Miami/Imagination July 10 (4 day) Review with pictures

[mom2girls]

This is how much gas was in Key West on July 11th. (It cost more than that in Miami.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

These were just some of the beach views in Key West. I didn't get off at the stop for Smather's Beach.

[mom2girls]

This was taken at the Southern Most Point trolley stop.

 

 

 

I just love manatees, so I just had to take this picture!

 

I believe that this is the oldest church in Key West.

 

 

 

 

[SpideyHulk24]

I keep signing in to see your review and pics! Keep it coming and thank you for posting!

[snc421]

More great pics!

 

Thanks Mom!

:D

[phabric]

Have you any pictures of your cabin.

[mom2girls]

After lunch we hung out in the Waterworks area. The girls really had a ball here. This was a good time for them to play as well since many people still were in port. After playing for a little while the girls wanted to go swimming so we headed to the pool. It still wasn’t quite crowded yet, but I knew it would once we set sail. At 2:00 I took them to Camp. They were excited because this was the first time they were going on this trip. I had Emily put her clothes on over her bathing suit. But, since she was still wet we had to take her to the room to put dry clothes on. I wish this had been posted somewhere because this meant that I had to wait in line to sign her in twice. I was actually disappointed in the signing in procedures for Camp Carnival because you would think they would have a quicker way to sign the kids in. Maybe they could come up with some system where we swipe our S&S card. Anyway, I know it’s for their safety, but after waiting in line twice it came to an hour of wait time. But, finally they were checked in. I could see they were having fun even before I left.

 

Now that I had some time to myself I headed to the Serenity area. This place was awesome. The chairs were very comfy. I also liked that there were 2 hot tubs. The shower was kind of nice at times when I wanted to just cool off. There was one problem with this area though. There should be a sign somewhere in the area that this is a place to relax QUIETLY. (After all isn’t that what serenity means?) Unfortunately, there was a large group of college kids in this area. They were extremely loud. They also brought music with them. I had been hoping for some peace and quiet, but it didn’t happen during this visit to the Serenity area.

 

After about an hour in the Serenity area I headed back to get the girls. My oldest was upset with me because I didn’t give her permission to sign in and out. Apparently they had some sort of scavenger hunt in which they could only participate if they were allowed to sign in and out. Of course I was worried about her wandering the ship so initially I didn’t allow this. But, I told her next time we went I’d change it. I told her she could sign in and out only for these activities, and only with a friend. She then asked if she could also go get an ice cream every once in a while. I agreed to this as well if she always went with someone else.

This was formal night so the three of us needed to get ready. I was looking forward to getting pictures of the girls all dressed up, so I wanted to get ready early so we could take advantage of the different backgrounds before they all became crowded. It turned out that this was a smart thing to do. We must have taken pictures with at least 5 different backgrounds before it got crowded.

 

I really liked this picture, so I had to take a picture of it.

 

 

 

[mom2girls]

More great pics!

 

Thanks Mom!

:D

 

 

I keep signing in to see your review and pics! Keep it coming and thank you for posting!

 

Thanks! I'm glad you're both enjoying the review!:D

 

Have you any pictures of your cabin.

There will be some pictures of the room shortly. I took pictures of the towel animals every night.

[mom2girls]

We went on to dinner which was a pleasant experience. It just seemed to take a long time to be served. I honestly don’t think it was our waiters’ fault, but the girls and I had to wait an extremely long time for our entrée. We got our entrée at around 7:30. We arrived promptly at 6:00. So, needless to say we missed the Captain’s cocktail party. This is the first one of these I have ever missed. Of course, back in the good old days they would have two of these parties. I guess on shorter sailings they only have one. We finished dinner around 8:20. So we went to the lounge to get a good seat for the show. Tonight’s show was called “Livin’ in America”. It was very good. The girls really seemed to enjoy it.

 

This is a picture of our waiters! They were very funny. We really enjoyed them.

 

 

 

 

[mom2girls]

 

These were also in the room for the girls. The card said that they had come from Camp Carnival.

 

You'll see later on that it became a nightly tradition to move the towel animals to the shelf under the tv.

 

Next up Cozumel! :)

[SpideyHulk24]

Fantastic review! Only 3 more days. I cant wait to read more!

 

You ladies look very nice on formal night!

[mom2girls]

Fantastic review! Only 3 more days. I cant wait to read more!

 

You ladies look very nice on formal night!

