This is a very belated post. But better late than never! Caution: this is a long post
but it has pictures - yay!
Andrew and I took our very first week long international trip together in September 2011. We decided to take a 7 day cruise on the Royal Carribean Allure of the Sea (world's largest cruise ship) visiting the Western Caribbean which includes Haiti, Jamaica, and Mexico setting sail from Fort Lauderdale, FL. Below was our itinerary:
9/10 NY, NY // Depart 11am, Arrive 2pm
9/11 Fort Lauderdale, FL // Depart 5pm
9/12 Cruising
9/13 Ladadee, Haiti // Arrive 8am, Depart 5pm
9/14 Falmouth, Jamaica // Arrive 10am, Depart 6pm
9/15 Cruising
9/16 Cozumel, Mexico // Arrive 8am, Depart 7pm
9/17 Cruising
9/18 Fort Lauderdale, FL // Arrive 7am
9/10 [Happy Birthday Mom!] NY, NY to Fort Lauderdale
We arrived in FL and checked into our hotel. It was hot and sunny and the sight of palm trees just reminds me of vacation :) We didn't do much other than hang out in the hotel room and check out the nearby area. We had lunch at a seafood joint and went to the dollar store and bought random stuff and water which came in super handy on the ship later! Note: Cruise ship does not provide free bottled water! That night, we had dinner at an Italian restaurant across the street from our hotel called Bravo. It was surprisingly really good!
First picture on the blog and it's a funny one of Andrew chewing :) I hope he doesn't mind. He had clam chowder, lobster roll and sweet potato fries while I had the fried scrod (a mild fish that was not so mild for my liking) and clams.
9/11 Fort Lauderdale, FL
I was bugging Andrew to go downtown to where most of the attractions were (not that much to do in FL). We mainly wanted to go hit up Las Olas, which is mainly a boulevard of shops and restaurants - the guy sitting on the plane next to us who was a local had recommended it. We took a trolley from the hotel to the beach front perpendicular to Las Olas. Knowing us, we really had no plans. We were strolling around and found this rental shop with scooters and scoot coups. The red scoot coup sitting outside the shop caught our eye because it was so adorable. We hesitated at first because we thought it was a bit pricey at $50 for 1.5 hours but we realized we were on vacation and it was okay. I'm SO GLAD we did it because it was so much fun. We drove up and down the beach front and down Las Olas (we previously did not know how we were going to get there) and everyone was staring and smiling at us. It was too funny. I mean come on, it has eyelashes:
We boarded our very first cruise ship later that afternoon and was amazed by how ginormous and beautiful the ship was. We also loved our oceanview balcony room. Definitely worth the extra money (we were also on the 14th floor of the 16 floors on the ship) - one of the best part was having privacy when we wanted it while being able to enjoy the water. Waking up to this view every day was just incredible. I could never get sick of it.
9/12 Cruising/At Sea
Day 2 was just sailing. We took the day exploring the magnificent ship and relaxed. There was so much to do that we didn't know where to start. We relaxed on our private balcony and strolled around to appreciate the beauty of the Allure. Dinner was formal night and BOY, do people get dressed up. Gowns and tuxedos, people went all out. I brought a few nicer dresses so I was happy I was prepared. Our dinner mates did not show up that night so me and Andrew had the table to ourselves. We then watched a show, Ocean Aria which was basically water acrobats.
This is me chilling on our private balcony. I could have sat there naked if I wanted to. Just sayin.
The beautiful Allure - back of the ship view
Facing front of the ship view
We changed after formal dinner for our outdoor water show.
9/13 Labadee, Haiti
We woke up and there we were in Labadee, Haiti! It was the ship's private island and so we definitely did not get to experience the real culture and people of Haiti. We signed up for the jetski excursion and headed out early for our tour.
Labadee, Haiti
Jetskiing was so much fun! Andrew drove and I was the passenger. I thought we weren't going fast enough! We purchased the above picture since we didn't have a waterproof camera. The only thing I didn't like about the tour was that they lead us to a nook where some locals tried to sell us souvenirs on their kayaks. I really wanted to buy something because they were nearly begging us. Unfortunately, they sold really crappy stuff. I'm a souvenir person and I didn't even find anything. I hate it when people beg and when I witness poverty. It depresses me, which is why I try to avoid traveling to 3rd world countries - it makes me feel like the world is cruel when I see suffering. The tour guides which were locals were really nice. They gave us some background on the country when we made rest stops. Although, no one mentioned the earthquake which Andrew and I thought was so strange. So we asked about it after the tour - surely, they gave us a short answer. Guess they don't like talking about it!
This is the jetski signal for "I'm super okay" so the tour guide knows you're fine. I'm letting you know I am doing super okay on this trip :)
Andrew and I in front of the Allure
Look at the clear water and white sand. Love.
We decided to go back on the ship for some lunch and had an amazing view of the island
After lunch, we grabbed a hammock and napped right on the beach, about 40 feet away from the water. Yes, it was glorious.
The island with tons of beach chairs and hammocks and shade
Back on the ship and taking pics on the balcony. Because I can. Did I tell you how much we enjoyed our balcony?
After dinner, we caught the broadway show Chicago. The theater was so big! I didn't realize how big it was until we went to see Lion King at the Minskoff (tiny! in comparison) a few weeks later.
