Carnival Day 6 and 7

We arrived in Nassau on Friday but since we had been there so often, we decided to stay on the ship. I sat on the deck and read while Don walked around looking at the town and the other ships that were coming in. At noon, we had lunch on the Lido deck and then decided to play on the water slide. This was the first time we have ever tried the slide and it was a lot of fun. The best part was that there wasn’t anyone else on the slide and we had it to ourselves. Finally it was time to leave, pack our suitcases and get cleaned up to visit with the Captain again. After our visit, we had about an hour to stroll around the ship and listen to the music in the different areas.

Dinner was wonderful! Miguel, the maitre’d from the Splendor, sent us a bottle of wine (Black Opal) for dinner. Then when it came time for dessert, they brought a birthday cake to our table (another gift from Miguel) and the waiters sang happy birthday to me. We had a wonderful group of people at our dinner table! Les and Diane were from Olympia, WA, Max and Wilma were from Indiana, and Ron and Vickie were from Hilton Head, SC.

After dinner we finished packing and had to get special tags for our suitcases from guest relations. We had an early night since we had stayed up so late the night before.

On Saturday morning, it was time to leave the ship which was kind of sad. I really enjoyed meeting other passengers on the ship as well as the crew. This one guy made me an omelet every morning. Today I didn’t even have to order it and when it was my turn to order, he had it finished and ready to put on my plate! Talk about being spoiled!

We were supposed to meet Daniella in front of the guest relations at 9:30 but we were ready by 8:30. We had planned to just sit in the lobby area until 9:30 but Nickos and Ramune were there by the elevators when we got off. Ramune got Daniella to give us a special escort off the ship. We didn’t have to wait in any lines and they opened barriers to let us through. I felt like royalty! She even escorted us through customs and the baggage claim! I have to say that Carnival rolled out the red carpet for us and truly made us feel so special!

It took us 8 hours but we got back home to SC. It was kind of a let down after all that spoiling we had! J

Carnival Glory Day 5 Sea Day

There is no way to describe yesterday than utterly perfect. We spent the whole day relaxing before going to 2 comedy shows in the evening before dinner. Then we had dinner with the Captain and his senior staff. I sat beside the Captain and had a wonderful conversation with him! I learned about his family and his life when he is not on the ship. I think what also made it special is that we had been aboard the Liberty in Italy when he was the captain there also. On the other side of me was Ramuna, the head of Guest Relations, who is just fantastic and charming! Don sat between Ramuna and Nickos, the hotel director. The Chief Engineer, the Staff Captain, and another couple also were at our table. Everyone was so warm and personable that I forgot to be nervous anymore (which I really was before dinner because we had never eaten dinner with the Captain and his staff before). Then the Captain must have found out that it was my birthday and after dinner an announcement was made to the whole dining room that the Captain had distinguished guests joining him for dinner and that it was my birthday on Sunday. A birthday cake with candles arrived and it must have been the entire dining room staff that was at our table to sing to me. All of the women at the table also received a red rose. Wow! It was a truly amazing dinner and one that I will never forget.

After dinner, we stopped to take a picture and the Captain and Nickos joined us for a picture. They were totally awesome and made us feel so special. Then we went to 2 more comedy shows because I was pretty wide awake after our dinner. When we arrived back at our room, there was champagne and glasses waiting for us from Nickos. I couldn’t believe it! So we drank champagne and didn’t go to bed until after 3am. I thought I was doing pretty well for a 50 year old lady! LOL

I don’t think any other cruise we go on will ever be able to top this one!

(pictures will be added tomorrow. I'm running out of internet time today!)

Carnival Glory Days 4 and 5 Belize and Mahahual

(picture: dinner mates every night!)

We had a wonderful day in Belize. At first we didn’t even plan to get off the ship because we really didn’t enjoy Belize. While we watched the ship drop the anchor and get ready for tenders to take people ashore, we met another couple, Bonnie and Lee. They invited us to go cave tubing with them on a private tour. We had been disappointed when we saw that cave tubing was not listed as a shore excursion because we really had wanted to do. We decided on the spur of the moment to go so we ran to the cabin and put our bathing suits on so we could meet them in the atrium. Since we were all platinum members we would not have to wait in line for the tender but Ramuna (guest relations manager) saw us and immediately took care of us. (She really is wonderful!)

