The staff sings us a goodbye song.

Well, it’s a few days after my last pity party entry, and as probably expected, things did look better by the morning. My back was still burned badly, but maybe not as badly as last cruise, and sleep seemed to help lift me out of the guilt spiral. And maybe sleep also helped me accept that my Kindle is probably dead. Once I get home, I’ll call Amazon since the troubleshooting (I googled once back to Canada and an internet connection) isn’t working, but I’m not worried about it.

Since we’d had so much sun the day before, DW (who burned, of all things, her eyelids) and I decided we would be prudent for our last day and stay out of it.  We puttered our way to breakfast, then went to the disembarkation talk to make sure we knew how we were getting off the boat early the next morning. After the talk, I decided I should get rid of the American $1 bills I had by playing slots in the casino. I think I had four or five.  By the third one, though, I ended up winning. My $1 paid off to $55.  I could not stop laughing.  I won the cruise. I went to the slots to get rid of money and won.

My nephew’s monkey, Hudson, at the machine that was ringing up my winnings.

I went back to the room to let DW know, and she could not believe it. We found it hilarious. We ended up going back to the casino after the show (see below), since she’d never played, it was on our way out, and I had a couple of bills to get rid of still, and she won, too, another $15 which she gave to me since I’d given the money she’d gambled with.  So my casino winnings covered most of my drinks for the trip!

I went to trivia with my team while DW went to save us seats for the show. We didn’t win, but we fared well, and I was helpful. They also said they’d missed me the day before, and I was able to joke about my sunburn, and how if I’d come to help them out, I probably wouldn’t be so badly burned. Which is true, but it was good to know I could talk without dwelling.

After trivia, I ran back to the theatre for a show, as mentioned above. Island Magic gave another concert, and they were once again brilliant. Best cruise show ever, and much less cheesy than the one we’d seen the night before.

We went back to the room and watched some TV, then I got ready for dinner.  DW decided she could not do one more night in the dining room, sitting with people and having the same conversation we’d had every night. I was disappointed, but didn’t push.  I went to the dinner alone, and was glad to go, because it was international night, featuring dishes from around the world.  I had gravlax, which I love, for my appetizer, followed by a chilled pumpkin soup that was honestly not my favourite. I had a delicious duck and apricot dish for dinner (it had macadamia nuts, how could I resist?), then Baked Alaska for dessert.  DW, on the other hand, went to the Lido for the casual buffet dinner and ended up sharing a table with a woman with Alzheimer’s, and proceeded to have the same conversation three times in a row. “How’s that for irony?” she asked me ruefully when I came in.

Island Magic performs.

We decided not to stay up for the “Dancing with the Stars” show of our fellow cruisemates, and go to bed since we had an early morning the next day. We’d chosen the Expedited option. It meant I had to carry my own luggage (heavy, but that’s my own fault, and my rule is if I can’t carry it I can’t take it anyway) and that we both had to get up early, but we were so glad we did.  The wait through customs for non-Americans was tediously long even though we were pretty early in line, but it would have been agonizing if we’d had to wait for everyone else on the boat. We grabbed a cab to the airport (I got the airline and therefore terminal wrong, but the staff inside was helpful and it was a short walk). DW checked us in on her iPhone while I figured out where we’d have to go, then we checked our bags and waited for the plane.  There were no sit down restaurants inside, but we did both manage to find something to eat, and our seats were pre-selected, so we both had aisle seats for the Ft. Lauderdale to Toronto leg.

On the way to Edmonton, I had an aisle, but DW had a middle seat a few rows back, but in the emergency exit row.  She had a little more leg room, but unfortunately an aisle seatmate who refused to get up to let people out. DW and the window person both had to crawl over the woman. DW’s screen on the seat TV also wasn’t working, so she was feeling a bit trapped. I, on the other hand, was seated next to a couple and their under two child. She was not too bad, but definitely noisy during the takeoff and landing when she was not allowed to move around like she wanted. So DW and I were both relieved to make it to Edmonton and off the plane.  I picked up my rental car, and thanks to Maggie (the Magellan GPS I brought with me from home) I managed to navigate our way to the Varscona on Whyte Ave, a scary prospect for me (it’s very busy).

The Varscona is lovely and quiet, the beds super comfy, and since it is on Whyte, there’s lots of shopping and good food nearby.  I’ve decided not to venture out to visit family and friends for a multitude of reasons, including (among others) a) not wanting to try to navigate Whyte with just Maggie and no DW on a busy Saturday, b) being incredibly over-stimulated and just needing some quiet, and c) fatigue from yesterday’s very long day. DW and I plan to eat at a place called the High Level Diner, which she loves, and maybe find Block 1912 on the recommendation from my friend Roxy for some yummy gelato. But for now, I am enjoying just chilling in the silence.  I’ll miss the warm weather (even if it is sunburn-inducing) and being on vacation, but I’ll be glad to be home too

The towel animal I made for DW.

Towel animal of the day: On the cruise, I’m not sure what our last day was. Some sort of Manta Ray? At the Varscona, a snake. Because I thought it would be fun for DW to have one here but have no idea how to make anything.

Rockstar of the Day: On the cruise, the staff who managed not to yell at all the people who were standing in the gangway during disembarkation even though it wasn’t their turn and we were asked not to be on the gangway when it wasn’t our turn. In Edmonton, me.  I drove Whyte Ave on a Friday night! Woot!

Drink of the Day: A Fashionista. It was okay.  The margarita is better.

Gratitude of the Day: I’m thankful for a safe journey. I’m thankful for quiet time. I’m thankful that DW and I are still good travel buddies.  I’m thankful for getting to go home soon.

