My "Surprise" Retirement Parties

Those of you who know me realize that I just retired and the only way I am able to take this fantastic cruise this fall is because I did just that.

A couple of months earlier, we had a nice retirement party for several of us that were retiring. However my last day to work was a couple months later then the other people and I want to share some events that happened on "my last day" with you.

I had scheduled several meetings with various people on that last day and felt sure that no more "parties" would be held for me since we had the "official" retirement party earlier. As I am going to one of the other buildings,  I thought it a little strange that no one was around and I really hoped no surprise party was in the makings.

To make a long story short, low and behold several people were waiting for me and I did have a small surprise party waiting for me. One of the first questions I asked was if Rexie was there as she had mentioned that she was going to walk up and join me for lunch. She had done this previously many times, but not in the past couple of months. She wasn't and it really surprised me that she did not have a hand in this party.

I received several nice gifts and a few that were on the funny side, but all were appreciated. We talked about some of the events over the years and I think I recalled a few things that had happened to me that probably should not have been said in public. For the record, I will not repeat those stories here.

I still had a couple of people to see and was late in getting finished as Rexie was waiting for me. I was ready for lunch, but she insisted on saying goodbye to someone in the other building. I then was stopped in the hall and asked if I could help with a small emergency in one of the computer labs before leaving for lunch.  Between my wife's insistence and the small emergency, I agreed.

Now I think everyone would agree that I am not a dumb person. But let me tell you I was not being too bright at this time. I had in idea what was about to happen.

As I walked into the computer lab, low and behold was another surprise retirement party in the making. This one was the IT department, which I was not expecting at all especially after having a surprise party just two hours before. I did find out that Rexie had a hand in getting this one arranged.

One of the first things I see is the banner that they have made for me. I think it summed up my plans very appropriately. For those Carnival Cruise fans, the only thing missing is the funnel.

I now have this pinned up in my stairway and see it every night as I head for bed and every morning as I go downstairs. The excitement builds each time I see it.

So, with only a couple of days before we head to Barcelona, I thought it would be a good time to recall my last work day.

Thanks to everyone that made this special day even more "special" to me.

24 Kt Gold Plastic Ship On A Stick

Many of you are asking what in the world is a "24 Kt Gold Plated Plastic Ship On A Stick". For those of you who have cruised on Carnival, it needs no explanation. For those of you who have never seen the world's most coveted prize, let me explain. The "24 Kt Gold Plated Plastic Ship On A Stick" is given to Carnival guests who win various activities aboard ship. These activities can be trivia (our favorite), contests, games, etc.

Here is a 24 Kt Gold Plastic Ship On A Stick from the Carnival Fascination.

The "24 Kt Gold Plastic Ship On A Stick" has become a coveted award in our household. It is a must have gift from Carnival. If we do not win a "24 Kt Gold Plastic Ship On A Stick", then we have had a miserable cruise and had no fun at all. When we cruise, it is important for us to win our ship on a stick. The pressure is on until we have this beautiful "24 Kt Gold Plastic Ship On A Stick". Winning second place and getting a medallion is just no substitute for the "24 Kt Gold Plastic Ship On A Stick". But I'll take it any day I can win it!

Now some of you are probably saying that we must be crazy and only losers want a "24 Kt Gold Plastic Ship On A Stick". Well, let me tell you that I may be crazy, but that is beside the point. We are not the only ones who must have this "24 Kt Gold Plastic Ship On A Stick". Once we have one, then we can relax as the pressure is off.

So here is our count of "24 Kt Gold Plastic Ships On A Stick":

You will note that we did not realize how important these 24 Kt Gold Plastic Ships On A Stick were in the early days. Once we got our first one, then we were hooked! We never failed to win at least one each cruise after our first.

