Day 3 - Part Deux

Post wedding celebrations

So where was I?  Oh yes… the wedding was done, the couple were hitched, the pictures were taken, and the cake was cut.  So, down to our rooms to change into beach wear, grab the towels, and head back to Half Moon Cay for some sun and snorkeling.  We had rented a private cabana for the day, and were really looking forward to the down time after the hectic morning.

The tender dropped us off at the dock again, and we grabbed the open-back truck to the beach.  The bougainvillea was everywhere, the sand was cool and powder-like, and the temperatures were climbing fast!  The cabana was stocked with soft drinks and snacks (fruit, veggies, tortilla chips, etc.), snorkeling equipment, and a some chairs and loungers…  The others dropped their outer clothes (yes, bathing suits under!!) and just ran for the water.  I grabbed a plate of fruit and settled in one of the amazing padded loungers in the shade with my eBook.  Within a few minutes, I noticed a bank of black clouds massing on the horizon, and it was moving our way- fast!  Next thing you know, the lifeguards are blowing whistles and gesturing for everyone to get out of the water, and had back to the ship!  WTF?  I asked if we could stay in the cabana, and they said “No- back to the ship!  Big emergency!”  So everyone was grabbing their stuff and leaving, and we followed suit.  We grabbed some of the drinks and fruit and headed back to the dock … where we saw no emergency, no one leaving, and a big BBQ going on.  None of the Carnival guys at the BBQ knew anything about any evacuation, so we started thinking maybe we were scammed into leaving.  In the meantime, we grabbed some food and had a quick lunch while trying to figure out what was happening.  And then the wind picked up, those black clouds moved right overhead, and the skies opened.  Oh wow… the rain!  We had some shelter, at least.  Hundreds of people were lined up at the dock, waiting for the tenders to take them back to the ship, and they were drowning in the deluge.  We didn’t mind being last if we were staying dry… but we were actually led a back way by a Carnival guy and ended up cutting in front of a few hundred people.  Oooops!  I was embarrassed, but I went anyway. *blush*   The tender ride back to the ship was wild- the seas were choppy.  And they had a heck of a time pulling alongside so we could get off.  The two vessels were pulling apart and banging together again, so the very amazing guys at the gangway were timing things to get people off …  It took quite a while, but we were all safely off, and heading to  our rooms for showers and much needed naps.   (Leslie spoke to the shore excursion guy, who remembered her, and the full price of the cabana was refunded.  Very nice!)

Slept a couple of hours, and then we had dinner reservations at the “Emerald Room Steakhouse”- one of the specialty restaurants on board, and at an extra (but very reasonable!) cost.  It’s a 6-star restaurant, and … OMG!  Professional wait staff, fabulous room, and food to die for!  I had the lobster bisque (my mouth died and went to heaven), followed by the beefsteak tomato with blue cheese and gorgonzola, and then the filet mignon and lobster tail with the most amazing mashed potato (Yukon gold with garlic and wasabi) … the kind of food you eat slowly because every mouthful is a taste experience…. I just had ice cream for dessert.  Homemade cappuccino frappe ice cream.  Needless to say, we all had an unforgettable dinner experience.

There was an amazing free dinner show, as well.   The tropical storm treated us to dozens of amazing lightning flashes.  The whole sky just lit up.  Occasionally, you could even see lightning bolts coming straight down.  Since we were in the middle of the ocean, it could have been 2 miles or 200 miles away - impossible to tell without landmarks.  And it was still pouring rain, so no walking around the deck tonight!  It was quite late when all was done, so David and I decided to head back to our rooms for the night.  Leslie, Rayna and Davie headed off for some night life.

I watched some TV, wrote up the blog (hoping for Internet access soon!) and crawled into bed.  At some point it occurred to me that if I wasn’t seasick by now, I was not going to be!  LOL!

Sea Day tomorrow - just a relaxing day.

Night all!!!!