Cruise 2012

After being home for a week and a half I think it is about time the I posted about our cruise!  I have finally stopped swaying as I walk or getting super dizzy when I turn around so I can go back and share our fun with you now!

So I was really looking forward to getting and Everything Bagel with Herb and Garlic cream cheese from Tim Hortons in the airport especially since the night before we had gotten a Timmy Ho's GC.  There wasn't a Tim Horton's in the Airport!!  Plus we found out later that we had forgotten our GC anyways so I guess it worked out in the end.

Once in Fort Lauderdale we enjoyed the sun!  Daniel working on his tan.  Believe it or not by the time we got home we had a tiny bit of color!  Now to some of our friends we may just look like a different shade of pale but it is a tan in deed!

Daniel's brother Jordan was really wanting to be a merman so his wish was granted.  He laid there for quite a while every time some girls walked by we watched for their reactions but they would look out the the ocean and not give him the time of day!

I worked quite hard to bury my feet.  Why?

I don't know but I think I did a pretty good job!

We spent New Year's Eve in Fort Lauderdale.  We decided to stay low key and ordered in Chinese food and ate down by the pool.  It was really nice.  We went around telling our favorite part of 2011.  My top choices were swiped by other people, moving back to Edmonton and Daniel graduating.  I went with finally exploring some of Portland (Saturday Market) and finally trying Voodoo donuts.  I think it was about time that we did that!

Once we were on the boat I felt like vacation really started!  Our first stop was Nassau Bahama's.  This was my favorite stop!!

There was a festival going on when we arrived so we got to see some of the parade as we walked by.  This was a good float and very realistic... especially the short viel and the short sleeves and poofy skirt of the "Kate's" wedding dress.

This shows how colorful the costumes were.  Most of these were made out of cardboard and crepe paper!  I think that some of the guys actually took jeans and put crepe paper right on them.  One of my favorite costumes is the lady that this clip ends on!

From the festival we walked down to the beach and we made a wrong turn and found Senor Frog's.  It reminded me of McKay.  My MIL took a picture of me and my SIL's by the giant frog.  I saw another Senor Frog's in San Juan.  I wish I had taken a picture of it but there was giant frog head sitting on top of the building.

Once at the beach we relaxed and soaked up the sun.  Can you tell that my MIL and SIL are related?  I liked how there were standing out there quite similarly.

Our sister ship Carnival Glory had a rowdy bunch guys possibly on a bachelor party trip?  That was our guess.  Anyhow it was pretty disturbing but how could I not share it with you?  Jade told the guys when they approached us that we were married.  Did I mention the boys were off on an excursion together?  Group of girls sun tanning together, we were sitting ducks!

Yikes!

View of the Dominican from our boat.  Wasn't our favorite port, sorry Brandon!  Could have been partly due to the rain but also due to nothing being right at the port.  Daniel and most of his family took a bus into town for $5 each and did a bit of shopping.  Rachel and I just went to the duty free shop and got back on the boat.  I had a great nap!  I slept best and felt best when the ship was docked!

Walking up the the duty free store this welcomed us to the country.

This was right beside the boat as we loaded back on.

Here we are in San Juan, Puerto Rico at the San Cristobal Fort.  It was really neat walking around exploring it.  In the distance in this picture you can see El Morro, the other big fort in San Juan.

Our boat, Carnival Freedom, from up in San Cristobal.

View of San Juan from the Fort.

We split in to 3 groups that day.  Some went to both forts and a little shopping.  Some did the one fort and went exploring for architecture and shopping.  Then Daniel, Rachel and I went to the one fort and did a little shopping on our way back to the boat.  I was not feeling good at all by this point in the trip and was debating whether or not I would ever consider another cruise so I wanted to get some rest on the ship before it started moving again!  We got some maraca's for McKay.  Unfortunately Benson used them as drumsticks and broke one of them within 3 days of us being home.  We also found some jewelry for me.  Yay!

By now our memory card was full so I will try and get some pictures from everybody else to share!

Our last stop was Grand Turks.  We all had excursions for here.  Daniel's siblings went power snorkelling together and had a bus ride on the island to get to their spot.  Daniel and I went with his parents on the booze cruise, I mean the catamaran sail, snorkel and beach excursion.  It was pretty fun.  The crew was funny which made it more interesting.   I found that I am not one for snorkelling!  I could breath in the mask as long as my face wasn't in the water.  As soon as I put my face in the water I would start hyperventilating.  I did see an eel though that nobody else saw!

We enjoyed the entertainment on the cruise.  We went to the family comedy show every night and then to the big theater for the main production.  There was a magician that had troubles meeting up with the boat and finally did a show the last night we were on the boat.  Jared and Jade were invited up to help with a trick.  We taped it on their camera for them.  It was pretty fun.  At dinner that night though the boats local magician was walking through the dining room and our eating buddies from Ontario stopped him and asked for a private show.  It was the mother's birthday so we helped sing happy birthday and got the magician's attention and he came and gave us a private show as well.  I think we enjoyed that show better but both were entertaining!

All in all it was a fantastic trip!  I think if I went on a cruise again I would do one that was more in the Gulf of Mexico as opposed more open seas.  It was great spending so much time with family and for some of them getting to know them better!  Yes Jared and Jade that would be you!  We have lived in the states for so long and Jared left on his mission right after we got married so we just haven't had as much time to spend with them.

I will even admit that I was ready to see the kids by the end of the trip.  I would see parents carry sleeping child back to the cabins and I would miss them!  Every time our neighbors across the hall had a tantrum and screaming fit though I was more than ok being away from the kids though!

I will try and add more pictures once Daniel is home from work with the pictures from his family!  For now I am done!!