Liberty of the Seas: 5 Night Western to Belize and Cozumel Review, 1/19-24/13

[SingingPixie]

Day 3: Belize (Part 12)

We boarded our boat, and after a few seconds of coaxing to the engine, we were off for the return trip down the river.



This trip was to be a bit quicker than the trip to the ruins, since we would be making fewer stops to view wildlife- basically, only if we passed something truly interesting.

About half-way back, we came upon another croc- but much bigger than those we'd seen before, so we stopped to have a look.



This is where the trip got interesting. The few seconds of coaxing that it took to get the motor to turn over when we first boarded turned out to have been a sign of things to come- and the motor didn't respond when the driver attempted to re-start it.

10 minutes of work got the motor to at least limp along- we weren't dead in the water, but we were probably going about 1/3 of our planned speed. At this point we were all VERY happy we had booked with the ship, since there was almost no wiggle room in our schedule.

The bonus with the slower speed was the opportunity to take lots of photos from the boat!









To be continued...

[SingingPixie]

Day 3: Belize (Part 13)

More photos from the crawling boat:









After about 20 mins of sailing at a crawl, we got to an area with cell reception, and the boat captain was able to get in touch with someone who could provide further instruction to repair the motor. We got back up to full speed, and made it back to the dock about 45 mins behind schedule. This guy (an orange iguana) was in the tree to greet us:



To be continued...

[SingingPixie]

Day 3: Belize (Part 14)

We stopped at the restaurant just long enough for a quick buffet lunch (chicken, rice & beans, coleslaw, chips & salsa, and some cookie bars), some quickly-consumed Belikin beers (which I'd been dreaming about since I made it down from the temple!) and a bathroom trip. We boarded the bus for an hour's nap on the way back to Belize City.

The bus encountered further delays in the form of a Coca Cola delivery truck blocking the road on our way to the pier. We finally arrived and boarded a tender at 5:50pm- 20 mins after the last tender was to depart. We were happy to know that the ship was waiting for us, 5 miles out to see from the pier!














After such a long day, we decided to relax until our 7:30 dinner reservation with a quick trip to the pool and hot tub. My pina colada was not nearly as good as the one in the solarium the day before- owed to the fact that it was made with the standard Bacardi rum rather than the dark.

Dinner in the dining room was fine, as usual- and after dinner we decided to skate away the "full" feeling with a couple laps around the ice rink. This was actually a lot of fun, but got frustrating as it got crowded later on in the session. We left and stopped by the Schooner Bar, where we discovered the impressive Paul O'Shea, and made a point to come back to see him again before the end of the trip. When he decided to take a break, we took it as our cue to call it a night- Cozumel was set to be almost as busy a day as Belize was!

[Baatman]

Enjoying the pictures..I may have missed it, but what type of camera are you using? The pictures are of different sizes - are you using more than one camera or more than one host site?

[SingingPixie]

Originally Posted by Baatman

Enjoying the pictures..I may have missed it, but what type of camera are you using? The pictures are of different sizes - are you using more than one camera or more than one host site?

I mentioned that the camera is a loan from my brother- an Olympus E-PL2. He gave me a couple different lenses, but I stuck with the 14-42 zoom for the flexibility it gave me, since I wanted to be "in the moment" as much as possible, and not just seeing the whole trip through the camera screen.

I think the varying photo sizes come from the fact that I did a quick crop on most of them in iPhoto, rather than taking the time to edit them as full-size images in GIMP. I can still go back and do that later, but I wanted to get them up and the review written while it was still fresh in my mind, rather than taking the time to do it the slow way and not writing the review for a month!

[edjny]

Originally Posted by SingingPixie

Day 3: Belize (Part 9)

After about an hour's sail, the river opened up to the New River Lagoon, and we docked at the Lamanai archeological site. There were bathrooms available at the dock, and I took photos of huge trees while we gathered.





Our guide told us of the almost 3000-year history of Lamanai as a living city- from about 1000BC to the time the Spanish came to convert the local Mayans. Lamanai is one of the few Mayan cities not to be abandoned during their catastrophic economic recession. It is large enough that it would take 800 years of constant work to fully excavate the site.

We headed off down a trail and quickly came upon our first temple.