• 1998 - Carnival Destiny - Eastern Caribbean - none
• 2001 - Carnival Victory - Canada Cruise - none
• 2005 - Carnival Fascination - Nassau - none
• 2006 - Carnival Victory - Exotic W. Caribbean - none
• 2007 - Carnival Triumph - Eastern Caribbean - none
• 2007 - Carnival Fascination - Nassau - 1 only
• 2007 - Carnival Fascination - Key West & Calica - 1 only
• 2009 - Carnival Glory - Eastern Caribbean - 1 only
• 2010 - Carnival Sensation - Nassau - 1 only
• 2010 - Carnival Splendor - Mexican Riviera - 1 only
• 2010 - Carnival Miracle - Exotic S. Caribbean - 2 each
• 2010 - Carnival Liberty - Western Caribbean  - 3 each
• 2011 - Carnival Imagination - Key West & Cozumel - 1 only
• 2011 - Carnival Elation (back to back cruises) - Western Caribbean - 3 each

Some where along the one, we have also won 5 medallions.  These are usually given for second place. The medallion I am most proud of was for a version of the game called The Game Show, which is usually played in the auditorium in front of a huge crowd. The way this works, is that they ask a question about a song and then play parts of it as a clue. You have to hit a button first before you could answer the question. If the person who rang in first was wrong, then the other two contestants could ring in and give the correct answer. Each question is worth 100 points and the first person to 500 points wins the coveted 24 Kt Gold  Plastic Ship On A Stick. I really wanted this, because it would be my first 24 Kt Gold Plastic Ship On A Stick that I would win on my own without Rexie's help. I needed this to show my superiority over Rexie, which I can't always do.

On the Carnival Elation, I was picked to be one of the three contestants. I wasn't doing well at all and the woman (I'll call her Cruella De Vil) next to me seemed to know all the answers or was faster at hitting the button. Even when Cruella (for short) was wrong, I sat like a bump on a log not knowing the answer. Actually, the bump on the log probably had more fun.

So, I figured I had to at least make my family proud or I never would hear the end of it. They are like that. See the blog about Fish Had My name On It story to see how my family treats me. I finally decided that I had to take some chances and hit the button earlier. I started doing better which surprised even me. There are three questions that stick in my mind even though I came in second.

I was beginning to feel my oats and was getting some points. They asked a question about where did the person in the song get their thrill. Without even waiting for the music, I hit the button and came up with "on blueberry hill" which was correct. I was on a roll. I impressed everybody in the audience. Even Chuck Berry would have been proud.

The man on the end, I'll call him Larry (from the Larry, Larry, and Larry fame - draw your own conclusions) was doing awful. He had not gotten a question correct. So the MC gave him a question that only he should know, or so we thought he would know. This way, he would at least have some points before the game ended. The question they asked was what did Larry have for breakfast? How would I know? This is the first time I have ever seen him and how would I know what Larry likes to eat for breakfast. So, we wait for Larry to buzz in. Nothing. So we wait some more and still we wait some more. Finally, I hit my button. What in the world was I doing? I guess I just couldn't stand the silence.

Everybody laughed, including the audience, because I now was suppose to answer what Larry had for breakfast. So, I took a deep breath and answered eggs. Seemed like a good choice to me. They asked Larry if he had eggs for breakfast. He hesitates and then says yes he did, but he just couldn't remember until I mentioned them. I was on cloud nine. Everyone in the audience laughed again as I realized I had just answered a question I wasn't even suppose to know. What a hoot!


Now I am tied with Cruella at 400 points. The next correct answer will win the game. They ask the question about who wrote the next song. The song "Piano Man" begins playing and immediately I knew it was either Billy Joel or Elton John. In a second I would have the correct answer in my mind finalized and I was going to win this.  But out of the corner of my eye I see Cruella's hand moving.I didn't have a second! Being a piano player myself, my faster then the speed of lightning reflexes hit the button first. I answered Elton John and immediately heard the groan from the audience as I realized I had given the wrong answer. If I had only had my extra second and I would have gotten it correct.  The 24 Kt Gold Plastic Stick On A Ship was not to be mine! Woe is me. So, after the greatest comeback ever, all I got out of it was a medallion. Rexie and Diva Queen (my granddaughter) were already making fun of me as I got back to my seat. I was holding my head in shame but I had a medal for second place around my neck.

