Friday, January 16, 2009
January 15th, NY and finally home!
We wake up to a blizzard outside! Not enough snow to delay or cancel our flight though. It is very fine snow that isn't sticking very well. Our flight isn't until 6pm today so we happily sleep in and lay around most of the day. We take advantage of the complimentary continental breakfast too. I really don't want to go outside but Matt makes me. So I bundle up the best I can. We went to this fabulous place that Starla Stroh recommended called The Cookshop for lunch. An organic restaurant, with great new age food.It was amazing! I'm definitely keeping this place in mind for when we visit again. While we have more time we tell Alex so show up places we haven't seen yet. So he takes us to the East side. We go through the projects which looks nothing like I imagined. You couldn't even really tell it was the projects. The area where all the poor people live is brick apartment after brick apartment, for a couple miles. Alex said they only pay $300 a month for this tiny little place. He took us by Julia Roberts townhouse. He took us to an area called Williamsburg, the Jewish community. It was like a different world! Every single person on the street was either a man with a black hat on, long curly sideburns, and a long black coat or a woman with a towel looking thing on her head. Alex said most of the Jewish woman are bald, and wear wigs or a towel to keep their head warm. Some strange hasidic jew thing? I was taking pictures of them, Alex is from Egypt and he was getting scared that I was taking photos of them. Egypt and Israel have been fighting forever and if someone saw they would probably get really pissed off. We drove around some more and decided to head back to the hotel to pack. The second we got in our room Alex called saying all of the airports in New York were shut down because a plane crashed. My heart jumped into my throat. Could this be another terrorist attack, while we are in NY?? We turned on the news and first thing we saw was a plane in the middle of the Hudson River, it had crashed just moments after taking off. We eventually found out that a flock of birds had flown into both of the engines and made the plane go down. The news said the way the pilot landed in the water saved everyone on the plane. No one had been killed! This happened at La Guardia airport, we were leaving from Newark so our flight was on schedule, but the accident had called every ambulance, fire truck, and cop on the scene so the traffic was horrible and we were afraid we wouldn't make our flight. It was quite an experience to be in, I could only imagine how crazy NY must have been during 9/11. We get to the airport an hour early so we can just relax. I bought a cute little shot glass with the New York landscape on it. We get home around 10pm and the first thing I do is run to Knox. He is so happy to see us! I'm so happy to be home. This trip was probably one of the most amazing trips I have been on. I got to see so much and experience so much. Matt and I even made some lifetime friends. I couldn't have asked for a better vacation. I love traveling with Matt, he is my best friend and the love of my life. Together we get ourselves into some crazy and fun adventures. I can't wait for our next big adventure, but for now this one takes the cake!
January 14th Back in New York
We get up at 9am today, we still have to pack all of our stuff. Our room looks like a tornado came through it, well at least on Matt's side of the room. I was pretty good about keeping my side tidy. My least favorite thing about vacations is packing. I wonder if I can pay a little filipino guy to pack for me? Ray told us that on the last day he would show us all the villas, suites, and penthouses on the ship. I'm excited to see them, we have to wait around for all of them to leave though, but when we get up there it's like a whole other world up there! I knew they would be nice but these are phenomenal! Ray said they have the nicest suites then any other boat since the boat is so new and has all of the upgrades, etc. The villas are the least fancy but there are more rooms. The villas share a common area which has a greek style pool, fluffy beds and chairs everywhere. It is draped in beautiful linens and silk cloths. Every inch in covered in flowers and exotic plants. It is also encased in glass which you can keep closed or open. The rooms are beautiful. Oh, and the bathrooms, I'll just say it would have been nice to have on the trip because it was ten times the size of ours. Now, we went up to the Black Diamond suite. It was a 6000 square foot penthouse with 3 rooms! There was a main area with a piano and couches. An enormous bathroom with a sauna, shower, and a bathtub. The master suite was so beautiful. It had huge windows that looked into the ocean, also draped with white linen. Ray told us something spectacular too, he told us he could put us on his friends and family rate on a cruise and get us a normal room for $250! Or the suites for not much more. I guess we might be going on a lot more cruises. I would love to do the Europe one or the meditterenean in one of those suites with a group of friends. It was time to go, so we say bye to Ray and walk into the frigid air. There is snow on the ground in NY and it's about 20 degrees. I can feel myself getting a cold already from the temperature shock. We head back to our New York home, The Westin. It feels good to be back in the Big Apple. Right away we call Alex, our concierge driver from before. He is so happy to see us. Now we want to do some shopping! So we head to Madison Ave. the best place to shop and go to Juicy Couture, I didn't get to go there last time so I tell him I MUST go there! The store is fabulous! It's two stories and has every single juicy thing you could ever want. I kind of went a little crazy...We hit some other stores and pretty much spent the whole day shopping. We worked up an appetite shopping so we went to the Carnegie Deli, which is super famous. Every inch of the walls inside were covered with framed pictures of famous people who have been there. It was a cool place to say you have gone. The food was good too in a super fattening covered in grease sort of way. We are meeting up with Shannon again tonight one last time. First stop is the Mandarin Orient Hotel for some drinks, Alex said they have the best view of the city in the sky bar there, and he was right. This place was like nothing I had seen. It looked like a queen or king would have lived there. In the middle of the bar was an enormous Chihuli piece which we took a picture in front of. The drinks were so yummy here and the view was awesome. The second stop is Tao, the original Tao in fact. We have some drinks and order an appetizer, but the place we really want to go to in Nobu. Matt and I ate at Nobu in Vegas and it was the best sushi I have ever eaten. Both of us were totally craving Nobu, which is very hard to get into. Again, Alex came through and got us reservations. Nobu! Shannon and I let Matt pick all of the food, he is great at picking the best sushi. Everything was heavenly. The portions were small but that was the best part, every bite was filled with new and interesting flavors. Strange combinations of fish and spices just exploded in your mouth and all you needed was one bite to be satisfied. That is what I call great food. From the last time we ate at Nobu, before we even took a bite tonight we could still taste the flavors from last time. Tonight, those flavors were even better. We ordered some sake which was delicious, the best part they bring you the sake in a large bamboo jug, with little bamboo shot glasses. We liked the shot glasses so much we stole them...I'm sure they wouldn't notice. What a great meal! Matt and I wanted to call an early night and Shannon has to work tomorrow so we ended the night right, happily full with a slight buzz on. We say bye to Shannon who has been such a pleasure to hang out with. She is a great girl and we can't wait to come back and see her. She is so lucky she lives in NY. Back to our hotel room and our heavenly bed..ah.
January 13th at sea, off the coast of North Carolina
We wake up to rainy cold weather...it's now settling in that we are
on our way home. Today, there is not much but playing bingo and gambling. We
eat some breakfast and meet up with Krystal and Jim for some bingo.