This temple was located near the royal complex, which displayed some pottery which was proof of trade with Teotihuacan in Mexico. The guide used the analogy of the Russian nesting dolls; when one sees an example of those dolls anywhere in the world, he knows they came from Russia. Pottery like this could only come from Teotihuacan, near modern-day Mexico City.



To be continued...

Which excursion did you take? We are taking the same cruise on March 16th and have booked the Mayan Palaces of Cahal Pech - BE99 excursion. There are 3 different excursions for Belize that go to Mayan ruins, but none of the descriptions seem to match what you are describing.

[SingingPixie]

Originally Posted by edjny

Which excursion did you take? We are taking the same cruise on March 16th and have booked the Mayan Palaces of Cahal Pech - BE99 excursion. There are 3 different excursions for Belize that go to Mayan ruins, but none of the descriptions seem to match what you are describing.

I forget the exact name of the excursion, but it's the only one that goes to Lamanai (other excursions go to Cahal Pech, Xunantunich, and Altun Ha Mayan Sites). Because of where it's located, Lamanai must be reached by an hour-long bus ride to just south of Orange Walk, and then an hour-long sail in a speedboat down the New River- and then the reverse for the return trip.

[edjny]

Originally Posted by SingingPixie

I forget the exact name of the excursion, but it's the only one that goes to Lamanai (other excursions go to Cahal Pech, Xunantunich, and Altun Ha Mayan Sites). Because of where it's located, Lamanai must be reached by an hour-long bus ride to just south of Orange Walk, and then an hour-long sail in a speedboat down the New River- and then the reverse for the return trip.

Thanks, I looked again and found it.... Lamanai & The New River Safari - BE62
I don't know how I missed it before.....

[SingingPixie]

Day 4: Cozumel (Part 1)

Our plans for Cozumel were pretty densely packed- mostly, because there is more I'd like to see in Cozumel than we could fit into a port visit. I'm not into the shopping thing, or the all-inclusive beach club thing (I just can't sit around on a beach for more than a couple hours without wanting to explore)- but even though those things are plentiful in Cozumel, there's tons of alternatives too!

That said, we booked a Discover Scuba dive (highly supervised dive for uncertified people) for the earliest time we could (8am shore time/9am ship time) with a shore excursion broker (Shore Excursioneer- I want to be clear up front that this was NOT a Money Bar tour; it just met there) that met at the Money Bar. Since we were scheduled to dock at 8am and to be able to debark at 8:30, we knew we were cutting it a bit close- but we also knew that the Money Bar is a very quick cab ride from port. This would leave the afternoon free to visit the east side for lunch, drinks and some gorgeous photos.

We got up, grabbed breakfast at the Windjammer and headed down to the outside promenade on deck 4 to watch the docking setup. We were off the ship 4 mins after the announcement that we were cleared- and arrived at the Money Bar 15 mins early for our appointment.



As expected, the Money Bar was a ghost town. Since we were early, we settled down to wait.



8am local time, which was listed on our ticket, came and went. The watersports desk was posted to open at 9am, so we decided to wait it out. At 9am, we spoke to the young man who opened up, and he let us know that we were waiting for a separate vendor, who should arrive shortly. At 9:30, 90 mins after our appointment, we went back up to the desk to see if they would help us call the vendor. The young man at the dive shop sent me to the bar, where the manager called the vendor for me from his cell phone. The Shore Excursioneer rep told the bar manager (who was very helpful, given that our issue had nothing to do with his operation!) that he would be sending someone to meet me at 11am- a full 3 hours after our scheduled time. Since we had other plans, I called back to let him know we couldn't wait that long. He agreed to send someone immediately.

The good news was, I had plenty of time to take photos of the beach while we waited!









We originally booked this particular tour because it offered two different dives- one from shore as part of the class/orientation, and the second from a boat. This was good because the shore dive allowed for a safer environment in which to become familiar with the equipment, and to check that we were properly weighted in shallow water- but a boat dive would allow us to see more pristine reef. in the interest of time (and due to our diminished confidence in the operator) we decided that we would ask to do just the shore dive at a reduced price (since the delay was extreme and in no way our fault). We didn't want to have wasted our time, and we wanted to give Chris a chance to try out diving before possibly deciding to be certified for our honeymoon in September.

