Glory - 4/25/15 - If you write a review and nobody reads it...

[cmcsharon]

Belize…continues…

 

As we were on the bus to Xunantunich, one set of minions decided to do the snorkeling adventure…I believe it was the Starfish Island excursion. They were escorted from the theater on to an even smaller enclosed tender…that was bordering on claustrophobic. They were so tightly packed in on this tender that the minions began wondering if these particular tender operators knew it was an excursion and not a human smuggling operation. Every small wake they’d hit on the water would send them careening into a stranger and it wasn’t long before they knew more about their fellow snorkelers than they had ever intended. But…they had high hopes that the snorkeling would make it worth the inadvertent extreme closeness.

 

Eventually they were deposited at their island destination, unlike some other snorkeling excursions such as in Grand Cayman, you do not get in the water from the boat on this one. They would need to swim, as a group, to their snorkel destination. So, the large crowd of people don their masks and fins…and start to head out to the reef. Now the fun really begins! You know how fish swim in schools in those perfect groupings with precision coordination? Yeah, snorkelers aren’t like that! This group wasn’t even separated by skill level so you have beginners in with the advanced. People that didn’t know how to snorkel would be dragging their fins on the bottom creating a murky cloud for the people behind them…and twice one of the minions would have her face mask kicked off by someone in front of her!

 

But, they persevered! They were heading to one of the coral reefs in Belize known to be one of the best and they were excited to see it. They were advanced snorkelers (certified divers) and even for them it was difficult swimming against the current…as it was a bit of a distance out to the reef.

 

At last they finally made it! The sky was still dark gray and overcast so that didn’t help matters but they were still optimistic of seeing some amazing things! They snorkeled all around the reef and ended up seeing a total of THREE fish!

 

They said they spotted more fish at the aquarium at the Iguana Farm the day before!

 

After the snorkeling the group was led back to the island for their beach day portion of the excursion, and the minions enjoyed their time there. But, they’ll probably not book another snorkel adventure if visiting Belize again.

 

The kids and I have just exited the van and are about to embark on the climb! No, this would not be the climb of the ruins…this would be the climb up the hill to get to the entrance to the ruins. (A van was provided for those with mobility issues.) It was rather steep!

 

But, once we got in…we were greeted with an amazing sight! There are approximately 7 different ruins on the site that have been partially excavated. With the largest, and most impressive, called El Castillo…dating back to around 600 AD.

 

Here’s a view of the site from the top of one of the smaller ruins, looking towards El Castillo.

 

 

Our guides take us through the area and provide a wealth of information about the Mayan culture and the ruins. The tour was very well run and organized so that each bus load of tourists had their own time to move through the structures without encroaching on each other.

 

And a picture of the kids in front of El Castillo.

 

 

El Castillo is over 130’ tall and it’s hard to grasp the enormity of it. The picture below shows an adult standing in front of it and her head reaches just barely over the first 3 steps.

 

 

Our guides finish their stories and we’re set loose to conquer El Castillo. It’s time to start the climb. Are we sure we want to do this? There’s no guard rails or anything!! Right about now is not the time to remember that my passport and medical insurance information is in the safe on the ship. Have I mentioned how extremely uncoordinated I am?!

 

Here’s what El Castillo looks like from the bottom of the steps looking up…

 

 

Next up…Belize…continues…

[Fydlstyx]

"There is a security guard in charge that we have to show our blue papery bracelets to as these identify us as either off that giant blue bus parked in front of him or escapees from a local hospital. Either scenario…he didn’t care."

 

Oh. My. God.

 

Listen, you are gonna get me fired. People wonder what I am laughing at.

[Fydlstyx]

My husband is looking for you.

 

Your sloth photos compelled me to put a 24 hour hold on a cruise for myself on the Glory. Soon.

[cmcsharon]

My husband is looking for you.

 

Your sloth photos compelled me to put a 24 hour hold on a cruise for myself on the Glory. Soon.

 

He'll get over it! :D And, you're going to LOVE getting to hug a sloth!

[cmcsharon]

Belize…continues…

 

Have I mentioned how hot it is in Belize this day? It was cool on the long tender ride over, but now that we are in full sun and climbing up the front of this giant heated monument…it’s really hot! I had heard that mosquitos and other bugs could be a problem here so I brought along bug protection…but, on the bus ride over our guides said not to bother…as it’s too hot for the bugs!

