Rest & Relaxation - Day 3

It was another amazingly relaxing day at sea.  We slept in again and as we awoke we looked out the slider only to see land… we were just passing around the northern tip of the Yucatan Peninsula and were approaching Cancun.  We followed the coast all morning til the land pulled back to the west and we continued on toward Honduras.

After breakfast we wanted to check out the adult only pool and the reserved deck area called “The Sanctuary”.  It is a beautiful section on the top deck at the front of the ship.  Windows across the front leave an amazing panoramic view.  We reserved chairs for the day and relaxed in the cushioned loungers sipping our cucumber infused water.

It was exquisite!   We had a light lunch delivered and continued relaxing into the afternoon listening to music and reading a book. 

At 2:00 we headed back down to the Thermal Spa where we relaxed in preparation for our spa treatment.  Today was something new… a seaweed wrap, reflexology and massage.  Since I know some are gonna ask… here’s how it went.  (Scott and I were scheduled for the same treatment but were in different rooms and had slightly different experiences.)  The massage table was covered in plastic, I laid on top with a blanket on.  Chix my masseuse smeared this green seaweed muck all over my back as I sat up and then the rest of my body as I lay down.  Then she wrapped me in the plastic.  At this point, Scott was lowered into a hot bath of water… I stayed on the table and received a very long and much appreciated scalp massage.  After this step, we were both unwrapped and given some privacy to take a shower and wash off the seaweed.  Then back on the table and wrapped in plastic again.  This time we received a reflexology treatment…  this is like an amazingly in depth foot massage.  After this step, it was a full massage.  Scott and I both RAVED about the experience.  It was different than anything we’d done before but very soothing.

After the treatment, we headed back to our suite to get cleaned up for dinner.  It was another fabulous meal! 

On our walk tonight, we stopped on the deck to watch a few minutes of the Movie Under the Stars.  It was a beautiful night!

And now its time for bed.  We will arrive in Honduras around 8:00 am and then have the day at our leisure on a local beach.  Will take lots of pictures tomorrow.

Today’s Weather:  81* sunny with what the captain calls “moderate” seas  (you can definitely feel the movement of the waves.  We laugh as we try and are unable to walk a straight line down the hallways.)

Comfort and Relaxation - Day 2

We must have been sleepy cause we slept in until 9:30 am.  After watching a little TV in bed (I can’t remember the last time we did that!), we enjoyed the view from our balcony.  The pic shows looking forward... you can see the Captains bridge sticking out.

After we got ready and headed for breakfast.  Scott was in heaven!  A huge buffet with plates at least 16” across.  It took him so long to decide which selections should make the cut. 

After breakfast we took a walk around the decks of the ship.  It was fun to lean over the edge at the very front of the ship and watch the waves.   The sun was starting to come out so we headed back to our room to get our suits on and found a quiet spot on the deck to enjoy.

After an hour and a half of reading and resting, we headed back to our room to prep for the spa.  We had a 2:00 pm appointment for a couples massage.  It was fabulous.  Set on the top deck of the front of the ship…. In the privacy of our own cabana… so relaxing to listen to the wind and waves.  When we were finished, we decided to go spend some time in the thermal spa, which is a series of various steam rooms.  When finished I sat on a heated lounger and read my book.  So comfortable!  Actually, we lost track of time and happened to check when we were only 45 minutes from our dinner reservation.

Tonight was a formal meal so we had to get changed and dressed to the nines and get to our dining room by 5:45… we made it just in time. 

The menu offered a special meal tonight to celebrate 50 years of Princess cruises.  There were two options for each course of the meal… so Scott and I each ordered something different.  We even had mushroom soup and duck... it was so fun to try new things.

After dinner we walked the deck and enjoyed the fresh air… We walked to the front of the ship again and struggled against the force of the wind.  When we finished, my hair was a mess, so we decided to head back to our room and relax a bit.

It was a fabulous day!  Super relaxing.  Cannot wait for tomorrow.

Weather:  high 77*, mostly cloudy

Anchors Away - Day 1

We arrived at our gate at the Gerald Ford Airport with only 25 minutes to wait for the plane.  Everything about our morning was smooth.  The drive, the airport, even the first flight… all great!

The flight from Minneapolis down to Houston was reasonably good too.  It was bumpy though as we were routed around a storm in Kansas and then through some more rough weather in Texas.  Both Scott and I left the plane sore and hungry.