Jim got a bingo but had to split the $200 pot with 5 other people. We
didn't have any luck. We spent most of our time in the casino, Matt
always does well at black jack and I enjoy watching. I participated in
a slot machine tournament which was hilarious because I never play
slots but it killed some time and I actually came close to getting
first prize. But close isn't good enough. We basically roamed the boat
today aimlessly, we are both ready to get off of this thing. The first
two days at sea were exciting and new, and now that the sun is gone
it's boring and mundane. We watch the one liner comedian again, I
didn't laugh as hard this time due to my tranquilizers Ray the cruise
director gave me (aka sea calm). They made me pretty loopy and funny
all day, but at least I wasn't sick! Today we heard the weather in New
York is 3 degrees, but with the wind chill it feels like 4
degrees..yeah right when we left there it was 25 degrees and that was
well cold enough for me. We also heard that since we left Seattle,
they have been hit with about 3 other snow storms, I5 is closed due to
flooding, and they are expecting record breaking flooding throughout
Washington. I'm really glad we missed all that mess but not ready to
come back to it. I can only imagine what it would have been like with
I5 closed three days in a row. I miss my Knoxy so much, Kris, Matt's
employee who is watching the house and the dog said he is doing good.
I can't wait to hug him and give him some good loves and attention. We
hit NY at 9am tomorrow but can't get off the ship until 11, then we
have one more day in the big apple. I'm hoping to get some shopping
done since the shopping in the islands was so horrible. We are having
dinner with Krystal and Jim again at La Cucina, the Italian restaurant
here on the ship. I'm pretty sure we have tried all of the "fine
dining" places on the ship. After dinner we go to the last show of the cruise, another second city show. I really like watching these ones, because they are so much like Saturday Night Live. We all are ready to get off this ship but decided to hit the main club one more time to say goodbye to everyone and have one more drink. One more drink really meant one more drink this time thankfully. I'm glad we met some great people that I would like to stay in touch with. If we are ever in Canada we have some friends to hang out with and if we are ever in Jersey.. we have some great friends there. I'm so glad this is my last time sleeping in a rocking room!
on our way home. Today, there is not much but playing bingo and gambling. We
eat some breakfast and meet up with Krystal and Jim for some bingo.
Jim got a bingo but had to split the $200 pot with 5 other people. We
didn't have any luck. We spent most of our time in the casino, Matt
always does well at black jack and I enjoy watching. I participated in
a slot machine tournament which was hilarious because I never play
slots but it killed some time and I actually came close to getting
first prize. But close isn't good enough. We basically roamed the boat
today aimlessly, we are both ready to get off of this thing. The first
two days at sea were exciting and new, and now that the sun is gone
it's boring and mundane. We watch the one liner comedian again, I
didn't laugh as hard this time due to my tranquilizers Ray the cruise
director gave me (aka sea calm). They made me pretty loopy and funny
all day, but at least I wasn't sick! Today we heard the weather in New
York is 3 degrees, but with the wind chill it feels like 4
degrees..yeah right when we left there it was 25 degrees and that was
well cold enough for me. We also heard that since we left Seattle,
they have been hit with about 3 other snow storms, I5 is closed due to
flooding, and they are expecting record breaking flooding throughout
Washington. I'm really glad we missed all that mess but not ready to
come back to it. I can only imagine what it would have been like with
I5 closed three days in a row. I miss my Knoxy so much, Kris, Matt's
employee who is watching the house and the dog said he is doing good.
I can't wait to hug him and give him some good loves and attention. We
hit NY at 9am tomorrow but can't get off the ship until 11, then we
have one more day in the big apple. I'm hoping to get some shopping
done since the shopping in the islands was so horrible. We are having
dinner with Krystal and Jim again at La Cucina, the Italian restaurant
here on the ship. I'm pretty sure we have tried all of the "fine
dining" places on the ship. After dinner we go to the last show of the cruise, another second city show. I really like watching these ones, because they are so much like Saturday Night Live. We all are ready to get off this ship but decided to hit the main club one more time to say goodbye to everyone and have one more drink. One more drink really meant one more drink this time thankfully. I'm glad we met some great people that I would like to stay in touch with. If we are ever in Canada we have some friends to hang out with and if we are ever in Jersey.. we have some great friends there. I'm so glad this is my last time sleeping in a rocking room!
January 12th at sea, off the coast of Florida
It's Matt's 37th birthday today! Oops, I meant 29th..I feel horrible that I am sick on his
birthday and tell myself I'm going to try and tough it out for him. I
ended up waking up at 8am today, since I had slept so much the day
before. I woke up feeling a lot better. I got out of bed and almost
fainted..which I was expecting. I was so weak from puking all day
yesterday and not eating anything. But I didn't have to puke, which
was a great thing! It was a beautiful sunny day so we decided to head
to the pool and take advantage of our last day of sun. I actually even
ate some breakfast which was a very good sign. We got great spots at
the pool and pretty much laid out all day. I even went down the water
slide. Between trips to the pool and our tanning spot, it was a great
relaxing day. Now I was really looking like a true Mexican. We decided
we had gotten enough sun and headed to play some Bingo. I have only
ever played bingo with my brother when I was a kid. This was
interesting. Lots of old people were there obviously. Next we headed
to the casino and entered in a blackjack tournament. This was my first
time playing with a real dealer and I actually did really well! It was
between myself and this girl, neck and neck the whole time. I got some
bad hands and eventually got kicked out. It was really fun though. I
may have to start playing a little blackjack for fun. We played some
slots to kill some time. We went upstairs for the second round of
Bingo and met up with Krystal and Jim the Canadian couple. They got a
bingo! So did 4 other people so they had to split the pot. Matt and I
didn't get so lucky. I think gambling and hoping to get lucky is a
waste of time personally, but I guess it kills the time when you are
on a cruise ship. I start to not feel so well again which I was really
hoping wouldn't happen so we took a two hour nap before Matt's
birthday dinner with Krystal and Jim and Cagney's Steakhouse. I love
hanging out with our new Canadian friends. We have some fun
conversations. Jim is quiet and reserved like me but you can tell he
is a smart guy. Krystal is funny and outgoing and loves to people
watch, as do Matt and I. It's always a good time to make fun of the
all the New Yorkers on the boat or the girl who can't dance. We seem
to have the same sense of humor. We order enough food for a small
army, but it's all you can eat with a small cover charge so we always
go crazy and try everything, just for fun. Matt made friends with an
older lady at the black jack table and she gave him a bottle of
sparkling wine for his birthday. Even Ray the cruise director
surprised him with a little birthday cake for dessert, with no candle
though because those aren't allowed on the boat. It was a great dinner
overall. We all went to a comedy show called, "The Liars Club," where
3 of the guys from Second City and one of the comedians were the
contestants. The audience was separated into teams. Everyone was given
a crazy word you probably never heard of like chubble, and lobcock.
