Blueeyes101817
DIS Legend
- Joined
- Jan 31, 2004
- Messages
- 24,415
okay guys--im wide awake so i think ill work on my mini trip report...
The plan-WERE GOING ON A CRUISE!!! We have been planning this trip since last February and it is finally here!
Who is going-
Me-21 years old- this is my third cruise
Mom and Dad-fourth or fifth cruise
Joe-My 19 year old brother-3rd cruise for him too
Steve-joes friend that was in Iraq --werent sure if he would make the trip, but he was there!! This is his second cruise with our family.
Uncle and Aunt-first cruise--our plan is to get them hooked!
Jeff and Chris- My cousin and his friend..Jeff's first cruise, Chris' second...
Our cruise ship is departing from Ft. Lauderdale on the 8th at 5pm..Because we werent sure about the weather, all 9 of us booked 3 rooms at a hotel near the airport for the 7th..that way we did not have to worry about getting to the airport on the 8th...
7th-We all packed in the cars around 4 or 5 pm and went to the airport, which is less than an hour away from our house--we check in and decide to go to dinner--we all eat and head to the bar to watch some football..After that, we decide to go to bed early, as 430 comes pretty early in the morning!!
8th-FINALLY! the cruise is here! we get up and ready, which is no small feat for the 9 of us! We manage to get downstairs for the shuttle on time and head to the airport-The flight on the way there was uneventful and we got to the ship with plenty of time to spare. We were crusing on Royal Caribbean's Jewel of the Seas. We got to the ship and we were able to go on board although we could not get to our rooms yet..We all decided to eat since we were starving! gotta love the free food buffets on the ship! By the time we were done, all of our rooms were ready--We had four rooms in total...Mom and dad in one, Aunt and uncle in one, Jeff and his friend in the other, and my brother, steve and i in the last one. We put our carryons in the room and went up to deck 12 for the sail a way party (they would deliver our luggage later)..We all grabbed drinks up on deck and they had music playing--We waved to the people as we left the dock and we were on our way to Key West! We hung out on the deck for oa bit and had 6pm dinner seating...Of course, im a picky eater so i had some type of pasta or chicken every night--but i walked ALOT so it was okay for me. After dinner, there was a welcome aboard show in the theater -There was a comedian and we got to see our cruise director and people on the staff. After that, all of us, minus the boys (who stayed up really late every night!) went to bed since we were up so early.
9th-Key west day!! We got up a little late and by the time we all ate, it was about 10 or so when we got off the ship. We were planning on doing Crazy Boat in Key West. We did this last time and its basically a little speed boat that has a huge motor and does tricks--but apparently that was closed due to the coast guard looking into things with it--after hearing that, im glad we didnt go! We decided to just walk around, shop, and sightsee. For most of the trip, i hang out with mom, dad, aunt and uncle..the boys go off on their own...We decide to head over to margaritaville--its 5:00 somewhere!!! We had a ball there..we all got our drinks and just sat and talked and listened to some songs..After that, we shopped--ALOT! i bought a beautiful picture that a guy on the street was doing--it was spraypainted, but he did it by using pieces of paper to spread the paint--it was beautiful! i also bought a shirt at margaritaville...As we walked around there was a pirate "statue"...My aunt didnt realize that he was real and as she walked by, he grabbed her arm--it was hilarious! we all got pictures with him and just shopped some more and took a ton of pictures (ill put all the pictures at the end) ...We went back to the ship a bit early as it was formal night--now this was the night that i bought my red dress for and i couldnt wait to put it on! I got all ready and we went down to the captain's welcome cocktail party-our captain came out , talked, and we drank--that was pretty much it! After that, we got our formal pictures done..They had a bunch of different backgrounds..we would take as many pictures as we wanted and would get to choose which ones we would buy...I ended up buying one of my brother, steve and myself--my mom and dad bought one of all 9 of us, one of my dad and i, one of my brother and i, and my mom dad and brother--as soon as i get those scanned, they will be here too.
