Get Off The Ship - we are running out of towel animals! Update 10/25 Day 31

[Leshaface]

Oh goodness i'm late, but HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Karin, do you have a Facebook?

 

[franandaj]

Thanks, that was a quick reply! Now, that sounds like a great trip. Utah - Monument Valley, Arizona - Grand Canyon and Nevada - Las Vegas come to mind - I feel HOMESICK!!!!!!!!

We skipped the Grand Canyon, but did Bryce and Zion instead. Monument Valley was spectacular! We stopped overnight in Laughlin (way there) and Las Vegas (way back) so we had two nights for gambling!

 

[slykrab]

Hi! I just discovered this TR yesterday, and now my Fiancé and I are going through it together, one part at a time (or as I call it, one "episode" at a time - this is better than watching TV!!!).

We're going to cruise on the Fantasy for our honeymoon in October and we can't wait! Thanks for writing such a great TR!

 

[MAGICFOR2]

I missed your Birthday, Karin! Hope it was wonderful!

 

[dizneeat]

Oh goodness i'm late, but HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Karin, do you have a Facebook?

You're not late. There was a lot going on and I am happy you came by today.

We skipped the Grand Canyon, but did Bryce and Zion instead. Monument Valley was spectacular! We stopped overnight in Laughlin (way there) and Las Vegas (way back) so we had two nights for gambling!

We have been to Bryce, but skipped Zion. We both loved Monument Valley - it was really spectacular. We joined one of those Jeep tours and it was, well, "something else".
How awesome that you were able to fit in two gambling nights as well.

Hi! I just discovered this TR yesterday, and now my Fiancé and I are going through it together, one part at a time (or as I call it, one "episode" at a time - this is better than watching TV!!!).

We're going to cruise on the Fantasy for our honeymoon in October and we can't wait! Thanks for writing such a great TR!

Welcome!
I am very happy to hear that you enjoy the TR. You picked a great ship for your honeymoon. The Fantasy is beautiful.

And it looks like I definitely need to get a move on with updating. I hope that I will get an update or two out this weekend.

I missed your Birthday, Karin! Hope it was wonderful!

Tammie, no problem being a little late for my birthday. It was a really nice and relaxed weekend.

 

[veggiemama]

It's been a while since I have been able to be on the boards due to busy teaching schedule at this time of year but I have finally had a chance to get here and catch up again.

Having never been to Costa Maya, I have to say it did not look all that amazing but I probably would have done the Mayan ruins excursion since I really enjoy that type of thing. Being late back to the ship would have had me very concerned though!

Love that your weekend away is to go to Italy! Our weekends away is nothing quite as fun as that.

 

[englishrose47]

Just checking in Kathy !! I finally see a little light , I actually am OFF for 2 days Sunday and Monday !!! Soooo excited !!

 

[dizneeat]

It's been a while since I have been able to be on the boards due to busy teaching schedule at this time of year but I have finally had a chance to get here and catch up again.

No problem falling behind. It's been a bit tight on time here too, so I did not update much. I hope to change that this weekend, though.

Having never been to Costa Maya, I have to say it did not look all that amazing but I probably would have done the Mayan ruins excursion since I really enjoy that type of thing. Being late back to the ship would have had me very concerned though!

We had a Mayan ruins excursion planned for the next day and didn't want to do the same on both days, so we just winged it. Well, we only had about 4 1/2 hours in Costa Maya, so it was not all that bad in the end.

Love that your weekend away is to go to Italy! Our weekends away is nothing quite as fun as that.

Our destination in Italy is just a 5 hour drive, so nothing special. But it is nice to get away from home and we stocked up on a lot of Italian food items.

Just checking in Kathy !! I finally see a little light , I actually am OFF for 2 days Sunday and Monday !!! Soooo excited !!

Well, Rosie, I don't know if you posted on the wrong TR again, but I am not Kathy, sorry.
But I was happy to hear that you are off for 2 days. Kick back and relax for a change.

 

[dizneeat]

Day 15, August 21

Mosquitos, ruins and an Italian dinner - Part 1

Today we had to get up early.
We had an excursion planned and needed to be ready. So after taking a quick shower we headed up to Cabanas for breakfast.
It was shortly before 8am and we were stunned on how full the restaurant already was. We got in line, grabbed some plates and started to fill them up nicely as breakfast would need to get us through quite some time today. Tom got himself



a small steak, a fried/poached egg, some breakfast potatoes, a grilled tomato, some bacon and some hash browns, while I got myself



