Live from the Sea Princess-12/3 to 12/17

[med510]

It is so great reading your posts from the Sea Princess. We are home in the cold weather of Seattle, but with such fond memories of last week. We also had Raul as a room steward ( Aloha 720) a great location. We found everything to be wonderful on the cruise. We did all independant tours. Our favorites: Tortola, Patouche catamarin to the Baths (wonderful), Dominica, Reynold (Renyo), Antigua (Lawrence of Antigua), Barbados, wonderful Glory Tours, and Grand Cayman , Nativeways, Rays, Reef and Rum Point. Sorry to sound sappy, but we LOVED, every one of the tours. We found the Brits on the cruise to be quite entertaining, did personal choice dining and never had a dull dinner. Food was good, entertainment was OK...but everything else was so much fun, who cares about one or two off entertainment nights...have a few more drinks. Cheers!

[haggis]

Hi there, please keep the reports coming. Cant wait till February when we join her in Barbados, Jimmy.

[dan40]

JMB410,

Since you like "your" aft balcony so much, let me direct you to "your" front porch. Go to deck 10, go forward, port or starboard, all the way until you come to a door at the end of the hall. It is usually open but if its closed it says "non-access, keep this area clear". This does NOT mean you can't use this door. Open it and 3 ft. away is another door, this leads onto an open deck on the front of the ship. This is a romantic, relaxing place to go at nite.

 

You will be in the wind and the dark so a jacket or sweater might be in order. Stay there until you develop "night vision".[30 min. or so] Once you do, you will be amazed at the stars and the ocean that can only be seen from this dark location. You will have the same view that they have on the bridge.

I look for this front access on every ship, its my favorite "secret" place.

 

Dan

[balanceok]

Tender at St. Maarten????

 

What's up with that?

[2Badgers]

Thanks, JMB410! As future Sea Princess Cruisers, we are enjoying your posts and looking forward to your advice on shore ex., especially re Bonaire. Sounds like a wonderful time so far!

Also thanks to dan40-we'll be searching for that special place on our next cruise! Can't wait.

[PescadoAmarillo]

Well, a BIG change of plans today, as 35-45 knot winds and high swells have prevented us from docking in St. Kitts (as well as a Celebrity ship we saw floating just off the island early this morning). We have been granted a day at sea and a slow sail to St Lucia tomorrow. Probably due to the the very slow speed, the ship is riding amazingly smoothly...it's sunny, and the decks are still open, but it is very windy and there are lots of white caps. No problem, more time to keep filling you in on the cruise.

 

After announcing that we would tender in St. Martin due to pier construction, they announced late in the evening after Tortola that we would dock after all. Yeah! There were 4 large ships all docked (us, the Navigator OTS, the Caribbean Princess, and the Carnival Triumph), so I really don't know what the tender thing was supposed to be about. No matter...it didn't happen

 

We ended up skipping Orient Beach yesterday as we have been before and were moving a bit slowly after our full day in Virgin Gorda. We took the water taxi (all day $5 for adults) for the first time in our 3 visits to St. Martin and stayed on the Dutch side, walking along the lovely boardwalk in the morning and then, after lunch, enjoying the beach right there. This was all under construction when we were here 2 years ago, and although it is still a bit torn up, the part that is finished, from Bobby's Marina to the main area, is just beautiful. $25 bought us unlimited water taxi, 2 beach chairs, an umbrella and two drinks...a very fun, restful day. It was 86 degrees and sunny, and it was quite hot walking around.

