Western Caribbean

Jenn and I had a nice vacation get-away and the kids had some really cool time with Grandma Laura, then Grandma Paulette & Grandpa Doug.

We chose this vacation for the itinerary and the company, and while we’ve really enjoyed the warm waters of the southern Caribbean, we chose the western Caribbean this time around with stops in Roatan, Belize, Costa Maya and Cozumel. Pete and Moe, along with their friends Kevin and Beverly, joined us, as well.

This was one of the smaller ships we’ve been on, though it was hard to tell. The big ships tend to hide the crowds well with more areas of activity and dining to shunt everyone. Vision of the Seas is a nice ship, our room was comfortable, our balcony was nice, and the entertainment was good. Our food service improved as the cruise went on. The first two evenings were quite disappointing, as our waiter was just not as responsive as we’d expect on a cruise. After moving to a different section and taking on a new waiter, things turned out very nicely.

Jenn scheduled all of our excursions herself with the help of Trip Advisor. There is good savings and better options staying away from the cruise listings, we've found.

We went with Roatan Ocean Adventures and went drift snorkeling for a time, followed by a visit to a place that rescues monkeys, macaws, parrots and other animals. The animals were very well cared for, and we had a blast on both stops.

Preston describs what we were to see under the water on our drift snorkel.

In Belize we went with Belize Tours Unlimited and our driver, Marvin, picked us up a the cruise terminal and drove us to Crooked Tree Wildlife Sanctuary, apparently one of the best birding locations in North America. It did not disappoint. Marvin lives about 5 minutes from the Audubon Society outfit there, and when he felt like we didn't see all of the species we should have, he took us to his house where we found a number of new species in his back yard. He also cut open some newly ripe cocunuts to drink from, and wow, was that tasty.

On the way back to the terminal, he took us to a hole-in-the-wall named Dand's and we had a *really* good Belizian meal of rice & beans, I had pork and Jenn had gibnut, a.k.a. "the royal rat."

The third stop was a beach on Costa Maya. Our experience with sitting on Caribbean beaches has been mixed, with the most negative experiences coming when the beaches were filled with "vendors" and solicitors. This time we reserved a spot at Nohoch Kay Beach Club that included beach chairs, an umbrella, wifi, food, drinks, kayak, restrooms, and very friendly service.

The beach was really pleasant, and while the air and water weren't as warm as we've experienced in the Caribbean this time around, this was our best weather day of the week. Also very cool were the small patches of sea grass where the Little Blue Heron and the Yellow Capped Night Heron were fishing for lunch. This was my first opportunity to wade into the water with my big lens, and it was a lot of fun.

Cozumel was our last stop, and Jenn arranged for us to drive around the island in a modified VW Beetle with a guide. One of our stops was a tequila factory where we were pretty much only interested in learning the history and the technique, not in tassting. Even the smell of tequila has nearly triggered my gag reflex in the past, but that was apparently because I was smelling cheap, chemical-induced tequila. This factory was a very small outfit that made it the right way, which takes >7 years to grow the plant and then months to years to age the product. Theirs was very tasty.

We drove through the city, then across the island to the beach, down south to Punta Sur Eco Beach Park, then up to a fun restaurant, then back to the boat. Santiago, our guide, was as friendly and professional as they come, and he showed us a good time around the island.

We finished the cruise with a day at sea that included 5 hours of dominos in the solarium. It was a blast!

Caribbean Cruise 2014

I'm writing our post-vacation post on the airplane.  This is a first for me partly because I was able to anticipate the San Juan airport's wifi capability, partly because I was able to sort through our hundreds of photos here and there during our vacation, and partly because Jenn still has books remaining on her Kindle so I must find a way to occupy myself between San Juan and Charlotte.  (Casablanca will be next.)

It's a nice way, though, to finish our vacation and solidify the memories of what was a very, very good vacation.  It's now hard to rank our cruises.  Our first was incredible because it was a lovely cruise and it was our first.  Our second had fantastic on board entertainment with what we're coming to understand as the king of cruise directors and we met what have proven to be some really neat friends in Pete and Moe.  Our third would be ranked last for a number of reasons, but we can't overlook our great time on Grenada on that trip, as well as the fact that I was formally introduced to cricket, one of my now-favorite sports to watch.  2014's cruise didn't surpass #2 or #1, but it's got to be considered among their company if for no other reason because this trip included Aruba and, from my perspective, some fun photography opportunities.  More on this below.

We left at the crack of dawn on Sunday, 2/2.  I'm not real crazy about Sunday to Sunday trips, particularly this year when I'll return to work within 18 hours of arriving home while running The Clinic solo.  (Other-Dr. Gates, or ODG as he's known in my online community of veterinarians, left yesterday for St. Croix.)  But this cruise had the itinerary we wanted, and S-to-S was a worthwhile price to pay.