 

Below my daughter stops for a picture after the first section of steps…and these steps are huge…each one is like 3 regular steps…and…she’s already not liking being up this high.

 

 

Finally we reach the end of the steps and pass through the 13 doorways…which the Mayans believed were significant somehow. I don’t quite remember what they signified…but they crossed them to meet up with something…and it was something that made me a little leary. I believe they signified they crossed them to get to the afterlife…or maybe you met up with used car salesman…I’m feeling leary either way.

 

We’re halfway up and we survived passing through the 13 doorways…

 

 

No sign of any used car salesman up here but one of the guides could talk in circles so I’m thinking he’d be a good candidate if he decides to seek other employment.

 

It’s as you make your way around El Castillo that you’re treated to an amazing sight that you don’t know is there from the front. The Friezes!

 

They’re an incredible sight to see!

 

 

And, a little closer look at them.

 

 

But…I saved the best view for last! From the very top of El Castillo.

 

 

In case you haven’t noticed…we still have that fog hanging around so instead of getting to see all the way to Guatemala…our view is slightly less spectacular. But…incredible none the same.

 

Oh…and up here at the top…here’s where the flying bugs are! Lots of them.

 

Eventually our time at the site comes to an end and we make our way back down to the vans, across the river on the hand crank ferry and back on the bus.

 

I’m really glad we went on this excursion. It’s a one of a kind type of adventure…to be able to see and touch and learn about a culture so vastly different from our modern day lives, it’s difficult to describe the feelings you have being in that place. I highly recommend taking a trip there if you haven’t been.

 

Once back on board the buses we’re headed to the town of San Ignacio for a Belizean lunch of stewed chicken, coleslaw and plantains. My son got a Beliken beer for $1. This is where he discovered he liked the Salva Vida from Roatan a little better.

 

We also had some time for a little shopping from vendors outside of the dining space. But…these vendors were a little aggressive and one kept trying to hand me his art pieces which I wasn’t going to touch after he told me the pretty pictures were actually made out of butterfly wings. I politely declined and walked on and tried not to think of how many wingless butterflies are walking around now so that each of those large pictures could be made.

 

Apparently I was not the only one disillusioned by our shopping time as a group was already forming at the bus to return…and, the driver was not around so several men proceeded to open the closed bus door…the old fashioned way…with brute force. The bus driver and our guide finally noticed that most of us were already on the bus so they hurried along and we were soon on our way.

 

We still had another hour and a half of driving to get back to the port but it seemed to go quickly. We learned on the way to Xunantunich that in the late 1980’s Belize received its independence from Britain. At that time, they decided to switch from the British custom of driving on the left to the custom of driving on the right. This bus ride back to the port made it clear that this change is still in its concept form! We learned very quickly that in Belize, you drive on whatever side of the road gets you where you want to go the quickest. And, other cars will get out of your way…especially when you’re a bus!

 

In no time we are deposited back at the port terminal. We go through the gates and, as promised, are back in time for the last tenders back to the ship. It’s been a very long day…and…we now have a very long tender line to go through. My daughter and I get in line and I send my son to the shops to find his Marie Sharps hot sauce that was his sole reason for coming to Belize. He comes back after just a few minutes with bottles for himself and his friends…and the line finally starts moving.

 

Remember the first tender we were on…it was half the size of the tenders from Grand Cayman…well, the tender we’re about to get on now is half the size of the one from this morning! This one definitely doubles as a human smuggling operation. It’s completely enclosed with just a few very small windows…and, we are packed in this thing. It wasn’t so bad when we were moving because a little bit of air would come in…but, when we got to the ship…the slightly larger tender was already in front of us and was having difficulty getting passengers off as the wind and waves had kicked up quite a bit…so…that left us to idle and drift along in the waves.

 

I don’t know if it was the diesel fumes wafting in, the extreme heat, or the constant bobbing…but, it wasn’t long before I could actually see a few people turning green! Fortunately, one of the tender operators starts to notice it too and he quickly radios the driver who takes off suddenly and spins us around a couple of times to get some fresh air circulating in. We’d have to do that two more times before it’s finally our turn to pull up to the ship.

 

Within minutes of getting back to our cabin it was time for the ship to depart from Belize and we started getting ready for dinner.

 

Here’s where that whole clueless about directions thing really comes into play. For some reason, I get separated from the kids before dinner…I think they were ready before me and they wanted to get smoothies before going to dinner…so, I was going to meet them there. We’ve been on this ship for days now…eaten every night in the dining room…this should be easy, right? Wrong!

