DunkelBierJay

Embarkation Day continued
The naughty room was entertaining though. A man near us was arguing with security about his steamer that they were confiscating.  *Dude* He would not take no for an answer, and was taking names of the staff there, their supervisors and their family. Voice raised, eyes popping out of his head, the world is coming to an end because he was going to be without his steamer. My daughter wanted to tip the security guy he was yelling at for putting up with him. Wow, I thought.  The long wait till Izumi involved grabbing our first lava flows in the Schooner bar and browsing the shops which just opened.  9:00 pmcame before we knew it, and we had a fantastic time enjoying the experience at Izumi hibachi. The chefs are a couple notches above who you experience on shore, and we did lots of laughing as they enjoyed over feeding us. One feature of this restaurant is they allow you to mix the proteins that are listed on the menu. That was nice because I put the filet together with the shrimp. Fantastic. Wow, I thought. 

We arrived at the port at Coxen Hole on time and disembarked to singing and dancing in the pier that was damaged by the MSC Armonia a few weeks go. I’m amazed that ship didn’t suffer huge damage like the Part of the dock where it struck did...lots and lots of rocks around there.   We worked our way through the small, controlled port area to the street where our excursion reps were waiting for us. We waited a few minutes until our driver, Mark arrived and took us to the SUV the company we booked with uses.    My oldest has had a life goal to hang out with sloths. So, you google “sloths.” Daniel Johnson Monkey and Sloth Hangout will come up. It’s in Roatan! So, I booked it using Messenger to their Facebook page.    There are several options that include island tours, snorkeling, shopping, sampling food and others. We chose the island tour and a stop at a popular local restaurant for some great food.    Durin the island tour that included some history and stories about the island, we stopped for some street Food that included the local delicacy of fresh cut mango with salt, lime and vinegar. Woah....it was awesome!   From there, we headed over to the monkey and sloth hangout, and waited a few minutes to be matched with a guide to take us to the animals.    They are all there near a really nice snorkeling spot on the other side of the entrance where there were a male and female sloth entertaining people amidst several large cages containing spider monkeys and a couple of a couple species of parrots including the island bird the macaw parrot.    The staff would pick up one of the sloths and place them on your shoulders. They immediately hug you and wrap their legs (with very long, sharp claws) around your waist. Be ready for a poking feeling...yes, they stop when they feel secure.    I can only describe holding a sloth as being like holding a very sweet little baby with soft fur and a calm disposition. Sloths eat the leaves of the crecopia, a tropical tree. It has low nutritional value which cause the sloth like low metabolism. As a result of eating the leaves, sloths will consume some insects as a secondary part of their diet.    Following our time at the Hangout, Mark took us to a shore side restaurant called Conch Fritters that tourists don’t frequent. I suppose it’s like going to a restaurant in the US called Hamburgers...   It’s a beautiful setting with several menu options including the local beer, SalvaVida. The food is fresh and range from conch fritters to chicken fingers. I chose the coconut shrimp and had a fantastic meal.    Soon, it was time to return to the ship where we boarded about 1:30 in the afternoon, local time which was 2 hours behind ship time. All on board was 4:30 pm, so we returned with time to spare. The excursion lasted about four and a half hours.    After naps and dinner, we donned our flapper wear or fedora and headed to Deck 4 with our secret passes to the Prohibition Party hosted by the assistant activity manager who did a great job role playing the “proprietor” of the “tea” establishment. We had fun drinking our “tea,” eating snacks, dancing and listening to jazz.    Overall, the day was one of the best I’ve had on a cruise.    More pics and attempts at drunken time lapse coolness at @dunkelbier_jay...

