Ice and it’s way too cold in South Florida

January 14, 2023

Another new adventure for us. We left BTR early this morning to get to Fort Lauderdale a day early. Our cruise leaves on Sunday through some of the Caribbean. \240This timing worked best for us as we have to be on board at noon.

The plan was to leave the house at 5 am but that got a bit delayed. We got the car packed and started the car and then we hit a snag. The windshield was covered with a layer of ice!!! \240So we went into de-icing mode. Danny got a bucket of water and we turned the defrost up to high. The car takes awhile to warm up so this put us behind schedule a bit. It’s only about a 20 minute drive to the airport so not a big deal. We arrived in plenty of time and boarded accordingly. However, the plane was also iced over so more de-icing involved. It only takes a little bit longer to de-ice a plane but there are more people involved. We left the gate to head to our spot. The truck was there and I could see it from my window. It was maybe 50 yards away but we had to wait for its escort truck to show up to guide it to the plane. It’s not like the driver and the pilot couldn’t see each other but such is the way of the world. I think the escort truck parked in front of the plane while the de-icing truck did its thing. \240Did he think our pilot was going to try to escape? \240This added about 30 minutes to our flight but we knew we had lots of time in Charlotte. At least BTR has improved their maintenance during freezing weather. The last time it was freezing and I had to fly out, they only had enough fluid for one plane and we were the second plane out that morning. We had to wait for the weather to warm up enough to melt the ice.

Our pilot was very friendly over the intercom. He came on and said “I have some good news and some bad news. \240The bad news was that none of the flight crew had won the mega millions last night so the good news was that they all showed up for work today”.

An easy flight to Charlotte with touchdown only about 20 minutes late. The airport was soooooooo crowded. I could have thought I was in Atlanta or Chicago. Then another quick flight to Fort Lauderdale. It is cold here. I sure hope it gets warmer on this trip since we have swimming, snorkeling, paddle boarding etc to do.

We got to the Crown Plaza and checked in. Even though we had been flying first class, American only believes in serving snacks for both a breakfast time as well as a lunch time snack. Time for a bite of coconut shrimp and fried calamari in the hotel restaurant. \240Later on we walked to El Tamarindo restaurant. It has a Latin cuisine which was good. However it was still cold.

Lazy morning tomorrow as we don’t need to be at the terminal until noon. Our shuttle is picking us up at 11:30 and we can see the ships from our window.

No pictures today but I promise there will be lots once we get going.

January 15

This morning started quietly as we could sleep late and take our time about packing. Our shuttle to the cruise ship was scheduled for 11:15. We enjoyed coffee in the room and skipped breakfast as our boarding time was set for noon. Best laid plans.

We headed downstairs and checked out around 11 and then got in a long line of so many people heading to the cruise terminal. You would think half the hotel was going and from reports we heard, there were thousands of people boarding today on at least 8 different ships. Our bus did not arrive until almost noon and several people were not happy. We were fine though as our ship didn’t actually leave port until 3. Once we got on the bus, we stopped at 5 different ships before ours but none of them looked super crowded. Only 4 from the bus were on the Beyond. We did have Retreat passes so we had a separate security and check in which was very easy. We didn’t even have time to get a bite from the buffet in the retreat lounge. We were starving but onward we traveled following our escort to our room. We picked up our Seapass -otherwise known as a room key- and admired our new room. Very nice. Our butler is Godfrey and our steward is Marvin. We wanted lunch but waited for Godfrey to come show us around. The room is great with phone capabilities to turn off and on \240the lights and open and close the blinds.

Godfrey took us to our muster station where they scanned our room key and announced us safe to travel. I had watched the very important safety briefing on how to wear a life jacket and had listened to the emergency horn signal of 7 short and 1 long blast of the ships horn. I figure that if I hear lots of horns in a row , I should head for the theatre. Then Godfrey took us to a place for lunch. The Grand Bistro. The food was great but it was almost 2 pm so just about anything would have been good.