 

Somehow I end up at the back door of the restaurant not the front…and...I don’t even realize it. The doors open, in I go, and some strangers are sitting at what I think is our table! Strangers…at OUR TABLE! We’ve always had the first two tables as you walk in. So now I’m getting annoyed. How dare they sit at our table! And, what should I do now…do I approach them and ask what they think they’re doing sitting there? And, where are the minions? Shouldn’t someone else be here…you know…someone that likes confronting strange people and demanding they move!

 

As I’m standing there pondering what to do…Eric, one of our wait staff, steps out of a side door and says…hey, there you are! He gestures to the other side of the room and says…they’re waiting for you…did you have a good day in Belize?

 

OMG. All I could do was nod. What’s that saying…don’t say anything and possibly look like an idiot…or, open your mouth and remove all doubt. Yeah…I’m just going to keep nodding.

 

Next up…Belize…continues…just a couple more pictures

[Beach_gal]

I just want to say thank you for taking the time to write this. This has got to be the best review I've ever read.

 

You are such a talented writer and I look forward to reading more!

[cmcsharon]

Part 8...Belize…continues

 

Thank you again for all the kind comments. I really do appreciate them. Now back to Belize…

 

I finally make it over to the table for dinner…and of course, I don’t tell a soul that I’ve been standing at the other end of the dining room like an idiot (they’re finding that out now since they’re reading along). As we’re eating, the conversations drift to how everyone spent their day in Belize. I share our pictures from Xunantunich…the snorkeling adventure is shared…and, a third group says that they went to the port to do a little shopping and then they returned to the ship.

 

I’m not a good judge of the actual port and it’s shopping opportunities because we were rushed right through it in the morning to get to the bus…and then when we got back we were rushed to get in the line for the last tenders…so, I saw very little of it. I did get to see the 3 very stern looking security guards, dressed in military style fatigues, holding their weapons at the ready…which was very unsettling since those weapons were directed at all of us in the tender line. I kept looking over my shoulder at the open water behind me thinking…is there a Kracken coming up out of the ocean behind me? What am I missing? I wasn’t sure if they were mad that we’re leaving or mad that we were there…either way, I didn’t get a warm and fuzzy feeling from the port of Belize. But…my son was carrying 3 bottles of Marie Sharp’s hot sauce so we can consider the day a success.

 

I really do highly recommend the excursion out to the Xunantunich ruins. It was an unbelievable experience. I had heard that some private vendors offer it as well, and I’m all for using private vendors most of the time, but at this destination, because of the time it takes to get out there and back…I wouldn’t have considered going if I wasn’t on a Carnival excursion. If I’m going to be left behind at a Caribbean port…please let it be on an island and not a third world country.

 

Imagine my surprise when we’re finishing our dessert and the conversation suddenly turns to the bird phenomenon. Remember the glow in the dark bird story from the bus ride this morning? Some of the minions now claim to have seen them too. They said it was around 1:00 or 2:00am when the minions, staying up on deck 10, noticed them out the window. Hundreds of birds flying around the ship. They called one of the minions down on deck 2 to see if they could see them there too.

 

Just imagine getting that call…you’re sound asleep in bed…the phone rings…and…it’s a minion asking if you can see hundreds of glowing birds.....…outside your window…….…in the middle of the ocean.

 

I know how I would respond…do you also see a large pink rabbit sitting in your room?

 

I’m guessing that’s why they didn’t call me.

 

The minions on deck 2 confirm to us that they also saw the birds. Hundreds of them. Flying outside their window. The minions up on deck 10 even went out on their balcony to watch the birds until it started to turn eerily in to the movie ‘The Birds’ as the birds got closer and closer to them and then one of the minions was struck by a bird…so they ran back inside and watched from the safety of their cabin. The large pink rabbit watched too.

 

After dinner we did our usual things…the kids would split up from us and I would join the minions in other activities around the ship…anything from going to shows, listening to the music, playing in the casino, shopping in the stores, walking out on the decks, watching the movies on the lido deck, playing cards against humanity…or just people watching. I am happy doing anything…or…nothing. I’m easily entertained!