We arrived at the port at Coxen Hole on time and disembarked to singing and dancing in the pier that was damaged by the MSC Armonia a few weeks go. I’m amazed that ship didn’t suffer huge damage like the Part of the dock where it struck did...lots and lots of rocks around there.   We worked our way through the small, controlled port area to the street where our excursion reps were waiting for us. We waited a few minutes until our driver, Mark arrived and took us to the SUV the company we booked with uses.    My oldest has had a life goal to hang out with sloths. So, you google “sloths.” Daniel Johnson Monkey and Sloth Hangout will come up. It’s in Roatan! So, I booked it using Messenger to their Facebook page.    There are several options that include island tours, snorkeling, shopping, sampling food and others. We chose the island tour and a stop at a popular local restaurant for some great food.    Durin the island tour that included some history and stories about the island, we stopped for some street Food that included the local delicacy of fresh cut mango with salt, lime and vinegar. Woah....it was awesome!   From there, we headed over to the monkey and sloth hangout, and waited a few minutes to be matched with a guide to take us to the animals.    They are all there near a really nice snorkeling spot on the other side of the entrance where there were a male and female sloth entertaining people amidst several large cages containing spider monkeys and a couple of a couple species of parrots including the island bird the macaw parrot.    The staff would pick up one of the sloths and place them on your shoulders. They immediately hug you and wrap their legs (with very long, sharp claws) around your waist. Be ready for a poking feeling...yes, they stop when they feel secure.    I can only describe holding a sloth as being like holding a very sweet little baby with soft fur and a calm disposition. Sloths eat the leaves of the crecopia, a tropical tree. It has low nutritional value which cause the sloth like low metabolism. As a result of eating the leaves, sloths will consume some insects as a secondary part of their diet.    Following our time at the Hangout, Mark took us to a shore side restaurant called Conch Fritters that tourists don’t frequent. I suppose it’s like going to a restaurant in the US called Hamburgers...   It’s a beautiful setting with several menu options including the local beer, SalvaVida. The food is fresh and range from conch fritters to chicken fingers. I chose the coconut shrimp and had a fantastic meal.    Soon, it was time to return to the ship where we boarded about 1:30 in the afternoon, local time which was 2 hours behind ship time. All on board was 4:30 pm, so we returned with time to spare. The excursion lasted about four and a half hours.    After naps and dinner, we donned our flapper wear or fedora and headed to Deck 4 with our secret passes to the Prohibition Party hosted by the assistant activity manager who did a great job role playing the “proprietor” of the “tea” establishment. We had fun drinking our “tea,” eating snacks, dancing and listening to jazz.    Overall, the day was one of the best I’ve had on a cruise.    More pics and attempts at drunken time lapse coolness at @dunkelbier_jay...

We arrived at the port at Coxen Hole on time and disembarked to singing and dancing in the pier that was damaged by the MSC Armonia a few weeks go. I’m amazed that ship didn’t suffer huge damage like the Part of the dock where it struck did...lots and lots of rocks around there.   We worked our way through the small, controlled port area to the street where our excursion reps were waiting for us. We waited a few minutes until our driver, Mark arrived and took us to the SUV the company we booked with uses.    My oldest has had a life goal to hang out with sloths. So, you google “sloths.” Daniel Johnson Monkey and Sloth Hangout will come up. It’s in Roatan! So, I booked it using Messenger to their Facebook page.    There are several options that include island tours, snorkeling, shopping, sampling food and others. We chose the island tour and a stop at a popular local restaurant for some great food.    Durin the island tour that included some history and stories about the island, we stopped for some street Food that included the local delicacy of fresh cut mango with salt, lime and vinegar. Woah....it was awesome!   From there, we headed over to the monkey and sloth hangout, and waited a few minutes to be matched with a guide to take us to the animals.    They are all there near a really nice snorkeling spot on the other side of the entrance where there were a male and female sloth entertaining people amidst several large cages containing spider monkeys and a couple of a couple species of parrots including the island bird the macaw parrot.    The staff would pick up one of the sloths and place them on your shoulders. They immediately hug you and wrap their legs (with very long, sharp claws) around your waist. Be ready for a poking feeling...yes, they stop when they feel secure.    I can only describe holding a sloth as being like holding a very sweet little baby with soft fur and a calm disposition. Sloths eat the leaves of the crecopia, a tropical tree. It has low nutritional value which cause the sloth like low metabolism. As a result of eating the leaves, sloths will consume some insects as a secondary part of their diet.    Following our time at the Hangout, Mark took us to a shore side restaurant called Conch Fritters that tourists don’t frequent. I suppose it’s like going to a restaurant in the US called Hamburgers...   It’s a beautiful setting with several menu options including the local beer, SalvaVida. The food is fresh and range from conch fritters to chicken fingers. I chose the coconut shrimp and had a fantastic meal.    Soon, it was time to return to the ship where we boarded about 1:30 in the afternoon, local time which was 2 hours behind ship time. All on board was 4:30 pm, so we returned with time to spare. The excursion lasted about four and a half hours.    After naps and dinner, we donned our flapper wear or fedora and headed to Deck 4 with our secret passes to the Prohibition Party hosted by the assistant activity manager who did a great job role playing the “proprietor” of the “tea” establishment. We had fun drinking our “tea,” eating snacks, dancing and listening to jazz.    Overall, the day was one of the best I’ve had on a cruise.    More pics and attempts at drunken time lapse coolness at @dunkelbier_jay...

