It's the end of April and here are pics from our Anniversary Day at the National Arboretum, Anniversary Dinner, and Goodbye Dinner with my Uptown Team :)
lundi, avril 28, 2008
samedi, avril 26, 2008
Exhausted....
This weekend I worked the men's conference that I assisted in coordinating. There were just under 1000 men who attended!!! I was at work from 9am until 11:30pm on Friday. After the conference let out for Friday night, James and I headed over to our friends Scooter and Laura's house. They were having a going away party and we really wanted to be there. It was really fun but we got home around 2:30am only to wake up at 5:30 am to go back to work for the morning session of the Men's Conference! Today I came home at 1pm totally exhausted but it was definitely worth it! It was a fun way to end my work at MBC. Today Saturday was my very last time working at MBC it was sad but good, and filled with lots of hugs! Next Friday we leave for California so we have a whole lot of packing to do.... Tomorrow James and I are hanging out and saying more goodbyes to those we hold dear. On Monday we're getting down to business with this packing! I'm looking forward to sleeping in a little tomorrow :)
mercredi, avril 23, 2008
A couple weeks left....
Well...it's been a couple of weeks since the cruise and life has been quite eventful! James and I have been going through our closets trying to get rid of anything and everything that we don't want to pack. We have yet to fully pack one box...but at least we have some started! We had our last Bible study group last week. It was so sweet, they cooked dinner for us, played games, and then prayed for us as they sent us on our way. It was a very special and heartfelt night!
This past weekend was a really full one! Saturday morning I attended a bridal shower for my friend Arielle. It was a lot of fun not to mention I love anything that has to do with weddings! Arielle looked lovely as ever, and it was fun to take everyone's pictures! I was able to get some really great photos! After the shower it was onto other festivities! James' family hosted a going away party for us in their beautiful back yard. It was really fun!!! 90 of our closest friends, family, and co-workers showed up to help us celebrate! It was a great time and wonderful to know that so many people care! There was food, great conversation, beautiful weather, a live band, and of course James brought out his video camera! It was a fabulous night! Unfortunately I didn't take too many pictures since I was running around saying hello or goodbye to everyone that came. But James was able to take some nice footage of people sporadically throughout the night!
Yesterday, Tuesday April 22 was James' and my anniversary!!! We've officially been married for 2 years now! Time really flies! It's amazing to see how God is at work within our marriage and just how perfectly He has fit us together. James is my complete opposite in almost every way. Though I must admit sometimes this is frustrating..... it's really amazing too! God uses James to build me up where I am weak and to teach me things I would not have learned otherwise. We consistently pray that as we grow together and learn from each other, that we would also grow towards Christ. That we would be Christ-centered. I praise God for James and the marriage He has given us...2 years down...many more to come! To celebrate our anniversary I was able to take Tuesday off of work. So Monday night we went out to a movie. Tuesday morning we slept in and then went to the National Arboretum with our cameras in hand. I had he still camera and James had his video camera. All of the flowers and trees were in bloom and the park was fairly large and had many pathways. It was really fun to walk around, chat, and have a photo safari with nature. Afterwards we came home, put on some fine fashion, and went out to eat at Maggianos a wonderful italian restaurant. It was very sweet! Our waitress was a little weird and could not believe that James and I had been married for two years. So at the end of the meal she brought us a giant piece of chocolate cake with two candles on it. We were stuffed by the end of the night but it was a really nice night with lots of good food and conversation! Not to mention we looked good! :)
Today, Wednesday when I got to work I had flowers waiting for me at my desk from a MBC staff friend. My last day of work is on Friday :( So sad! I really love MBC, and all the people there. I have so many great memories and friends to thank for the experience. This afternoon they had an appreciation gathering for me! There was a red carpet and it was decked out in a Hollywood theme. It was wonderful and so thoughtful! James joined in on the celebration. I shed a few tears and shared many hugs! How nice and lovely it was to have everyone come to show their support and say good-bye!
Tonight we were able to have some boxes donated to us from our friend Jen. She even drove them to us!!!! Thanks Jen! Now we are ready to really get packing.... yikes!!!! Its sad to think about putting your life in a box....I'm sure it will get easier but with all of these goodbyes it's pretty hard. I'm really not so good at goodbyes. We've said so many in the last month. We still have a few major ones to go. I don't know how people do this all the time!
This weekend I'm finishing up my work at MBC with the Men's conference. It will be BIG.... right now we have 800 men signed up. It could easily be 1000 by Friday! It should be a great and busy way to end! There is still a lot of work to do with the conference approaching but it keeps my days moving. The moving truck comes on Wednesday so we have a lot to do between today and Wednesday!!!
I'll try and post pics soon of the anniversary photo safari! It was fun! But for now I'll leave you with the pics I took from Arielle's bridal shower.... it was so much fun!!!!