When we got ashore after about a 30 min. ride to shore, we met Reggie, the tour operator where he told Bonnie to meet him about 9am. Four of us got in the white van and drove for an hour to the caves. It cost us $48 each. After Reggie gave us our life jackets and tubes, we walked along a trail for about 45 min. up the Sibun River before we got in. He also told us about the plants and trees along the way which I found really interesting. Then Reggie had us hook together so we could all stay together along the way. I was in front and Don put his feet in my tube under my arms. Bonnie was behind him and Lee was last. Reggie moved from the back to the front as he told us about the cave, the formations, and the bats. There was even a waterfall inside the cave and it was beautiful. Reggie explained that Carnival took this tour off their list when a woman drowned last year in the cave because the water was high and the guide was inexperienced and didn’t keep his group together. It took us about 2 hours to float down the river but it was idyllic.

I would highly recommend everyone to go cave tubing and especially go with Reggie’s tours. He told me that he likes to keep the group at 14 people and if there are more than 10, he brings another guide. I really liked how he kept us all together on the river, explained things, and kept us going in the right places along the way.

Then I had a little mishap as I boarded the tender. The guy helped a lady aboard and turned around to help me. His hand clipped my forehead and threw me off balance. I thought I was going to fall off the dock and so did the two men. They tried to grab me and one hit my hand which caused my sail and sign card and driver’s license to fly in the air. They landed in the water and sank to the bottom. The three of us stood there and looked down as they sunk and we were speechless. Don comes over and looks down and asks, “What are we looking at?” I couldn’t even talk. The guy told me to go tell security and the security guard told me not to worry about it and just get on the tender. When I got to the ship, I went to guest relations and they quickly gave me a new sail and sign card. When I told them my driver’s license was gone too and we used that to get in the safe, they sent someone to open the safe for us. I have to say that the Guest Relations department has been wonderful on this trip! Now when I get home, I will have to go get a new driver’s license (Don is a little worried about identity theft, but I guess I will have to deal with that when it happens.)

When we arrived in the room, there was a plate of goodies sent to us from the chef. Then while the lady was opening the safe for us, room service brought us a plate of chocolate covered strawberries sent to us from James, the cruise director. When we went to dinner, Terrence the maitre’d gave us an invitation for Thursday night to eat with the senior staff at 8:15 in the Platinum dining room. What an honor! I am so excited!

So, other than my little mishap, it was a perfect day! I really think God sent Bonnie and Lee to that spot where we were to invite us to go cave tubing. I also think he kept me from falling off the dock! It is truly amazing how things work out and how much God takes care of us!

Yesterday we arrived in Costa Maya at 8am and we took a taxi to the little town of Mahahual. The taxi ride cost $3 to get there and $2 to get back per person. We spent a lovely day at the beach drinking Dos Equis and eating chips and salsa. We got back to the ship about 2:30pm and by the time we took a shower, it was time to go to the Past Guest Reception. We did stop at the store and buy 4 bottles of kahlua and they matched the price of the picture on my camera. The ship’s store sold them for 2/$25 but the store in Cozumel had them 2/$17 so we bought 4 of them at the lower price. The past guest reception was nice and then we went to dinner. After dinner we saw the show which was a hypnotist. We were pretty tired by the time we got back to our cabin but we found a birthday cake in our room for a Mrs. Maria Pessoa so I had to call guest relations. Then room service called and tried to tell me it was free and I think I finally got them to understand that it was sent to the wrong cabin.

Today is a day at sea so we will rest and relax!