We arrived at the port at Coxen Hole on time and disembarked to singing and dancing in the pier that was damaged by the MSC Armonia a few weeks go. I’m amazed that ship didn’t suffer huge damage like the Part of the dock where it struck did...lots and lots of rocks around there.   We worked our way through the small, controlled port area to the street where our excursion reps were waiting for us. We waited a few minutes until our driver, Mark arrived and took us to the SUV the company we booked with uses.    My oldest has had a life goal to hang out with sloths. So, you google “sloths.” Daniel Johnson Monkey and Sloth Hangout will come up. It’s in Roatan! So, I booked it using Messenger to their Facebook page.    There are several options that include island tours, snorkeling, shopping, sampling food and others. We chose the island tour and a stop at a popular local restaurant for some great food.    Durin the island tour that included some history and stories about the island, we stopped for some street Food that included the local delicacy of fresh cut mango with salt, lime and vinegar. Woah....it was awesome!   From there, we headed over to the monkey and sloth hangout, and waited a few minutes to be matched with a guide to take us to the animals.    They are all there near a really nice snorkeling spot on the other side of the entrance where there were a male and female sloth entertaining people amidst several large cages containing spider monkeys and a couple of a couple species of parrots including the island bird the macaw parrot.    The staff would pick up one of the sloths and place them on your shoulders. They immediately hug you and wrap their legs (with very long, sharp claws) around your waist. Be ready for a poking feeling...yes, they stop when they feel secure.    I can only describe holding a sloth as being like holding a very sweet little baby with soft fur and a calm disposition. Sloths eat the leaves of the crecopia, a tropical tree. It has low nutritional value which cause the sloth like low metabolism. As a result of eating the leaves, sloths will consume some insects as a secondary part of their diet.    Following our time at the Hangout, Mark took us to a shore side restaurant called Conch Fritters that tourists don’t frequent. I suppose it’s like going to a restaurant in the US called Hamburgers...   It’s a beautiful setting with several menu options including the local beer, SalvaVida. The food is fresh and range from conch fritters to chicken fingers. I chose the coconut shrimp and had a fantastic meal.    Soon, it was time to return to the ship where we boarded about 1:30 in the afternoon, local time which was 2 hours behind ship time. All on board was 4:30 pm, so we returned with time to spare. The excursion lasted about four and a half hours.    After naps and dinner, we donned our flapper wear or fedora and headed to Deck 4 with our secret passes to the Prohibition Party hosted by the assistant activity manager who did a great job role playing the “proprietor” of the “tea” establishment. We had fun drinking our “tea,” eating snacks, dancing and listening to jazz.    Overall, the day was one of the best I’ve had on a cruise.    More pics and attempts at drunken time lapse coolness at @dunkelbier_jay...

We arrived at the port at Coxen Hole on time and disembarked to singing and dancing in the pier that was damaged by the MSC Armonia a few weeks go. I’m amazed that ship didn’t suffer huge damage like the Part of the dock where it struck did...lots and lots of rocks around there.   We worked our way through the small, controlled port area to the street where our excursion reps were waiting for us. We waited a few minutes until our driver, Mark arrived and took us to the SUV the company we booked with uses.    My oldest has had a life goal to hang out with sloths. So, you google “sloths.” Daniel Johnson Monkey and Sloth Hangout will come up. It’s in Roatan! So, I booked it using Messenger to their Facebook page.    There are several options that include island tours, snorkeling, shopping, sampling food and others. We chose the island tour and a stop at a popular local restaurant for some great food.    Durin the island tour that included some history and stories about the island, we stopped for some street Food that included the local delicacy of fresh cut mango with salt, lime and vinegar. Woah....it was awesome!   From there, we headed over to the monkey and sloth hangout, and waited a few minutes to be matched with a guide to take us to the animals.    They are all there near a really nice snorkeling spot on the other side of the entrance where there were a male and female sloth entertaining people amidst several large cages containing spider monkeys and a couple of a couple species of parrots including the island bird the macaw parrot.    The staff would pick up one of the sloths and place them on your shoulders. They immediately hug you and wrap their legs (with very long, sharp claws) around your waist. Be ready for a poking feeling...yes, they stop when they feel secure.    I can only describe holding a sloth as being like holding a very sweet little baby with soft fur and a calm disposition. Sloths eat the leaves of the crecopia, a tropical tree. It has low nutritional value which cause the sloth like low metabolism. As a result of eating the leaves, sloths will consume some insects as a secondary part of their diet.    Following our time at the Hangout, Mark took us to a shore side restaurant called Conch Fritters that tourists don’t frequent. I suppose it’s like going to a restaurant in the US called Hamburgers...   It’s a beautiful setting with several menu options including the local beer, SalvaVida. The food is fresh and range from conch fritters to chicken fingers. I chose the coconut shrimp and had a fantastic meal.    Soon, it was time to return to the ship where we boarded about 1:30 in the afternoon, local time which was 2 hours behind ship time. All on board was 4:30 pm, so we returned with time to spare. The excursion lasted about four and a half hours.    After naps and dinner, we donned our flapper wear or fedora and headed to Deck 4 with our secret passes to the Prohibition Party hosted by the assistant activity manager who did a great job role playing the “proprietor” of the “tea” establishment. We had fun drinking our “tea,” eating snacks, dancing and listening to jazz.    Overall, the day was one of the best I’ve had on a cruise.    More pics and attempts at drunken time lapse coolness at @dunkelbier_jay...

