Thetechie

Day 5 (I think?) Bonaire!
Such a beautiful day today. We docked about 8:30, and the captain gave us the all clear right at 9am
We were the second ship in port today, the first was the old Monarch 
We decided to rent a couple scooters for the day and just tour the island on our own. Turned out to be a fantastic idea! The guy we rented from was awesome, picked us up at the port and took us to two brand new (in November) Yamaha scooters. These are the bigger models that you actually have to have a motorcycle endorsement on your license to ride. My wife and I are both endorsed, and decided to get our own, instead of riding tandem. 
We set off to see the sights!
The beauty in these islands just amazes me
the shape of the corals that have washed onshore and now line the shore are just incredible 
Saw some incredible kite surfing down at the south end
We rode the whole south end of the island, and stopped back in Kralendijk to grab some lunch, and then headed north
We stopped at 1000 steps and went down and got in the water with our snorkels. Wow!
After the snorkeling, we were beat and decided to head back. After stopping for fuel (and putting in a whopping $2.48 between the two bikes) We got back to the rental shop about 3:30 and he took us back to the port where we walked around for a little bit and then headed back on the ship. 
We hadn’t had a chance to catch the Iskate show yet, so we headed down to studio B to take it in. I was a bit skeptical walking in, but then the show started and I was hooked!
Tonight’s dinner was the Windjammer, and then up to the room. We are beat and want to get some good sleep before we hit Curaçao tomorrow!

Day 4, at sea.
Today was a pretty laid back day for us. Beautiful views from all over the ship 
We started off with breakfast in the MDR
I had the French toast and an omelet, they were fine, but I don’t think the quality of food was any different than the windjammer, and I don’t particularly care for taking an hour and a half to eat breakfast, I think we will stick with the Windjammer. 
After breakfast it was time for our All Access Tour
It was a group of 18 people, and was quite informative. I took most of the pictures on my GoPro, and haven’t loaded them yet, but here are a few
We had lunch in the MDR again today. We really enjoy the salad bar and Buffett, but I’m still not sold on the slow service. It takes 20 minutes to get a refill on a soda or water. Maybe I just drink too fast. 
After lunch we just cruised around the ship for awhile, and then went a took a nap, it was wonderful. 
Just after 5pm we went out to the sports deck (around this time, the pool deck and sports deck are all but deserted) and went down the slides about 6 or 7 times each, basically no lines. It was awesome!
We went back to the room and got changed, and watched the sunset. 
Then we ran up to the Windjammer and grabbed a plate of food and took it out to the Lime and Coconut to enjoy the movie on the pool deck, that was fun. 
The pool deck at night is beautiful 
We decided to catch the Headliner show his name was James Stephens III, he was an impressionist and musician, it was fun and a totally packed house!
Tonight was the 70’s party, we stayed on the promenade for a little bit, but it was really warm, so we decided to call it an evening and went back to the room to cool off and relax on the balcony for a bit before bed. 
The wind kicked up quite a bit this evening and there was a fair amount of rocking, but it hasn’t bothered us yet, we haven’t had any issues with seasickness!
Next stop is Bonaire!

Day 3, Labadee!
Started this morning off at the Windjammer just after 7am with a nice little breakfast while watching us back into the dock at Labadee
We went down to StudioB at 7:50 for our Key debarment, and were escorted off the ship about 8:15
Hopped on a golf cart that took us to our Over the Water Cabana
We are in the one on the left. This is amazing!
The water here is incredible. Remember, we live on the west coast, and haven’t ever been down here before. We have been to Hawaii several times, but it just doesn’t compare. Did some snorkeling under the cabanas, some neat stuff
Spent the day relaxing. Amazing...
Our attendant, Jantee, was awesome, and kept the Labadoozies and Pina Colada’s flowing! Definitely made use of our drink package today!
Sailaway from our balcony

Dinner was in the MDR tonight
Tonight’s headliner was a Journey tribute band, they were...interesting

Thats all for now. See you later!

Day 2,at sea, continues...
We hit up the MDR for lunch, and decided to do the salad bar/buffet. It was incredible! We will definitely be doing this again! It was so good in fact, that I forgot to take any pictures!
We then went and got changed, and headed out to the pool deck. It was pretty busy when we got there, but we found my cousins, sat down, and people watched while enjoying some drinks from the Lime and Coconut. 
We enjoyed some time outside, and went down both water slides several times. I think I enjoy the mat racer most, but my wife and I did the tube together, and that was quite fun as well. The lines weren’t too bad at all, and they kept the turnover moving pretty well. 
Tonight we are eating at Hooked, but with a dining time of 8:30, we had some time to wander the ship. We grabbed some espresso from Cafe Promenade, and noticed it was now Seattles Best, must have been a change from Illy during the revamp
We found the stowaway piano player just outside the Windjammer!
Stopped by the Bamboo room and grabbed a drink. I got the Banana Colada, and it was awesome!
Ventured outside and caught an amazing sunset. Sunsets at sea are like no other!
We still had some time before dinner, so we went down to Cafe Promenade again, and I grabbed a vanilla smoothie, stopped by Playmakers and got a Rum Punch, and combined the two. Total win! I will be doing this again. 
It was then time for dinner, so we made our way down to Hooked. Our waiter there was great and took care of us well. I opted for the Messy Fish Sandwich, and it did not disappoint! My wife got the Turf and Turf and enjoyed it very much as well
We were wanting to make it to the show, so our waiter offered to give us dessert to go, which was awesome! I got the bread pudding, it was incredible. 
Now off to the show, “Showgirl!”, it was a lot of fun, and quite talented people up on stage!
We got back to our room and had a nice fruit plate waiting for us
As well as another letter with information on our priority debarkation process for the coming ports
Tomorrow is Labadee!!

