cruising

Cruising has become our favorite way to take a vacation. My sister introduced us to the world of cruising several years ago, and we have loved cruising every since. We have visited places like the Bahamas, Cozumel, Grand Cayman, St Thomas, St Martin, Labadee Haiti, Jamaica, Isla Roatan Honduras, Belize, Costa Maya. Our first cruise was a four day cruise out of Tampa, it had one port in Cozumel. It was on Carnival Inspiration, the food and entertainment on the ship were very good. We always have a group of at least four, on this cruise there was six of us. While in Cozumel we took one of the catamaran excursions, it included snorkeling, lunch on board, complimentary drinks and a nice boat ride. Cozumel has some of the best snorkeling in the Caribbean, the Palancar Reef  has some of clearest and pretty blue water I had ever seen. There is a wide variety of colorful fish of all shapes and size along the reef. We had a great time on the catamaran day-trip, after that we enjoyed some shopping and a snack and frozen drink at Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville(a nice place to grab a souvenir), and then back to the ship and get ready for dinner. The days at sea before and after Cozumel were filled with a wide vareity of things to do on the ship. The morning starts with coffee or juice and possibly a pastry in your cabin while getting dressed for breakfast. Choices for breakfast include a sit down casual meal served in the main dining room, or you can eat at the huge buffet with made to order waffles and omelettes or eggs of any style, or you can have room service. During the day you can lounge by one of the pools with a tropical drink. The main pool area always has some sort of entertainment going on for everyone to either participate in or just watch and enjoy. for a quieter day in the sun you can choose the adult only area where you can enjoy a book while lounging in the sun. If  you prefer you can try your luck in the casino, or relax and enjoy some music and a drink in one of the lounges around the ship. There is usually some type of show or bingo during the day in one of the larger auditoriums, these are usually interactive shows, and a lot of fun to watch. Hamburgers, hot dogs with french fries, or a full buffet are available all day next to the main pool area, or you can have a sit down lunch in the dining area. There is also pizza and ice cream available 24 hrs. a day. The evening consists of  a formal dinner in the dining room at a pre-set time (optional buffet anytime), usually a vareity of choices. The choices usually range from a gourmet hamburger or chicken to steak, lobster,roast duck, and escargot. The dinners include a vareity of soups and salads that include fresh fruits and shrimp cocktail and a choice of breads.The meal is finished off with a choice of delicious desserts and coffee. While dinner is always somewhat formal, one or two nights on most cruises are Formal Night Dining. On these nights suits or tuxedos and evening gowns are reccommended but not mandatory, if not formal you do need to dress very sharp for these nights. Threre are always photographers at different places on the ships and ports taking your pictures, it is especially true on formal nights. The ladies especially like all the photo opportunities and looking for their picturs in the galleries. After dinner there is always a vareity of choices of fun things to do. Usually there is a broadway type show in the main auditorium, and family comedy and karaoke shows in some of the other auditoriums early in the evening. An after dinner drink and some live music in one of the lounges is another option, or some gaming in the casino. Later on there are usually some adult type comedy shows, and the casino is open very late for  the night owls. There are usually several choices for a midnight snack. In my opinion a cruise is the best value for the money when you consider everything that is included in the price. My wife and I have been hooked on cruising since our first cruise.