Two days at Sea

Friday and Saturday were both sea days and we were really excited about being able to sleep in as long as we wanted. We quickly developed a routine of sleeping until 10:30 ish and lazing around for a hour or so before heading out for brunch. 

After brunch we found lounge chairs on deck 15 and planted ourselves for the afternoon. Same place everyday, as we are so creatures of habit. With books to read, people to watch, waiters to bring us drinks and the occasional catnap we soaked up the sunrays and worked on our tans. Even Janet got a bit of color, while spending most of the time in the shade due to allergies to the sun. We only left our chairs when it was time to get dressed for dinner or to get our daily milkshake from the ice cream bar.

Friday was formal night and when we first arrived Mr. John was not at the table. With every minute that passed we continued to worry until finally about 15 minutes late he arrived dressed in his tuxedo. Relieved to see him we were now ready to enjoy the night's special of shrimp and lobster.

Friday's Theater preformance was Dan Horn. A very talented funny ventriloquist who had us laughing through is entire show. From there we headed to the piano bar. I loved singing along ( it was encouraged) to all the familiar songs. It has been a long time since I sang that much and we had so much fun!

Saturday was our final dinner with Mr.John and my heart broke as he told us more about his wife's passing, being estranged from his daughter, initial difficulties when his wife died ( they had thought he would pass first because he had been quite ill, so they had transferred all their money into her name so at the time he couldn't even afford to bury her) and not really knowing what he was going to be doing next. He gave us his email address with a hope I am sure that we stay in contact. He touched me in a way that I can't really explain and as we said goodbye it was all I could do to keep the tears from pouring down my face. Back in the room and as I write this I found myself crying.

Fortunately after dinner we went to watch the "Princess  karaoke finale". Apparently they had karaoke contests all week and the daily winners would compete in tonight's finale.  Five of the six contestants were really good. Four of them turned out to be professional and/ or trained singers. The contestants received feedback from 3 celebrity judges and then the audience voted on the winner. Nathan a college trainer vocalist who at one time had his own band was the winner. Even Nicole said he was the most technically talented singer of the group. He had an awesome sound. It is just I couldn't understand most of the words he was singing..but then what do I know. The entire event was a lot of fun and very entertaining. 

Time for one dance to a Fleetwood Mac song and it was time for bed. A great last night to a great cruise!  

Cave tubing in Belize

The cruise ship anchored 5 miles off the shore of Belize, in order the protect the coral reef and prevent congestion of all the cruise ships in the small port.  Next to Australia's Great Barrier Reef the Belize Barrier Reef is deemed to be the second largest in the world. It is part of the mesoamerican system that runs for 560 miles along the Atlantic, which is probably why the  Cozumel and Roatan tourist guides also said the reef at their island was the 2nd largest.  It's all the same one. 

 At 6:45am sharp we headed to the Princess Theater at the front of the ship to meet our tour group so we could all be tendered into the Belize City port together.

We were going on the Cave tubing and scenic drive half day tour. First we boarded a large bus that drove us through Belize City and out into the countryside. 

Driving through the country, Belize appeared to be fairly flat with lots of relatively small trees decorating the countryside. It almost appeared to be quite dry, even though it is surrounded by water.  A few minutes out of town is when I fell asleep so I missed a lot of the information shared by our two tour guides; Mr. T and Big Bruce. I am sure they told us about the history and current statistics of the country, but you will have to ask Nicole or Janet about that. Later in the day I made the mistake of calling Belize an Island to which Big Bruce was quick to correct me on.  It is not an Island but part of Central America.

Upon arriving a Jaguar Jungle we were divided into groups of eight, and then fitted with life jackets, helmets, and headlights. Luckily for us, Big Bruce would be our guide. We picked up our neon green tubes and started out on a nice leisurely walk down to the clear waters of the Caves Branch River. Along the way Big Bruce pointed out different types of vegetation and tried to get us to eat termites.  As much as I wanted to test my boundaries and try one it was when he said "you need to make sure you chew them so you don't feel them trying to climb back up your throat", that I decided to pass. Funny thing is no one else in our group was brave enough to try one either.  I think in order to chew something it needs to be bigger than a pinhead.  I am a tiny bit regretful I didn't give it a try.

Then we came across a very tall tree with leaves that looked like a skill saw blades. Big Bruce indicated this was similar to the Mary Jane. Nicole and I both stood there thinking we didn't know the Mary Jane tree.  Obviously we had a blank look on our faces as we indicated we didn't know the Mary Jane tree. Weed, grass, marihuana, he yelled at us.  Ok not really yelling but it was clear he thought we were a bit dense or naive...lol

About 15 minutes later we reached the entrance to the caves. The water was clear and quite refreshing. It took a minute or two to climatize to the temperature.  Luckily we had to drop into our tubes from the stairs above so there was no tilly tallying getting in. Just hold onto to a rope and let yourself drop backwards into the tube. Our tubes were all tied together and then Big Bruce guided our group into the caves. As we turned on our headlights the caves opened up revealing magnificent formations and a vast fresh water river system flowing under ground. There are nine caves in all but we only had time to explore two. The current was quite slow and in order to move through the caves Big Bruce hooked his foot under my tube and sitting on his tube backwards pulled us throught the caves paddling with his arms, all the while entertaining us with stories, a few jokes, and telling us about the formation and history of the caves. It was a very enjoyable, leisurely hour and a half float. 