This past weekend was a really full one! Saturday morning I attended a bridal shower for my friend Arielle. It was a lot of fun not to mention I love anything that has to do with weddings! Arielle looked lovely as ever, and it was fun to take everyone's pictures! I was able to get some really great photos! After the shower it was onto other festivities! James' family hosted a going away party for us in their beautiful back yard. It was really fun!!! 90 of our closest friends, family, and co-workers showed up to help us celebrate! It was a great time and wonderful to know that so many people care! There was food, great conversation, beautiful weather, a live band, and of course James brought out his video camera! It was a fabulous night! Unfortunately I didn't take too many pictures since I was running around saying hello or goodbye to everyone that came. But James was able to take some nice footage of people sporadically throughout the night!
Yesterday, Tuesday April 22 was James' and my anniversary!!! We've officially been married for 2 years now! Time really flies! It's amazing to see how God is at work within our marriage and just how perfectly He has fit us together. James is my complete opposite in almost every way. Though I must admit sometimes this is frustrating..... it's really amazing too! God uses James to build me up where I am weak and to teach me things I would not have learned otherwise. We consistently pray that as we grow together and learn from each other, that we would also grow towards Christ. That we would be Christ-centered. I praise God for James and the marriage He has given us...2 years down...many more to come! To celebrate our anniversary I was able to take Tuesday off of work. So Monday night we went out to a movie. Tuesday morning we slept in and then went to the National Arboretum with our cameras in hand. I had he still camera and James had his video camera. All of the flowers and trees were in bloom and the park was fairly large and had many pathways. It was really fun to walk around, chat, and have a photo safari with nature. Afterwards we came home, put on some fine fashion, and went out to eat at Maggianos a wonderful italian restaurant. It was very sweet! Our waitress was a little weird and could not believe that James and I had been married for two years. So at the end of the meal she brought us a giant piece of chocolate cake with two candles on it. We were stuffed by the end of the night but it was a really nice night with lots of good food and conversation! Not to mention we looked good! :)
Today, Wednesday when I got to work I had flowers waiting for me at my desk from a MBC staff friend. My last day of work is on Friday :( So sad! I really love MBC, and all the people there. I have so many great memories and friends to thank for the experience. This afternoon they had an appreciation gathering for me! There was a red carpet and it was decked out in a Hollywood theme. It was wonderful and so thoughtful! James joined in on the celebration. I shed a few tears and shared many hugs! How nice and lovely it was to have everyone come to show their support and say good-bye!
Tonight we were able to have some boxes donated to us from our friend Jen. She even drove them to us!!!! Thanks Jen! Now we are ready to really get packing.... yikes!!!! Its sad to think about putting your life in a box....I'm sure it will get easier but with all of these goodbyes it's pretty hard. I'm really not so good at goodbyes. We've said so many in the last month. We still have a few major ones to go. I don't know how people do this all the time!
This weekend I'm finishing up my work at MBC with the Men's conference. It will be BIG.... right now we have 800 men signed up. It could easily be 1000 by Friday! It should be a great and busy way to end! There is still a lot of work to do with the conference approaching but it keeps my days moving. The moving truck comes on Wednesday so we have a lot to do between today and Wednesday!!!
I'll try and post pics soon of the anniversary photo safari! It was fun! But for now I'll leave you with the pics I took from Arielle's bridal shower.... it was so much fun!!!!
jeudi, avril 10, 2008
dimanche, avril 06, 2008
Post Cruise Goodies!
We're back from the cruise and we all had a fabulous time! We took lots of pictures and had many laughs. Most of all it was wonderful to spend time with my family. I'll post pictures another day, (trust me there are a lot!) but today I wanted to take some time to write about our first ever cruising experience! Be warned this could be long!
The trip began with James and I meeting my parents in the Atlanta airport to then take another flight to the Miami airport. It was so fun to meet at the airport! We had a quick bite to eat and then got on the plane to Miami. The ride there was filled with sudoko puzzles for me and ipod for James. Once we got our luggage and headed for the taxis we noticed it was pouring rain outside. I was so worried but the storm passed quickly along with my fears of a rainy cruise :)
The taxi took us to our hotel which was located in the art deco district of Miami beach. It was a cute and quaint hotel just a few blocks from the main strip. After we checked in we decided to walk along the strip. What a strip it was!!!! The whole walkway was filled with shops, rave music, restaurants with patios, and people who didn't wear very much clothing. I don't really know what I was expecting... but this was definitely not what I had in mind. Though many posh restaurants and eateries were located along the strip, there was trash everywhere and crowds of people in bathing suits and party wear. We were able to find a cute little French restaurant that wasn't too loud and grabbed a table that was a little out of the main traffic area. The restaurant was called Paul's and I loved it! Especially the menu everything was so French and many of the itmes on the menu were French. By the time we had finished eating we were all pretty tired from traveling so we went back to the hotel and called it a night.