After dinner, im not quite sure what we did--most nights we went to a show, then the casino, walked around, ate at a free buffet--fun times
Then i would probably go to be daround 2 or 3amish...
10th-Today we went to Cozumel--We were so excited and when we got there and disembarked, we were all quite shocked. There was so much damage from the hurricanes, it was amazing..We had to tender instead of docking as there was no pier to dock at.. We took little boats to the island. The plan today was BEACH BREAK! This was awesome.. I think it was 36.00 for the whole day, including an open bar..We got a bus to the beach-the beach was beautiful--much different from the rest of the island -the beach was called playa mia. This beach was perfect for relaxing! There was so much to do--you could just lay on the beach or go in the water, they had water trampolines and a HUGE 20 ft blow up ice berg..you climbed up it and slid down--it was fun!! We also rented jetskis--I rode on the back on the one that my dad drove and we had a blast! we were soaked after that...We went into the water and it started to rain--we used that time to eat and by the time we were done, so was the rain. After that, there was only about an hour til we had to leave so i wanted to shop! We walked into what we ended up calling the "gauntlet" people were literally following us to get us to buy things from their stores-bargaining is great!! i got a cozumel shirt for 10 bucks that was marked at 17...i love saving money!!
after we shopped, we got back on the bus and headed back to more shops before we got onto the boat. we had 6pm dinner again and then i watched a show and hit the casino for roulette--i ended up feeling a bit seasick, which never happens to me, so i figured it was a combo of being overtired too..so i went to bed before midnight and slept til 730am
11th-Today was my favorite port of call that we went to! It was Costa Maya day!Our plan for today was a 6 hour excursion and i was really looking forward to it since i was feeling better..Costa Maya was absolutly beautiful! i took a TON of pictures here! we had a1.5 hour drive to our boat site--It went alot quicker than we thought it would--we had a g uide that told us about the history of the island and would tell jokes and just keep us amused..he also stopped at a roadside stand and got us all pineapple pieces! When we got to the site, they split us into 2 groups--all 9 of us were in group 2 so that meant we got to eat first..they had a huge mexican buffet (of course, i didnt eat anything ther ehaha) There was a little dog, poncho, running around..he loved my brother for some reason so you will see poncho in some pictures. after lunch, it was our turn on the boats--each boat had two people..it ended up being mom and dad in one, uncle and aunt, joe and steve, me and jeff, then chris.i was supposed to drive alone but didnt want to so i let chris have his own boat..This was a unique tour as we did a follow the leader type of thing..whatever the tour guide did in his boat, we followed--all 12 other boats! it was like a little caravan--we were doing twists and turns--we were on the boats for a little over an hour and it was absolutely beautiful--this was my favorit eand i have a ton of pics to prove it! another 1.5 hour bus ride back ,but i talked to a couple guys on the bus so the time went by faster..we then shopped before the boat (of course!)tonight was semi formal night, so i went back to get ready, then 6pm dinner...saw a few shows , lost some money in the casino and went to bed!
12th-today was our last port day--i was really looking forward to today as it was grand caymen--Everyone, excluding my parents, were planning on g oing snorkeling..The island was beautiful, but i was expecting more..so many people hype up grand caymen, that i wasw a big disappointed...but we did snorkle and the guy that worked there took my underwater camera and got some great pics, hpoefully!! after snorkling, my aunt, uncle and i just walked around and shopped--there werent too many things that i bought here, but its just fun to walk around and sight see...i definitely got a bit sunburned on this island! went back to get dressed for formal night number 2..tonight i wore a skirt and black tank top and got more pictures done..I actually bought one of just myself, which never happens...They took a glamour type shot of me and it didnt come out too badly and mom made me buy it..ill have to scan that one too!!
After dinner, did the shows and casinos again and went to bed...