Reaching the end of the second cave, we had time for a very quick lunch before jumping back onto the bus for the trip back to Belize City. Unfortunately I was back asleep shortly after the bus pulled away from the parking lot. 

At the end of the tour we decided to head back to the ship for lunch and more relaxation on the ships sun deck. A great way to finish the day! 

Cozumel

The first island we would visit on our cruise was Cozumel. According to Mayan legend Cozumel was the home to th gods, with its stunning white sand beaches, crystalline blue waters and ruined Mayan temples.

We decided to spend the day snorkelling and visiting Passion Island Beach. Boarding the Catatermin named Fury we were off for a day of playing in the water.

Dressed in our finest snorkelling attire we headed out to the Chankanaab Reef, part of the 2nd largest barrier reef in the world. The water was warm, and crystal clear. The natural aquarium revealed dozens of tropical fish, coral and vegetation. Absolutely amazing! We were told to stick together and follow the large buoy, which would lead us along the reef.  It was all so very impressive.  

After about 45 minutes in the water, which seemed more like 15, we climbed back onto the Catatermin  for the trip over to the secluded Passion Island Beach. At this point the tequila started to pour and watching the people on our boat was almost as fun as the snorkelling had been. Almost! 

Passion Island Beach is outfitted with waterslides, banana boats, tons of other water toys and beach chairs.  Nicole jumped on a paddled board and quickly mastered the technique. She is a natural.

 Once she returned to shore we couldn't resist trying out the waterslides. The hardest part was the climb up. Thank goodness for all that training at the gym. But it was so much fun and we tried it more than once. 

After soaking up some rays and playing in the water it was time to head back to the ship in time for lunch.  First stop the ice cream bar for our first milkshake of the week. So Good!

Tonight at dinner we learned a lot about Mr John. 

He was born in Lativia in 1943, and escaped with his family to Germany in 1945. They immigrated to the US in 1952.  We also figured out that he had aspbergers, which explain his conversation awkwardness. Awkward or not I wasn't going to miss one dinner with him this week.  A very interesting, smart man, indeed, who has touched my heart. 

Tonight's entertainment was a comedian named Darrel Joyce.  He is so so funny, making fun out of so many realities of life. " Why he asked is everyone on the ship carrying cell phones - really if you need to talk to someone after being apart for only 36 hours maybe you should have brought them with you."  We laughed so hard and I wished he had continued for another hour. 

Next we were off to the Infusion Pub for the country music trivia contest. Surely Nicole would be a bit of a ringer for us? We didn't win with 28 out of 40 but we in the top 25%of the teams. Yes we are just a little bit competitive? How can you win against a team that got 38 out of 40.  Of course they were a bit older and got the answers to the really old songs lol. Even though we didn't win we had a blast and then stayed around to dance before heading back to our cabin for the night. 

It was definitely a fun filled day, snorkelling, swimming, tanning, and dancing our bodies were ready for bed! 

Rest and Relaxation

I can't believe it but we all slept in until 10:30am this morning. I haven't slept for 10 hours straight in I don't know how long, so not waking up until 10:30 was quite a surprise. Then we realized there was no rush to jump out of bed, so we didn't. What a treat!

Finally we were all starting to get hungry so we decided it was time to go for brunch.  It is still brunch even at noon if you didn't have breakfast, right? Finding a table out by the pool we devoured our lunch while trying to answer the movie and TV trivia questions projected on the big screen above the pool. Not having watched a lot of movies from the 30's and 40's I didn't do so well but Janet was a winner.

Then it was time to find lounge chairs for an afternoon napor to read our books and people watch. A chair in the shade for Janet, one in the sun for Nicole and the third one with the head in the shade and the rest in the sun for Cathy. Surprising enough we found the perfect spot. As usual I found myself reading a few pages, falling asleep for awhile, occasionally waking myself up with a little snore and then starting the whole process over again. A perfect afternoon and just what the doctor ordered.

Tonight was formal night and we all got dressed in our prettiest dresses, put on makeup and even curled our hair in preparation for dinner.  We were happy to find Mr. John dressed in his tuxedo waiting for us at the dinner table. At least we knew he hadn't been emergency evacuated from the boat last night. The meal was awesome, however the conversation quite strange and a little awkward as Mr. John shared his opinion on the need to have several guns in your home or with you in order to protect yourself and your family. "How can Canadians possibly protect themselves if they don't carry guns?" - he asked. Then he proceeded to tell us how to avoid letting the police search your car, because you never know if your teenagers may have left marihuana in your car the last time they borrowed it.  Now remember he is about 75 years old and his only daughter is around 50. We asked him if he lived in a rough neighbourhood or had ever had problems with his daughter to which he answered No to both. I think he is just a little strange and very socially awkward. Oh yeah with very weird opinions. 

Tonight's show was "I've got the Music" featuring Cher, Lionel Ritchie and Neil Diamond songs. As the Emerald singers and dancers preformed the songs the audience sang along to some of the artists best known hits. 