Note: So that’s it for this trip, ladies and gents! Incidentally, neither DW nor I made it to the High Level Diner. Apparently after almost two weeks away, we lost our ability to cope with Canadian weather and could not bear the idea of walking more than around the corner. We ended up eating at the hotel restaurant, and it honestly was not that great. After dinner we turned in, since we had an early flight the next day. Now we’re both back in our respective homes, and the Canadian weather is finally improving. I’m not sure when I’ll next travel.  It might be a while.  I’m debating whether to expand the blog to cover my reading as well as my travelling. I’m embarking on a “Year of Reading Dangerously” (no danger actually involved), where I am trying to get back to reading as much as I used to by committing to a book a week. We’ll see how that goes. In the meantime, I am looking at planning my next big adventure, to take place in April next year.  A close friend recently moved to Melbourne, so I’m saving my pennies to venture to Australia.  Exciting stuff!

I did not really take a lot of pictures this sea day, so here is one of me with a dolphin in Curacao!

Well, today was a sea day, as will tomorrow be.  I’m starting to get edgy to get home, though I’ll be honest and admit a large part of that is because my kindle quit working in the middle of a book I was reading and the normal troubleshooting is not working. I don’t have internet to google more solutions either. And I got way too much sun and am going home a lobster once again.

Lest I sound like I am whining too much, I am trying to remember that this is just a bad couple of moments in a day, and that I am on a beautiful cruise and tomorrow is another day. It will be better tomorrow, and today had good moments.

DW and I went to breakfast, then sat out by the pool. I applied lots of sunscreen, and took a few breaks, but my last stretch of sun proved too much for my pasty white skin, which is now angry red. 

We had our last formal night, and I nearly did not go (because of the angry redness) but went anyway. And had lots of wine, which made things look better. My back hurts, and it hurt during dinner, but we were with two couples we’d previously dined with and who we’d wanted to visit with again, so that was wonderful. 

Here is a flamingo doing his pink thing at the Dolphin academy. In case you ever wondered, their food smells really bad.

After dinner, we went to the show, a “Songs of Screen and Stage” show with costumes designed by Bob Mackie of Cher’s infamous Oscar dress fame. The costumes were very cool and some were very elaborate. The dancing was wonderful once again, even if the cheese factor of this show was especially high.  There were two leads and two secondary singers, and the secondary singers were far more enjoyable than the two leads. The leading lady oversang everything a la Christina Aguilera, and the male lead struggled again tonight. I think they have too much in his lower range, which he’s weak on and it makes him pitchy, to borrow a term from the American Idol judges.

After the show, we went to the marriage game, which is basically the Newlywed Game, but for couples of various married years together. It was not quite as funny as Milt and Jo on the last cruise in that game show, but it was still pretty funny nonetheless. Though I do think the ship may have to invest in some dog houses if they continue to play.

After the game show, it was a dessert extravaganza. I did not actually partake this year (overdoing the sun is enough overindulgence for one day, I think), but I did go up to check out all the incredible creations.

Tomorrow is another sea day, and hopefully I’ll be able to find some way of entertaining myself since I might be sans kindle for the rest of the trip. I am hoping that it either fixes itself magically overnight, or that DW’s suggestion to try to catch the tech guy tomorrow pays offs.  But for now I feel the guilt spiral over letting myself badly burn again (when will I learn?) and frustration over my technology failing me when I am on trips (see the computer failure in Rome for a recap of my recent luck). But things will look better in the morning, and at least DW has books I can borrow.  And soon I will be home to weather cold enough that no one will see my back from a month, so the burn will be a distant memory by the time my shoulders go bare. 

Towel animal of the day: A gorilla.

Rockstar of the Day: Whoever invented the margarita.

Drink of the Day: Tropical Cable Car.

 Gratitude of the Day: I’m grateful for aloe spray and someone to spray it on my back.

The little church that had been move to the grounds.

Well, DW and I have officially been travelling together for the longest length of time yet, and we still are enjoying each other’s company. Hooray! We had a very early start this morning (if you don’t count the fact we jumped back in time an hour), waking up at 5:30 so we could have a little breakfast before our day excursion.  I had the muesli, which they have with fresh coconut shredded into it. It tastes fabulous.

After breakfast, I showered and got ready, then we made our way to the bus since DW and I were taking this one together. I hadn’t quite woken up yet, so tripped over an uneven bit on the pier. DW grabbed my arm and said I needed to include in my blog that she saved my life. I returned the favour, not long after, by preventing her from getting on the wrong bus. So there.

We took the bus to the Hacienda, a two hour drive up a winding mountain.  The bus had a toilet this time, so of course I did not need to use it.  I napped a little on the bus while I listened to our guide, Eduardo, talk about Costa Rica.

We arrived at the farm, and it was not only one of the most beautiful places I’ve been to. This was also definitely the highlight of the trip so far. The Hacienda

The little stone maze I navigated successfully.

We started by learning about macadamia nuts, which originally grew in Australia, and how they are processed from a “fruit” that is husked off, sorted, then roasted to reduce the humidity from 30% to 10%, sorted again in water (I wasn’t tall enough to see, but DW tells me big gross beetles are also sorted out), then sent for processing at a plant. The plant takes care of the nuts from several farms since it is expensive to run one (a plant, that is).  The reject nuts, as it turns out, are used as fuel for the roaster, as are the discarded husks. That’s pretty neat.produces organic coffee, sugar and macadamia nuts, some of my favourite things on the planet.  They even use a plant instead of pesticide. It is poisonous and keeps the bugs away, and though they told us the name, all I can remember is it starts with the letter “P” and is definitely not Pikachu. We started with a drink made of sugar cane juice and lemon. Very sweet. Very good.

We then got to tour the grounds a bit.  I did a stone maze. I’d heard that, if you keep your right hand on the right wall of a maze and follow that without lifting your hand, you will be able to get out of it.  I don’t know if that is true for all mazes, but it certainly worked for this one!