Back to room to figure out where to put things and to meet Marvin. We were supposed to leave port at 3 but it was close to 4 when we finally did. I unpacked and settled in. As we pulled out of port, we had a US Coast Guard patrol boat escorting us. Check out the man in the front of the boat on duty and ready to handle any eventuality. At least we were safe leaving Florida. I know there have been recent reports of this cruise ship picking up migrants between Cuba and the Florida Keys. We will be taking that shipping lane on Tuesday. It could be interesting.

We went to explore the main areas for a bit. The Retreat pool, sundeck and lounge are really nice but it was too cold to be outside for long.

Danny was having trouble with his phone not connecting to the Wi-Fi so they finally called Dimy (the ship’s head IT guy) to come help. Google android phones are too secure so it was more difficult to connect but they got it solved. The ship had started rocking around and Danny was turning green even with his prescription patch. Back to the cabin so he could lie down.

By about 6:30 he still didn’t feel like moving so I went to dinner in the Luminae which is the restaurant for the Retreat. I got a table by the window but it was too dark for it to make a difference. My closest neighbors were a table about 18” away. They were a chatty couple with an opinion about everything around them. This included the fact I was by myself, the fact the the sommelier suggested a Malbec to go with my veal cannelloni, the size of my shrimp in my appetizer, the fact that the people at the table behind me were happy with their inside balcony ( honestly that one amused me as well, but not enough to loudly discuss it) and then the fact I ordered a chocolate dessert. Seriously, was I their only entertainment? \240However, they also commented multiple times on how empty the restaurant was. \240I got the impression that they had been on at least 5 back to back cruises on the Beyond and they definitely were not getting up early in the morning. Okay then during dessert for me, ( they were done with food but not comments), Chuck FaceTimed me so that Charlie could show off his latest lego creation. My volume was way down and I could barely hear the boys and my speaking volume was no louder than it would have been if Danny had been sitting across from me. \240They got all huffy and announced that this was enough and they were leaving. And then the man looked at me and said “ how rude is that,,”. I responded with “and you weren’t rude all through dinner?” \240I felt badly about it but I did notice one of the wait staff smile at me. \240My meal was delicious regardless.

I went back to the room with some ice cream for Danny in hopes that it would help. He was feeling better so we went to the cafeteria for bread and then to a coffee shop for dessert. The motion on the ship had calmed down thankfully

Early morning tomorrow. We ordered room service for 6:30 as we had to be in the theater for 7:45 for our snorkeling adventure to Pearl Island in Nassau.

Today was our first full day on the ship. We arrived in Nassau, Bahamas early. As we had an early excursion we preordered room service for breakfast for 6:30. Godfrey delivered it on time and it was delicious.

We needed to be in the theater to meet for our snorkeling adventure to Pearl Island at 7:45. We were a couple of minutes late which was not a problem we checked in and were told that the snorkeling part of our adventure had been cancelled due to undertow and rough seas. We each got a $20 refund and still got to do the rest of the stuff. This involved waiting in a line and then following our guide like little ducklings to our boat. Quack quack!

Once onboard we had about a 30 minute ride out to one of the barrier islands on the coral reef surrounding Nassau. \240When we got our safety speech, it including all the usual things but also made us aware that we had 360 degree emergency exits. People had to think about that before they understood.

The weather was chilly and the seas got rougher as we got further out. Pearl Island is really more of a long narrow spit about 75 yds across and maybe 250 yards long. Once we landed we were told that lunch was at 11 and to be back at the dock for 12:15. First order of business was finding some good beach chairs on the protected side of the beach. About 20 feet behind us was the rough side and it was rough. The waves were crashing up along the sea wall and splashing everyone on the sidewalk and the second row of chairs.

Even in the first row we got a lot of misty spray. We explored as slowly as we could which still only took about 10 minutes and then watched as a few brave souls tried the water. After a bit, we decided to snorkel anyway since we had brought our own gear. We masked and snorkeled up and swam around the cordoned off area trying to avoid the kayakers and paddle boarders who had the same area we did. My underwater phone holder worked great so I got a few pictures.

