ray city was on the agenda. But the weather was not cooperative. With a quick change of plans, we were off for a different kind of adventure. But one that still involved sting rays, hopefully. While waiting for our adventure to begin, we noticed this super sketchy guy walking around. Not sure if he was looking to mug us, we kept our eyes WIDE open. And he had his eyes glued to Adrienne's gluteus maximus.
Our luck improved when this creepy guy turned out to be our driver.
Despite our suspicions, this guy turned out to be ok. He safely delivered us to the awaiting privately owned boat. A little rust never hurt anything, right? Paul and I sat at the back of the boat where the motion sickness was least likely to capture me (thank goodness for Dramamine). But the black smoke that was billowing off the motor caused a bit of concern. What would happen if the boat broke down in the middle of the ocean in a country far from our own? I found a little comfort with the several boats that were headed in the same direction. Surely one of them would help us. Right? Hopefully.
Snorkels, masks and fins were distributed. We were invited to help ourselves to the water and juice in the cooler. There were even cups for our use. But would YOU use a cup that had been floating in dirty ice water with lip marks on it? I think not.
With a slight carbon monoxide buzz, we floated to a stop and were instructed to jump into the tepid water. I guess no further instructions were necessary. A couple sting rays were found. The one with the missing tail became the petting/kissing victim of the day. I felt kind of bad for the poor ray, so opted out of kissing it. Instead, I watched from a distance. And shivered. The variety and color of the fish paled in comparison to diving in the Keys. I didn't realize how spoiled we had been in the Keys. I thought all the ocean looked like it did on Finding Nemo. Not true. But fun none the less. I really enjoyed being in the water with Paul again. Holding hands. Swimming amidst the fish. Watching him as he dove a little deeper to find some sea shells. I have never been able to dive down while snorkeling. SCUBA is a different story. But without the oxygen tank attached to my back, I'm a little paranoid. And a little retarded. I still can't quite figure out how to get all that water out of my snorkel. I know. I'm special.
Day 3 landed us in Cozumel, Mexico.
The sun was shining and the water was GORGEOUS!!!
We had several hours to kill before the beginning of our excursion. What should we do? Shop? OKAY!!!
We found the boys some killer masks for the boys.
And found Carol a beautiful pendant from this sweet guy in his humble outdoor "shop".
We buried our feet in the sand.
And posed.
Then ate an authentic Mexican lunch on the beach complete with mango margaritas (virgin, of course).
Finally the hour of our expedition was upon us. The sun was now covered with clouds and a few rain drops fell upon our faces. We boarded the pristine catamaran complete with a full bar and "clean drinking water. I promise." Arriving at our snorkeling destination, we were given a "queek 5 meenutes of eenstructions. But een Mehican time, that mean tirty meenutes." And true to his word, those short 5 minutes really did take 30 minutes! We were chomping at the bit! Just let us go!!! (totally different than our first snorkeling experience where we were given zero instructions).
The water was a little warmer than Grand Cayman and the fish were a little more colorful. We saw a gigantic (the biggest I've ever seen) parrot fish and a school of at least a thousand little silver fish. I can only imagine what the water would have looked like in sunny conditions. We'll have to make a point of going back and diving Cozumel.
A picturesque beach greeted us after our snorkel. The boys (Paul and Jared) had fun on all the toys while the girls (and Chris) lounged on the beach.
The main sail was hoisted and we sailed (and motored) back to the ship.
The last morning at sea was a lazy one. Paul and I slept late and ordered room service. We watched tv and read by the pool. Just the two of us. With all the hustle and fun all 6 of us were having together, this was a nice change of pace. This cruise was RAPIDLY coming to an end. And I wasn't ready.
We spent one more time at the ships gym. Running on a treadmill while whale watching. Unfortunately, none of those whales (or dolphins, or turtles, or sharks, or any sea life) made an appearance. Being on the sea with the oxygen rich air did my body good. My speed on the ship was amazing! I was running an 8 minute mile like it was nothing. I questioned the treadmills accuracy until the day after when I felt muscles in my legs that I haven't felt in a very long time.
We packed our bags, went to dinner, then a show, then karaoke and then Johnny Rockets. None of us wanted the night to end. For after the night came the morning and our disembarking. Sad.
As we left the ship, the ship and its employees were readying for the next group of cruisers. The next group would be boarding in a few very short hours. After 5 days of feeling like we were royalty, like we were everything to these people, they bid us an unsentimental farewell. They will forever be engraved in my memory, but we were just one in a million to them. They were moving on. Without us.
Time to restock the ship.
A fresh coat of paint
Good Bye Navigator of the Seas. We love you.