some bacon, an Egg Benedict, a grilled tomato and a small ham and cheese omelet, some breakfast potatoes and hash browns. We found a table towards the back of the restaurant and while Tom got some drinks, I quickly took photos of our breakfast, before it was time to enjoy our rather luke-warm food.
Once we had finished, we headed back to our stateroom, got changed and got our bags ready before heading to the Walt Disney Theatre to meet for our excursion. Boy, that theatre was getting full. So many people flocked in and were seated in different sections according to their excursion. Our group was one of the first to be complete, so it did not take too long until we were led out and down the stairs.
Once we were off the ship, we followed our guide, who was holding up his Mickey paddle through a shopping mall and out the back where the buses were waiting. There were two buses, again, the first one was filled up to the limit and in the second one there were several empty seats. The guide introduced himself and the driver and off we went.
While we were driving through the streets of Cozumel, the guide pointed out sights and soon we had gotten to the country roads that brought us to our destination, the Mayan ruins. Now, we had been warned to bring insect repellent by our British friends who had been on a similar tour the day before and once we got off we stepped aside and sprayed ourselves from head to toe. Then we followed the guide and our fellow travelers inside the area. There was a large building where souvenirs and drinks were sold and there they offered an insect repellent service, which means a person sprayed you with repellent for a fee. We had about 5 minutes to look around and then we followed our guide on his way to the ruins. It was a short walk into the park and there were several things to see along the way.
Once we had reached the first stop we all gathered around our guide and listened to the stories he had to tell. It indeed was very interesting, but the people around us, who had skipped the repellent spraying started to scratch and hit themselves in order to get the masses of mosquitos off.



























We wandered the grounds for about an hour and had to respray ourselves and offered some protection to the people and kids around us too.









After an hour we were all ready to head back to the bus









and out of the sun and away from the mosquitos.

To be continued ............ ​

 

[MAGICFOR2]

Just thinking about the mosquitos makes me uncomfortable. Looks like an interesting tour though.

 

[Leshaface]

Okay I need to learn to slow down and read. I read your title as, "Mosquitos ruin an Italian dinner."

Yikes the mosquitos must have been really bad! I remember back when I went camping for the first time ever up in the Sequoias, I had brought scented lotion. First, one really doesn't need lotion on a camping trip when you're roughing it in a tent. And second, scented is a TERRIBLE idea! I got bit up awfully.

That was nice of you guys to offer some repellent to others around you.

 

[englishrose47]

I seem to love posting messages or updates on your thread by mistake or maybe not

 

[englishrose47]

I would have been in trouble with mosquitos , I am allergic to them. Not as bad as I used to be, but any new place seems to have a different breed that I have not built up an immunity too . Not that I have breathing trouble but I react to their bites in a rather nasty way !!

 

[scottny]

Hope you had a magical birthday.

I would not like the mosquito's at all.

Nice pics and good for you bringing the repellent.

 

[Arizona Rita]

Karin, what a great read! and your photos, especially of Italy are beautiful!

Just happened across you today and saaw your birthday was last week so I hope you have a great year!

 

[annmarieda]

What a neat excursion! I love things like this.. ancient.. historic. So cool! I love the pictures. Thing I wouldn't be a fan of.. the bugs!! Not that anyone is... so I am surprised that there were people who didn't spray ahead of time.

 

[KatMark]

Karin, I am SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO sorry I missed your birthday. I hope you ahd a magical day.

The Mayan ruins tour looks very fascinating. I know that Mark would have loved it, minus the mosquitos of course.

 

[podsnel]

Me too! So sorry to have missed your special day! Hope you had a happy birthday Karin!

 

[superme80]

Sorry I missed your birthday. I hope the day was amazing and you have a fabulous year. Still lovin the trip report!

 

[dizneeat]

Just thinking about the mosquitos makes me uncomfortable. Looks like an interesting tour though.

We were so glad that our friends had mentioned the mosquitos the day before after their tour. I would not have thought of bringing some spray otherwise.
The tour was really nice and interesting - well, apart from the mosquitos of course.

Okay I need to learn to slow down and read. I read your title as, "Mosquitos ruin an Italian dinner."

Glad you caught the mistake.

Yikes the mosquitos must have been really bad! I remember back when I went camping for the first time ever up in the Sequoias, I had brought scented lotion. First, one really doesn't need lotion on a camping trip when you're roughing it in a tent. And second, scented is a TERRIBLE idea! I got bit up awfully.

To be honest, they sometimes appeared in "clouds". Yikes. I don't even want to think about it again.
Oh, and after that experience on your camping trip - do you STILL go camping?

That was nice of you guys to offer some repellent to others around you.

The guy that was standing in front of us at that point had been bitten pretty bad already and was scratching a lot, so we offered them some spray and he and his girlfriend were very thankful. Then a mother with a little girl asked if we would spray her little girl as well. We had two bottles of spray, so we handed one on to help out a bit.

I seem to love posting messages or updates on your thread by mistake or maybe not

No problem, Rosie! It happens to the best of us.

I would have been in trouble with mosquitos , I am allergic to them. Not as bad as I used to be, but any new place seems to have a different breed that I have not built up an immunity too . Not that I have breathing trouble but I react to their bites in a rather nasty way !!

Oh, if you are allergic, Rosie, then if you ever go on one of the Caribbean cruises that offer these tours, please stay away.
They were horrible and even though we WERE sprayed heavily from head to toe we both got bitten.
And if your reaction to the bites is anything like the one Tom had to a Fort Lauderdale mosquito than it is scary.
He got bitten on his ankle and his foot just swelled so much, he wasn't able to get into a shoe. Thank god it was the day before we went home and when he went to the doctor after we got home, he put him on sickleave for two weeks.