Energized by the performance we headed off to the "Infusion Pub" for an evening of 50's and 60s rock and roll. Within minutes we were up dancing including a lot of twists. I am sure we burnt more than a few calories.  While we didn't win the twist-off or participate in the hula hoop contest ( mostly because we weren't picked to be contestants) we danced to every song they played excepted for the slow romantic ones. During these songs I really missed my sweetie! 

A little before midnight it was time to head back to our cabin for bed. We had a great day and tomorrow we will explore Cozumel, which means we need to be up at 7 am. 

Cruising in the Caribbean 2015

We were up bright and early on March 22, 2015. OK maybe not so bright but definitely early, it was 5:00 am Sunday morning. Nicole, Janet and I were heading to the airport for a flight to Houston where we would board the Princess Emerald Cruise ship for a week in the Caribbean. In desperate need of rest and relaxation, we were excited and ready to go. 

Clearing customs in Calgary was the quickest I have ever experienced. There was absolutely no one in line in front of us as we approached the custom officers and they were even friendly. Then through the X-ray machines where we got to keep our coats, shoes and belts on, and keep the liquids in our backpacks. It was really nice not to have to get undressed to get through security for a change. In just over an hour we had left Nicole's, parked at the "Park and Jet", cleared customs and were sitting at the gate waiting to board our plane. We had an hour to spare. I am sure though if we had left Nic's a hour later things wouldn't have gone so smoothly and we might have missed the plane. 

We arrived in Houston 15 minutes late and realized that we only had 45 minutes to check-in to the cruise ship. Jumping into a cab, we were headed to Bayport Cruise Terminal.  The only challenge was the cabbie wasn't sure were it was but he knew it was a long way away. No problem though- he would phone a friend and hopefully have us there by 3pm.  "No" we said, we need to be there before 3. He would try but he still wasn't sure where he was going.  To say the least I was just a little bit stressed, but refused to keep looking at my watch because that really wouldn't help us get there any faster.  Finally, I was able to locate the route using the GPS on my iPhone.  I know we will ge getting a hefty phone bill for that one but at least we were now confident we were heading in the right direction. With Nicole confirming the directions to our taxi driver he sped towards Houston's Terminal Port.  Thank goodness there were no police cars on the road because he definitely exceeded the speed limit getting us to the terminal without a minute to spare. We jumped out of the taxi and gave our driver a handsome tip. Hopefully he doesn't have to use it to pay any photo radar tickets! 

We weren't the very last passengers to check-in but it was close. We were so late we didn't even have to pose for the official welcome to the cruise ship photo. Just think of the time we will save not looking for the picture we don't want to buy.

I am not sure how it happened or why but we are scheduled for "traditional" dining at 5:30pm, table number 442, every evening. I think this is a good thing. Upon arriving at our table we were introduced to John.  During the introductions John told us his wife died a year and a half ago so he was cruising alone. Turns out Mr. John (as the cruise staff call him) has been on the ship since January 4th, 2015, but this would be his last week.

Now I am thinking that's the way I want to spend my latter years. Travelling around the Caribbean, having people look after me, a medical doctor that will come to my cabin if I feel ill and lots of entertainment to keep me occupied.  Sounds pretty good to me. Unfortunately for Mr. John, it doesn't appear to have been such a fun experience. In the past three months he hasn't left the ship at any of the ports, he doesn't go to any of the shows and really doesn't have much of an appetite. On several occasions the medics have had to help him get from the dining room back to his cabin because he didn't feel well. The whole situation sounded very sad.  It is very clear John deeply misses his wife to whom he was married for over 50 years. 

On a positive note we learned he was a high school math teacher prior to retiring.  Turns out that Mr. John brought 10 bottles of champagne with him when he first boarded the ship back in January. However that is a bit of a no, no.  Cruise lines don't allow you to bring your own alcohol, or any other beverage for that matter onto the ship. What the cruise line did do was confiscate the champagne and each Sunday they give him back a bottle with dinner. So tonight thanks to the generosity of Mr. John,  we all had champagne with dinner. A nice way to start the vacation and toast our new dinner companion.

After dinner it was time to go to the first show of the cruise. We were welcomed by the Emerald singers and dancers. Then the Cruise Director and the Assistant Cruise Director did the "Welcome to the Cruise" dog and pony show. The real entertainment for the evening was a comedian named Darrell Joyce. Now he was funny!  Mostly because everything he spoke about was so very close to the truth. Women needing a suitcase just for their shoes, how men could get away with just packing 3 pairs of underwear for a 7 day cruise and clothes people just should not wear; speedos, yoga pants.....

We were laughing out loud. 

As we were coming out of the show the captain made an announcement over the intercom system. Unfortunately there was a medical emergency on board and he was turning the ship around to meet up with the coast guard who would then transport the patient back to port for medical assistance. All three of us immediately thought of Mr. John and we hoped we would see him tomorrow at dinner(?).

It has been a long day and we decided it was time to retire to our cabin. Maybe with a good night's sleep I would get rid of my cold and be ready for a hard day of relaxing tomorrow.