After that, we learned about coffee, and how the beans are picked (by workers who earn very little money for such labouring), peeled, and roasted.  We got to sample some coffee later on, and it was very good, and very smooth. The soil is volcanic, since Costa Rica has active volcanoes still, and that makes the coffee less acidic.

The sugar moulds are packaged in the cane leaves!

After coffee, we got to learn about the sugar cane. This was definitely a highlight.  We got to chew on a little sugar cane piece, then they showed us how they used an old fashioned press to squeeze the syrup out of the cane, turned by two oxen. Then they showed how the old squeezed cane became fuel for the fire they boiled the sugar on. Then they made sugar moulds. And then they made granulated sugar in front of us, since you boil it at a higher temperature then cool it down, and it granulates as it becomes cool as they turned it by hand. They let us taste that, and then they made us candy with cooling sugar syrup, powdered milk, and macadamia nuts. DW nearly took off my hand in excitement, then again in disappointment when the candy dish started basically as far away from us as it could.

After the sugar demonstration, we made our way in to have lunch. The Hacienda is nice and the grounds very beautiful. The property even includes a little church they moved to the farm when it became too small for the nearby village: they built a bigger one and saved the small chapel from destruction.  But the nicest thing of all was the hard-working, knowledgeable, and generally kind people who worked as part of the tour. Just a super tour all around, and I highly recommend it.  The lunch provided was hot and delicious (rice, beans, chicken and veggies, pasta salad, and some sugared banana-like fruit). DW and I may also have bought out the store of half their coffee and macadamia nut candies.

All the sugar we went through today – the cane, the moulds, the granulated, the candy… all so yummy!

After that, it was a long bus ride home. We had a minor kerfuffle over the seats, where someone had dropped their books into DW and my seats, but didn’t know where they’d been sitting before to tell us where to sit.  It appeared all the seats on the bus were taken, with hats or books on all seats, even ours.  I think the people decided we stole their seats, but as far as I’m concerned, dropping your books into our places as we get off the bus without even a courtesy “do you mind if we trade” or leaving us a clear place to sit was not cool. DW even told them, as I tried to ask where they’d been sitting, “we did not want to steal someone’s seat”.  I’m glad she held our ground, because I always try to choose close to the front for motion sickness reasons. Considering the winding road down and how green I felt mid-trip, despite my regular regimen of medication to prevent sea sickness, if I’d sat further back I think I’d have had to make them stop the bus so I could have a breather.

Upon return to the ship (we’d spent 8 hours on the excursion, and the ship was only in port for another half hour), I went to the thermal suite and hydropool. It was pretty busy, so I ended up just having a short visit, then returning to the room to do my reading in the quiet.  DW and I dressed for dinner fairly early, and went down even though we probably could have skipped eating after our big lunch.  The food was very good, and I ate vegetarian tonight by fluke, choosing veggies marinated in a balsamic vinegar, then a chilled berry soup, followed by the vegetarian lasagna. DW had the same appetizer that I did, followed by French onion soup, then a cobb salad. She returned to the brownie for dessert, while I had the “DAM Devil’s Chocolate Cake” (the DAM being in reference to the Holland America suite of ships).  Our dinner mates were once again lovely (which was fortunately the opposite of what we’d predicted based on our experience with other tour mates on the bus and beyond today), and we even ordered a table dessert to share of Grand Marnier-soaked strawberries. Yum!

After dinner, we went to the show. It was a magic show, which is not DW’s thing at all, but she went because I wanted to. Magic shows and illusion are fortunately my thing, and this gentleman, Dave Cieran, is very, very good.  He won a gold medal in some sort of competition for magicians in Vegas where he works, though he is originally from Canada. I have no idea how he does his tricks, and though I am curious, I like the “magic” of not knowing how he makes doves appear out of nowhere, or his tiny poodles disappear.  I think the favourite part, for both DW and I, however, was when he was doing a trick with one dog, and the other was having a hard time listening to him about staying. Sometimes dogs are just going to do their thing, and it is just funny in its universality.

Now the show is over, so we’re back at the room. Clocks jump forward an hour tomorrow, but it is a sea day, so it doesn’t matter as much. In fact, we are done our excursions and it will be sea days all around until we have to go home.  This trip has flown by so quickly. I don’t know how I’m going to handle the real world, where I have to cook my own food and do my own dishes. Or at least load them in the dishwasher. But for now, I have two days to enjoy not doing all that, and enjoy them I will.

Towel animal of the day: An Ewok.  We think.

Rockstar of the Day: DW, for wrestling our seats back.

Drink of the Day: Champagne Dreams. It was good, but not as good as I’d hoped, since I thought it would be sweeter. Then again, the last thing I probably needed is more sugar today.

Gratitude of the Day: I’m grateful that DW and I are still able to like each other even this long into a trip.

In the Panama Canal!

Well, today was the Panama Canal, and DW and my day began a lot earlier than planned.  Though we did need to get up in time enough to have breakfast, we did not plan to be woken up by the informational session that began outside (but broadcast in earshot of our floor) as soon as we came into the Canal. At five thirty in the morning. At first, DW and I thought it was an emergency drill. I actually ran out of bed to put my ear to the door to make sure it wasn’t coming from the hallway.  It wasn’t. And putting a pillow over one’s head does not block out the noise either. I know. I tried.

So instead I got up with DW (whose tour began earlier than mine) and went (blearily) to coffee.  We also watched some of the goings on at the Canal, as we went through the locks, but I’ll be honest and say I was not interested enough in sticking around to see how it worked, so before I even saw water flowing, I hightailed it downstairs to shower.  I thought I could catch things on the way back, but as it turns out, the boat did the Canal and back while I was on my shore excursion, so I missed most of it.  DW did the Canal experience as her shore excursion, and from what she said, I don’t think I missed much.  I’m sure my dad, the engineer, would enjoy it, but I’m glad I did the monkey watch instead.