I did miss the one fish I saw. It swam too fast for me to get a picture. It had a blue and yellow tail and was all by itself. Danny never saw any fish at all. We swam out towards the jetty and then we tried to swim back to shore. We were not making any progress because of the undertow. By the time I remembered to swim parallel to the shore, it had let us go and the waves carried us in. This was the first time I had been in one that was this strong. Just glad we got through it. Back on shore we sat in the sun to warm up and admire the water. On the west ( unprotected) side, the waves were really rough and I am glad they cancelled the snorkeling part. It just wasn’t safe at all.

A little bit before 11, we had basically dried off and another couple of boats had arrived packed with people so we packed up our things and headed to the lighthouse and lunch. The people directly behind us were glad to move to chairs out of the waves.

We found a table in the sun and climbed the lighthouse. I got a few pictures. Lunch was fried fish and barbecue chicken. The chicken was good but my fish was greasy and bland. Danny says his was better. Then we moved back to some chairs on the west side without much wave action so we could admire some more water. I had gotten soaked twice by rogue waves so I needed to dry off again anyway.

Then another 100 ft walk back to the pier to get on our ship. We were moored right next to the swimming area and got to watch the lifeguards rescue two kids in a double kayak that couldn’t manage the current and had gotten themselves past the ropes. It was all very calm but the kids were scared and the dad was in another kayak. All good in the end.

We got a brief tour of some of the celebrity homes along Paradise Island. Michael Jordan, Johnny Depp, Tiger Woods, Mariah Carey and many others. Our guide was funny as he described two of these in particular. Tiger Woods had bought one but the ex Mrs Woods got it in the divorce settlement, sometimes it is cheaper to keep her. But then Johnny Depp bought one for his mistress and then after his divorce he got it back so sometimes it isn’t cheaper to keep her. We all laughed. We also danced and sang to many oldies including Sweet Caroline and YMCA. There was an empty lot along the shore that belonged to a sheik. When he left he tore the house down rather than sell it. The land goes for about $2000 per square foot.

Atlantis

6 ships in port

When we got back to port, we still had about 2 hours before the ship left so we went into town, (well walked along Main Street). Danny wanted some sunglasses and I was sort of looking for a hat. He also wanted some fancy rum. After lots of walking and dodging lots and lots of cruise goers, he found some sunglasses and the rum. There were 6 ships in port so it was so crowded.

I was glad to get back on the ship away from the crowds. Plenty of time to rest and shower before our next event. We went to the future cruise desk and managed to get some more discounts on our NE Asia cruise in 2025. Then it was time for the officers soirée in the retreat lounge. We saw lots of officers but never did see the captain. I guess someone had to steer the ship. Then dinner at Le Voyage. It was a nice secluded quiet restaurant and the food was delicious. We stopped by the theater but didn’t stay too long and headed to the room.

Tomorrow is an at sea day so we can sleep late and not be too stressed. So far, this is lots of fun

Rest day at sea. So many things to do

January 17

Somewhere at sea

We slept to the mostly gentle rocking of the ship as we cruised from Nassau through the Gulf of Mexico towards southern Mexico near Belize. We won’t arrive there until around noon on Wednesday. We of course woke up to see sunrise and then took our time getting ready. Breakfast in Luminae. No sign of my “friends” fortunately. I ordered peach cobbler French toast. It was delicious complete with vanilla ice cream. The boys would have loved it. Dessert for breakfast as our waitress said. We wandered around for a bit and went back to the room

One of my projects on the ship is to collect all the charms for the Effy locket I was given. Today had two different ones. The giveaways were at 11 and 7. But before that we had a special treat. Godfrey had invited us to go on the special bridge tour at 10:30. Only 20 people from the ship were invited and it was great. We all got wanded for security purposes and were led in to an area cordoned off but where we could see everything. I got lots of pictures including one of our balcony from the bridge.

