I'm the Mama!: 11/7/10

I'm FINALLY (over a month later) posting about our cruise! Sorry for the delay! I apologize up front, but this entry will be VERY long. I'll be posting a day-to-day account of our trip.

Allow me to give a quick background:

Shad and I took our first 6 day/5 night cruise back in December 2000 for our honeymoon. We sailed on Carnival's Fantasy from Port Canaveral, Florida to Freeport & Nassau, Bahamas. We caught the cruising bug right then, but were unable to take anymore trips due to finances. For our 8th wedding anniversary, we decided that we'd save up and celebrate our 10th anniversary by taking our 2nd cruise.

For those wondering...this cruise was for Mama and Daddy ONLY! Little Man stayed with his Grandma for 3 days and then with his Granddaddy for 3 days. He was spoiled rotten and HAD A BLAST!!! While with Grandma, he went to the Hands On Science Center. While with Granddaddy, he went to the movies to see Alpha and Omega, to the Adventure Science Center and to the Nashville Zoo. So, he kept very busy and didn't have time to miss us! In fact, when I dropped him off at Grandma's, he waved goodbye while playing in the living room, said, "Bye, Mom!" and didn't look back! We did get to talk to him via Yahoo Messenger's video chat a couple days at the end of our trip, but he had more fun making funny faces since he could see himself. Goofy child! We do eventually want to take him on another cruise with us, but will probably look at Disney Cruises a couple of years from now.

And now on to the actual cruise...

For this cruise, we sailed on Carnival's Inspiration (seen on the left...click to enlarge) for 6 days/5 nights on October 4-9, 2010. We left Tampa and went to Grand Cayman and Cozumel.

Our Southwest flight from Nashville to Tampa was at 755A (central) on Monday, October 4. A friend rode with us and then drove our truck back. We arrived the recommended 2 hours prior to our scheduled departure. Of course, we sailed through security, etc. and ended up sitting around waiting for 1-1/2 hours. Go figure, but it's better than having problems and then possibly missing our flight! One tip worth mentioning... the Nashville Airport DOES NOT have free Wi-Fi!!! We thought they'd offer it, so we'd just sit and watch a Netflix movie on the netbook that we took. That didn't happen, though.

When we left Nashville, it was 42 degrees...and we had our first frost of this season. When we arrived in Tampa, it was in the 80's. We dressed for the 80's and just dealt with being cold for a short while (I snagged one of Little Man's travel blankets at the last minute).

Once we arrived in Tampa, everything moved very quickly! We caught a cab from the airport to the Tampa Port Authority. That's pretty much when the lines started. We stood in line to get into the building. After filling out the required health questionnaire, we stood in line to see a representative to set up our Sail and Sign account (you get a card that has all your info on it, including credit card, room #, dining table #, etc. Hold onto it for dear life and DON'T lose it!). We had to present our passport (Shad) / birth certificate (me) a few different times. From there, we sat with a group of people and waited for our number to be called (Group 16). Then, we had the first of MANY pictures taken...our Embarkment Photo...and then boarded the ship (no, we didn't buy that picture, mainly because there was a fake back-drop behind us). Little did we know, there would be PLENTY of other opportunities to have our picture taken during the trip!

After boarding the ship, since we couldn't go to our rooms until 1230 (ship time=Eastern Time), we made our way to the cafeteria for lunch. Around 1230, we found our room and got as settled as we could before our luggage arrived. We eventually made our way to the top deck (right next to the ship's horn) to watch us sail off, which didn't happen until about 445. We were lucky enough to experience the blasting of the ship's horn right in our ears. For future reference, I highly recommend going to the deck below when setting sail!

The following is basically how our week went:

Day 1 - Evening - toured the ship and tried to learn our way around. Ate dinner at our pre-scheduled time (Early Dining @ 600).

Towel Animal #1 - Seal

Day 2 - Day at Sea - Toured the ship, lounged around all day

Day 2 - Evening - This evening was Formal Dining, so we dressed up and ate shrimp and lobster for dinner. The shrimp was very yummy, but the lobster left much to be desired. We quickly figured out that we needed to spend the extra $20 for the Maine lobster. Anything for them to make an extra buck. After dinner, we changed clothes and went to hang out on the adult-only deck to stargaze, but it was cloudy. We then opted to go to the 10PM show of comedian, Kenny Miller.

Our formal night photo

Towel Animal #2 - Bulldog

Day 3 - Grand Cayman - 800A - 200P - We woke up to get breakfast early in order to get off the ship early. As we were eating and pulling into Grand Cayman, I had the opportunity to witness a BEAUTIFUL rainbow stretching out through a few clouds over the ocean! It was a nice reminder of God's promise!