Floating in a boat in Panama, looking for monkeys!

As part of my excursion, we took a bus for about an hour and a half to a National Park. There were no bathrooms on the small buses (though there was A/C), which was not helpful because by the time I got off my tender and our bus actually left, I really wished there was one, and there wouldn’t be for quite some time. The bus also made me sleepy on the way to the park, so even though our guides were very informative, I kind of missed part of the fun details about Panama and the rainforest as I drifted and tried not to fall asleep.

Once at the park, there were bathrooms (hurrah!) though next time I will pack my own toilet paper, as only one stall had any.  After that, we climbed into boats, and went on a wildlife tour.  We were very lucky, and got to see lots. There were capuchin monkeys, some who even climbed on the boats to take fruit from the guides. There were toucans (though I unfortunately didn’t get a picture), and a baby crocodile that was so small it kind of looked like a twig sliding into the water as it swam away. There were howler monkeys who responded to the revving of the boat’s engine by “howling”, which sounded kind of like those annoying horns people blow at hockey games. They are little monkeys, but the sound they make is huge and deep. I could hardly believe that noise was coming from such a small chest!

Monkey watch successful!

After a few hours on the water, we went back to the buses.  We drove through some of Panama, where the government is investing in the duty free area but not the houses in which its citizens live, so buildings were run down right across from enormous shopping centres.  Once at the port in Colon (where we did not have to tender), our ship was already there to meet us, so after looking at the souvenirs for a little while, I made my way back to the ship. It had been a long day, so I rested a bit, then DW came back and she and I got ready for dinner quite early.

Dinner was fantastic. We were seated at a long oval table with two other couples. The shape of the table meant I mostly talked with DW and one of the couples, who were about my parents’ age and were just fantastic to talk to, and the other couple seemed equally nice (if far across the table from me). The food might also have been my favourite so far. DW and I started with a fruit dish while I had the the drink of the day for fun. DW had the day’s salad, while I had a chilled coconut and nutmeg soup that was so delicious. It tasted like ice cream. I wanted to lick the bowl.  DW ate the eggplant moussaka, while I had a spinach and guava stuffed chicken on fluffy potatoes.  It was incredible.  DW and I both finished with a Chocolate Avalanche Cake, so her brownie streak has finally ended.

After dinner, I went to get theatre seats, while DW went back to the room to get a book.  She ran into our stewards, and had a lovely conversation, but this somehow lead to her talking about how she liked the elephant made from towels and it was her favourite, which lead to asking if they had elephants in Indonesia. All well and good, until she told them Canada has bears and asked who they thought would win in a fight, an elephant or a bear?  She says their eyes kind of widened, like they did not know what to say.  We are hoping they thought she was drunk so she can look them in the eye tomorrow.  Anyway, our towel animal was an elephant and it was decidedly not fighting a towel bear, so we’re probably all good.

We caught the show, a pianist called Paul Pappas.  As someone who has had piano training (though I’m really a terrible player), I could tell he was very skilled, but he was definitely catering to the older audience.  Sometimes the cheese factor on cruises leaves a lot to be desired.  I mean, the ragtime and Beethoven pieces were fabulous, but the more upbeat songs with the strobe lights were killing me.  DW and I both looked at each other when they were asking if he should do one more, and as everyone around us cheered, I knew the two of us were thinking “please, just let us go”.

This monkey is coming to eat some fruit from the guide.

So now we’re back in the room, getting ready to hit the sack (in our clean, pressed laundry!) so we can get up early for our excursion in Costa Rica.  Fortunately, Costa Rica is back a time zone, and hopefully there will be nothing to wake us that isn’t our alarms. It will be an eight hour excursion, but I’m looking forward to it. Coffee and macadamia nuts, here I come!

Towel animal of the day: Another adorable elephant, because DW told our stewards it was her favourite. No bear, though.

Rockstar of the Day: The howler monkey, who makes a big sound for such a small animal! Close second, Cruise Director Dave for informing us that we are setting the clocks back an hour tonight, meaning our 6:50 tour departure just got more bearable.

Drink of the Day: Spiced Dacquiri. It was very good!

Gratitude of the Day: I am grateful the monkeys came out to play, and also that today’s heat was more manageable.

These ladies very much wanted me to pay to take their picture, but were nice enough to take my nephew’s monkey for one. So he’ll have a nice souvenir!

Today was our (brief) time in Columbia. We pulled in to the port at Cartagena early this morning, as our ship was only making a half day stop today so we can be at the Canal on time.

Cartagena is quite beautiful. My shore excursion was a land and sea tour, so we started by climbing into an air conditioned bus with our very good guide Elkin, who took us to the fortress that was built (by slaves on the authorization of King Felipe) to defend the city from pirates.  It was a bit of a climb to the old fortress, especially since it was incredibly hot today, but it was neat to see how it overlooked Cartagena.  There were lookout towers and old batteries/canons, so I think I got some nice pictures.

After the fortress, we drove around the city, before stopping at a little shopping centre where you could buy souvenirs. I overpaid for some pictures of ladies in their colourful regalia (but I don’t feel too badly about that since they were pushy but not aggressive), and I also bought some Columbian coffee and candy for family and friends back home.

After that, we climbed back in the bus, then made our way to a little boat which took us around the port to show some other historical sites, statues, and fortifications.  I’ll admit that I didn’t pay as much attention as I should have, because it was so hot.  I think I sweated out a whole other person today.  DW, who was on a different historical tour, heard from her driver that it was 38C in the morning.  By the time I was in the boat, I would not have been surprised if it went above 40C.  In the boat we occasionally got a bit of a breeze, so that was nice, but I don’t think I’ve been that warm in my life.

Here I am, on the look out for pirates!

