We're Baaaaaack!

What a wonderful 4 days of paradise! We enjoyed every minute, from the time we walked aboard, to the time our color was called for departure.

I am going to write a "how to cruise cheap" post soon. But, for now, I am just going to give you a run down on our fabulous trip.

Day 1 - We boarded the ship early. We had lunch and checked into our room. We spent most of the afternoon exploring the ship and getting to know where everything was.

Day 2 - The boat anchored at Coco Cay (a Royal Caribbean private island) for the day. We spent about 6 hours snorkeling. This is the first time either of us had done that and it was incredible! Now, I was a little freaked out at first. I don't ever go in the water at any of the Florida beaches. The difference here is that I could see all the way to the bottom and I knew what was touching me. Still, it took me a little while to get comfortable. Once I did, I loved it! We bought an under water camera (with CVS bucks) and took some fun pictures of that.
Cory picked it up quick and learned how to dive down and see those fish up close. I never got that good. But, look, I actually got close to those fish.After snorkeling all day, we took a few minutes and relaxed on 1 of the 50 hammocks they had set up on the island. The weather was perfect and we laid there and spent a few minutes thanking the Lord for his beautiful creation and the time he gave us together.
That evening was the formal dinner on the ship. I had a fun time getting all dressed up. I even convinced Cory to slow dance with me in the middle of the ship when no one else was! If you know Cory at all, you know what a big deal that is.

Day 3 - The boat docked at Nassau. We spent the first half of the day exploring the island on foot. We found some cool landmarks and did a little shopping at the straw market. The straw market is an adventure all on it's own. You barter for everything. I loved it. This is where we got all the souvenirs and gifts for the kids. I also got some sweet deals on a cute straw hat, earrings and sunglasses. Cory got some "Cuban" cigars too. We'll see how those turn out.
After that, we headed back to the boat for a quick lunch and then back out to the island. We headed over to Paradise Island to take a look at Atlantis hotel. You could spend all day there if you had the time. But, we headed back to Nassau for some authentic Bahamian dinner. It was very good and not cheap.

Day 4 - At Sea all day. By the time we got to this day, I realized that it was the last official day and I still didn't have any sun to speak of. So, I planned to spend some time at the pool and get a tan (o.k., I guess a burn). We really only stayed out by the pool for about 1 hour. Well, that did it. That's o.k. I would rather come back with a little burn than no sun at all.
They also had a rock climbing wall on the top deck. Cory climbed to the top twice and I barely made it up one time.We also ditched the dining room this night and went to the onboard Johnny Rockets. You pay a $4 cover charge and get all-you-can-eat off the menu. This was our favorite meal on board. It was fun and we took home 4 souvenirs from here. Yes, those are Johnny Rocket cups. Let me just say that when I ordered the burger, I was expecting the size of a double cheeseburger like the Johnny Rockets in Orlando. Apparantly, the burgers on the ship are 1/3 pound per patty. Do you see the size of that thing?! No, I didn't eat it all. I did dance with the servers though. Sorry, no pictures of that.

Day 5 - Departure. We left the boat at about 9 a.m. Vacation over. Welcome home real world. No more unlimited food at my disposal 24 hours a day. No more people waiting on me hand and foot. No more fun towel animals (I really liked those).

I think we are definitely sold as future cruisers. You just can't beat the value for your money.
Thank you for a great trip, baby! BTW, for those of you hoping that we came back with baby #5, you can stop crossing your fingers. I already started :)