I pre-booked our excursions with an independent company (ShoreTrips.com...I highly recommend!). For this stop, we chose the Beach Break with Lunch. The weather was beautiful, but the seas were very choppy. Therefore, our ship (and 2 others) had to drop anchor at a different location than planned. We were told, though, that we were lucky to be allowed to drop anchor at all! We caught a tender (a little boat that takes passengers from the cruise ship to shore) very quickly, but realized on our way to shore that I forgot our excursion paperwork, which was needed. Therefore, we took the tender back to the ship, got our paperwork out of our room and then *attempted* to get off the ship again. Unfortunately, by that point, EVERYONE else on the ship was also trying to get off, so there were LONG lines to contend with. TIP FOR FUTURE REFERENCE...get off as soon as it's possible, make sure you don't forget anything and STAY off until it's time to get back on!!! I was worried that we'd miss our appointment time for our excursion, so called the number provided. First of all, the lady that answered knew exactly who I was before I even gave my name! Secondly, she informed me that they knew of our change of plans and that our tour guide (Dennis) was waiting for us at the new location. We informed her that it would take us a while and she said that she'd let him know and that he would continue waiting. Thankfully, we managed to find a quick moving line and it didn't take as long as expected to get off the ship. We met up with Dennis, gathered a few more passengers, dropped them off at their destination along our way and then were taken to a small, local restaurant called Francisco's.

For lunch, Shad decided that he wanted to try something he'd never tried before, so ordered some Cow's Foot. Unfortunately, it's not his new favorite food, but at least he tried it. We both chose the Mahi Mahi for our main dishes, which was VERY yummy! The plates were piled FULL of other foods such as plantain (banana-looking potato), rice, vegetables and their version of cornbread (tasted more like pumpkin bread to me). Too bad we couldn't take back the leftovers, but due to U.S. Customs regulations, no foods are allowed off or on the ship.

After eating, we walked outside to the private beach where we rented beach chairs, lounged in the sun and swam a little. We could've rented snorkeling equipment, too, but since the water was so rough, we were advised against it. It wasn't too rough just off shore, though, so we enjoyed relaxing in the beautiful water. Shad found a coconut and, thanks to a metal pole with a sharp point found on the beach, he cracked it open

and we sampled it.

Our tour guide picked us up at the pre-determined time and took us back to the pier where we stood in a VERY long, but fast-moving, line to get a tender back to the boat.

A Tender

**A couple of other notes worth mentioning... Grand Cayman is a British island that is 22 miles long and 8 miles wide. They have a governor that is appointed by the Queen of England. They also live tax-free, which makes them a very popular place to do banking. They drive on the left side of the road like in England, but have vehicles that can have a steering wheel on either side. The cabbies drive pretty crazy, but pale in comparison to the Mexican cabbies! Also, chickens run wild like squirrels all over the island.

Our tour guide, Dennis, is the one holding the umbrella

Roosters run wild all over the island

Our private beach

A pirate ship that could be toured

Me with our ship in the background

Day 3 - Evening -
We set sail again around 230 and headed toward Cozumel. We attended the Past Guests' Reception and were given hors d'œuvre and an alcoholic drink while listening to musicians on stage. We opted to skip dinner in the dining room and chose the Pizzeria instead. Shortly after 6:00, we went to the Variety Show (a comedian and magician). Unfortunately, after dealing with rough waves for most of the trip, I started feeling the effects later this evening. I broke out the Dramamine, went to bed and, thankfully, woke up the next morning feeling better.

The rough waters from our room

Towel Animal #3 - Rabbit

Day 4 - Cozumel - 1100A - 730P -
We slept in a little and then headed for breakfast before docking. Just like in Grand Cayman, we had pre-booked our excursion for this location. We opted for the ATV Jungle and Snorkel Combo. Our appointment time wasn't until 130 ship time, so we had a little while to browse the shops by the pier (tried looking for a neck strap for Shad's sunglasses, which we couldn't find anywhere). Since we had no way of keeping up with souvenirs at that point, we opted to wait until the end of our visit to buy anything. After browsing the shops, we caught a cab, which only cost us $10 (didn't ask the cabbie how much, just gave him the money), over to our meeting point outside of Margaritaville. Since we were early, we decided to sit inside the air conditioning and order drinks and an appetizer (chicken quesadilla), which ended up being the ONLY Mexican food we had down there. Boo! Margaritaville is an experience in and of itself and I definitely recommend everyone try it out if you're in the area! After everyone else joined us at our meeting point, we were taken by cab out into the jungle to the Wild Tours depot.

The excursion was TONS of fun, but NOT for the faint at heart or the young kiddos! Shad and I opted for the double-rider ATV (he drove, I rode). It was VERY fast and VERY bumpy, but LOTS of fun! The tour took about 2 hours and included stops at a cenote and an underground cave. We learned about some Mayan history at both locations. A cenote is an underwater sinkhole that's connected underground to other cenotes around the island and is where they get their drinking water (although we couldn't drink it due to the bacteria that our bodies aren't used to). Mayans would make a human sacrifice to the rain gods (Chaacs) of a virgin girl between the ages of 12 and 20. She would be wearing lots of beautiful jewels and would be drowned while her family would be praised and celebrated. The underground cave was where the Mayans would seek shelter when hurricanes (which they figured out how to predict) would hit.

After the tour was over, Shad and I were taken by another cab to a very nice resort/Marine Park where there was only 1 other couple. Once again, due to the rough waters, snorkeling was not advised. Instead, we lounged on the beach and swam in the water close to shore. This location was very rocky when we first got into the water, but smoothed out after a bit. We decided to cut our beach visit a little short in order to have shopping time back by the pier. When we were ready, a cab that was waiting took us back to the pier.