One of the contestants would have the right word and the audience
would have to guess the right one. Who knew lobcock meant a very dull
and boring person? Or chubble is the movement a woman makes when
putting on her pantyhose..no joke. It was a funny show. The seas were
pretty rough so me not feeling so well was turning into really not
feeling well at all. I don't know if I was getting sea sick or my bug
was still hanging around. I think it's the food, my stomach just can't
handle this cruise food. I was feeling better until I ate, maybe I'll
just stick to fruits and veggies until the end of this thing. Either
way I tried to deal with it as long as I could. Tonight was New Years
Party #2 because we turn the clocks back an hour tonight. Just another
ploy to get people drunk and spend more money. We met up with all the
friends we have made on the cruise, the Canadians, Jeff and Kelly from
the Newlyweds game and their family (who are crazy by the way but
hilarious) and the couples from New Jersey were there. It was the most
packed I have seen the Spinaker Lounge so far. Krystal and I were
having fun people watching since neither one of us was feeling too
well. I pushed on until midnight even though I was feeling like hell.
I didn't want to disappoint all of our new cruise friends, a cute
outfit, and most of all Matt. So I stuck it out till the end of his
birthday. Matt walked me to the room and put me to bed. So, here I am.
Tomorrow is our last day and we arrive in NY Wednesday morning. I'm
taking some vitamins, a xanex, and hitting the hay. I really hope I
kick this bug by tomorrow. Goodnight!
birthday and tell myself I'm going to try and tough it out for him. I
ended up waking up at 8am today, since I had slept so much the day
before. I woke up feeling a lot better. I got out of bed and almost
fainted..which I was expecting. I was so weak from puking all day
yesterday and not eating anything. But I didn't have to puke, which
was a great thing! It was a beautiful sunny day so we decided to head
to the pool and take advantage of our last day of sun. I actually even
ate some breakfast which was a very good sign. We got great spots at
the pool and pretty much laid out all day. I even went down the water
slide. Between trips to the pool and our tanning spot, it was a great
relaxing day. Now I was really looking like a true Mexican. We decided
we had gotten enough sun and headed to play some Bingo. I have only
ever played bingo with my brother when I was a kid. This was
interesting. Lots of old people were there obviously. Next we headed
to the casino and entered in a blackjack tournament. This was my first
time playing with a real dealer and I actually did really well! It was
between myself and this girl, neck and neck the whole time. I got some
bad hands and eventually got kicked out. It was really fun though. I
may have to start playing a little blackjack for fun. We played some
slots to kill some time. We went upstairs for the second round of
Bingo and met up with Krystal and Jim the Canadian couple. They got a
bingo! So did 4 other people so they had to split the pot. Matt and I
didn't get so lucky. I think gambling and hoping to get lucky is a
waste of time personally, but I guess it kills the time when you are
on a cruise ship. I start to not feel so well again which I was really
hoping wouldn't happen so we took a two hour nap before Matt's
birthday dinner with Krystal and Jim and Cagney's Steakhouse. I love
hanging out with our new Canadian friends. We have some fun
conversations. Jim is quiet and reserved like me but you can tell he
is a smart guy. Krystal is funny and outgoing and loves to people
watch, as do Matt and I. It's always a good time to make fun of the
all the New Yorkers on the boat or the girl who can't dance. We seem
to have the same sense of humor. We order enough food for a small
army, but it's all you can eat with a small cover charge so we always
go crazy and try everything, just for fun. Matt made friends with an
older lady at the black jack table and she gave him a bottle of
sparkling wine for his birthday. Even Ray the cruise director
surprised him with a little birthday cake for dessert, with no candle
though because those aren't allowed on the boat. It was a great dinner
overall. We all went to a comedy show called, "The Liars Club," where
3 of the guys from Second City and one of the comedians were the
contestants. The audience was separated into teams. Everyone was given
a crazy word you probably never heard of like chubble, and lobcock.
One of the contestants would have the right word and the audience
would have to guess the right one. Who knew lobcock meant a very dull
and boring person? Or chubble is the movement a woman makes when
putting on her pantyhose..no joke. It was a funny show. The seas were
pretty rough so me not feeling so well was turning into really not
feeling well at all. I don't know if I was getting sea sick or my bug
was still hanging around. I think it's the food, my stomach just can't
handle this cruise food. I was feeling better until I ate, maybe I'll
just stick to fruits and veggies until the end of this thing. Either
way I tried to deal with it as long as I could. Tonight was New Years
Party #2 because we turn the clocks back an hour tonight. Just another
ploy to get people drunk and spend more money. We met up with all the
friends we have made on the cruise, the Canadians, Jeff and Kelly from
the Newlyweds game and their family (who are crazy by the way but
hilarious) and the couples from New Jersey were there. It was the most
packed I have seen the Spinaker Lounge so far. Krystal and I were
having fun people watching since neither one of us was feeling too
well. I pushed on until midnight even though I was feeling like hell.
I didn't want to disappoint all of our new cruise friends, a cute
outfit, and most of all Matt. So I stuck it out till the end of his
birthday. Matt walked me to the room and put me to bed. So, here I am.
Tomorrow is our last day and we arrive in NY Wednesday morning. I'm
taking some vitamins, a xanex, and hitting the hay. I really hope I
kick this bug by tomorrow. Goodnight!
January 11th Tortola British Virgin Islands
Matt's birthday is tomorrow! We pull into Tortola and it's like all of
the other ones. This is our last island so we decide to do an
excursion since we haven't done one yet. We signed up for the snorkel
and Virgin Gouda baths which everyone has been talking about. The
thing I hate about it is we have to get up at 6:30 am and be at the
Stardust Theatre at 7! I am the furthest thing away from being a
morning person. I basically sleep walk to the theatre, but it's going
to be worth it. We get on the boat that is taking us to the baths and
it's not quite what I expected. I thought it was going to be a
catamaran but it turned out being a big metal sort of catamaran boat
but without a sail and it was packed...I started to be not as excited
anymore. The ride there was about 30 minutes, and the waves were big. I
have never gotten sea sick in my life but I was feeling it. Luckily I
didn't puke! Just look at the horizon Jenny! We pull about 100 meters away from shore and have
to snorkel/swim to the shore..I have only snorkeled twice in my life
and one of my biggest fears is getting eaten by a shark or some other
sea creature, so of course I start hyperventilating and barely make it
to shore. What makes it worse it my goggles are all fogged up so I can
barely see what's around me. I eventually calm down but it takes me
about 10 minutes. I finally reach the shore. Now for our "Lost" style
adventure to the Gouda Baths. The trail is through 5ft opening between
4 ton sized rocks. We climb up and down wooden ladders through the
granite rock caves. The rocks are eroded in the most unusual patterns.
