9-Night Grand Caribbean Sampler

Drive to Ft Lauderdale

            Thursday, 18 Sep 2014 – We booked a 9-night Grand Caribbean Sampler Cruise about 3 weeks ago.  We found the discounted price and the $700 worth of cruise credits too much to turn down.  We even managed to convince another couple from our YMCA water aerobics class, Jim and Kim, to come join us.

            We picked up Jim and Kim about 7:00 AM and started our drive to Ft Lauderdale.  After stopping a few times for fuel and necessities, we made it to Dalton, GA, around 8:30 PM and spent the night there in a motel.  We resumed our drive to around 7:00 AM, Friday, and arrived in Ft. Lauderdale around 9:00 PM, after a very long day of driving (through terrible Florida traffic).

We had booked Park & Cruise rooms at Quality Inn and Suites, Cruiseport, where we received a complimentary breakfast, transportation to and from the cruise port, and up to 14 days of parking.

Ft Lauderdale & Embarkation

Embarkation

On Saturday, 20 Sep 2014, we enjoyed our complimentary breakfast and boarded the hotel shuttle at 11:30 AM.  There was almost no waiting line for Platinum passengers, so we were onboard the ship by 12:30 PM.  After dropping off our carry-on bags in our cabins, we took the stairs to the Lido deck and enjoyed our first meal in the Horizon Court.  After lunch, we returned to our cabin and found our luggage already waiting for us.  After unpacking, w relaxed until the mandatory lifeboat drill at 3:30 pm, when we also met our cabin steward, May, from the Philippines.

At Dinner

Since Jim and Kim have different interests than ours, we decided that we would do our own thing during the day and meet for dinner in the evening.  At about 6:30 PM, we headed for the Island Dining room with Kim and Jim for our anytime dining.  After dinner, we danced to the Epithani in the Explorers Lounge until they went on break at 9:00 PM.  Then, very exhausted, we retired to our cabin for the night.

1st Formal Night

 At Sea

           On Sunday, 21 Sep, went to breakfast at 9:30 AM, for a swim at 1:00 PM, and to lunch at 2:30 PM.  We found a small pool in the back of the ship for “adults only” who don’t mind swimming in cold water.  Tonight was a formal dinner, so we dressed in our formal attire and met Jim and Kim for dinner at 5:30 PM.  By now, we began to realize that anytime dining is different on this cruise compared to previous cruises; because it is so short and informal, most people prefer to eat in their shorts and sandals, thus eating in the buffet instead of the dining room.  As a result, we’ve never had to wait for seating on this cruise.  Afterwards, we danced to the Rockin’ Paradise in the Wheelhouse Bar.  Before retiring for the night, we set our clocks back one hour.

Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands



Seven Mile Beach

On Monday, 22 Sep, we went to breakfast at 9:30 AM before boarding a ship’s tender to the pier at 10:15 AM.  We then boarded a bus for a 10-minute drive to Seven Mile Beach.   The shimmering white sand stretched for 5.5 miles (not 7).  There we chose a spot for our lounge chairs under an umbrella and shade tree, since neither of us wanted to spend a lot of time in the sun.  Upon arrival, we went for a long swim in the ocean.  Jesse tried doing some of his water aerobic steps while Sally did the actual swimming.  Afterwards, we spent the rest of our three-hour excursion on the beach under the shade tree and umbrella.  The excursion included a complimentary drink, which to our surprise, was non-alcoholic.  (Although the brochure had read “rum punch,” the choice was either water or soda pop.)  Upon returning to the ship, we noticed that Sally had gotten sunburned in patches missed by sunscreen despite our precautions.

At 5:15 PM, we went down to the Club Fusion for the Captain’s Circle Party with Jim and Kim where we danced to the Epithani and enjoyed complimentary cocktails.  Afterwards we walked down to the Island Dining Room for dinner.  We then danced to the Rockin’ Paradise in the Explorers Lounge before retiring for the night.

Island of Cozumel, Mexico

Passion Island

On Tuesday, 23 Sep, we went to breakfast at 9:00 AM before disembarking the ship at 10:30 AM.  At 11:00 AM, we boarded a motorized boat for a 40-minute transfer to Passion Island, located just off the northwestern coast of Cozumel.  Our boat guide was Filipe.  On our very first cruise in 2004, we had taken an excursion to Passion Island.   The water there is an iridescent greenish-blue.  Sally was afraid to aggravate her sunburn, so we spent most of the 3 hours at a table under a thatched roof “umbrella,” enjoying the scenery.  The excursion included a Mexican-style buffet and complimentary drinks (including alcoholic beverages this time).  Our waiter, Jose, kept us supplied with rum punch.  We did finally go for a short swim in the ocean.  Jesse treaded water for the first time in his life, but found it very exhausting and much more strenuous than water aerobics.  We both tired very quickly and returned to our table under the umbrella.  As we air-dried, we noticed that our skin was very sticky from the ocean water, so we both took advantage of the open-air beach showers.

We re-boarded the ship about 4:30 PM and got ready for dinner.   We had to wait a little while for Jim and Kim beforehand; they had decided to do their laundry and were having a few problems.  I had suggested that they bring a couple of rolls of quarters for the machines; however, it turns out that since our last cruise, Princess has refitted their machines to accept only tokens.  Then Jim stood in a long line to purchase tokens from guest services, they were out of tokens.  Jim had to search from floor to floor to find a (working) machine that dispensed tokens.  As the saying goes, “The best laid plans of mice and men oft go astray.”

We finally met Jim and Kim for dinner about 6:15 PM.  Afterwards, we danced to the Rockin’ Paradise in the Wheelhouse Bar.  Before retiring, we set our clock forward one hour.

