On Friday. May 31st, we left around 8am for our trek to Florida to embark on the Carnival Vista. I drove until we got to Buccee's then Ryan drove until the next gas fill up then I drove the rest of the way. We stayed the night at the Ramada Wyndham in Cocoa Beach. Once we got settled into our room, I ordered pizza and we watched college softball World Series.
Saturday, June 1st, we got up, checked out of the hotel and went to eat breakfast at iHop.
After that we drove to port parking. We got there early and there was no line so they let us go on through the boarding process and get onto the ship early.
We had to go to guest services once we got onto the ship to get some of our cruise info corrected. Then we went through the Muster drill process and got that out of the way and to reward ourselves we stopped and got our first drinks.
We walked around the boat for a little bit to waste time and get familiar with where things were. We then found a table on the Lido deck looking out the back of the boat. Mom and I went down to see if our rooms were ready and left the luggage with kids and guys. Our room was ready so Mom text guys to let them know. When they got to the room I realized they had left my bag on the lido deck that had all my money and everyone's passports in it!!!!
We roamed around the boat more and found where the Casino was. We then found the boys playing putt putt and decided to go grab dinner. After dinner we sat out on the deck and watched Dune 2 on the big screen.
Sunday, June 2, was our first sea day. One of the first things we do when get into our room is set up our daily coffee, muffins and fruit room service tray so that we have breakfast delivered to us every morning.
To start our day off we stopped by the bar and got a breakfast drink - bloody mary for me and screwdriver for Ryan!
Boys found the arcade.
This area is where the boys would end up hanging out all week. It was a game room right off the lido deck around where the water slides and outdoor activities were. They had games like foosball and ping pong to play. It rained most of the day so the kids pretty much hung out in there and made friends for the week while the adults entertained themselves in the casino.
Our stop Monday, June 3 ,was Amber Cove. Liam woke up throwing up. I didn't have anything really to help him and I didn't want him to be miserable all week so I took him to the infirmary. There they assessed him, asked me questions about all the things he had eaten in the last 24-48 hours and gave us some meds to give him and had us quarantine him for the day. While he rested in the room we all went to get breakfast. Mom decided to stay back while the rest of us got off port.
We decided our best plan of action was to get a taxi to take us into the city. We didn't realize until we got into the vehicle that our driver Santos was actually going to be our guide for the day. We thought that was so cool. He asked us questions about things we wanted to see and he made sure we got to see it all in the time we had there.
Guys using machetes to cut the grass.
View of the town. Lots of people ride motorbikes around.
Our first stop was umbrella row.....
Next we stopped at a chocolate/coffee factory. We had samples of hot chocolate and left with a bag of it to take home with us.
We walked into a cigar shop where people were hand rolling cigars.
One of my favorite parts of this day was Pink Street, an alleyway in downtown Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic. Its a tribute that honors Dona Blanca who was an Italian tourism pioneer that arrived there in 1898 and opened a hotel helping shape early local hospitality.
In the alleyway was a lady with a cute little monkey. You could pay $5 to hold it a feed it.
We continued our walk to Central Park. There the boys wanted to try a natural coconut. At first they liked it and after the first sip they decided it wasn't any good and we threw it away. I don't blame them. It's not my favorite either!
Ryan and I got a fresh pina colada and it was AMAZING!!!!
We took a taxi to a local beach and found a restaurant to eat at. The kids went straight to the beach...
... while Ryan, dad and I had a beverage.
We ate shrimp and wings. How american of us lol
The beaches were kind of nasty. They smelled of dead fish in my opinion. Lots of sea glass pieces. We noticed a statue on the little island in front of us so we decided to walk closer to it to see what it was.
Statue of Neptune (locally know as Dios Neptuno). Erected in 1975, this 20 foot bronze monument of the Roman sea god stands on a rocky point right at the edge of the Atlantic Ocean, often flying the Dominican flag beside it.
Dead puffer fish washed up. You can also see the type of sand on the beach.
We snapped some pictures before we left
As we were walking back to the boat it started to rain. There were people riding taxi bikes with covered carts. Because of dads recent surgery on his legs he decided to ride one of those back to the ship while we walked it out!
Once we got back on the ship the kids roamed around the boat to play with friends and grab whatever food looked good to them. Ryan and I got ready and had dinner at Horizons and my parents ate at Ji Ji Asian. After dinner we went to the comedy club, Punchliner, to see Tom Ross. After that we made our nightly swing through the casino. Every once in a while we would walk around to check in on the kids. They were given certain areas to stay and and not wander from. When we went to check on them we couldn't find Reid. Finally after a small panic attack we finally found him. They all ended up losing their roaming privileges because they are supposed to stay together so they were sent to camp the rest of the night. When we picked them up we made our rounds in the pizza line and took a plate of cookies back to the room.
Tuesday, June 4, was a day in San Juan. I got up and took a load of laundry down the hall. We watched the ship come in to port and then went up for a late breakfast.
We made it off to port and walked toward Old San Juan. The old cobblestone streets were so neat.
We just walked around and looked through different shops.
We stopped and shared an empanada.
It was at this point that mom & dad decided to head back to the ship. We had already walked a lot and there was so much more to see. So we kept going.
We found a popsicle shop called Zippops and stopped in for something to cool us off. Ryan had strawberry Nutella, I had coconut passionfruit, Liam had strawberry cheesecake, Reid had fruit punch & Kane had cherry limonade.
San Juan is the birthplace of the pina colada.
We walked by Casa Blanca which is a historic house museum showcasing 16th and 17th century artifacts of Puerto Rican Culture and decided to hang out with the pigeons at Parque de las Palomas instead.
