Destiny 10/16-10/20...lots of pics!

[peachhead11]

Thanks for your in depth review and pics. You have a beautiful family and so sorry to hear about your mom and grandfather. They are in a better place now.

 

We will be on the Destiny for the eastern caribbean route but love hearing about your destinations too.

[summercruisin']

Sorry about the redundant posts (20 and 21)! I had no idea the first was going to show up after all. Anyway, I'm done for the night. Gotta get ready to teach some Shakespeare tomorrow to a bunch of eager 17 year olds (yeah, right!) ;)

I'll contine tomorrow after work.

G'night everybody!

 

OH, by the way, while in Key West, I picked up one of those real estate magazines. I'll be checking out my dream homes...if anyone wants any info, just let me know!

[vplsh]

Thanks for the great review! So looking forward to hearing more.

 

You make me nostalgic for when my girls were little- well, almost! LOL! They're almost 19 and 22 now! Time flies... enjoy them now!

 

Thanks for looking for those capers. Hope you can get them posted!

[kebhouse]

And' date=' to kebhouse, we are indeed the family that was at PB. I have such a southern accent (and always say "peapie") that anyone with ears can tell where I am from as soon as I speak...except they think I'm from even deeper south than NC. I wish! I would love to move further south only because I love warm weather (and really hate cold - aka under 65 degress - weather!)! Anyway, I look a lot different when "cleaned up" so maybe you'll recognize us in pics later. Are you the ones with Mallory (sorry if I am misspelling)? We met three litle girls that day...but only one fellow teacher! :P

...[/quote']

We were the family sitting in front of you until the rain got too heavy. Then we retreated to the restaurant. ;) My daughter is Olivia- only 8 months old. A set of grandparents, a set of parents and a baby.

 

We did the same thing in Key West. We stopped a museum and then wondered around aimlessly wondering what to do until we saw decided on the Conch Train. We got off after the restroom break though. We wanted to make sure we had time for key lime pie before heading back to the boat.

[beach410]

This literally brought tears to my eyes:

 

(I have to tell you one story...granddaddy had never joined a church or been baptised despite grandma's unfailing faith. When she became very sick, he went to church and got baptized. He was 83 at the time. When asked 'why bother at this late point?', he told everybody that he was determined to ensure that he would end up wherever his wife was going, and he knew she was going to Heaven).

 

Sounds like my husbands dad, he was an Athiest until he was on his death bed.

 

We live in NC too, Raleigh area, not born here though, Yankee transplant, enjoying your review, the kids are charming!

[Socref124]

Hey summercrusin, How are ya? It was nice meeting you at the meet and greet. Nice to see your pics since I lost my camera in Cozumel. Take care and good luck.:D

[summercruisin']

kebhouse - I remember Olivia! Beautiful little "pie-face" baby! She slept on the beach (well, on your mom) for a little bit. I talked with your mom the next day on the ship about being a 1st time grandma. She is excited about Olivia! My little one was excited about Olivia, too, which is what led us to talk to your mom a bit. Madelyn wanted to kiss Olivia. I had to pull her off. Madelyn has a 5 month old cousin who she kisses on all the time, and she sometimes thinks she can treat all babies like she does him. She just loves babies!

 

Mike (& Laurie) - It was fun meeting you guys, too. Wish I could have hung out more, but taking an 18 month old made this trip a bit of a challenge. Very fun and rewarding, but exhausting! We'll just have to find ourselves on the same roll call again sometime! How unlucky for you that you lost your camera! I hate that for you! Is that what happens when you go to C & Cs in Cozumel with a bunch of wild CC posters?

 

beach410 - thanks for the compliments. I don't blame you for moving here from up north :D . Raleigh is a pretty cool place to live.

[summercruisin']

On Saturday, October 18th we were scheduled to arrive in Cozumel at 1 pm. This would be my 4th visit to Cozumel, and I really like it! Last time we were there, DH and I went to PB and had a simply perfect day sipping margaritas, eating chips and salsa, and just hanging out. As soon as I booked this year's cruise, I was pretty sure that was the plan for today as well. The only other option we considered was Chankanaab. I had been there years and years ago (pre-Wilma) and enjoyed snorkeling there. But we knew it would be very difficult to snorkle with little ones.

 

The kids and I woke up around 7:45. We decided to let 'daddy' sleep in, so we headed to the dining room for breakfast. I have never eaten in the dining room any meal other than dinner before, so I knew this would be a new experience. The thought of standing in the buffet trying to manage plates and drinks for the three of us while holding onto 2 kids was enough to ruin my appetite, so to the dining room we went!