At Sea

On Wednesday, 24 Sep, we went to breakfast in the Horizon Court about 9:30 AM, which was very crowded for some reason.  Afterwards, Jesse picked up a couple of books from the library and went to an onboard Outlet Sale, but didn’t buy anything.  Jesse went (alone) to a Tango dance lesson at 12:45 PM, but left early.  They were teaching the Argentine Tango, which is not familiar to us.  The instructor announced, “This is the original Tango, not the ballroom Tango.”  We went to lunch about 2:00 PM before returning to our cabin to relax until dinner.

This afternoon we skipped swimming and napped instead.  We went to dinner at 6:00 PM, then dancing to the Epithani in the Explorers Lounge until they went on break at 8:30 PM.  Afterwards, we followed the other dancers to the  Wheelhouse Bar, where we danced to the Rockin’ Paradise until they went on break at 9:00 PM.  Thursday would be an early day, so before retiring, we set our alarm for 6:00 AM.

Ft Lauderdale

Thursday, 25 Sep 2014 – Originally, we had intended to stay onboard the ship at Ft Lauderdale, but when we found out that all passengers would be required to disembark and go through US customs, we decided to book an excursion for the morning.  (The cost was zero for us, as we used part of the onboard credit we had received for it.)  When the clock buzzed at 6:00 AM, Sally hoped this trip would be worth it!  At 7:45 AM, after a quick breakfast, we proceeded to our excursion meeting point in the Princess Theater.

Florida Everglades

The tour group was ushered through customs very quickly, and by 8:30 AM, we were on our way to the Florida Everglades Holiday Park.  Our tour guide, Joan, pointed out the local sights during our 30-minute drive to the Everglades.  Shortly after arriving at the tour site, we boarded an airboat for our 30-minute ride through the Everglades.  Don, the airboat captain, pointed out interesting wildlife during our ride.  We were all startled when an alligator slid through the water very close to our boat.  The captain pointed out a buzzard colony and various bird species and apple trees with extremely deadly arsenic filled fruit.  One of the apple trees was covered with vines that are extremely irritating to the human skin and very difficult to clean off.  Before leaving the tour site, we attended an alligator show, where we watched a man drag an alligator from the water by his tail and wrestle open his mouth to show his set of 80 teeth.

We returned to the ship and were back onboard for lunch by 11:30 AM, where we ran into Jim and Kim.  They had opted out of the excursions, instead waiting in one of the ships lounges until about 10:30 AM; and then they were ushered through customs to a port lounge where they waited until time to re-board the ship.  According to Jim, there was an awful lot of waiting!  We were glad that we had booked the excursion, which turned out to be very interesting.

After lunch, we went for a swim in our almost private small swimming pool.  (When people test the water temperature, they usually walk on, leaving the pool to us.  It’s not really that cold after we’re in the water for 3 or 4 minutes.)  It rained a little while were in the pool and hot tub, but it didn’t bother us since we were wet anyway.  Afterwards, we returned to our cabin for napping and relaxation.

Jim and Kim did not join us for dinner tonight, but we shared a table with two other couples and two singles.  One couple was from Pennsylvania and only came aboard for the 4-day cruise.  They were both Platinum members.  The second couple was from Canada.  They had opted for the 9-day cruise.  They were cruising with a party of ten [relatives] to attend their son’s wedding.  He had been married “legally” in Canada before the wedding, and the ship’s captain officiated the marriage ceremony onboard.  One of the single ladies was from Ottawa, Canada, and the other was from Denver, Colorado.   We all shared some of our cruise experiences and discussed the legalized cannabis situation in Colorado.

            After dinner, we went to the Wheelhouse Bar for dancing; however, their new band, Sundown Duo, only played jazz, which was not suitable for ballroom dancing.  Also, there was a man on the dance floor with four very young kids, who were running and rolling around the dance floor.  (There seem to be more children on this 4-day segment of the cruise.)  We left the Wheelhouse Bar after three songs and vowed never to return!   We tried the other bars and did not find any dance music, so we returned to our cabin and watched BBC and MSNBC on the TV before retiring.

At Sea

Friday, 26 Sep 2014 – Today was an “at sea day,” so we both slept until 9:00 AM, before going to breakfast.  We went for a swim at 10:00 AM.  Jesse has not been able to repeat his “water treading” experience in the ship’s pool.  According to Sally, it’s much easier to float and tread in salt water.  Jesse went to a Cha Cha lesson at 2:30 PM, while Sally tried napping (but just rested).  Jesse didn’t learn anything new this time, except that Sally should gracefully wave her hands during the dance, the way our dancing instructor, Diane, does.

Dressed to Impress

As Elite Captain’s Circle members, we each received a free drink ticket for the Skywalkers Nightclub tonight from 5:00 to 7:00 PM.  Apparently, this free drink replaced the Captain’s Circle Party that we usually attend on longer cruises; there we each usually receive at least two free drinks.  After drinks, we met Jim and Kim for dinner.  Tonight was a “dress to impress” night, as scheduled in the Princess Patter.  Since we had been told that there would be two formal nights on this cruise, we dressed accordingly.  In general, we noticed that women were usually more dressed up than men.

After dinner, since dance bands weren’t playing in the usual places, we went to the Club Fusion with Jim and Kim, where “recorded” country music was playing.  It was a little better dance music than the jazz being played in the Wheelhouse Bar.  Jim and Kim stayed for the country music trivia contest which started at 9:00 PM, but Sally and I called it a night and retired to our cabin because we have to rise and shine a little earlier tomorrow.