 

But, I started to feel bad when I noticed a pattern with the kids. We’ve been on this ship for many days now and in the evenings I’d come back to the cabin to find them both watching tv. Usually with plates of pizza or popcorn or smoothies…but always in the cabin watching tv. So, as I was passing through this evening I made the comment that I was sorry if they haven’t been able to find things to do on the ship that they like, since they’re spending so much time in the cabin. It was my son that answered…he said he and his sister had just been talking about that very thing…and that this…is the BEST VACATION EVER!

 

You see…my son lives in an apartment with 2 of his friends…his sister was away at college living with 3 students…neither of them have a tv where they live. They were having the best time just hanging out and watching tv together! Awwwww! I was a happy mom. :) In reality…they probably planned this little tug on my heart strings so that I’d keep taking them along on cruises with me...and...it’s working!

 

Later that night, around 2:00am, I suddenly wake from a deep sleep. I’m not sure I’m awake though because it appears I’m in the middle of a dance party. The room is lit up with a rapid strobe light firing off over and over. I’m starting to wake a little more and see my son sitting on his bed and he says…it’s lightning.

 

I quickly jump out of bed and head for the balcony to go out and watch…we have wimpy lightning in California…this was crazy…I wanted to see it. I step out on the balcony and let my eyes adjust to the constant flashes and then I see it…surrounding the ship, in the middle of a lightning storm…are hundreds of birds! Dark small birds, the size of a robin…and they have a patch of white feathers on their chest that was reflecting the lights from the ship. It was amazing! I stepped back in to the cabin and told my son and he came out and watched too. We’ve been fortunate to get to see hundreds of spinner dolphins on a cruise to Mexico and a pod of whales on a cruise in Alaska…but…hundreds of birds…in the middle of the ocean…this was an unexpected sight. It was awesome!

 

I thought I had more pictures for Belize but it turns out they’re Cozumel…so…

 

Next up…Part 9…our last port...Cozumel (Harbor fails, Captain Jack Sparrow on crack…and…turning your lips purple with Jalapeno Margaritas)

[Club Disney Chandler]

Thanks for your latest installment Sharon. Your reviews are like watching a guilty pleasure on TV, they just suck you in and leave you longing for more.

[js4rq]

Loving your review. Looking forward to more!!!:D

[cmcsharon]

Part 9…Cozumel (Harbor fails, Captain Jack Sparrow on crack…and…turning your lips purple with Jalapeno Margaritas)

 

We were just at this port six months ago on the Magic and at that time we went to Chankanaab, where we did the unique and INCREDIBLE adventure of swimming with the manatees. Here’s what that adventure looked like (and I highly recommend it!).

 

 

For that trip the Cozumel day was our hottest day in port and we had beautiful blue skies and bright sunshine all day. This time, we’re greeted with dark gray cloudy skies and it’s very windy.

 

I hadn’t planned anything for this port since it was our 4th port stop in a row and I knew we’d be ready to relax a bit. Cozumel is one of the easiest ports to go out on your own so I knew we could wing it if we decided to head out somewhere. Before getting here I’d considered going back to Chankanaab and seeing more of the National Park…or…heading out for a beach day. But, now that we’re here, in this gloomy weather, it looks like we’ll just have a low key day of exploring around the area outside the port.

 

One group of minions had reserved the Mini Speedboats and Snorkel Adventure which looked like a lot of fun so I was looking forward to hearing about it later.

 

The kids were thrilled to finally have a morning to sleep in a little. Once I was ready I headed out on the balcony to read and wait for them to get up. It wasn't long before they were up and getting ready.

 

At the pier to the left of our ship I was able to see one of those behemoth Royal Caribbean ships…the Oasis of the Seas. Here it is…

 

 

I have to admit, I’m fascinated by the design of this ship. I’ve never been on a Royal Caribbean cruise but if I ever have the opportunity, I hope it’s on one of these crazy giant ships. Here’s a closer look at the back…where you can see the balcony cabins that are on the inside of the ship.

 

 

My kids thought those balconies inside the ship were the weirdest things…even after I explained that you look down on a big promenade type area…I think…which would be nicer than having an inside cabin. But, what I couldn’t help but wonder about was if they just came through the Roatan and Belize areas like us…because if they did…hundreds of glowing birds are now flapping around inside that thing!

 

As I’m out on the balcony I hear our cruise director announce that they’ve reopened the gangway and we can start going ashore again. I must of missed them saying they had closed it…but…yay, it’s open again…after a quick trip up to the Lido for some breakfast it’ll be time for us to head off the ship.