 

It wasn't very crowded, and we got a seat by the windows on the back of the ship. We looked out right over the wake...

 

 

DS and I had pancakes. Mine had blueberries and his had strawberries. DD had french toast. I had bacon and hash browns on the side. It was all very good, and it was nice to be served breakfast in a quiet atmosphere.

 

After our yummy breakfast, I decided to make good on my promise to check out the front of the ship with DS, so we made the hike from the front to the back. We made a game of it, trying to dodge stewards (since last night one told us we can't get there from here :P). We found the first door, and there was a sign saying "cleaning in progress"! Ugh! So, we headed to the next floor (I think it was the next one down - the 6th floor), and there was no sign indicating we weren't allowed there, so we walked out. It was windy but beautiful. We could see land way off the starboard side and lots of waves.

 

 

We stayed on the bow for a little while and then went back to the Lido deck. We found DH, but the kids didn't want to sit with him inside the restaurant while he ate breakfast, so we found chairs in view of the big screen and the pool.

I left my kids there beside my beach towel for a while so I could save my chairs while I ran for a little nap and a bar run...

 

JUST KIDDING, of course! Just making sure you are still paying attention! We hung out there for a little while, making guesses for the trivia game (I got about 7 out of 20 right) and then making guesses for the name-the-'80s-movie-this-theme-song-came-from game. I did better on that one...I was a teenager in the '80s! The girl that was the emcee for the games kept getting distracted by other things (like the code they called one time that led to a bunch of uniformed folks walking very quickly toward the atrium), and she forgot to give some of the answers until people yelled at her.

 

Here is a pic of the deck with the new big screen...

 

More coming...

[daviesmom]

Love your review so far! Coincidentally, I'm the same age as you are and studying to be a teacher right now (studying in Buffalo)! Your kids are indeed adorable. I'm doing this same cruise on December 11 with a girlfriend of mine (who is actually a teacher too!). She has a 6-year old son with autism and is VERY much looking forward to this much-needed break. She deserves it more than I do!

 

I'm fairly new to this site, and to cruising, so it's nice to see a review from someone I can relate to. Please post more stuff if you have time!

 

I'm from Toronto where everybody is reserved and stuck up so I love reading reviews on this site from southern people like yourself who are so friendly and open about their lives. It's great!

[summercruisin']

While we were hanging out on deck, DH found us and stayed a while. Then we decided to go get lunch in the dining room, another new experience. DH wasn't very hungry, of course, but he agreed to go, so off we went! For lunch, I had the Mongolian steak salad - very good except the lettuce wilted under the steak just a little too much for my ideal taste. I asked for a small plate of the spaghetti for DD, and they were happy to oblige! She loved it (no surprise there!). DH had a grilled fish lunch, and he said it was very good. DS had a cheeseburger, and he ate it up! I am the only one who had dessert...strawberry and banana mousse. I wanted it only because I really really miss the white and dark chocolate mousse they used to serve. It didn't compare, but it was pretty good. I had to share with DD.

 

While we were eating, the boat was docking in Cozumel. So, after lunch we went to our room, picked up our beach bag, and headed off the ship. We had docked beside the Imagination (or was it Inspiration?).

 

We walked through the shopping area pretty quickly and headed to the taxis at the front of it. A really nice driver asked if we wanted a ride, and we had him take us to Paradise Beach. I asked him to be extra careful, and he was. The fare was $12, and of course I tipped! We got to Paradise Beach in about 15 minutes. For those of you who don't know anything about it, it is a stretch of beach with free entry, owned by an American who lives in Key West, as I understand it. They have bathrooms and changing rooms as well as a bar / restaurant and a little shop. They let you use chairs and umbrellas if you'll buy at least $10 in food and/or drinks. They have water toys for the kids, including a giant iceberg for climbing, and you have to pay a little extra and get a wristband for these. They have two resident parrots; one is named Sunshine (forgot the other's name), and they say the birds aren't really friendly.

 

Here you can see the bar / restaurant area and some of the chairs with umbrellas. If you look closely, you can see one of the parrots on the roof of the bar.

 

We were greeted by Martin, one of the waiters, and escorted to his section. It had rained earlier, so he dumped the water out of the chairs. While I got all our stuff situated, the rest of my family couldn't wait to check out the water. It wasn't the pretty deep blue as most people associate with the Caribbean, thanks to the rain, but it was a deep green.

