St Marteen

St Marteen was our final port.  It was my least favorite but was enjoyable enough.  I thought it was overpriced and there wasn’t much going on. 

We arrived the first day of Carnivale which was super fun and we were very lucky to have that timing.  There was a ton of shopping to be had and a LOT OF WALKING.  We walked for miles along the beach and through the shops.  We walked through the city and around the port.  I wish I had a lot more to report at this port, but that was all there was to do.

 It was very hot and we had fun just checking out all the shops, but we really didn’t find any good deals, in fact just the opposite, but tried to enjoy ourselves anyway.  The funny thing is that a lot of the people we talked to said that this is one of their favorite islands.  They are probably the group that ended up at the Nudist Beach.  I might have enjoyed it more had I taken the time to do that too.  LOL!  Either way, it was nice to say I have been to this island, but it’s probably not one I would return to again.

St Kitts

Our next stop was St. Kitts.  St Kitts was really fun.  We hung out on the beach at the Marriott Resort with several members of the crew that we had made friends with over the course of the cruise.  They invited us along to the private beach that they have been given access to.  It was way fun.  While we were there one of the guests that was diving off the coast found an octopus hiding in a shell.  It was the coolest thing to see.  I was super excited to be able to see that.  I have never seen a wild octopus up close and personal. 

Another great thing about St Kitts is that they boast that their island has a population of 100,000 – 40,000 people and 60,000 monkeys – and boy they aren’t kidding!! The monkeys run wild there.  We were walking back to the ship and one just ran right up my leg.  You want to keep a hold of your bags though.  They have grabby hands.  I am not 100% sure they aren’t trained to do that, but I would like to give them the benefit of the doubt and just think that they are curious.  They are the cutest little things though.  They like to lift things from the local carts, including liquor bottles, so you can see some pretty interesting things. 

Overall, St. Kitts wasn’t our most exciting island but a great place to visit.  We had fun relaxing in the sun with new friends and then had fun walking the boardwalk and visiting with the monkeys!

St Lucia

Our next stop was St Lucia.  We were scheduled to do a nine mile zip line.  We were very excited for this visit.  We were told to prepare for rain the entire time and being in a rainforest certainly didn’t give us much hope for a better outcome, but we came prepared. 

The island was beautiful.  St Lucia is one giant volcanic island.  It is very small in size.  I think I remember them telling us that it was only 5 miles wide and 7 miles long or something like that.  That might even be a little generous.  Everyone drives on the opposite side of the street, so that took a little getting used to.  Also, they have over 60 kinds of Mangos that grow on the island.  They range in color from normal mangos like we are used to all the way through the rainbow.  They even have purple ones.  It was cool to see all the different kinds.  They are a very poor country though.  They gather water in big buckets on the roof of their homes.  It is gathered from the rain, heated by the sun and then used in the home.  It was very interesting to see how that worked.  Gas is over $7 a gallon there and milk is almost unheard of.  If you want a gallon of real milk you are likely to pay over $11 a gallon for it.  They have public schools and each school has a different colored uniform.  The neighborhood a child lives in is identifiable by the school uniform they wear. 

When we got to the zip line, we suited up.  I was very surprised by how clean they were and how concerned with hygiene the company was.  It was a very nice surprise.  We went through the extremely quick safety briefing, LOL, and then we were on our way.  I somehow got volunteered to go first as I was the only one in our group who had any sort of experience with zip lining – although let’s be clear that my experience is nowhere close to the kind we were doing.  LOL!

 The nine miles consisted of 15 platforms, a 50 free fall, a Tarzan swing, and several short trail hikes.  We went in a group with several other couples and it was very fun to visit with them and get to know them as we hiked along. Overall, it was a fantastic afternoon.  We learned a lot about the culture, had a wonderful time and we loved our tour guide.  I would definitely recommend this excursion to anyone visiting St. Lucia.  It was worth every penny. 

Barbados

Our next port of call was BARBADOS and was by far our favorite.  We will be adding this one to our MUST GO BACK FOR MORE TIME list.  This was an amazing place.  The locals were amazingly nice and the countryside was beautiful.  We had not booked any excursions this time so we got of the ship and we weren’t exactly sure what to do.  We went to the local tour office and asked what there was to do around town.  We were shocked to find out the cost of what they suggested to do.  We were not about to pay what they were suggesting.  While I was looking at brochures I came across a pamphlet for a local rum distillery.  Having missed the one in Puerto Rico I thought it might be fun to try the one in Barbados.  So Jason and I grabbed a cab and headed out. 

