The cruise
Here it is. A follow up on the Miami Caribbean vacation:
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Saturday 17th October 2009, we checked out of the Airport Regency Hotel, excited about the second stage of our holiday.
The hotel transport took us down to the Port of Miami to board our cruise ship. It was here we had our first breathtaking sight of the ship itself, the Carnival Liberty. An awesome 110,000 ton vessel carrying 3000 passengers and 1150 crew.
Even though embarkation was handled smoothly by the Port of Miami, the actual boarding felt like a lengthy process - a lot of standing and queuing and sweating and wilting in the sweltering heat, but finally, and by by this time looking somewhat bedraggled, we set foot on the ship itself, only to be hijacked by an official photographer. That's right. What a picture that must have been. Temporarily stressed, harassed and just wanting to get into our cabins…..
Our eagerly awaited voyage to the Eastern Caribbean had begun. Almost begun that is. The waiting around was not over yet. We had to wait until our cabins had been valeted! But this wait was a little more comfortable as we could sit down and rest and we were excited.
Word came through the ship's loud speaker system that our cabins were ready. So off we went to explore them and unpack. Then, barely after setting foot over the threshold, we were told that we would have to take part in a safety drill. Our cabins were on the ninth deck and the drill was on the bottom deck. Use of the elevators were not allowed for the drill and so we had to make our way down nine double sets of stairs. No laughing matter when you have a sore knee, as I had. The drill itself caused considerable amusement and produced yet another period of waiting around, but it was fun!! After it was over we returned to our cabin, this time via the elevators. We had four hours to explore the cabins along with a little of the huge ship before it finally set sail.
The ship itself was spotlessly clean. The cabin staff were really friendly. We just knew right away the we would be thoroughly spoiled throughout the entire time. The cabins themselves were quite spacious with ample room to walk around and plenty of space for clothes and toiletries etc. Two ladies sharing a room need space! Hair-dryers and a TV set were in every cabin.
As we left the Port of Miami I watched with a mixture of fascination and a kind of disbelief . It was really all happening. It was an unforgettable experience. We were not disappointed. We waved at the people along the beach and shore as we moved away, and they waved back at us. We had begun our cruise in style. Just like in the movies!
Time to eat. Our cabins were on the Lido deck and it was just a short stroll to Emile's self service buffet restaurant which was also situated on the Lido deck. It was brimming with many gourmet delights and included a Burrito bar and a Sushi bar. Fish and chips were available upstairs in quieter surroundings.
Everyone was in high spirits and looking forward to visiting the exotic places our cruise would take us. Breathtaking destinations such as Half Moon Cay in the Bahamas, St Thomas in the US Virgin Islands, San Juan in Puerto Rico and Grand Turk.
The evening dinner was a lavish affair in the Silver Olympian Dining Room. Afterwards the adrenaline was running high and Kay and myself went up onto the deck for cocktails and stayed there until 2am in the morning. I sipped my cocktail and watched the night sky for ages. It was very dark out there on the ocean and the Milky Way was visible. The glorious band of light stretching across the sky up there among the stars, which of course is our galaxy viewed sideways on. Plus seeing the other cruise ships that had left the Port of Miami with us was a beautiful sight too. They floated on the horizons all lit up and glowing in the distance. Great floating palaces. Fabulous.
And so after this long, long day, thoughts of going to sleep became an attractive idea and off to our cabins we went. I got into my bed totally exhausted, looking forward to the new experience that tomorrow would bring.
The morning saw a sudden change in the itinery. We awoke to the news that a storm in the vicinity decreed that we should visit Nassau instead of Half Moon Cay. Oh well. C'est la vie. A tinge of disappointment as we felt that Nassau would perhaps not be as relaxing as the original scheduled destination. Never-the-less we were up for it. It turned out to be great fun.