Cozumel pics...

Today, I followed my routine of waking up to catch the sunrise after grabbing coffee and croissant at Cafe Promenade.    We turned south by Cancun, so good views were aft and to port. I went to the chairs next to the running track on deck five with my coffee.    Whether the sunrise is spectacular or not, it’s my favorite time on board. I wrote that before, I think.    We had no plans for Cozumel since previous trips always included a day at Nachi Cocom.    *branch out*   We shared the dock with Celebrity Equinox, and as we came alongside, I got an epic time lapse on my Instagram @dunkelbier_jay.    We waited an hour or so and navigated the controlled area at the International Pier to the taxi area. About a third of Allure and half of Equinox were in line, so I turned left to the exit to the street. A taxi was sitting there ready across the street, and without setting the price before getting in, I know I was taken for a few bucks. The ride to our destination was $18 (for the five of us—> yeah, right —> I know it’s $8 to go to San Miguel from the taxi line)...Taking into account a tip and getting going in front of 6,328 others in line across the street, another few bucks was worth it.    Our destination was La Cozumeleña, a breakfast spot about six blocks from the Forum shops that the cruise lines promote. It is a bakery/restaurant that I found on Trip Advisor. Upon walking in, we got the feeling you have when you walk into a biker bar in preppy clothes. It was fine and we were welcomed warmly by the staff with fresh sugary rolls and amazing cinnamon coffee to start. We each ordered items from the breakfast menu as well as the signature torta. Everyone really enjoyed their meals.    After breakfast, we walked a couple blocks to the main coastal street in town and turned right dodging the aggressive store front employees as we weaved one block in and one block out searching for interesting things. We stopped at Cariloha...yes, we were suckered in, but the underwear is just that comfortable. We resisted the bed sheets. The socks are good too. One free when you buy three! SUCH a good deal. (No sarcasm)   We ended up at Panchos Backyard where....   See my Instagram @dunkelbier_jay for random tequila flavored xylophone excitement.    Many dollars later, we shopped our way out of the place...after all, it’s set up that way...   ...found a taxi, and were navigating back to the International Pier in a taxi properly procured at 2/3 the cost of the previous.    Good judgment was tequila’d out the door, so we missed out My Time Dining reservation ...they’ll seat you anyway... and skipped the headliner. There’s something about tequila...   We retired around 9:30to rest up for the next port of Call, Roatan.       

Cozumel pics...