Once the tour finished, I went back to the ship, since it was a half hour before we were leaving (my tour was over four hours).  I ate lunch outside because I could not find a seat at a table inside for the life of me (most of the tours came back at the same time), then made my way to help out my trivia team.  We did better than previously, but were not the winners. And there were no questions more appropriate to my generation for me to be an asset on.  After trivia, I made my way to the outdoor pool to lay and read, because there was supposed to be a little carnival there, or so I thought. When nothing happened, I finished off a lovely conversation with a lady from Quebec (I was practicing my French!) and made my way inside to cool off. It turns out the little carnival, celebrating the 140 years Holland America has been sailing, was near the other pool, which has shaded areas. There were carnival games and a big cake shaped like the ship. There was also an enormous crowd. So I made my way to the hydropool instead, but not before having an ice cream to cool off.

And here’s a pirate ship in the Cartagena harbour – the tourist fun kind, not the pillaging scurvy-inducing kind.

I took a cool shower before going in the pool, to rinse off my sunscreen and also get my body to a more regular temperature.  After a brief swim, I lay on one of the deck chairs to dry off. The sun had taken its toll on me, so I ended up falling asleep.  Someone had even dropped their robe off on the chair next to mine and I did not even notice until someone asked me if that chair was taken and I had to blink and say I really didn’t know because I had been asleep. (The lady was very nice about it, as she laughed and told me that was good and that I should enjoy my vacation and nap all I wanted.)

After some time in the thermal suite, I went back to the room, where it turns out DW had been staying out of the sun and napping too. What a fun pair we are! We got ready for dinner and went early, as we were trying to make the eight o’clock show again.

Dinner was once again one of good company, though DW was not overly impressed with her dinner tonight.  Hopefully a restocking tonight will translate to more vegetarian options like the first few days. We opened our meal with a fruit compote sweetened with honey, then DW had a Caesar salad (which she did enjoy) while I had the day’s salad with some sort of candied pear with the lettuce and things. Then I had a duck pasta which was good but very rich, while DW had a stuffed eggplant. She went for a fifth day of the brownie stack, while I had the Opera Cake.

We managed to make the eight o’clock show and get our seats from yesterday by happy accident.  The show was AMAZING. It was a steel drum band from Trinidad and Tobego called Island Magic. They knew their audience and played songs that had people oohing and ahhing, like Broadway favourites “Don’t Cry for Me Argentina” and “Memory”, as well as some classical pieces like “Sleeping Beauty Waltz” and “The William Tell Overture”, and finishing with a rousing version of Glenn Miller’s “In the Mood”. The music was fantastic, and was their energy was incredible, and this was the first time on the cruise that I stood for the standing ovation right away. It was well, well earned.

After the show, DW and I caught a “Game Show” called the Liar’s Club, where some of the crew was on stage, and they had to provide definitions for words like “Tittup” and “Calypigian”, and the audience guessed who was telling the truth by applause. It was funny and fun, though the highlight of the night was definitely the steel drum band.

DW and I made our way upstairs to watch the stars for a bit, since we were less tired thanks to our napping, I suppose, but it kind of smelled funny upstairs today, so we just came back to the room.  We’ll need to be rested up for long excursions tomorrow anyway. And for checking out the Panama Canal. Exciting!

Towel animal of the day: An adorable elephant.

Rockstar of the Day: Island Magic, the Steel Drum band.

Drink of the Day: Classic Mojito. Hmm. Should have had one of those. I like mojitos!

Gratitude of the Day: I am grateful for midafternoon naps.

All dressed up for dinner.

Wow, typing that title made me realize we’ve past the halfway point of our cruise. I’m not in a rush to get home, but I do feel a little excited for it as well.  It will be nice to live out of drawers again, even if I am going back to winter weather.

But for now, I’m in the lovely Caribbean, and still enjoying it.  Today was a sea day, so I did not get up to too much, especially since I wanted to give my skin a break from the sun. It’s looking much better, thanks to my regular aloe application and some work, I’m sure, from the sunscreen.

DW and I slept in a little, then went for breakfast together. We decided to split up so DW could get more sun, and I could get some shade. I read in the library for a while, then I went back to the room to get ready for lunch.  DW and I decided to see what the Mariner’s lunch we were invited to as return cruisers was all about. It was mostly just a little bit fancier lunch than the buffet, like dinners are but not as many courses or choices. The food was still good: I had a salmon fillet and salad while DW had a chilled pear soup that she wasn’t fond of. We both had the broccoli and cheddar quiche, then there was key lime pie for dessert. There was also complimentary champagne. Since DW doesn’t drink, I had two glasses.

After lunch, we split up again so DW could work on her tan and get through some reading, and I wanted to play team trivia.  I thought I might play by myself because I was feeling shy, but then some other single players were being placed by Cruise Director Dave, so I went up and asked if there might be any teams looking for a Gen Xer (which I think I’m on the tail end of, either that or the beginning of Y).  There were lots of teams I could have joined. I picked a small one, and they were very nice. We did not win, even though I did have some answers (like knowing Michaelango painted the Sistine Chapel, but also that Beyonce is married to Jay-Z).  Then I visited with the team a while. I might make my way upstairs for more of that tomorrow.

We think this towel is a lobster. We might be wrong.

After that, I went back to the room because I wanted to do laundry. Unfortunately, as it turns out, there is no self serve laundry on this boat. You can stuff a bunch into this bag and get it cleaned for $20, but I’m a little reluctant to let others handle my delicates, and I just feel weird about sending out laundry in general. So I did a whole bunch by hand in the tub.  Some I might send out again since swirling it around in detergent might not get it super clean, but for now I have some very wet things dripping over a towel in my closet.

I did some reading outside in the shade, then came back to the stateroom to meet DW before dinner. She very nearly did not come with me, because she suffered the same fate I did a few years ago on the cruise, where I thought sunscreen was enough to prevent a burn after a lot of time in the sun.  It was not as bad as my burn last cruise, or even my shoulders after a day in the sun yesterday, so we gussied up for another formal night. (But she’s burned.)