The instructor arrived at about 10am, and informed us that the plan was actually to do two boat dives, without a chance to check our weights and learn the gear from shore. He let us know that we could do only one dive, but would still need to pay the full price- and later offered a $20 discount for our trouble. At this point we were really anxious about being offered something different than we'd booked. The straw that broke the camel's back was when 6 other divers arrived, all Discover (uncertified) students, planning to dive with the same instructor. (There was some debate over whether all 6 of them had pre-booked, or just 4- but either way, 6 or 8 divers to one instructor was WAY beyond the 2:1 ratio allowed by reputable dive operations). At this point we cut our losses, backed out, and rented some snorkel gear to explore briefly on our own. (To their credit, Shore Excursioneer refunded my deposit immediately with apologies for our disappointing experience. My interaction with their staff has been nothing but great- but the particular vendor they work with for this particular tour isn't one I would recommend to anyone.)

Snorkeling was lovely- the water warm, TONS of fish (if not much reef close to shore), seriously like swimming in a crystal-clear aquarium. That said, we didn't stay out there long because we were anxious to move on from the disappointing part of our day and have a much-deserved margarita.

To be continued...

[SingingPixie]

Day 4: Cozumel (Part 2)

I was nervous about negotiating with a cab driver to stick with us for a block of time (originally planned to be about 4 hours, now about 5 given our change of morning plans) on the East side, but it actually couldn't have been easier. We walked across the street from the Money Bar to some condos, where we saw a cab driver waiting. He spoke great English, and we explained what we were looking for. He told us he was busy, but called a colleague who arrived in less than 5 mins. He originally wanted $120 for 5 hours, but we offered $100 and he quickly agreed. The driver we hired also spoke great English, and was happy to stay with us and take us to every stop on our list. He did suggest some other stops (where I'm sure he would have gotten kick-backs), but I clearly said no to each one and he did not push it at all. We decided to visit El Mirador (to take photos), Playa Bonita (for lunch), Chen Rio (for drinks and a quick swim) and Coconuts (for drinks and the view).

As we drove around the southern tip of the island, the sky which had been blue turned almost black, and it poured for about 3 mins. By the time we arrived at El Mirador, we had brilliant sunshine once again. Photos cannot do this place justice- it was absolutely gorgeous. It was also more built up than I'd expected, with several vendors set up by the road selling trinkets, drinks, etc.

A couple pics of the storm clouds:





And the first set from El Mirador (I got way too many that I like from here- so sorry for the overload!):









To be continued...

[SingingPixie]

Day 4: Cozumel (Part 3)

At this point I discovered the mode on my camera which takes several shots in one quick burst- which made getting wave photos much easier!





I like these three in series:







At this point we were getting hungry and thirsty, so headed back to the cab to move on to our next stop.



To be continued...

[SingingPixie]

Day 4: Cozumel (Part 4)

Playa Bonita was a great stop for lunch. I wouldn't go here expecting beach, but because of the lack of true sandy beach, it means that the restaurant sits right on the water. I can't imagine a better spot.







When we sat down, our waiter suggested a giant margarita "meant for 2 people." When he delivered it, it had three straws- so I'm thinking it was really meant for three!



Chris had the ceviche (he's still raving), and I had quesadillas (good if basic- I do wish they'd had a bit more adventurous vegetarian offerings, but I doubt they have a huge demand for them!).

After lunch, we moved on to Chen Rio, where we hoped to take a dip in the protected cove. If the water at the Money Bar was like an aquarium, I don't even know what to compare this water to- we could seriously see fish swimming around our ankles!



We grabbed a table and had some drinks with our feet in the sand- definitely paradise. I had the best pina colada ever- on the rocks rather than frozen, and made with real fresh coconut milk. Delicious.



While Chris drank another beer, I decided to try something I'd never done before. I was always a bit creeped out by the idea of massages- who wants a stranger touching you? But the stressed-out state I'd been in for the past couple months had made me rethink that assumption, and there was a nice setup under a canopy on the beach here that looked tempting. Since he wasn't busy, the masseur offered a good rate- $20 for 20 mins. The margarita and pina colada must have loosened my inhibitions, so I decided to go for it. While it was a bit odd to be laying topless (face-down) on a Mexican beach while a strange man got the knots out of my shoulders, it was the best $20 I'd ever spent. Even my frugal fiance declared it a worthwhile investment!