 

Last night's entertainment was to have been the production show Shake Rattle and Roll, which we have seen on the Grand Princess and really enjoyed, so we planned our evening around it, wanting to arrive early. Just before we left our cabin, Alastair came on the PA system and announced that, due to illness (we assume Scott Honeycutt still), it was canceled, but tonight's performer (Jimmy Niern) was to go on instead. We had no idea who he was or what to expect, but were pleasantly surprised. He is a Scot who does a variety show...sings, plays sax, clarinet and bagpipes, a bit of comedy. At first I was a bit skeptical...his brogue was VERY thick, and his jokes seemed to make sense mostly to the many Brits, but he was an excellent musical performer, and that talent transcends nationalities. His music was mostly from the 50s and early 60s, which was a bit before my time but perfect for the audience (including my husband), and he finished up with Queen, so there was something for everyone. The Brits were really into it, though, which just goes to show that on this partcular cruise, either the Americans or the Brits enjoy the comedians, but rarely both groups at once are totally happy. Again, we loved the music although we didn't "get" the jokes (accent nor topic). We sent a get well "card" to Scott Honeycutt; hopefully, they will be performing Shake Rattle and Roll tomorrow night if the entire team is well.

 

Dinners remain very good to excellent. Service is the same. One notch below Celebrity, but we really enjoy the flexibility that Princess offers and have met so many wonderful people with PC dining. My husband began carrying a tiny map of Britain that we printed off of Google maps, so that when we're told that someone is from Sussex, or Kent, or Glasgow, etc., he pull it out of his pocket and asks them to show us where it is. BTW, last night's dinner was the Italian menu, and my husband chose the pot roast and said it was the best beef he'd ever had on Princess....highly recommended. I am not an adventurous eater and have had a lot of the always available salmon, which I love.

 

As I mentioned, we have an unplanned day at sea today. We had an ATV tour planned, meeting a group at 8:20am, and so we set the alarm and got up and dressed in long pants (required) and closed toe shoes (also required) and headed to the buffet for a quick breakfast when the Captain came over and made his announcement that due to the wind speeds and the direction (across the bow) and the narrow entrance to the pier at St. Kitts that we would not be able to go. At least it is an island that we have been to before, but we were looking forward to it. Tomorrow in St Lucia we are taking sea kayaks across to Pigeon Island.

 

The ship is in PERFECT condition...I see no obvious signs of wear at all. The only indication that she is not new is that some of the drawers in our cabin close very hard or not at all. But the carpets, the furnishings, the tiles....all are beautiful and like new. Did laundry yesterday morning...as has been stated before by (I believe) Toto2, they are small but free. First time I've ever had to read the instructions on how to operate a washer and dryer, as they are Miehl and VERY different from my Kenmores at home. The "bag of laundry deal" was in the Patter....it is now up to either $17.95 or $18.95 (I forget which), but I am cheap enough and it was expensive enough that I did my own.

 

We booked more cruises yesterday....this exact same cruise in the exact same cabin for Feb 3 2007 (which should be proof positive that we're having a great time), and two 10 night cruises back to back on the Sun Princess in January 2007 in the cabin next door, which are almost the same cruises we did in December 2003. We couldn't decide between the cruises (14 nights vs. 20 nights) and the ports are very different, so we just booked all 3 and will sort it out later. Next April we're doing a transpacific cruise, and figured we would need another "fix" early in 2007 when the new vacation time was available. BTW, if you haven't checked pricing lately, cruises are costing a LOT more next year! The same 14 night is $280 pp more than we're paying this year; the two 10 nights B2B will be $900pp more than we paid on the Sun Princess in 2003. Of course, that year we booked the two cruises at a Princess "fire sale" less than 60 days prior to the cruise, at a very cheap price, so it is a little different situation to book ahead like this, but it is obvious that that the oil prices and other inflation as well as increased demand are starting to show.

 

Dan...how funny you should mention "our" front balcony. We were in A201 on the Sun Princess two years ago this month, and chose that cabin for that exact reason. It was a wonderful spot to watch sailaway and arrivals, and we loved it. Thanks for reminding me! We tend to go for the "cheap seats" on Caribbean cruises, but always choose really good locations...both the front and the aft of Aloha deck and the front of Baja on the Sun class ships are great.

[Coral]

Enjoying your reports! Glad you are having a great time!

[loge23]

Thanks for sharing your trip with us, JMB410!