13th-Today was our last full day! we had no stops as we were at sea all day--it was great because i got to sleep in a bit and they had a ton of activiies going on..I dont remember everything that we did, but i know we played Bingo, watched kareoke, watched some shows, took a nap, layed on the deck, booked a new cruise then dinner and a couple more shows...I went to bed around 2 because we had to get up at 6 this morning
14th--this is the worst day--We had to get up around 615 and get breakfast and be ready to wait by 8am..At 8am, everyone needed to be out of their staterooms and wait for their tag color to be called so that they could leave the ship. This was delayed due to high winds coming into ft lauderdale so a few people were really close to missing their flights--all 9 of us, plus some friends we made, just waited for awhile then when they called our colors, we said goodbye and left the Jewel..We got into buses , went to the airport , checked in and waited in the longest line to chekc our baggage..it was ridiculous!! after that, we went to chilis and ate and by the time we were done, it was time to board the plane...This is when it got bad!! This was the worst flight i had ever been on!!! (we had a bad flight coming home from disney in december too and this was worse) it was a bit bumpy then kept getting worse so by this point, it was pretty bad.. i was holding on to the arm rests and starting to get really nervous and at one point we dropped 200-300 feet REALLY quick..i mean, everyone screamed and i grabbed the guy next to me ..there was a lady that was in the bathroom with her 3 year old daughter (she was in there before the bumps started) when it seemed to calm down, thats when the mom brought her out and was headed towards her seat...then we hit the huge drop where everyone screamed and the flight attendent SCREAMED into the microphone--she sounded panicked, which of course got us all worried as well..My poor brother and the guy next to me were talking to me, trying to distract me..we had people saying they were going to be sick and it was just bad..i was never so happy to land...We waited an hour and a half for our luggage (gotta love philly airpot) and went home.of course, its snowing at this point! i couldnt believe it..as i type this, the wind is howling and the snow is still falling!!
All in all, it was a great trip--We booked another cruise next january for all of us, minus Steve--He wants to come, but will most likely be deployed again next December or January..The weather was amazing--in the 80s every day!! i love cruises and really dont want to wait another year to go on another!
Here is the link to all of my pictures from my digital camera--i will try to get the professional pics up later
http://www.imagestation.com/album/pictures.html?id=2114768575
The plan-WERE GOING ON A CRUISE!!! We have been planning this trip since last February and it is finally here!
Who is going-
Me-21 years old- this is my third cruise
Mom and Dad-fourth or fifth cruise
Joe-My 19 year old brother-3rd cruise for him too
Steve-joes friend that was in Iraq --werent sure if he would make the trip, but he was there!! This is his second cruise with our family.
Uncle and Aunt-first cruise--our plan is to get them hooked!
Jeff and Chris- My cousin and his friend..Jeff's first cruise, Chris' second...
Our cruise ship is departing from Ft. Lauderdale on the 8th at 5pm..Because we werent sure about the weather, all 9 of us booked 3 rooms at a hotel near the airport for the 7th..that way we did not have to worry about getting to the airport on the 8th...
7th-We all packed in the cars around 4 or 5 pm and went to the airport, which is less than an hour away from our house--we check in and decide to go to dinner--we all eat and head to the bar to watch some football..After that, we decide to go to bed early, as 430 comes pretty early in the morning!!
8th-FINALLY! the cruise is here! we get up and ready, which is no small feat for the 9 of us! We manage to get downstairs for the shuttle on time and head to the airport-The flight on the way there was uneventful and we got to the ship with plenty of time to spare. We were crusing on Royal Caribbean's Jewel of the Seas. We got to the ship and we were able to go on board although we could not get to our rooms yet..We all decided to eat since we were starving! gotta love the free food buffets on the ship! By the time we were done, all of our rooms were ready--We had four rooms in total...Mom and dad in one, Aunt and uncle in one, Jeff and his friend in the other, and my brother, steve and i in the last one. We put our carryons in the room and went up to deck 12 for the sail a way party (they would deliver our luggage later)..We all grabbed drinks up on deck and they had music playing--We waved to the people as we left the dock and we were on our way to Key West! We hung out on the deck for oa bit and had 6pm dinner seating...Of course, im a picky eater so i had some type of pasta or chicken every night--but i walked ALOT so it was okay for me. After dinner, there was a welcome aboard show in the theater -There was a comedian and we got to see our cruise director and people on the staff. After that, all of us, minus the boys (who stayed up really late every night!) went to bed since we were up so early.