Started off this morning with a couple of fruit plates and a bowl of oatmeal with the complimentary room service.
After we got ready, we headed up to the windjammer to grab some fresh made omelettes, awesome view out the aft of the ship while eating!
There was a dance/workout class happening on the Promenade that was entertaining 
Finally got the info for The Key program. Took three trips to Guest Services, and the people there didnt really know anything about it, couldn’t tell me any of the specific times for activities or anything. I’m not upset, I just wish I could help them with their documentation and processes!
Getting ready to head to the MDR for lunch now. More later!

First shower on a cruise ship... check!
It actually wasn’t nearly as bad as I was expecting, but a little background.. Our vacations (at least up to this point) have been primarily in our travel trailer, so the room/bathroom here is a fair amount bigger than our travel trailer, which I am used to, so we feel like we have plenty of room!
It’s a beautiful day as we make our way to Labadee. We can see Cuba off in the distance 
 

Cruise day is here!! I actually slept quite well last night, and got up about 7am to start getting ready. 
We decided to get a professional car service rather than an Uber/Lyft, as we wanted all four of us together, and had quite a bit of luggage between us all. We had some experience with Lyft and UberXL while in Miami, and it was kind of a crapshoot on weather we would have gotten a fun size SUV or not. Anyhow, we were super happy with our ride in an Escalade EXT, and had it packed full! Our driver was originally from Cuba, and was hilarious. 
We arrived to the port about 10:10am, and were surprised to see tons of people still waiting for shuttles from getting off the ship, come to find out, they had a customs delay. 
We have The Key for this sailing, and there wasn’t much (if any) signage, and the crew was a little iffy on what they knew about it. We ended up getting in line with the Diamond and up, and there we waited... They finally started boarding about 12:15-12:30, and let me tell you what, people were not happy! Not going to let it spoil it for us though!
We got on board, and the theater was right there to drop off our carry on bags. Such a nice thing! They were doing a photo shoot while we dropped our bags. 
We dropped our bags and headed straight to Chop’s for our lunch, which was wonderful! First drink on the ship was a lava flow.
After lunch, we made our reservations for dining the next couple nights (we bought the BOGO dining package) and headed to our rooms. Our carry on bags were there, and our checked bags showed up shortly thereafter. 
Looking around our room, I didn’t see any paper work for our internet codes or acces, and no paper for The Key. I went to guest services and they said they would send things up. So we went exploring for a bit. A couple hours later, we came back and still no paperwork, so I called down. The agent that answered the phone told me how to access the VOOM, and apparently they don’t use codes anymore. Would have been nice for the first person to tell me that, oh well. And here is is 11:30 and I still don’t have any paperwork about our Key program and times for things. 
 
While waiting for dinner, we were walking around, and noticed no one at the Rock Wall, so I decided to give it a shot, come to find out, we were there while it was Key-only time. Nice how that worked out! So I suited up and got to the top!
Dinner tonight was Jamie’s and was amazing!! We hit the comedy show after and are now in the room for the night. 
We made good use on our drink package and have got our “break even point” and then some for this day!
Amazing sunset from the ship, and a Royal Zombie in hand. This whole cruising thing is pretty nice!

Day 6, Curaçao. 
Today we visit the island of Curaçao, the weather is in and out overcast, but still plenty warm. We docked about 7:30am and the gangway was down about 8am. We are sharing the port with a Celebrity ship today
We had ordered room service for delivery between 7:30-8, but by 8:05 they hadn’t shown up and we were ready to get going, so we ran up to the Windjammer for a quick bite before heading out. 
We booked at ATV off road tour for today, and they met us out front of the port to take us to their shop. They had a van, and several 6-seat buggy’s to transfer everyone. There were a lot of people that were booked! We were directed to a buggy with Lorenzo as our guide, and he drove the 20-minute ride to the shop. 
We got a good view of the ships from the bridge
Once we got to the shop, everyone went to fill out paper work and pay the money after that was done, we grouped up into our different groups for the tours. Our group was originally supposed to have 8 people on it, but 4 backed out, so it was just us and another couple from the Celebrity ship, nice small personal tour!
Our guide was awesome, so happy and loves what he does! Took us to a spot where we climbed up and through some lava caves and came out up on top with and awesome view