The next morning we met up with Brad and Nicole! They had a late night flight which didn't get into Miami until 1am. So we all decided to meet for breakfast! And surprise, surprise, we went back to Paul's because we enjoyed it so much for dinner. The main strip was much more friendly during the morning and didn't have all of the loud rave music pumping from the shops, restaurants, and bars. After breakfast we all took a walk to the the beach to look around. It was typical Miami beach, the sand was really white, body builders were our tanning themselves, and men were walking around with tiny European bathing suits. After the beach we parted ways with Brad and Nicole and headed back to the hotel to pack up and go to the marina to board the cruise ship. The lines went quickly and efficiently and before you knew it we were on the boat walking around exploring all of the many decks. One thing I learned quickly, and within the first few hours, the people on the boat always want to take your picture.... I feel bad for the workers, everyone is always trying to avoid them!
It was a little windy that day but that didn't seem to stop people from putting on their bathing suits and going swimming. The boat was beautiful! There were at least 4 different lounges/bars, 2 floors of sun decks, a running track, a workout room, 2 formal dining rooms, a cafe, a theater, a climbing wall, and so much more! After we checked the boat our and got our rooms we ate at the cafe and there were so many food options it was ridiculous! Our room on the boat was wonderful! It was bigger than I had expected and we had a big window. There were neat little drawers and cubbies to store all of your things in. It was very well laid out. The best part was the wine and cheese that Mom had arranged to be waiting for us in our room!!! Very nice! As far as bathrooms go I was also expecting the toilet to be really loud when it flushed, though it was a little strange it really wasn't very loud at all! How fun!
Later we had our emergency drill where everyone put on their life jackets and met out on the running deck. James and I were in a different group than Mom, Dad, Brad, and Nicole. We were lucky, my parents had to be video tapped by the cruise staff. The videos were shown on the TV station throughout the cruise! Ha ha! After the emergency drill the boat took off and we watched Miami fade in the distance. About an hour later we were siting down for dinner as our waiter Ricardo took our orders. The wait staff were excellent! They learned our names and catered to our every need. Ricardo was nice though sometimes a little more wordy than needed (I think he was translating to English in his head thus the very long and detailed description of what was for dinner!) Sometimes we just nodded and smiled because we really didn't know what he was saying. Dinner was wonderful and very filling.
That night the wind was very strong! The ship was swaying from side to side. We knew it had to be somewhat rough because at every staircase there were barf bags conveniently ready to use. It didn't really seem to bother any of us, it was kind of soothing to sway back and forth. The deck was so windy we went up to the top and it really blew us around! James had to go to the top deck at the front of the ship and play in the wind, while my mom was frantically hanging onto a tower afraid she would be swept off into the sea. I think I was somewhere in between the two extremes. That night I awoke to really rough seas the room was going side to side and then there was a constant squeaking noise from something above due to the swaying ship. So I didn't sleep much that night. The next morning I got up early and went to the workout room... it was packed. I managed to snag a treadmill for my morning run. I got upset though when I realized that most of the other people on the treadmill's were just walking the whole time. They could have walked on the deck! The running on the deck was prohibited until after 10am. Oh well! It was a beautiful workout. I got to see the lovely island of Nassau as I was running.
Due to the strong winds our excursion for the day was canceled. We were going to go on a world cup racing sail boat :( I guess it will have to wait! Instead we walked around the island of Nassau. It was a strange island. Many of the islanders looked oppressed yet all the shops and stores were name brands like Coach, Channel, Starbucks, Cartier, etc. Everyone was trying to sell you something there. Especially when we entered the straw market. There was a huge tent and inside there were tons vendors. The retail stretched from floor to ceiling. Everyone seemed to be selling the exact same things handbags, tee shirts, and jewelry. All of the handbags were knock offs of Coach, Gucci, Channel, Juicy, etc. I felt bad that these people had to make their living this way. There was barely enough room to walk around and they sat in the tent everyday trying to sell their goods to tourists. After the straw market we walked to a church that was beautiful I believe it was built int he 1600's? From there we went and visited this historic staircase area. Though getting there was an excursion of its own! We walked all over and I was beginning to think we were not heading in a safe direction but all was well. We found it alas! Apparently the slaves on the island were forced to cut out a stair case/walkway through solid rock. The staircase extended for hundreds of feet, it was truly remarkable and I was sad for the many lives spent carving the staircase. At the top was an old fort. It was built on a highpoint overlooking the island. It was beautiful and had a few old cannons left in the fort. After the excursion of finding the stairway and fort we decided to head over to the Senior Frog's restaurant to get a drink before getting back on the boat. It was quite lively!
That night back on the boat it was windy but not as much as the first night. Dinner was fabulous again! It was formal night and we all looked lovely in our formal attire! We went to the show in the theater that night, and then it was off to bed a little early. I was wiped out from all of the walking around that day, plus I knew I would want to be ready quickly for the next day on Cocoa Cay island. That night the boat swayed from side to side again but not quite as violently and I slept very soundly.