 

These 3 days will fly by. I wish it were me who were going!;)

 

Thanks, the girls and I really do enjoy dressing up.

[mom2girls]

Day 3 Cozumel:

 

I don’t know why, but I always wake up early the day we stop in Cozumel. This has happened on every ship I’ve been on. I really do LOVE Cozumel. There has never been an “excursion” there that I did not like. I told the girls the night before that I would probably wake up early, and go on deck to take pictures. This way they wouldn’t worry if I wasn’t in the room, and I wouldn’t have to wake them up to tell them where I was going. Emily woke up anyway. I went up to the back of the ship to take pictures. I really enjoy watching the sunrise while sailing on the ocean. There’s absolutely nothing like it in this world. It’s one thing that I recommend every person do at least once in their lives.

 

 

Of course this sunrise was beautiful too. It’s interesting that each sunrise and sunset is unique. The shades of pinks, the cloud formations, wow! I snapped several pictures, and comfortably watched as the new day began. A little while later I went back to the room to see how the girls were. They were fine, but wanted to sleep some more. They told me to go eat breakfast, then bring them some pancakes. So, that’s what I did.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mom2girls]

There were some kids’ activities this morning, so I took them to Camp around 9:30. I told them I was going to pick them up at 11:30 since I wanted to be ready to get off of the ship as soon as we could. We weren’t scheduled to be in Cozumel until 1:00, but I figured I would get them something to eat before we got off of the ship.

 

While the girls were at camp I decided to give the Serenity area another try. I have to say that it was much nicer this time. I was so quiet, and very relaxing at the back of the ship. Watching the wake is one of my all time favorite activities while on a cruise ship. I relaxed for about an hour, then decided to go wander around the shops on board. I really didn’t see anything interesting so I bought my Christmas tree ornament, and left. After shopping I decided to go back to the room to pack the beach bag with everything we would need while in Cozumel. I then proceeded to go sit outside of the Illusions Disco to read until 11:30, when I would pick up Megan. I was getting ready to sit down to relax when I noticed land! We were in Cozumel. I went inside the disco to get Megan, and noticed she wasn’t there. They were on some sort of scavenger hunt. So, I proceeded to deck 11. Emily was in the game room. While checking Emily out I told her that I had noticed that we were docking next to the Inspiration! She got excited since she had been on this ship two times before. Elena, Emily’s Camp Counselor told me that she thought Emily looked familiar. She then asked when we were on the ship. I told her last year, and 4 years ago. Apparently, Elena had been Emily’s counselor 4 years ago. Since I had our passports with me, I pulled out Emily’s. The picture had been taken about 2 months before that cruise. Elena confirmed that she was the same girl she remembered. I thought that was awesome! (Back then the Inspiration sailed a 7 day itinerary. Emily had really enjoyed camp on that trip, so she went at every opportunity. She also has a personality that many people find hard to forget.) Anyway, my excitement was growing because I wanted to get off the ship to enjoy Cozumel. So, Emily and I went back down to the Illusions Disco in the hopes that Megan was there. She was! We signed her out, and proceeded downstairs to wait until we could debark. One of the social directors, William was there waiting on word as to when he could start letting us go. He was very entertaining. He was on loan to the Imagination from the Victory for 18 days, so it was interesting hearing some stories from the Victory.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ihad to get a picture of the Inspiration's WaterWorks too!

[mom2girls]

Finally, we were able to debark. We were probably the 3rd group of people to get off of the ship. We were at Punta Langosta, so I was familiar with the area. We headed straight to the taxi area. The taxi driver looked pretty surprised when I told him that I wanted to go to Mr. Sancho’s. Most of the tourists want to go to Playa Mia or Paradise Beach. I told him I had researched Cozumel, and found some wonderful reviews of Mr. Sancho’s. He said that Mr. Sancho’s is a place that many locals go, so he knows it’s a great place. The girls were playing in the pool, and I had already ordered food and drink by 12:20. We were able to sit at a table right by the pool. The waiter told us that we could put some things on the chairs by the beach if we wanted to have two locations. So, that’s what we did. We weren’t there long when there was an announcement made that they needed some children because they were going to play some games. So, we went to see what was going on. In one activity they had teams. They ended up covering the bottom half of Megan, and making her into a mermaid. Another activity involved the parents as well. We were playing tug-of-war. Of course it seemed that my side was the side with the mom’s on it. So, we were having a hard time against the side with the dad’s on it. So, one of the workers got some more people involved. We had so many people on our side that of course our side one!

