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Caribbean Cruise - July 2006
Day 1 – Saturday July 8
Ugh! 7:14 am flight to Miami. We were warned that AirTran has been experiencing delays, particularly early on Saturday mornings, so we got up at 3:00 and left for the airport at 4:00. Dropped the car off at a park-and-fly and got in line to check the bags. By 5:00 am, our bags were checked and we had our boarding passes. Ah well - find some tea and coffee and wait around.

Flight landed at Miami just after 9:00 am, and the first shuttle out to the ship wasn't until 10:30… more waiting.

Got to the ship - lots of people in line - more waiting.

Got on the ship, cabin won't be ready for a while, so up to the Windjammer buffet restaurant which was supposed to open at 12:00. More waiting, as it didn't open until 12:45. By now, we have mastered the art of waiting around, and we are ready for the vacation to begin.

So, into our cabin to begin our Cruise - with a 2-hour nap!

We decided on Portofino restaurant and the Mystery Dinner Theater for the first night. A little pricey, but good food and mildly entertaining comedy murder mystery. Tracy guessed correctly that the brother did it.

Day 2 - Sunday July 9
Port of call: None - day at sea. First full day onboard. Breakfast in the cabin via room-service. Wonderful sitting on the balcony with our tea and coffee.

Lounged all day by the pool, reading, napping, reading a little more, napping a lot more. Weather is beautiful.
Dinner in the main dining room. We were seated at a table with a couple from Scotland - Jim and Liz. They are about our age, and delightful. Tracy had a real tough time understanding Jim's Scottish accent - easier with Liz. This was formal night, and Jim wore his formal kilt, which was quite a sharp look.

After dinner we went to a show - some sort of tribute to Broadway, but we were both nodding off so we didn't stay long.

Back to the cabin, where we found our first ever towel animal (we've been disappointed not to get them on previous cruises). It was some sort of winged creature, most likely a bat. Tea and coffee on the balcony, and then to sleep.

Day 3 - Monday July 10
Port of call: Labadee, Haiti - Royal Caribbean's "private island." Very nice beaches with various water activities, plus lunch and shopping. We relaxed for a while in lounge chairs, but skipped the lunch (we had a big breakfast) and headed back to the ship. Sat by the pool for more reading and napping.
Stopped at the Schooner Bar before dinner and met a very nice German couple, Frank and Petra. They've been in the US for about a year for Frank's work. Don enjoyed dusting off some of his rusty German language. They're on board with their teenagers Frank and Andrea (whom we meet later on).

Another pleasant dinner in the main dining room. Jim and Liz are on their 11th cruise, all with Royal Caribbean, and we enjoy talking about various destinations they've been to.

Day 4 - Tuesday July 11
Port of call: Ocho Rios, Jamaica. Up and out early (for us, anyway) for inner-tubing down the White River. Beautiful location with crystal clear water. Mostly in the shade, and high enough elevation made the weather just perfect.

Back to the ship, where we ran into Frank and Petra at the pool. Sat and chatted with them, then met up with them before dinner for the Ice Dancin' ice-skating show. We've met Andrea and the younger Frank by now - terrific kids. It's obvious from the way Frank and Petra talk about them that they are very proud of their children.

Dinner again in the dinning room. Tried to expand our knowledge a bit (and clear up some stereotypes) by asking Jim and Liz questions about Scotland. For example, the typical pubs are NOT little thatch-roofed buildings!

Tagged up with Frank and Petra again after dinner. Watched the Mardi-Gras style parade in the Promenade, stopped in the casino for a short bit, and back to the Schooner bar.

Day 5 - Wednesday July 12
Port of call: Grand Cayman. We booked a "Reef and Rays" excursion - snorkeling at a reef and then a visit to the Stingray City sand bar. Unfortunately, with 3 cruise ships in port there were a TON of people all trying to do the same things. We had to stand and wait for about an hour, because the tour groups had gotten behind schedule. Our group alone required 3 busses and 3 boats. Then, when the boats arrived at the reef, it was like a marine parking lot - there had to be 20 boats full of groups doing the same thing we were doing. Snorkeling was okay, but way too many people. It was a little better at the sand bar, as the stingrays would swim out to us when we stood a bit off from the main group. Note to Royal Caribbean: maybe offer some excursion packages for smaller, adult-only groups. Because of the scheduling delays, we were late getting back to the ship. Of course, we're very important people, so they waited for us before leaving port.

Another nice dinner with Jim and Liz, and then listened to a guitar player / singer in the Two Poets Pub.

Day 6 - Thursday July 13
Port of call: Cozumel, Mexico. We wanted to book a "Swim with the Dolphins" excursion. Royal Caribbean's online booking system had been off-line for a while, so we booked it through an independent company. Started to get worried, as they were having a grand-opening (actually, re-opening) due to last year's hurricane damage. Our dolphin swim was scheduled for 4:30 pm (ship-time), but we figured we'd head out to the park early and see what else we could do. Arrived at Chankanaab State Park, and found out we could switch to the 3:00 session - which was great, as we were a little concerned about making it back to the ship before the last tender was scheduled to leave. We had about 2 hours to kill, so we took the shuttle to the Chankanaab beach and rented some snorkel gear. Snorkeling was not bad, although the area had really suffered a lot of damage, so much of the coral and marine life had been destroyed.

The dolphin swim was great. About 10 people in our group, and two dolphins. We were able to pet the dolphins, get a kiss and float in the water with the dolphin lying in our arms. Then out into the water a ways, and get dragged along holding onto their dorsal fins. Final trick was floating on your stomach, and the dolphins push the bottom of your feet, making you stand up in the water. Way cool!

Back for a little shopping at the pier, and then back on the ship. Schooner bar, dinner in the dining room, and then some more guitar at the Two Poets.

Day 7 - Friday July 14
Port of call: none - another day at sea. Final full day on the ship. A little shopping in the Promenade; chatting with our new friends; lounging around the pool (reading and napping). We watched the "farewell" show in the theater, and then enjoyed our final dinner with Jim and Liz. We're very glad to have had them as dinner companions, and hope we keep in touch and see them again sometime.

Met up with Frank and Petra after dinner for a goodbye drink at the Schooner bar. Also very glad to have met them, and hope we'll see them again as well.

Packed up our stuff - bags had to be ready and outside our cabin by midnight.

Day 8 - Saturday July 15
Port of call: Miami, end of the line. Up and out of the cabin by 8:00 am. Breakfast in the dining room, followed by an hour or so of final lounging on deck before getting in line to disembark. More waiting (we've gotten really good at that), shuttle to the airport, more waiting, got on the plane - delayed for an hour or so on the runway, back to Atlanta and to see our babies at Tracy's Mom's house. Dinner with Mom and Robert, and finally back home around 9:00 pm.

Overall, we had a wonderful trip with great weather, great memories and new friends. Time to start planning the next one!

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