It's amazing. We have to hold on to ropes to get down the steep parts
of rock. There was a "larger" man in front of me who almost fell about
twenty times, it was comical. He kept asking how much longer until we
get there.They should have a disclaimer for the excursion saying "No
fatties allowed." It was easy for me to squeeze and crawl through the
small spaces. It was even a bit hard for Matt to get through the extra
small ones. I felt like Crusoe lost on a strange island. We finally
made it to the baths. Crawling from darkness into a beautiful secluded
beach. The Gouda Baths! Since the wind was picking up the baths were
pretty rough, so I decided not to snorkel and to just collect shells
and interesting rocks for our Caribbean souvenir we are going to make.
There were some beautiful shells, unlike any I have ever seen. We got
to hang out on the beach and climb around on the rocks for quite a
while. It was time to head back to the boat. We got to snorkel a bit
more on the way to the boat, and I saw some really pretty fish. A
couple on the boat had seen sting rays, that would have been something
to see. We got back to Tortola where a flea market was going on..I
wasn't feeling well at all so I threw up in the bathroom and pushed on because I
really wanted to get my Tortola shot glass. I found one and headed
back to the boat. By this time I was really getting sick. We got to
the room as fast as we could and I just started puking my guts out. At first, I
thought it was just from the ride on the bumpy boat and too much sun.
I took a nap and woke up two more times to puke between 1pm and
midnight. It wasn't what I called a good time. I came to the
conclusion it was something that I ate? Maybe the Tappenyaki last
night? The funny thing is I told Krystal at dinner that I had never gotten food poisoning before. I should have knocked on wood. Whatever it was, I never want it to happen to me again! Luckily
I took a xanex and slept through most of it, since I didn't have much
in my stomach. I'm just glad it happened after we finished our
excursion and had nothing else special to do since this was our last
island. Hopefully this is one of those 12hr things...hopefully. The good thing is I'm probably going to lose all the weight I have gained on this trip. I heard the average weight gain on a cruise is 5 pounds!!
the other ones. This is our last island so we decide to do an
excursion since we haven't done one yet. We signed up for the snorkel
and Virgin Gouda baths which everyone has been talking about. The
thing I hate about it is we have to get up at 6:30 am and be at the
Stardust Theatre at 7! I am the furthest thing away from being a
morning person. I basically sleep walk to the theatre, but it's going
to be worth it. We get on the boat that is taking us to the baths and
it's not quite what I expected. I thought it was going to be a
catamaran but it turned out being a big metal sort of catamaran boat
but without a sail and it was packed...I started to be not as excited
anymore. The ride there was about 30 minutes, and the waves were big. I
have never gotten sea sick in my life but I was feeling it. Luckily I
didn't puke! Just look at the horizon Jenny! We pull about 100 meters away from shore and have
to snorkel/swim to the shore..I have only snorkeled twice in my life
and one of my biggest fears is getting eaten by a shark or some other
sea creature, so of course I start hyperventilating and barely make it
to shore. What makes it worse it my goggles are all fogged up so I can
barely see what's around me. I eventually calm down but it takes me
about 10 minutes. I finally reach the shore. Now for our "Lost" style
adventure to the Gouda Baths. The trail is through 5ft opening between
4 ton sized rocks. We climb up and down wooden ladders through the
granite rock caves. The rocks are eroded in the most unusual patterns.
It's amazing. We have to hold on to ropes to get down the steep parts
of rock. There was a "larger" man in front of me who almost fell about
twenty times, it was comical. He kept asking how much longer until we
get there.They should have a disclaimer for the excursion saying "No
fatties allowed." It was easy for me to squeeze and crawl through the
small spaces. It was even a bit hard for Matt to get through the extra
small ones. I felt like Crusoe lost on a strange island. We finally
made it to the baths. Crawling from darkness into a beautiful secluded
beach. The Gouda Baths! Since the wind was picking up the baths were
pretty rough, so I decided not to snorkel and to just collect shells
and interesting rocks for our Caribbean souvenir we are going to make.
There were some beautiful shells, unlike any I have ever seen. We got
to hang out on the beach and climb around on the rocks for quite a
while. It was time to head back to the boat. We got to snorkel a bit
more on the way to the boat, and I saw some really pretty fish. A
couple on the boat had seen sting rays, that would have been something
to see. We got back to Tortola where a flea market was going on..I
wasn't feeling well at all so I threw up in the bathroom and pushed on because I
really wanted to get my Tortola shot glass. I found one and headed
back to the boat. By this time I was really getting sick. We got to
the room as fast as we could and I just started puking my guts out. At first, I
thought it was just from the ride on the bumpy boat and too much sun.
I took a nap and woke up two more times to puke between 1pm and
midnight. It wasn't what I called a good time. I came to the
conclusion it was something that I ate? Maybe the Tappenyaki last
night? The funny thing is I told Krystal at dinner that I had never gotten food poisoning before. I should have knocked on wood. Whatever it was, I never want it to happen to me again! Luckily
I took a xanex and slept through most of it, since I didn't have much
in my stomach. I'm just glad it happened after we finished our
excursion and had nothing else special to do since this was our last
island. Hopefully this is one of those 12hr things...hopefully. The good thing is I'm probably going to lose all the weight I have gained on this trip. I heard the average weight gain on a cruise is 5 pounds!!
January 10th St. Maarten French West Indies
We don't get into port today until 11am so we got a good nights sleep
in. This place is beautiful like the rest. This time we aren't
bombarded by islanders yelling, "want a taxi?" or, "want to go to da
beach?" Actually, we aren't asked once. They have all the prices
posted up so there's no ripping people off, and a great bus system
that takes people to the place they ALL want to go. It seems like they
have banned that kind of hustling for taxis. This place also has a
steel drum band welcoming you. I like this place the best already! I
know I keep saying that but every island seems to get better. We
decide to head to Orient Beach. We have only heard great things about
this place. The drive there is much more pleasant than other rides we
have taken. The driver was friendly, and he was playing Caribbean
music. So, St. Marten is a divided island, as a result of the colonial
tug of war between European powers in the Caribbean. Columbus actually
discovered the island first in 1493 but the Spanish never developed
the island after claiming it. Dutch settlers arrived in the early
1600's. Legend has it that a Frenchman and a Dutchman finally settled
an argument over territorial rights by pacing off their shares. The
French got the bigger slice but the Dutch got the most valuable real
estate. The island even has a marked border. Driving into the French
side there was a sign that read, "Bienvenue en Partie Francaise," the
other one reads, "Welcome to the dutch Sint Marten. All the signs
turned into French rather than English and there are way more white
people on the French side. It was amazing how the entire culture
changed so radically within a 15 minute cab ride. Orient Beach is a
very long beach with restaurants and stores all alone it. The
restaurants rent out beach chairs and umbrellas in front of their
spot. We walked the whole beach. Orient is a clothing optional beach,
the drive there we saw a nudist resort which I thought was hilarious.