To make it worse, the next morning as we are eating breakfast someone at the breakfast table asked me if I was the one on stage last night. I said I was and the "pregnant pause" at the table said it all. I was a marked man and would never live it down. Then Diva Queen begins telling the Fish Had My Name On It story and laughed at Grandpa. Oh, how embarrassing. Again, see the blog for more about this issue.


I probably should point out that only Carnival has the "24 Kt Gold Plastic Ship On A Stick". And now you know the real story of the most coveted award to be given aboard the Carnival Cruise Lines.

Our last cruise of our marathon cruise..

This cruise begins in Galveston, TX. However, the Carnival Magic does not leave port until the next day. We were planning on getting a hotel for the evening, but Carnival is allowing us to stay on board for this extra day since we are doing a back-to-back after the Transatlantic cruise. They will be having a party with a ceremony welcoming the Magic to Texas. Obviously, many public officials have been invited aboard for the day while this party and ceremony is going on. Additionally, they will be inviting travel agency personnel to visit the Magic so they can help promote the sailing out of Galveston. It plans to be a big ta-do and we have been told we will be invited to attend the ceremony and party. Who-Hoo!

So after an extra day in Galveston, we begin our last cruise:

• Day 1 - Depart Galveston, TX
• Day 2 - Fun Day at Sea
• Day 3 - Fun Day at Sea
• Day 4 - Costa Maya, Mexico - We have never been to Costa Maya. I would like to go see some Maya ruins, but Rexie is not really interested. Well, we'll see what else there is to do when we get there.
• Day 5 - Cozumel, Mexico - We have been to Cozumel many, many times, but have never been downtown. So, that is our plan for this visit. We are going downtown and just visit the shops and see what it is all about. I will not, repeat NOT, be going snorkeling at Chankanaab National Resort. I am sure that the fish that attacked me is waiting for me and still has my name on it. I plan to stay out of the water when we are in Cozumel.
• Day 6 - Fun Day at Sea 
• Day 7 - Arrive Galveston, TX  and fly home

I am sure that we will be ready to go home and see our friends and family. Never in my life have I been on an adventure like this. We can hardly wait. One week and counting down.

Cruise #3 - Great News

Well, maybe good things to come to those that wait!

We have just been notified by Carnival that they are upgrading us to a Grand Suite for our 3rd cruise, the Transatlantic crossing. There are only 12 of these Grand Suites and we have been given one of them because someone cancelled at the last minute and they took a look at everyone on the ship and gave us the upgrade. What an honor!!!!!  Maybe doing back-to-back-to-back-to-back cruises made brownie points with them.

Anyhow, here is what is in store for us on the Transatlantic Cruise:

• Day 1 - Depart Barcelona, Spain
• Day 2 - Palma De Mallorca, Spain - This is our second time in Palma De Mallorca. This time, visit the small village of Valledemossa. WE will visit La Cartuja, an ancient Monastery originally built as a royal hunting lodge, later inhabited by Carthusian monks, and eventually used as lodging for travelers. We will get a chance to see a collection of furniture including a piano where Frederick Chopin composed some of his masterpieces.
• Day 3 - Fun Day At Sea
• Day 4 - Malaga, Spain - Today, we will visit our last port in the Mediterranean. We intend to visit the charming little village of Mijas, which is one of the jewels of the Costa del Sol. We will explore the narrow cobblestone streets lined with tiny whitewashed houses decorated with grill work  and covered with bouganvillea and jasmine.
• Day 5 - Fun Day At Sea - As we go through the Straight of Gibraltar, we begin our journey across the Atlantic Ocean.
• Day 6 - Las Palmas, Canary Island - We are going to visit Gran Canaria, with its beautiful villages, have a lunch of Canarian Specialities. Lying off the coast of the Western Sahara, this is our last stop before leaving the African coast and heading east to the states.
• Day 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, & 12 - Fun Day At Sea - We now have six days in a row before we encounter land again. If we are going to go stark raving mad, it will be during these six days.
• Day 13 - Grand Turk Island - Land again! After our great Dolphin Encounter in August, we plan on trying it with Stingrays on the uninhabited island of Gibbs Cay.
• Day 14, 15, & 16 - Fun Day At Sea - Well, we have four more days at sea as we go around Florida and head for Galveston, TX, our final destination in the US.
• Day 17 - Galveston, TX - After 40 days, we finally are back to the United States. Our cruising is not finished, but more on that another time.