Then to the “cave of doom” were we found some beautiful pink rocks in this little cave
He took us to the only sand beach on the north side of the island. It’s not a tourist spot, and we had the beach to ourselves for a bit till another couple came in. Did some swimming for a little bit before heading back
When we were maybe a mile away from the shop, the drive belt blew on our machine, and left us dead. Luckily he had a tow rope (which he hadn’t had to use yet) and was able to tow us the rest of the way to the shop
It was an awesome tour, and would do it again in a heart beat!
We headed back to the ship to shower and change (we were quite dirty from all the dust) then grabbed a lava flow from the Lime and Coconut and some El Loco Fresh for lunch
Then we ventured in to town for some exploring and shopping. All the colors here are incredible!
Went across the pontoon bridge
We decided to come back to the ship for dinner in the MDR. On the app, the menu stated there would be buttermilk fried chicken, but it was a completely different menu when we got there. (This isn’t the first thing that the app has been different than what actually happens. They still have some work to do) I decided on the Chicken Parmigiana and my wife had her staple, a steak
The service in the MDR was the best we have had thus far, whether it’s breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Our waiter was super attentive and on the ball 
We decided to hit the theater for the headliner act, a ventriloquist/comedian. He was ok, good enough that we didn’t leave, but don’t feel the need to see him again. During the show he was interrupted by an announcement for ‘alpha, alpha, alpha’, I feel bad for that person. 
 
After the show, we went to the helipad to check out the night time view
Went and spent some time in the Schooner Bar listening to the great live music. It’s been the same guy every night, and he is super talented. 
Came back to the room to find it ready for bed, complete with a towel elephant 
Tomorrow is our last port day, at Aruba, then two sea days back to Miami 

Day 6, Curaçao. 
Today we visit the island of Curaçao, the weather is in and out overcast, but still plenty warm. We docked about 7:30am and the gangway was down about 8am. We are sharing the port with a Celebrity ship today
We had ordered room service for delivery between 7:30-8, but by 8:05 they hadn’t shown up and we were ready to get going, so we ran up to the Windjammer for a quick bite before heading out. 
We booked at ATV off road tour for today, and they met us out front of the port to take us to their shop. They had a van, and several 6-seat buggy’s to transfer everyone. There were a lot of people that were booked! We were directed to a buggy with Lorenzo as our guide, and he drove the 20-minute ride to the shop. 
We got a good view of the ships from the bridge
Once we got to the shop, everyone went to fill out paper work and pay the money after that was done, we grouped up into our different groups for the tours. Our group was originally supposed to have 8 people on it, but 4 backed out, so it was just us and another couple from the Celebrity ship, nice small personal tour!
Our guide was awesome, so happy and loves what he does! Took us to a spot where we climbed up and through some lava caves and came out up on top with and awesome view

Then to the “cave of doom” were we found some beautiful pink rocks in this little cave
He took us to the only sand beach on the north side of the island. It’s not a tourist spot, and we had the beach to ourselves for a bit till another couple came in. Did some swimming for a little bit before heading back
When we were maybe a mile away from the shop, the drive belt blew on our machine, and left us dead. Luckily he had a tow rope (which he hadn’t had to use yet) and was able to tow us the rest of the way to the shop
It was an awesome tour, and would do it again in a heart beat!
We headed back to the ship to shower and change (we were quite dirty from all the dust) then grabbed a lava flow from the Lime and Coconut and some El Loco Fresh for lunch
Then we ventured in to town for some exploring and shopping. All the colors here are incredible!
Went across the pontoon bridge
We decided to come back to the ship for dinner in the MDR. On the app, the menu stated there would be buttermilk fried chicken, but it was a completely different menu when we got there. (This isn’t the first thing that the app has been different than what actually happens. They still have some work to do) I decided on the Chicken Parmigiana and my wife had her staple, a steak
The service in the MDR was the best we have had thus far, whether it’s breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Our waiter was super attentive and on the ball 
We decided to hit the theater for the headliner act, a ventriloquist/comedian. He was ok, good enough that we didn’t leave, but don’t feel the need to see him again. During the show he was interrupted by an announcement for ‘alpha, alpha, alpha’, I feel bad for that person. 
 