Actually half of the beach is a completely nude part. Our side was
just mostly topless women. During our walk we saw a lot of boobies!
We even saw some men in banana hammocks with nothing but a pouch and
strings. We settled down at Kontiki. Today we decided was going to be
devoted to getting our tan on. Yesterday we looked around and realized
we were still pale compared to our other cruisers. We slathered on the
tanning oil, ordered some drinks/snacks and kicked back. It was a
beautiful day today, about 85 degrees with a wonderful cool breeze and
barely any clouds in the sky. Our chairs were in the front row, right
on the water. I decided to take advantage of the clothing optional
policy. I had done some topless tanning on our private balcony the
last couple days but here there were people... Normally I would be too
shy to just let the girls hang out but after some convincing from Matt
I took off my top! We were in a pretty scarce area so not too many
people were around, mostly older couples. So I thought what the heck,
I had some drinks in me and I'm never going to see any of these people
again. After 5 minutes, I actually felt very liberated and even forgot
I had taken my swimsuit top off! No tan lines for this girl! I bought
a super cute anklet with pink sea glass and white beads from one of
the women selling items on the beach, Matt got the price from $10 to
$6, such a bargainer. Note, I was shopping for jewelry whilst topless
which I have been giggling about. We would go for a dip every now and
then when we got too hot and needed a cool down or had to pee. Natures
sewer, right. It was the perfect day today. Nothing went wrong, no
rude people, a beautiful laid back island. It was definitely our kind
of place. We decided we are coming back here for sure! We spent all
day here and had to be back at the boat by 5. We got a good full day
of tanning in. Now I look like I could be a native. I tan like a
Mexican, pretty lucky for a white girl. Matt got some great color too.
We head back to the port and have about 45 mins to shop. There is
nothing in the port area except for jewelry stores and crappy souvenir
stores. I did get another shot glass, it says, "Buried my treasure in
St. Maarteen, and it has a little pirate skeleton hanging off the
outside of the glass. I thought it was adorable. I'm really excited
about this new hobby. I'm going to have the most bad ass shot glass
collection ever. I haven't done much shopping since we left New York.
Little things here and there. We do have one more day in NY when we
get back so I'll save it all for there. Best shopping in the USA! We
have dinner with Krystal and Jim the Canadian couple at the tappenyaki
restaurant. The kind where the stove is right in front of you and they
chop and cook all your food very crazy like. I'm excited! Side note,
when I write these logs I am sitting on the balcony, with the sounds
of the ocean in my ears and the sun on my face. This is why I love
vacations, and I never want to forget this moment.
in. This place is beautiful like the rest. This time we aren't
bombarded by islanders yelling, "want a taxi?" or, "want to go to da
beach?" Actually, we aren't asked once. They have all the prices
posted up so there's no ripping people off, and a great bus system
that takes people to the place they ALL want to go. It seems like they
have banned that kind of hustling for taxis. This place also has a
steel drum band welcoming you. I like this place the best already! I
know I keep saying that but every island seems to get better. We
decide to head to Orient Beach. We have only heard great things about
this place. The drive there is much more pleasant than other rides we
have taken. The driver was friendly, and he was playing Caribbean
music. So, St. Marten is a divided island, as a result of the colonial
tug of war between European powers in the Caribbean. Columbus actually
discovered the island first in 1493 but the Spanish never developed
the island after claiming it. Dutch settlers arrived in the early
1600's. Legend has it that a Frenchman and a Dutchman finally settled
an argument over territorial rights by pacing off their shares. The
French got the bigger slice but the Dutch got the most valuable real
estate. The island even has a marked border. Driving into the French
side there was a sign that read, "Bienvenue en Partie Francaise," the
other one reads, "Welcome to the dutch Sint Marten. All the signs
turned into French rather than English and there are way more white
people on the French side. It was amazing how the entire culture
changed so radically within a 15 minute cab ride. Orient Beach is a
very long beach with restaurants and stores all alone it. The
restaurants rent out beach chairs and umbrellas in front of their
spot. We walked the whole beach. Orient is a clothing optional beach,
the drive there we saw a nudist resort which I thought was hilarious.
Actually half of the beach is a completely nude part. Our side was
just mostly topless women. During our walk we saw a lot of boobies!
We even saw some men in banana hammocks with nothing but a pouch and
strings. We settled down at Kontiki. Today we decided was going to be
devoted to getting our tan on. Yesterday we looked around and realized
we were still pale compared to our other cruisers. We slathered on the
tanning oil, ordered some drinks/snacks and kicked back. It was a
beautiful day today, about 85 degrees with a wonderful cool breeze and
barely any clouds in the sky. Our chairs were in the front row, right
on the water. I decided to take advantage of the clothing optional
policy. I had done some topless tanning on our private balcony the
last couple days but here there were people... Normally I would be too
shy to just let the girls hang out but after some convincing from Matt
I took off my top! We were in a pretty scarce area so not too many
people were around, mostly older couples. So I thought what the heck,
I had some drinks in me and I'm never going to see any of these people
again. After 5 minutes, I actually felt very liberated and even forgot
I had taken my swimsuit top off! No tan lines for this girl! I bought
a super cute anklet with pink sea glass and white beads from one of
the women selling items on the beach, Matt got the price from $10 to
$6, such a bargainer. Note, I was shopping for jewelry whilst topless
which I have been giggling about. We would go for a dip every now and
then when we got too hot and needed a cool down or had to pee. Natures
sewer, right. It was the perfect day today. Nothing went wrong, no
rude people, a beautiful laid back island. It was definitely our kind
of place. We decided we are coming back here for sure! We spent all
day here and had to be back at the boat by 5. We got a good full day
of tanning in. Now I look like I could be a native. I tan like a
Mexican, pretty lucky for a white girl. Matt got some great color too.
We head back to the port and have about 45 mins to shop. There is
nothing in the port area except for jewelry stores and crappy souvenir
stores. I did get another shot glass, it says, "Buried my treasure in
St. Maarteen, and it has a little pirate skeleton hanging off the
outside of the glass. I thought it was adorable. I'm really excited
about this new hobby. I'm going to have the most bad ass shot glass
collection ever. I haven't done much shopping since we left New York.
Little things here and there. We do have one more day in NY when we
get back so I'll save it all for there. Best shopping in the USA! We
have dinner with Krystal and Jim the Canadian couple at the tappenyaki
restaurant. The kind where the stove is right in front of you and they
chop and cook all your food very crazy like. I'm excited! Side note,
when I write these logs I am sitting on the balcony, with the sounds
of the ocean in my ears and the sun on my face. This is why I love
vacations, and I never want to forget this moment.
