First Days at Sea

April 18, 2014

It was an early wakeup as we prepared for the three hour drive to Fort Lauderdale.  We planned to leave at 0700, avoiding all the potential traffic choke points as we headed east across “Alligator Alley” (I-75) from Punta Gorda to the airport.

The strategy worked and we actually arrived at the car rental return before 1000.  After turning the car in, we rode the free shuttle to the cruise ship terminal and checked in.  We had to wait for about 1 hour before the ship was ready for boarding.  Even though the ship was ready, the staterooms were not, but they became available about 1300.  After a mandatory safety drill at 1500 we expected to leave at 1600, but delays in loading both luggage and stores pushed our departure back nearly one hour.

We were able to enjoy a welcome reception with the captain and senior crew at 1900 before we headed to dinner.  Dinner, while good, was marred by both our table location and poor service, so we asked for a new table.  We will see if it is any better tomorrow.  We will travel 275 nautical miles before we reach our next destination, Half Moon Cay, some 24 NM from Eleuthera in the Bahamas.

April 19, 2014

We chose to have breakfast delivered to the room at 0600 so we could be on the first boat ashore at Half Moon Cay to make the snorkeling tour time Patrick had signed up for.  We suspected the tour would be cancelled due high winds in the area and were surprised when the ship was able to anchor in the 25 knot winds.  The snorkeling tour was cancelled but the stop continued and we had a great day at the beach, since the beach was in the lee from the winds.  Patrick participated in rum tasting before returning to the ship, which departed at 1600.

Returning to the ship, we relaxed with appetizers before heading to the dining room to our new table.  We were the only ones at the table that evening, and the service and food were great.  Since we are still in the Caribbean, the food was themed with those spices.  Miriam had a pot roast entrée and Patrick had a Veracruz style fish dish.  We chose to go to the late show, with a comedian, but left early since it was not very good, in our opinion.

April 20, 2014

Easter Sunday dawned with clear skies, a moderate swell on the beam and 15 knot winds.  There were two services offered, Catholic Mass in the main show theater, and small non-denominational service in one of the meeting rooms.

We began the day with exercise walks on the upper deck and then breakfast in the Pinnacle Dining Room.  The rest of the day was spent in the sun around the pool, passing 14 NM from Cuba about noon and then passing Haiti about 1800.   The ocean was deserted except for a few freighters going the opposite direction.  After more walks around the promenade deck (2 miles) and a late and light lunch we finally returned to the room to prepare for the first formal night.  We were not surprised at the number of passengers who chose not to participate in the formal night, with everything from shorts to jeans around the ship.  However, we both dressed in formal clothes and went to the Pinnacle restaurant for dinner before the late show.

Tomorrow is another day at sea before we arrive in Curacao on Tuesday.  We will not post pictures until we have a faster and cheaper internet connection.