Saturday, October 2, 2010

I woke up around 6 am this morning. I weighed myself before we left and I was 119.2 lbs. At least I'm gaining, even if it is slowly. It will be interesting to see what I weigh when I get back from the cruise. I've never really gained any weight on a cruise so we'll see if I do this time.

While we were outside waiting for Frank to arrive, there was a loose Chihuahua in the neighborhood. Its owner was trying to get it but it kept running away. I helped by running towards the dog and making it go back into its yard. When it finally went in the house, the owners thanked me.

We got to the port a little before noon and there was a line of cars already. So much for not showing up before noon. We got in rather quickly because dad was on his crutch cane. When out luggage went through the scanners, they saw dads knife and confiscated it. Knifes are now no longer allowed on board no matter what the blade length. Knives shorter than 4 inches used to be allowed. I guess that's changed.

We couldn't go to our staterooms until 1 pm so we went up to deck 9 to the Windjammer Cafe. I got come pasta and meat and shared it with dad. We took turns walking around the upper deck, deck 10, and taking pictures until it was time to go to our rooms.

The room had a very weird configuration to the beds making it hard to walk through. We decided to put the two beds together to give us more walking room on either side. We took pictures out on the balcony of me and of the two of us using the tripod.

We went back to the Windjammer for a snack before the mandatory Muster Drill. We got to wait inside since dad isn't able to stand for long periods of time. Royal Caribbean seems to be a lot more customer friendly this time around.

When we were getting ready to leave we went topside on deck 10 aft to take pictures. I finally to talk to aunt. I had called her numerous times and got a hold of her before the muster drill but couldn't talk then. We talked for a few and I told her I'd call her on Tuesday and to make sure she had the cell phone with her because international calls are really expensive.

I went to the sail away party and brought dad with me, even though he wasn't thrilled about it. They had line dancing music on so I did that for an hour or so. During the YMCA the camera for the Cruise in Review movie focused on me and I played to it. It was a lot of fun. I'm definitely more outgoing now than on any cruise prior.

We went back topside to get pictures and a movie of the ship going under the Key Bridge. They were really playing it up on the PA system too, saying things like “Are we going to make it? It doesn't look like it.” It DIDN'T look like it either. It's just as awesome now as it was the first time.

I tried to run aft to get a movie of the smokestacks going under but I couldn't get back there in time, not to mention that it wasn't nearly as dramatic as I was thinking it was going to be. I did get in a nice sprint though if nothing else.

I was walking back to dad when I realized I didn't have my cell phone. We went to the stateroom and called guest relations. No one had turned it in yet. I went back to look for it and some people topside asked if I had lost my phone. They found it turned it in to the Windjammer. I went there but they didn't have it. They told me they would have sent it to Guest Relations so I went there. They still didn't have it so I just went back to the staterooms. At least I knew it was found.

When I got back in the room dad said they had called him on his cell phone from my cell phone and told him it would be at Guest Relations in about 10 minutes. This is definitely not a good way to start off my vacation but at least it was found.

We went down to Guest Relations about 20 minutes later and got the phone. We stayed in the stateroom until the sunset and got some wonderful pictures. It was beautiful and it was right outside our stateroom. I really like having a balcony. The tripod is definitely coming in handy as well.

We had dinner in the Windjammer and then I went to the salsa class. It was kind of boring and basic, but it was something to do. We went to the Centrum and waited for the 70's dancing but dad got bored and went back to the stateroom. I stayed and waited and I'm glad I did. It was a BLAST!!!

They played all sorts of 70's music and I had a lot of fun dancing. At first it was just the singers and dancers on the stages, then this women, who MUST have been really drunk, was up there. Eventually more and more people got on the stages, myself included.

The cruise director, Jimmy, was throwing out shirts to the people in the Centrum area and since I am short, there was no way I was going to get one. I ended up going over to the edge of the main “stage” to dance and he just handed one to me. Go me!!

While I was dancing the camera for the Cruise in Review focused on me again and I waved and continued dancing. I am loving all the dancing that is happening. I don't dance enough, and I don't mean Arthur Murray, but just dancing to dance.

