BY: Keith S. Shikowitz, Editor in Chief/Investigative Reporter
The 4th day of the cruise started out like the previous three. Got up. Cleaned up. Checked and made sure everything was ready to go ashore. Breakfast and get going to have a day at the beach. This excursion was at a Norwegian private island. We were under the impression that everything was included, unfortunately, that information was not correct. Drinks were extra and very expensive.
Unlike the first shore excursion, the weather on this day was excellent. Sunny, warm and pleasant.
Also unlike the first excursion, we actually had transportation to and from the beach we were going to. We got to the beach, found four lounge chairs together and camped out. It is amazing the people you meet on a cruise. Everyone is so pleasant and friendly. One of you will say hi and the next thing is name and where you are from. It is wild how many people you run into from places you grew up in and where you currently live. Where we chose our seats, there was a family there who live right near where I grew up on Long Island.
We unpacked out gear and headed for the water. The beach was beautiful and the water a pristine blue.
Bill stayed at the chairs. He wasn’t into taking the dive. Jose, Guillermo and I took the plunge. I put on my water socks and decided not to deal with the swim fins. I like the socks because I hate the feel of sand on my feet because you can never get it cleaned off completely and it ends up in your shoes. It was my first time snorkeling. I was concerned about going out too far from the shore in case my asthma acted up and the water was too deep to stand up in to catch my breath. But I loved the feel of being face down in the water and still being able to breathe. We spent about an hour or so exploring the water there. Unfortunately we didn’t get to see any fish under there with us, only water and sand.
We were expecting there to be more things to do there other than swimming. We thought there would be a lot more activities but there weren’t. That was the only disappointment other than the weather the day before. The three of us stayed in the water for about an hour. I realized it was time to get out when the skin on my hands began to shrivel.
You can see the amount of people who were pout there enjoying the Caribbean weather. Most of the people were escaping the winter of the northeast. And savoring every moment of warmth.
When we finally decided to leave the beach. We found they had a “wildlife preserve” The “tour” started out with a butterfly exhibit. I did learn that the butterflies they have there only live 4 weeks. While we were making our way out, there was an escape attempt. One of the workers had to get a net and bring the escapee back into the main room.
It was a small preserve, but it had a couple of interesting birds. There were a Toucan and a Macaw. Not to mention an iguana. It wasn’t doing much, just sitting there basking in the sun.
As a former history teacher, I thrive on learning things about different cultures and nations. I have taught about this area of the world numerous times and I learned a number of things that if I was still teaching I would be able to use in my lessons. The native people here have lived in this area for thousands of years. They made their livings through farming, fishing and probably trade with other cultures in the vicinity. Their mode of travel was simple. They would cut down a tree cut it in half long ways and dig out the center to be able to sit and travel in. Although Guillermo pointed out that this one would not be sailing anytime soon. The gaping hole in the aft portion of the boat was his first clue.
Just when you think you’ve seen everything, you find out that you haven’t. One thing about life, there are surprises around every corner, or in this case up every tree. As we were standing near the canoe, a guy takes his shoes and shirt off and climbs up a coconut tree and starts picking coconuts. We thought he was a worker at the resort getting coconuts for the drinks they serve. It turns out he is from Connecticut and just wanted a fresh coconut or two.
We took one he offered, but then realized we might not be able to get it back on the ship, so we tossed it on the grass and continued to the stores to do some shopping. I was anxious to find a particular little souvenir that I couldn’t find in Honduras. It turns out that I was able to find the exact thing I was looking for to match the ones I got there. Only difference is that this one will say Belize. Big deal. I was also able to fins some adorable outfits for my 9 month old granddaughter.
Bill and Jose got ahead of us and were already on their way back to the ship. Guillermo and I found a non-functional antique on the way out and decided to be touristy with it. When I picked up the phone, I decided to play a little Groucho Marx, I said. “Room service? Send up a bigger room.” Corny, but fun.
We made it to the transport cart area and waited our turn to board one and get back to the ship. On the way back I was able to get some nice pictures of the ship, showing just how long 1094 feet of boat is.
We went back up to the room, unpacked all the wet stuff, freshened up and headed for lunch. Still haven’t seen Bill or Jose since they left us at the beach.
We went to the Garden Café for the buffet lunch. They have such a variety of foods from different cultures. I tried some Indian chicken and rice with Naan. It was spicy, but delicious. Not everything I have tried has worked out as well as this. I broke down the other day and had a hamburger and hot dog. I said I was not going to because I am not on a cruise ship with the variety of foods they have just to have hamburgers and hot dogs. I was sorry I broke down. The burger was way to cooked for me and the hot dog was not very good. But this is the exception.
As we were sitting at the table, Bill and Jose showed up. We finished our meals and headed around the ship again. We sat in one area watching the entertainment, had a couple of drinks and I decided to go to the lounge and write up part 4 of the cruise saga.
I finished the story, posted it and went back to the room for a 1-hour power nap before dinner. Actually, we all separately decided to do that. I have not walked this much in I don’t know how long and my calves are screaming at me.
Dinner that night was at the Steakhouse. We each had two appetizers. These included, Lobster Bisque, shrimp cocktail, and Caesar salad. Main course consisted of two of us with filet mignon, one rib eye and one prime rib. Again it was delicious.
Jose wanted to go see the Beatles cover band, so off we went to the club where they were playing. Unfortunately for us, the room had already hit its capacity and we couldn’t get in. The young lady told us we should be there an hour before the performance in order to be able to get in. Not sure if we are going to try it on another night.
Denied entrance to the Beatles music, we decided to wander over to the Caribbean event on the pool deck. We finally got there, only to find it was raining and it had been moved. We searched for it and finally found it, but we came into it at the tail end of the event. We got to see about 20 minutes of it.
We then headed for the casino. Guillermo and Bill decided to try their luck at roulette. They started off doing well, but as they say, the house always wins. And the house did. Although like I said in a previous story, there was a guy who started with $1000 down and walked away with $4000. Jose decided to play blackjack. He ended up beating the house for a nice chunk of change. Bill wasn’t so lucky there wither. It was just not his night.
After picking up a few shirts on the way back to the cabin, we decided to call it a night with the knowledge and relief that we could sleep late because we were going to be on the ship all day tomorrow.
Part 6 coming later today…