After the show, we went to the helipad to check out the night time view
Went and spent some time in the Schooner Bar listening to the great live music. It’s been the same guy every night, and he is super talented. 
Came back to the room to find it ready for bed, complete with a towel elephant 
Tomorrow is our last port day, at Aruba, then two sea days back to Miami 

Day 6, Curaçao. 
Today we visit the island of Curaçao, the weather is in and out overcast, but still plenty warm. We docked about 7:30am and the gangway was down about 8am. We are sharing the port with a Celebrity ship today
We had ordered room service for delivery between 7:30-8, but by 8:05 they hadn’t shown up and we were ready to get going, so we ran up to the Windjammer for a quick bite before heading out. 
We booked at ATV off road tour for today, and they met us out front of the port to take us to their shop. They had a van, and several 6-seat buggy’s to transfer everyone. There were a lot of people that were booked! We were directed to a buggy with Lorenzo as our guide, and he drove the 20-minute ride to the shop. 
We got a good view of the ships from the bridge
Once we got to the shop, everyone went to fill out paper work and pay the money after that was done, we grouped up into our different groups for the tours. Our group was originally supposed to have 8 people on it, but 4 backed out, so it was just us and another couple from the Celebrity ship, nice small personal tour!
Our guide was awesome, so happy and loves what he does! Took us to a spot where we climbed up and through some lava caves and came out up on top with and awesome view

Then to the “cave of doom” were we found some beautiful pink rocks in this little cave
He took us to the only sand beach on the north side of the island. It’s not a tourist spot, and we had the beach to ourselves for a bit till another couple came in. Did some swimming for a little bit before heading back
When we were maybe a mile away from the shop, the drive belt blew on our machine, and left us dead. Luckily he had a tow rope (which he hadn’t had to use yet) and was able to tow us the rest of the way to the shop
It was an awesome tour, and would do it again in a heart beat!
We headed back to the ship to shower and change (we were quite dirty from all the dust) then grabbed a lava flow from the Lime and Coconut and some El Loco Fresh for lunch
Then we ventured in to town for some exploring and shopping. All the colors here are incredible!
Went across the pontoon bridge
We decided to come back to the ship for dinner in the MDR. On the app, the menu stated there would be buttermilk fried chicken, but it was a completely different menu when we got there. (This isn’t the first thing that the app has been different than what actually happens. They still have some work to do) I decided on the Chicken Parmigiana and my wife had her staple, a steak
The service in the MDR was the best we have had thus far, whether it’s breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Our waiter was super attentive and on the ball 
We decided to hit the theater for the headliner act, a ventriloquist/comedian. He was ok, good enough that we didn’t leave, but don’t feel the need to see him again. During the show he was interrupted by an announcement for ‘alpha, alpha, alpha’, I feel bad for that person. 
 
After the show, we went to the helipad to check out the night time view
Went and spent some time in the Schooner Bar listening to the great live music. It’s been the same guy every night, and he is super talented. 
Came back to the room to find it ready for bed, complete with a towel elephant 
Tomorrow is our last port day, at Aruba, then two sea days back to Miami 

Day 6, Curaçao. 
Today we visit the island of Curaçao, the weather is in and out overcast, but still plenty warm. We docked about 7:30am and the gangway was down about 8am. We are sharing the port with a Celebrity ship today
We had ordered room service for delivery between 7:30-8, but by 8:05 they hadn’t shown up and we were ready to get going, so we ran up to the Windjammer for a quick bite before heading out. 
We booked at ATV off road tour for today, and they met us out front of the port to take us to their shop. They had a van, and several 6-seat buggy’s to transfer everyone. There were a lot of people that were booked! We were directed to a buggy with Lorenzo as our guide, and he drove the 20-minute ride to the shop. 
We got a good view of the ships from the bridge
Once we got to the shop, everyone went to fill out paper work and pay the money after that was done, we grouped up into our different groups for the tours. Our group was originally supposed to have 8 people on it, but 4 backed out, so it was just us and another couple from the Celebrity ship, nice small personal tour!
Our guide was awesome, so happy and loves what he does! Took us to a spot where we climbed up and through some lava caves and came out up on top with and awesome view

Then to the “cave of doom” were we found some beautiful pink rocks in this little cave
He took us to the only sand beach on the north side of the island. It’s not a tourist spot, and we had the beach to ourselves for a bit till another couple came in. Did some swimming for a little bit before heading back
When we were maybe a mile away from the shop, the drive belt blew on our machine, and left us dead. Luckily he had a tow rope (which he hadn’t had to use yet) and was able to tow us the rest of the way to the shop
It was an awesome tour, and would do it again in a heart beat!
We headed back to the ship to shower and change (we were quite dirty from all the dust) then grabbed a lava flow from the Lime and Coconut and some El Loco Fresh for lunch
Then we ventured in to town for some exploring and shopping. All the colors here are incredible!
Went across the pontoon bridge
We decided to come back to the ship for dinner in the MDR. On the app, the menu stated there would be buttermilk fried chicken, but it was a completely different menu when we got there. (This isn’t the first thing that the app has been different than what actually happens. They still have some work to do) I decided on the Chicken Parmigiana and my wife had her staple, a steak
The service in the MDR was the best we have had thus far, whether it’s breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Our waiter was super attentive and on the ball 
We decided to hit the theater for the headliner act, a ventriloquist/comedian. He was ok, good enough that we didn’t leave, but don’t feel the need to see him again. During the show he was interrupted by an announcement for ‘alpha, alpha, alpha’, I feel bad for that person. 
 