By the time I got back to the room, not only was I tired but my throat was sore from all the screaming I had done. I managed to brush my hair out. It had been down all day and had done pretty well at not being too frizzy.

Sunday, October 3, 2010

We both woke up around 7:30, which considering we set the clocks forward one hour, made sense. I am so used to getting up around 6 that I am still doing it even on vacation. That's okay. It gives me more time to do things on the ship.

The seas were really rough this morning. They had closed the upper decks because of the wind also. We went up for breakfast and I was surprised how many people were there eating considering how much the ship was rocking.

I actually got a little nauseous, and it lasted on and off all day. I laid down for a while after breakfast hoping it would help, but it didn't. I eventually had to buy some Bonine after lunch from one of the shops and it helped a little.

We went to the port shopping talk at noon and I was still nauseous. How miserable. He didn't say much that we didn't already know since we'd been to Bermuda before. It was still nice to hear about the “new” things that were on sale, even if I did think they were stupid, like a $65-$200 purse.

We went to the Windjammer for lunch and then got me the Bonine. I also took some Sudafed to help get my sinuses in better shape. I laid for a few until it was time to go poolside to do line dancing. I had a lot of fun doing that and felt fine.

I went back to the room to put my bathing suit on so I could tan. I watched a little of the belly flop competition and then tanned. I only tanned for about 30 minutes, 15 minutes on each side. I figure I'll be tanning in Bermuda so no need to rush things.

When I got back to the room, I took a nap until 6 pm. I was obviously more tired than I knew. I went down and looked at the formal picture backgrounds. I decided not to get any because the backgrounds were the same ones we'd already gotten.

I laid down until we went to dinner. From dinner we were going to go to the show but it was too crowded so we decided to go to the later one. While waiting, I tried to figure out what to do tomorrow. I got on the internet and decided that if the ferries aren't running, we'd ask a taxi the approximate price to go to BAMZ and if it was $100 or less, we'd go and take the bus back.

We went to the late show and I am glad we did. The singers and dancers are amazing, even more so considering how the ship is rocking. In some ways, I'd love to be a dancer on a cruise ship, but I don't think I'd like being away from home for so long and basically always working.

When we got back to the room I sorted through the pictures and organized them by event. We have taken over 1,000 already. I can't imagine how many we're going to be taking tomorrow with everything that we are planning on doing.

Monday, October 4, 2010

We woke up around 7 this morning and went up to breakfast. We watched as we approached Bermuda. The way we come in we go past most of the coastline before getting to King's Wharf, which makes for some great views and pictures.

Around 9 this morning, I decided to give rock climbing a try. It was on my list of things to do this cruise and almost everyone was watching the coastline so there wasn't a line or anything. It was the perfect time to go.

I have to admit, I was scared. I do not like heights and I have never successfully climbed a rock wall in my life. I normally don't get very far at all. Combining the lack of success with the fear of heights isn't a good way to go into something.

I made it to the top and rang the bell!!! I didn't have any problems at all and it didn't take me too long. I made sure to not look down if I didn't have to as I was climbing, but did look down to pose for the camera when I was at the top.

When I got down, the belay guy told me that it was obvious I had climbed before. I told him that I hadn't, that I just lift weights. He said that I did really good and that most people don't do as well the first time. I stayed close to the wall the whole time and I guess others don't do that.

I had such an adrenaline rush when I got down. I really wasn't expecting to make it to the top. It was really awesome though and something else I can cross off my list of things to do on the ship. The next thing will be the Jump Zone. That's if I am brave enough to try it.

I was so excited as we docked on the starboard side, which is where our balcony was. We had an AWESOME view of the Royal Naval Dockyard from our balcony and obviously took pictures from it. Last time we were here we docked on the port side, so I'm glad we docked on the starboard side.

They announced on the ship that the ferries were running every 30 minutes from the Dockyard to Hamilton only. Considering they were on strike, I'm glad that they are running at all. They'd be stupid to not run for the cruise ships though.

Dad and I waited until the ship was cleared to get off. We must have missed the announcement or the announcement was made after people were getting off already. We were on deck 4 and I looked outside and there were people from the ship out already. We went down to deck 2 and got off. We heard the announcement on our way down.