Turns out the cab rides in Barbados are super cheap.  The US dollar is worth a lot in Barbados. When we arrived at the Mount Gay Rum distillery, we had to wait a little while for the next tour to start.  We were invited to hang out in the bar area, grab a drink and visit with the bartender.  We most certainly did!!  The bartender, Ryan, was very friendly and super knowledgeable.  He mixed me the most amazing Rum Punch that would knock you off your feet but I couldn’t get enough of it.  I was starting to become concerned at what the cost of our bar tab might be!  LOL.  I asked him how much this was costing us and he laughed.  He said, “Juice is the most expensive thing we have on tap here.”  Turns out he was right.  Each of my 16 oz. Rum Punches was costing me less than $3 US.  LOVE IT!!  And the rum was amazing.  Jason and I ended up picking up a bottle and bringing it home with us. While you can get some Mount Gay rum in the US, you can’t get them all.  The one we love has to be imported and you can bet we will.  IT was so smooth, perfectly aged and wonderful!!  We got to taste almost every type of rum they make and so we were able to learn about aging differences and how to identify them.  It was so much fun and quite educational.  But WOW on being strong!  LOL. 

On our way out, Ryan recommended we swing by this great Cigar factory.  He hooked us up with this great cab driver who said he would take us.  Not quite sure what made me think it was totally safe to go with a cab driver we had just met recommended by a Barbadian bartender who had spent the afternoon getting us drunk, but hey, seemed safe at the time.  Our cab driver, who was super friendly, had all gold teeth, braided hair with a bright colored cap and a very laid back style, drove us up to this worn down apartment building.  It wasn’t until I was climbing the stairs to the second floor that I started actually worrying about whether it was safe.  Turns out, it was totally legit!!  IT was really a cigar factory on the second floor.  Handmade Barbadian cigars.  They were so fun to watch.  The woman hand made them and hand stuffed them.  Of course, they don’t tell you until you are standing there that all Barbados cigars are stuffed with 100% pure Cuban tobacco.  LOVE IT.  Because they are banded with Barbados seals they are safe to take onboard the ship and safe to bring in the US but I was assured that all Barbados cigars are made with Cuban tobacco.  Guess you learn something new every day. 

We tipped the cigar makers well, in return they gave our cabbie a free cigar, we purchased several and we were on our way back to the port.  We did some shopping around the tourist trap and then boarded the ship for the next port.  It was a truly great day.  We loved BARBADOS!!

St Thomas

Our first port was St Thomas.  Jason and I booked a tour group to go Open Water Helmet Diving with Sharks.  It was truly exciting.  For those that really know me, they know that I DO NOT like the water.  And that is NO exaggeration.  This was quite a feat for me to actually get in the water.  I was really calm and really excited to tour St Thomas and head to the water until I actually got there and got suited up.  Then the anxiety hit.  When I got down to the water edge, the water was so cold that I just about called it quits.  I started to walk down the ladder into the water and was stopped by our tour guide and was asked to exit the water.  The individual who had gone in before me was having problems equalizing the pressure in his ears.  Jason later told me that he would have sworn that once I got out I was not getting back in.  He said the look in my face said there was no way I was getting back in the water.  To be honest though, getting in the second time was a lot warmer.  The water felt much better and it was a lot easier to proceed. 

Let me tell you a bit about the equipment.  The helmet we were wearing weighed 75 lbs each.  They are designed so that we can wear our glasses, not get our hair wet and not feel quite so claustrophobic but man was it heavy.  Even under water it was heavy.

We went into the water in groups of 12 and we spent about a half hour 30 feet under the water.  We got to see a lot of cool things and got videos and pictures.  It was so much fun.  We got to walk around on the ocean floor and view wildlife.  It was very sporadic because it was open diving so the animals came and went at their own leisure.  What our group saw wasn’t necessarily what the next groups got to see.  It was pretty great.

 When it was over we got to tour the aquarium that surrounded the open water dive area.  The aquarium held arenas of other sharks, large tortoises, iquanas, starfish, crabs, and other fish and sea wild life.  It was a great day spent outside and I felt great feeling like I succeeded in overcoming a small part of my fear of water. 

