Die-hard Disney fan cruises the Breeze on 11/8/14 and LOVES it or HATES it???

[loveysbydesign]

So I get everyone together and we head down for some lunch, I'm thinking we need to be done by 12:30, go grab our stuff from the cabin and head off the ship as our tour group is meeting at 1:00. We were told to look for the Cheryl's Taxi 1:00 sign. So we eat a yummy lunch, grab our stuff and go...now we're on deck 2 so we only need to go down one flight to get off the ship, just like we did in the other ports.

We get down there and it is mobbed...uh-oh...I think to myself. I hope we can find our group by 1:00. It takes us almost 15 minutes just to get off the ship. I have no idea what the hold up is. Then when we get off the ship there is a long, sssslllloooowwww line of people walking towards the end of the pier where we are docked, heading towards the other one that takes us to the mainland. I am not sure what exactly is going on but I'm getting worried as it's 12:45 and we have quite aways to walk yet. So I leave the line and walk over to the left...it's all open space with plenty of room to walk. I yell to the fam, get over here!!! and we hustle along next to the line. I still do not know why everyone was forming a single file line when there was plenty of room to walk on the pier, crowd mentality I guess. So we get to the end, hang a right and head towards the end where the tourist center is. It is a madhouse!!! They are renovating the area so everyone gets bottlenecked in the one spot.

I'm just about to freak out when I finally see the sign!!

We were the last people they were waiting for and it is 12:57! The one lady in the group told me they were just about to leave w/o us, I said well we had 3 more minutes:) I told the hubby and kids, see this is why I was rushing you through lunch! After meeting up with everyone we head out of the crowd and check out a few things on the walk to the new a/c van.

 

 

Edited February 1, 2015 by loveysbydesign

[loveysbydesign]

That's my biggest fear of going on another line....seeing a Disney ship in port with me and I would long to be on it. I am the Disney Junkie and I just love everything about them and their cruises.

I still would love to try the Breeze though and it looks like a lovely ship. I think my daughter would enjoy all the activities as well.

It honestly did not bother as much as I thought it might. We had such a fabulous cruise on the Breeze! It bothered my 7 y.o. as when we had cruised on the Dream he wanted to do the Aquaduck and was apparently 1/4 inch too short per their measurement. The cm at the bottom let him go through and when we got to the top they would not let him ride with hubby or me :(

[loveysbydesign]

What a lovely review,photos,,family......my sister and bil love the breeze for the burgers!......your buck island story was much like mine.....we never had a honeymoon so we went to st Thomas for a week for our 24th.....our first adult trip...the resort took us out to buck island for our first snorkel and I burst into tears it was so overwhelmingly awesome....also took a tour of St john which was wonderful....on the way home I vowed to find a way to do this again .....I also had a small family daycare and 2 kids in college....that was 1994 and we have barely missed a year cruising or landbased....our favorite is st john but we do cruise now and then with family...it was a real pleasure to read every word and enjoy every picture.....happy future cruising!

 

I stumbled upon this review and am so glad that I did! What a well written, beautifully photographed account of an awesome cruise! Your great attitude is refreshing and your family is beautiful! Thanks so much for taking the time to put this together! I look forward to the rest!:)

 

So glad you are both enjoying it!!!

[loveysbydesign]

We walk a block or so to the van and I notice how much cleaner and nicer the area looks since when we last visited back in 2011. You could also see a greater police presence. I have to admit I was impressed!

We get to the van and there is a big cooler in the back...the driver tells us 2 people have to sit on the cooler! We're like what??? I suggest moving the cooler into the aisle near the side door, then we could fold the seat down off the wall of the van in the last row. Driver says it will be in the way, the men offer to just move it every time we get out of the van...problem solved!

So once we get in the van the driver, Cheryl's husband, asks where we want to go. We were all under the assumption that we were going to the places we had requested back when we booked the tour. Apparently that was never relayed to our driver/guide.

We had been told we would go to a bat cave, a rum place, get a little fresh conch, a little shopping and then the beach for the second half of the tour.

Well that is not what happened. First we drove past a market/fish area and then past Atlantis as we were going to visit garden there which was fine with me as I LOVE to take pics. of flowers. We got to the garden and a wedding was being set up there so we could not stop there. The guide seemed very nice and explained everything we drove past and gave us some facts about Nassau and Atlantis.