January 9th Barbados West Indies
Matt didn't feel so well today, he has a slight sinus infection. So I
got up early by myself and went to the gym while he slept in. By this
time the Newlywed Show is playing on a loop on the activities channel
on the cabin tv's, and everyone knows who I am. I got a lot of
different feedback from people, everyone enjoyed the show and had more
questions. Someone will recognize us and get the attention of the
people they are with and point and smile, lots of, "is that them,"
and, " Oh yeah! That's that one couple!" By this time, I'm starting to
get a little annoyed. These people are like the verbal paparazzi! We
are already in port at Barbados. This place is a lot different because
the ship port isn't right in town like the last two places have been,
here you have to get on a bus and it takes you about 2 minutes to the
end of the port area. We are greeted by a steel drum band! I like it
already. There is a shopping mall right where the buses drop you off
but nothing very good there, except for the Liquor store, which we buy
a fifth of absolute mango for $13 which I have never tried and fill
our huge water bottle with it...shame on us. But the price of the
fifth is a price of a cocktail on the ship. Even though we made
friends with the cruise director who has already bought us about $200
dollars worth of alcohol and a very nice dinner, we are starting to
feel bad. Barbados is much more developed than the last two places
due to a more strict and better set up government. There are
government officials everywhere in light brown uniforms. We were also
informed you could not wear camouflage here or you would be sent back
to change. The streets and buildings are very clean here. We find a
lady taxi driver and she wants $200 dollar for 3 hours of driving us
around, Matt is a great bargainer and got it down to $120, she was
pretty pissed but we didn't really care. We skipped breakfast today so
we could be hungry for some Barbadian cuisine. We went to a place
called The Tides, which we read in our book is the best restaurant on
the island. The restaurant is beautiful! It was made of stone and was
right on the water. The place was all open so the cool breeze coming
through felt great. Our taxi drivers nephew actually worked there so
she got to hang out with him while we ate. We were told to eat before
we got hungry because the service in Barbados is island time plus 30
minutes, we found this out quick. First they sat us in a lounge area
in the bar so we got some fruity cocktails. We hung out in there for
about 30 minutes...oh and we were the only people in the restaurant so
far. Finally they come to seat us outside, we got the best spot in the
place. Right on the water, I could taste the salt of the sea. It was a
beautiful day too, 87 degrees and sunny. This place was very British
and proper. I went to the restroom and when I got back my napkin was
folded...very British. This meal was phenomenal! We started with
appetizers, shrimp, oysters, and crab spring rolls...every single one
was rave worthy. Then for main course I got a tuna salad which was
great but I was so full so I boxed it up to eat on the ship later,
much better then the ship food! Matt got the catch of the day which
happened to be barracuda! Neither of us had eaten it before and it was
very tasty. I wish they had barracuda in Seattle. If we come back we
will eat there again for sure. Then we drove around the island for a
bit, our driver took us to the oldest church in Barbados which was
built in 1628! It was fascinating in a creepy sort of way. The yard
around the church was surrounded with tombstones, there was even a guy
buried in the wall of the church, how creepy is that. This island is
much more tropical than the other places. Now we felt like some sun so
we headed to a place called The Boatyard, this is the place where most
of the boat staff go to and the taxi driver said it gets pretty rowdy.
It was a fun little spot, except for the $15 per lounge chair, yeah
right. We just laid on our towels. They had a bar which was blasting
music and having dance contests for free drinks. We didn't hang out in
there much, I just felt like working on my tan and swimming. You know
how you can never float on your back for long in a pool, well in this
water you float like a feather because of all the salt, interesting
fact. We will have to remember that spot when we come back on want to
get a little rowdy. Today is a short day, we got here at 9 and have to
be back at 4. I wasn't too happy about that because this place was
really nice. Another time. This place is beautiful, our taxi lady was
a bitch though but I didn't let her ruin this visit. On our way back
to the ship I bought a shot glass that has the island of Barbados and
some flowers on it, the Canadian couple said they collect shot glasses
from everywhere they go. I really liked that idea, I didn't buy any at
Antigua or St. Thomas but will just have to cheat and get some
online.I have a body treatment at 4:45 today which I am stoked for! I
can't wait to be pampered. A lime and ginger full body scrub, pro-
collagen Facial, foot reflexology(which I have never done) frangipani
scalp massage(whatever that is)and one hour in the sauna and steam
room. This should be fun! My treatment was amazing! Actually one of my
best experiences at a spa. Their steam room was incredible too, and I
love steam rooms. I sat in there for about 30 mins with a great view
of the ocean. Matt and I have some time to wind down before the night
begins. Matt bought me a beautiful swarovsky necklace in the shape of
a moon today, I love it! What a sweet heart. There is a comedy sketch
improvisation show tonight called Second City, a lot like who's line
is it anyway. It was a good show. I laughed a lot. Then we head up to
the Spinakker Lounge for another comedian, I forgot his name. He was
from NY and had a lot of one liners. I can barely remember one joke
let alone 400! He had some good ones, but he had some really bad ones
too. Next we head to Bliss Lounge for a couple drinks, nothing too
crazy, we have a big day tomorrow in St. Maarteen!
got up early by myself and went to the gym while he slept in. By this
time the Newlywed Show is playing on a loop on the activities channel
on the cabin tv's, and everyone knows who I am. I got a lot of
different feedback from people, everyone enjoyed the show and had more
questions. Someone will recognize us and get the attention of the
people they are with and point and smile, lots of, "is that them,"
and, " Oh yeah! That's that one couple!" By this time, I'm starting to
get a little annoyed. These people are like the verbal paparazzi! We
are already in port at Barbados. This place is a lot different because
the ship port isn't right in town like the last two places have been,
here you have to get on a bus and it takes you about 2 minutes to the
end of the port area. We are greeted by a steel drum band! I like it
already. There is a shopping mall right where the buses drop you off
but nothing very good there, except for the Liquor store, which we buy
a fifth of absolute mango for $13 which I have never tried and fill
our huge water bottle with it...shame on us. But the price of the
fifth is a price of a cocktail on the ship. Even though we made
friends with the cruise director who has already bought us about $200
dollars worth of alcohol and a very nice dinner, we are starting to
feel bad. Barbados is much more developed than the last two places
due to a more strict and better set up government. There are
government officials everywhere in light brown uniforms. We were also
informed you could not wear camouflage here or you would be sent back
to change. The streets and buildings are very clean here. We find a
lady taxi driver and she wants $200 dollar for 3 hours of driving us
around, Matt is a great bargainer and got it down to $120, she was
pretty pissed but we didn't really care. We skipped breakfast today so
we could be hungry for some Barbadian cuisine. We went to a place
called The Tides, which we read in our book is the best restaurant on
the island. The restaurant is beautiful! It was made of stone and was
right on the water. The place was all open so the cool breeze coming
through felt great. Our taxi drivers nephew actually worked there so
she got to hang out with him while we ate. We were told to eat before
we got hungry because the service in Barbados is island time plus 30
minutes, we found this out quick. First they sat us in a lounge area
in the bar so we got some fruity cocktails. We hung out in there for
about 30 minutes...oh and we were the only people in the restaurant so
far. Finally they come to seat us outside, we got the best spot in the
place. Right on the water, I could taste the salt of the sea. It was a
beautiful day too, 87 degrees and sunny. This place was very British
and proper. I went to the restroom and when I got back my napkin was
folded...very British. This meal was phenomenal! We started with
appetizers, shrimp, oysters, and crab spring rolls...every single one
was rave worthy. Then for main course I got a tuna salad which was
great but I was so full so I boxed it up to eat on the ship later,
much better then the ship food! Matt got the catch of the day which
happened to be barracuda! Neither of us had eaten it before and it was
very tasty. I wish they had barracuda in Seattle. If we come back we
will eat there again for sure. Then we drove around the island for a
bit, our driver took us to the oldest church in Barbados which was
built in 1628! It was fascinating in a creepy sort of way. The yard
around the church was surrounded with tombstones, there was even a guy
buried in the wall of the church, how creepy is that. This island is
much more tropical than the other places. Now we felt like some sun so
we headed to a place called The Boatyard, this is the place where most
of the boat staff go to and the taxi driver said it gets pretty rowdy.