The captain was in meeting but the first and second mate were on duty as well as a sailor. I have always referred to this man as “ binocular guy” but now I know better. Anyway the second mate told us all about how things work. The ship was on autopilot as we were cruising. Someone else asked before I could about the refugees that they picked up in early January. Our route was taking us directly between Cuba and the Florida keys so right in the path. I gather they actually rescued 2 boats within 2 weeks. The refugees are given food and shelter as well as a medical exam and clothing I believe and then dropped off with the authorities in the next port. The mate said that they don’t look at nationality or politics. Their only concern is for life at sea. We got about half an hour to look around. As we were sailing along, we were able to see the mountains of Cuba in the distance from our balcony. I also got a picture of our suite from the bridge.

Next up was lunch. We found a new place on the ship that we had not seen yet and went to the Eden Cafe for soup and salad. We ate outside - breezy but nice. Then we went to a food and wine pairing class. We had a plate with multiple different bites including cheese, smoked salmon, olives, plain chicken, pesto chicken, and cherry tomatoes and five glasses of wine. The wine and the food really make a difference. It was interesting. We sat with a couple from just north of Boston. There was lots of extra wine poured and some people went through at least two sets of glasses.

Our schedule wasn’t done yet though. I had a massage scheduled for 3 and Danny decided to join our new friends at a mixology class. We split up and I told him I would be back around 5. I signed in at the spa and while I was waiting, in walked a bride, a photographer and what I guessed was her father. He had on a tux shirt and jacket with a boutonnière with shorts and sneakers. Interesting choice but I guessed they were only doing waist up pictures. She was in her early 20’s and I guessed him to be mid 50’s. But wait - definitely not her father - he was the groom. I guess I should not make assumptions.

My massage was great. She worked on my neck and shoulders which always need it and then the rest of me. 2 hours later I felt great but slimy. She used so much lotion I just figured I would slide back to my room.

Danny had a fun time as well. They made three different drinks and it seems that he is doing everything right at home. He even answered some question that nobody in the past 6 months had gotten correct. The only issue was they used some bizarre ingredients that only a really well stocked business would have.

I had wanted to go up to the sundeck at some point today but that never happened. Time to get ready for dinner at Raw on Five. It was a sushi place but they did have cooked food. It was really good. \240I had lobster and shrimp wonton. Danny ordered a lotus platter with shrimp, raw oysters and crab claws which we shared. We also got some skewers with beef, chicken, shrimp and asparagus all with fun sauces. Dessert was strawberry shortcake (wonderful) and a red bean paste roll for Danny (sounds weird but he said it was good).

After dinner, we went to the theater to watch the Production show. The cast was good as they sang and danced to various Broadway musical hits including ones from Hamilton andThe Carole King Musicalwith many others. It was a hit with the crowd. I am glad we stopped by.

Tomorrow will be a lazy morning and then an adventure in Puerto Costa Maya, Mexico. We will be doing a trifecta of a jungle bike ride, cenote swim and paddle board. Should be a fun time

Costa Maya triathalon

January 18

We had a lazy start to the day as we were not getting into port until noon. The winds and surf were still very high. Thank goodness for Danny’s prescription patch or he would have been miserable. Godfrey brought us coffee and we headed to breakfast at Luminae. We sat next to some very friendly people and we all chatted about cruising and grandchildren throughout breakfast. \240We returned to the cabin where Godfrey met us with monogrammed shirts and lounge pants with the Celebrity logo. \240Danny’s initials were monogrammed as CSJ (as in Charles Smith, Junior). Mine was a little more obscure as my initials were SM. I still don’t know where the M came from but it is a nice shirt. I am going with SMith. A nice treat for us. Lots of extra perks in this cruise.

While Danny was getting ready and remaining in the cabin, I went up to our sundeck for a little while. The first place I chose was so windy that I had too much trouble keeping everything together. \240I gave up and found a much more sheltered spot. I said hi to the couple from breakfast as I was looking around. One of the crew came and admired my work. Otherwise I got about an hours worth of work in. About 11:15 I headed back to the cabin to get ready for our real adventure.