After the show, we went to the helipad to check out the night time view
Went and spent some time in the Schooner Bar listening to the great live music. It’s been the same guy every night, and he is super talented. 
Came back to the room to find it ready for bed, complete with a towel elephant 
Tomorrow is our last port day, at Aruba, then two sea days back to Miami 

Day 5 (I think?) Bonaire!
Such a beautiful day today. We docked about 8:30, and the captain gave us the all clear right at 9am
We were the second ship in port today, the first was the old Monarch 
We decided to rent a couple scooters for the day and just tour the island on our own. Turned out to be a fantastic idea! The guy we rented from was awesome, picked us up at the port and took us to two brand new (in November) Yamaha scooters. These are the bigger models that you actually have to have a motorcycle endorsement on your license to ride. My wife and I are both endorsed, and decided to get our own, instead of riding tandem. 
We set off to see the sights!
The beauty in these islands just amazes me
the shape of the corals that have washed onshore and now line the shore are just incredible 
Saw some incredible kite surfing down at the south end
We rode the whole south end of the island, and stopped back in Kralendijk to grab some lunch, and then headed north
We stopped at 1000 steps and went down and got in the water with our snorkels. Wow!
After the snorkeling, we were beat and decided to head back. After stopping for fuel (and putting in a whopping $2.48 between the two bikes) We got back to the rental shop about 3:30 and he took us back to the port where we walked around for a little bit and then headed back on the ship. 
We hadn’t had a chance to catch the Iskate show yet, so we headed down to studio B to take it in. I was a bit skeptical walking in, but then the show started and I was hooked!
Tonight’s dinner was the Windjammer, and then up to the room. We are beat and want to get some good sleep before we hit Curaçao tomorrow!

Day 5 (I think?) Bonaire!
Such a beautiful day today. We docked about 8:30, and the captain gave us the all clear right at 9am
We were the second ship in port today, the first was the old Monarch 
We decided to rent a couple scooters for the day and just tour the island on our own. Turned out to be a fantastic idea! The guy we rented from was awesome, picked us up at the port and took us to two brand new (in November) Yamaha scooters. These are the bigger models that you actually have to have a motorcycle endorsement on your license to ride. My wife and I are both endorsed, and decided to get our own, instead of riding tandem. 
We set off to see the sights!
The beauty in these islands just amazes me
the shape of the corals that have washed onshore and now line the shore are just incredible 
Saw some incredible kite surfing down at the south end
We rode the whole south end of the island, and stopped back in Kralendijk to grab some lunch, and then headed north
We stopped at 1000 steps and went down and got in the water with our snorkels. Wow!
After the snorkeling, we were beat and decided to head back. After stopping for fuel (and putting in a whopping $2.48 between the two bikes) We got back to the rental shop about 3:30 and he took us back to the port where we walked around for a little bit and then headed back on the ship. 
We hadn’t had a chance to catch the Iskate show yet, so we headed down to studio B to take it in. I was a bit skeptical walking in, but then the show started and I was hooked!
Tonight’s dinner was the Windjammer, and then up to the room. We are beat and want to get some good sleep before we hit Curaçao tomorrow!

Day 5 (I think?) Bonaire!
Such a beautiful day today. We docked about 8:30, and the captain gave us the all clear right at 9am
We were the second ship in port today, the first was the old Monarch 
We decided to rent a couple scooters for the day and just tour the island on our own. Turned out to be a fantastic idea! The guy we rented from was awesome, picked us up at the port and took us to two brand new (in November) Yamaha scooters. These are the bigger models that you actually have to have a motorcycle endorsement on your license to ride. My wife and I are both endorsed, and decided to get our own, instead of riding tandem. 
We set off to see the sights!
The beauty in these islands just amazes me
the shape of the corals that have washed onshore and now line the shore are just incredible 
Saw some incredible kite surfing down at the south end
We rode the whole south end of the island, and stopped back in Kralendijk to grab some lunch, and then headed north
We stopped at 1000 steps and went down and got in the water with our snorkels. Wow!
After the snorkeling, we were beat and decided to head back. After stopping for fuel (and putting in a whopping $2.48 between the two bikes) We got back to the rental shop about 3:30 and he took us back to the port where we walked around for a little bit and then headed back on the ship. 
We hadn’t had a chance to catch the Iskate show yet, so we headed down to studio B to take it in. I was a bit skeptical walking in, but then the show started and I was hooked!
Tonight’s dinner was the Windjammer, and then up to the room. We are beat and want to get some good sleep before we hit Curaçao tomorrow!