The next morning I decided to skip the workout and go straight to breakfast. After breakfast in the cafe we put on our suits and headed to the beach!!! We had to take a ferry from the cruise ship to the island. The island was quite calm and beautiful. The water was very blue and there were lounge chairs and hammocks everywhere!!! James and I looked for some prime hammocks but the only ones left were in the shade and were very low to the ground. So the whole family took some chairs right in front of this building called the Wacky Seagull.
Dad rented some snorkel gear for us and we all took turns going out to sea. It was a lot of work swimming out to see the fish but it was worth it. There were old boat and plane ruins which had lots of fish nearby. We saw fish that looked like Nora from Finding Nemo and we also saw some other bright colored fish. We saw some big fish too but they weren't quite as colorful. I didn't realize it was James' first time snorkeling so I was often wondering why we had to go check out "everything". But it was fun. Eventually I had to come back in and we let everyone else have a turn snorkeling.
When we got back to the beach we noticed that there were a lot more seagulls on the island. My mom informed me that someone behind us had already been pooped on. James and I decided to go get some food. As I was walking with my plate of food in hand a seagull laid a BIG one on my arm!!!! I was pooped on and horrified!!! (I HATE birds!!!) After I washed off int he bathroom and ate our lunch we headed back the the beach where the Waky Seagull lived up to its full name. The birds were dive bombing all around and it was aweful. I couldn't take it anymore so James and I found a quite and secluded area away from the seagulls. It was beautiful by the rocks overlooking the sea. So calm and NO SEAGULLS!!! There was even an open hammock for James to sleep in. When he woke up his back was covered in rope marks! Later we took a walk with my dad further down the island and it was very beautiful and peaceful. We saw a large bag of big crabs that someone had caught and put in a potatoe sack in the trees, as well as a very large lizzard thing. It was neat looking! We headed back to the boat on the 2nd to last ferry and enjoyed the slow ride listening to Caribbean music as the ferry circled the ship until it was our turn to board. The dance crew from the show we saw the night before were also on our ship, I was glad to see that they got a little time off :)
After our day at the beach it was off to dinner and again it was lovely. This time our waiters sang for us. Our waiter decided to make a bunny with his napkin it was cute but you could tell they had to do this a lot. We cheered our waitstaff team on as we knew this was probably a tad embarassing but fun! After dinner there was another show this time a comedian who sang songs and put different words to them. He was quite funny and good. After that there was a party by the pool with yes, more food! They even had an ice sculpture carving demonstration. How fun! On my way to the food line I crossed paths with another girl and her drink went all over me and I believe some on her too. I felt so bad afterwards, oh well :( After we stuffed ourselves yet again and had a drink we decided to go to bed. The next morning we would be at Key West and there was an excursion to go kayaking!
The next morning we awoke to the phone ringing. It was my parents calling. James and I had overslept and so did they. I was so disoriented. My whole body felt achy and my throat hurt. We hurried off to breakfast and then quickly jumped into our bathing suits. Then we had to wait in line to go through customs to get off of the boat. That part was not so fun but at least it all went very quickly. By this time my legs, back, and head were really throbbing. We then got off of the boat and walking up and down Duaval a little before our kayak excursion was to meet. I was feeling worse by the hour. Luckily I brought water with me so I just kept drinking the water. We were soon on a pontoon like boat heading to our kayak excursion. All the water that I drank was beginning to sink in. Suddenly we saw two island type things as well as another boat suspended int he water with kayaks attached. I was hoping we each would get our own kayaks but we had to share. This meant that James and I had to work as a team and I was NOT feeling very good or very cooperative. But I think we managed okay :)
Once we were out, James was the first to stand up in the kayak and the first to fall in. Unfortunately he landed on me first before hitting the water. His second time up was much more successful. Apparently I was a little loud though as my brother pointed out. Finally we were getting the hang of kayaking together. We saw many fish, a few sharks, and some really BIG sponges. It was cool! The water was only like 4 feet deep and very clear. James kept wanting to go check out all of the darker spots in the water. One spot turned out to have a 4 foot shark in it, and James proceeded to have the kayak go right over the top of the shark which scared me a little. But luckily the shark just swam away while we were intently watching him. After we turned the final corner around the island to head back to the pontoon boat the winds had picked up. It was a really tough paddle and took a lot of strength. Brad and Nicole were the first to make it back to the boat and proceeded to assist everyone else with getting onto the boat. Once I arrived on the boat all I could think about was getting to the nearing toilet and quickly. On the ride back to the port James and Bradley jumped and leaned in the wind on the boat as it sped through the waves. It was quite entertaining! I of course couldn't think of much more than the pain of feeling really sick and needing to relieve myself of all the water that I had drank. The ride was not quick enough. One the boat was docked I had to run all the way back to our room on the ship. Luckily I made it just in time!!!