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Europe Revisited

After the first cruise, we get to do it again with new and improved zest! Here are the plans for our second cruise:

• Day 1 - Depart Barcelona, Spain - Since this is also the last day of the first cruise, we say goodbye to our family as they have work and school to go back to.Sometimes being retired does not suck at all.
• Day 2 - Marseilles, France - As this is our second time to dock in Marseilles, we plan on traveling back in time as we explore the historical pleasures of Aries and Les Baux de Provence. Arles is known as the Rome of ancient Gaule and was the location where Vincent Van Gogh painted some of his best known works. While we walk in the footsteps of Vincent Van Gogh, we get to visit the Roman amphitheater and the beautiful Romanesque St Trophime church. Next, we travel to Aix En Provence, the capital of the Provence region. We will walk through the Cours Mirabeau. This wide avenue was built in the 1600s on the sit of the city's medieval ramparts. We will view a fountain dating back to 1743 bonwon for producin warm water and to have healing properties. healing, here I come!!!!
• Day 3 - Savona, Itally - We will discover the historical pleasures of Genoa, meandering through the backstreets, discovering the shops, boutiques, and small cafes along the way. Old time shopping? I am ready!
• Day 4 - Civitavecchia, Italy - This will be our second trip to Rome. This time, we plan on visiting more of the Italian countryside. We will drive along the new Appean Way, which now runs adjacent to the old one which was one of the first ancient Roman military roads. I can just visualize the Roman legions returning from foreign lands. Wow! We will stop for a short stroll through the lovely medieval town of Castelgandolfo where the Popes have kept their summer residence for centuries. Our final destination will be the Monte Due Torri Farmhouse. Here, after a relaxing tour of the property, we will assist in  preparing our hand made pasta meal before enjoying the brunch in the farmhouse with plenty of homemade wine. Thank goodness for having a bus to take us back to our ship.
• Day 5 - Naples, Italy - On this second visit to Naples, we will be taking a walking tour through the narrow streets of the Napoli quarter, always full of lie and interest. Antique stalls and bookshops, tiny grocery shops and fruit stands, and above all, the gesticulating Neapolitans hold our attention as we continue walking. Next we visit the San Domenico Spare with its monumental church, pass by San Gregorio Armeno Street and enter the cave underground Naples with its old Roman Aqueduct. The underground caverns of Naples were born with the city and grew with it over the years. The history continues as the underground was used during WWII as bomb shelters. Next, we learn that pizza was invented in Naples in 1830 and it is known worldwide that Naples has the best, different from anywhere else. We will be shown a proper "Pizzaiolo" and it will be explained how to make and cook a pizza in the original wood oven. I can't wait as a generous taste of pizza will be served after the demonstration. Notice the food theme going on here!
• Day 6 - Fun Day at Sea - Finally, another chance to rest from a whirl-wind of excursions.
• Day 7 - Dubrovnik, Croatia - Today, we take a short sail to Lokrum, a nature preserve, rich in history. Next we enjoy a walking tour in the Old City. In the 12 Century, Benedictine monks built a monastery on the island and have occupied it for over 600 years. The American continent was discovered 3 centuries later. Can you image?
• Day 8 & 9 -Venice, Italy - We will spend two days in Venice. Of course, we plan on taking an evening gondola ride. Wouldn't you if you had a chance? The last gondola ride I had was in the Venetian hotel in Las Vegas. I imagine this will be a little different. What else are we going to do? Who knows, but there is plenty to see. Obviously, words will not be able to adequately describe the majesty of Venice as it is revealed from its most dramatic perspective, the water.
• Day 10 - Fun Day at Sea - We enjoy the sail around the boot of Italy.
• Day 11 - Messina, Italy - Today, we get to view Sicily's still active volcano, Mt. Etna, as we travel to a 110 year old Sicilian villa to see the creation of some local works of jewelry art. I love buying jewelry and Rexie loves getting it. Our perfect excursion.
• Day 12 - Fun Day at Sea - We need this day to travel the length of the Mediterraean Sea heading back to Barcelona.
• Day 13 - Barcelona, Spain - This ends our Mediterranean cruising. Next, we head across the Atlantic Ocean.

