Well, another cruise down and nothing too terribly exciting to report. As mentioned earlier, this was my last cruise to the Caribbean for awhile. While I will miss the sun and the warmth and even though I was just starting to get my slight tan back, I am excited to spend the fall visiting Canada and New England. After that I’ll be in the Caribbean every cruise, so I’m not too sad to bid it farewell for now.
Again, I feel like I’m letting you all down since I have had no grand adventures. Our first port was Bermuda and after sleeping in I decided to head out and read on a bench for awhile. I wasn’t out very long when I felt a few sprinkles. Thankfully I was on a bench under a tree and my books and I were pretty sheltered. After a few sprinkles the sun came back out and I continued reading. In the next few minutes I began to notice wet spots on my pages. I looked across the field in front of me and it was pouring! As I began to get wet, I packed up my bags and moved in closer to the tree. In the next 10 minutes I became increasingly soaked and decided that since I was drenched already I might as well just walk back to the ship. So I came in early and watched television instead of reading (It’s funny, I will go out in port and read on a park bench, but if I’m in my cabin I want to watch something. Weird.).
A day and a half later I was in St. Maarten- my favorite port! I had lunch at an amazing French cafe with some great friends before heading downtown for some shopping. After walking around for an hour or so I decided to go to my normal restaurant for internet and a cool drink. Here I ran into more friends- all of us there for the internet. After a few hours online talking to our friends and family we were lamenting how hot it was and how we wanted to go swimming, but we all had our computers and not our swimsuits. We were literally right beside the beach when we were thinking about this. We decided to walk back to the ship, change, and walk back. Although a lot of effort, the refreshing swim in the sunset was definitely worth it. We walked back in the moonlight exhausted, but we all still had several hours of work ahead of us.
I found myself in St. Thomas on the following day. I went off around lunch time a got some pizza at a local shop next to the ship before walking down to the yacht club for coffee and some more internet. While in St. Thomas I also finally bought a mask and snorkel. I have loved snorkeling since I tried it last November, but never had my own gear. I am now a proud owner and looking forward to doing more snorkeling in all of our ports.
San Juan was our last port. I left the ship by 9:30 and headed for the fort in the center of town. I toured the one on the corner with my parents, so I wanted to see this one now. I walked about a block and a half from the ship and it started pouring on me. Since my computer was in my bag this time, I huddled under an awning awaiting safety. As the rain came down I began my typical US port call making process- a process which continued until we sailed at 2:00. However I did manage to find time to visit Blizz. again. Passionfruit froyo with strawberries, blueberries, and teddy grahams. Best lunch I had all cruise.
Since then I was at sea- getting work done and trying to take some breaks. I’ve been really tired over the last few days and my eyes have hurt as well- I’m hoping a goodnight’s sleep will remedy that.
On the first day of the last cruise, I visited the Dive Shop and started the process of taking the PADI Open Water Diver course- I can complete the course while I’m onboard and finish my contract as a certified SCUBA diver! I’m pretty excited about it, but also a little nervous. I love water, but I have a healthy fear of it. I’ve been out here long enough to realize how powerful and unpredictable the ocean is. At the same time I’ve seen amazing things beneath the surface and know that there is so much more to explore! So far I just have my manual and I need to read 3 chapters and take some quizzes. Then a do some training in the pool and I will eventually get to dive in our ports. I’ll keep you updated on my progress and will most certainly post pictures of my dives.
The run for next cruise is still up in the air. It’s supposed to be a 5-night cruise to Bermuda. But with Danielle on the radar and Earl and Fiona behind her, we are being cautious. As long as Danielle turns as they predict then we should be fine- maybe a little bouncy, but fine. If she doesn’t turn, that would put her directly in our path. I’ve heard that they will let us know where we’re going before we sail- nothing like waiting to the last minute. Check next time and I’ll let you know what went down.