We stopped for a snack before grabbing our luggage and hopping on the motorcoach that transferred us to the pier.  We were the very last bus to arrive so there was hardly any wait before we boarded the boat.

We love our suite!  There’s a nice closet space, a small sitting room and a balcony with an amazing view!  We will definitely spend some time out there!

After our emergency drill, we pushed off shore approximately 4:30 pm.  Scott and I wandered around the ship to explore before dinner.  We had a great meal and then an amazing desesrt.  

We stopped for a coffee on the walk back to our room and are now headed to bed.  Because… well we’ve been up 18 hours will very little sleep.

Great start to our vacation!

Weather:  High 70s, overcast, occasional sprinkles

Our Next Adventure - Parents' Cruise 2015

Well tomorrow we will leave bright and early to catch our flight to Houston.  Then its all sun, swimming and spa for 8 days.  We are traveling with Princess Cruise Line for the first time.  Our route takes us through Belize, Honduras, and Mexico.  Its sure to be a great trip.

Its always tough leaving our kids behind but we know they are in good hands.  Katie has agreed to live-in this week so the kids will continue on with life as usual.  As I sit here snuggling on the couch with both kiddos on the eve of our trip, one thing I am certain of... we sure are gonna miss them!

Our flight leaves out of GR at 7:25 am.  We fly through Minneapolis and then on to Houston where our motor coach awaits to transfer us to the ship.  We are scheduled to leave the harbor around supper time.

The Emerald Princess first set sail on April 11, 2007.  It was christened by Florence Henderson, Marion Ross, Erin Moran and Susan Olsen, TV's favorite mothers / daughters).  It was refurbished again in December 2012.

The ship weighs 113,561 tons... that's 227,122,000 lbs!!  The ship is 951 ft long and is 195 ft tall.  It has 19 decks with 4 pools and 7 whirlpools.  There are a total of 1,539 guest cabins with a total capacity of 4,282 people (which includes a crew of 1,200).  

To see a live shot from the bridge of our boat, click here.

The Wrap Up

Welcome home international travelers...

I'm so excited that you had this opportunity... 

I'm pleased by all of the new things you learned and experienced... 

I'm proud of each of your accomplishments... 

This trip has helped each of you grow and see the world differently.  Each of you in your own way is better because of it.  I hope you never forget.  

"Once you have traveled, the voyage never ends, but is played out over and over again in the quiestest chambers. The mind can never break off from the journey.” – Pat Conroy

The Ride Home - Day 9

Scott and I slept with the shades open so we could fully enjoy the palms, the stars, the waves.  It's a view I won't soon forget!

The alarm went off at 6:30 so we got to work prepping the last few items.  Once the kids were up, dressed, and fed, I slipped out on the veranda to say my goodbyes.  Each kiddo in their own time snuck out to join me and we spent a few moments talking about our trip and what we would miss the most.  Then we spent some time praying... Thanking God for the opportunities this trip gave us and praying for safety and peace for our travels today.  It was so sweet to sit there as the sun came up, spending time with God together with my kids.

Miguel showed up right on time at 7:00 am. This time he had brought a rope to tie a few bags on top of the van since it had been such a tight fit before.  Now usually a 30 minute car ride to the airport wouldn't require much more than a prepositional phrase but this ride, well this ride needs a bit more explaining.

So to give a visual, we are crammed into a Toyota Sienna mini van.  You have Scott and Sammy riding in the far back.  Mary, Tyler and I are in the middle and JC is up front with the driver.  We have 2 large suitcases on top, then we have 6 carryons, 4 suitcases and a stroller packed in the between places (next to Scott, drivers armrest, etc). We are tight.

We are thrilled that the traffic seems very light this morning... None of that crazy driving from last week.  Until we saw a motorcycle sitting in the space where the guardrail should be dividing the highway - he's perpendicular to the road.  We've learned now that Miguel doesn't care for the driving in the Doninican Republic  and especially the motorcycles.  He taps JC and points at the bike, both laugh in spite of the language barrier.  We didn't move but held firm in our lane and we were headed straight towards the motorcycle.  As we got closer, I started to get nervous.   At the last minute the motorcyclist eased his bike backwards further into our lane... I literally let out a scream and ducked but Miguel swerved just in time.  Phew!  We all giggled nervously.