I must be off!

Getting Closer

I wanted to share with you the first cruise itinerary places and some of the places we plan to see..

• Day 1 - Depart Barcelona, Spain - As we arrive by plane in Barcelona, we will have two days to see the sights before beginning the first cruise. There are plenty of things to see. One of the things we intend to do is take a trip to the rugged Montserrat Mountain range, which is just northwest of Barcelona. We are looking forward to visiting the Montserrat Monastery which was founded as a Benedictine abbey during the 11th century. The Abbey is perched 2,400 above the Llogregat River.
• Day 2 - Monaco - As our ship docks in Monaco, we will be taking a bus to the city of Nice where we will see the Negresco hotel with its ornate Rococo facade, and pass by the Russian Orthodox Cathedral with six domes and colorful ceramics. Next, we will be able to stroll through the village of Eze, which is perched high above the sea on the face of a cliff. 
• Day 3 - Livorno, Italy - This is the gateway to Florence and Pisa. Obviously, no visit to Pisa would be complete without seeing the Leaning Tower of Pisa. We have tickets to actually go into the Leaning Tower of Pisa, which has a limited capacity. Will we walk to the top of the Leaning Tower of Pisa? We shall see, but I intend to do just that.
• Day 4 - Civitavecchia, Italy - Rome is where we will be going when we dock here. There is so much to do in Rome, that we are thankful that we will be coming back to Rome a second time on the second cruise. You name it, we intend to see it. The Vatican, St. Peter's Square, St. Peter's Basilica, the Colosseum, and the Trevi Fountain are just a few of items on this trip.
• Day 5 - Naples, Italy - We will be walking through Pompeii, which was buried by ash and pumice stone in 79AD.
• Day 6 - Messina, Italy - As we visit this historical Sicilian city, we will visit a Greek theater built by the Greeks in the 3rd Century B.C. and later restructured by the Romans.
• Day 7 - Fun Day at Sea - Finally, a chance to rest from a whirl-wind of excursions.
• Day 8 - Palma de Mallorca, Spain - This is the capital of the Balearic Islands. We will visit Soller, a quiet and picturesque town, nestled in the mountains, with a rugged northern coast. We then take a train ride  across the island which provides a look at the rugged interior.
• Day 9 - Marseilles, France - As we dock at Marseilles, we will visit the Village of Cassis, which dates back to the ancient Greeks and Romans. Cassis is nestled in a cove at the base of a medieval castle.
• Day 10 - Arrive Barcelona, Spain - As we arrive back to Barcelona, our first cruise ends and we get ready for the second cruise which is longer. More about that cruise tomorrow.

I must be off!

The Fish Attack - Update

Just wanted to give you a quick update on my fish attack.

Rexie and I were visiting my Granddaughter (Diva Queen) this weekend.  She told me that she did not tell the fish story to her class mates at school because she didn't want to embarrass me.

Isn't that sweet of her. Yet, she told complete strangers and laughed.

The Fish Had My Name On It

As promised, here is the fish attack story.

It was a dark and dreary night, when all of a sudden...  Oops - wrong beginning.

Actually, it was a somewhat overcast day in Cozumel when I was attacked by a ten foot shark. Well, it really wasn't ten feet. OK, it really wasn't a shark.

Prior to this attack, my grandson had decided not to go snorkeling because he thought there was a fish with his name on it. He was wrong! Actually, I would learn that the fish had my name on it!

While we made fun of him, I never thought it would come back to haunt me. Karma can come back to bite you in the rear. The second time we were in Cozumel, they talked me into going snorkeling with them. Since we had such a good time with the dolphin encounter, I figured I would give it a try. What's the worst that could happen, I wouldn't like it?