Today, I followed my routine of waking up to catch the sunrise after grabbing coffee and croissant at Cafe Promenade.    We turned south by Cancun, so good views were aft and to port. I went to the chairs next to the running track on deck five with my coffee.    Whether the sunrise is spectacular or not, it’s my favorite time on board. I wrote that before, I think.    We had no plans for Cozumel since previous trips always included a day at Nachi Cocom.    *branch out*   We shared the dock with Celebrity Equinox, and as we came alongside, I got an epic time lapse on my Instagram @dunkelbier_jay.    We waited an hour or so and navigated the controlled area at the International Pier to the taxi area. About a third of Allure and half of Equinox were in line, so I turned left to the exit to the street. A taxi was sitting there ready across the street, and without setting the price before getting in, I know I was taken for a few bucks. The ride to our destination was $18 (for the five of us—> yeah, right —> I know it’s $8 to go to San Miguel from the taxi line)...Taking into account a tip and getting going in front of 6,328 others in line across the street, another few bucks was worth it.    Our destination was La Cozumeleña, a breakfast spot about six blocks from the Forum shops that the cruise lines promote. It is a bakery/restaurant that I found on Trip Advisor. Upon walking in, we got the feeling you have when you walk into a biker bar in preppy clothes. It was fine and we were welcomed warmly by the staff with fresh sugary rolls and amazing cinnamon coffee to start. We each ordered items from the breakfast menu as well as the signature torta. Everyone really enjoyed their meals.    After breakfast, we walked a couple blocks to the main coastal street in town and turned right dodging the aggressive store front employees as we weaved one block in and one block out searching for interesting things. We stopped at Cariloha...yes, we were suckered in, but the underwear is just that comfortable. We resisted the bed sheets. The socks are good too. One free when you buy three! SUCH a good deal. (No sarcasm)   We ended up at Panchos Backyard where....   See my Instagram @dunkelbier_jay for random tequila flavored xylophone excitement.    Many dollars later, we shopped our way out of the place...after all, it’s set up that way...   ...found a taxi, and were navigating back to the International Pier in a taxi properly procured at 2/3 the cost of the previous.    Good judgment was tequila’d out the door, so we missed out My Time Dining reservation ...they’ll seat you anyway... and skipped the headliner. There’s something about tequila...   We retired around 9:30to rest up for the next port of Call, Roatan.       

Cozumel pics...

Cozumel pics...

Cozumel pics...

Today, I followed my routine of waking up to catch the sunrise after grabbing coffee and croissant at Cafe Promenade.    We turned south by Cancun, so good views were aft and to port. I went to the chairs next to the running track on deck five with my coffee.    Whether the sunrise is spectacular or not, it’s my favorite time on board. I wrote that before, I think.    We had no plans for Cozumel since previous trips always included a day at Nachi Cocom.    *branch out*   We shared the dock with Celebrity Equinox, and as we came alongside, I got an epic time lapse on my Instagram @dunkelbier_jay.    We waited an hour or so and navigated the controlled area at the International Pier to the taxi area. About a third of Allure and half of Equinox were in line, so I turned left to the exit to the street. A taxi was sitting there ready across the street, and without setting the price before getting in, I know I was taken for a few bucks. The ride to our destination was $18 (for the five of us—> yeah, right —> I know it’s $8 to go to San Miguel from the taxi line)...Taking into account a tip and getting going in front of 6,328 others in line across the street, another few bucks was worth it.    Our destination was La Cozumeleña, a breakfast spot about six blocks from the Forum shops that the cruise lines promote. It is a bakery/restaurant that I found on Trip Advisor. Upon walking in, we got the feeling you have when you walk into a biker bar in preppy clothes. It was fine and we were welcomed warmly by the staff with fresh sugary rolls and amazing cinnamon coffee to start. We each ordered items from the breakfast menu as well as the signature torta. Everyone really enjoyed their meals.    After breakfast, we walked a couple blocks to the main coastal street in town and turned right dodging the aggressive store front employees as we weaved one block in and one block out searching for interesting things. We stopped at Cariloha...yes, we were suckered in, but the underwear is just that comfortable. We resisted the bed sheets. The socks are good too. One free when you buy three! SUCH a good deal. (No sarcasm)   We ended up at Panchos Backyard where....   See my Instagram @dunkelbier_jay for random tequila flavored xylophone excitement.    Many dollars later, we shopped our way out of the place...after all, it’s set up that way...   ...found a taxi, and were navigating back to the International Pier in a taxi properly procured at 2/3 the cost of the previous.    Good judgment was tequila’d out the door, so we missed out My Time Dining reservation ...they’ll seat you anyway... and skipped the headliner. There’s something about tequila...   We retired around 9:30to rest up for the next port of Call, Roatan.       

Cozumel pics...

Ooooh,...I LOVE the sulphur salt.  It's my absolute favorite !