As we were watching the ship dock in the high seas, we could see another ship in port and an ambulance moving slowly up the pier. Captain Kate did a great job and we landed without a bump. We could see her in the bridge steering the ship in. It was nice to be on the pier side so we could see some of the comings and goings. Meanwhile the ambulance pulled up to our ship with 2 armed guards walking with it. That was strange. Once they got everything set, we could see the first people getting off. We disembarked and took the long hike off the pier to our meeting site. We found the guy holding the number 9 sign and checked in. Once all 12 of us were there and had signed the waiver, it was time for the Triple Play.

The excursion said that no one over 65 could participate which seemed kind of silly. This event included a ride in a basically open air truck, a bike ride through the jungle, a swim in an open cenote, lunch of fajitas and enchiladas, another truck ride to a beach downtown for some more swimming and paddle boarding.

First stop was the bike depot where we could pick either a tandem bike or two single bikes. We chose single bikes and we took a practice ride around the area. My bike was great until it was time to get off. The frame was too big for me but I managed a decent landing the first go round. The second try was a little rougher but I didn’t crash. Off to the jungle. It was really pretty and peaceful although no sign of the local jaguars which our guide said were in the area.

It was not a long ride and we arrived at the cenote. This was an issue for me because this landing didn’t go as well as the first two. I wound up on the ground but I was fine. Just my pride was hurt and I will have a few new bruises I am sure.

The cenote was nowhere near as nice as the ones in Playa del Carmen but still fun. We were offered some tastes of the local flavored mezcal. I tried the Oreo flavored one. It was decent. Danny tried all options offered to him including the cannabis one if you can believe it. He said it had a different flavor. One of our new friends, a flight surgeon with the US Air Force, gave him grief and wanted to know if he was starving and if all his aches and pains were gone. Since the size of the tastings were maybe a teaspoon, I don’t think it had much effect on him but he is proud that he tried it.

We snorkeled in the cenote and saw some fish but nothing exciting. Mainly minnows and a slightly bigger fish. Lunch was ready so we got our plate of chicken fajitas and cheese enchiladas. Very delicious as we sat in the sun to dry off. Back on the bikes to ride back on the trail. I asked Danny to catch me before I tried to get off so I would not fall again. Our buddy, the doctor, said he would catch me if Danny didn’t. \240However, Danny caught me safely and I got off way more gracefully than the last time.

Back to the jaguar bus to go to a local beach spot for paddleboarding. The wind and surf was way up but the area did have a water break far enough out to stop some of the bigger waves. It took awhile for some of us to get brave enough to try paddleboarding. This was a definite challenge as the wind was going directly to shore. We both started on our knees, paddling like crazy to get far enough out. After awhile, it became apparent that the easiest method was to walk the paddle board out as far as we wanted, then climb on and sail back to land. This was actually pretty fun. We both did really well for awhile. Danny fell off once but we headed back out again. I had a little bit of trouble steering going back and hit a sandbar which stopped the board and flipped me off backwards. That was an odd sensation. The guide must think I am a super clutz as I fell off the bike and the paddleboard. Our physician friend came to check if I was ok as well. It was all fine. But I succeeded in handling all the parts of the excursion. \240It was a fun day but not a great outing overall.

On our walk back along the pier, we saw an unusual type of street performer. We see them all the time in New Orleans but this was the first time, I had seen this instrument used.

Yes, he is playing a harp!

Back to the ship for showers and rest before dinner. Dinner was planned at the Fine Cut Steakhouse, which was delicious as usual. Danny had the lamb chops and I had a filet mignon. All cooked perfectly. After dinner we went to World Bar for after dinner. \240I got some port, Danny wanted some different scotch choices than they had but he settled for one. I went to get my latest charm from Effy and then we stopped in at the comedy show for a few minutes. Back to the room and time for bed. The seas were still rough so the bed swayed a bunch but it rocked us both to sleep very nicely.

Tomorrow we will be in Cozumel and we have another fun day planned. See you then.

