Wednesday started out great anticipating a day of snorkeling off a small boat in a beautiful remote area in Costa Maya, Mexico. We were enjoying breakfast at the buffet and noticed the boat circling the port a few times. As we saw this we heard talk from the buffet waiters that this happens a lot with Costa Maya. The winds were too strong, making the water very wavy and choppy. Shoot! Curtis was so looking forward to our excursion that Spencer had planned. It was supposed to be a good one. The boat never was able to port. So there it was, another day at sea. Hey, I wasn't too disappointed! Curtis threw his little tantrum (JK-it was only a mini tantrum), along with many other strangers on the boat but they got over it soon enough and there was still lots to do like...
admire the huge ship once again in the beautiful blue waters and
check out mom and dad's room with the balcony. They had the nicest room of them all! Living like royals they were :)
and enjoying the fresh air on that balcony
and engaging in delightful conversation without little people interrupting
and sitting around relaxing, suntanning, reading, sleeping, eating icecream, drinking lemonade, and chatting on the Serenity deck was a must must! We claimed this as our Carter spot on the ship! Once Will learned that the ship was not pulling in that day, he grabbed his things and quickly headed up to this popular and beloved area to stake his claim. Ha ha! I love it! He woke up early on the last day at sea to do the very same thing! Thanks Will for taking this on and for providing a wonderful place of relaxation! It was fun to be with you and see how many cokes and icecream cones you consumed, without even gaining a single pound! You bum! But remember, you are "lactose intolerant, right"?! Ha ha!
and playing our childhood game of Wizard late at night when hardly anyone was around(love that)
and dancing the night away and every other night for that matter! This was seriously one of my most favorite things to do on the ship! Curtis and I were the diehards entering the dance floor at White Heat every single night! We loved making requests and acting silly with our ridiculous moves! We danced to 50's and 60's night, mom and dad's favorite, well mom's..and it was important to the marriage that dad attend-a nap happened that day so he could make it past 10pm..hee hee! We also danced to 70's and 80's and some current tunes. The DJ was pretty lame but we remember the line dances, and Jenny's favorite zumba tune of "Follow da leader"! Swing those hips Jenny. You are so good at that! We also remember Curtis getting hit on by a young girl as he was resting on the side lines. Good thing I didn't see it or there would have been a wrestling match..ha ha, ya right! The only couple I don't have a picture of is Spencer and Lori and I know they danced with us once. So, anybody, please send me their picture!
and we also had fun walking around in the evenings looking at different backdrops to get our pictures taken at, with a real photographer. I really like this one!
Thursday was the day for the island of Roatan, Honduras! We all felt a little on edge as we wondered whether the boat would be able to pull into port with some choppy waves going on. I felt bad for the Captain under such pressure ! He had some pretty upset passengers from the day before to please!
Oh we were getting so close but look at the water. Please oh please..
Phew! Captain pulled us in beautifully. It was so fun to watch the ship being anchored down!
I was pleasantly surprised that this little island was my absolute favorite stop on the whole cruise! It was bEEautiful! Just look at the view!
We caught a bus to the famous Tabyana Beach which btw was my favorite beach as well!
It's everything you picture a Caribbean beach to be! Soft, white, fine sand, crystal clear turquoise waters, tropical fish, warm weather, and the palm trees to go with it! I wish I could teleport myself there this minute! Hip hip hooray for the Sheers!
When we first arrived there were hardly any tourists. As the morning went on it became more congested. There were cute islanders trying to sell their items like jewelry, massages, hair braiding, dresses, sea shells, and serenading. There were children of about 8-10 years selling things too. Martha and I felt sad that they weren't in school learning. What a different life these people lead!
It's Graham going for the ocean floor!
Isn't this a great picture!
The sweet Hassler couple! Cynthia's skirt and flippers are super cute!
And yes, I managed to go under long enough for this funny snorkel face picture!
Snorkeling and taking underwater photos was Curtis' most favorite thing to do! He could spend hours looking and swimming around! He captured some beautiful pictures!
It's the island shopping! The sun dresses are so cute! My girls love them!
While were were having some beach fun, the Romerils decided to take a more adventureous excursion! They met with some animals and went ziplining. Jenny was so excited for this one and I'm glad she was pleased! I love this beautiful picture of my beautiful sista!
There was some fun shopping in Roatan. On the way out we got some t-shirts for the boys. I enjoyed all the little outdoor booths and shops!
Bye bye Roatan! We hope to see you soon. What a piece of paradise!
Friday called for our last port of Grand Cayman! It was another beautiful destination! The island is so little that the cruise boat anchors itself a ways off from it. Then passengers go on tenders to dock the island.
We had so much fun sitting by the Romerils in the tender boat! This is another favorite picture!
As we were leaving the boat I was wondering what mom and dad were doing for the day and thinking about what wonderful parents they have always been. Just as this thought entered my mind, lo and behold, guess who we saw watching the tenders. And just as we spotted them, they spotted us. We frantically waved to each other and blew kisses their way! This was a reminder to me that I have had consistently supportive and loving parents all my life. They were watching out for us that day just like they always have! It is one of my most cherished memories! Love you mom and dad!
See ya in a while Carnival Glory!
These pirate looking boats were fun to see!
Yes! We're getting closer to Grand Cayman!
We rode a taxi bus to the Calico Jack beach which is a part of the famous 7 mile beach.
This is the "Tiki Beach" part right next door to where we were. You had to pay to be on this section.
So we just snorkeled on over to check it out. The difference is, you get chairs and umbrellas for the money. We were too busy playing in the water to want that!
Some more snorkel fun!
Curtis was still full of enthusiasm for these sea creatures! He found some new ones this time: squid, a puffer fish, a sea urchin, a sword fish, and that fish with the long snout looking like he's about to give someone a kiss! Jeff found a little shell with a tiny crab creature inside.
I left the beach a little early with some of the ladies to do some island shopping! We had to make sure we got the rest of the souvenirs we needed for our family members! It was a lot of fun!
Farewell Grand Cayman!
Sister toes on the tender sailing back to our ship! We had to make sure we were back to our cabins to get ready on time for another formal evening!
While waiting to go into White Heat that evening, we were treated with this quick whitted card magician. He was funny and sneaky. Didn't let us have time to figure out how it was done! He had this cool Romanian accent!
1 comment:
So fun to see pics of your big cruise Mel! It is just so awesome you got to do that with your whole family, how neat! Looks like it was a ball! I am proud of you for snorkeling, I have never done it, I think it would scare me a bit! Oh and I'd love to see Curt karaoke! Maybe we need to do a karaoke party huh? :)
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