Ocho Rios

Well, this is depressing - my phone is broke. That means no photos and no daily notes. I keep a blog because I find it difficult to remember details unless it's written down, and I dearly love photos, so this is a going to be a real challenge.

Today we arrived at Ocho Rios, Jamaica. The only place we were going was Dunn River Falls; the rest of Jamaica seemed to be off limit.

As we walked to get tickets we met a nice young couple who were on their honeymoon. Later as we headed down to the starting point of the falls, Randy mentioned that they had come ashore with just a few dollars; that might make it difficult for them to get a locker or drinks. So I ran back to our locker, got a bit of cash and gave it to them. I had told the rest of my group to go ahead and I would catch up. But (and I know this) I'm no good at catching up. I didn't find them at the beach or at the falls so when the honeymoon couple caught up, we three joined one of the large groups and headed up the falls together. 

The falls were running pretty hard and it was difficult to navigate some areas. I'd been there before so I knew that there isn't a prize for climbing all the way up; you just do it as long as it's fun. And shortly after that it stopped being fun for me. The water was cold and fast and I decided I didn't need to climb it. So I got out and walked up the wooden sidewalk until I found a place that overlooked the falls. There I saw the rest of my group, making great headway and nearly at the top! I got back into the falls to join Randy - here it was cold, fast, and slippery! Everyone else completed the climb perfectly and had a good time doing it. 

When everyone finished we headed back to the ship. Along the way I ask Glenda to take a photo of me beside this gorgeous tree, covered with vines - so amazing.

We relaxed on the ship, although without my photos and notes I won't recall what we did. I am sure it involved eating and Trivia contests. 

Then we got ready for formal night. We love the casual relaxation of shorts and t-shirts, but once in awhile it's nice to get dressed up. And we look good!

Day at Sea

We didn't get up as early today; with a day at sea, there wasn't any rush. Outside was a beautiful rainbow, with the colors shining down from the rainbow to the ocean. 

There was no land in sight but we still had birds about. Randy surmised they were snacking on fish stirred up by the ship. 

 

We had breakfast at the Windjammer again, which was still enjoyable. Then the guys went to their sushi-making class while Glenda and I retired to our respective rooms. Soon the guys were done with their class; they both enjoyed it and were quite good at it!

Aaron, Glenda and I headed back to the Windjammer for a snack while Randy went to the sauna. It's amazing how much I can eat when it's available!

Aaron and Glenda went to the pool while I waited for Randy. We intended to join them but couldn't find them; it's not that big of a ship so I don't know how we missed them but we did. We walked around several sections of the ship, admiring the gorgeous blue, blue water.

Eventually we decided to just relax around the pool for a while, listening to music that was way too loud and watching the staff play treasure hunt with the kids. After awhile I went back to the room and Randy went to the sauna again; he was feeling a cold coming on and hoped to stop it.

We met up in the Snyders at the Schooner Bar for TV Trivia; we sucked. But there were more trivia contests coming later so Glenda brought her cards and we played Blackjack until the trivia started.

We were better at the General Trivia and during the 80s Music Trivia we answered 19 out of 20 questions correctly, but that still wasn't good enough to win. Oh, well. We headed back to shower and rest before dinner. The food was a bit uneven. The duck terrine, lasagna and tuna were excellent, the soup and Randy's dessert trifle were ok, but my Bananas Foster was awful.

In spite of taking Glenda's Allegra, Randy's cold is still hanging on so we went to bed instead of to the show. And were greeted by a little towel...what? frog? Don't know, but it's cute!

"A Beautiful Day At Coco Cay"

Randy and I woke up a early (little after 6 - early for me, not for him) and stood out on the balcony for a bit. It's a bit humid but it looks like a lovely day. We went out for coffee and hot tea, then added a little salmon, a little pastry, a little chocolate croissant... 

Good thing we took a walk around the deck to work of a few of those calories. This is a lovely way to start the day.

Around 8 we met up with Aaron and Glenda for our real breakfast buffet at the Windjammer. There are a lot of choices with breads, cheeses, eggs, waffles, etc; they even offer salmon soaked in beet juice or squid ink, or plain.

Then we went down to deck 2 to pick up some towels and head out to the beach! Ahead is Coco Cay, a private island owned by Royal Caribbean. 

Behind is our beautiful ship, and I guarantee that the dock was built with this photo op in mind. 

And here we are, ready for some fun and sun!

The water was kind of cool so we got in slowly and after getting used to the temp, did a little snorkeling, Unfortunately we found surprisingly few fish here. Eventually we headed over to the other side, the side with jetties. We got some drinks at the little hut to cool off before we headed back to the beach - diet Coke for me and a juice concoction for Randy.  We passed a local guy beating a fresh coconut against a tree and when it cracked slightly he poured some of the juice over his head.  As it continue to dribble out he cupped his hand to catch is and drink it and, with a big smile, offered to pour some for Randy.  Randy tasted it and said it was wonderful.