I returned to the table, and did get a bit of a reality check, however. A Canadian family had arrived, and had apparently witnessed the aftermath of a bad scooter accident on the road out front. From what we deduced (which was later confirmed by our cab driver), an apparently-intoxicated scooter driver, possibly a passenger from Mariner of the Seas, wiped out into a guard -rail and severed his leg. I really hope the story was exaggerated, but considering how similar the stories were that we heard from two sources (the family, including a young kid who wasn't mincing words, and the cab driver) I'm afraid it might be pretty accurate. We never heard anything after leaving Cozumel, so I hope the man survived, and recovers as much as possible. He was definitely in my thoughts the rest of the trip.

We wrapped up at Chen Rio and moved on to Coconuts- our last stop.

To be continued...

[workathome]

I'm loving your review. We are going in November and I'm taking notes like crazy!

[SingingPixie]

Day 4: Cozumel (Part 5)

Coconuts was a lot of fun in a gorgeous location. We were lucky to get a table right on the edge of the cliff, where we settled in for a couple quick beers and an order of jalepeno poppers. Missing our dog at home, we enjoyed the company of one of the local residents!





This made me laugh:









We finished our beers and decided it was time to go- but not before walking past the bar so that Chris could enjoy the view of the topless bartenders (that was a surprise!) and we could visit the resident crocodile. We made it back to the pier, bought some vanilla for me and a cigar for Chris, and hopped back on board.

It was another night in which a hot tub was calling us, and we lucked out to get seats in one of the cantilevered whirlpools in the solarium where we could watch our departure from Cozumel along with the sunset. We then cleaned up for dinner (in all of our White Night finest!) and enjoyed our last meal in the dining room- where we made sure to thank our waitstaff for the great time we'd had all week. This was my least favorite meal (the sweet and sour "chicken" was not an entree that I'd encourage them to keep on the menu!), but we enjoyed the company and the chance to unwind after our day.

We had hoped to do karaoke after dinner, but realized that the country music group on board (this was a huge group with their own shows and autograph sessions with some artists they'd brought throughout the week) had pretty much taken it over- and as non-country fans, we didn't really want to listen to an all-country lineup, or to sing for an audience who clearly wasn't interested in hearing anything else! So, we skipped it.

We visited a couple different lounges while we waited for the White Night party to start: first the pub (where we found the singer a lot less pleasant to listen to than the singer in the Schooner Bar!) and the Olive or Twist, where some of the singers and orchestra members were doing a jazz cabaret. I enjoyed the performance a lot, but it wasn't really Chris's style. This was also the night we felt the most motion, so it was interesting to see the water sloshing around the "lazy river" pool in the H20 Zone!

We headed down to the White Night party, where we quickly realized we didn't feel like taking part in the 70s-style group dances. After about 15 minutes we decided to change out of our white clothes and into swimsuits- and we watched the rest of the party from a hot tub. This was a good compromise, and a good way to end the night.

We finally got to sleep around 1am, ready for our last day at sea.

[SingingPixie]

Day 5: At Sea

That, sadly, is the end of the photos for the cruise portion of the trip. I do have some from the time we spent in Florida after the cruise, so stay tuned for that if you're interested.

Our last day at sea was a bit windy and cloudy, and we were tired so we were a bit more mellow. I'd intended to get up for another 8am yoga class, but decided sleep would be more beneficial. We slept in, grabbed some breakfast in the Windjammer just before 9, and then went our separate ways for a bit. Chris went to the gym (I admire his motivation!) and I went to a napkin-folding demonstration in the On Air Lounge (I throw lots of dinner parties, so figured it might be something I would actually use). Then I walked a few laps around the track and went to the Solarium to read when it got too windy, while Chris participated in the "longest drive competition" at the golf simulator. He came in 4th. At some point I also grabbed a coffee with my Gold coupon- and went through the book, pulling out what we would actually use.

We decided to eat a light lunch since we had early reservations at Portofino for dinner, so we visited Cafe Promenade and Sorrentos for a combination meal- a veggie sandwich (mine), antipasto salad (to share) and a couple slices of pizza (Chris's). We enjoyed everything, although I'd compare the pizza to a particularly good frozen variety- it's functional, but not worth a special trip. We spent the afternoon using up the casino coupons, reading (me) and playing in the Black Jack tournament (Chris- he just missed being part of the final table).