It sounds wonderful and we're following along in anticipation of our upcoming Sea cruise!

[balanceok]

Thanks so much. I'm anxiously awaiting your next post.

[jnc411]

Thanks So Much , keep the posts coming , we will be on the Sea Princess in March. Just can't wait after reading the post. :)

Cori

[PescadoAmarillo]

Good morning...we are docked in St. Lucia. It is going to be wam (88F) but it showered over night and the sun is a bit intermittent this morning. Captain Kent announced that there are still strong winds just offshore (we felt them this morning as the ship approached the island) so our sea kayak trip to Pigeon Island may be cancelled. Unfortunately, it is scheduled for 1pm, so we don't know this morning if we can take a taxi tour now for all day or just till noon. We've been here before, but it is a beautiful island and I can't get enough of it. I am hoping that Captain Kent will do as our captain on the Serenade of the Seas did last March after leaving St. Lucia...cruise down the coast for a sunset over the Pitons. Not sure if the timing of the sunset will allow that, but it was spectacular....like getting a free excursion.

 

The ride was smooth yesterday despite the weather. It stayed mostly sunny all day, and we were traveling so slowly that people were able to enjoy the sun (which is VERY important to the Brits!). We went to a movie in the Princess Theater yesterday afternoon (Mr. and Mrs. Smith) which was a treat in itself as we haven't been to a movie in a few years (no time at home). We then sat in the aft hot tub on Deck 14 and watched a beautiful sunset.

 

Unfortunately, Alastair has had a tough time scheduling shows this cruise...Scott Honeycutt is still sick, so no Shake Rattle and Roll tonight either. Last evening's theater performance was to have been an opera singer, which we don't care for, so we were going to skip it and just go to dinner around 6:45 (after the hot tub sunset). As we were heading to dinner Alastair announced that a performer who we had missed earlier in the week (who played opposite Cinematastic) was to perform instead, at 8:30. Well, we may have chosen an earlier dinner had we known, but got to the theater at 8:30 and at least had standing room for the show. It was wonderful...his name was Jon something (I'll list all the performers when I get home and have my Patters in front of me)...youngish, funny, played piano, did magic and jokes. Very versatile. Apparently he threw this show together after not being able to disembark in St. Kitts. We were very impressed. Maybe because he was a younger Brit, we got all the jokes this time.

 

The 50s Rock and Roll party was at 9:30...we went and lasted the whole time, which we can't say about the Island Night party the evening before. Wonderful live music in the venues...we've been really happy with the entertainment (but still hope we get to see Shake Rattle and Roll next week).

 

I told the waiter to surprise me with the entree last night at dinner, and had the crawfish, which I would never have chosen and it was really good. They had another fancy merengue and cake dessert bar in the buffet yesterday at lunch. We each had one and called it lunch.

 

Someone asked about the bathroom size. Our bathroom, especially the shower, is bigger than on the Grand Class ships (we are in an inside). I can actually shave IN the shower, instead of OUTSIDE of it, as I must do on the larger ships.

 

Tomorrow we have another ATV tour planned, and the sunset sail. Looking forward to both.

[julieh]

So pleased to read your reviews so thank you for posting. We shall be joining the ship on the 24th December in Barbados and I will post so you can keep reliving those memories.

 

Sailed on the Sea in May and it was excellent glad to hear it's still the same.

 

Enjoy the rest of your cruise.

 

Julie

[two4cruising]

JBM410

I like to read your posts.

We returned three weeks ago from the same cruise and when I read your report it is like beeing on the boat again. :)

[PescadoAmarillo]

Hi from Barbados-

 

We are docked and the 650 (mostly) Brits have begun going through "flight check in" in the Vista Lounge in preparation for their flights home. They are allowed to leave their carryons on the ship in a secured location and can spend some time sightseeing in Barbados. They are being asked to return to the ship 30 minutes prior to their transfer to the airport. Except for the more frequent announcements, it is just like any other port for us. I understand that we will have a different gangway if we are continuing on the cruise.

