It never fails to amaze me how a
7 day cruise goes by so much faster than 5 days at work. I tell people all the
time that a bad day cruising (if there is
such a thing) is still better than a good day at work. I love my job, I really
do. It’s interesting, it’s challenging, it’s rewarding and yet it’s
still…….work. But enough about that. We still have one more sea day to squeeze in as much fun as we can.
We have drinks to drink, food to eat and slides to slide!
As usual, we got up around 8 to
the alarm. I was ready to get up and enjoy our last day at sea. The four of us
headed up to Lido about 9 and we hit the Blue Iguana for some breakfast
burritos. As a native Texan, I have to say I’m impressed at the quality of
breakfast tacos and burritos offered by the Blue Iguana. Their salsa bar has
some tasty, and most importantly, spicy salsas. It takes a LOT for me to call
something spicy and a few of these actually make the grade.
My breakfast today
Let’s see, who’s been paying
attention to my blogs? What do you think happens next? Come on, you can do it.
That’s right! We went back to our cabin to change into swimwear. Now I know
some of you are wondering why we don’t just put on our swimwear and go up to
Lido like that. That’s a perfectly reasonable question and my best answer is….you’re
not gonna believe it……we just don’t. I think part of that is because Cindy
would rather wear something other than her “coverup” when actually eating in
the Lido area.
We staked out a good spot in the
shade and we were ready to hit the slides. I wanted to ride both of them and
take some video with my GoPro. Due to high winds, the slides and ropes course
were closed on our first two sea days. By the time we reached Mo Bay, though,
and for the rest of the cruise, the slides were open.
Handy tip: Make sure you wear
either water shoes or secure sandals (like Tevas) if you plan on riding the
slides. The deck and stairs get hot!
I made the mistake of trying to go up some stairs barefoot and had to turn
around halfway. I thought my feet were going to blister before I got to the
bottom. Yep, I immediately put my Tevas back on and kept them on. I only took
them off when I got into the pool.
All four of us rode the slides,
and Keith and I rode each of them more than once. I shot some cool video on
both slides, both with the GoPro facing forward and with it facing me. I’ll
eventually edit these into a brilliant, seamless video worthy of Steven
Spielberg and upload it to YouTube……eventually. We had plenty of fun on the
slides and just as much fun standing under the “Power Drencher.” This giant
bucket is constantly being filled and when it reaches a certain point it’ll tip
over and soak everyone nearby.
On the last sea day, Carnival has
their “Chocolate Extravaganza” in the Lido buffet starting at noon. You can
find just about any kind of chocolate cake, pastry or cookie, as well as a
chocolate fountain for dipping fruit. As much as I like chocolate, my favorite
treat from this extravaganza is a bowl of candied walnuts and almonds. I’ll
fill a small bowl of these and munch on them with some ice cream.
All those stairs up to the two
slides starting wearing me out after climbing them multiple times. I think
soaking in the pool would do nicely, so in we went. It must’ve been the
combination of a warm sunny day and many people in the pool, because it was
bathwater warm. It wasn’t “hot tub” level, but it would take much to get it
there. Even with that, though, it was still refreshing. We hung out in the pool
a little longer before heading back to the cabin.
We have a full evening, so we
need to pack for disembarkation tomorrow. Any luggage we don’t want to carry (which
means everything but our carryon) needs to be outside our cabin by 11 pm. We’ve done this enough that it didn’t take too
long, and once that chore was out of the way we continued with our fun. We’ll
leave our packed luggage in the cabin until just before 11, then set it
outside.
When we are diving, we are very
careful about how much we drink. We were done diving, at least for the cruise,
so Cindy and I got cleaned up and went to the RedFrog Pub (RFP) for some final
day libations and a helping of their Caribbean chicken wings. These are really
yummy and I make it a point to order them at least once per cruise. They’re not
really jerk wings, but definitely have a spicy sweet flavor that makes me think
“Caribbean” when I eat them.
We enjoyed the RFP, eating wings
and drinking a “Painkiller” or two until it was time for the “VIFP Diamond and
Platinum Reunion.” Until last year, the Gold members were always invited. We’ve
been cruising with Carnival since 2007, and Gold members since 2009 and always
enjoyed this party until last year. Carnival claimed that having so many Gold
members made this party a “service challenge” so they changed the way the party
was conducted and eliminated the Gold members. I realize Carnival can do what
they want and we can basically “take it or leave it.” That’s fine, I guess, but
I still found it insulting. Granted our last cruise in 2015 was the only one
where this directly affected Cindy and me, but I still think Gold members
should be allowed to the party. Carnival, as much as I enjoy your product, I
think you are dead wrong here. That’s
my humble opinion, but I stand by it.
This party was pretty much like
what we used to attend, except there were less people there, obviously. One
really cool thing, though, was we ran into another member of our dive club! We
both looked at each other, and almost at the same time said “I didn’t know you
were on this cruise!” It was cool seeing Mark there, and we visited briefly as the
party ended. The Breeze is a big ship, and unless you know someone is on the
ship and actively look for them, you’d never know it otherwise.
We still had a little time before
dinner, so Cindy and I sat down in the Breeze Atrium to listen to 2Country4Nashville some more. I
mentioned them in my “Grand
Cayman” blog, but they absolutely deserve another shout out here. I
appreciate how they take requests, and I asked them to do the Wabash Cannonball. They
did a fantastic job with it, and LeAnne even had a train whistle to accompany
Jo-el’s vocals. I really hope they get a
long term gig with Carnival, or barring that, I hope they make it down to our
area. Cindy and I would happily pay to hear them sing again. Keith and Barbara
found us, and we all enjoyed listening to them until we had to go to dinner.
Our reservations at the steakhouse were for 7:30 and it was just a short walk to get
there.
Like Cucina del Capitano, the
steakhouse carries an additional fee. Carnival charges $35 per person extra,
but it is very much worth it. Also like Cucina, if you decide to eat there, the
most important tip I can give is be hungry! Portions are big and you will be
stuffed by the time you leave.
First course: Baked
onion soup
Second course: Caesar salad
Main course: Cowboy
rib chop
Dessert: Hazelnut
cheesecake
What a way to wrap up another
fantastic cruise! The food, as usual, was divine, and the relaxed pace of
dinner allowed us to truly enjoy the moment. By the time we were finished, we
had enough time to go to the cabin and place our luggage outside. We could still
make the last comedy show if we went directly to the comedy club without
stopping anywhere, including the RFP (awwwww!). So, striding purposefully, we
made it in plenty of time to get a good seat. We watched Mark Simmons and enjoyed his act. I
hope we get to see him on another Carnival ship soon!
Our cruise is over tomorrow, and
we need to be up by 7, so it’s definitely time to call it a day. It’s been a
blast and I could easily do another 7 days on the ship, or 14, or 21, I’m not
picky.
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