 

Both of my kids loved the water, so they spent quite a while playing. DS made a new friend very quickly, and that was good for him since he is usually very nervous and his new friend pulled him out of his shell! DD laughed and giggled the whole time she was "swimming"

 

After a while it started raining. Then it started raining harder. And harder. Eventually we had quite the downpour, so a good number of people left the beach. It wasn't very crowded anyway, but that really cleared it out.

 

DS just kept on going, having a blast. I got under the umbrella with DD and ordered...you guessed it...margaritas (and chips and salsa...soooooo good here!). The rain was a little chilly, and it was late in the afternoon, so I decided to go ahead and put DD in a clean diaper and outfit...

[summercruisin']

The clean outfit? Mistake. Because after about 15-20 minutes of rain and snacking, and a few margaritas on my part to relax me just enough...DD headed back to the water to get her brother and daddy. Next thing I know...

 

 

So much for the dry outfit. But, then again, with a smile like this...

 

 

who could be angry? She was really enjoying herself. We ordered DS some cheese quesadillas. He eats at a local Mexican restaurant every Thursday night without fail (except for when we are on trips or he is sick) with my sister. She's been doing this since he was a little over 1 year old. So, when he found out we were going to Mexico, he was determined to get a "real" cheese quesadilla. It was soo good. When he wasn't looking, I got a taste...or two!

 

We sat on the beach as the sun began to get lower in the sky. Ahhh...

 

(the pier at Paradise Beach - last time we were here we saw a sting ray right under it!)

 

looking down the beach the other way...

 

Somewhere around 6:30, we decided to head back while there was still at least one taxi waiting around (yep, we closed down the place). We walked around the shops a bit, bought a cute little bracelet for DD and a morraca (spelling?) for DS. We got a t-shirt for my nephew. Then we went back on board. Since we had missed dinner, we ordered room service for the kids. They both had grilled cheese (I know, I sure gave DS a lot of cheese in Mexico :eek: ). I didn't know the grilled cheese through room service come with mayo, lettuce, and tomato...they do. The kids ate them though. Room service was pretty quick and very pleasant.

 

While the kids ate, I ran to the pizza place and grabbed a few slices. Then DH ran to the buffet and got a plate to eat. I got the kids to bed and passed out before DH even finished his dinner. Boy does that salt water and sand (okay, okay, and the margaritas) knock me out! There was a party on the Lido deck this evening (maybe the bathrobes one), but I had no clue. I was out for the night!

 

Okay...so that covers the 3rd day. I'll try to finish up tomorrow. Thanks for sticking with me!

[summercruisin']

Love your review so far! Coincidentally, I'm the same age as you are and studying to be a teacher right now (studying in Buffalo)! Your kids are indeed adorable. I'm doing this same cruise on December 11 with a girlfriend of mine (who is actually a teacher too!). She has a 6-year old son with autism and is VERY much looking forward to this much-needed break. She deserves it more than I do!

 

I'm fairly new to this site, and to cruising, so it's nice to see a review from someone I can relate to. Please post more stuff if you have time!

 

I'm from Toronto where everybody is reserved and stuck up so I love reading reviews on this site from southern people like yourself who are so friendly and open about their lives. It's great!

 

Thanks! Congrats on your teacher studies. Brave starting that kind of career later in life, aren't you? What grade/subject will you be teaching? This is my 16th year, and I usually enjoy it. I love literature, and it is exciting helping kids "get" it. It's also fun teaching high school seniors because they are nervous and excited and anxious and curious about going out into the world!

 

I am very excited for you and your friend. I hope she has a good time! Is she taking her son or is she getting a "real" break? I'm sure she is challenged but also blessed every day by that little guy!

 

Thanks for the kudos, too. I, like many other folks around here, am very open...sometimes too much so. I never learned to keep my mouth shut! I think some people get so wrapped up in life they don't even notice the wonderful personalities around them (that whole can't see the trees for the forest thing, I guess). Life is so much sweeter when you can take time to get to know someone right down to the little quirky things...you learn that everyone counts and you appreciate different people so much more. That is one thing I try to remind myself with teaching every day. I am not teaching a subject...I am teaching children. Despite my own frustrations, each one of those kids made someone laugh, cry, smile, love life at some point. They are worth getting to know! :) My dad used to drive me nuts because everywhere we went, he struck up a conversation with anyone who would stand still long enough. It was so embarrassing as a child. But now, I do the same thing. I met some great people on this cruise just by chitchatting with whomever I came across (like Olivia's grandma...nice lady!). People should do it more often.