The jetties didn't have much in the way of fish, either. But it was a bit warmer! 

Time for lunch! As we walked over to the buffet, I offered a local guy $ if he would open a coconut for me. He got a fresh one and hacked it open - it was unusually tough to open, even with a machete. 

A coconut contains a lot more water/juice than I imagined. We shared the coconut-flavored water and bits of fresh coconut, but it was a lot more than we could finish. 

So on to lunch. They set up another buffet here, with hamburgers, hot dogs, tacos, lots of side dishes, fruit cookies, and ice cream (which made Glenda happy!).

We saw one or two little chickens running around, and a large sand sculpture of a  pleasingly plump mermaid. 

We headed back to the boat around 1pm for a shower and nap. Then got a snack art the Casino Bar (it had been 2 hours since we ate anything!)

Then we gambled a bit. Yesterday I won $3. Today I lost 43...I am not a gambling wizard. Randy, however, won. So smug!

Since I wasn't going to win a fortune, we all went on deck to watch the ship leave the dock. Then the guys got Mai Tai Drinks and we all played trivia, hosted by a guy with really strong accent. Sometimes we couldn't understand what he was saying but it didn't matter, we would have lost anyway. 

The evening musical entertainment show was not very good. It was a tribute to Broadway and they had a few good singers but they opted to avoid popular songs, and they put the ones they choose into awkward arrangements.

Dinner was pretty good but the best part were the servers. Waiter Ngurah was good and Assistant Waiter Eden was even better. He served us as if we were 1st class guests on a grand ocean liner of yore.

Afterwards we went to look at the shops a bit before heading back to the cabins.

Another Caribbean Cruise!

Cruise day!  This is something we feel we need and are really looking forward to! We had to drive to Port Canaveral so we left early enough to handle any traffic issues. For a change, there weren't any traffic issues (yeah!) so we got there early. Now - what to eat? Yes, we're going to be on a cruise where food will be non-stop, but I was hungry now. So we texted Aaron for ideas (he and Glenda were familiar with the area from visiting her family) and he suggested Southern Charm restaurant. When we got there was a huge line and we thought we'd have to skip breakfast but we were seated quickly. Breakfast sandwich for me while Randy had the Southern Eggs Benedict, with gravy instead of Hollandaise sauce and and sausage instead of ham. It came with a side of grits which Randy poured a little syrup over. Waitress Cindy shamed Randy about that and showed us their 10 commandments about grits...numbers 7, 8, 9, and 10 were all the same: "Thou shall not put syrup on grits!" All in fun and we would definitely go back.

On to port Canaveral parking and then to ship; it was an easy boarding. We found Aaron and Glenda upstairs on deck 11, snacking. Never-mind that we just had breakfast, we joined them to sample a few desserts. Our luggage wasn't there yet and we all decided that we should have packed sunsuits in our carry-ons so we could get in the pool! With no unpacking to do, we went out to explore the ship. Looking across the water we could see NASA - got to go there someday soon.

We checked back and found our luggage had been set outside our rooms. Our rooms are just a few doors from each other, which is nice. When everything was tucked away we all went over to the casino. Friends of ours often get free cruises from gambling so we thought we'd check this out. The casino couldn't open for business until we left port but we got some lessons in Blackjack from dealer Adrian. He was really good but too soon he had to leave us to do real work.

Our next instructor was Glenda herself, who tried to teach the rest of us table tennis. I say "tried" because she is very good but her students ... weren't.

The guys signed up for sushi making class but Glenda and I didn't find a class that we wanted yet. 

Time to eat again. I found happiness with a cheeseburger and chocolate chip cookies. And their French Fries were unexpectedly good! 

By then we had left port so we went to the Casino for a bit of gambling because our shipboard cards had $2 of free chips. I won $3 - I am a gambling wizard! The Cashier suggested we always cash in our slips instead of carrying them, even the small ones, because it's easy to lose or damage them. 

We went to see the last few minutes of the Comedian before dinner - OK but not great. Dinner was pretty good and we were glad to see that baked escargots are still on menu and that they haven't changed the recipe. These are still one of the best things on this (or any) menu!

We are having the late dinner seating. The ship was rocking a bit and I was really tired so 9:30 or so we headed off to bed.

 This Thanksgiving we are celebrating a little differently - a quiet dinner at home with just the two of us. In between the ministries at church and getting ready for a cruise, it just seemed better to relax today. Fortunately for me, Randy relaxes in the kitchen!

Today's entree was a brined turkey breast, sliced and layered with prosciutto and dressing, then rolled up, tied up, and baked until perfectly done and still juicy. 

So very, very good. 

Randy also made a French Apple Pie. Just like every Thanksgiving at home, I ate myself senseless. I am so very thankful for so much, including this meal!