It’s been about a week since I’ve put up a post and here’s why. We slipped off for a quick vacation – a Bahamas cruise – on the Norwegian Sky. It was our first cruise and we were all both excited and a little curious about whether we’d enjoy it. I know a fair number of people who do this over and over and over – they see it as the perfect vacation and have little interest in doing anything else. I’ve also had people tell me it just isn’t for them – too sedentary, too confining, too crowded, a little boring. We decided we finally had to give it a try.
Happy to say we all had a really good time. The ship was impressive – it’s a floating resort open 24 hours a day. The packages are all inclusive – food and drink – with some premium items and services offered for charge. Plenty of entertainment options on the ship during the evenings, a fun casino, a good fitness center and some nice restaurants – from very casual to more formal. You cruise through the night and enjoy port calls during the day with plenty of excursion options. We started in Miami, cruised to Freeport, then to Nassau and then to a Norwegian Cruise Lines private island on the third day.
We had a really fun sail and snorkel excursion to Treasure Reef while in Freeport – plenty of live corals and an amazing variety of fish. We chose not to sign up for an excursion for our day in Nassau – we relaxed on the ship for the first half of the day and walked through the city during the afternoon – shopping on Bay Street and the Straw Market. On our third day – the private island – we rented a full service cabana – relaxed, ate, drank and played in the surf all day – highly recommended. The ship also threw a great New Year’s Eve Party which we all enjoyed – just enough and not too much 🙂
One note – we reserved staterooms with balconies – something I would highly recommend. It is true that things can get a little close on a ship that big with that many people and the opportunity to occasionally retreat to your balcony with a drink and look out over the water is a precious thing. My wife and I really enjoyed watching both the sunrises and the sunsets from our balconies. It’s also pretty fascinating to watch the whole process of leaving and coming into port from the balcony. I was amazed at the way the crew was able to maneuver such a large vessel into and out of relatively small spaces. It’s also great just to sit with a little privacy at night – enjoying the breeze and the stars. Get the balcony – it makes everything feel more spacious and gives you a little privacy when you’re ready to get away from the crowd.
Another note – this was our first visit to Miami and we had the chance to get out for dinner and a walk about in South Beach. My wife and I loved it – the shops, the restaurants, the bars, the music, the art deco environment – it just has an awesome vibe. We thought it would be a great place – in those first few years after retirement – to rent a place for a few weeks – maybe a month or two – and just take it all in for awhile. I’d recommend this as a destination to anyone who loves food and music and dancing and fun. In some ways – it reminded me of New Orleans – just cleaner and healthier and safer.
Another note – each cruise line structures their packages differently and each has a slightly different personality. One unique aspect of a cruise with Norwegian is that alcohol is included in the package. This isn’t true with other lines – there’s usually an up-charge for an all inclusive liquor option or you’re required to pay by the drink. We’re not big drinkers bu we did enjoy the fact that you could walk up to one of the many bars at any time and order anything you felt like drinking – particularly on a New Year’s Eve cruise.
A final note – it would have been all too easy to purchase an international data plan for the smart phones so that we could stay connected to everything happening off the ship. We chose not to and just turned all the screens off for 4 days. It made a huge difference. We wound up focused only on what was happening around us and on each other, we weren’t texting or emailing and I wasn’t constantly reading the news. If you try this, please just put the cell phones in the safe on the first day and don’t take them out until you’re ready to leave the ship and head home. It really makes a huge difference.
Overall, a great vacation and something I’d definitely do again. I can’t say it’s something I’d do repeatedly but for a chance to get out of the cold, be on the water (something I love), be catered to by ship’s crew (awesome service from an amazing staff) and just relax – it’s really a great choice. I think my wife and I will try this again but in a slightly different way – maybe a small boat river cruise in Europe. Those excursions look like they may be a bit more meaningful and it seems like there’s more of a chance to connect with the people you’re traveling with.
Couple of really fun / humorous moments:
- My son had his first casino experience and did quite well on the Blackjack tables – ended way ahead and padded his bank account a bit. I think he’s ready for Vegas.
- I introduced my step-daughter to tequila and shared her first tequila shot. While I don’t know that she appreciated the taste, she did seem to enjoy the whole lick, salt, shoot, suck ritual. I don’t think it’ll be her last. I’m just glad I was there for her first.
- The kids both had the chance to do a little bargaining at the Straw Market with varying degrees of success – fun to watch and hard not to jump in. My wife was also able to buy the handwoven straw tote she wanted.
- While I was aware that we weren’t supposed to smoke in our staterooms, I guess I missed the part of the safety briefing that let us know that the balcony was also a no-smoking zone. I’d purchased several cigars in Miami with the intention of enjoying them in the evenings on our balcony. The first – and last time – I did this, I was made painfully aware of the fact that the smoke didn’t just drift out over the Caribbean. It actually becomes pretty noticeable in staterooms above, below and to either side. The rest of my cigars were gifted to our Stewards.
- Most of all – this was probably the best family vacation we’ve ever had together. We’re a blended family anyone who’s ever worked to bring two sets of formerly separate lives together will know there’s no guarantee that you can make it work. While we’ve experienced bumps in the road from time to time – we’ve always been lucky and everyone’s always approached the challenge with an openness and a willingness to accept each other. As I think back about the trip, I really feel like we were closer and more connected as a family than we’ve ever been. It’s not that we didn’t argue from time to time or have frustrating moments but those times were more than compensated for by the way we talked with each other, shared, played and just connected. I’m so thankful for the beautiful attitude that my wife, my son and my step daughter brought into this trip and the way they were just willing to enjoy being together.
So – from my perspective – this was a big win and the icing on the cake – I finished 4 books on the trip:
- “Kill City Blues” – the next book in the Sandman Slim series.
- “The Collapsing Empire” – first book in a new series by John Scalzi
- “Shadow Of The Scorpion” – second book in the Polity Universe by Neal Asher
- “All Systems Red” – newest book by Martha Wells in a new series called The Murderbot Diaries
You may remember, right before I left, I finished Steven Erikson’s “House Of Chains” – a substantial book that took me about a week to get through – and “The Templars” by Dan Jones – a much quicker read. I was a little torn about what to read next. I could either move to the next Malazan novel – “Midnight Tides” – another substantial book that would take me a week – or go to something lighter and easier to get through. I made the second choice – one factor being the knowledge that I’d be offline during the cruise and would not have access to the Wiki – and actually made it through all four of the titles listed above.
I’m now back to Malaz – reading “Midnight Tides” – AND I have 4 books to write about as I push my way through a week’s worth of Steven Erikson. I’ll post on “Kill City Blues” tomorrow.
G’night for now – time to walk the dogs, slip into bed and do some reading.