August 13th
was our 25th anniversary, (I don't know how Mary did it!)
We'd been planning and saving for a cruise, our first,
for well over one year. We chose Carnival's ship the Inspiration,
and ports of call in Jamaica, Grand Cayman and Mexico
- (Tulum)
My brother
and sister-in-law, Michael & Leslie, and my sister
and her husband, Holly & Bob, got together and planned
a 25th Anniversary party for us at the Silvia Inn, Adams.
It was the BEST! Thanks guys! They somehow managed
to invite everybody that I would have, if I had sat down
and written up a list! We had such a great time, and enjoyed
a wonderful afternoon with family and friends.
Mary and arrived
in New Orleans on Saturday, August 10th. We explored during
the afternoon and evening, and spent the night at the
Fairchild House
on Prytania Street. We rode the trolley all the way in
one direction to the Garden District, and then all the
way back the other direction to the French Quarter - for
$1.25 each way per person! On Sunday morning the 11th,
we took a taxi from the Inn to the waterfront, Julia Port,
where we boarded the ship for what turned out to be an
extraordinary week.
The ship was
beautifully appointed, the crew was completely attentive,
personable, friendly and clearly interested in making
sure we all had the best possible experience. As an introvert
and poor conversationalist, I was a little worried to
learn that we'd be eating our dinners with two other couples.
(This was optional, we could have eaten all our meals
at the grill or the buffet.) I am so glad that
I decided to give the dinner a shot! We enjoyed a great
time with the other couples, and dinner became an event
I looked forward to. There was food available 24 hours
a day, and I worked very hard to acquire the 14 pound
weight gain that we were told many people average on a
cruise! It was hard to become used to not eating every
two hours once we were back at home!
While at sea
we enjoyed either some of the many nearly non-stop activities,
or just laying around on the open decks soaking up the
sun. During the shore tours, we climbed a 600' waterfall
in Jamaica, swam with stingrays in Grand Cayman, and visited
the Mayan ruins of Tulum in Mexico. The whole vacation
just couldn't have been any better.
NOTE: Mary
wore a prescription motion sickness patch "just in
case," and was fine with it. She never experienced
any sign of seasickness, although she did have the expected
"wobbly" effect for a couple days once back
home again. I tried the patch, and it made me practically
comatose. I took it off within a few hours, and never
looked back. No seasickness, and no after-effects ashore.
I'm sure that
I was the #1 skeptic concerning cruising, but am definitely
a convert! If you've been thinking about a cruise -
DO IT!