We went back to Chankanaab Park, which is just three miles south from the boat dock. As the litrature indicates: "The name is Mayan and can be broken down into Chaan, meaning little, and Kanaab meaning sea - little sea. It was given this name because of the lagoon situated in the park that connects with tunnels to the ocean. The Park was created to protect Cozumel's diverse and ecologically sensitive regions of flora and fauna."

This is a great place to visit if you are ever in Cozumel. They have dolphins, snorkeling, seal shows, swimming, etc. A fantastic place. The beauty of this park, is that you can actually walk from the beach, down three steps, directly into the coral reef. It is beautiful and full of fish, whole herds of them.

So, we are all snorkeling and having a great time. Well, some of us are. I had problems with the mask because of my beard. It would not seat fully and continually filled with water. So, I just pushed the mask on tight and went under water to see the fish and coral. It was working and I was enjoying myself. Because of the water current, we were being pushed further along the water's edge. This really wasn't a problem, but I decided to start "snorkeling" back the way we had come. Soon, I was by myself and the rest of the family was probably 60 feet away from me. As I am swimming back, I see this fish swimming across my path in front of me. It was the biggest fish I had seen so far and thought to myself that it was pretty amazing. The fish looked to me to be about two feet long. All of a sudden it turned, opened it's mouth and headed straight for me. I knocked it out of the way and started swimming back to the steps to get out. I had finally found the fish that had MY NAME on it. When this happened, I guess I screamed (not like a little girl), but I screamed pretty good. My son yelled to me if I was OK. Keep in mind that I am swimming back to the steps to get out and could care less if I answered him. I eventually yelled that I was OK but kept swimming as fast as I could.


By the time they got out, I had calmed down and was drying myself off. They asked what happened and I relayed the story. Being the nice, caring family they are not, they all began making fun of me by asking if it was 5 feet long, ten feet long, or larger. They kept asking if I saw my name on it. Enough was enough, but they all had there fun.

We get back to the ship and I think everything is forgotten. Little did I know that it was just beginning.

The next morning at breakfast, we are sitting with total strangers as my seven year old granddaughter tells the "fish has my name on it" story to everyone that would listen. Not only did she tell it from her point of view, but she then laughed at her grandpa. Not once did she laugh, but many times. I am so glad I can be such a source of fun for her.

Well, now you know the fish story. I was going to put the picture of the fish here, but there was no way I was going back in that sea to get it!!!!

Cruising in August

Since we do not leave for several days on our big cruise, I thought I would share some thoughts on our recent cruise that we took on the Carnival Elation out of Mobile Alabama.

If you have ever tried to get from here to Mobile, Alabama by airplane, you know that is almost impossible or will cost you an arm and a leg (not ready to give up either at this time). Since we were going with my oldest son and family, it was decided to drive to Mobile in their new van. Talk about new vehicles, it is amazing what technology is being put in today’s vehicles. Actually, I would be buying a new car myself, but we can go on several cruises for the cost of monthly payments. You know what my vote is, don’t you.

Anyhow, I digress. Some would call it a squirrel moment. Boy, some days, we have a whole herd of squirrels around me. What was I talking about??? Oh, I remember… Paramount Joe. Let me explain. 

The Paramount Arts Center had a contest going on to take a cut-out of Paramount Joe to different locations, and take pictures of him. The person that got the most pictures of Joe posted won An all-expense paid cruise around the world!!! No not really, it was for a few tickets to shows. Anyhow, as we are traveling to Mobile we start taking pictures of Paramount Joe at different locations, like the Space and Air Museum at Huntsville, Alabama. See Joe as he checks out the Apollo 11 Emblem...

Eventually, Joe was torn, pulled in different directions, and he refused to have a picture taken of him on board ship using the restroom. That ended our Paramount Joe experience. In my defense, I did tell him not to drink the water in Mexico.