Our Portofino reservation was for 5:30 since we wanted to enjoy the view without it being dark, and we wanted the evening free to see Saturday Night Fever and do any other last-minute fun things before the trip was over. It really was a fabulous meal. I had the minestrone soup (which had a pesto-broth base rather than the traditional tomato base- I was glad not to get something totally basic in a specialty restaurant) and the mushroom pasta dish, which was fabulous- hand-made pasta which was somehow both tender and al dente. Perfect. Chris had the risotto and the seafood skewer, which he loved as well. Desserts were great, and the tiramisu was the best I've ever had. The raspberry really makes it.

After dinner we visited the cigar bar so that Chris could smoke the one he bought in Cozumel, rather than smuggling it back into the US. We really liked the space. While it is noticeably a smoking establishment, it's really well ventilated so it doesn't feel dingy or stuffy. The decor is interesting and it was one of the quietest places on board.

We moved on to grab seats for Saturday Night Fever, which was another really good show for a cruise ship- if not quite up to the standard set by In the Air. The dancing in general was fantastic on this ship, and the sets were really impressive. Singing and acting were hit or miss, with more hits than misses. I couldn't put my finger on what bugged me about the actor who plays Tony. He's a great dancer, and he has moments where he can really sing- but some of the songs fit him tons better than others did- and when he wasn't dancing, he didn't have the stage presence that's needed to carry a lead role.

We had hoped to have another shot at karaoke after the show, but it seemed to be an all-country crowd again, so we decided to continue into Studio B for Quest. Chris didn't know quite what to expect so was indifferent at first, but it ended up being a lot of fun (and I don't think he was too upset to have missed karaoke). Our team came in second, but hilarity abounded and it was a good wrap-up to the trip.

We finished our night in the Schooner Bar to hear Paul O'Shea one last time. It was packed- so we must not have been the only ones with that idea! I think he finished about 1:30, and we headed to bed. We wanted to be one of the first off the ship the next morning, and our alarms were going to ring much too soon!

[SingingPixie]

Weird, I posted that latest update but the thread stayed buried on page 4. Here's a bump- I'll be back for debarkation day tomorrow.

Still to come:

• Debarkation, Miami (tour of Marlins Park and breakfast in Little Havana), Alligator Alley.
• Fort Myers Beach, Kayak EcoTour
• Wrap-up, final thoughts, general impressions

[SingingPixie]

Day 6: Debarkation

We woke up way too early and did our last-minute packing (we were self-carrying our bags, so didn't have to get them out the night before). We decided to grab breakfast in the MDR since it was so close to our departure lounge (On-Air).

Breakfast was good, and pretty efficient, and we were in and out in about 40 mins. At 7:20, we headed to the On-Air lounge to find it empty- those who were self-disembarking were just released so we joined the line. Debarkation and customs went really smoothly, and we were off the ship and calling Chris's parents (who were staying at a hotel in Ft Lauderdale about 2 miles away) at 7:35.

As far as I can tell, self-assist is the way to go if you can honestly handle your bags. Yes, you do have to carry them down two flights of stairs- but this really shouldn't be an issue if you're a good candidate for the program. The issues seem to arise when people who should really be following the traditional debarkation protocol try to take on more than is reasonable. It would be really unpleasant to try to do this with full-sized bags and strollers, or elderly people, or small kids. But our scenario (fairly young adults in reasonable shape, packed very lightly) it was perfect.

We actually waited about half an hour for Chris's parents to come get us because we were off the ship so quickly. When they made it, they found us easily, and we were on our way to a quick pit-stop in Miami.

One off-topic note: before we arrived, Chris's parents spent a few days in Ft Lauderdale. Throughout the weekend, his mom had nothing but glowing reviews to say about the Jungle Queen, which they'd tried out the night before they picked us up. Apparently it included a boat tour of the Intercoastal, good and plentiful dinner on their island, and a comedy show- all for about $40 per person. It sounds like something to explore for those of you with a pre- or post-cruise stay.

