We're off on a grand adventure!

Finally, the time came to leave on our Eastern Caribbean cruise. I was so excited! I'd been getting ready for weeks and was so ready to be on vacation. We didn't fly out from the Salt Lake Airport until almost midnight so I took my pillow and blanket and made a bed on the chairs and took a nap.

Then we had a three hour layover in Atlanta so we all made ourselves as comfortable as we could and tried to get a little beauty sleep.

We made it to Ft. Lauderdale at about 10:30 Sunday morning. It was so hot and humid, I loved it! We boarded our shuttle from the airport and off we went.


Our boat was awesome and massive! What a sight! We had time for lunch and a nap and then it was Bon Voyage.



We all went out on the deck for one last look at the United States and we headed out to sea bound for the Eastern Caribbean.





PRINCESS CAYS

Well, our first morning on the cruise and we made it to Princess Cays, a private island in the Bahamas that is owned by Princess. It was the perfect stop for our first day. We didn't have to rush to get off the boat. We slept in, ate breakfast and got off at our leisure.

We got on a tender (a lifeboat) and it took us to the island.



It's a really small island. At one point we went up on a tower and could see the other side of the island. But, there were beautiful beaches with beach chairs and cabanas. The water was gorgeous blue and it was the perfect temperature. We played in the water and layed out in the sun and enjoyed a relaxing day.




The delicious barbecue Princess provided for lunch!

A DAY AT SEA

On Tuesday we had a full day at sea as we went from Princess Cays to St. Maarten. Well, it was supposed to be St. Maarten but in the afternoon the captain made the announcement that since Hurricane Omar was heading straight for St. Maarten we were changing course. Instead of going to Grand Turk on Friday we would go there on Wednesday. Then we were going around Cuba and stopping at Ocho Rios, Jamaica on Thursday and Grand Cayman on Friday. We were fine with the change because we hadn't been to any of the ports.

It was a great day for most of us except mom, who was sick in bed with a stomach bug. We were able to sleep in, sit in the hot tub and just relax.

This is a picture of the full moon taken from the back of the boat. If you've never been on a cruise it's the eeriest feeling to look out and only see water forever, especially at night.

That evening after dinner we went to a "Name That 70's Song". We didn't do very well but the cruise director, Kelvin, was hilarious so we laughed the whole time.

After Name That Song, we went to the Princess Pop Star competition. Somehow I got talked into entering it. I was terrified! It was one of the scariest things I've ever done. Luckily I didn't win so I didn't have to be in the finals.



GRAND TURK

On Wednesday morning we rolled into Grand Turk (often on the boat we felt like we were rolling so it's actually a pretty accurate description.) It was definitely a tourist place. To even get to the island you had to walk through a big store and right out into a big plaza filled with more stores.

Over past the stores on one side was a big swimming pool. It was there a few feet from the ocean for anyone to use. I didn't understand why you would need a swimming pool with the ocean right there but maybe some people don't like the salt water?

Grand Turk was hit really hard by Hurricane Ike. I guess it was pretty devastated. The trees were mostly gone, the airport was completely destroyed. All the trees that we saw had just been planted.

Notice the conch is missing! We were hoping it had just never been found after Hurricane Ike.





Matt and I walked around the shops for a little while and realized that on the opposite side of the swimming pool you could get past the shops and get to another beach. On this side there weren't beach chairs and all of the shops. We all walked down the beach on the sand. It was beautiful. It was really hot so we found a spot to jump in. We played in the waves for a long time and it was so much fun.


There were several shells washed up on the beach. Most of them were pretty beat up and in pieces, probably from the hurricane.





This is a picture from the ship of the beach that we walked down and where we went swimming in the ocean.

Later that night, back on the boat, we went to a magic show in the Princess Theatre. We saw a lot of great shows during the week.

JAMAICA

On Thursday we got to Ocho Rios, Jamaica. I thought it was the most beautiful port that we stopped at. Gorgeous mountains covered with tropical rain forest.

We got on a shuttle and took off to Dunn's River Falls. Can I just say what an awesome experience it was. We hiked almost 1000 feet up these amazing water falls. It was a once in a lifetime experience!

When we were done hiking the falls my mom and I got our hair braided. We thought maybe it would make it easier to keep our hair under control for the rest of our cruise. I do have to say it was nice not having hair in my eyes every time I got out of the water.

JAMERICANS!

After the falls we went down to a skyride that went right through the rain forest. Talk about amazing views! We could see down to the coast and see the surf breaking against the reef. It didn't compare to hiking up the falls but was still pretty awesome.

After we were done at the skyride we went back into town and had lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe. Not very Jamaican but safe. We loved Jamaica and I think we were all glad Hurricane Omar had sent us there.

That night was formal night (not sure how formal braids are).

GRAND CAYMAN

On Friday morning we made it to Grand Cayman. What a beautiful island! The water was crystal clear, gorgeous blue and the perfect temperature.

We got on a boat and took off across the ocean. Out in the middle of the ocean, miles from shore, is a sand bar. All over in the water were sting rays. We got in the water and they swam all around us. We were able to feed them squid. It was an amazing experience but also kind of freaky. The sting rays weren't scared of us at all. They would swim right up into our faces, between our legs, all around us. Most of them were pretty big, some small ones, some of them HUGE! If you ever go to Grand Cayman you have to do this!

After we were done feeding the rays we took off to a reef and went snorkeling. It was fun but in no way compared to the sting rays. We did see a moray eel that took off after Matt when he got a little too close. I've never seen anyone get back to the surface so fast!



When we were done snorkeling we walked around Grand Cayman and did a little shopping.


That night at dinner we requested our favorite table so we could have our favorite waiters. Our head waiter was Adrien from Mexico. The junior waiter was Miklos from Hungary. They were so great. Really friendly and they'd do whatever they could to make sure we were happy. One night my dad couldn't decide between Beef Wellington or Lobster and Prawns. He ordered the Beef Wellington but when they brought his plate out it also had the Lobster and Prawns. YUMMY!

Adrien

Miklos

On Friday night when we got to dinner this was on the table, they were expecting us. My #1 tip for a great cruise if you have anytime dining is once you find great waiters request them every night!

After dinner we went to a movie. The boat had this huge LCD screen outside over one of the swimming pools. Everyone sat on the pool chairs and watched the movie. It was a lot of fun.

Who can figure out what movie we watched?

After the movie mom and dad went to bed (party poopers!) but Matt and I went to a show. It was a talent show of some of the crew. Before the show started they threw hundreds of balloons to the audience and had us blow them up. Then we had a huge balloon war. Corny, but fun.

OUR FINAL DAY :(

On Saturday morning (our last day, sniff, sniff) Princess had a 5k walk to raise money for breast cancer research. Luckily it wasn't too early so mom, dad, and I decided to do it. We each got a baseball cap for doing the 5k. It was 8 laps around the ship.

We finished!

For the rest of the day we mostly just relaxed and enjoyed our last day on the ship.

HEADED FOR HOME

Well, on Sunday morning we got up and headed for home. I was actually really missing my kids by this time and ready to go. It wasn't until Sunday morning that I felt that way though. On Saturday night I was just sad that it was over. We had such a great time. It was a much needed break from the usual day to day. Thank you Deco, Kera, Heather, Jeremy, Stacy, and Taylor for making it possible!

Some people say a cruise is all about the food. We definitely did have lots of great stuff to eat. Here are some of our favorite meals and desserts! I don't think my waistline fared too badly though. Check out my before and after pics and let me know what you think.

YUMMY!!!

At Princess Cays on Monday morning.

At Ft. Lauderdale on Sunday morning before we flew out.