 

We went back to the table to enjoy our snack of chicken quesadilla and nachos. They were both very good. I would have liked to try some of the other things on their menu, but we were full with what we already had, so I guess I’ll have to go there again! I only had one adult drink (a Miami Vice). It was very good as well. Since we were in the hot sun all day, I figured I better stick with water. The girls and I went through 2 huge bottles of water in the 3 1/2 hours or so that we were there. After eating, we decided to hang out at the beach. I really enjoyed looking at the turquoise blue water. The girls also loved playing in the sand. I’ll have to say that it was a very pleasant day, that I won’t soon forget.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mom2girls]

More pictures from Cozumel:

 

 

 

 

I had forgot about the sack race!

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mom2girls]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[maggieworkman]

I'm enjoying your review! We leave on the Imagination on Aug.2!

 

Maggie

[mom2girls]

 

Twin Funnels

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Inspiration

 

 

 

I'll finish the rest of our day in Cozumel later.

[mom2girls]

I'm enjoying your review! We leave on the Imagination on Aug.2!

 

Maggie

 

I'm jealous! August 2nd is not far away at all! Don't forget to come back and tell us all about it! :)

[Tee Tee]

I'm enjoying your review! We leave on the Imagination on Aug.2!

 

Maggie

Hey Maggie, we will be on the Imagination together in 12 days and in Miami in 11 days for us. I am with a group of 8 other women, assorted family members and friends of family members. I can't wait.

 

Also

Thanks so much Mom2Girls for this awesome,detailed, and thoughtfully planned review. I hurry home each evening to see what else you have added.

[Almost Packed]

I'm luvin' your review.

I am currently researching a cruise for dh & I to take the kiddos on... dd 18, ds 14 & ds 3. Looking at each kid (except the 3yo) wanting to do an excursion, at each port...geesh! it get pricey. :o

 

I am appreciating your review very much. I feel like i'm right there....ALMOST!

I have a question for you....i'm assuming (you know what they say about assuming) you are perhaps a single mom since i see no dh mentioned or pictured. if so, what about getting kids into cozumel and other ports? Any problems? do you have to have notarized docs? do they ask for them embarkation or debarkation?

thanks.

keep up the great work. i was disappointed when i caught up to today's date to find out you had not posted the rest of the review yet. i'm anxiously awaiting!:)

[snc421]

Hey Mom...

 

:D LOVED Cozumel! You know I too am obsessed with the place... Thanks again for sharing your awesome pics!

 

BTW: Do you know what the term Sancho means? :eek: Heehee! :cool:

[snc421]

P.S. I especially love the pic of Emily sitting in the chair in the water. I also love how you captured the clarity of the waters at Sancho's... Thank you for that!

[maggieworkman]

Hey Maggie, we will be on the Imagination together in 12 days and in Miami in 11 days for us. I am with a group of 8 other women, assorted family members and friends of family members. I can't wait.

 

Also

Thanks so much Mom2Girls for this awesome,detailed, and thoughtfully planned review. I hurry home each evening to see what else you have added.

 

Maybe we will see you there. It will be me, DH, my mom, my 2 girls! Is there a roll call??

 

I'm getting so excited based on Mom2Girls review! The water slide looks scary though! It looks like it almost goes right over the edge of the ship!!!

 

Maggie

[mom2girls]

I'm luvin' your review.

I am currently researching a cruise for dh & I to take the kiddos on... dd 18, ds 14 & ds 3. Looking at each kid (except the 3yo) wanting to do an excursion, at each port...geesh! it get pricey. :o

 

I am appreciating your review very much. I feel like i'm right there....ALMOST!

I have a question for you....i'm assuming (you know what they say about assuming) you are perhaps a single mom since i see no dh mentioned or pictured. if so, what about getting kids into cozumel and other ports? Any problems? do you have to have notarized docs? do they ask for them embarkation or debarkation?

thanks.

keep up the great work. i was disappointed when i caught up to today's date to find out you had not posted the rest of the review yet. i'm anxiously awaiting!:)

 

I am divorced. I did get a notarized letter from the girls father giving me permission to take them into Mexico. (I've done this 3 times.) No one asked for the letter, but I would rather be safe than sorry. Hopefully, I can post the rest of the review today, but I did promise the girls that I would go swimming with them. They also want me to play Scrabble with them.