After the excursion we all rinsed off and put on some shorts to go explore Key West. We went to Kelly's which is a very well known eatery/bar. It was owned by an actor lady who was in Top Gun. It was also the first birthplace of pan am airlines. Mom ordered Conch shell soup and it was good! We also walked around Key West and saw the Little White House which is a very historical place where many important politicians stayed and meetings took place. We also walked around the lovely grounds where my Uncle, Aunt, and Grandparents all stay when they visit Key West. It was beautiful! We walked to Ernest Hemingway's House, Robert Frosts old cottage, and and old light house. These places charged to get in so we decided just to stand and look in the doorway. We also found my Nana's favorite church in the area and looked around. It was very pretty. Key West is a very friendly and cute area I would love to go back and visit sometime especially when I am feeling better. There were chickens and roosters everywhere it was quite interesting. We were told that cats are everywhere too and we did see one hanging around the lighthouse. After the long walk we headed back on board for the last dinner on the cruise!
Dinner again was great! Again the wait staff sung for us, always a treat! I was able to take some cold medicine which made me feel a lot better! Shortly after dinner we all packed up our luggage and had to put it outside of our door for them to move off the boat in the morning. That night there was a final performance in the theater. It was all Earth Wind and Fire, and Abba music. Very strange but entertaining! It was fun going with Mom and Dad. Although I can't remember if it was the last night or not, we went with my mom to the bingo game where they were giving away another cruise. She didn't win but it was fun watching the girl that did win! After the show we went up to the cafe for some late night pizza it was good! The last night we met Brad and Nicole in the salsa lounge and listened to the band play as Brad and Nicole sipped on their Mohitos, while Mom enjoyed her glass of wine. I might have joined them with a drink but I was still not feeling well. But the music was great and there were some talented salsa dancers on the boat. I was not brave enough to go dance because they were all so good! Shortly afterwards we all called it a night and headed off to bed. I was exhausted.
The next morning the cafe was a buzz! I was sneezing like crazy and before we knew it our color was called to exit the boat. Everything was so well organized. Once off of the boat we received our luggage quickly and conveniently found a large van taxi to take us to the airport. We were at the airport in Miami by 9am and our flight didn't take off until 1pm. Unfortunately Atlanta was having bad weather and it was delayed an hour. I was sneezing and blowing my nose a lot! We passed the time by playing games on James' ipod and thinking of ideas for Cathy's wedding shower which will be coming up soon! On the plane James and I made some new friends. A little sweedish girl took a liking to me and passed me notes, hung onto my hand, and talked to me in german. It was very sweet! Her brother gave us some german lessons which I think he found very humorous. It was fun to meet such a nice family from so different a place!
Once we landed in Atlanta the fun trip really began! Everything was delayed, including all of our connecting flights! James and I made our connecting flight. The plane didn't leave the airport until 6 or7pm. My parents made theirs but the airline gave up their tickets for some odd reason. It was a big mistake. My parents had to deal with many terrible people and barely made it on another flight as standbys. They didn't get home the next day until 3am. I felt awful. Meanwhile James and I finally made it back to DC around 9pm and my cold was at it's worst. We were looking for our luggage. We had two of our bags one of which was covered in saran wrap. Apparently the airline broke our luggage to the point where they couldn't close it. Sweet.... We also were missing one of our bags, along with 30 other people. By the time we got through the baggage claim line another flight had come in from Atlanta so we decided to check their baggage. We found our missing bag. The busted bag they are paying to have sent to Delta to fix or replace. We'll see but I was very disappointed and upset. I've now decided that nothing good ever happens when I fly Delta. This was just the icing on the cake for my experiences with them. Oh well maybe I will give them another try....but definitely not for awhile.
Once home James and I crashed and I took more medicine. We felt a bit dizzy like we were still moving on the boat. The next couple of days I spent recovering from my awful cold and walking around dizzily from being off the boat. I felt so glad that I didn't feel sick until the very last day on the boat, I was truly able to enjoy the whole experience!!! It was great!
All in all it was a very fun and eventful trip! I loved having this first experience with my family and to see everyone again was great! I would love to do it again!!!
I'll close with this list of James' First Time:
- on a cruise
- snorkeling
- seeing sharks in the wild
- standing on a kayak
- falling in the water on a kayak
- in the Florida keys
- on a private island
- being in a salt water pool
- eating lobster bisk
- eating lamb shank
- sleeping on a boat
My list is similar with one exception,
- being pooped on by a seagull :(
The trip began with James and I meeting my parents in the Atlanta airport to then take another flight to the Miami airport. It was so fun to meet at the airport! We had a quick bite to eat and then got on the plane to Miami. The ride there was filled with sudoko puzzles for me and ipod for James. Once we got our luggage and headed for the taxis we noticed it was pouring rain outside. I was so worried but the storm passed quickly along with my fears of a rainy cruise :)
The taxi took us to our hotel which was located in the art deco district of Miami beach. It was a cute and quaint hotel just a few blocks from the main strip. After we checked in we decided to walk along the strip. What a strip it was!!!! The whole walkway was filled with shops, rave music, restaurants with patios, and people who didn't wear very much clothing. I don't really know what I was expecting... but this was definitely not what I had in mind. Though many posh restaurants and eateries were located along the strip, there was trash everywhere and crowds of people in bathing suits and party wear. We were able to find a cute little French restaurant that wasn't too loud and grabbed a table that was a little out of the main traffic area. The restaurant was called Paul's and I loved it! Especially the menu everything was so French and many of the itmes on the menu were French. By the time we had finished eating we were all pretty tired from traveling so we went back to the hotel and called it a night.