Carnival Glory Day 3 and Reading

We arrived in Cozumel around 10am and then we walked around downtown until about 2pm. It was so hot and humid there! Kahlua was 2 for $17 which was a really good buy. We ended up coming back to the ship and eating some lunch before going back to our cabin and watch The Curious Story about Benjamin Buttons (or something like that) and it was an interesting story but we had to leave for dinner before I got to watch the ending. After dinner we went to the comedy show again and saw Lewis Nixson who was quite funny but we missed the main show which I hear was really great too.
Blog Prompt: Talking to my sister the other day, she told me that her 1st grade son was now suppose to read his books on-line instead of bringing them home. How do you feel about that?

I think for early readers, they need to physically hold books and turn pages to feel the magic of reading. I think checking out books from the library also means meaningful interactions with the librarians who could have be a major source of inspiration and motivation for a child because they did this for me. I think as a student moves on to middle or high school, online reading may be good but I really believe they need the real books too.

Carnival Glory Day 2

As usual I woke up at 5am and got on the computer for my 45 min. a day fix. This really makes me miss my high speed internet at home. I ate a wonderful special made omelette at 7am and then when I woke Don up, we had breakfast in the dining room where I got tasty French toast. In the morning we went to a shopping talk, trivia contest, and a talk about the excursions. By then it was time to eat lunch! After lunch we walked around and then decided to take a nap since we had a late night.

After our nap we went to the Murder Mystery program and it is really neat because we have to solve a murder. They presented 7 suspects and alibis (crew members) and every day we get a clue. When we figure out who did it, we fill out a paper with the murderer and the weapon. All of the right answers go in a drawing for a prize. This is the first time we had done something like this.

At 5:45 we went to the Captain’s celebration and we met Nicolas the hotel director and Ramuna Bovo, head of guest relations. Ramuna brought us to meet the Captain who remembered us from Italy and then got us some wine. They were extremely nice!

After our dinner of prime rib, we went to the Comedy Show and watched Jeff Nease who was pretty funny. There was an 11pm show but we had to clear out the room and go stand in line again which we decided it wasn’t worth it so we left and went to the show. By the time the show was over, I was ready to drop. Again, it was a wonderful day!

Blog Prompt: What did you do if you left your homework at school?

I never left my homework because I loved doing homework. I loved school and everything about it. So throughout my school years, I was very conscientious and always checked that I had everything I needed to do my homework because I always wrote my homework down. I guess even as a student, I was pretty organized.

Carnival Glory Day 1

We got on board the Carnival Glory about noon and it was such a smooth embarkation. We never waited for anything but quickly went through the procedures and boarded the ship. As soon as we got on the ship we went to see the maître’d because we wanted to move to the Golden dining room which was in the middle of the ship. Terrence Roddy, the maitre’d, was wonderful and immediately got us at a big table in the Golden dining room. After that we had lunch on the lido deck and then found our cabin on Deck 8. James the cruise director called and welcomed us to the ship which was so thoughtful! Then we walked around the ship and decided to return back to the cabin to prepare for the muster drill.

While we were there, we got a call from Ramona (head of guest services) who asked us if we would like to be upgraded to a balcony cabin so we were moved. Daniella came and showed us our new cabin as well as getting us new keys. The cabin is beautiful! We have also been showered with gifts of fruit baskets, bottles of wine, and cookies. I know I will weigh a ton when I get off this ship! After the drill, we went to the pool bar and enjoyed some beer while getting to meet the bartenders that were there (Agung from Indonesia and John from Peru).

At 6pm we went to dinner and met the other 3 couples at our table. Max and Wilma are from Indiana, Vicki and Ron are from Hilton Head, and Les and Diane are from Olympia, Washington. They all were about our age and seemed super nice! Dinner was wonderful which is usual for Carnival ships. I love the choices and the tastes. The maitre’d checked on us to make sure that everything was alright. The chef even came out and asked us how dinner was and somehow even knew our name!

After dinner we watched the Live Game Show and then walked around the ship some more. The Welcome Aboard Show was at 10:15 and featured the Carnival singers and dancers as well as a sneak preview of the comedy show. I think the Comedy Show will be a hit and look forward to seeing it. After the show we went to the piano bar and enjoyed the music but then it was about midnight when I turn into a pumpkin so we had to leave. It was a wonderful day!

(will upload pix later - having trouble w/ ship's internet)