We were taken aback to be seated by the complaining couple from a few days before, but the table was big and the angle was such that I was mostly able to just chat to the side with DW without appearing rude, thank goodness.  Both DW and I started with the pineapple appetizer, then she had the day’s salad while I had a ginger chicken soup. It was good, though more a ginger chicken broth.  I had a pomegranate glazed Cornish game hen for dinner while DW had some grilled tofu. For dessert, I tried chocolate and raspberry cake, while DW went for a record four day streak of the brownie.

We made it to the eight o’clock show more than 20 minutes early, but still barely got seats.  We did find two empty ones near the front, since we weren’t shy to ask if they were taken.  The show was sort of a review of music from the 50s to the 90s, love themed and set at a carnival.  It was okay. The music was fun, but the male lead seemed to be having an off night. Still, it was a good time and the older crowd really loved it. After that, it was back to our cabin, to rest up for our adventures in Columbia tomorrow!

Towel animal of the day: A dog, perhaps? He was adorable and DW wanted to cuddle him.  Only she picked him up and his head fell apart.

Rockstar of the Day: Both DW and I, for making it through another dinner with the complaining couple from a few nights before.

Drink of the Day: Royal Manhattan

Gratitude of the Day: I am grateful my sunburn is going away.

A wonderful dolphin show!

Well, it is past ten o’clock at night, and I think DW and I have made a slightly better showing today, seeing as yesterday we were both asleep by this time.  DW and I were on different shore excursions today, which meant she had to get up earlier than I did.  While she went off to do a town and country tour (which she somehow booked by accident), I had breakfast alone and worked on some crossword puzzles so I wouldn’t have to wait in a crowded line to get off the ship.

My tour didn’t start for about an hour after I got off the ship, so I wandered around a little, before making my way back to the pier to meet my tour group.  Today’s adventure? Swimming with the dolphins! And this wasn’t just an encounter, like last time I chose something like this. This was an “in the water, swimming beside them, take a ride on, in deep water” swim with the dolphins.

This dolphin trainer is thrown high in the air by the dolphin. Amazing!

We took a taxi to the Dolphin Academy, where we got flippers and we separated into smaller groups, to work with a dolphin for every two people. We had three dolphins for our group of six: Roxette, Renita, and Aleta, who was Renita’s year old dolphin baby. She got very excited and didn’t always want to wait her turn to do tricks. It was very cute.

We each got to shake hands/fins with the dolphins, get a kiss, play some games, and take a ride holding on to the dorsal fins of the two larger dolphins. They go very fast!  We also got to spend some time swimming alongside them, petting them and just hanging out. It was very nice. A small misfortune of spending a good chunk of time in the water, for me at least, is that I did pick up a bit of a sunburn on my back.  It may also have been the result of my spraying sunscreen on my own back, which I might not be very good at. In any case, what’s done is done, and this isn’t as bad as my last cruise burn, at least to date. I bought some aloe and mint mist, so hopefully I’ll be fairly set.

I wish we could learn to do this in a workshop!

After coming back from my dolphin swim, I found a small restaurant overlooking the waterfront and had a late lunch of a light tuna salad (did not want to spoil my appetite for cruise dinner!) and a delicious sangria. I then found a wifi spot to check my email for a while, then made my way back to the ship.  I showered in the hydropool area, then after my soak, dried off in the hot chairs.

After doing hair and makeup for dinner and meeting up with DW, we made our way to the dining room.  We were seated at a table of six, which was nice because we could hear one another. The two couples DW and I were seated with were quite nice.  Dinner was good too. I had a hard time picking between the appetizers (I wanted them all!), but ended up choosing one with prosciutto and melon.  DW had a double baked cheese souffle, then had the day’s salad with a cool curly beet for her next course.  I was eyeing the pumpkin soup, but since it had apple in it (which I can’t eat unless cooked through or it upsets my stomach), I went with a chilled watermelon gazpatcho.  I had lamb with tomato couscous for my entrée, while DW went with the beet risotto.  For dessert, she went for a hat trick and had the doublestack brownie, while I tried the Sacher Torte, which was dark Austrian Chocolate, so I figured I could not go wrong.

My nephew’s monkey and an iguana. Those things are huge!

Dinner ended in time enough that we were able to get seats to the early show with the comedian. He was very, very funny.  Among other things, he was also a juggler, using knives and axes and a number of balls flying through the air at once. One of the funniest things he did was pull an audience member up and got him to lie on the floor. He blindfolded him so the guy could not see that he was not, in fact, juggling axes over his prone body, but instead had switch for his juggling “pins”. This was particularly funny when he dropped an “axe” on the gentleman.  DW and I were laughing so hard, she practically crawled into my lap, she was clutching me so tightly.

After the comedian, we went to the Crow’s Nest, so I could order the drink of the day, and I took it outside so we could lay looking at the stars. It is so warm out, it is incredible.  Then it was back in to do some very important shopping: I bought sunscreen and my aloe mist. And not just any sunscreen. It’s 50, targeted for kids. So I may return home relatively pasty, but that’s better than being burned to a crisp. Tomorrow is a sea day, so there is definitely more sun (and sun screen) in my future.  Maybe I’ll even make it to the gym. No promises. After all, I’m on vacation.

Towel animal of the day: This one was definitely a lobster!

Rockstar of the Day: Tie: The family at the dolphin swim who bought our group’s pictures, then quietly pulled me aside to get my email address so we all did not have to drop $75 on the pictures. And the gentleman who the comedian pulled up on stage to “juggle axes” over, who, when asked what he did, said “I’m an attourney.”

Drink of the Day: Strawberry and bubbles. It’s pretty good. J

Gratitude of the Day: I am grateful for dolphins.

I wish we could have spent time on the beaches in Aruba.

