I want to conquer the world!
Wrote this almost 2 weeks ago...
The cruise was absolutely fantastic. I couldn't have asked for a better trip. Cruising is currently my favorite method of travel. Next on my list is a Royal Caribbean Freedom fleet cruise to the Mediterranean.
I slept over April's Saturday night and Sunday morning we left for Ft. Lauderdale. There were 6 of us.. April, her Mom and Dad, her younger sister, Alma and her boyfriend, David and me, of course. The ship was beautiful (Royal Caribbean's Jewel of the Seas). It's a newer ship, just two years old. Had a rock wall, a gorgeous Solarium, a dance club complete with a rotating bar, a casino and so much more. We had an inside stateroom which was very comfortable, but difficult to distinguish time from since we didn't have a window or porthole. The room was very comfortable though and we had our own beds. Within the first few hours we had unpacked and made ourselves at home.
We had dinner in the dining room at 6pm after unpacking and browsing the ship. Our waiters were Hugo and Gabor (Gabor was adorable.. dark hair, glasses, but he was from Hungary and we all know that equals trouble). So every night we went to dinner, ate tons of food and then hit the casino. I didn't win anything really, the most I won was about $50 and I had gambled it anyway. After the casino, we would go to the shows. A few we saw were West End to Broadway, City of Dreams, a Magician who was better than Lance Burton and the Farewell Show which was so cute. The singers and dancers were really talented but their two shows didn't make much sense plot wise. There was also a violinist who rocked our pants off. He was amazing and entertaining till the very end. We also participated in a lot of the goings on around the ship. We took a salsa class, went to the gym, did a backstage tour, watched an art auction, saw the Love & Marriage and The Quest game shows (which were hilarious!), went to the club every night. We just really enjoyed ourselves. The ship was so amazing. We didn't even lay out much we were just so occupied with the activities.
Our first port of call was Key West last Monday. We decided we would just browse since we've been there before. We bought some Tortuga rum cakes and walked all over the place. We went to this new Pirate Museum that just opened down there and we had a blast. You all know I love me some Pirates. After that, we headed to Sloppy Joe's for a drink (which has now become a new tradition, of course). After that, April and I took a long walk down to the Hemingway house to sneak a peak of the six-toed cats. We'd already toured the house last year, we just thought we might be able to sneak a peak. No such luck.. We headed back to the ship because we would soon be leaving. Our night consisted of dinner, drinks, gambling and dancing. Oh, and of course making fun of the Spring Breakers.
Tuesday was Cozumel. It was nice there, but I can't stand the constant haggling to buy shit. It gets old fast. We just did some walking and of course stopped for a drink at this colorful bar with salsa dancers. We ended up back on the ship around 3pm and we laid out and tanned for a bit. Then got ready for the nightly ritual. In addition to our ritual, tonight was formal night, so we got really fancied up! They also had a Welcome Back party on this night, so we went and got some free drinks, which is always good. Met some really nice people and learned about RC's new prospects. We called it a night early. The teenagers booty dancing to 70's music and the DJ asking them to "Yell if they were horny" really just made us want to kick some ass, so instead we decided to behave and headed back to the cabin.
On Wednesday, we were in Costa Maya, Mexico. We did a Clear Kayak excursion which was unbelievable. We piled into the kayaks and headed for a beach. When we arrived, they had a tiki hut with fresh mango, papaya (the most AMAZING papaya I've ever eaten in my life), pineapple and plenty of beer with the soothing sounds of Sade blaring down the beach. So serene and peaceful. This was the most amazing day of my life. I will always remember it for as long as I live.
Thursday was our last Port of Call, Georgetown, Grand Cayman. We walked around the town for a bit looking in little shops and keeping an eye for pirates booty until we had to meet up for our final excursion. We did a snorkeling reef & wreck tour. REALLY fun. The best part on the drive to the different spots on the little boat, they would play Jack Johnson's Banana Pancakes (My favorite song by him!) It was so perfect. Our first snorkeling spot was right off the shore and it was of an old iron ship that didn't quite make it to the shore, so we got to snorkel around and check out the wreck. It was neat and reminded me of The Little Mermaid. Also, April and I dived down and touch the wreck! The next and final stop was at a huge reef that was full of caverns and colorful fish of all shapes and sizes. This was so neat to see. If you swam out far enough, you could see the reef just drop off. I wish I could kayak and snorkel everyday... The evening commenced with a giant dinner, gambling, shows and drinking as usual. No complaints ;)
Friday was our day at sea. You start to go crazy after being stuck on the ship for a few hours though. We did all we could this day. Yes, we could've been lazy and laid out all day. But instead, we took advantage of this cruise.. We woke up somewhat early and did the backstage theater tour, went to the salsa class, went to an auction and laid out for a little while. It was a nice day, but after dinner the ship really started picking up speed and moving A LOT. The solution?? Some warm ginger ale and dancing! The fucking idiot spring breakers were all wasted from laying out and drinking beer all day so the dance club wasn't that badly crowded. By this day, everyone on the ship had had enough of them, especially the staff. I have NO idea how they can deal with that shit. If a teenager just looks at me funny they have hell to pay.. No offense to any of you out there....
This cruise was the best yet. For a free cruise, I really milked it. We did ALL we possibly could on this ship. My bill for alcohol was $120 over a period of 6 days.. could've been worse. I bought a shot glass and a t-shirt for myself, a cookbook for my mom, a shirt and an authetic Pirate for David (mom's boyfriend). I hope the next cruise is bigger and better. I would love to work on a cruise ship, but after that last night of feeling so sick, I don't know if I could handle it. I had an amazing time and I never wanted it to end... I can only dream about my next one.. Hopefully it will be with some friends and people I care about!!