 

I love getting breakfast at the Lido buffet. Did my foodie street cred just take a hit? That’s okay…I have none. But…I’m sure the Carnival food haters think I’m insane. It’s not that I’m sampling every item at the breakfast buffet…I have one favorite item. I love the French toast! It’s something I never have at home…so, it’s a complete indulgence on the ship. If I can have two pieces of French toast, some fruit and maybe a piece of sausage or bacon…I’m a happy cruiser!

 

And…guess what’s missing from the breakfast buffet this morning….Noooooooooo! Lots of pancakes…but who wants those?! (Okay, my daughter wanted them…but…still.) Luckily, one of the servers was a mind reader. He saw me edging closer to the regular toast while eyeing the omelet stations egg batter…and just knew trouble was brewing. Before I even had a chance to contemplate where I was going to find cinnamon…he reaches down and pulls out a fresh pan of French toast…and…all is right with the world again.

 

Later in the day I’d try to make a break for it with this thing…

 

 

Yes indeed…that is an entire rack of French fries. I seem to have a French theme going.

 

We finish up our breakfast and make our way down to the gangway and off the ship. But, there’s a little commotion right at the end of the gangway…are those drug sniffing dogs? We’re asked to get in line and lower all bags and backpacks down to the dogs. So, I’m thinking this is a little backwards. Shouldn’t we be doing this on the way back in…are people really smuggling drugs off the ship? When suddenly the dog starts going nuts with the person right in front of me. Wow…I didn’t expect this. She didn’t look like a drug smuggler to me.

 

The woman reluctantly reaches down into her oversized bag and pulls out…a sandwich! And my first thought was…is she going to bribe the dog with it? But that dog was still fidgeting so they asked her to go back through her bag and out comes another sandwich, a banana and something wrapped in a napkin. As soon as that last item was out of her bag the dog immediately sat down…and his handler reached in his pocket and gave the dog a treat.

 

I was finally catching on to what was happening when the woman started loudly proclaiming…I had no idea we can’t take food off the ship. But, no one was buying it…especially the two people with her that were laughing hysterically because she got caught.

 

Well played…Cozumel foodie dog…well played.

 

We didn’t have any food with us (no drugs either) so we were able to walk right on by.

 

We planned to do some shopping outside of the port area so that’s where we headed. The kids had this picture in their heads of what shopping in Mexico would be like and they were really looking forward to this. You see, we went on a cruise on the Carnival Spirit to the Mexican Riviera about 9 years ago…it was our very first minion cruise, celebrating my parent’s 50th anniversary. But, instead of enjoying the beautiful scenic locations of Acapulco and Zihuatenajo, a little something called Hurricane Hugo got in our way…and…we were diverted to the beautiful shopping mecca of Ensenada. Home of the picturesque La Bufadora Flea Market…which could easily be called the ugly step-sister of flea markets.

 

That Flea Market consisted of booth after booth of aggressive vendors selling sombreros, serapes, and piñatas…along with fake designer bags, sunglasses and Rolexes. And…my kids loved it! (I think they were 10 and 12 then…a giant stinky flea market is cool at that age.) So, they were expecting the shopping outside of the port in Cozumel to be just like that. Needless to say…it wasn’t.

 

We did stop at a couple of booths randomly set up on the side of the road and my daughter purchased some Mexican pottery pieces…but, the lack of fake designer handbags readily available to her was quite the disappointment. My son was a little more prepared for the shopping disappointment…having learned on our trip to Cozumel six months ago that his wish to purchase an alligator (yes, a real one) was not possible on the island either. Both kids had now had their Mexico shopping dreams dashed. And, as it was now starting to rain, I was happy to be done with this shopping adventure and to be heading back towards the port.

 

On our way back to the port I had to take the obligatory picture of the kids with the ship in the background.

 

 

And, one at the fountain in front of the port with the ship’s tail in the background.

 

 

It was while we were taking pictures at the fountain that some of the minions found us. These were the one’s going on the mini speed boat and snorkel adventure. I asked them if they were already done or were just heading out to it and they informed us that the harbor has been closed due to the weather conditions. All the boating, snorkeling, and diving excursions had been cancelled.

 

After we talked for a few minutes, the minions continued on their way to walk around outside of the port and the kids and I headed back in to do some shopping in the port area.

 

I'm at my picture limit again...so...