Today was another day in port, and another day of adventure for this very relaxed traveler.  We started the day at sea, and DW and I even managed to sleep in (though you’d never know it from our readiness to retire right now, even though it hasn’t even gone nine). We had breakfast, then found separate hidey holes to read in while we waited to get into the port in Aruba.

I was near the trivia game going on, so I listened in, as did the people sitting in the chairs across from me in the coffee shop/library near the Crow’s nest. Between the three of us, we would have cleaned up at the game. Alas, we weren’t playing so we just had to content ourselves with good conversation and the knowledge we were right.

Once we docked, DW and I made our way to shore (slowly, since it was a bit crowded with practically the whole ship ready to get off at once). Once there, we bought some internet passes and finally checked email, etc., while we waited for our tour to meet. The place we dock on this trip was unfortunately not near any beach for us to walk/relax on.

This is pretty much the only underwater I took that turned out on this trip. It is also the first one I took.

Soon our tour met, and we were off to our sail and snorkel adventure.  We didn’t spend as much time in the water as I would have liked (25 minutes at each of the two stops) but we did spend some time sailing. And I got a few nice shots at the sites with my underwater camera, though most I took were really blurry.  I am sorry to say that all my shipwreck photos are a complete wash.  I’m sure I’ll get the hang of my little camera one day, but this is not that day.  The shipwreck was an old German boat, from early in World War II. I was hoping for something a little older. Like a pirate ship, something that looked like it might house some great treasures. Instead, it was a rusted out metal boat. There were lots of fish, though, so that was pretty nice.

On the way back, I partook of the rum punch they offered on the boat while I dried off and we made our way back to port.  Then, since DW doesn’t really drink, she said I should drink her share. My holiday judgement overruled my better judgement, so I decided that sounded like a fine plan. And in many ways it was. I felt pretty great, though totally and completely past buzzed and right into drunk. I’m not sure how much rum was in that punch, but it was not a small amount, and way more than I usually partake of in a short period of time. Fortunately, I think DW found tipsy me amusing instead of annoying.

The rum punch was really good. Maybe a little too good.

We immediately went for dinner, since we hadn’t eaten since breakfast, and I ordered a lot of water and started the sobering up process. We ate at a place called Iguana Joe’s, where we had fajitas. The fixings came in these very hot iron plates (so hot I burned my arm on mine) and they were very delicious. After that, we came back to the terminal so we could go online a little more, and so I could move from tipsy back to buzzed.  I really wish there was more of a beach at this port: both DW and I aren’t really big on shopping, particularly in the shops near the port that cater mainly to tourists looking for cheap souvenirs or wealthy patrons looking for some snazzy jewelry. We ended up coming back to the ship instead, where I went back to the thermal suite to finish my day with some lemon water and relaxation. This also helped in another, helpful way: since I can shower in the thermal suite and the hydropool, both DW and I could be rid of the layers of salt on our skin and swimsuits quickly and comfortably. Now it is just past nine, and I think I’ll curl up in bed and read a while before calling it a night. The Filipino crew is putting on a show tonight, but since it is at 11:00 o’clock, I will unfortunately miss it, because I’m an old lady at heart, and 11:00 is late at night.

Tomorrow we hit Curacao, and I get to swim – really swim! – with the dolphins.  I’m looking forward to it. I also hope there is more of a beach at this port.  I could use some sand between my toes again.

Towel animal of the day: A beautiful swan

Rockstar of the Day: Whoever’s Grandma came up with the rum punch recipe, because does it EVER pack a punch.

Drink of the Day: Red Stag Derby

Gratitude of the Day: I am thankful for rum punch. And food that helps absorb rum punch.

Happy Birthday cake!

DW and I woke up a little earlier than we anticipated, but decided not to get out of bed until we felt good and ready. After DW performed a special birthday improve dance, we had a late breakfast, which included bacon.  Yum!

After breakfast, we scored some spots by the pool, went down to our stateroom to change and sunscreen up, then back to the pool. We lay in the sun for several hours, reading and napping. It was very hot today, and I had to jump in the pool to cool off for a while.  I then lay out to dry a little before we headed in for lunch.

After lunch, I decided I needed a break from the sun, so DW went back out while I headed to the thermal suite for a couple of hours.  I read a little, napped a little, and managed to detangle my hair in the special thermal showers, because I wanted to do fancy hair for formal night. I headed back to the stateroom, then had to revisit my steps to find where I’d left my Kindle, but then I headed back to the room to play some music and curl my hair. I have a lot of it, so it takes a long, long time to do.

Chocolate 31 for my years on the planet, courtesy of our awesome room stewards.

I got myself gussied up, then did DW’s hair, and then she got gussied up. We spent some time trying to wrestle her into her shoes, because they had weird straps, only for DW to decide she was going to wear her flats instead because she felt the shoes made her look like a hooker. They did not, for the record. But at least in flats, when I wore my four inch heels, I was almost as tall as she was.

We went down to dinner, and were seated with a lovely set of ladies. Conversation flowed nicely this evening, thank goodness. I ordered a carafe of wine, because I like wine on my birthday, and it was nice enough, if not spectacular. A normal house wine.  Our appetizers were a duck pate in mille feuille for me and a fruit dish with rum sauce for DW. She ordered a Caesar salad, while I tried a mushroom soup for the next course. Her entree was a vegetarian tart, while I had some quail stuffed with spinach and cheese. I ordered a brownie dish for dessert, and then the crew also came with a small birthday cake for me to split with my table. They even sang an Indonesian song. I felt very special. To top it off, coming back to the room, instead of the normal two chocolates, there were 20, shaped to form a “31” for my birthday!

Our towel animal of the day was a dragonfly.

After dinner, we kept our formal wear on and went to the piano bar, then cut out early despite a very, very good show to sit in on the Captain’s toast (and another show at the theatre, a sort of review of songs through the ages). It was a fun show.