Day 3 — Allure at Sea   I woke up to watch a nice sunrise with a plan to lie around and eat all day while doing next to nothing with a couple exceptions...     All Access Tour   Bring your long pants if you book a ship tour. I had the slip resistant shoe thing down, so it created the need to sprint from the Silk dining room which is aft all the forward to my stateroom and grab a pair. I made it back in time for the start which included chocolate dipped strawberries and champagne  we started in the galleys, moved to the storage areas around deck 2, the engine control room, I-95 hallway up to the entrance to the crew mess and then waaaaaayyyyy down into the bowels of the ship (I saw bilge signs —> that’s when you know you’re way down there) three decks below the water line...there’s deck 2, deck 1 (water line), deck 0, TW (tween deck), and HW (I think —> I can’t remember what it stands for) where we saw some incredible laundry facilities. The scale of it is staggering.    Mid-Day   We spent some time on the pool deck before hunger set in and I tried a coney on the Boardwalk followed by a burger, fries, a cookie and some pudding in the Windjammer...then some ice cream on the pool deck. That held me over till dinner. One nap later, I felt the need to burn some calories, so I headed to the gym for 45 minutes prior to the aqua show, Ocean Aria which was delightful.   Immediately following Ocean Aria, I went back to my room to grab one of the CP balcony perks of a bottle of wine, and we proceeded to 150 CentralPark. It was an excellent meal and experience, and AI really enjoyed salting the butter. I liked all of the flavors, Alaea (Hawaii), Sel Gris (Mediterranean gray sea salt), Murray River (Australian), Sel de Mar (French Med), Salish (Washington State —> love it or hate it, it’s like a campfire...really), and then Kala Namak (if you like sulphur, you’ll like this. Me? I’ll just say that I needed to cleanse my palate)   Following dinner, we headed to the Amber Theater and watched the Love and Marriage game show. It’s pretty much the same every time...lots of laughs and embarrassing moments...I was ready for bed afterwards, so I retired.    (Photos are uploaded randomly...more on IG @dunkelbier_jay)

Great blog so far, loving the sunrise pics! I hope you're a natural extra-early riser!

Day 3 — Allure at Sea   I woke up to watch a nice sunrise with a plan to lie around and eat all day while doing next to nothing with a couple exceptions...     All Access Tour   Bring your long pants if you book a ship tour. I had the slip resistant shoe thing down, so it created the need to sprint from the Silk dining room which is aft all the forward to my stateroom and grab a pair. I made it back in time for the start which included chocolate dipped strawberries and champagne  we started in the galleys, moved to the storage areas around deck 2, the engine control room, I-95 hallway up to the entrance to the crew mess and then waaaaaayyyyy down into the bowels of the ship (I saw bilge signs —> that’s when you know you’re way down there) three decks below the water line...there’s deck 2, deck 1 (water line), deck 0, TW (tween deck), and HW (I think —> I can’t remember what it stands for) where we saw some incredible laundry facilities. The scale of it is staggering.    Mid-Day   We spent some time on the pool deck before hunger set in and I tried a coney on the Boardwalk followed by a burger, fries, a cookie and some pudding in the Windjammer...then some ice cream on the pool deck. That held me over till dinner. One nap later, I felt the need to burn some calories, so I headed to the gym for 45 minutes prior to the aqua show, Ocean Aria which was delightful.   Immediately following Ocean Aria, I went back to my room to grab one of the CP balcony perks of a bottle of wine, and we proceeded to 150 CentralPark. It was an excellent meal and experience, and AI really enjoyed salting the butter. I liked all of the flavors, Alaea (Hawaii), Sel Gris (Mediterranean gray sea salt), Murray River (Australian), Sel de Mar (French Med), Salish (Washington State —> love it or hate it, it’s like a campfire...really), and then Kala Namak (if you like sulphur, you’ll like this. Me? I’ll just say that I needed to cleanse my palate)   Following dinner, we headed to the Amber Theater and watched the Love and Marriage game show. It’s pretty much the same every time...lots of laughs and embarrassing moments...I was ready for bed afterwards, so I retired.    (Photos are uploaded randomly...more on IG @dunkelbier_jay)

