Andy and I just had to get away for a little vacation so when Dennis and Beth asked us if we wanted to take a little cruise... it was hard to say no! Thanks guys...we had a blast. I am so tired... I need a few days of naps.
For some of you that might not know, I met Beth and Dennis on a cruise like 8 years ago. We quickly became good friends.
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| Our Stage...Independence of the Seas |
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| The "Cast" |
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| Our backyard |
Our first stop was the Cayman Islands, as you can see below...da !
We took a nice boat ride to a sand bar to swim and hangout with the rays. It was kind of weird to be honest. They would swim up and bump your leg...sometimes I had to push them away... they got a little close to parts I didn't want them to be...lol
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| So graceful |
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| Heading for some more feet and legs |
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| One ray out of maybe 50 that were there. |
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| Andy just had to hold one. Just look at that smile |
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| Oh yes she did ...twice! I missed the first picture...well she thinks I did ! LOL |
After hanging out with the rays we took another quick boat ride to go snorkeling. I think it was the best snorkeling I have done outside of the Hawaiian Islands. It was clear with bright color fish and corral.
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| Best snorkeling outside of Hawaii...can you spot the blue fish ? |
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| Reef in the Cayman Islands |
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| On the way back to the ship we just had to stop and have drinks at the swim up bar. |
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| This little creature was waiting for us in our room. |
The next Port of Call was Jamaica. We didn't really get a chance to visit with any of the locals. Once we got off the ship the touring company put us in a big bus and whisked us away to their private resort. It was kind of strange being isolated like that. We did see enough of the island to see the poverty and the living conditions of the local people. Quite humbling !!
We took a party boat out of Montego Bay to snorkel. We had a good time. The snorkeling was "OK" but the food and drinks were great !
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| Rum punch on his head! |
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| Our little friend waiting for us in our room. |
The last stop was Haiti. Well it's technically Haiti but....The Royal Caribbean's own private island. Never got to see one local person that wasn't an employee of the Cruise line. Talk about being isolated from the people.
However, the island was pretty darn good. They served a big BBQ lunch and you could rent Wave Runners or go take a ride on the Zip Line. If you look in the picture below you will see people zipping across the lagoon at a very high speed. I think someone said 75 MPH.
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| Ship in the background and zippers in the foreground |
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| Dennis was stingy and wanted both girls...hey now dude ! |
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View of Haiti from our balcony...Andy said never again without balcony.
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The many hats and faces of Dennis...He is so complicated !
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| Mister cool ! But he is cocked and ready for trouble |
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| How did he do that..grow hair over night. You look amazing dude! |
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| Wearing his new hat on his new hair. I like the clown look ! |
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| He is so silly...glad I am not ! |
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| Get your fingers out my ears..look at that determined look on his face |
The last evening of the cruise.
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| She is so dang pretty !!!! |
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| Party and a Parade on the Boat |
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| The last morning breakfast on the boat. So Sad ! |
Thanks Beth and Dennis...we had a blast ! Next time maybe Hawaii. Oh no wait...we will see you again in the spring. You haven't gotten of rid of me that fast ! We truly love you both !
Since I haven't done the blog for such a long time I had to throw this in this post. In January, when Andy was in Portland, I had volunteered to help with the Half Marathon in Key West. All I did was pass out water to the runners, how hard was that !
These pictures will give you a little flavor of Key West.
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| My buddy Judy and I |
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| I have no idea who this person is |
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| My kind of woman...not ! Who is this ! I think this is Richard..Judy's husband |
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| One of the runner...I think ! |
While we have been here I have fished a few times. I met Mark while we were playing softball. He was telling me he is always looking for people who might want to go fishing and help with the gas. Since we got along pretty darn good, he is from Michigan also, I jumped right on that! The only problem with Mark is he was in the Navy for 26 years...lol. This man knows where to fish that's for sure. We been having a blast catching all kinds of fish. He is such a nice guy..Thanks Mark !!
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| Andy went fishing too |
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| This was Andy's catch for the Day...you go girl ! Lots of snapper |
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| Mark and his Grouper |
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| Small grouper..had to go back ..plus out of season. Marks has a bigger one ! lol |
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| Mark and his Mangrove Snapper..I think that is what it is ! lol |
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| We see dolphins when we are out fishing |
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| Mama and her baby right by the boat |
Our friends Barney, Melody and her three kids..Tina, Jodi, Adam ! The kids came to visit them so we all hung out a lot.
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| Andy just had to sneak in the middle of the picture |
We all decided to take a break from our very busy lives and go hit the water for a few hours. Andy had done this before but I haven't. She was like a little daredevil...spinning around and jumping waves. I never seen her so dang aggressive. She said she was born to do this, lol We had a blast !
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| Andy said "best thing ever |
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| Took a while to get used to...lots of fun ! |
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| Jodi and Tina |
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| Barney and Melody "the Benders" |
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| Adam being cool and collective |
It has been a long time since I posted a blog report so I must not forget !!! Need I say more !