9th-Key west day!! We got up a little late and by the time we all ate, it was about 10 or so when we got off the ship. We were planning on doing Crazy Boat in Key West. We did this last time and its basically a little speed boat that has a huge motor and does tricks--but apparently that was closed due to the coast guard looking into things with it--after hearing that, im glad we didnt go! We decided to just walk around, shop, and sightsee. For most of the trip, i hang out with mom, dad, aunt and uncle..the boys go off on their own...We decide to head over to margaritaville--its 5:00 somewhere!!! We had a ball there..we all got our drinks and just sat and talked and listened to some songs..After that, we shopped--ALOT! i bought a beautiful picture that a guy on the street was doing--it was spraypainted, but he did it by using pieces of paper to spread the paint--it was beautiful! i also bought a shirt at margaritaville...As we walked around there was a pirate "statue"...My aunt didnt realize that he was real and as she walked by, he grabbed her arm--it was hilarious! we all got pictures with him and just shopped some more and took a ton of pictures (ill put all the pictures at the end) ...We went back to the ship a bit early as it was formal night--now this was the night that i bought my red dress for and i couldnt wait to put it on! I got all ready and we went down to the captain's welcome cocktail party-our captain came out , talked, and we drank--that was pretty much it! After that, we got our formal pictures done..They had a bunch of different backgrounds..we would take as many pictures as we wanted and would get to choose which ones we would buy...I ended up buying one of my brother, steve and myself--my mom and dad bought one of all 9 of us, one of my dad and i, one of my brother and i, and my mom dad and brother--as soon as i get those scanned, they will be here too.
After dinner, im not quite sure what we did--most nights we went to a show, then the casino, walked around, ate at a free buffet--fun times
Then i would probably go to be daround 2 or 3amish...10th-Today we went to Cozumel--We were so excited and when we got there and disembarked, we were all quite shocked. There was so much damage from the hurricanes, it was amazing..We had to tender instead of docking as there was no pier to dock at.. We took little boats to the island. The plan today was BEACH BREAK! This was awesome.. I think it was 36.00 for the whole day, including an open bar..We got a bus to the beach-the beach was beautiful--much different from the rest of the island -the beach was called playa mia. This beach was perfect for relaxing! There was so much to do--you could just lay on the beach or go in the water, they had water trampolines and a HUGE 20 ft blow up ice berg..you climbed up it and slid down--it was fun!! We also rented jetskis--I rode on the back on the one that my dad drove and we had a blast! we were soaked after that...We went into the water and it started to rain--we used that time to eat and by the time we were done, so was the rain. After that, there was only about an hour til we had to leave so i wanted to shop! We walked into what we ended up calling the "gauntlet" people were literally following us to get us to buy things from their stores-bargaining is great!! i got a cozumel shirt for 10 bucks that was marked at 17...i love saving money!!