Day 3 — Allure at Sea   I woke up to watch a nice sunrise with a plan to lie around and eat all day while doing next to nothing with a couple exceptions...     All Access Tour   Bring your long pants if you book a ship tour. I had the slip resistant shoe thing down, so it created the need to sprint from the Silk dining room which is aft all the forward to my stateroom and grab a pair. I made it back in time for the start which included chocolate dipped strawberries and champagne  we started in the galleys, moved to the storage areas around deck 2, the engine control room, I-95 hallway up to the entrance to the crew mess and then waaaaaayyyyy down into the bowels of the ship (I saw bilge signs —> that’s when you know you’re way down there) three decks below the water line...there’s deck 2, deck 1 (water line), deck 0, TW (tween deck), and HW (I think —> I can’t remember what it stands for) where we saw some incredible laundry facilities. The scale of it is staggering.    Mid-Day   We spent some time on the pool deck before hunger set in and I tried a coney on the Boardwalk followed by a burger, fries, a cookie and some pudding in the Windjammer...then some ice cream on the pool deck. That held me over till dinner. One nap later, I felt the need to burn some calories, so I headed to the gym for 45 minutes prior to the aqua show, Ocean Aria which was delightful.   Immediately following Ocean Aria, I went back to my room to grab one of the CP balcony perks of a bottle of wine, and we proceeded to 150 CentralPark. It was an excellent meal and experience, and AI really enjoyed salting the butter. I liked all of the flavors, Alaea (Hawaii), Sel Gris (Mediterranean gray sea salt), Murray River (Australian), Sel de Mar (French Med), Salish (Washington State —> love it or hate it, it’s like a campfire...really), and then Kala Namak (if you like sulphur, you’ll like this. Me? I’ll just say that I needed to cleanse my palate)   Following dinner, we headed to the Amber Theater and watched the Love and Marriage game show. It’s pretty much the same every time...lots of laughs and embarrassing moments...I was ready for bed afterwards, so I retired.    (Photos are uploaded randomly...more on IG @dunkelbier_jay)

Day 3 — Allure at Sea   I woke up to watch a nice sunrise with a plan to lie around and eat all day while doing next to nothing with a couple exceptions...     All Access Tour   Bring your long pants if you book a ship tour. I had the slip resistant shoe thing down, so it created the need to sprint from the Silk dining room which is aft all the forward to my stateroom and grab a pair. I made it back in time for the start which included chocolate dipped strawberries and champagne  we started in the galleys, moved to the storage areas around deck 2, the engine control room, I-95 hallway up to the entrance to the crew mess and then waaaaaayyyyy down into the bowels of the ship (I saw bilge signs —> that’s when you know you’re way down there) three decks below the water line...there’s deck 2, deck 1 (water line), deck 0, TW (tween deck), and HW (I think —> I can’t remember what it stands for) where we saw some incredible laundry facilities. The scale of it is staggering.    Mid-Day   We spent some time on the pool deck before hunger set in and I tried a coney on the Boardwalk followed by a burger, fries, a cookie and some pudding in the Windjammer...then some ice cream on the pool deck. That held me over till dinner. One nap later, I felt the need to burn some calories, so I headed to the gym for 45 minutes prior to the aqua show, Ocean Aria which was delightful.   Immediately following Ocean Aria, I went back to my room to grab one of the CP balcony perks of a bottle of wine, and we proceeded to 150 CentralPark. It was an excellent meal and experience, and AI really enjoyed salting the butter. I liked all of the flavors, Alaea (Hawaii), Sel Gris (Mediterranean gray sea salt), Murray River (Australian), Sel de Mar (French Med), Salish (Washington State —> love it or hate it, it’s like a campfire...really), and then Kala Namak (if you like sulphur, you’ll like this. Me? I’ll just say that I needed to cleanse my palate)   Following dinner, we headed to the Amber Theater and watched the Love and Marriage game show. It’s pretty much the same every time...lots of laughs and embarrassing moments...I was ready for bed afterwards, so I retired.    (Photos are uploaded randomly...more on IG @dunkelbier_jay)

Day 3 — Allure at Sea   I woke up to watch a nice sunrise with a plan to lie around and eat all day while doing next to nothing with a couple exceptions...     All Access Tour   Bring your long pants if you book a ship tour. I had the slip resistant shoe thing down, so it created the need to sprint from the Silk dining room which is aft all the forward to my stateroom and grab a pair. I made it back in time for the start which included chocolate dipped strawberries and champagne  we started in the galleys, moved to the storage areas around deck 2, the engine control room, I-95 hallway up to the entrance to the crew mess and then waaaaaayyyyy down into the bowels of the ship (I saw bilge signs —> that’s when you know you’re way down there) three decks below the water line...there’s deck 2, deck 1 (water line), deck 0, TW (tween deck), and HW (I think —> I can’t remember what it stands for) where we saw some incredible laundry facilities. The scale of it is staggering.    Mid-Day   We spent some time on the pool deck before hunger set in and I tried a coney on the Boardwalk followed by a burger, fries, a cookie and some pudding in the Windjammer...then some ice cream on the pool deck. That held me over till dinner. One nap later, I felt the need to burn some calories, so I headed to the gym for 45 minutes prior to the aqua show, Ocean Aria which was delightful.   Immediately following Ocean Aria, I went back to my room to grab one of the CP balcony perks of a bottle of wine, and we proceeded to 150 CentralPark. It was an excellent meal and experience, and AI really enjoyed salting the butter. I liked all of the flavors, Alaea (Hawaii), Sel Gris (Mediterranean gray sea salt), Murray River (Australian), Sel de Mar (French Med), Salish (Washington State —> love it or hate it, it’s like a campfire...really), and then Kala Namak (if you like sulphur, you’ll like this. Me? I’ll just say that I needed to cleanse my palate)   Following dinner, we headed to the Amber Theater and watched the Love and Marriage game show. It’s pretty much the same every time...lots of laughs and embarrassing moments...I was ready for bed afterwards, so I retired.    (Photos are uploaded randomly...more on IG @dunkelbier_jay)