The cruise was absolutely fantastic. I couldn't have asked for a better trip. Cruising is currently my favorite method of travel. Next on my list is a Royal Caribbean Freedom fleet cruise to the Mediterranean.
I slept over April's Saturday night and Sunday morning we left for Ft. Lauderdale. There were 6 of us.. April, her Mom and Dad, her younger sister, Alma and her boyfriend, David and me, of course. The ship was beautiful (Royal Caribbean's Jewel of the Seas). It's a newer ship, just two years old. Had a rock wall, a gorgeous Solarium, a dance club complete with a rotating bar, a casino and so much more. We had an inside stateroom which was very comfortable, but difficult to distinguish time from since we didn't have a window or porthole. The room was very comfortable though and we had our own beds. Within the first few hours we had unpacked and made ourselves at home.
We had dinner in the dining room at 6pm after unpacking and browsing the ship. Our waiters were Hugo and Gabor (Gabor was adorable.. dark hair, glasses, but he was from Hungary and we all know that equals trouble). So every night we went to dinner, ate tons of food and then hit the casino. I didn't win anything really, the most I won was about $50 and I had gambled it anyway. After the casino, we would go to the shows. A few we saw were West End to Broadway, City of Dreams, a Magician who was better than Lance Burton and the Farewell Show which was so cute. The singers and dancers were really talented but their two shows didn't make much sense plot wise. There was also a violinist who rocked our pants off. He was amazing and entertaining till the very end. We also participated in a lot of the goings on around the ship. We took a salsa class, went to the gym, did a backstage tour, watched an art auction, saw the Love & Marriage and The Quest game shows (which were hilarious!), went to the club every night. We just really enjoyed ourselves. The ship was so amazing. We didn't even lay out much we were just so occupied with the activities.
Our first port of call was Key West last Monday. We decided we would just browse since we've been there before. We bought some Tortuga rum cakes and walked all over the place. We went to this new Pirate Museum that just opened down there and we had a blast. You all know I love me some Pirates. After that, we headed to Sloppy Joe's for a drink (which has now become a new tradition, of course). After that, April and I took a long walk down to the Hemingway house to sneak a peak of the six-toed cats. We'd already toured the house last year, we just thought we might be able to sneak a peak. No such luck.. We headed back to the ship because we would soon be leaving. Our night consisted of dinner, drinks, gambling and dancing. Oh, and of course making fun of the Spring Breakers.
Tuesday was Cozumel. It was nice there, but I can't stand the constant haggling to buy shit. It gets old fast. We just did some walking and of course stopped for a drink at this colorful bar with salsa dancers. We ended up back on the ship around 3pm and we laid out and tanned for a bit. Then got ready for the nightly ritual. In addition to our ritual, tonight was formal night, so we got really fancied up! They also had a Welcome Back party on this night, so we went and got some free drinks, which is always good. Met some really nice people and learned about RC's new prospects. We called it a night early. The teenagers booty dancing to 70's music and the DJ asking them to "Yell if they were horny" really just made us want to kick some ass, so instead we decided to behave and headed back to the cabin.
On Wednesday, we were in Costa Maya, Mexico. We did a Clear Kayak excursion which was unbelievable. We piled into the kayaks and headed for a beach. When we arrived, they had a tiki hut with fresh mango, papaya (the most AMAZING papaya I've ever eaten in my life), pineapple and plenty of beer with the soothing sounds of Sade blaring down the beach. So serene and peaceful. This was the most amazing day of my life. I will always remember it for as long as I live.
Thursday was our last Port of Call, Georgetown, Grand Cayman. We walked around the town for a bit looking in little shops and keeping an eye for pirates booty until we had to meet up for our final excursion. We did a snorkeling reef & wreck tour. REALLY fun. The best part on the drive to the different spots on the little boat, they would play Jack Johnson's Banana Pancakes (My favorite song by him!) It was so perfect. Our first snorkeling spot was right off the shore and it was of an old iron ship that didn't quite make it to the shore, so we got to snorkel around and check out the wreck. It was neat and reminded me of The Little Mermaid. Also, April and I dived down and touch the wreck! The next and final stop was at a huge reef that was full of caverns and colorful fish of all shapes and sizes. This was so neat to see. If you swam out far enough, you could see the reef just drop off. I wish I could kayak and snorkel everyday... The evening commenced with a giant dinner, gambling, shows and drinking as usual. No complaints ;)
Friday was our day at sea. You start to go crazy after being stuck on the ship for a few hours though. We did all we could this day. Yes, we could've been lazy and laid out all day. But instead, we took advantage of this cruise.. We woke up somewhat early and did the backstage theater tour, went to the salsa class, went to an auction and laid out for a little while. It was a nice day, but after dinner the ship really started picking up speed and moving A LOT. The solution?? Some warm ginger ale and dancing! The fucking idiot spring breakers were all wasted from laying out and drinking beer all day so the dance club wasn't that badly crowded. By this day, everyone on the ship had had enough of them, especially the staff. I have NO idea how they can deal with that shit. If a teenager just looks at me funny they have hell to pay.. No offense to any of you out there....
This cruise was the best yet. For a free cruise, I really milked it. We did ALL we possibly could on this ship. My bill for alcohol was $120 over a period of 6 days.. could've been worse. I bought a shot glass and a t-shirt for myself, a cookbook for my mom, a shirt and an authetic Pirate for David (mom's boyfriend). I hope the next cruise is bigger and better. I would love to work on a cruise ship, but after that last night of feeling so sick, I don't know if I could handle it. I had an amazing time and I never wanted it to end... I can only dream about my next one.. Hopefully it will be with some friends and people I care about!!