 

 

 

 

Edited February 1, 2015 by loveysbydesign

[loveysbydesign]

Since we could not stop at the garden...bummer.. the driver takes us to Fort Montagu, as a few of us had to use the restroom and he wanted to share the rum punch, sodas and water he had brought along. After being in the van for almost an hour I was glad to get out and stretch my legs! Fort Montagu was a lovely park! The bathrooms were clean, there weren't many people there and Ryan was excited to see coconuts laying around. He picked one up and had a fun time throwing against a palm tree til it broke open. The rum punch was very good and strong, only one cup for me! My older kids loved the special Bahamian soda the driver had brought along for them.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited February 1, 2015 by loveysbydesign

[loveysbydesign]

We did not get to go into the fort, but it was neat to see it and compare to the huge fort we had toured in Puerto Rico. It was nice for us to see how they differed. While we were there we could see lots of little white sailboats in the distance, our driver said it is a sailing class and that not many people who live in the Bahamas can swim and that this is one way to get the kids interested in the ocean and learning how to swim. He said kids as young as 8 y.o. can take the lessons.

 

 

 

[loveysbydesign]

So after enjoying some drinks we head over to get some fresh conch salad. we hop in the van and drive maybe 2-3 minutes to get there. We were only supposed to be there for about 15-20 minutes. Plan was to order one and we'd all sample it, then head out to shop and then go to the beach.

Well we ended up being there for over a half an hour and it was not pleasant for some of us. The smell of the fish we really stinky and strong, it was so strong that my 7 y.o. wanted to sit in the van, which would have been fine if it was turned on and the AC was running, but it was not. After 10 minutes I made him get out and we tried to walk a few feet into the parking lot to get away from the smell. There were a few other adults on our tour that could not stand the smell either. Some of them were gagging, but there was really nowhere for us to go. No shade and lots of crazy drivers coming in and out of the parking lot.

Once we finally got the conch salad, almost everyone tried it. My 7 y.o. son and I did not try it as there was onions and peppers in it. My older kids and hubby liked. They gave you a huge portion so there was plenty to share!

Interestingly while we were there, my 15 y.o. son Richie's friend Waldie, from the teen club showed up. The were in a beat up looking van that did not have AC, I felt bad for them! We had bumped into him and his family in San Juan and now again in Nassau. We thought that we pretty funny!

 

By the time we finished there it was well past 2:30 and we still were supposed to stop an an artisan shop before heading to the beach!

 

 

 

 

Edited February 4, 2015 by loveysbydesign

[wrigley80]

I am still enjoying your review. I can't wait until it is our turn on the Breeze in 32 days

[loveysbydesign]

I am still enjoying your review. I can't wait until it is our turn on the Breeze in 32 days

:D OMG...I hope you love it!

Edited February 4, 2015 by loveysbydesign

[wrigley80]

:D OMG...I hope you love it!

 

 

Oh I know we will. I haven't had a bad cruise yet

[jenseib]

That would be hard to eat with a smell like that. Thats a shame

[loveysbydesign]

Nassau day update coming soon!

[loveysbydesign]

So once we finally left the fish market/conch area we headed to shop at an artisan shop. By the time we go there it was 2:45 and we were supposed to go to the beach afterwards. It featured all different kinds of things all made by local artisans. I was happy we were going as I still needed to get a few gifts and the kids each wanted to pick out their last souveneir. So we pulled up to this old house, it didn't look like much. but once we got inside I was shocked at how much was packed into the little room of the house! There was so much to look at, I was on overload!

At 1st glance everything looked quite expensive, then as I looked further I was able to find some really nice things for lower prices. I found some pretty handmade wreath shaped ornaments made from tiny shells for $6, my daughter found a small keychain made from a little piece of conch shell that was handpainted for $4 and my youngest found a little sailboat made from wood and a batiked fabric sail. We had only been there for 7-8 minutes, I kid you not I looked at the time stamps on my picture, when my hubby came in and said everyone else wants to leave and go to the beach. I was like..ok then..so much for shopping!

My oldest had been looking at the prints they had, I told him he needed to hurry up and pick one out. He found a really neat one with a "fish under the ocean" scene. So we show it to the lady when we go up to pay and she says, "oh, you're not going to believe this but that artist's car just broke down outside my shop! Would you like me to get him and see if he'll sign the print for you?". We were like heck yea!!!