Day 5 (I think?) Bonaire!
Such a beautiful day today. We docked about 8:30, and the captain gave us the all clear right at 9am
We were the second ship in port today, the first was the old Monarch 
We decided to rent a couple scooters for the day and just tour the island on our own. Turned out to be a fantastic idea! The guy we rented from was awesome, picked us up at the port and took us to two brand new (in November) Yamaha scooters. These are the bigger models that you actually have to have a motorcycle endorsement on your license to ride. My wife and I are both endorsed, and decided to get our own, instead of riding tandem. 
We set off to see the sights!
The beauty in these islands just amazes me
the shape of the corals that have washed onshore and now line the shore are just incredible 
Saw some incredible kite surfing down at the south end
We rode the whole south end of the island, and stopped back in Kralendijk to grab some lunch, and then headed north
We stopped at 1000 steps and went down and got in the water with our snorkels. Wow!
After the snorkeling, we were beat and decided to head back. After stopping for fuel (and putting in a whopping $2.48 between the two bikes) We got back to the rental shop about 3:30 and he took us back to the port where we walked around for a little bit and then headed back on the ship. 
We hadn’t had a chance to catch the Iskate show yet, so we headed down to studio B to take it in. I was a bit skeptical walking in, but then the show started and I was hooked!
Tonight’s dinner was the Windjammer, and then up to the room. We are beat and want to get some good sleep before we hit Curaçao tomorrow!

Day 5 (I think?) Bonaire!
Such a beautiful day today. We docked about 8:30, and the captain gave us the all clear right at 9am
We were the second ship in port today, the first was the old Monarch 
We decided to rent a couple scooters for the day and just tour the island on our own. Turned out to be a fantastic idea! The guy we rented from was awesome, picked us up at the port and took us to two brand new (in November) Yamaha scooters. These are the bigger models that you actually have to have a motorcycle endorsement on your license to ride. My wife and I are both endorsed, and decided to get our own, instead of riding tandem. 
We set off to see the sights!
The beauty in these islands just amazes me
the shape of the corals that have washed onshore and now line the shore are just incredible 
Saw some incredible kite surfing down at the south end
We rode the whole south end of the island, and stopped back in Kralendijk to grab some lunch, and then headed north
We stopped at 1000 steps and went down and got in the water with our snorkels. Wow!
After the snorkeling, we were beat and decided to head back. After stopping for fuel (and putting in a whopping $2.48 between the two bikes) We got back to the rental shop about 3:30 and he took us back to the port where we walked around for a little bit and then headed back on the ship. 
We hadn’t had a chance to catch the Iskate show yet, so we headed down to studio B to take it in. I was a bit skeptical walking in, but then the show started and I was hooked!
Tonight’s dinner was the Windjammer, and then up to the room. We are beat and want to get some good sleep before we hit Curaçao tomorrow!

Day 5 (I think?) Bonaire!
Such a beautiful day today. We docked about 8:30, and the captain gave us the all clear right at 9am
We were the second ship in port today, the first was the old Monarch 
We decided to rent a couple scooters for the day and just tour the island on our own. Turned out to be a fantastic idea! The guy we rented from was awesome, picked us up at the port and took us to two brand new (in November) Yamaha scooters. These are the bigger models that you actually have to have a motorcycle endorsement on your license to ride. My wife and I are both endorsed, and decided to get our own, instead of riding tandem. 
We set off to see the sights!
The beauty in these islands just amazes me
the shape of the corals that have washed onshore and now line the shore are just incredible 
Saw some incredible kite surfing down at the south end
We rode the whole south end of the island, and stopped back in Kralendijk to grab some lunch, and then headed north
We stopped at 1000 steps and went down and got in the water with our snorkels. Wow!
After the snorkeling, we were beat and decided to head back. After stopping for fuel (and putting in a whopping $2.48 between the two bikes) We got back to the rental shop about 3:30 and he took us back to the port where we walked around for a little bit and then headed back on the ship. 
We hadn’t had a chance to catch the Iskate show yet, so we headed down to studio B to take it in. I was a bit skeptical walking in, but then the show started and I was hooked!
Tonight’s dinner was the Windjammer, and then up to the room. We are beat and want to get some good sleep before we hit Curaçao tomorrow!