Stingrays and sharks oh my

January 19

Today was so much fun. This was one of the best excursions we have been on. Breakfast via room service as we had to be at the end of the pier for 8:45 am for our latest adventure. This one was another triple play day. The official title of our trip was “Off road adventure, Jade Cavern swim and Playa Mia”. The write up about it didn’t really do it justice.

There were 11 of us on our trip. We paired up with a nice couple from the UK. Dean and Rebecca were very nice and we chatted about everything under the sun all day. \240First highlight was the jeeps. Danny and Dean chose to do the driving. Dean started out for the first half. It was a short drive to Stingray Beach. We brought our snorkels but not our flippers so we got those. Time to swim with the stingrays, sharks and lots of fish. This was so much fun and my underwater case worked great. I got a lot of fun pictures including some of the coral reef. We must have been in the water for at least 45 minutes. The sharks were nurse sharks so not dangerous or aggressive at all.

Then we went to the “feed, touch and hold a stingray” part. First we were given a frozen fish and instructed on how to feed them. The mouth is on the bottom so we held the fish down by our ankles for them to come get. Once my fish was gone, I petted them. They are really smooth especially on the other side of their fins. One swam through my legs from behind me which was cool although a little unexpected. This place is a stingray sanctuary where they bring injured ones in to heal until they get released again to the wild. They do cut the barb on the tail off to make them less dangerous. It takes about 6 months for it to grow back so that is when they are set free. \240Once we all had fed the stingrays we moved out into deeper water and met Francisco and Lolita, 2 of the stingrays. Have you ever eaten stingray? \240We didn’t realize it but we both had. Bay scallops are made from stingray as is ceviche. They had a photographer taking pictures as we each got to pat, kiss and then hold the stingrays. \240We showered and reorganized. Back to the jeeps. We bought the digital pictures and I will add them when I get the email.

Dean was still driving and eventually we got to the off road part. \240It was an adventure. He did his best to avoid the worst of the potholes but that was virtually impossible. A

t the end, we had a short hike to Jade Cavern. It was a semi open cenote. There was a place to jump off the cliff into the 60 ft deep water. Only one of our group was brave enough to try it. We saw lots of fruit bats hanging from one end of the cave. There were some cute critters called something I can’t remember. It was similar to quatramain. I will have to figure that out. Danny just figured it out for me. It is a coatimundi otherwise known as a Pizote. Danny and I decided to go in. No one else was brave enough. The water was really cold so we only swam for a few minutes.

Back to the jeeps and Danny’s turn to avoid the bumps, rocks and holes. It was much smoother riding in front rather than the back. We jolted along the road back to the highway following our guide and trying to stay together. No one got lost and we got to the Playa Mia Beach Club. The first order of business was lunch with an open bar except for the drivers. Danny got the fish and I got the chicken. Both were good. We chatted some more with our new friends and then went to explore and then sit on the beach for a little while. The place was very nice with a water park for the kids, a nice beach and lots to see. We were back at the meeting spot for 2:20 so we could be back at the pier before 3. It was not a long drive back to the pier and we said goodbye to Gabriel. He was a fantastic guide.

Back at port we walked through some of the shops looking for shirts for the grandkids but didn’t see anything I liked. Maybe in Grand Cayman tomorrow. Another exhausting but fun day. Godfrey had left us a fruit tray which was a perfect snack for the end of the day. Showered and dressed for dinner to go find a drink before dinner. The Retreat Lounge has been our go to place and we found seats by the window to watch as we sailed along. We do like to wander around on the decks as well exploring new places. I think we have found everything so far except the inner workings of the ship. We could do a tour to see all of that tomorrow including the kitchens, laundry, machine rooms etc so we might do that.

Dinner was amazing. We went to Le Petit Chef and it was a new experience. They have a plain white cover to the table and they broadcast videos right onto your plate and table talking about the next course of the meal. It was fascinating and the pictures don’t do it justice. The food lived up to the whole experience as well and we added the wine pairings to the meal. A culinary adventure to be sure. It is so hard to descibe it without having been there.