 

Yesterday in St. Lucia we were very lucky with the weather...the early morning showers ended completely by 10am or so. We walked around the terminal shops in the morning and then at 1pm headed out for our sea kayaking excursion to Pigeon Island. We traveled about 20-25 minutes by bus to the northern end of the island (where there are some beautiful homes) to Rodney Marina and Rodney Point. Pigeon Island was connected in the late 1970s to St. Lucia by a causeway, and it is along this causeway that the Sandals Grand St. Lucia is located. We put in our kayaks just south of the Sandals....they had all doubles set up, but my husband and I asked for singles (which we saw on the truck) and they gladly complied. The kayaking is done mostly in a protected bay, but due to the strong winds yesterday, it was a bit of a workout. However, we do a lot of canoeing and white water rafting at home so it was no issue...I think some of the others were a bit put off by the wind and the swells. We pulled up on a beach on Pigeon Island where a snack was served, and you could either kayak more, beach, snorkel or climb up a hill (a short distance but steep in parts) to Fort Rodney, the remains of an English fort. The views from the top made it worth the trip. Windstar's Wind Surf was tendering in Rodney Bay and made for some beautiful photos from top at Fort Rodney We actually kayaked by a wedding being held on the beach at the Sandals, so we may be in a few wedding photos! The excursion was a lot of fun and I recommend it for anyone in pretty good physical condition and unafraid of water (one of the group's kayaks did turn over).

 

Another sailaway and sunset in the hot tub. No trip to the Pitons on this cruise, but it would have been dark by the time we arrived there. Hopefully, for those cruising in March, the captain will add that at the end of the day, as the Pitons are really fantastic from the ship. RCCL's Empress of the Seas was also in port, and that was the first time we've ever seen that ship.

 

Dinner last night was the Caribbean menu. Again we had great food and excellent service by George from Romania who looks just like Jay Leno, and has a sense of humor to boot. The primary show was the opera singer, which we skipped. We tried to watch Bewitched at MUTS, but the movie was so awful it wasn't worth our time, so we made an early evening of it after the active day.

[mr green]

 

Was wondering since she's an older ship than we're use to what condition she's in? We sailed on her several years ago and had a fabulous time and look forward to another great trip. Are the bathrooms smaller than the other ships?

 

Enjoy your trip.

 

The ship is in first class condition, BUT the bathrooms are tiny!:D When taking a shower, do NOT hang clean dry clothes behind the door, they will get wet! Advise that you take chalk in with you and mark out in advance where to put your feet! If you can't face the sink [Female], or the toilet, [male], just remember you will not be alone with these problems. Just open the door and step into the hallway, BUT, do not kill your spouse while doing so. On the bright side, if you have fogotten anything you will not have to step out of the shower, please remember to keep the toilet lid down. Another problem, unless the ship lists 30 degrees to port the shower will not drain. As one wag said when designing a bathroom, the first thing to do is to measure the human body! Princess did not do this. Have fun. john

[Polar Bear]

JMB410 Thank you for the lovely posts. We are going to be on the Sea Apirl 8th.

Is the Harrison Caves open in Barbados??!!! Heard that they maybe closing for repairs??!!

What about the laundry room??!! Machine's that different??!!Do they take our laundry soap---Tide???

 

Glad you are having a wonderful time ---we have s--- and freezing rain.

[Polar Bear]

JMB410 Thank you for the lovely posts. We are going to be on the Sea Apirl 8th.

Is the Harrison Caves open in Barbados??!!! Heard that they maybe closing for repairs??!!

What about the laundry room??!! Machine's that different??!!Do they take our laundry soap---Tide???

 

Glad you are having a wonderful time ---we have s--- and freezing rain.

 

PS Did you do a shore tour in Barbados, if so with whom??? Any info would be great. 119 days and counting

[kokimojo]

Quick question:

I assume there is an outdoor grill with burgers, hot dogs, fries, and pizza. Have you tried the grill and if so, how is the food?

