So, my mom rode down with us. Pete and Juju picked up Cathy in Houston and we met the Skippers on board. There was supposedly some sort of traffic issue on I-45 so we took the scenic route. It was really nice. My mom packed us a nice picnic lunch - which we ate in the parking lot of the Jack in the Box - and the drive went very smoothly.
John & I got our first balcony room. We thought we'd like it but we really ended up loving it! As we pulled out of Galveston, we stood out on the balcony and watched as we sailed away. My mom joined us.
After hurricane Ike last year, there wasn't a whole lot of Galveston left. Very sad because Galveston is a cool city.
These crazy birds were chasing us out of the bay. They were probably looking for food. It reminded me of a Hitchcock movie.
Sunset on Galveston Bay.Our first stop was supposed to be Cancun. Or was it Cozumel? Either way, the first night we had to turn back and go to Galveston to meet the Coast Guard to evacuate someone from the boat. The person fell on the steps and broke a leg or an arm or something. What a horrible way to start your vacation! So, the captain took us straight to Honduras. We got two sea days in a row. Awesome!
Sea days are spent like this - sitting in a chair reading, sleeping or watching the ocean, all of which I did. It is wonderfully relaxing.
I could stare at that all day and just zone out. In fact, I think I did.The first full day on the ship ended in Formal night. We all dressed up in our finest and paraded around the ship.
John and his mom on Formal night 1.
The girls in the concierge room. Mom & Dad had an owner's suite and one of the perks was happy hour in the 'concierge room'. It was lovely. They took us in by association.
We clean up nice. John made me buy a dress that would be appropriate for such an occasion. I really need to work on those arms..
John looks very dapper.
Meanwhile, back in the concierge room, the Chaney's and the Skipper's have their photo taken. I thought this came out lovely. We had dinner that night in the specialty restaurant, Portofino. It's an Italian restaurant that's not part of the main dining room.After dinner, there were still photographers running around so my mom and & I got our photos made.
I forgot to put on lipstick. Oh well. I'd say the first formal night was a raving success. We all looked wonderful.
Oh! And Richard wanted his pictures with all the girls. Juju, Jackie, Richard, Mom, me and Cathy. Richard was a hoot! After dinner, everyone went their separate ways. Mom & I decided to hit the casino. We played the slots. Mom didn't do so well.
No fair! She went back to her room and changed. I did a little better the first night.
I had $20 in quarters when I started and I left with $35 dollars. Not bad. The next day we docked in Roatan, Honduras. We all had separate tours booked. Jackie and Richard went on a tour that took them through the mangroves. Mom, Dad & Cathy went on the glass bottom boat tour. John, Mom & I took a city tour of Roatan. That was really lovely. What a beautiful island.
John at our first stop in Roatan.
Mom and John at this really cool old building outside the jewelery store.
Voyager of the Seas docked in Roatan, Honduras.
This little boat was docked right off the island. I thought it looked cool.
This is he oldest church in Honduras. They still have services here. In fact, they had a service going on when we pulled up. It's pretty cool.
Mom, John and our guide, Loretta, sitting in front of the church. Loretta was pretty funny.
Next we stopped for smoothies. I sat out on this pier just looking at the water. It looked very inviting and I would liked to have jumped in. Unfortunately, I was not prepared to swim.
My goofball mom pretending like she's picking fruit.
One more view of the beach in Roatan.After the tour of Roatan, it was back to the ship. John & I went and worked out and then one of us took a little nappy.
I wasn't sleeping, I was just resting my eyes.
Roatan from the ship.
Sunset over Honduras.
Meanwhile, the girls all went for bingo and then hit the pub for happy hour. Hey! they didn't call me.
One night John & I sat out on the balcony and took pictures of the moon on the water. Very cool.
The next port was Costa Maya, Mexico. Dad arranged for us all to take a tour to the Mayan ruins. That was really cool. We took a bus ride while we listened to Miguel tell us about the ancient Mayans.
Kohunlich - ruins.
Me & Dad at the Mayan ruins.
One of the gods at Kohunlich.
He thinks I don't see him hiding behind that tree...
Cathy listening to Miguel tell us more about the Mayans.
Jackie, Richard and Dad take a rest. The bus ride back took a while and everyone fell asleep. I'll spare those who were caught napping by John's camera.The next day was on to Cancun. Or was it Cozumel? Either way, we stayed on the boat that day as we'd already been there before. It was great to have the whole ship to ourselves. We got great spots to just sit and relax.
John on the balcony..Later that evening was the second formal night for dinner. So we got all gussied up once again.
A group shot at Portofino.
Dressed up for the last time.
The last night on the cruise, we toast to a great time had by all.
Alina was our waiter in the main dining room. She was a blast. She had a come back for everything.
We all thought she was great. It was sad when the trip was over. It seems to have gone by a lot faster than the last one. We all had a wonderful time. We ate, drank and were merry.Then, back to reality.