Fireworks at the end

We wandered around some more and then headed to the room. I had to get my charm for the evening as well. We had a fun treat in our room, other than the usual chocolates.

Tomorrow is our last stop and excursion day. We will be in Grand Cayman swimming with dolphins so I am looking forward to that.

It was a relaxing morning as we did not need to meet for our excursion until 10:45 in the theater. Coffee in the room and breakfast in Luminae. Okta is our primary waitress. The hostess and some of the staff know us by our names (I bet they have to study up on it) and Okta even remembers our breakfast choices. Danny got a double serving of grapefruit. She is very bubbly and attentive. This morning we both tried the potato waffles. They were a bit unusual but very tasty. One interesting thing about the Cayman Islands is that their regulations do not allow 99% of the bars on ship to be open while in port. Therefore everything except the pool bar was closed for all the people that stayed on board.

We relaxed a bit and got ready for our day. We heard the captain drop anchor on our side. There was lots of loud thumps and creaks. Once we were assigned our spots in the theater, we had to take a tender to the pier. Georgetown doesn’t have a deep water pier but this process was nice and smooth.

We just need to be back before the last tender at 4:30. We were in group 21 for the Dolphin Swim Adventure and then 7 mile beach. We hung out in Tiki Hut #1 until we were called.

I learned a few things about Grand Cayman as we rode along the streets. They are a constitutional monarchy like Canada under King Charles ( it still seems weird to think that) and they drive on the opposite side of the road. This was okay until we got to the first of many rotaries. It should have connected that we would go clockwise instead of counterclockwise like at home. The street signs are a little different. For instance, they have the upside down triangle with red and black borders that say” give way” instead of “yield”. And they have signs that say “Americans, drive on the left”. I guess that happens frequently. It would take me a bit to get used to it. Lots of chickens roaming free like in Key West. \240Off to Dolphin Cove

Dolphin Cove is a sanctuary for rescued dolphins. Our two newest Dolphin friends were Reggae and Joy. Joy was a little shy of some people but Reggae was very friendly we got top at them a bunch as they swam by. They did some tricks. And they gave each of us a kiss on the cheek. They waved at us and then danced with us. The highlights were getting to ride on them belly to belly. Fortunately the dolphin was the one belly up which we hung on to the pectoral fins for a ride. It was amazing. Then we got a boogie board ride which each Dolphin pushed on each foot. The speed of the two dolphins was amazing and it was a blast. We bought the pictures that also included them leaping in the air and balancing a basketball. It was over way too soon but well worth the trip. Our British friends came in as we were checking out. They were on a rest stop from a bike ride.

Joy

Reggae

As we were driving along to the next part, we passed the Grand Cayman Pickleball Courts”. We both laughed. Next stop was Coral Beach where we ran into them again. They gave us two of their drink tickets which was nice. We found a spot and went snorkeling in the Gulf. Not too many fish and they all swam too fast for me. The water was such a pretty blue. We chose not to get lunch because we had a big dinner planned in Eden tonight. We had found some presents for people at Dolphin Cove so we looked around at the shops and then caught the second to last tender back to the ship.

Dinner was at 6:30 so we rested up and got ready for another dressy dinner. We watched sunset in the Retreat Lounge before going to dinner.

Eden was fabulous. The crab cake melted in my mouth and the lobster casserole( although not really a casserole) was delicious it had huge pieces of lobster, a yummy sauce and bits of corn with a few other things. Danny had the grouper which he enjoyed as well. Dessert was good but not great. Lemon tartlet and Azteca Chocolate something with cardamom ice cream.

We didn’t finish in time to go to the show which was fine. I got my charm and headed back upstairs.

Tomorrow is the last day on the ship. It is an at sea day which will be relaxing. I am going to put off packing as long as I can but the suitcases have to be outside the door by 10 pm I think. Grrrrrr.