Casa Rosa, also known as the Pink House, is a former barrack and historic house located in Old San Juan. Ryan was working security in downtown Nashville during this time and his home bar was Casa Rosa - so it was fitting to take this picture!
Next, we walked to San Juan National Park where we saw many forts and stone walls. Castillo San Filipe del Morro and Castillo San Cristobal were the main ones we wandered around.
Before we made our way back to the ship we stopped at a little terraza to try authentic Mofongo. We also had empanadas and tres leches. Mofongo is a Puerto Rican comfort food made of hand mashed fried green plantains seasoned with garlic, butter and crispy pork cracklings shaped in a wooden mortar and pestle called a pilon.
We love Puerto Rico!
When we got back we sat out by the pool for a few hours then went back to the room and showered.
We all went to sit down dinner at Horizons. Ryan, Kane and Reid danced with the waiters.
After dinner Liam went to Lido to watch a movie, twins went to camp and we went to casino. When we were ready to go to bed I went up and grabbed pizza and cookies for everyone and Ryan went to get the boys from camp!
Wednesday, June 5, we woke up in St Maarten. We went and grabbed an early breakfast because we were able to get off the ship early to sight see.
Once we got on land we decided to rent a Jeep and drive around the island.
Our first stop was Maho beach. Maho is popular for being able to stand in the ocean while planes take off and land right over you. Such a neat experience. We wanted to watch a big plane come over us but we had already waited a while to see the planes did see plus we had so much more island to see that we made the decision to just move on.
We dried off and started walking back to where we parked and stopped in a store where Ryan bought a gold necklace and some new Ray Bans. As we were walking out we got to see a big plane land. We were so bummed we weren't in the water to see that one!
This was the map we were given by the Jeep rental guys. Half of the island is French and the other half is Dutch territory.
We stopped in Marigot for french pastries. We all shared a baguette, a ham and cheese croissant and the boys also had gelato.
Stopped for a photo op!
We continue to drive around the island until we came upon something we wanted to stop and see. We missed the turn to check out Orient beach which was on our list of places to see but since we were on a time crunch we decided to not go back and just keep driving around the island. This monument was where the island turns from French to Dutch territory.
We made it back to Phillipsburg which was where we started. We had a little time to spare so we decided to walk around and shop before taking the Jeep back. Reid found a jewelry store and bought a necklace with his own money.
Once we were done shopping we took the jeep back and took one last photo in St. Maarten.
Came back to our room to our daily towel animal then went and hung out by the pool for a little bit.
Dinner was at Steakhouse 555 with my parents while the kids played and ate at lido then went to camp. Liam watched the lido deck movie then came back to the room. I had Surf and turf for dinner while Ryan had a Cowboy cut steak. Dessert was this chocolate bomb that melted when you poured more chocolate over it to uncover fruit underneath. So yummy!!!
After dinner we spent a little time in the Casino. We picked the twins up from camp around 10 and took them back to the room with Liam then we went back to the Casino until around midnight.
Thursday, June 6, and we woke in St Thomas. I woke up around 6:30 to find it raining outside. We could get off the port at 7:15, but we waited because of the rain. Ryan went to the coffee shop on the ship and got us iced coffees. We then made the decision to at least get off the ship and go to the port shops. Mom, Dad and boys decided they didn’t want to go. The rain slowed down once we got out there and we ended up deciding to take a taxi into town.
We walked the streets and found a local place with authentic Caribbean food.
We had jerk chicken and shared a painkiller and a shot of their homemade Mamajuana. Mamajuana is an iconic traditional Dominican drink made by infusing a blend of tree barks, herbs and spices with rum, red wine and honey. Often called the "elixir of life" and traditionally served as a digestif after meals or as a symbol of hospitality and friendship.
You know I had to get a photo!
Taxi ride back
I love all the colors they use on their houses.
When we got back to the ship we called my parents and had them look out the balcony to see us.
Once we got back on the ship we showered and went to grab dinner on Lido because we wanted to get good seats for the American Rocks show we planned to watch that night.
Of all the cruises we have been on I don't think we have been to any of the shows and this one sounded like something we would all enjoy and we did!
Finished the night at the casino again!
Friday, June 7, was a day at sea. We slept in that morning, had breakfast and then went to the pool just in time for it to start raining. Ryan grabbed Lobster rolls and fish & chips for lunch and we all shared it.
Boys spent most of the day hanging out with the friends they had made that week. Ryan and I went to places on ship we had never been to but always wanted to go to. We stopped in the Havana club and had a drink. Next we stopped into the Red Frog Pub & Brewery where they make their own beer there on the ship.
Ryan and I had dinner at Cupina Italian then went to find mom and dad at the Casino.
Saturday, June 8, was our last day at sea. We decided to have breakfast in our assigned dining room for the first time that week. Boys picked pancakes but didn't realize how huge they would be.
We spent most of the day by the pool. At one point I went to the room and got a head start on packing. I had made reservations for the Skyride days prior but it rained so we weren't able to do it that day. I was able to grab new reservations to ride the Skyride this day so we all did that.
After the Skyride the boys did the Ropes course. Then they all hung out with friends while we played in the Casino for a little bit.
Ryan, mom and dad had sushi for dinner while I had pizza for one last time. Ryan and I went to the Punchliner Comedy club to see Jason Love and then made our way one of our favorite places to end the night/week - the Piano bar. This guy was so good and he reminded us of Ceelo Green.
We decided to skip the casino this night and instead went and picked up the boys from camp and went to bed. We had an early morning!!!
Sunday, June 9th, we were up at 730 to finish packing and disembark the ship. We stopped in Ocala for breakfast and finished our long trek home. Not without a Bucees pit stop though!!!
No comments:
Post a Comment