 

Next up…Part 9…Cozumel…continues (Harbor fails, Captain Jack Sparrow on crack…and…turning your lips purple with Jalapeno Margaritas)

[js4rq]

More please! ;)

[minnieiowa]

Thank you for the great review! Just booked this exact cruise on the Glory yesterday. Can't wait to read more

[carni05]

Thank you so much for this terrific review! I booked the same itinerary on the Glory for Jan 2016 a couple months ago. Believe it or not, my reason for booking was to hold monkeys in Roatan!Both my son and I adore them! Carnival offers an excursion Pirates, Monkeys and Birds of the Carribean that I was planning on booking..that is until I read ur post about Daniel Johnson's Monkey and Sloth Sanctuary. I sent him a message on fb..i just hope I get a response as his tour sounds much better than the one I was going to book that takes u to Gumbalimba Park to see the monkeys. Do u remember how much pp the tour was and how long it lasted?

Looking forward to reading the rest of your review!

[Working 2 cruise again]

I love your review, and I so wish I had known about Daniel's Sloths a couple of weeks ago. While we were in Roatan the hubby was diving and the kiddos and I went to the beach. My son would have LOVED the iguana farm.

[Cr8ingCnes]

Loving your review, I just booked daniel for our cruise in sept, im so excited!!!!

[cmcsharon]

Thank you so much for this terrific review! I booked the same itinerary on the Glory for Jan 2016 a couple months ago. Believe it or not, my reason for booking was to hold monkeys in Roatan!Both my son and I adore them! Carnival offers an excursion Pirates, Monkeys and Birds of the Carribean that I was planning on booking..that is until I read ur post about Daniel Johnson's Monkey and Sloth Sanctuary. I sent him a message on fb..i just hope I get a response as his tour sounds much better than the one I was going to book that takes u to Gumbalimba Park to see the monkeys. Do u remember how much pp the tour was and how long it lasted?

Looking forward to reading the rest of your review!

 

You will have a great time with Daniel. He's very accommodating and will adjust the tour to whatever you want to do! There were 10 of us in our group and it was $30 per person. I think we spent about 4.5 hours on our tour with Daniel.

[cmcsharon]

Loving your review, I just booked daniel for our cruise in sept, im so excited!!!!

 

You're going to have such a great time! Hug a sloth for me! :)

[cmcsharon]

My apologies for the delay in the continuation of Cozumel. Photobucket is not cooperating and my photos are unable to load. I will try again tomorrow.

 

Please pardon the technical difficulties...

 

On a side note...the minions and I are considering booking one of those Carnival Journey cruises...just imagine what my review of a 12 day cruise is going to look like! :eek:

 

Thank you again for coming along on this adventure with me. I hope to be back with more very soon.

[RobertL88]

Thank you so much for writing this review, I really like your writing style! We have booked a tour with Daniel for our Glory cruise in October. I can't wait to hold those sloths

[cmcsharon]

Part 9…Cozumel…continues (Harbor fails, Captain Jack Sparrow on crack…and…turning your lips purple with Jalapeno Margaritas)

 

The one thing you can generally count on in Cozumel…is pier runners! The port in Cozumel is colorful and fun and you can’t go more than a few feet without hearing the constant whir of frozen margarita machines. Loud music…and…not the best weather…had pretty much sucked every passenger on all the ships in to the bars here. This was bound to be entertaining later in the day!

 

After doing a little shopping in the port…I was in desperate need for a margarita. You see, I was just dragged through EVERY SINGLE STORE…and…EVERY SINGLE KIOSK…TWICE…so that my daughter could find the perfect Mexican pottery statue souvenir…of a CAT.

 

There were just so many to choose from. Some of the cats were sitting, some were standing, some were pink with red markings, some were blue with yellow markings….oh the madness!!!

 

Can you tell I’m not a shopper? I’m a get in, find it and get out kind of person. But…we did spot one of the minions that took shopping to an art form. They were in the very first store we went to…a large store…where we scoured every inch of it in search of the perfect cat, and found several. But…instead of a buying one of the cats we found…we then went on our way to search…every…other…store…for the possibility of an even more perfect Mexican pottery cat…(oh yeah…twice!)…only to come back to that first store…as they indeed had the best Mexican pottery cat selection.

 

But, in addition to finding the perfect cat…when we returned to that first store we also found that same minion. She was still shopping in that same store, for the entire time that we had gone to every other store twice and came back! That’s some shopping skill. And, kudo’s to the minions that were waiting for her…’cause I would’ve climbed up on top of the table of colorful woven serapes and taken a nap.