Our last day on the ship and I forgot to put out the room service menu for coffee but it was okay. When we left for breakfast, Godfrey wondered why we didn’t get our coffee ordered. I had to admit that I had forgotten. He said I should have called him. He actually thought about knocking on the door to ask. Oh well. Breakfast in Luminae again. I had tried each one of their various breakfast menu items. This morning was the apple crepe. It was delicious.

Back to the room and then off to the sundeck for a couple of hours. I got my last charm as well and we did a little bit of shopping to bring home.

Lunch was at the Retreat grill. We hadn’t eaten there yet. It was a nice lite lunch. The big event for the day was a premium wine and cheese tasting with the same sommelier that did the last one. \240We didn’t have to guess the wines this time but we did learn a lot about them. This one ranged from champagne to port. \240So much wine. Again many people drank more than the glasses put in front of them.

We wandered around for about 30 minutes until it was time for Danny to go to his McAllen tasting. I went back to the sundeck to read some more.

I figured I had put off packing as long as I could so around 4 pm I went back to the room to start. So depressing. Danny got back around 4:30 and I had finished most of my stuff.

Danny told me he had a private tasting and that the McAllen quest class was fabulous. He especially liked the Lumina and the Terra varieties. They were sold out in the gift shop but he asked Godfrey if he could track some down on the ship for him to buy. Eventually Godfrey said the bartender at the Eden bar had some. They were full liter bottles. One was $450 and the other was $750. He passed on the purchase but he obviously has good taste.

Once we were basically packed, it was about time for our last trip to the Retreat Lounge for our pre dinner drink. Dinner tonight was at the Rooftop Garden Grill. I had brisket and he had baby back ribs. We could see the absolutely huge screen on the deck to watch the football game.

We had a really early night as I had to finish putting the suitcases together so we could put them outside the door by 10 pm. Packing to go home is always easier than packing to leave because you just take everything that belongs to you.

Even though customs only allows people to bring one liter of alcohol per person, we had 3 bottles to take home. I wrapped them up carefully in the clothing and tucked them in the middle of the suitcases hoping they wouldn’t break. I put the suitcases outside the door around 7:30 and they were gone in about 15 minutes.

We have to leave the ship by 8:40 to get our shuttle to the airport so we turned in early.

Only one picture today as we spent most of the day in airports.

Early breakfast in the Lounge and the back to the room to tie up loose ends and pack the rest our stuff. We were supposed to be out of the room and in the theater by 8 but Godfrey said we could stay. When we left, he was helping a lady just down the hall move from her outside room to an inside room for the second half of her back to back cruise. I would love to do a longer cruise on Celebrity which we will be doing in 2025 to Northeast Asia - Vietnam, Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Singapore.

Meanwhile we headed to the fifth floor to disembark. They called our group and we filed off the ship and eventually found our bus. There was a line but we dropped our bags and found some seats. Then waited and waited and waited. After an hour we left for the 10 minute drive to the airport.

We got our bags and headed to the American Airlines counter. We got to the front around 10:20 only to find out that we were too early. Our plane didn’t leave until 3:07 so we couldn’t check our bags until 11:07. More waiting. There were so many people waiting around thanks to the multiple cruise ships in port. It was changeover day. Finally we got to check our bags and we went to find the Priority Pass place in one of the terminals. It turned out to be a restaurant where we had $28 per person to spend. We ordered lunch and took our time. Off to the gate to wait some more. The plane was late leaving because of bad weather in Charlotte but not too much. We had another 3 hours to kill in Charlotte anyway.

Smooth sailing until we got close to landing. Once on the ground we headed for the Priority Pass Lounge at the airport. This one was much nicer and we ordered a few small bites and something to drink. We hung out for a bit while Danny watched the game. Back to the gate to wait some more.

The trip to BTR was easy and our suitcases were among the first off the plane. We found the car and arrived back at the house around 10:30. Good to be home but hard to believe that when we woke up this morning that we were still at sea off the coast of Florida.

Charlie’s birthday is tomorrow so the boys were spending the night. I went up to kiss them goodnight and they didn’t wake up.

Next adventure is a ski trip with the Bligard’s in early March. See you then