amapola

The umbrellas were taken down this week. I don’t know when (and if) they will go up again, as they are at the epicenter of the protests against the governor. That block (the last block of Fortaleza St) is currently blocked. 

It's definitely walkable. When you leave Tijuana make a right and just keep walking :). You'll see the ship ahead of you and there is a wide sidewalk so you shouldn't have problems with your luggage.

We're limited first of all by the dates we can travel. DH is a university prof and I'm a librarian, also at a university, so we can only travel when school's not in session. Because of church commitments we can't travel during Xmas, Holy Week (which is a long holiday week here) or Thanksgiving. So that leaves the first week of January and the summer.

The second thing is departure port. We've been on about 11 cruises (nothing compared to what some of you have under your belt!) and all but 2 (Alaska and Western Carib/Panama Canal) have been out of San Juan. For us, these Southern Caribbean cruises are a relaxing, no-brainer vacation. Don't really care which islands we visit. It's all about taking a week to disconnect, read, relax, sleep.

The third is cruise line. Our favorite is Princess, but since it left San Juan we're cruising on RCCL, our second favorite (the difference between the two is negligible, really). We did Carnival twice, many years ago, and won't do it again. And our only bad cruise experience was on Celebrity, so even though the prices for the same week were several hundred dollars less for this coming January, I really didn't feel like giving them a second chance. So Royal it is :-)

Ah! Learn something new every day! :-) Hope he finds what he's looking for.

We will have a port stop in San Juan (RCCL Freedom of the Seas) in a couple of weeks. My DH wants to walk to a bank to pick up some coins not available here in the US.

 

Does anyone know which bank is closest to the piers?

 

Thanks.

 

Cathy

Sorry if I'm completely not understanding this, but what coins would be available in a bank here in PR that are not available in the US? :confused: Collectible/antique coins from a dealer are another thing, but US currency?? Inquiring minds want to know! :)

Okay, I took a picture of the sign so I would remember of the name.... but can anyone read this??? :D My dad might still have the name scribbled on the piece of paper he carried around with restuarant recommendations from bellhops and doormen.

 

Great review and pics! thanks for taking the time to put it all together.

In case you're still wondering, the name of the restaurant is Cielito Lindo :)

Oops. That was long.

Actually, I thought it was fascinating! But then I'm one who can't pass up a cemetery. Thanks for sharing your work!

So, OP, are you even more confused now?? :D ;) Like a PP said, the beauty of cruiseships is that there's a cabin type for every preference. Enjoy your cruise, no matter where you end up! :)

We debated this greatly when we went to Alaska and decided to go with a window instead. For us, it was the best choice because it was so cold we could hardly stand to be outside anyway. The only day we spent any length of time outside was in Tracy Arm (we bundled up and spent the entire morning on deck, because that's what we were there for, right? but I have thin tropical blood :D and was miserably cold and damp). We really wouldn't have used the balcony much, and saved a ton to spend on tours.

I can't wait to go back to Alaska! It was by far my favorite cruise out of the 9 we've taken (all the others have been to the Caribbean, and all but 3 we've had balconies). I would again opt for an oceanview. For us, it's the best choice, but YMMV! :)

We had noted that it was our wedding anniversary and in the cruise personalizer it showed up as "Celebration - slice cake" or something like that. The day came and went and nothing. We didn't mention anything, and frankly, I don't really have any need to get a slice of sheet cake :D, but we also wondered why they ask at all. We did get a flyer offering us a special "anniversary discount" at Diamonds International in GC :rolleyes:. Like they don't have those "discount" coupons everywhere you look :p.

Congrats on two years together! Seems to me like a perfectly good reason to celebrate ;)

Wow, sorry you had this experience. People will stoop to anything :(. I'm glad you didn't fall for it!

He stated his dad was in the hospital and he just went to the US embassy and they were closed.

The US embassy in Puerto Rico, huh? :rolleyes: LOL I'd tell him to at least get his facts straight before coming up with his sob story :D

From a native Spanish speaker, cay and quay are not Spanish words at all. The Spanish word is cayo (Key West is Cayo Hueso) and it's pronounced CAH-joh (j like in jock). :)

Amapola

She was joking, I really don't think she considers herself African American.

In that case... never mind (I haven't watched much SNL since the days of Emily Litella, so I guess the quote is appropriate :D ;) ). Didn't click on the link that was provided, so I was responding to the info here, not what she actually said. In any case, I just realized that I've never seen a single movie she's been in. Which is neither here nor there :p . Better go to bed soon.

Jamaica is considered a Latin American Country. Also, Latin American countries are not characterized just by being Spanish speaking but Portugese.

 

http://countrystudies.us/caribbean-islands/37.htm

 

True, I should have said Spanish & Portugese. Jamaica is geographically in the "Latin America and Caribbean" region, but that doesn't make it a Latin American country. Neither are the USVI, the Caymans, Netherland Antilles...

 

Charlize Theron has joked about being African American

 

http://snltranscripts.jt.org/00/00dmono.phtml

 

I stand corrected then ;) . People can categorize themselves as they see fit, I suppose. Even if I don't agree :D . I'm a US citizen, and glad to be one, but I don't consider myself American. Not the same thing IMO. But that's a whole other kettle of fish and not really a topic for this board :)

Gee I don't think outside an economic agreement that Jamaicans consider themselves Latin Americans??? more British than Spanish influence since the 1400's.

"In most common contemporary usage, Latin America refers only to those territories in the Americas where the Spanish or Portuguese languages prevail: Mexico, most of Central and South America, plus Cuba, the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico in the Caribbean." as per Wiki

 

I concurr :)

... However, I never see non-indian white women wearing sari's - unless they have ties to indian culture. I love sari's but would feel odd, with my lily white skin and red hair, wearing one,...

I wore a sari once, a couple of decades ago for the opening of Aditi: The Festival of India, a celebration of Indian cultures at the Smithsonian (I worked there in the 80's). I had an Indian friend who lent me one of her saris, took me to an Indian shop to get the right underskirt and helped me dress. It was fun to do it for that one event, but of course I felt like I was in costume. My boss at the time, a strawberry blond Irish woman, also wore a sari that she had bought in India. I'm sure we made quite the odd pair :p (I have pale skin, dark hair and eyes) but it was a wonderful experience! Ahh, memories (snif!)

Colin Powel would actually be considered Latino because his roots are Jamaican.

 

Charlize Theron is an African American.

Jamaicans are not Latinos, as their roots are not Spanish.

Charlize is South African, though a naturalized US citizen. IMO that doesn't equal AA, but what do I know :) .

As to the wearing of the kilt, just to be on topic ... how 'bout this for casual nights?

They even have a formal version!

:D ;) :p

Metamucil (or generic psyllium husk) capsules! No messy powders to mix, no yucky glumpy (is that a word? LOL) stuff to drink, easy to carry. Just take a couple of capsules with each meal, in addition to all the good suggestions about eating sensibly, lots of veggies, fruits, water, and so on.