[skybuffalo]

Hello kokimojo,

There is an outdoor grill and they also serve great chicken sandwiches. I probably gained a few pounds because I loved their hamburgers and hotdogs (you can not have one without the other).

 

Enjoy. Ron

[dan40]

Pizzeria is the Corniche Cafe on Dolphin deck 8. We had lunch there only one day but it was good. We just don't eat burgers, dogs, & pizza when so much else with even more calories is available. :D

 

Dan

[PescadoAmarillo]

Hello....it's been a couple of days. This itinerary keeps us very busy; in addition I twice tried to access CC but got the infamous white page.

 

In Barbados, I am not aware that Harrison's Cave is closed, although we didn't try to go there, so I can't be certain. I'll try to find out. We did two tours. The first was an ATV tour. It is not for the faint of heart, but if you like adventure, I can really recommend it. There were only 3 of us on the tour...we're lucky they didn't cancel it. It was about a 45 minute ride over (in a small bus) with Keith, our driver, giving us excellent narrative the entire way. We did make a photo stop on Cherry Tree Hill. The ride starts from a working windmill (it is only open on Sundays, though). There was a good safety review by Rose, and then you make a few test circles in a small field, and then you're off. The ride is about an hour long or so, lots of hills and views. We brought and wore old clothes and old tennis shoes just for this tour (and the one that we were unable to take on St. Kitts). The shoes will be thrown away, and the clothes laundered up, but beware, you WILL get muddy. Especially if you look for the mud holes like we did! We ride motorcycles at home and have ridden ATVs a couple of times, but Lyndon, our guide, said that people who have too much experience run into the most trouble, as they take too many risks. It was only scary on the steep downhill to the beach (Atlantic side) where we stopped for photos....lots of slipping and sliding. I really recommend this trip. We've also done the dune buggies on a previous trip to Barbados and I think this one was a bit better. It is one person per ATV too, which is more fun, I think.

 

We got back to the ship with just enough time to shower and change, but not enough time to eat. And we headed off to the Sunset Sail. This was a quick 5 minute bus ride away, on a 60 foot catamaran (just like the Tiami, if you've ever done that). And just like on Tiami, the service on the boat is superb. You leave the marina under motor, but as soon as you're out of the marina, they hoist two sails and sail back toward the ship for some great photos. Then you sail down the western coast until after sunset, and turn around to head back. There were 5 ships in port on Saturday evening, and the view of the Sea Princess and the other ships from the water after dark was stunning. Lots of photo ops. There is an open bar and, trust me, you will never have an empty glass. We drank at least the value of the tour in ship's drink prices. There were also hot and cold hordoerves (thankfully, as we were starved), and we stumbled back on the bus afterwards feeling quite nice. If you are not a drinker, I'm not sure of this tour's value for you, but if you enjoy music and fun (but not rowdiness...it's not really a party boat), this is a great excursion. I frankly don't remember dinner that night, and we didn't make it to a show either.;)

 

Yesterday (Sunday) in St. Vincent was interesting. We walked in to town early enough to see (I kid you not) chalk marks around the blood stains from a Saturday night stabbing. Fortunately for everyone, it was all washed away when we went back a few hours later. We had been in St. Vincent before, and then took the HazEco Falls of Baleine tour (all day on a boat), so we were more anxious to see the island this time. We did a taxi tour in the morning (Fort Charlotte, the Botanical Gardens and the Mesopotamia Valley views), and then in the afternoon toured the Young Island Resort (where I have sent clients). It is quite exclusive and expensive, and it was fun to see where Johnny Depp stayed while Pirates of the Caribbean was filmed. The Sun Princess sailed in some time after noon, and had to tender...don't know if it was late or on schdule. Sailaway was beautiful, with the Sun and Sea blowing horns back and forth. I strongly recommend you book a tour on St. Vincent, either with the ship or on your own. I think the people who didn't were disappointed. First, there is no shopping, and second, you'll be there on a Sunday. However, when we did our HazEco tour last time, it was one of our favorite tours ever. However, the government has closed the Falls of Baleine due to rock slides, so that option may be out for awhile.