Day 3 — Allure at Sea   I woke up to watch a nice sunrise with a plan to lie around and eat all day while doing next to nothing with a couple exceptions...     All Access Tour   Bring your long pants if you book a ship tour. I had the slip resistant shoe thing down, so it created the need to sprint from the Silk dining room which is aft all the forward to my stateroom and grab a pair. I made it back in time for the start which included chocolate dipped strawberries and champagne  we started in the galleys, moved to the storage areas around deck 2, the engine control room, I-95 hallway up to the entrance to the crew mess and then waaaaaayyyyy down into the bowels of the ship (I saw bilge signs —> that’s when you know you’re way down there) three decks below the water line...there’s deck 2, deck 1 (water line), deck 0, TW (tween deck), and HW (I think —> I can’t remember what it stands for) where we saw some incredible laundry facilities. The scale of it is staggering.    Mid-Day   We spent some time on the pool deck before hunger set in and I tried a coney on the Boardwalk followed by a burger, fries, a cookie and some pudding in the Windjammer...then some ice cream on the pool deck. That held me over till dinner. One nap later, I felt the need to burn some calories, so I headed to the gym for 45 minutes prior to the aqua show, Ocean Aria which was delightful.   Immediately following Ocean Aria, I went back to my room to grab one of the CP balcony perks of a bottle of wine, and we proceeded to 150 CentralPark. It was an excellent meal and experience, and AI really enjoyed salting the butter. I liked all of the flavors, Alaea (Hawaii), Sel Gris (Mediterranean gray sea salt), Murray River (Australian), Sel de Mar (French Med), Salish (Washington State —> love it or hate it, it’s like a campfire...really), and then Kala Namak (if you like sulphur, you’ll like this. Me? I’ll just say that I needed to cleanse my palate)   Following dinner, we headed to the Amber Theater and watched the Love and Marriage game show. It’s pretty much the same every time...lots of laughs and embarrassing moments...I was ready for bed afterwards, so I retired.    (Photos are uploaded randomly...more on IG @dunkelbier_jay)

Day 2 — Nassau
Mornings at sea are by far my favorite time aboard  I don’t need to sell that idea to most people on this blog. It is a restful, relaxing and exciting time
The kids had not been to Nassau, so what do you do? You walk around and go to the ship by lunch if you’re not doing the British Colonial Hilton, Baja Mar or Atlantis. 
We walked off the ship beyond the tour operators and cab driver and headed to the Queens Staircase. We were corned at the parking lot area behind Princess Margaret Hospital and the entrance to the staircase by a man who gave us the full history. Sometimes, you just stay and listen, and I’m glad we did. He gave a quick and through history of the staircase and Queen Victoria’s role in ending slavery. I’m glad my kids heard it from that man rather than a tour operator. I gladly tipped him and we walked into a sacred area. 

Embarkation Day continued
The naughty room was entertaining though. A man near us was arguing with security about his steamer that they were confiscating.  *Dude* He would not take no for an answer, and was taking names of the staff there, their supervisors and their family. Voice raised, eyes popping out of his head, the world is coming to an end because he was going to be without his steamer. My daughter wanted to tip the security guy he was yelling at for putting up with him. Wow, I thought.  The long wait till Izumi involved grabbing our first lava flows in the Schooner bar and browsing the shops which just opened.  9:00 pmcame before we knew it, and we had a fantastic time enjoying the experience at Izumi hibachi. The chefs are a couple notches above who you experience on shore, and we did lots of laughing as they enjoyed over feeding us. One feature of this restaurant is they allow you to mix the proteins that are listed on the menu. That was nice because I put the filet together with the shrimp. Fantastic. Wow, I thought.