First Night On Board

The first night on board was awesome.  That is when all the fun truly began.  You usually spend your first night getting used to where everything is on the ship and trying to find your way around.  Lucky for us, this wasn’t our first Carnival cruise and Carnival builds all of their ships with the same basic design.  So we pretty much knew where all the important stuff was – life jacket, food, casino, life boat, comedy club, bar, restaurant! That’s all we needed.  We got on board, got our sail and sign cards squared away and found our way to our rooms.  Because we chose to stay in a suite, we were able to check directly in to our room and our steward was waiting for us upon check in.  We met Merlyn and were given our first night’s itinerary which included player’s club coupons for the casino and coupons for the shops on the fifth deck.  We were given a brief overview of the ship and then sent on our merry way.  We did a quick run of the ship and then decided to return to the room to unpack.  After unpacking we decided to go to dinner.  The food is ALWAYS amazing.  LOVE THE FOOD.  We sat with a really fun couple from Jersey and enjoyed a great variety of dinner.  Unfortunately dinner was interrupted when we were all summoned to our muster stations for the evenings training on how to abandon ship in the event of an emergency.  Fortunately, we didn’t abandon our wine!  Mustering can take a while.  Gathering 4000 people from their rooms and dance clubs can take a long time and trust me… this is a MANDATORY event and they are serious about it!! 

After muster, the real fun begins.  Jason and I went back to the room and we stood on the balcony and watched the ship disembark.   It’s my favorite part.  Watching the lights fade and watching the cities disappear.  It’s so calming.  Then it’s time to party!  Jason and I wandered the ship some more and then we headed to the casino where we began some of the greatest friendship.  That is where we met Inne and Leanne.  They are the casino hosts and we spent most of the week with them.  I began a simple conversation with them about shopping and that conversation began a great friendship.  It was amazing.  I will tell you more about each of them in a later blog, but trust me, they are worth knowing.  So fun! 

So this was the first night…. Amazing ship, amazing fun and a great week ahead of us…. Can’t believe we are actually here.  I miss my girls, but I am so very excited to be here!

Puerto Rico -- Day 1 and 2.
We arrived in Puerto Rico after 11 hours on an airplane. 11 LONG, very turbulent hours on an airplane where people were very obnoxious, had no respect for each other and pretty much felt like they were out for blood.  It was VERY hot and VERY VERY humid when we arrived. Needless to say, the weather man in Puerto Rico is just about as accurate as he is here.  They had told us that it would likely be rainy and cloudy the whole time we were there.  Yup.  Definitely looked that way.  LOL.  The sun was out... there was no rain to be seen and the weather to looked to be gorgeous.  We quickly found our way to the luggage claim and thanks to the help of the wonderful staff at the airport, we found the shuttle to the car rental counter. 
A few things you need to know about Puerto Rico, EVERYONE speaks english, or at least they think they do.  They claim they do and they all try to but it doesn't always come out that way.  Luckily, I studied 6 formal years of spanish and most of it stuck with me.  We made it to the car rental place and managed to get our GPS system installed and our car rental paperwork ( in english ).  Second, the country is obviously spanish speaking, so any smart person would realize that all of their road signs are probably not going to be in english.  At that moment in time, I was not one of those smart people.  However, I chose to realize this AFTER getting behind the wheel of the car.  LOL!  I then promptly decided to let Jason drive.  We got the GPS working, in English, and got on our way.  We learned the hard way that most of the roads on San Juan, Puerto Rico are one way and not marked, this is just something you are supposed to know.  We were politely notified of this by people on the street.  Luckily, everyone is really nice in Puerto Rico.  That is the other thing I wanted to share with everyone.  People in PR are super helpful and really nice and not necessarily because they want something from you.  They really truly are sincere and nice. 
So, we finally made it the 7 miles to the hotel, go parked and got checked in to the hotel. It was amazing.  We found out that our room wasn't ready yet and so we decided to go find lunch.  We decided to head to Old San Juan, the next city over. This is where we would spend the next two days. It was the best city.

We spent the bulk of day one here touring San Critobal, one of the oldest castles in Old San Juan. It is absolutely beautiful. It is considered a landmark now and is protected by the US government. We spent hours walking the grounds and taking a million pictures. The history there was incredible. The castle is spacious and the views are incredible. 