We had planned a half-day visit to Miami before we headed to their house in Ft Myers primarily to visit Marlins Park. Chris and I are huge baseball fans, and are having a baseball theme at our wedding in September. One element of this is that we plan to name our tables (rather than numbering them) after major league ballparks one or both of us has visited. We're pretty close to the number we need, but needed to add a couple to the list before the big day. A ballpark tour was an inexpensive way to check one off in the off season- and Marlins Park is a brand new ballpark with some interesting features (if one is to overlook the garish- in my opinion- artwork in center field!). Chris's dad is also a huge baseball guy- a former pitcher who had a good chance of being drafted before life got in the way, who went on to coach a team that came in second in the Little League World Series. He still coaches and plays softball- so we knew he'd enjoy the tour.

We hit some traffic on the way to Miami, but still got there around 9:20. While Chris and I had eaten, his parents hadn't- and I was ready for my second cup of coffee in the form of a cafe Cubano- so we went in search of breakfast in Little Havana (where the ballpark is located). We found a nice cafe where the waitress was gracious with us (given the fact that none of us spoke Spanish and we all looked like the epitome of tourists). The coffee and friend plantains were delicious, and the omelets and bread looked great too. The best part was that the bill (for 2 people eating breakfast, and 2 just having coffee and splitting an order of plantains) was under $15.

The tour was nice, if a little bit superficial compared to others we've done. We actually enjoyed some of the public areas (the owner is a big art collector, so there was a good bit of public art throughout the park) more than the behind-the-scenes stuff. Here's a few pictures:











At that point, we hit the road and drove across Alligator Alley toward the Gulf coast. I was impressed with the number of wildlife sightings we had from the car, even driving at 70mph.

We stopped for lunch at a place called Tin City in Naples. It's VERY touristy, but I did make a few friend:



The rest of the day was low-key, catching up and going to bed early. I'm seriously glad we had a few days to rest up before going back to work after our busy vacation!

[SingingPixie]

Days 7-9: Ft Myers

Most of our time in Ft Myers was spent catching up with family, relaxing, and visiting the pool- so I won't bore you with details. One noteworthy thing we did do, though, was a kayak excursion in Ft Myers Beach.

The trip left from the Bunche Beach Nature Reserve at 10am, and it was a small group of us- two double kayaks (me and Chris, his parents), one woman in a single kayak, and two guides. We started out in the mangroves, quickly pulled out into the bay, kayaked over the mud flats in the bay, and then went back into the mangroves again for the second half of the tour. In all, it lasted about 3 hours of easy paddling. The mangroves were a bit more challenging just because of the narrow sections, but it was really cool to see the trees and their amazing root systems up close- as well as the crabs that live on them!

While in the bay we saw tons of birds- pelicans, skimmers, egrets, cormorants, gulls, and osprey. We also saw some flying fish (mullets), a dolphin and two manatees.

Here's some photos from their facebook site. I didn't bring my camera due to the possibility of it getting wet:













This was a really worthwhile excursion, and was a belated Christmas present for Chris's mom. Definitely a fun way to spend the morning. Afterward, we spent the afternoon on the beach. People aren't kidding when they describe the powder-soft snow on Gulf beaches!

[lorimay]

Thanks for the pictures of your kayak trip. I live in Fort Myers which most people think of as being a big retirement community but in fact we have many great waterways for kayaking and canoeing and we have world-class fishing of all kinds. Also we have two spring training baseball teams, the Twins and the Red Sox, with great stadiums and we are actually getting a few new and exciting restaurants. And of course fantastic beaches -

[SingingPixie]

Originally Posted by lorimay

Thanks for the pictures of your kayak trip. I live in Fort Myers which most people think of as being a big retirement community but in fact we have many great waterways for kayaking and canoeing and we have world-class fishing of all kinds. Also we have two spring training baseball teams, the Twins and the Red Sox, with great stadiums and we are actually getting a few new and exciting restaurants. And of course fantastic beaches -

Yeah, Chris's dad actually ushers for the Red Sox during spring training. I'm sad that we were there too early this year!

They live in North Fort Myers, and they are definitely some of the youngest in their neighborhood- but the beach was a good mix of ages. There were plenty of things to do when I was researching options- and the weather certainly helped make everything outside sound very appealing!