At the End of the Cruise

I posted most of our cruise photos in December but stopped to cover Christmas and those important visits with family members. Here's the final image taken from the ship. We were returning to Baltimore early in the morning. I was really happy to be nearing home. I couldn't wait to have really satisfying meals again, to say nothing of having regular internet access.

On the ship, we had purchased blocks of internet time which cost 55 cents a minute. Naturally I used it sparingly, just enough to avoid the loneliness of losing touch with family members. I composed emails and blog posts while offline and pasted them in when I got back online. It reminded me of the old days when I had only a dial-up connection, one that competed with voice calls for use of my only phones. That was back before cell phones - can you believe it?

I've written some complaints about the cruise on this blog and and on Facebook but certainly there were nice things about the trip too. I particularly enjoyed visiting Nassau and Key West, and it was a lovely having warm and sunny weather in December.

I suppose the first day got me off to a negative start: the long lines to get through security, the crowds at the elevators, and the utterly dismaying discovery that there was only one brand of decaf coffee on the whole ship and it was undrinkable. I had brought some packets of a decent instant coffee but about half of those had gotten ruined before we even reached the ship when a bottle of water spilled in my snack bag. (That's what I get for refilling water bottles - they leak if they tip over.)

So my first impression of the ship was that it was like a white-collar prison! You couldn't get off during the days at sea, and there was no way to get good coffee. A couple of days later we disembarked at our first port of call and I bought a supply of decaf in Cocoa Beach. That helped my mood and I realized that the ship is not like a prison, it's more like Busch Gardens without any rides. After all, we saw fancy faux-decor, crowds of people, and some high-energy shows. They weren't of Broadway quality but most were amusing (although I did walk out on a pianist who hammered the keys in a noisy, jarring way).

I must say that the Royal Caribbean staff worked very hard. They were well-organized, helpful and often charming. Many of them are actually from the Caribbean and spend nine months at a time working on the ship. Then they get a long break so they can visit their families.

Key Posts About the Cruise:

• Our Itinerary
• Windows on the Ship
• Solarium
• State Room
• Back to the Ship