I decided to not to Snorkel Park today and go tomorrow instead since we didn't get off the ship until almost 11 am. We went straight to the Maritime Museum instead. I'm glad we did as it was MUHC bigger than I thought it was going to be. I thought it was just going to be a building or two but it was multiple buildings and basically a fort. It had AMAZING views of the ship and the ocean. I could even see Snorkel Park from it.

We went to Dolphin Quest and I checked in. I still had almost an hour so we wandered around some more. When we got tired of wandering, we sat down and I did some cartwheels. I can still do them, even the one handed ones. I was surprised as I haven't done them in a while.

The dolphin experience was GREAT!!! I learned a lot as well has had a great time. Dolphins turn off half their brain when they “sleep” since they are conscious breathers and have to be “awake” to breathe. I also learned that they used to have hair and that their tail/flipper markings are unique like a human fingerprint.

I got to feed them fish, kiss them, dance with them, pet them, etc. It was so amazing. They also splashed me. They did tricks like dancing on their tails/flippers, swimming around the pool REALLY fast, waving their tail at me, etc. It was so cool.

When you look into their eyes you KNOW there is someone home looking back at you. Not only that, they can look SO content when you are rubbing their back or stomach. It was amazing. I wish it would have been longer than 20 minutes, but that's all I could afford.

They had a photographer take pictures while I was in the water. Since I had other plans I didn't stick around to look at them but will look at them when I get home. I'd look at them on the ship but internet is too expensive. I know I'll end up buying some. That's just me.

The ferries ended up getting off schedule and even though we got there around 2:15, we were just in time to catch a ferry. We sat topside and took pictures as we went to Hamilton. It was a catamaran so it didn't take long and it was a nice ride.

When we got to Hamilton, we took a taxi to the Bermuda Aquarium, Museum, and Zoo (BAMZ). It wasn't as big as I was hoping it would be but it was still neat. They had a natural history museum, which I absolutely LOVE. I also really enjoyed the bear cats. They were so darn cute.

We decided not to go to the Botanical Gardens and took a taxi back to Hamilton and then a ferry back to the Dockyard. It took us about 40 minutes to get back. From there we were both exhausted and went back to the stateroom until dinner. After we ate, we napped.

We decided not to go to the show tonight since it was the same juggler who was on the first Royal Caribbean cruise we took. We did go to the late-night buffet and Dancing Under the Stars party. The food wasn't great, and it was cold, but it was still food and I was hungry.

I did some line dancing and dad went back to the room to wait for me. I went back to the room around midnight or so. It's going to be an early morning tomorrow since we're going horseback riding. The alarm is set for 6 am.

Tuesday, October 5, 2010

We were up at 6 this morning. I looked for taxis when we first woke up and there weren't any. The second time I looked, around 6:15 or so, they were starting to line up. I was glad as that was our transportation to Spiceland stables.

We didn't have time to eat breakfast this morning. We caught a taxi around 6:45 or so and the ride to Spiceland was easy. The taxi driver even gave us his card so we could call him when we were finished and he'd pick us up.

We got checked in and looked around outside while Steve, our trail guide, got the horses ready. There were some cats around and one of them was really friendly. She came over and let us pt her. When dad sat down she came up on his lap and left sand prints all over his jeans. It was cute.

Steve brought my horse out first. Her name was Gypsy. I got on and then Steve told me how to use the reins and had me walk her in a circle to show that I could control her. I was nervous but everything worked out. It did take me a while ti realize how loose I needed to hold the reins. Gypsy kept going backwards. The reins were connected in the front and I'm not used to that.

Dad and I had our pictures taken on our horses before we headed off on the trails. It was beautiful. The sun, sand, and water made for some of the most beautiful scenery I've ever seen. It's definitely something I want to do again. I tried to take pictures as we were riding, but it's not exactly easy, especially to get it framed correctly. The pictures are okay for the most part, just not perfectly straight.

At one of the beaches, Steve took our picture with the rocks and water in the background. It looks like paradise. It's beautiful. I can't even really explain it in words. The only way to understand is to see it. Pictures won't do it justice. The only way it could have been any better was to see it all during the sunrise. Maybe next time.