So the artist, John Paul, came in and signed it for my son Richie! What an awesome experience. I mean really...what are the chances that of all the prints he had to choose from that he would choose this one and that the artist's car would break down outside the shop when we were in it!!! We weren't even on a Disney excursion and we were getting some pixie dust!!!

 

So we hurried up and paid and rushed out to the van. In hindsight I guess it was good I only had 10 minutes in the shop or I would have spent a lot more $$$!

It was now almost 3:00. Off we went to the beach....but which beach was it we were going to again???

 

 

 

 

Painted on the steps into the gift shop.

 

 

 

My son Richie with artist John Paul.

 

 

Edited February 9, 2015 by loveysbydesign

[loveysbydesign]

My son chose the "Regal Reef" print.

http://www.johnpaulbahamas.com/index.php/jp/gallery

Edited February 9, 2015 by loveysbydesign

[SenatorsFan]

My son chose the "Regal Reef" print.

http://www.johnpaulbahamas.com/index.php/jp/gallery

 

Your son made a good choice! :) How lucky to have met the artist. I really like some of his other works, too. And, I'm still enjoying your review.

Heather

[Weeziblu]

Looking forward to your next installment and the conclusion of your time with Carnival!

[Chelly]

Loveysbydesign: Loving your review and photos. Can't thank you enough for doing this for us at CC. Sorry if I missed this, but did you book your Nassau tour through Carnival or an independent company? Thanks :)

Edited February 9, 2015 by Chelly

[loveysbydesign]

Loveysbydesign: Loving your review and photos. Can't thank you enough for doing this for us at CC. Sorry if I missed this, but did you book your Nassau tour through Carnival or an independent company? Thanks :)

We booked it directly through Cheryl's taxi and tours!

[Chelly]

We booked it directly through Cheryl's taxi and tours!

 

Thank you, I will note that in my Nassau file for next visit.

[In2why]

Excellent review.....can't wait to read the ending.

[dmdiver]

Love the review!

[kristen89]

 

In hindsight we should have skipped the little shops and headed straight down to the park! Once we got there we saw there was an artisan market going on and there were all kinds of really cool and neat things there for sale that are made by SJ artists, the best part was the assortment of things to choose from and how cheap they were!

We looked around at all the neat stuff and bought a few things, they had everything from jewelry, to things made from clay, to leather goods etc. They also had horse and carriage rides and a piraguas stand.

 

Hi,

Loving your review so far, we had been to san juan last year, reading your review I see we missed a lot. I would have loved to spend time with the cats and eat at the chocolate restaurant.

I was wondering whereabouts the artisan market was located, we never came across it while there, when i googled a farmers market comes up but it's only there sat. Any info you can provide would be great.

[loveysbydesign]

Excellent review.....can't wait to read the ending.

 

Love the review!

 

Happy you are enjoying it! I hate to see to come to an end but it must! Another update is coming after I get the kids off to school ;)

[loveysbydesign]

Hi,

Loving your review so far, we had been to san juan last year, reading your review I see we missed a lot. I would have loved to spend time with the cats and eat at the chocolate restaurant.

I was wondering whereabouts the artisan market was located, we never came across it while there, when i googled a farmers market comes up but it's only there sat. Any info you can provide would be great.

 

Glad you are enjoying my review. San Juan was so much more than I thought it would be! I'd love to spend a few days there.

The artisan market was located in the park about 3-4 blocks to the left/west of the ship, but it was not set up in the morning when we got off the ship. We only came across it on our way back.

If you look at this map the small park is where the blue "i' is located next to #13. There is a tiny yellow house in the middle of this small park, it is supposed to have info. but it was locked. HTH!

[loveysbydesign]

So sorry for the delay in updating but there has been is much going on in my household right now!

We just got a foster puppy, Meeko, and the kids have had lots going on!

 

Ok, where were we....oh that's right we had finished up our brief shopping trip and were back on the van on the way to the beach. Note I really had to use the restroom but there was not time as everyone was in the van waiting for me, so I sucked it up figuring I'd use the facilities at the beach. That decision would come back to bite me!

As we drove through Nassua our guide told us about the various buildings we passed and about the celebrities who love to visit and stay in Nassau. Apparently there are a lot of them. Some of the buildings were pretty neat looking. I loved all the tropical colors. We passed this street sign and I had to take a pic. as "Frederick" was my maiden name. So we're driving and driving and driving....

 

 

 

Edited February 13, 2015 by loveysbydesign