It was a fun little spot, except for the $15 per lounge chair, yeah
right. We just laid on our towels. They had a bar which was blasting
music and having dance contests for free drinks. We didn't hang out in
there much, I just felt like working on my tan and swimming. You know
how you can never float on your back for long in a pool, well in this
water you float like a feather because of all the salt, interesting
fact. We will have to remember that spot when we come back on want to
get a little rowdy. Today is a short day, we got here at 9 and have to
be back at 4. I wasn't too happy about that because this place was
really nice. Another time. This place is beautiful, our taxi lady was
a bitch though but I didn't let her ruin this visit. On our way back
to the ship I bought a shot glass that has the island of Barbados and
some flowers on it, the Canadian couple said they collect shot glasses
from everywhere they go. I really liked that idea, I didn't buy any at
Antigua or St. Thomas but will just have to cheat and get some
online.I have a body treatment at 4:45 today which I am stoked for! I
can't wait to be pampered. A lime and ginger full body scrub, pro-
collagen Facial, foot reflexology(which I have never done) frangipani
scalp massage(whatever that is)and one hour in the sauna and steam
room. This should be fun! My treatment was amazing! Actually one of my
best experiences at a spa. Their steam room was incredible too, and I
love steam rooms. I sat in there for about 30 mins with a great view
of the ocean. Matt and I have some time to wind down before the night
begins. Matt bought me a beautiful swarovsky necklace in the shape of
a moon today, I love it! What a sweet heart. There is a comedy sketch
improvisation show tonight called Second City, a lot like who's line
is it anyway. It was a good show. I laughed a lot. Then we head up to
the Spinakker Lounge for another comedian, I forgot his name. He was
from NY and had a lot of one liners. I can barely remember one joke
let alone 400! He had some good ones, but he had some really bad ones
too. Next we head to Bliss Lounge for a couple drinks, nothing too
crazy, we have a big day tomorrow in St. Maarteen!
January 8th Antigua Netherland Antilles
We wake up at 9, we are already in port but we didn't feel like waking
up at 730 when our ship arrived. This place doesn't look as nice at
first. The town is more run down than St. Thomas was. We decided to
walk around a bit, after getting bombarded by 20 rasta men asking if
we need a taxi or want to go to this place or that place. The stores
have nothing but crap. We went into a grocery store and the shelves were empty! There were only about 3 of each item on the shelves. I went into one of the higher end stores and see a shirt I
already have which I paid about 20 bucks for and they are charging 49!
WTF, we stop shopping right then. What a ripoff. I'd rather shop at
Bellesquare or downtown anyway. I just want the beach. We have gotten
very lucky with this trip so far, and I hope it doesn't run out
anytime soon. We run into a guy named Kurtis, we later find out his
real name is Kurleigh, which I liked better. Matt and I had a feeling
about him because he wasn't as pushy and crazy as the other guys. Matt
offers 100 bucks to drive us around for 3 hours and see all the really
good spots. I'm lucky I have Matt around because he is a total people
person. Matt hits it off with Kurleigh too! I love his accent! I only
understand about half of what he is saying but when I do understand he
is hilarious! He drives us around all the back roads, there are goats
everywhere! Just running around with no fences. I saw tons of baby
goats and baby donkeys and wanted to take them home with me. We saw a
mongoose running across the road too. Now that we are out of the town
and along the coast line I can see that the beaches are way more
beautiful than St. Thomas had. The say there are 365 beaches on
Antigua, one for every day of the year. They all are beautiful too,
white sand beaches, clear blue water, just amazing. First we head to
this one beach and see some naked ladies. We didn't like the feel of
the beach or the old naked ladies so we move on. Kurleigh takes us to
a place called Devil's Bridge. It is a natural bridge formed out of
rock that you can walk across. So we took some pictures and enjoyed
the view for a bit. We noticed some people on wave runners a couple
miles up the beach and we decided we wanted to do that! But Kurleigh
said he had somewhere better then that spot. So we traveled across the
whole island of Antigua and stop at this really cool beach. It was a
bungalow with two pool tables and a wave runner rental place. Matt and
I rode the wave runners for an hour. It was an absolute blast, it
started raining while we were on them which sucked but it only last
for about a minute, I'm actually becoming accustomed and liking them
more and more. I wish it rained for only a minute in Seattle though.
After our ride we ordered some drinks. WHile we were in the car we
noticed a pool stick case in the backseat. Turns out Kurleigh loves
pool, as do I. He said he really wanted to play me. It worked out
perfect that the bungalow had a pool table. But instead of playing me
Kurleigh set me up in a game with a local islander who looked like
snoop dog! There were about 5 of them hanging out there and they
seemed to be getting a kick out of it. Kurleigh even bet some money on
me that I would win, I started out kicking the guys ass and the locals
were going crazy that a little white girl was beating one of their
own. He caught up and beat me by one ball! When the locals talk in
their dialect it sounds like they are mad but Kurleigh said they just
give each other a lot of shit and joke around. We had a lot of fun but
had to make it back to the boat on time. On the way back Kurleigh
taught us some slang. Check me wah meh saay, which means listen to
what I'm saying. Yoo mahkin meh bust mah brains, which means your
making me think too much, and "giiiirrlll, yoo strasssin meee ooooot,
which means give me a break. Also three is tree to them. So when he
asked my age I said twenty tree. He got a kick out of that. you'reMatt
has been saying check me wah I say ever since. We got Kurleighs number
and gave him our cards and he was begging us to come back, not on a
cruise ship, so he could take us around and hit the night clubs in
Antigua which are supposed to be poppin, as he said. We might have to
plan a trip back to Antigua in the next couple months. I was sad to
say bye to our chauffeur, he was the funniest and most care free local
I have met so far. Back on the ship. We take a little nap before
dinner reservations with Ray the cruise director. We have hung out
with him the past 3 nights but never gotten the chance to really sit
and talk to him without blasting music around. We ate at the Asian
Fusion restaurant. We ordered enough food for a small army but it was
really good food. The best I have had so far, Le Bistro is in at a
close second for now. We pretty much talked about Seattle the whole
time, Matt and Ray were trying to figure out if they knew any of the
same people, it was a great dinner. I had my first saketini and it was
really good, I might be getting more of those in the near future. I
missed bingo tonight for the second time, but I am determined to play
before the trip is over. There is a deck party tonight out by the
pool, it's 77 out right now and it's 9:00pm! Pretty crazy! We plan to
go out for one drink, just one because tomorrow is Barbados and we
want to be up and out of here early so we can get a full day in! A lot
of people have told us Barbados is the best spot on our itinerary, but
I will decide that. I don't know if it will top todays adventures?