Now we’re in for the night, resting up because tomorrow is Aruba. Very excited for my snorkeling adventure tomorrow, and for lying out in the sun!

Towel animal of the day: A dragonfly. I wonder if the room attendant saw my tattoo, or if it is a fluke.

Rockstar of the Day: The pool waiter who had to check to make sure I was old enough to drink.

Drink of the Day: Classic Colada

Gratitude of the Day: I am thankful for another turn around this planet.

I slept fairly well last night, though I did wake up a few times thanks to one too many big glasses of water during the course of the day. DW and I went for breakfast, and I had a delicious waffle and surprisingly did not take bacon.  As ever, the food selection is fantastic on the cruise, and I am hard pressed to pick what to eat.

Up close and personal with a sting ray!

After breakfast, DW and I packed up and went to catch our tender to the Half Moon Cay, a private island the cruise ship is too big to get to. We had a bit of a wait before our adventure was to begin, so we took a stroll down the beach. The water was a little colder than I expected, though a far cry from what I could expect back home.  After a short while walking and getting some sun, we scampered off to our excursion.

Today was the stingray adventure, and I would be lying if I said I wasn’t afraid. I think when I signed up for it, I forgot the sting part of the ray. But I decided to push myself and brave it, and I’m glad I did.  The guide gave us some instructions, such as to shuffle your feet on the ground when you are standing instead of snorkeling, to make sure you don’t step on a stingray.  Also, since we were going to feed them, she told us how to hold the little squids with our thumbs tucked in so they wouldn’t get a “stingray hickie”.  Some of the co-adventurers were being annoyingly obnoxious (an unfortunate theme of our day, as it turns out) and talking over the guide as well as making jokes about Steve Irwin (the crocodile hunter who was fatally stung by a ray), which ramped up my fear, but I pushed through.  DW, however, decided she very badly needed her thumbs and stayed on the shore to take pictures.

We are getting ready to feed the stingrays!

I was pretty afraid for the first half, sticking close to the others and praying a stingray would not touch me. They swim right under you, and when you stand up, they sometimes curl right around you.  I began to relax a little after one brushed against my legs, since it didn’t feel anything like I thought (or like anything to worry about). It’s like silk, almost. Wet, slimy silk. But soft nonetheless.

I didn’t chicken out on the feeding (though it turns out the little squids we feed them are alive, gross!) and it was weird but cool. The stingrays swim up and over the guide, who helps you put your hand with the food in. The stingray, with its vacuum mouth, sucks its treat right out of your hand. It has a lot of power to it!

After the stingray adventure, we went back to the beach for a barbecue lunch, then some lounging in the sun, a dip in the ocean, and a short dry off in the sun again. We had to move once to get away from loud, annoying beach users (inappropriate comments, anyone?). It was a bit cloudy, so we had cooler moments, but when that sun was out, it was incredibly strong.  I could practically feel myself cooking beneath the sunscreen. And yes, I wore lots and lots.

The beaches in the Bahamas are beautiful! (How’s that for alliteration?)

DW and I then took the second to last tender back, wishing we could stay in the Bahamas forever.  Once on the boat, I took advantage of the thermal suite package I once again indulged in. In addition to letting me take a shower (complete with aromatherapy mist) and wash the salt water off, I got to spend some quiet time in the heated chairs before spending some time in the sauna. I then took a dip in the hydropool that comes with the thermal suite package. I felt almost as noodly as I did after the massage!

DW and I puttered about the stateroom for a while, trying desperately not to fall asleep with limited success. We went down for an early dinner, hoping to catch a show at eight o’clock.  Two thirds of our dinner companions were delightful. Unfortunately, the other third fell into our theme, and made uncomfortable, biting comments at one another, when the male half wasn’t trying to patronizingly tell everyone why Obama was a communist.  Fortunately, the food was delicious. I started with the kiwi and lychee salad, while DW had an eggplant dish I’d also been eyeing. For the next course, she had a salad, while I tried a guanabana chilled soup. It was good, like bananas and coconut.  I had the jerk chicken for my entrée, which I knew would be spicy but I was pleased to be able to handle it.  DW had a delicious-looking salmon dish.  For dessert, I was tempted by the key lime pie but decided to stick with the Carribbean theme and had the pound cake with coconut and rum sauce.

The dining room was busy, so it was nearly eight before the dinner was done with, and the show was packed, so we decided we’d push ourselves to behave our age (read: not go to bed at nine) and catch the ten o’clock showing.    We read in the Queen’s Lounge for a while then watched some karaoke, but figured we should sneak out early enough that we did not miss our ten o’clock, so I didn’t manage to work up the brave to sing. (This is despite drinking the karaoke bar’s “Superstar” cocktail, which was rather large.)

We did get great seat for the ten o’clock show, which was the acrobats Ilia and Valerie, a married couple who used to perform with Cirque du Soleil. It was pretty incredible to watch, though the show started out slow. The feats of strength were quite fantastic, and there was some spinning of this metal cube that was quite cool. Then there was the ribbon suspended from the ceiling they did tricks on, which is always a favourite of mine. They finished by bringing out their son to do some tricks of his own, then by doing a final feat of strength with the cruise director, which was quite humourous. His costume consisted of an apron that had bare abs on it, like he had the torso of a Jersey Shore cast member over his own.

But now it is late, and I am ready to head to bed, even though I’m sleeping in and doing whatever I want tomorrow because it is my birthday. I’m looking forward to spoiling myself, possibly with a spa treatment. And definitely with some total relaxation.

Towel animal of the day: A stingray. How a propos!

Rockstar of the Day: Definitely me, for getting in the water with stingrays and touching them!

Drink of the Day: Bahama Mama

Gratitude of the Day: I am very thankful for gorgeous sun and sand, and the opportunity to lie out amid both.