We went on our cruise last week and had a blast. I truly enjoy cruising and I will probably do as much of it as possible in the future. The food was great, the activities were fun and the cabin was well designed. I ate too much so now I am starving myself. I think I gained around 10 pounds during our 5 day adventure. Most of that seems to be water retention which leads me to believe that the ship's cuisine was sodium heavy.
We went to Cozumel and Progresso, Mexico and then back to Galveston, TX.
Cozumel was touristy. We signed up for the party boat excursion but it wasn't a party. About eleven people boarded a triple decker twin hull that supposedly had free booze but the booze was watered down and the music was too loud. My ears were splitting. Think of a U2 concert in about 2,000 square feet of space. The boat docked at a private beach and recreation area with a decent restaurant. Bill and I got the feeling that the buffet fare was what Mexicans think Americans want to eat when on vacation rather than actual Mexican food. We had chicken nuggets and "quesadillas" with what I swear was Velveeta.
Progresso was just a sleepy little port town with more authentic culture and it was really close to all the major Mayan ruins. We didn't go to the ruins. Instead, we took a tour of neighboring Merida - one of Mexico's major cities. The tour took us right through the heart of the wealthier district and we saw a Home Depot, Sears,
Chili's, TGI Fridays, Hyatt... It felt like we were driving down Preston Road. This whole planet is becoming a strip mall. I weep for the future.
The city center had the oldest cathedral in North America (but it was closed that day) and some very typical colonial houses. The streets were crammed with cars, people, tiendas, vendadoras, and we got a small taste of what it was like to live in a mid-size Latin American city. We walked around the shops, side streets, and public
buildings and found a cafe right off the square for lunch. We ordered tacos and watched the World Cup. Hey, when in Rome.
The other passengers on the ship were nice and we enjoyed meeting new people. We were on the Carnival cruise line. Those are the "fun ship" commercials you might see every once in awhile. I did get the feeling that Carnival is like the Wal-Mart of cruise lines though. There were more than a few people on board who looked like
NASCAR fans. (Yes, I to am a NASCAR fan but I don't look like one out of self respect.)
Quite a few people showed up for the seated dinners in flip-flops and muscle t-shirts despite the ship's request for more upscale attire. People just don't have a sense of decorum anymore. That was the only part of the trip that bothered me.
Overall, I'd do it again. I'm cruise crazy. I've been sending Bill lots of Internet deals that look good.
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