The next morning we met up with Brad and Nicole! They had a late night flight which didn't get into Miami until 1am. So we all decided to meet for breakfast! And surprise, surprise, we went back to Paul's because we enjoyed it so much for dinner. The main strip was much more friendly during the morning and didn't have all of the loud rave music pumping from the shops, restaurants, and bars. After breakfast we all took a walk to the the beach to look around. It was typical Miami beach, the sand was really white, body builders were our tanning themselves, and men were walking around with tiny European bathing suits. After the beach we parted ways with Brad and Nicole and headed back to the hotel to pack up and go to the marina to board the cruise ship. The lines went quickly and efficiently and before you knew it we were on the boat walking around exploring all of the many decks. One thing I learned quickly, and within the first few hours, the people on the boat always want to take your picture.... I feel bad for the workers, everyone is always trying to avoid them!
It was a little windy that day but that didn't seem to stop people from putting on their bathing suits and going swimming. The boat was beautiful! There were at least 4 different lounges/bars, 2 floors of sun decks, a running track, a workout room, 2 formal dining rooms, a cafe, a theater, a climbing wall, and so much more! After we checked the boat our and got our rooms we ate at the cafe and there were so many food options it was ridiculous! Our room on the boat was wonderful! It was bigger than I had expected and we had a big window. There were neat little drawers and cubbies to store all of your things in. It was very well laid out. The best part was the wine and cheese that Mom had arranged to be waiting for us in our room!!! Very nice! As far as bathrooms go I was also expecting the toilet to be really loud when it flushed, though it was a little strange it really wasn't very loud at all! How fun!
Later we had our emergency drill where everyone put on their life jackets and met out on the running deck. James and I were in a different group than Mom, Dad, Brad, and Nicole. We were lucky, my parents had to be video tapped by the cruise staff. The videos were shown on the TV station throughout the cruise! Ha ha! After the emergency drill the boat took off and we watched Miami fade in the distance. About an hour later we were siting down for dinner as our waiter Ricardo took our orders. The wait staff were excellent! They learned our names and catered to our every need. Ricardo was nice though sometimes a little more wordy than needed (I think he was translating to English in his head thus the very long and detailed description of what was for dinner!) Sometimes we just nodded and smiled because we really didn't know what he was saying. Dinner was wonderful and very filling.
That night the wind was very strong! The ship was swaying from side to side. We knew it had to be somewhat rough because at every staircase there were barf bags conveniently ready to use. It didn't really seem to bother any of us, it was kind of soothing to sway back and forth. The deck was so windy we went up to the top and it really blew us around! James had to go to the top deck at the front of the ship and play in the wind, while my mom was frantically hanging onto a tower afraid she would be swept off into the sea. I think I was somewhere in between the two extremes. That night I awoke to really rough seas the room was going side to side and then there was a constant squeaking noise from something above due to the swaying ship. So I didn't sleep much that night. The next morning I got up early and went to the workout room... it was packed. I managed to snag a treadmill for my morning run. I got upset though when I realized that most of the other people on the treadmill's were just walking the whole time. They could have walked on the deck! The running on the deck was prohibited until after 10am. Oh well! It was a beautiful workout. I got to see the lovely island of Nassau as I was running.
Due to the strong winds our excursion for the day was canceled. We were going to go on a world cup racing sail boat :( I guess it will have to wait! Instead we walked around the island of Nassau. It was a strange island. Many of the islanders looked oppressed yet all the shops and stores were name brands like Coach, Channel, Starbucks, Cartier, etc. Everyone was trying to sell you something there. Especially when we entered the straw market. There was a huge tent and inside there were tons vendors. The retail stretched from floor to ceiling. Everyone seemed to be selling the exact same things handbags, tee shirts, and jewelry. All of the handbags were knock offs of Coach, Gucci, Channel, Juicy, etc. I felt bad that these people had to make their living this way. There was barely enough room to walk around and they sat in the tent everyday trying to sell their goods to tourists. After the straw market we walked to a church that was beautiful I believe it was built int he 1600's? From there we went and visited this historic staircase area. Though getting there was an excursion of its own! We walked all over and I was beginning to think we were not heading in a safe direction but all was well. We found it alas! Apparently the slaves on the island were forced to cut out a stair case/walkway through solid rock. The staircase extended for hundreds of feet, it was truly remarkable and I was sad for the many lives spent carving the staircase. At the top was an old fort. It was built on a highpoint overlooking the island. It was beautiful and had a few old cannons left in the fort. After the excursion of finding the stairway and fort we decided to head over to the Senior Frog's restaurant to get a drink before getting back on the boat. It was quite lively!