 

The shows last night were a variety show in the Princess Theater (with Jimmy Nairn again and his bagpipes, and a wonderful pianist whose name escapes me right now. (I'll sit down before this cruise is over and list all the entertainment on this thread). Then we saw a juggler in the Vista Lounge who I thought was quite funny but my husband found boring. (Frankly, I think he was just cranky from being tired.:rolleyes:)

 

Port of Spain has been the most pleasant surprise of the cruise. I'll give you the name and number of a wonderful taxi driver in my next post....now it's time for another show!

[GSDsky]

It's great your taking the time to keep all of us informed.

I really appreciated the Sunset Sail Post as we are booked on the Silver Moon that day and will now book the Sunset through Princess. My only question which I will ask prior to DW asking me is what was dress requirements? Cool, Warm, Wet???

 

Thanks In Advance...

[Shelby Cruiser]

Thanks so much for your detailed review of the sunset sail. It sounds wonderful with great photo opportunities. We love to take pictures so will really enjoy that. We are not big drinkers, so can't possibly drink enough to pay for the tour, but still looking forward to the beautiful sunset pictures & other scenery. Hope you truly enjoy balance of your cruise & we will be there late Feb. to do the same trip. Its been really great waiting for your remarks & look forward to the next installment. Have fun.

[PescadoAmarillo]

Well, I learned my lesson about too-long posts when I tried to get things caught up here the morning of Bonaire...an hour wasted when the screen came back with an error message and I couldn't recover my post. So I will try again.

 

I mentioned that Port of Spain (POS) Trinidad was the surprise of the trip. We really enjoyed our few hours there. We got together with another couple and did a city tour, as we were not interested in driving long distances to get to any of the sites mentioned in the ship's shore excursion booklet. I highly recommend you contact the Trinidad and Tobago Tourist Tranport Service at 1-808-780-4210 and ask for Router #146, the driver's name is Aleem Mohammed. He is 30s-ish, very professional and personable, and seems most interested in showing you Trinidad and especially Port of Spain in a way that will make you want to move to the island, or at least return for Carnival. We saw the usual Row of Seven (magnificent victorian mansions from the turn of the century), the Queens Park Savanah, the zoo and the botanical gardens, where a local rastafarian named Daniel walked us around and told us all about the plants and trees and the history of each, the uses of the seeds and berries, etc. He was quite good...if you go there and see a man on crutches, that's him. He asks for $5 for a tour; we gave him $10. We saw the President's House, a high lookout, tried to make our way in to the US Embassy (but that's a whole other story), stopped at the Hilton (an upside down hotel) for a bathroom break and saw the Prime Minister and the Mayor of Santo Domingo, and a highlight was a visit to Big Mike's Carnival costume store where we met Big Mike himself and were given a tour of the back room where the beautiful costumes are made. The tour was almost 4 hours long, for $70 for 4 of us.... a real deal. We told Aleem we wanted to customize our tour, not just do the typical, and that's how we ended up doing a few "different" things. At the end of the tour, Aleem stopped at a Khemlani's souvenir shop at 60 Independence Square for souvenirs less than half the price of those at the terminal building.

 

The port itself is very industrial, and the city is big and it was HOT so I do recommend that, if you don't want to so a ship's tour (which are generally to places located an hour to and hour and a half away), you do a taxi tour, and ask for Aleem.

 

We had to be back on the ship by 1:30, and then had until noon the next day to rest up, as we were getting a bit run down from all the activities and so many ports.