[Socref124]

babies!

 

Mike (& Laurie) - It was fun meeting you guys' date=' too. Wish I could have hung out more, but taking an 18 month old made this trip a bit of a challenge. Very fun and rewarding, but exhausting! We'll just have to find ourselves on the same roll call again sometime! How unlucky for you that you lost your camera! I hate that for you! Is that what happens when you go to C & Cs in Cozumel with a bunch of wild CC posters?

[/quote']

 

Funny thing is we went diving and by the time we got to C&C's it was late. We tried to order a drink and they don't take credit cards anymore so I was stone cold sober when I lost my camera. Hadn't had a drink in over 24 hours. Go figure...

[hililyhilo]

Summercruisin' -

 

Please add me to the list of folks who are enjoying your review and think your kids are adorable! I love that pic of Madelyn sleeping! :)

 

My DH, DD (who's 4), and I are going on the Destiny next month (albeit to different ports) so I'm extra interested in hearing about your experience and seeing pics of the ship.

 

I'm looking forward to the rest of your review!

[luv2cruz66]

summercruisin,

i was on the destiny last week with you.......sorry i didn't get to meet you I must have gotten to the meet and great after you were gone.....luv the pics.....question....how do you post your pics and have them show up so big? the only photo i tried to post shows up as a little thumb nail???

thanks

[summercruisin']

summercruisin,

i was on the destiny last week with you.......sorry i didn't get to meet you I must have gotten to the meet and great after you were gone.....luv the pics.....question....how do you post your pics and have them show up so big? the only photo i tried to post shows up as a little thumb nail???

thanks

 

Hey! Sorry I didn't get to meet you, too. I had to leave the meet & greet a little early because we had to make it to the 5:15 Camp Carnival talk. We thought we were going to use the babysitting service...but it never worked out.

I uploaded my pics on photobucket. Then, leaving that window open too, I type stuff on CC, then go to the photobucket page, copy the image link and paste it where I want the picture to show up. Easy!

I'm going to wrap this thing up soon...been overwhelmed trying to get laundry and other stuff done since getting back. I didn't realize I don't have any cool weather clothes for my kids! :eek: When we left it was still warm here in NC, and I just worried about what they'd need for the cruise. When we got back (even though only 5 days later), it has turned cool. So, I have to go shopping today!

[luv2cruz66]

Hey! Sorry I didn't get to meet you' date=' too. I had to leave the meet & greet a little early because we had to make it to the 5:15 Camp Carnival talk. We thought we were going to use the babysitting service...but it never worked out.

I uploaded my pics on photobucket. Then, leaving that window open too, I type stuff on CC, then go to the photobucket page, copy the image link and paste it where I want the picture to show up. Easy!

I'm going to wrap this thing up soon...been overwhelmed trying to get laundry and other stuff done since getting back. I didn't realize I don't have any cool weather clothes for my kids! :eek: When we left it was still warm here in NC, and I just worried about what they'd need for the cruise. When we got back (even though only 5 days later), it has turned cool. So, I have to go shopping today![/quote']

Thanks for the photo advice.....i'm definitely going to give it a try. We came home to the same thing. My twelve year old called us while we were sunning in Miami the day we got off the boat......and asked how to "turn the heat on" because the house was 67 degrees!!! We put on sweatshirts when we boarded the plane!!

Miss that warm weather for sure!!!

[2PinaColadas]

OP thanks for your review and pictures. We will be on the Destiny in March, but we are going to Ocho and Grand Caymen. I am a teacher too, we are going over Spring Break.

[Jeans*Fanatic]

 

 

I absolutely love seeing ships parked side by side!!!!! I hope I see this when i go on my cruise in November!!!!

[rebeljohn]

Great pics with your review..............Thanks for posting them.............

[summercruisin']

Okay, okay, I'll get this done! Boy, have things been busy around here! I was supposed to go in for a teacher workday today, but DD was puking everywhere, so IL had to stay home and snuggle a little one! Anyway, to wrap up...