 

Now it’s time to meet up with some minions over at Pancho’s for margarita’s and chips & guacamole. From our table at Pancho’s, we had a great view of the ships and we were close to the outdoor entertainers. We really enjoyed our time here.

 

 

One of the minions was braver than the rest of us and ordered the jalapeno margarita, seen here.

 

 

She said it was really good…and, offered to share it with us. But as the rest of us looked on, it wasn't long before her eyes were brimming with tears and her lips were turning a disturbing shade of purple, so we politely declined.

 

My son had already moved on at this point and was very disappointed to hear he missed out on the jalapeno margaritas (having ordered himself the non-tear inducing banana margaritas when he was there). He now has a goal if we’re ever back in Cozumel…he’ll be heading to Pancho’s first thing.

 

Another thing Cozumel has, which is especially entertaining after margaritas…is an assortment of goofy photo ops. The minions are known for partaking in many of these opportunities…as seen here.

 

Minions and the alligator.

 

 

Minions and the high table and chairs.

 

 

And, one of our favorites is the shark that you can find outside the port terminal in front of the Harley Davidson store…as seen here.

 

 

My plan was to get pictures of the kids in and around the shark…to use for photoshopping some gore in later…arms and limbs hanging out…(you know, the perfect Christmas card photo)! But, our trip to the shark was interrupted by pirates!

 

Captain Jack Sparrow and several of the Black Pearl crew had overtaken the shark and were conducting nefarious pirate transactions in the shark. Literally…inside the shark! These were the kind of transactions that the other ‘sniffing dogs’ would’ve been concerned about for getting back on the ship…so, we cleared out of the area quickly…and, I gave up on my Christmas card plan.

 

But, here’s one of the minions with Captain Jack…please note…this photo was her only transaction with the pirate…no sniffing by dogs was needed on her return to the ship.

 

 

Our Cozumel day was very relaxed and we all had a great time. If the weather had been nicer I probably would’ve ventured out farther from the port area and perhaps saw more of Cozumel…but with the off and on rain we were having…shopping, eating and drinking made for a fun time.

 

And, the pier runners didn’t disappoint. From our balcony we could see the runners to our ship and the ones on the pier next to us! The pier next to us had the best runners…I’m not sure if they were heading to that giant RCL ship or the Carnival ship next to it…but, one of them was a group of 4 women staggering back. They looked like they’d just come from a crazy parade…tutus, tiaras, and I think one of them had a fairy godmother wand! At one point they tried to speed up, perhaps realizing not just their ship, but all the ships, were watching them…and one lost her balance and toppled into another, nearly sending her off the edge of the pier. Lots of cheers went up when she caught herself.

 

Another set of pier runners was putting on quite the show…they were milking it for all they could. Just to drag it out longer, one of the guys got down on his knees and started crawling back to the ship. His antics were met with a lot of boos.

 

I was glad it was not our ship they were holding up…because ours was starting to move!

 

Bye Cozumel!

 

Next up…Part 10…Our Last Sea Day…(Will I Eat Green Eggs and Ham, Carrot Cake Coma…and, Luggage-pa-looza)

[js4rq]

Cozumel sounds like a fun place... love the photos! Hope to go one day.

[pirate4me2]

My apologies for the delay in the continuation of Cozumel. Photobucket is not cooperating and my photos are unable to load. I will try again tomorrow.

 

Please pardon the technical difficulties...

 

On a side note...the minions and I are considering booking one of those Carnival Journey cruises...just imagine what my review of a 12 day cruise is going to look like! :eek:

 

Thank you again for coming along on this adventure with me. I hope to be back with more very soon.

 

Oh, you should do the 14 day Pride one! You guys sound hilarious, I would love to be on a cruise with y'all!

[1959kar]

My apologies for the delay in the continuation of Cozumel. Photobucket is not cooperating and my photos are unable to load. I will try again tomorrow.

 

Please pardon the technical difficulties...

 

On a side note...the minions and I are considering booking one of those Carnival Journey cruises...just imagine what my review of a 12 day cruise is going to look like! :eek:

 

Thank you again for coming along on this adventure with me. I hope to be back with more very soon.

 

Which 12 day Journey cruise? please say it will be on the Liberty next March, that is our next cruise

[sabrinaswack]

Patiently waiting. ........😆

[cmcsharon]

Which 12 day Journey cruise? please say it will be on the Liberty next March, that is our next cruise

 

Nope, sorry! We're looking at Panama!