A little ways up the road we took the overpass toward Las Americas, the airport in Santo Domingo, as we came over the hill, Miguel starts motioning to tell us that he lives in the capital and starts pointing out the passenger window.  Suddenly Mary (from the middle row) shouted "car!" and points through the windshield.  We all turned to see a car headed straight for us!  Miguel slammed on his breaks and honked his horn, coming to a complete stop on the highway as the oncoming car passes us and continued up the wrong way.  We all giggled nervously again... I made eyes at Mary and moments later we were both relieved to pull up to the airport.  

Processing through the airport went smoothly, we arrived at our gate only a few minutes before boarding began so we made a quick stop for some breakfast.  Nothing on the menu for Sammy so we opted for two containers of Pringles (not sure if that's better than the french fries she's been eating).  We boarded our first flight to Miami, scheduled to be 2.5 hours.  Luckily we all had seats together. Sammy insisted that Mr JC sit by her so we adjusted a bit to please.  And it worked!  Sammy had a fabulous flight... She was calm and quiet the entire way.

We had 2:45 hours until our next flight left but we needed to be approved by customs, recollect our luggage, and go through another security screening.  It took almost 1:45 to make it through.  There were only slight hiccups along the way and everyone was thrilled to officially be back in the United States.

We grabbed Wendys for lunch and were ready to board our 3-hr flight to Detroit.  This time it was just Sammy and I with the rest of our party a few rows back.  The flight was again surprisingly uneventful.  I kept the timer going and Sammy would ask occasionally how much longer, but that girl made it!  As we touched down, she turned and looked at me and shouted "I DID IT!"  There were quiet giggles from the other passengers... Completely unaware of the amazing accomplishment they were witness to.  She was so proud!!

We claimed our bags and took the shuttle back to our vehicle parked at the hotel - that was so slick!  

We were on the road just after 5:00 pm.  We grabbed McDonalds and Arbys to go and pulled into the driveway around 8:00 pm with two very tired kids.  13 hours of straight travel is bound to leave you a little ragged.  What a big day!

Our Last Swim in Paradise - Day 8

What a beautiful day it was today... and we stretched out every last drop.

After a long and relaxing morning on the veranda, we ate breakfast at the poolside restaurant so we could make a quick transition to the beach.  We spent the entire morning and well into the afternoon in and out of the water, back and forth to the pool, and several stops in the lounge chairs under the palm trees.  We grabbed snacks from our room and stayed out until 3:30 pm... our longest day yet!  I think none of us wanted to leave.

We snuggled on the lounge chairs.  JC found our largest crab yet.  Scott picked it up so we could all take a look, until he got pinched by the very flexible and somewhat angry crab.

Tyler and JC posed in the lifeguard shack... you can see the guard coming to stop them in the first picture.

We've heard that there is a restaurant at the point on the far eastern side of our beach.  It sets on a small peninsula that juts out in the ocean (you have seen it in most of our sunset pictures) We hoped to time our dinner so we could watch the sun set from that point, so we ran in for showers and got changed to head to an early dinner.  

It took a while to make the trek across the beach.  It was warm and we were walking right into the sun so both kids were uncomfortable.  We had just about made it to the restaurant when we realized something was wrong.  With security guards closing in on us, we soon understood that it was a private club and we were not welcome.  We got directions from the guards who then escorted us off the property.  At this point, we've walked quite a ways in the sand, we are hot and sweaty and back out on the road without dinner yet.  We found ourselves close to the restaurant from last night and, remembering it had air conditioning, decided to go there again for our last meal in the Dominican.  Once again, it did not disappoint.  We didn't recognize one of the gourds that they used to decorate our plate.  The waitress even went back to the kitchen to bring us a full one to show us what they looked like...  it grows on a vine on the ground and is native to the DR.

We enjoyed the walk back to the hotel.  On the way, we decided to take a spontaneous swim in the pool... in our clothes!  Sammy was eager to do it, Tyler took some convincing, but either way they both loved it.

When we got home and dried off, we got a movie started for the kids in bed while the adults went to work packing.  It was all hands on deck but we finished packing and cleaned up the condo with enough time to get a movie in before bed.

It was hard picking which shells to take home after our collection had grown so large... here's some of loot!

Today we spent a lot of time talking about the highlights of our trip... the surprises, the views, the beauty, the new experiences, the laughs.   It will definitely be one to remember!