Steve was a great guide and pointed out interesting plants along the way, such as allspice. He also pointed out a cute little lizard. He told us some facts about Bermuda and about himself. He's originally from Great Britain.

We called the taxi back but he wasn't able to pick us up. We were going to call another taxi but someone at Spiceland said that sometimes they can take a long time and we might just want to take a bus. We were walking down the road to get to the bus stop and a taxi drove by. Talk about being lucky. We took the taxi back to the ship.

When we got back to the ship, which was around 10 am, we had a late breakfast. By this time i was STARVING and very glad to eat. From there we set off to the beach but dad couldn't make it. He was in too much pain. He went back to the ship and I headed off to the beach by myself.

The beach was really nice, especially sine it was within walking distance of the ship. I thought it was going to cost $5 but it didn't cost anything. That works for me. The more money I have, the more there is to spend on other things.

The water was cold at first but I slowly made my way to about waist deep water. There were fish and little crabs swimming around in the water as well. I also had to be careful where I stepped as some of the rocks were really jagged.

I went and tanned fr about 30 minutes and then took my camera with me into the water. I took some pictures from that vantage point and a couple offered to take pictures of me. Some other people they knew came up and we talked for a short time before I left.

When I left the beach, I went in search of souvenirs for my coworkers. I went to the glassworks factory but everything was so expensive. I went in the mall and found some little men made of yarn that were pretty cool and only $2.50 a piece. I bought 10 of them. The lady at the cash register had a hard time doing the math but did finally get it.

I went into another store and bought myself a bracelet. I mentioned in passing about the rough seas we had on the way down and they asked if I got sea sick. I sai I did a little. They said to go to the health food store and get some ginger candy. I was so happy they mentioned that because I wanted some anyway. I went and got that and then wandered a little more about the Dockyard before going back to the ship.

I was back to the ship around 1 pm. Considering we had to be on board by 1:30, I was kind of cutting it close. I asked dad if he was starting to worry and he said that he wasn't, not yet. He said he knew me and that he knew I'd be on time, though he did worry what would happen I missed the ship.

We went topside when we were leaving to take pictures. I decided to give the Jump Zone a chance. It had been closed some of the time while we were cruising because of the wind. I didn't want to lose my only positive chance to do it.

I have to say, the first few jumps were rather terrifying, but then I was just laughing as it was so awesome. I'm not a fan of heights, at all, but it was really interesting being up that high and being able to look down and watch the ship move as we left. I even got in some tow touches. I really need to work at being able to do those on the ground again.

The guy then hooked another bungee rope to me so I could jump even higher. I bet my legs are DEAD tomorrow. All the jumping, and you really have to push off too, not to mention the horseback riding this morning. Tomorrow could be interesting.

We did get some pictures of us leaving before going and having lunch. We went back to the stateroom and sat out on the balcony for a while and took pictures. I also did a little tanning. It will probably be too cold to tan for the rest of the trip so I wanted to get a little more in while I still could.

Dad and I both ended up taking a nap and having a late dinner. We were going to go to the first show but it was too crowded so we went back for the second one. It was great. It was the singers and dancers in a production called Stage to Screen, basically musicals that made it to the big screen, like Chicago and Little Shop of Horrors. It was a lot of fun.

We went back to the room for a short time before going to the game Quest. I had never gone before but had wanted to since the first cruise. It was HILARIOUS. It didn't even matter that I knew what to expect from the other cruise DVD's. It was still hilarious.

One of the quests was to bring up 3 bras that were not being worn. This one lady just took her arms out of her shirt, took her bra off, and then covered herself with her hands until she got it back. She was not a small lady either. I would NEVER do that, not with all the cameras in that room. No way. Another team had a girl that had multiple bras under her shirt and she just pulled them out. Needless to say that team was the first one there.

Another incident was when they had to bring up 3 pairs of mens pants that were not being worn. One lady that had the pants ran around the room and one of the guys, in only his underwear, chased her. It was really funny. I overheard one of the other passengers behind me say that he would jump overboard right now if he was that guy.