That night back on the boat it was windy but not as much as the first night. Dinner was fabulous again! It was formal night and we all looked lovely in our formal attire! We went to the show in the theater that night, and then it was off to bed a little early. I was wiped out from all of the walking around that day, plus I knew I would want to be ready quickly for the next day on Cocoa Cay island. That night the boat swayed from side to side again but not quite as violently and I slept very soundly.
The next morning I decided to skip the workout and go straight to breakfast. After breakfast in the cafe we put on our suits and headed to the beach!!! We had to take a ferry from the cruise ship to the island. The island was quite calm and beautiful. The water was very blue and there were lounge chairs and hammocks everywhere!!! James and I looked for some prime hammocks but the only ones left were in the shade and were very low to the ground. So the whole family took some chairs right in front of this building called the Wacky Seagull.
Dad rented some snorkel gear for us and we all took turns going out to sea. It was a lot of work swimming out to see the fish but it was worth it. There were old boat and plane ruins which had lots of fish nearby. We saw fish that looked like Nora from Finding Nemo and we also saw some other bright colored fish. We saw some big fish too but they weren't quite as colorful. I didn't realize it was James' first time snorkeling so I was often wondering why we had to go check out "everything". But it was fun. Eventually I had to come back in and we let everyone else have a turn snorkeling.
When we got back to the beach we noticed that there were a lot more seagulls on the island. My mom informed me that someone behind us had already been pooped on. James and I decided to go get some food. As I was walking with my plate of food in hand a seagull laid a BIG one on my arm!!!! I was pooped on and horrified!!! (I HATE birds!!!) After I washed off int he bathroom and ate our lunch we headed back the the beach where the Waky Seagull lived up to its full name. The birds were dive bombing all around and it was aweful. I couldn't take it anymore so James and I found a quite and secluded area away from the seagulls. It was beautiful by the rocks overlooking the sea. So calm and NO SEAGULLS!!! There was even an open hammock for James to sleep in. When he woke up his back was covered in rope marks! Later we took a walk with my dad further down the island and it was very beautiful and peaceful. We saw a large bag of big crabs that someone had caught and put in a potatoe sack in the trees, as well as a very large lizzard thing. It was neat looking! We headed back to the boat on the 2nd to last ferry and enjoyed the slow ride listening to Caribbean music as the ferry circled the ship until it was our turn to board. The dance crew from the show we saw the night before were also on our ship, I was glad to see that they got a little time off :)
After our day at the beach it was off to dinner and again it was lovely. This time our waiters sang for us. Our waiter decided to make a bunny with his napkin it was cute but you could tell they had to do this a lot. We cheered our waitstaff team on as we knew this was probably a tad embarassing but fun! After dinner there was another show this time a comedian who sang songs and put different words to them. He was quite funny and good. After that there was a party by the pool with yes, more food! They even had an ice sculpture carving demonstration. How fun! On my way to the food line I crossed paths with another girl and her drink went all over me and I believe some on her too. I felt so bad afterwards, oh well :( After we stuffed ourselves yet again and had a drink we decided to go to bed. The next morning we would be at Key West and there was an excursion to go kayaking!
The next morning we awoke to the phone ringing. It was my parents calling. James and I had overslept and so did they. I was so disoriented. My whole body felt achy and my throat hurt. We hurried off to breakfast and then quickly jumped into our bathing suits. Then we had to wait in line to go through customs to get off of the boat. That part was not so fun but at least it all went very quickly. By this time my legs, back, and head were really throbbing. We then got off of the boat and walking up and down Duaval a little before our kayak excursion was to meet. I was feeling worse by the hour. Luckily I brought water with me so I just kept drinking the water. We were soon on a pontoon like boat heading to our kayak excursion. All the water that I drank was beginning to sink in. Suddenly we saw two island type things as well as another boat suspended int he water with kayaks attached. I was hoping we each would get our own kayaks but we had to share. This meant that James and I had to work as a team and I was NOT feeling very good or very cooperative. But I think we managed okay :)
Once we were out, James was the first to stand up in the kayak and the first to fall in. Unfortunately he landed on me first before hitting the water. His second time up was much more successful. Apparently I was a little loud though as my brother pointed out. Finally we were getting the hang of kayaking together. We saw many fish, a few sharks, and some really BIG sponges. It was cool! The water was only like 4 feet deep and very clear. James kept wanting to go check out all of the darker spots in the water. One spot turned out to have a 4 foot shark in it, and James proceeded to have the kayak go right over the top of the shark which scared me a little. But luckily the shark just swam away while we were intently watching him. After we turned the final corner around the island to head back to the pontoon boat the winds had picked up. It was a really tough paddle and took a lot of strength. Brad and Nicole were the first to make it back to the boat and proceeded to assist everyone else with getting onto the boat. Once I arrived on the boat all I could think about was getting to the nearing toilet and quickly. On the ride back to the port James and Bradley jumped and leaned in the wind on the boat as it sped through the waves. It was quite entertaining! I of course couldn't think of much more than the pain of feeling really sick and needing to relieve myself of all the water that I had drank. The ride was not quick enough. One the boat was docked I had to run all the way back to our room on the ship. Luckily I made it just in time!!!