Our first stop was St. Thomas.  Jenn and I have come to not care too much about stops in St. Thomas.  We made it a priority to get off the island, so we booked an excursion on The Jester.  This was the perfect way to enjoy St. Thomas.Eric was our captain in addition to growing up in St. Thomas, he also has quite the sailing past and experience.  He's 33 years old with 25 years of legitimate sailing work.  He told stories of trips he'd take as a young boy with his fatherland brother bringing sailing yachts from New England (where the boat's owner lived) to as far south as Trinidad (where the boat's owner vacationed).  He knows the Caribbean inside and out and was naming islands of which Jenn and I had never heard.He sailed us around St. Thomas to a beach on St. John and cooked us a very good lunch of teriyaki chicken, "rasta pasta salad," and corn on the cob afterweweredone in the water.  This snorkeling adventure was my first opportunity to use the new underwater camera given to me by Mom & Dad for Christmas.  There's definitely going to be a learning curve both with the camera and with under water photography, but I was pretty happy with Trip #1.Our next stop was St. Kitts, and after our good experience with Greg of Greg's Safaris, we'd contacted him prior to our arrival for his volcano hike.  It's advertised to be quite strenuous, a hike of ~2,300' in elevation, and we were looking forward to a unique way to spend a day on a Caribbean island.  We arrived and he'd forgotten about our booking or something like that, so he passed us off to another tour with the same destination.  The cost was less, and so was the informative friendliness.  Al was our guide, a second-generation tour guide, and I wondered during our hike if his father had a similar chip on his shoulder.  I didn't ask.  But the hike was just the exercise we were looking for, the views were amazing (when the clouds weren't in the way... that summit is a long way up!), and our group was pleasant and enjoyable.  I'd book with Greg again, he's the most pleasant guy on the island, but confirm by email the week prior to our arrival.The following was a Day At Sea.  We each visited the gym for the first time on a cruise, and there's something cool about running while staring out to a horizon of ocean.  We weren't sure how good we'd be after the big hike the day before, but I ran 4 miles in 35:00, and Jenn ran something like 5 miles, so we felt better about eating a few extra items from the dessert table that afternoon.We also enjoyed once again the promenade deck for reading and resting.  And the dress-up times were fantastic as well.Aruba, the primary reason we chose this cruise was next, and it proved to be the highlight.  There's not a friendlier island or nation than Aruba.  On other trips, we've heard the locals speaking in their native languages and we've been certain they were talking derisively of their guests.  There was none of that on Aruba.  The people, all of them, went out of their way to be welcoming, warm, friendly, and accommodating.We'd booked an all day trip with ABC Jeep Tours.  They had a good price and their itinerary hit all of the hot spots we'd read we should see: natural bridge (now collapsed), California Lighthouse, Natural Pool, caves, etc.  They took us to allow these places, and they gives a thrill ride in the process.  If you've ever been on a Pink Jeep Tour in Sedona, AZ, picture taking that tour with a view of the ocean and about 10-30mph faster.  That's ABC Jeep Tour's style.Because Aruba is so close to Curaçao, we didn't leave port until 10:00, so after our tour, a shower and dinner, I went back on land to take some night photos.  The view from our room on board was pretty cool, too.We didn't have a plan for Curaçao so we listened to the gaggle of cabbies just off the boat and chose the quietest one to drive us to the neat spots on the island.  There is a really cool cave system that is very well-maintained, and some distinctive others areas on the island, each of which our driver was willing to stop at so we could get out and snap photos.It was nice traveling with friends, a first for us.  We met Mike and Cerissa about a year ago at church, and one thing led to another until we each had the cruise scheduled.  Cerissa is also a veterinarian, but for Mike's sake we kept the vet-talk to a minimum.Curaçao is a long way from Puerto Rico, so Saturday wan another Day At Sea, another day to exercise, and then to really relax.  It is becoming increasingly clear to us, though you'd never guess it looking at Jenn on Formal Night, that we're getting old.  On our first cruise, we didn't want any days at sea, and now we're appreciative of two.
Next on our family travel and vacation agenda is Disney World this October with Grandma Laura and Grandpa Dave.  The kids are already as excited as they know how to be, and I anticipate this will only increase as they grow through the summer.

After that, the travel plans for 2015 are very much up in the air as I move to add a new doctor at The Clinic.  Their competence, and my comfort level with leaving The Clinic in their hands, will impact when and where Jenn and I take our next marriage-building vacation.