Sunday, Oct. 19th was a fun day at sea. We didn't sleep w4 ell overnight because someone in the room next door or the room next to that one (so DH says) had a family reunion in their room apparently, and they are a family of partiers! I found out how thin the walls are, and they sure had a good time! Then, around 5 in the morning, someone else figured out that the metal decorative screen things in the hallways are great drums. Someone played steel drum music for us for a long time, until our neighbor went out there and told them to stop. So, we 'slep in' until about 8ish. I took the kids to brave the breakfast at the buffet (and let daddy sleep in AGAIN! - I'm such a good wife!) We had the usual, bacon, potatoes, pancakes, yogurt, fruit, pastries, etc. It was all good. We hung out around the decks for a bit, but I was so tired still! Soon, DH got moving, and I convinced him to hang out with the kids a while so I could nap. I have no idea what he did, and I didn't really care! I napped for about 1.5 hours, and then DH brought the kids back. I watched the debarkation talk on tv (since I'd missed it in person), and then we all went to lunch together. We had the grill and pizza again...nothing special. After lunch, DH decided I had to repay him, so he went to take a nap. I took the kids to play putt-putt on the deck formerly known as the topless deck. It was neat, I guess, but very windy! Somehow, the mini-golf balls didn't blow with the wind, and DS enjoyed the fun. He's got great form...

 

 

DD tried getting to the "treasure"...

 

 

After a while, we went back to the room to start packing up a few things. DS spotted dolphins playing right out our window! That was really neat. There were several groups of them, because one group would get left behind by the boat, and after a minute or two, we'd spot another. DD stood in the window just mesmerized...

 

 

I don't remember much about this fun day at sea. We were mostly just lazy. I know we went to the shops at some point during this day. We bought some rum (and they boxed it up to send to our room even this late in the cruise!). We bought a few t-shirts for the kids. We then strolled through the pictures and bought one of our family from formal night. There were several fairly good pictures.

 

Dinner time came up quickly, and we headed to the dining room. We had seen our waitress, Emma, in the restaurant, and she had told us she missed us, so we were determined not to miss dinner. This last night, I don't remember what I had as an appetizer. It was something seafood related (maybe the sweet and sour shrimp?), I think. For the main course, I had a seafood pasta dish I've had several times before (penne pasta, scallops, shrimp, and ???). It is usually very good, but this time, not so much. It was disappointing. DH had veal for dinner. DD shared my pasta after eating her fruit plate. She decided she was going to be independent tonight and eat full bites with her fork...

 

 

DS had a cheeseburger. We had bought a bottle of red wine in Miami and didn't drink it for lack of an opener, so we had packed it. We took it to dinner with us this night so as not to have to pack it to take it home. Our waiter opened it without charging the corkage fee. He didn't even mention it...acted like there was no such thing.

 

For desert, we had a choice of two things...a chocolate walnut cake or pumpkin cheesecake. Both were supposed to be Halloween specials. I had the chocolate cake, and it was just okay. It was kind of dry. DH liked the pumpkin cheesecake. DS enjoyed hot chocolate. Our wait staff brought out a plate of blueberries for DD because they noticed her stealing the decorative ones off of our desert plates (how 'bout that?). They were so kind to her!

 

After dinner, the wait staff sang a version of the "leaving on a jet plane" song, and Emma danced with our DD...

 

 

Maybe I was bitter about our cruise wrapping up...maybe I was depressed. I don't remember much about this dinner except being disappointed. I'm pretty sure it was all (or mostly) me. I tend to get bitter near the end of any cruise! Dinner being finished, we strolled along Destiny's Way. We watched some families getting pictures taken and decided to take a few of our own. This ended up taking longer than we thought it would. The photographer at one station REALLY took his job seriously! He probably took 20 pictures! He just kept coming up with potential poses. I was excited to see them the next morning. After all that, we headed back to our room for the night...

[falkcor]

For the main course' date=' I had a seafood pasta dish I've had several times before (penne pasta, scallops, shrimp, and ???).[/quote']

 

and calamari. and i didn't much care for it either :cool:

[beckyjohns]

summercruisin.....we're going on this exact cruise in 2 weeks with our twin boys who are 19 months old. i'm curious what kind of room you had and if you had a crib for your daughter. was it a pack and play or a crib? did it fit in your room?

[luvmyjewels]

Thanks for sharing your pictures and review with us! I'm also in NC (Elizabeth City) and am an ECU grad. You don't happen to teach at Rose H.S. do you? My dh taught there for a little while before we moved here.

 

Your children are beautiful and I am sure they really enjoyed cruising with you and your dh. Did they enjoy Paradise Beach? Is there a pool there? We are going to Cozumel in Dec (on Inspiration), and I'm still trying to figure out which beach will be best for our kids.

[RAVI360]

awwwww you have the cutest kids......always hold on to those pictures they are priceless.....