Carnival Cruisin
I love to travel.
Traveling the world has given me such a wonderful perspective and understanding of other people and their unique needs. What I desire or need is both unique and universal. It is a rare and precious gift to see the uniqueness of other cultures and societies, yet see the basic kindness of humanity reflected around the globe. I may not be the globetrotter that I wish I could be, but I am trying. And I am so thankful that I am able to do that.
But not all vacations are a grand adventure, or at least they don’t start out to be. Most recently, I went on a cruise of the western Caribbean with my friend, Gabriela. I love cruising but haven’t been on one in about 8 years. It originally took me awhile to decide to go on one. I thought I would feel trapped on a ship or even get seasick. But I was quickly converted after I was convinced to try one. I am able to visit lots of different places and countries without having to unpack multiple times.
On this particular cruise, we hit two new countries for me – Honduras and Belize. The timing of the cruise turned out to be just at the start of the hurricane nightmare of 2017. The itinerary of the cruise had to be altered because Hurricane Franklin. Initially, the storm caused a little rough seas but the captain was able to choose a route that didn’t make the sea too rough.
Honduras was the first port. Since Gabriela isn’t overly fond of water activities, she had never been snorkeling before. Somehow I was able to convince her to try snorkeling. I’m pretty sure she didn’t enjoy it but she was a great sport. Next we went kayaking – again I’m not sure she was very impressed, but much credit to her for doing it anyway. All this took place at a nature reserve and we were able to go hiking, see iguanas, Capuchin monkeys and lots of birds and flowers.
We were actually on an island off the main land, part of the Bay Islands, the second largest coral reef in the world! In the past, Honduras has been referred to as the Spanish Honduras, whereas Belize was the British Honduras. Interestingly, Christopher Columbus discovered Honduras. When he set foot on ground there after sailing in a storm, his first words were: “Thank God we got out these great depths!” Honduras’ literal meaning is: Great Depths.
The next day, through slightly rough waters, we arrived in Belize. If you stop at a shallow port while on a cruise, you get to take a tinder boat to the shore. So they off load you away from shore and transport you to shore via boat. In reality, this is my favorite way to port. You get to take a free boat ride through gorgeous water. At the end of the day, traveling back to the ship, I relaxed and trailed my hand in the gorgeous blue water and dreamed of living on a remote island.
In Belize, we chose to take a tour of some Mayan ruins. Did you know there are approximately 6 million Mayan people living today? I was under the impression that the Mayan civilization disappeared. Ooops. Our main tour guide was 50% Mayan and the secondary guide was 100% Mayan. I appreciated the thoughts, insights and information they shared with me.
After another awesome boat ride up a river, we arrived at the Lamanai Mayan ruins, which is one of the largest excavated sites in Belize. It was incredible. In addition to learning more about the culture, we were able to climb to the top of the high temple. Sciatica or not, I was going to make it to the top! And it was well worth it! It renewed my sense of awe in the accomplishment of our human ancestors and what they built without our modern technology. Artifacts also demonstrated that these Mayans were involved in trade with Mayans from Mexico and other regions of the Americas. The exposed section of the temple is 108 feet high…I didn’t count how many steps. Though coming down was easier, it was scarier because of the steep steps. Another interesting fact is that most Mayan temples do not have rooms inside and do not serve as burial sites, unlike Egyptian pyramids.
Did I mention our tour guide decided I should be his next bride?
Well, let’s just say that didn’t work out but he certainly gave it his most valiant effort. In fact, after he suddenly kissed me, he compared me to a Frosted Flake – “sweet and crispy”. To be honest, I’m really not sure what that means. I’m crispy? Is this an asset I need to exploit?
After lunch, back to the cruise ship we went. This is evening was one of our formal dress evening dinners. I don’t get to dress up much anymore, and I miss it!! After moving to Texas, I showed up at a baby shower in a black cocktail dress with rhinestones. Let’s just say that the standard clothing at the event was jeans or shorts. Lesson learned!
So, as we were walking around the ship, many of the on board stores were having sales of items appropriate for the fancy night. One happened to have cocktail rings – Big gaudy things that could only be worn on special occasions. I decided that I needed one and loudly announced this to my friend. Except, instead of saying cocktail rings, I loudly pronounced that I needed a c@$k ring, except I neglected to add the word “tail”, for some unknown reason. Well, you can imagine all the stares from my fellow passengers. I continued to walk and never did stop to purchase aforementioned item. And surprisingly, no offers for purchase of that item.
The next day was the outing I was most looking forward to. I have been to Cozumel before, so the city/country wasn’t the draw. We were going to be working with the Cozumel Department of Ecology and “Save the Sea Turtles” to rescue baby sea turtles. This was what I was so excited about!! And the experience was magical. For those who have never done this, the research crew mark nests and know when the eggs are laid and will hatch. They also employ satellite technology to keep track of the nests. The next morning after hatching, they dig out the nests for any weak babies that need rehabilitation or just a little extra help getting out to the sea. So the volunteers –that was us- dig up the nests and help out these adorable little turtles. We also count the number of hatched eggs to estimate the number of babies from that nest. Because Hurricane Franklin had hit two days before, they estimated thousands of nests had been lost. Considering in the following weeks several more hurricanes hit, I am sure the loss has been staggering.
Finding the first baby was such a thrill. But the magical moment for me came when all the healthy babies were released into the sea. We gave each of the baby’s warrior names to hint at their success and survival in the vast ocean. But I was standing there crying because moments like those always affect me deeply.
Another day at sea and then we were done. I have been on 7 previous cruises, only one on Carnival and had not been impressed at the time. It was a different story this time. Everyone was so friendly and helpful. The ship was clean and despite imperfect weather, the staff worked hard to make sure everyone had a great time. But I will be sure to book any future cruises outside of hurricane season. Where should I go next? Let me know in the comments!