One of the quests for the guys was to do the worm. This one guy was on his back and kind of looked like a dying bug of sorts. One of his teammates came, slide on his stomach, grabbed the team number from the first guy, and did what looked like a superman. It was SO FUNNY. I don' t know if they got any points, but they got points in my book.

They also had the guys in just their underwear with no shirts, wear lady's shoes and bras. Then they paraded around the room and danced. It was so funny. Some of them really got into it too. That takes guts, but they should know what they were getting themselves into.

We went back to the room for the night after the game. I was more tired than sleepy, but I didn't have much trouble falling asleep, that's for sure. It was a very busy and active day for me.

Wednesday, October 6, 2010

I woke up around 6 this morning and copied all the pictures we took last night to my laptop. I was up fro about an hour and then went back to sleep around 7 am and got up to stay up at 8 am. Dad was already up when I got up. We went up to breakfast and then to the towel animal demo. I have a pamphlet that tells me how to do the towel animals. I'm going to have to give that a try.

After the towel animal demo, we both took a nap. We did get up in time to have lunch and then I did some more rock climbing. I did the second level this time and was even faster than the first. I was up and down in well under 2 minutes. I contemplated competing in the adult speed climb, but decided against it.

We went back to our room and it was really hot in there, even for me. We opened the balcony door and turned the heat down. We stood out on the balcony for a short time but didn't stay long because it wasn't exactly warm out there.

While waiting for the room to cool down, we did some packing. It's hard to believe I'll be back in Baltimore tomorrow. By the end of the day I had almost everything packed except essentials and things I will use before getting off the ship. I don't want to leave!

I tried to get caught up on journaling as this vacation hasn't left me with a lot of time and energy to do that. I made some progress, but am still way behind. I'll be caught up before I go back to work on Monday, I have to be. I don't want to get THAT far behind.

I took another nap and called about the Cruise in Review DVD when I woke up. It was in so I went and picked it up and skimmed through it when I got back to the room. I'm on it THREE times!!! Go me!! I had a lot of fun this cruise and I'm happy some of those memories are on there, as well as some of the funny things from the Quest game last night.

I took pictures of the sunset while dad went and got seats for the comedian tonight. It was a BEAUTIFUL sunset but it was chilly and windy outside. I got some great pictures though so my discomfort was well worth it.

I met dad in the theater for the late show. The comedian, Carl Banks, was hilarious. I can't remember his name, as I am writing this on Saturday, but I'll look it up and come back and edit it in. Anyway, he was HILARIOUS. He even had dad cracking up, which isn't easy to do.

I noticed we were out of roaming around 9:45 pm. Dad called Frank and I called aunt. We talked for a little while before I needed to go to bed since I have to be up early tomorrow. Dad was having trouble finding his laptop case but I found it for him next to the nightstand. It was really hard to see though.

Thursday, October 7, 2010

Dad and I both woke up really early today, well before 6 am. I think it was closer to 4 am, maybe even a little before. I guess we just got so much sleep yesterday we didn't really need all that much sleep that night.

We looked out on the balcony and dad took pictures of the lights in the distance. Neither of my cameras would do that but dads' camera did a pretty good job. I love coming into port at night and seeing all the lights. It's really cool.

We went topside to get some pictures of us docking the line to get into the Windjammer was REALLY long. We were going to skip breakfast if the line was that long when we came back down but luckily it wasn't and we got to have breakfast, our last meal on board.

I made sure everything was packed and then we waited until our express color was called to get off the ship, which was around 8 am. Getting through customs was easy. You just tell them you have no alcohol or tobacco products, show them your passport and custom declaration and you're good to go. Dad didn't have any problem getting his knife back either.

Dad took a picture of me sitting with all the luggage and when I tried to take pictures of the ship I was told that we weren't allowed to take pictures from this area. I found it weird because we took pictures coming in and we certainly took pictures from our balcony, which is a much better view than from ground level, but whatever.

The ride home wasn't too bad once we got on Light Street, though getting there took some time as it was still rush hour. Once we got home, I unpacked and then we both crashed, which was too be expected. That's what you do after vacation, recover.