After the castle, we went to this local italian restaurant for lunch, Sophia's was a quaint little restaurant that offered great homemade recipes and wonderful bar options.  The best part was as we got seated, I excused myself to the ladies room to wash up.  However, the restrooms were so old that as I locked the single bathroom door behind me, the lock actually broke.  I actually managed to lock myself in to the bathroom.  I couldn't get out.  Now, I mentioned before that the country is very hot and very humid.  Did I mention that there is very little air conditioning.  Add to that a mild sense of panic from being locked in the back bathroom of a restaurant you don't know with staff that barely speak english and things get really warm really fast.  And leave it to me to come up with the craziest thing to keep calm.  I start looking around for a way to get out.  And what do I discover, not a way to get out, but the fact that oh... they make their own salt scrub.  So, while I was waiting for someone to realize I was locked in, I stood at the sink and use the homemade salt scrub.  LMAO!!  Eventually, the waitress realized what was going on and they unscrewed the handle on the door and let me out with a mild apology. Nothing is a big deal in PR.  And Jason and I had lunch and went on with a our day as if nothing happened.  And I still love the soap scrub!  Oh and I ordered water and they brought it to me in a liter bottle and served it to me in a chilled wine glass.  Made me giggle.  I had to take a picture.

That first night, after returning to the hotel, we discovered that the hotel was in fact a full resort spa and so we decided to investigate.  We took the first of what would be hourly showers trying to stay fresh in the humidity and took off for more adventures.  Oh, our hotel room..... WOW!  Becuase of the inconvenience we supposedly suffered for waiting we were upgraded to a junior suite on the top floor of the newly renovated building of the hotel.  We had an ocean view room.  NO COMPLAINTS HERE!  The room was huge!! 

We made reservations at the steakhouse in the hotel and we swung by the pool bar to see the local drink menu.  We chatted with the concierge about the local fare and we found out about how to drop off our rental car the next day.  We swung by the local shops and did some browsing (when we found out the price of things, browsing was all we could afford to do) and then we went down to the beach for a walk along the sand and oceanline.  It was truly a beautiful afternoon.
We spent the evening in the five star steakhouse and then we spent the rest of the night winning money in the local casino.  Puerto Ricans are very serious about their gambling.  I hit a three-of-a-kind on the three card poker table which my fellow gamblers know pays out at 30-1 which is about a $400 hand.  I was very excited.  The American dealer immediately warned me not to get excited.  It is not customary nor appreciated to get over excited in their casinos, so I kept my wits about me, tipped the dealer well and pocketed my winnings promptly.  However, when my pina colada arrived, both the pit promotions boss and the waiter hung around close and waited eagerly for my response to the beverage.  Apparently, Puerto Ricans take their liquor VERY serious!  LOL!  Every new beverage is something to celebrate!  LOL!!  Needless to say.  Puerto Rico was exciting. 
However, the highling of PR came the next day.  We awoke the next day and decided to find a lunch place that seved traditional fare that would provide us a true PR experience before catching the boat.  The concierge recommended the Cafe Puerto Rico just up the street.  So we headed right over.  Good thing.  It filled up right after we arrived.  We even waited ten minutes for them to open.  The food was amazing and their beverages were cheap and amazingly good.  Jason and I wished we had found them the minute we arrived.  Their "dish to die for" is called Mofongos and is the customary dish in PR.  It is made of baked Plantains stuffed with creole seasoned chicken and served with a couple of sides.  It was fantastic and so filling.  We craved it the rest of the trip and still continue to crave it even as I type this!  I need to find a PR restaurant here in SLC!!

After lunch, we dropped off our rental car, thanked the concierge for the lunch recommendation and made our way to the ship.  We began our cruise that afternoon.  IT was a wonderful two day stay in San Juan and we could defnitely go back again. 
A few things we will remember for next time -- DON'T GET A RENTAL CAR.  Cabs are cheap, drivers are crazy, walking is easy, parking is expensive and there is no need to rent one.  SHOPPING IS EXPENSIVE.  Don't do it while in PR.  Minimize souvenirs and don't plan to shop in PR.  THEY WILL TAKE ADVANTAGE OF TOURISTS.  Puerto Ricans are super nice, but they love to take advantage of tourist season.  They will charge an arm and a leg for everything!