After the excursion we all rinsed off and put on some shorts to go explore Key West. We went to Kelly's which is a very well known eatery/bar. It was owned by an actor lady who was in Top Gun. It was also the first birthplace of pan am airlines. Mom ordered Conch shell soup and it was good! We also walked around Key West and saw the Little White House which is a very historical place where many important politicians stayed and meetings took place. We also walked around the lovely grounds where my Uncle, Aunt, and Grandparents all stay when they visit Key West. It was beautiful! We walked to Ernest Hemingway's House, Robert Frosts old cottage, and and old light house. These places charged to get in so we decided just to stand and look in the doorway. We also found my Nana's favorite church in the area and looked around. It was very pretty. Key West is a very friendly and cute area I would love to go back and visit sometime especially when I am feeling better. There were chickens and roosters everywhere it was quite interesting. We were told that cats are everywhere too and we did see one hanging around the lighthouse. After the long walk we headed back on board for the last dinner on the cruise!
Dinner again was great! Again the wait staff sung for us, always a treat! I was able to take some cold medicine which made me feel a lot better! Shortly after dinner we all packed up our luggage and had to put it outside of our door for them to move off the boat in the morning. That night there was a final performance in the theater. It was all Earth Wind and Fire, and Abba music. Very strange but entertaining! It was fun going with Mom and Dad. Although I can't remember if it was the last night or not, we went with my mom to the bingo game where they were giving away another cruise. She didn't win but it was fun watching the girl that did win! After the show we went up to the cafe for some late night pizza it was good! The last night we met Brad and Nicole in the salsa lounge and listened to the band play as Brad and Nicole sipped on their Mohitos, while Mom enjoyed her glass of wine. I might have joined them with a drink but I was still not feeling well. But the music was great and there were some talented salsa dancers on the boat. I was not brave enough to go dance because they were all so good! Shortly afterwards we all called it a night and headed off to bed. I was exhausted.
The next morning the cafe was a buzz! I was sneezing like crazy and before we knew it our color was called to exit the boat. Everything was so well organized. Once off of the boat we received our luggage quickly and conveniently found a large van taxi to take us to the airport. We were at the airport in Miami by 9am and our flight didn't take off until 1pm. Unfortunately Atlanta was having bad weather and it was delayed an hour. I was sneezing and blowing my nose a lot! We passed the time by playing games on James' ipod and thinking of ideas for Cathy's wedding shower which will be coming up soon! On the plane James and I made some new friends. A little sweedish girl took a liking to me and passed me notes, hung onto my hand, and talked to me in german. It was very sweet! Her brother gave us some german lessons which I think he found very humorous. It was fun to meet such a nice family from so different a place!
Once we landed in Atlanta the fun trip really began! Everything was delayed, including all of our connecting flights! James and I made our connecting flight. The plane didn't leave the airport until 6 or7pm. My parents made theirs but the airline gave up their tickets for some odd reason. It was a big mistake. My parents had to deal with many terrible people and barely made it on another flight as standbys. They didn't get home the next day until 3am. I felt awful. Meanwhile James and I finally made it back to DC around 9pm and my cold was at it's worst. We were looking for our luggage. We had two of our bags one of which was covered in saran wrap. Apparently the airline broke our luggage to the point where they couldn't close it. Sweet.... We also were missing one of our bags, along with 30 other people. By the time we got through the baggage claim line another flight had come in from Atlanta so we decided to check their baggage. We found our missing bag. The busted bag they are paying to have sent to Delta to fix or replace. We'll see but I was very disappointed and upset. I've now decided that nothing good ever happens when I fly Delta. This was just the icing on the cake for my experiences with them. Oh well maybe I will give them another try....but definitely not for awhile.
Once home James and I crashed and I took more medicine. We felt a bit dizzy like we were still moving on the boat. The next couple of days I spent recovering from my awful cold and walking around dizzily from being off the boat. I felt so glad that I didn't feel sick until the very last day on the boat, I was truly able to enjoy the whole experience!!! It was great!
All in all it was a very fun and eventful trip! I loved having this first experience with my family and to see everyone again was great! I would love to do it again!!!
I'll close with this list of James' First Time:
- on a cruise
- snorkeling
- seeing sharks in the wild
- standing on a kayak
- falling in the water on a kayak
- in the Florida keys
- on a private island
- being in a salt water pool
- eating lobster bisk
- eating lamb shank
- sleeping on a boat
My list is similar with one exception,
- being pooped on by a seagull :(
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