Getting ashore was a lengthily business, after all there were three thousand passengers to disembark. And so after another spell of waiting around we made it onto dry land, and once ashore decided to take a guided tour of the lovely island of Nassau which included a tour of the truly exotic Paradise Island with it's Sultan style palace. From a distance the palace looked like a big blob of pink icing on a very fancy cake. Close up it was spectacular. A sister palace to the one in Dubai. Inside the walls themselves were lined with a huge aquarium. Tropical fish swam around from all angles as you wandered in awe from sumptuous room to sumptuous room. An overwhelming insight as to how the other half live!
Monday was a full day at sea and there was plenty to amuse us on board the ship. A hairy chest contest was in full swing on the main deck as we sailed out of the Bahamas. In fact there was not a dull moment the whole time we were aboard. We were after all afloat on a ship which boasted twenty two bars and lounges, two swimming pools and two jacuzzis. A water slide. A mini golf course, a jogging track for the energetic; not to mention all the sunbathing on deck. A giant LCD screen 12ft by 22ft loomed over the Lido deck swimming pool, showing everything from shows and movies to some of the 'fun' antics going on aboard the 'fun ship.'
St Thomas, in the delightful US Virgin Island was our second port of call. Here we hired a private car and visited some of the lovely beaches this Island has to offer. Cathy and Andrew had a feast of snorkelling. Kay and myself elected to sunbathe. Iguanas posed for us whilst we took pictures of them. The views from the higher slopes of the Island were breath taking and often we could see our ship anchored in the port far below us.
Our third destination was the city of San Juan, on the lovely, vibrant island of Puerto Rico. Here we took a free trolley ride around the city, an inexpensive way to go sightseeing. The Castillo san Felipe del Morro is a World Heritage Site steeped in history and dominates the small harbour. Sightseeing was followed by a look around the fascinating shops in Downtown San Juan. After the brief shopping spree we headed for Senor Froggs, a lively party bar and great fun. On entering we were adorned with balloons. A lady came around and painted our faces. We joined in a friendly conga and all in in the middle of the afternoon!! Party hardy guys!
Our final destination ashore was to the small but very lovely island of Grand Turk in the Turk and Caicos Islands. Now we were on UK soil. And you guessed it! The rain was hammering when we sailed into port. Oh my, how it rained. We glanced at each other in trepidation but then happily after a short while the downpour ceased and voila!! one of the most beautiful days of the whole trip emerged.
Leaving the ship we made for the duty free shops! Amazing how these shop seem to be more expensive than most shops you find in your own home town. By now it was very hot and so onto the sun loungers for a spell of sun bathing and a dip in the turquoise sea. Glorious sunshine blessed us for the rest of our stay. Cathy and Andrew had a great time snorkelling. Once again Kay and I opted for an intensive spell of sunbathing. Gotta work on that tan.
Back on board for another full day at sea and this was to be our last day. Of course the saddest part of any cruise is the last night when you have to say farewell to those whom you have come to know over the week. And in that short space of time, we felt that we had come to know many of the crew members on board this magnificent ship. The staff in the Silver Olympian Dining Room where we we had enjoyed many a feast, and where the waiters had sung and danced and entertained us, eagerly posed for photographs with us. They were as sad to see us go as we were sad to leave them. For a whole week they had tolerated our eating and drinking quirks without so much as a bat of an eyelid, and we were very grateful to them. In fact it seemed they automatically knew our likes and dislikes. Amazing. All the crew had become like family to us.
We would not have the slightest hesitation recommending this cruise to anyone who may be wondering if cruising is for for them. We all agreed that we would certainly love to do it all again.
And so our cruise around the islands of the Eastern Caribbean had ended. But that was by no means the end of our holiday. Kay and I were to leave Andrew and Cathy next day, but she and I were about to embark on the third and equally glorious part of our adventure - a few days in South Beach, Miami. But that's another blog.
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Footnote: The picture shows Kay and myself in the mood for some Calypso in Nassau
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