after we shopped, we got back on the bus and headed back to more shops before we got onto the boat. we had 6pm dinner again and then i watched a show and hit the casino for roulette--i ended up feeling a bit seasick, which never happens to me, so i figured it was a combo of being overtired too..so i went to bed before midnight and slept til 730am
11th-Today was my favorite port of call that we went to! It was Costa Maya day!Our plan for today was a 6 hour excursion and i was really looking forward to it since i was feeling better..Costa Maya was absolutly beautiful! i took a TON of pictures here! we had a1.5 hour drive to our boat site--It went alot quicker than we thought it would--we had a g uide that told us about the history of the island and would tell jokes and just keep us amused..he also stopped at a roadside stand and got us all pineapple pieces! When we got to the site, they split us into 2 groups--all 9 of us were in group 2 so that meant we got to eat first..they had a huge mexican buffet (of course, i didnt eat anything ther ehaha) There was a little dog, poncho, running around..he loved my brother for some reason so you will see poncho in some pictures. after lunch, it was our turn on the boats--each boat had two people..it ended up being mom and dad in one, uncle and aunt, joe and steve, me and jeff, then chris.i was supposed to drive alone but didnt want to so i let chris have his own boat..This was a unique tour as we did a follow the leader type of thing..whatever the tour guide did in his boat, we followed--all 12 other boats! it was like a little caravan--we were doing twists and turns--we were on the boats for a little over an hour and it was absolutely beautiful--this was my favorit eand i have a ton of pics to prove it! another 1.5 hour bus ride back ,but i talked to a couple guys on the bus so the time went by faster..we then shopped before the boat (of course!)tonight was semi formal night, so i went back to get ready, then 6pm dinner...saw a few shows , lost some money in the casino and went to bed!
12th-today was our last port day--i was really looking forward to today as it was grand caymen--Everyone, excluding my parents, were planning on g oing snorkeling..The island was beautiful, but i was expecting more..so many people hype up grand caymen, that i wasw a big disappointed...but we did snorkle and the guy that worked there took my underwater camera and got some great pics, hpoefully!! after snorkling, my aunt, uncle and i just walked around and shopped--there werent too many things that i bought here, but its just fun to walk around and sight see...i definitely got a bit sunburned on this island! went back to get dressed for formal night number 2..tonight i wore a skirt and black tank top and got more pictures done..I actually bought one of just myself, which never happens...They took a glamour type shot of me and it didnt come out too badly and mom made me buy it..ill have to scan that one too!!
After dinner, did the shows and casinos again and went to bed...
13th-Today was our last full day! we had no stops as we were at sea all day--it was great because i got to sleep in a bit and they had a ton of activiies going on..I dont remember everything that we did, but i know we played Bingo, watched kareoke, watched some shows, took a nap, layed on the deck, booked a new cruise then dinner and a couple more shows...I went to bed around 2 because we had to get up at 6 this morning
14th--this is the worst day--We had to get up around 615 and get breakfast and be ready to wait by 8am..At 8am, everyone needed to be out of their staterooms and wait for their tag color to be called so that they could leave the ship. This was delayed due to high winds coming into ft lauderdale so a few people were really close to missing their flights--all 9 of us, plus some friends we made, just waited for awhile then when they called our colors, we said goodbye and left the Jewel..We got into buses , went to the airport , checked in and waited in the longest line to chekc our baggage..it was ridiculous!! after that, we went to chilis and ate and by the time we were done, it was time to board the plane...This is when it got bad!! This was the worst flight i had ever been on!!! (we had a bad flight coming home from disney in december too and this was worse) it was a bit bumpy then kept getting worse so by this point, it was pretty bad.. i was holding on to the arm rests and starting to get really nervous and at one point we dropped 200-300 feet REALLY quick..i mean, everyone screamed and i grabbed the guy next to me ..there was a lady that was in the bathroom with her 3 year old daughter (she was in there before the bumps started) when it seemed to calm down, thats when the mom brought her out and was headed towards her seat...then we hit the huge drop where everyone screamed and the flight attendent SCREAMED into the microphone--she sounded panicked, which of course got us all worried as well..My poor brother and the guy next to me were talking to me, trying to distract me..we had people saying they were going to be sick and it was just bad..i was never so happy to land...We waited an hour and a half for our luggage (gotta love philly airpot) and went home.of course, its snowing at this point! i couldnt believe it..as i type this, the wind is howling and the snow is still falling!!
All in all, it was a great trip--We booked another cruise next january for all of us, minus Steve--He wants to come, but will most likely be deployed again next December or January..The weather was amazing--in the 80s every day!! i love cruises and really dont want to wait another year to go on another!
Here is the link to all of my pictures from my digital camera--i will try to get the professional pics up later
http://www.imagestation.com/album/pictures.html?id=2114768575