Day 5 (I think?) Bonaire!
Such a beautiful day today. We docked about 8:30, and the captain gave us the all clear right at 9am
We were the second ship in port today, the first was the old Monarch 
We decided to rent a couple scooters for the day and just tour the island on our own. Turned out to be a fantastic idea! The guy we rented from was awesome, picked us up at the port and took us to two brand new (in November) Yamaha scooters. These are the bigger models that you actually have to have a motorcycle endorsement on your license to ride. My wife and I are both endorsed, and decided to get our own, instead of riding tandem. 
We set off to see the sights!
The beauty in these islands just amazes me
the shape of the corals that have washed onshore and now line the shore are just incredible 
Saw some incredible kite surfing down at the south end
We rode the whole south end of the island, and stopped back in Kralendijk to grab some lunch, and then headed north
We stopped at 1000 steps and went down and got in the water with our snorkels. Wow!
After the snorkeling, we were beat and decided to head back. After stopping for fuel (and putting in a whopping $2.48 between the two bikes) We got back to the rental shop about 3:30 and he took us back to the port where we walked around for a little bit and then headed back on the ship. 
We hadn’t had a chance to catch the Iskate show yet, so we headed down to studio B to take it in. I was a bit skeptical walking in, but then the show started and I was hooked!
Tonight’s dinner was the Windjammer, and then up to the room. We are beat and want to get some good sleep before we hit Curaçao tomorrow!

Day 5 (I think?) Bonaire!
Such a beautiful day today. We docked about 8:30, and the captain gave us the all clear right at 9am
We were the second ship in port today, the first was the old Monarch 
We decided to rent a couple scooters for the day and just tour the island on our own. Turned out to be a fantastic idea! The guy we rented from was awesome, picked us up at the port and took us to two brand new (in November) Yamaha scooters. These are the bigger models that you actually have to have a motorcycle endorsement on your license to ride. My wife and I are both endorsed, and decided to get our own, instead of riding tandem. 
We set off to see the sights!
The beauty in these islands just amazes me
the shape of the corals that have washed onshore and now line the shore are just incredible 
Saw some incredible kite surfing down at the south end
We rode the whole south end of the island, and stopped back in Kralendijk to grab some lunch, and then headed north
We stopped at 1000 steps and went down and got in the water with our snorkels. Wow!
After the snorkeling, we were beat and decided to head back. After stopping for fuel (and putting in a whopping $2.48 between the two bikes) We got back to the rental shop about 3:30 and he took us back to the port where we walked around for a little bit and then headed back on the ship. 
We hadn’t had a chance to catch the Iskate show yet, so we headed down to studio B to take it in. I was a bit skeptical walking in, but then the show started and I was hooked!
Tonight’s dinner was the Windjammer, and then up to the room. We are beat and want to get some good sleep before we hit Curaçao tomorrow!

Day 4, at sea.
Today was a pretty laid back day for us. Beautiful views from all over the ship 
We started off with breakfast in the MDR
I had the French toast and an omelet, they were fine, but I don’t think the quality of food was any different than the windjammer, and I don’t particularly care for taking an hour and a half to eat breakfast, I think we will stick with the Windjammer. 
After breakfast it was time for our All Access Tour
It was a group of 18 people, and was quite informative. I took most of the pictures on my GoPro, and haven’t loaded them yet, but here are a few
We had lunch in the MDR again today. We really enjoy the salad bar and Buffett, but I’m still not sold on the slow service. It takes 20 minutes to get a refill on a soda or water. Maybe I just drink too fast. 
After lunch we just cruised around the ship for awhile, and then went a took a nap, it was wonderful. 
Just after 5pm we went out to the sports deck (around this time, the pool deck and sports deck are all but deserted) and went down the slides about 6 or 7 times each, basically no lines. It was awesome!
We went back to the room and got changed, and watched the sunset. 
Then we ran up to the Windjammer and grabbed a plate of food and took it out to the Lime and Coconut to enjoy the movie on the pool deck, that was fun. 
The pool deck at night is beautiful 
We decided to catch the Headliner show his name was James Stephens III, he was an impressionist and musician, it was fun and a totally packed house!
Tonight was the 70’s party, we stayed on the promenade for a little bit, but it was really warm, so we decided to call it an evening and went back to the room to cool off and relax on the balcony for a bit before bed. 
The wind kicked up quite a bit this evening and there was a fair amount of rocking, but it hasn’t bothered us yet, we haven’t had any issues with seasickness!
Next stop is Bonaire!

Day 3, Labadee!
Started this morning off at the Windjammer just after 7am with a nice little breakfast while watching us back into the dock at Labadee
We went down to StudioB at 7:50 for our Key debarment, and were escorted off the ship about 8:15
Hopped on a golf cart that took us to our Over the Water Cabana
We are in the one on the left. This is amazing!
The water here is incredible. Remember, we live on the west coast, and haven’t ever been down here before. We have been to Hawaii several times, but it just doesn’t compare. Did some snorkeling under the cabanas, some neat stuff
Spent the day relaxing. Amazing...
Our attendant, Jantee, was awesome, and kept the Labadoozies and Pina Colada’s flowing! Definitely made use of our drink package today!
Sailaway from our balcony

Dinner was in the MDR tonight
Tonight’s headliner was a Journey tribute band, they were...interesting

Thats all for now. See you later!

