Friday, June 1, 2012

All Aboard

I survived! I just got back from a 7 day excursion to some of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. I still am overwhelmed with gratitude that my dear friend, Sarah, took me on this journey.

It started in Puerto Rico. When I got off the plan I couldn't believe it was real. It seemed like a journey just to get there. LOTS of hours in the plane to get to Puerto Rico but it was definitely worth it.

It was overcast in PR, but that didn't damper my spirit. I will admit leaving my sweet little girl for 7 days was tough...I had tears on the way to the airport...but it was a good experience for the BOTH of us.She got quality daddy and family time. 

I got a trip of a lifetime with a friend I don't get to see very often.

We started by heading straight to the liquor store. Surprise surprise. I learned that you could bring 2 bottles each of wine or the bubbly (champagne) so we quickly gathered our supplies.

Sarah had some stuff she brought taken away. She thought she would just pack it. Hilarious. She was actually surprised when they took it. Still makes me laugh.

We got to our ocean view room and unpacked. Anyone that knows me should not be surprised. I am a neat freak! I like things in place.

We decided after to check the ship out. Get familiar. I am not sure why because we continued to get LOST all week long. 

Anyone that has been a cheesy Carnival cruise should know they like to take your picture. Not only do they like to take it but with CHEESY backgrounds. I would rather pass them by but not my friend. She takes every opportunity to let us make asses of ourselves.

If the pictures weren't $20 a pop you would have enjoyed seeing the pictures we took. Something I think about and just laugh. We definitely used the props and acted out scenes. SOBER mind you.
(think titantic)

After our exploring, we enjoyed our first chef prepared meal. I loved the vegetarian options.

We decided to stay in that night since we knew we had a full week ahead.  So after walking around some more we went to our room to call it a night.

We got up early to hit the gym. YEP. The gym. I worked out every day on the ship. Good way to start the day.

Our first stop was St Thomas. There seems to be many Americans that stay there. I asked every single one of them why St Thomas and no one had a real answer for me.  I came to the conclusion that the ships just left them behind. I just truly wasn't a huge fan.

Don't get me wrong, it is very beautiful there but just wasn't my favorite.


Tuesday was a day at sea. We were thankful for the "day" off to just relax because we both had long days on Sunday from travel.
We found chairs on the upper deck and just sun bathed ALL DAY long. It was perfect.

Wednesday was Barbados. One of the best days I have EVER had in my life. I don't even have pictures really (still waiting on some from Sarah) but the day itself was just magical.

It was overcast and we thought we wouldn't get much sun. We like to just park it on a beach.  We had asked our waiter the night before for a suggestion of a beach but SO thankful we asked the locals when we got off the ship.

Brown's beach was the SPOT. Sarah and I like to talk to people. Especially locals. We like to find out their story etc. Everyone in Barbados seemed to be young looking and just HAPPY.

Even the beach vendors didn't annoy me. It's like a NYC sidewalk on the beach. I actually bought and anklet. Unlike me but the RUM punch was good...soooo good. The secret was nutmeg. Delicious and dangerous. No real stop there.

Friday was St Kitts. BEAUTIFUL! So beautiful. It was just breathtaking. The only thing is LOTS of hills. I have a fear of heights and those cab rides I was PRAYING the entire time and NOT looking down.


I need to add some pictures of St Kitts. Everyone has a pet monkey. So cute. We made another friend for the day, his name was Joe and his pet monkey was Mr Jim Brown. Hilarious.

He was our buddy for the day and we enjoyed learned more about the culture and way of life there. I seriously just wanted to move there.

This brings us to the last day. St Maarten. This was my favorite island. Not my favorite day but I loved it there. I do definitely plan on coming back to visit. Lots to do and the beaches were just gorgeous.

I probably could elaborate more on each day or even the nights or let Sarah tell her version...haha I definitely acted younger than my age. But I blame the people. They all thought I was 26. One said 28 and thought that was going to offend me.

People thought I looked like Jewel or Cameron Diaz. It was good for my ego. Seriously.  Funny too.

I had the BEST time. I am glad this is how I got to start my summer. What a blast and a trip I will NEVER forget!

Cheers.






I will add more scenery pics soon!