We spent the remainder of our time shopping in the very touristy shops by the pier. We came home with t-shirts, a blanket for Christopher, a Christmas ornament (what I collect when traveling) and a Mexican toy for Christopher.

**Note about cabs and driving in Cozumel in general...basically, I just recommend closing your eyes! Their rules are very much different than here in the U.S.! They drive wild, stop lights mean NOTHING and they have no regard for the safety of their kids. On our very first cab ride, we were rear-ended...by a bicycle! While waiting at our tour meeting point, we witnessed a dad driving a small Kia while holding his infant in his lap! We also witnessed a man/woman couple riding a moped...both wearing helmets...while their preschool-aged child sat between them with NO helmet. I was in awe!

Day 4 - Evening -
We were supposed to be back on the ship by 7:30, although we were back by 6:30. Stephanie, the Cruise Director, recommended being on the Lido Deck to watch people coming back on...specifically the intoxicated people! We went up there to people-watch, although we didn't notice anything out of the usual. Afterward, we opted to spend the rest of the evening relaxing in our room since there were no shows that interested us. Sometime around 1100P, we got hungry, so Shad went in search of food and found a Mexican buffet. It was a difficult decision for me, but I opted to not partake since it was so late at night. If I'd eaten any of it, I would've paid with an upset stomach! Since I'd only had one day of smooth waters, my stomach needed a break!

Towel Animal #4 - Elephant

Day 5 - Day at Sea -
Another day that we spent just lounging, exploring and having fun on the ship. Thankfully on this day, the seas were very smooth and we didn't feel a thing.

Towel Animal #5 - Monkey

Day 6 - Back in Tampa -
We docked in Tampa at 800. We'd set our luggage outside our door the night before, so the room stewards took care of them for us. Since our return flight left at 1140, we were considered to have an Early Flight. Therefore, we were allowed to be in Zone 2, which was one of the first to leave the ship. After de-boarding, we had to pick up our luggage in a warehouse-type room and then present our passport/birth certificate along with our Customs Declaration to a border patrol agent. Thankfully, that line was smooth sailing and we were through there quickly. We caught our FINAL cab to the Tampa Airport where our flight left on time and had us home by 1230 local time (central). I can't say that the return flight was the smoothest I've ever experienced. I've got a pretty strong stomach when it comes to flying (not so much down on the ground), but these pilots had us dropping frequently, which completely knocked off my equilibrium. I was very glad to finally be on the ground in Nashville...and I normally LOVE flying!

Overall, despite the rough waters and stressful time in Grand Cayman trying to make our excursion on time, we had an EXCELLENT time and can't wait to do it again...this time with Little Man!

A few extra notes worth mentioning:

- The food wasn't as plentiful as I was hoping. There was a 24-hour pizzaria as well as room service, but the dining rooms and cafeteria were only open at specific times for breakfast, lunch and dinner. If we wanted anything in between, it had to be pizza or something from room service. Since we ate a full breakfast each morning, I was rarely hungry for lunch. However, I couldn't get anything like a sandwich around mid-afternoon since everything like that was closed. So, I was a bit disappointed that the food wasn't as readily available as I'd hoped.

- Internet is expensive but worth getting if you want to keep in contact with anyone back at home! We bought a small internet package and used the minutes to talk to Little Man via Yahoo Messenger Video Chat.

- You have plenty of photo ops! Every time you get off the ship, they have photographers set up to hurriedly take your picture. I was very impressed with the number and quality of cameras that Carnival Cruise Lines invested in and used! I did, however, get VERY tired of having to smile for a camera so much!

- If food is involved, pigeons will find you way out in the middle of the ocean!

- The rooms are very small and there are only 2 plugs: 1 in the main room and 1 in the bathroom. We'll take a power outlet next time.

- The beds are VERY comfy! I wanted to take ours home!

- While waiting to debark in Tampa at the end of our cruise, I had the opportunity to watch the food and other supplies being readied to be loaded for the next cruise, which left that same afternoon. It sure does take a lot!!! It was also comforting to know that a police K-9 is used to sniff all supplies going on the ship.

- Your room steward is your best friend on your cruise! Be nice to him and he'll be nice to you! I was very impressed that they were always so friendly and polite and always seemed genuinely excited to be there! It was also neat to read their name tags to see which country they're from. Something I recommend doing that I didn't do (but will next time) is try to get to know your room steward and/or some other cruise employees. They have very interesting stories! Learn what they have to do to work on the ship. It must take a great strength to be away from home for so long!

- Watching the room stewards demonstrate how they make the towel animals is impressive! If you get the chance, be sure to stop and watch them on the last day at sea!

I want to thank you for reading, especially if you made it all the way through! Here are a few more miscellaneous pictures:

The letter I received inside my luggage telling me that they'd found something suspicious, so searched my stuff. That's fine and dandy, but they LOST one of my nail polishes! They never did say what they found, but I'm guessing it was my hair dryer that set off their alarms. It could look like a bomb, right??