9/14 Falmouth, Jamaica
We woke up and viola~ we were in Jamaica! Jamon! We originally signed up for a kayak excursion that we were really excited about but they ended up cancelling it when we got on land! How frustrating. Without excursions, we really didn't know if it was safe to roam around, let alone where to go. We notified the excursion peeps and they told us that we can join another tour that included Dunns River Falls and White Water Tubing. Without an alternative choice, we took the backup (we later found out it was more expensive than our original excursion, when they told us it was the same price. I really hate incompetent people.) We didn't have any water gear so we had to purchase overpriced water shoes and a waterproof camera. I don't have many pictures from Jamaica since we took most of them with the water camera we have yet to develop since we didn't finish the entire film.
Waking up in Jamaica, view from ship
Dunns River Falls. Easy climb...what was the big fuss about? Why do we need a human chain? Jebus. It was so easy, Andrew is taking a nap here. After the falls, we headed to our next destination, the white river where we went tubing. It was nice and relaxing but a bit boring. The people on our tour were a little older so tubing was more exciting for them than it was for us. They were screaming and crying when we were floating over some rocks...simma downa. I liked it but I think I would have enjoyed kayaking more. We wanted to do something more active especially since we were eating so much on the ship. Andrew did not like the white river because towards the end, there was garbage floating at the end of the river/beach area. They told us if you wash your face in the water, you would look younger - LIES. We had lunch after tubing at a hotel near the beach and it was pretty delicious. We had jerked meat, etc. They then took us to a market where shady people wanted us to buy all sorts of garbage. No thank you. They were so pushy too, which turned me off even more. We stopped by another shopping area and looked at diamonds. We were just curious :P
That evening, after we got back on the ship, we saw How to Train Your Dragon on Ice. It was cute - probably more for kids, but we are big kids at heart<3
9/15 Cruising/At Sea
It was our 2nd full day sailing aka another day to chillax on the ship. After breakfast, we caught one of the many entertainments available, the bellyflop contest. As the name speaks for itself, I need not describe or elaborate. We really enjoy these laugh out loud type of entertainment :)
In the evening and part of exploring the ship, we found the perfect place to catch a view of the sunset. The area was completely empty as the sun was slowly setting (no sun left to tan) and so we had all the space to ourselves. It was so beautiful - I wish I could watch it everyday. I prefer sunrise over sunsets, but I can never get up early enough :P Look at the sun setting on the endless body of water.
At sea days also meant formal dinner nights. The food is generally better to match the elevated attire. This night, we had lobster and shrimp. The shrimp was delicious and lobster was good too, but I'm not a big lobster fan so Andrew had the pleasure of finishing mine after I sampled it.
Following dinner, Andrew and I decided to take a stroll around Central Park, it was so private and peaceful, and surely reminiscent of NYC's Central Park.
9/16 Cozumel, Mexico
Mexico was our last destination before heading back home. We chose scuba diving for our excursion. I didn't quite enjoy it as much as I had hoped. I couldn't go under the water because I panicked/felt really uncomfortable in my scuba gear and breathing. For me, between the salt water that dried up my mouth and the dry oxygen from the tank, made me feel like I was suffocating. Plus, if I went down deep enough, it would take me a while to get back to the surface as you are supposed to equalize the pressure as you ascend. The fact that I could not reach the surface immediately in the case I panicked, made me even more uncomfortable. So basically, I snorkeled in very expensive scuba gear :( Andrew on the other hand, had an amazing experience. He bravely went to the bottom of the reef and told me he saw all kinds of fish and kept signaling me to go down and join him. He loved it so much that he wanted to go for a second dive and encouraged me to do it again since I had "experience" now. We purchased the below picture since they did not let us take cameras with us on our first dive.
Look how clear and blue the water in Mexico was! This was the reef we scuba-ed at and the station where we geared up. The tank and gear is super heavy - I almost fell backwards when I came out of the water!
We picked up some souvenirs before heading back to the ship. We didn't buy any souvenirs until our last stop in Mexico - mainly things for co-workers to bring back to office.
We saw another cruise ship park right next to the Allure and took a comparative shot to give a sense for the size of the Allure relative to another ship. The other ship was not parked far away so I would say this is a good comparison/view. Hello mini-me - you're so cute.
Back on the ship, we checked our the "Boardwalk" theme of the ship and grab some very delicious hotdogs and went on the carousel. Yes, there was a carousel!
Just prior to sunset and dinner, Andrew and I went surfing! It's really hard to keep your balance and as soon as the instructor let go of my hands, I fell and went flying back. Andrew looks pretty profesh here :)
We ordered room service for dinner that night as we were too lazy to get dressed for dinner at the dining room. After dinner, we caught a show called Blue Planet. I had an intense case of food coma and pretty much passed out after I took this picture before the show began. I kind of wish I had stayed awake for it.
9/17 Cruising/At Sea
It was our last day on the ship before arriving in Florida the next morning. We took advantage and tried to see and do all the things we have yet to explore on the ship. I went ziplining and Andrew chose to participate in a basketball tournament (yes, he can do that anywhere, but he really loves basketball). His team won second place! First place cheated so I should say Andrew won first place actually :)
We finally went to the hot tubs (they were always crowded during the day) and caught the sunset again. It was so well designed, the hot tub protruded out from the ship so looking down, it felt like you were on top of the ocean.
Lastly, these were our darling dinner-mates throughout this trip in the formal dining room. Lucia and Jesus from Mexico City and the newlyweds from Atlanta, Georgia. One of them is in DSP too! She mentioned our password and we totally didn't remember it....whoops!
What an amazing vacation<3