[PescadoAmarillo]

In Barbados we hooked up with another couple on CC (thank you Phil and Judy!) and they had arranged for us to charter a 42 foot catamaran (the Oscarina) for a sail over to Klein Bonaire and a snorkel tour. The Captain, Karen, lives on the boat and is a bit of a character; a puppy named Limbo lives on it with her, but it was a really fun day without crowds, and we enjoyed it immensely. We snorkeled off of Klein Bonaire, and when we were making our way back to the sailboat, we had been told about and saw for ourselves the amazing light show that happens underwater, with streams of light coming from the reef into the deeper water, almost blinding in their brilliance. I have done almost 100 dives, and had never seen anything like that. Amazing! The charter cost $45 per person with 3-4 people; the boat would be very crowded with any more that 6 people (4 was about right), and it is a fun alternative to a ship's tour or the water taxi.

 

The German ship Aidavita was in port in Bonaire, so there were a lot of cruise passengers. After our sail, we walked back into the little square of the town (exit the pier area to the left) for the mandatory buying of Tshirts and watched the sun set from a little bar on the water. We loved Bonaire, and really wished that Princess would loosen up a bit and allow the ship to remain in port there until midnight or so, as it is only a 45 minute sail over to the next port, Curacao.

 

BTW, the Aida keeps bicycles on board for passengers to use in port....we saw them all riding right back on to the ship while we were having our beer. THAT would be a lot of fun, wouldn't it, if Princess would do the same?

 

Yesterday we were in Curacao from 8am to 5pm. We have been to Curacao many times in the past, and have always rented a car and driven all over the island, so yesterday we decided to go over to the Punda area and look around. The Queen Emma floating bridge is not there (whether permanently or temporarily, we're not sure), so you have to either take the free ferry over or take a free shuttle bus. The Aidavita was in port with us again, as was the Adventure of the Seas and the Silver Whisper, so Willemstad was one busy little town! We walked along the Floating Market (and took lots of photos which will hopefully show how colorful and fun it was) and then did the shopping thing briefly (we are NOT shoppers, so I can't tell you how the shopping was in any port...we bought a couple of children's souvenirs and Tshirts on the entire cruise, spending less than $75!). We went back to the ship for lunch and then took the free shuttle (a white bus or a blue bus) that is right outside the pier security gate, over the Queen Beatrix bridge for some great photos and then over to the outermost waterfront area of town. We walked along the wide sidewalk there and got some great photos of the other side of town (Outrabanda, I think?).

 

We did run across a couple of options that we will consider on future trips to Curacao (we seem to get there every year or two): and ecoadventure scooter tour (email-scoobyscooters@yahoo.com) looked like a lot of fun. We met the operator late in the day. His name is Giovanni and he said he would put together a customized trip for just one or two couples. He would do an all day, but really, 3 hours was about right. He provides the transfer to a hotel about 5 minutes away where the scooters are, and includes a stop at a beach if you want. A nice guy, we'll definitely contact him for next time. Also http://www.curacao-atv.com had some brochures that made that excursion look like fun. Eric is the operator there. There are some beautiful areas of Curacao that we've seen on our own in the past, so I would recommend either of these for a good way to seem them with the safety of a guided tour.

 

Sailaway from Curacao was spectacular, with a beautiful sunset and the full, or almost full moon. Finally, though, we have two sea days to look forward to, and we need them. This is a very strenuous cruse, if you do it as we have, with active port days. Last night we skipped the entertainment all together and went to sleep right after dinner. (More on the entertainment later....it has been average at best, although many are grumbling that it hasn't even been that good). But if you want to see ports, this is a perfect cruise. Too bad we missed St. Kitts, but it did provide a slow day for us.

 

Our weather has been brochure perfect...hot and sunny days almost every day. The last rain we had was the early morning of St. Lucia, but by 10am the sun returned and we've had perfect weather ever since. Quite a change, I know, from the cruise a month ago, but that is the luck of the draw. The Brits are throwing caution to the wind and there are a LOT of red faces, tummys and back around...these next two days should insure that everyone goes home well-done.