Day 2,at sea, continues...
We hit up the MDR for lunch, and decided to do the salad bar/buffet. It was incredible! We will definitely be doing this again! It was so good in fact, that I forgot to take any pictures!
We then went and got changed, and headed out to the pool deck. It was pretty busy when we got there, but we found my cousins, sat down, and people watched while enjoying some drinks from the Lime and Coconut. 
We enjoyed some time outside, and went down both water slides several times. I think I enjoy the mat racer most, but my wife and I did the tube together, and that was quite fun as well. The lines weren’t too bad at all, and they kept the turnover moving pretty well. 
Tonight we are eating at Hooked, but with a dining time of 8:30, we had some time to wander the ship. We grabbed some espresso from Cafe Promenade, and noticed it was now Seattles Best, must have been a change from Illy during the revamp
We found the stowaway piano player just outside the Windjammer!
Stopped by the Bamboo room and grabbed a drink. I got the Banana Colada, and it was awesome!
Ventured outside and caught an amazing sunset. Sunsets at sea are like no other!
We still had some time before dinner, so we went down to Cafe Promenade again, and I grabbed a vanilla smoothie, stopped by Playmakers and got a Rum Punch, and combined the two. Total win! I will be doing this again. 
It was then time for dinner, so we made our way down to Hooked. Our waiter there was great and took care of us well. I opted for the Messy Fish Sandwich, and it did not disappoint! My wife got the Turf and Turf and enjoyed it very much as well
We were wanting to make it to the show, so our waiter offered to give us dessert to go, which was awesome! I got the bread pudding, it was incredible. 
Now off to the show, “Showgirl!”, it was a lot of fun, and quite talented people up on stage!
We got back to our room and had a nice fruit plate waiting for us
As well as another letter with information on our priority debarkation process for the coming ports
Tomorrow is Labadee!!

Cruise day is here!! I actually slept quite well last night, and got up about 7am to start getting ready. 
We decided to get a professional car service rather than an Uber/Lyft, as we wanted all four of us together, and had quite a bit of luggage between us all. We had some experience with Lyft and UberXL while in Miami, and it was kind of a crapshoot on weather we would have gotten a fun size SUV or not. Anyhow, we were super happy with our ride in an Escalade EXT, and had it packed full! Our driver was originally from Cuba, and was hilarious. 
We arrived to the port about 10:10am, and were surprised to see tons of people still waiting for shuttles from getting off the ship, come to find out, they had a customs delay. 
We have The Key for this sailing, and there wasn’t much (if any) signage, and the crew was a little iffy on what they knew about it. We ended up getting in line with the Diamond and up, and there we waited... They finally started boarding about 12:15-12:30, and let me tell you what, people were not happy! Not going to let it spoil it for us though!
We got on board, and the theater was right there to drop off our carry on bags. Such a nice thing! They were doing a photo shoot while we dropped our bags. 
We dropped our bags and headed straight to Chop’s for our lunch, which was wonderful! First drink on the ship was a lava flow.
After lunch, we made our reservations for dining the next couple nights (we bought the BOGO dining package) and headed to our rooms. Our carry on bags were there, and our checked bags showed up shortly thereafter. 
Looking around our room, I didn’t see any paper work for our internet codes or acces, and no paper for The Key. I went to guest services and they said they would send things up. So we went exploring for a bit. A couple hours later, we came back and still no paperwork, so I called down. The agent that answered the phone told me how to access the VOOM, and apparently they don’t use codes anymore. Would have been nice for the first person to tell me that, oh well. And here is is 11:30 and I still don’t have any paperwork about our Key program and times for things. 
 
While waiting for dinner, we were walking around, and noticed no one at the Rock Wall, so I decided to give it a shot, come to find out, we were there while it was Key-only time. Nice how that worked out! So I suited up and got to the top!
Dinner tonight was Jamie’s and was amazing!! We hit the comedy show after and are now in the room for the night. 
We made good use on our drink package and have got our “break even point” and then some for this day!
Amazing sunset from the ship, and a Royal Zombie in hand. This whole cruising thing is pretty nice!

Yesterday was a long day, and didn’t have time to sit down after we finally got to the hotel, so here goes..
Because of the recent grounding of the 737-MAX planes, we were a little delayed leaving Seattle, luckily we had a couple hour layover in Dallas, so we weren’t worried about missing that connecting flight. 
I am not a small guy (6’3”) and always hate flying because of the cramped spaces.. But! I totally scored on BOTH legs of this flight and got this awesome exit row seat!
We landed in Ft Lauderdale about 11:45pm and got off the plane and grabbed our bags. Being the celebration of our anniversary, I decided to splurge for the ride down to Miami Beach
We booked a room at The Confidant, on the beach. It’s a nice room with direct beach access and loungers to use 

 
We are spending today checking out Miami Beach. Just a little different from what we are used to! Tomorrow is cruise day!!

That what we thought too, and we have several sea days, so I can see just sitting out there staring at the ocean. 
 
And thanks for following to everyone else! Knowing that people will be following along makes me more excited to share.