Land Ho!

Ahoy! We're back from our 6 day cruise through the Western Caribbean and I'm back to being a blogging fool! We had the most wonderful time eating, drinking, socializing and relaxing. We left on Saturday the 18th from the port of Ft. Lauderdale. The temps were in the 80's and it was beautiful. We spent the first day out to sea relaxing on the pool deck and soaking up the rays.

Our stateroom with balcony

View of Ft. Lauderdale from our balcony

Customary muster drill - don't I look happy?

One of two pool decks

We arrived in Grand Cayman on day 3 and it was raining! Hugh and I had planned to snorkel, but instead ended up in Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville. It seemed we were not the only ones from the ship who had the same idea. It was fun watching everyone else drinking and making complete asses out of themselves and since we had already been to Grand Cayman twice before, we didn't feel the need to explore the island in the rain.

View of rainy Grand Cayman from our room balcony

Wi-Fi Lounge where I e-mailed the girls and mom daily

On day 4, we arrived in Cozumel, Mexico. It was not raining, but it was cloudy, hot and humid. Hugh and I headed to the nearest resort along the beach and went snorkeling. We saw lots of tropical fishies and coral reefs. It is so fun and relaxing to float around in the warm tropical blue waters. After snorkeling for about an hour and a half, we ate lunch, showered and took a quick taxi ride into Cozumel for some SHOPPING! Hugh ended up in Tequileria where they have over 200 different kinds of tequila. Needless to say, Hugh sampled his fair share and ended up purchasing a couple of bottles. We ended up back on the ship around 6 p.m. - just in time for our semi-formal dinner, which was a nightly occurrence.

Just getting off the ship in Cozumel, Mexico

The resort in Cozumel where we snorkeled

Tequileria where Hugh got happy!

For those of you who are regular cruisers, I'm sure you are well aware of the craziness that occurs nightly on these ships as well as the endless amounts of food that is consumed around the clock. Good golly, Hugh says he gained 4 pounds! I cannot say what I gained, because I did not get on the scale prior to cruising, nor do I wish to get on one now. There were different activities occurring all day long. Something for everyone - even Bingo and scrapbooking! There was late night dancing in the disco, game shows in the Spotlight Lounge, nightly shows in the theatre, midnight buffets, shopping, wine tasting, art auctions, belly flop contests, hula hoop contests, and the list goes on.

Midnight buffet

Belly flop contest winner (cruise director Mark on the left with mic.)

We met some great people and made some new friends from Salisbury, MD. It was smooth sailing the entire trip and not once did I get sea sick. (Our captain was only 38 years old!) As of now, I am still experiencing "sea legs syndrome". It is such a weird feeling. I swear my house is floating! And now, it's back to reality. No more towel art and mint before going to bed, no more housekeeper, no more cooks, no more bartenders, no more food....

Our new friends, JC and Heather from Salisbury, MD

38 year old Captain Ban Srenko from Croatia

Towel art

There were about 2,500 passengers aboard Royal Caribbean's Enchantment of the Seas and 850 crew members. The Enchantment of the Seas was remodeled and cut in half a few years ago to add a center Solarium and another pool. It has 11 floors, 2 pools, 4 hot tubs, a day spa, 3 lounges, a disco, theatre, 2 large dining rooms, a steak house grill, arcade, rock climbing wall, teen center/night club, day care center, library, wi-fi lounge, mini mall, fitness center and a bar on every corner! One fact that I do remember is that they cook up approximately 50,000 eggs per cruise! That's alot of omelets!

Later mates!