Well, we had great weather in Cozumel on our first visit. Actually, we visited Cozumel two times. We did what is called a back-to-back cruise. We had the first cruise which only went to Cozumel and then returned to Mobile. In Mobile, we waited while everyone else got off the ship. Then, one of the officers took us down to Customs and then took us back aboard immediately. We were the last ones off the ship and the first ones on the ship that day. We actually had the entire ship to ourselves for about 2 hours before anyone else boarded. It was even better because we had the same cabins for both cruises. We did the back-to-backs for several reasons. First, we only had to travel once for two cruises. Second, Carnival’s loyalty program is currently based on the number of cruises you are on. By doing a back-to-back, my son became a Platinum cruiser with Carnival and the two grand kids become Platinum on the Mediterranean cruise. What are the benefits of being Platinum? Well, the biggest is that we get a free bag of laundry each day we are on board. This sometimes saves us a suitcase. Additionally, we get immediate embarkation. We don’t wait in line to get on board ship. We get free admission into the slot tournament, and several gifts of food and carnival items during the cruise.

During our second cruise we went back to Cozumel and Calica. During the first trip to Cozumel we went to a Dolphin Encounter and went snorkeling. Without a doubt, the dolphin encounter was a highlight of our trip. It was awesome. See some of the photos of our dolphin encounter.

Rexie said that was the best kiss she has had in years. hmmm...

On our second trip to Cozumel, we went back to national park and went Snorkeling. This is one of the few places in the world where you can walk off the beach and be in a coral reef. Everyone one had a great time until I was attacked (sort of) by a fish.  More about my fish attack tomorrow.

While the rest of the Carnival fleet was having problems with Hurricane Irene (or as John Heald says, Bastard 1) we only had a few showers that actually kept the temperature down. The ship that was in San Juan was ordered out of the port three hours early by officials and left 300 cruisers in San Juan. We had no problems until we got to Calica and visited the Ruins of Tulum. While we were in the Ruins, it was 106 degrees with 100% humidity and was NOT raining. We were exhausted when we finished our tour.

Because we were doing a back-to-back we really got to know several of the staff onboard. We probably had the best Dining Room experience we have ever had on a Carnival Ship. We sometimes have a head waiter who is great, or an assistant waiter who is great, or a Maître De that is great. But in this cruise, we had all three that were awesome. Our Maître D’ was Nikola, our head waiter was Liberato, and our assistant waiter was Marlon. This trio was great. They knew what we liked to drink and had to waiting for us. Liberato and Nikola actually had crème brulèe made for us on the last elegant night, even though it is no longer on the menu. This was very impressive.

Well, we get back to Mobile and being Platinum guests one of the perks is that we get to get off before the common people do. This is awesome as we usually have no lines as we go through customs. Well, we get downstairs in the customs building and start getting our suitcases. We only find three of our seven suitcase for both families. We start searching for our suitcases in other areas, with no luck. By this time I get Carnival personnel involved and of course I am very calm and patient. Right! Let’s just say that I used my “Platinum” status to full advantage as we ended up with ten people looking for our suitcases. After a half hour, we suitcases were found and by then there was a big line for customs. 

The carnival people quickly took us around the crowd and put us second in line. I am sure we upset several cruisers that were waiting in line as we “butted” in front.

Even with the luggage problems, we were actually out of the terminal and heading towards I-65 with an hour of getting off the ship. The biggest problem with Mobile is that it is not near the interstate and takes several minutes to get out of the neighborhood. Coupled with that problem and the airplane situation, I am sure these are several of the reasons that the Carnival elation is moving to New Orleans permanently the end of October.

And we begin...

Many people have asked to be kept up-to-date on our travels. This is our attempt to do just that.

What do we intend to do here?

Well, we hope to post many, many, many pictures of all the great things we see. Additionally, we will attempt to put into words what we see, our experiences, our good times, and our bad times (THERE WILL BE NONE!). Well, there may be some... like when I forgot our passports before getting on our cruise in August. I have never seen my wife as mad at me as she was then. Luckily, my sister was able to get copies of our birth certificates and we made it on ship just fine. I think I can say that we are on track for our 43rd year of marriage.

We are counting down before we head to Barcelona, Spain. It is just 20 days and a wake-up before we go to the airport. Time is going ver-r-r-r-y slow as our trip of a lifetime is about to begin. More later.

I must be off...