Thanksgiving Cruise #2

Yes, it's true, we went on another cruise for Thanksgiving, but this time we went to the Eastern Caribbean... It was a 7 day cruise and we stopped in Puerto Rico, St. Martin, and Labadee, Haiti. We were lucky enough to cruise on one of Royal Caribbean's mega ships which we've decided is nothing more than a floating playground for adults and children alike.  It was seven days of fun that included everything from belly flop contests to a  Cirque de Soleil style show on a moving boat.  After a week of running around trying to make sure we didn't miss a single activity, we realized we may need a vacation just to recover from this one! However, as we drove home yesterday we decided that there wasn't a buffet on board that wasn't graced by our presence, so we were able to sit back and say, "Mission Accomplished." 

Besides the food and entertainment, we also managed to visit a few ports which were each exciting in their own way. In Puerto Rico we didn't do much because we didn't dock until 3:30 pm and we had to be back on the boat by 10 pm.  So we hopped off the ship and walked around old San Juan for a couple hours until it got dark and and we started to get hungry... (It's always easier to get back on the boat for amazing free food rather than paying for mediocre food in port.)  Not to mention, it was so windy walking around we about got blown into the Atlantic, and we've got the pictures to prove it. Actually it was overly windy the first 3 days of our cruise, but luckily when the cruise ship left Puerto Rico and entered the Caribbean, the wind was all but gone. 

St. Martin was a longer day, (thank goodness!!) so we booked a Jeep and Rhino Boat (little Zodiac's) tour and it was one of the most fun excursions we have done on any island. All four of us (Jamie and Katie were with us) jumped into a Jeep, threw the top down, and followed our Jamaican guide through St. Martin from the Dutch side over to the French side. In the middle we stopped at a rental car place right on the water and hopped into our two man Rhino boats and sped off into the bay following our guide around half the island, stopping at a somewhat secluded, and apparently clothing optional beach, to enjoy some stable ground where the water was warm and the sand was perfect. After a half hour or so of observing more and more people behind the rocks and under the trees, all choosing the nude option, we joined in!!  (just kidding)  Actually, we hopped back in our boats and sped off once again to the docks where the Jeeps were waiting for us.  Finishing off the French side of St. Martin we chose to take a longer beach stop instead of walking around the market place.  Our second beach was also clothing optional, (it's the whole French thing...) but very very populated with fellow cruisers (a few of which decided to try the whole nude thing out as well) and everyday beach goers. There were many different beach side restaurants to choose from and we went with the one that was the cheapest and looked the most clean. After paying $1.00 for Sean and I to use the bathroom we finally made it to the sand where we laid on the beach for another hour then we were back in the Jeeps and continued our trip around the island where we finally arrived at our starting point. I am surprised we came back alive to be honest with you, people in St. Martin have no patience and drive so so so close together, it's a bit nerve racking. All in all though we had the time of our lives, tons of laughs, and got great pictures.  It was an experience of a lifetime for sure, and I'd definitely do it again!

Our last stop was Labadee, Haiti.  It's a private beach owned by Royal Caribbean on the tip of the island of Haiti. There were plenty of things for us to do here including everything from volleyball, to the aqua park, to the Zip line, and even Jet Ski's... none of which we actually participated in. We decided that this was going to be our designated beach day to just chill on the beach, kick back, read our books, soak in some sun, and drink my Labadoozy (an overpriced smoothie that I ordered and Sean won't stop reminding me just how overpriced it was).

Out of the three different beaches on the island, we chose the one that faced the zip line, which proved to be quite entertaining. It was really five separate zip lines running parallel to each other that started on top of a mountain on one side of the cove and traveled down over the water to the other edge of the island.  When it was all said and done, it was a over a mile long and was a blast to just watch all day.  The weather was perfect, the sun was hot, and there was a slight ocean breeze blowing on us; we couldn't have asked for a more perfect day.  

Royal Caribbean has been deemed our favorite cruise line to vacation with. The service is incredible, the food was outstanding, and the boat is more than entertaining.  Now don't get me wrong, Princess has also treated us very well, but Royal Caribbean's boats trump Princess', hands down.

Sean and I are very thankful that we were able to spend our Thanksgiving holiday in the Caribbean, we had a blast and can't wait for everyone to join us on one of these ships so we can share the excitement with everyone.