up at 730 when our ship arrived. This place doesn't look as nice at
first. The town is more run down than St. Thomas was. We decided to
walk around a bit, after getting bombarded by 20 rasta men asking if
we need a taxi or want to go to this place or that place. The stores
have nothing but crap. We went into a grocery store and the shelves were empty! There were only about 3 of each item on the shelves. I went into one of the higher end stores and see a shirt I
already have which I paid about 20 bucks for and they are charging 49!
WTF, we stop shopping right then. What a ripoff. I'd rather shop at
Bellesquare or downtown anyway. I just want the beach. We have gotten
very lucky with this trip so far, and I hope it doesn't run out
anytime soon. We run into a guy named Kurtis, we later find out his
real name is Kurleigh, which I liked better. Matt and I had a feeling
about him because he wasn't as pushy and crazy as the other guys. Matt
offers 100 bucks to drive us around for 3 hours and see all the really
good spots. I'm lucky I have Matt around because he is a total people
person. Matt hits it off with Kurleigh too! I love his accent! I only
understand about half of what he is saying but when I do understand he
is hilarious! He drives us around all the back roads, there are goats
everywhere! Just running around with no fences. I saw tons of baby
goats and baby donkeys and wanted to take them home with me. We saw a
mongoose running across the road too. Now that we are out of the town
and along the coast line I can see that the beaches are way more
beautiful than St. Thomas had. The say there are 365 beaches on
Antigua, one for every day of the year. They all are beautiful too,
white sand beaches, clear blue water, just amazing. First we head to
this one beach and see some naked ladies. We didn't like the feel of
the beach or the old naked ladies so we move on. Kurleigh takes us to
a place called Devil's Bridge. It is a natural bridge formed out of
rock that you can walk across. So we took some pictures and enjoyed
the view for a bit. We noticed some people on wave runners a couple
miles up the beach and we decided we wanted to do that! But Kurleigh
said he had somewhere better then that spot. So we traveled across the
whole island of Antigua and stop at this really cool beach. It was a
bungalow with two pool tables and a wave runner rental place. Matt and
I rode the wave runners for an hour. It was an absolute blast, it
started raining while we were on them which sucked but it only last
for about a minute, I'm actually becoming accustomed and liking them
more and more. I wish it rained for only a minute in Seattle though.
After our ride we ordered some drinks. WHile we were in the car we
noticed a pool stick case in the backseat. Turns out Kurleigh loves
pool, as do I. He said he really wanted to play me. It worked out
perfect that the bungalow had a pool table. But instead of playing me
Kurleigh set me up in a game with a local islander who looked like
snoop dog! There were about 5 of them hanging out there and they
seemed to be getting a kick out of it. Kurleigh even bet some money on
me that I would win, I started out kicking the guys ass and the locals
were going crazy that a little white girl was beating one of their
own. He caught up and beat me by one ball! When the locals talk in
their dialect it sounds like they are mad but Kurleigh said they just
give each other a lot of shit and joke around. We had a lot of fun but
had to make it back to the boat on time. On the way back Kurleigh
taught us some slang. Check me wah meh saay, which means listen to
what I'm saying. Yoo mahkin meh bust mah brains, which means your
making me think too much, and "giiiirrlll, yoo strasssin meee ooooot,
which means give me a break. Also three is tree to them. So when he
asked my age I said twenty tree. He got a kick out of that. you'reMatt
has been saying check me wah I say ever since. We got Kurleighs number
and gave him our cards and he was begging us to come back, not on a
cruise ship, so he could take us around and hit the night clubs in
Antigua which are supposed to be poppin, as he said. We might have to
plan a trip back to Antigua in the next couple months. I was sad to
say bye to our chauffeur, he was the funniest and most care free local
I have met so far. Back on the ship. We take a little nap before
dinner reservations with Ray the cruise director. We have hung out
with him the past 3 nights but never gotten the chance to really sit
and talk to him without blasting music around. We ate at the Asian
Fusion restaurant. We ordered enough food for a small army but it was
really good food. The best I have had so far, Le Bistro is in at a
close second for now. We pretty much talked about Seattle the whole
time, Matt and Ray were trying to figure out if they knew any of the
same people, it was a great dinner. I had my first saketini and it was
really good, I might be getting more of those in the near future. I
missed bingo tonight for the second time, but I am determined to play
before the trip is over. There is a deck party tonight out by the
pool, it's 77 out right now and it's 9:00pm! Pretty crazy! We plan to
go out for one drink, just one because tomorrow is Barbados and we
want to be up and out of here early so we can get a full day in! A lot
of people have told us Barbados is the best spot on our itinerary, but
I will decide that. I don't know if it will top todays adventures?
January 7th St. Thomas US Virgin Islands
AHOY LAND!!! We are hitting our first port today, St. Thomas! I can't wait,
I could hardly sleep last night, I can't wait to get off this ship and
hit the beach! We wake up bright and early, had a nice breakfast, and
wait around for 1 to come to we can get off. Pulling into the port is
simply breathtaking. It's about 85 degrees, love it! We get off the
boat and are greeted by a most likely philippino guy because they were
about 4ft nothing, in a furry dolphin costume. I felt really bad for
them, they must be sweating profusely. We take our picture with him
and get going. There are people everywhere! There are 2 other cruise
ships in front of us. Carnival and Explorer of the seas. We heard from
both Jimmy and Ray that we should definitely head to Megan's Bay..I
was surprised there weren't that many taxis around but we spotted one,
right when another couple did. We offered to share. They were a cute
older couple from the Midwest I think. The cab driver is a really old
guy, not the nicest in the world either. But whatever, I would be mean
if I were a cab driver driving around americans all day too. I give
him a break. He brings up downtown and we say No, Megan's Bay and he
says,an "No." Whatever old man. We find another guy who is equally as
rude but he takes us to the beach. The beach has a freaking fee to get
in. Anyway for them to take our money I guess. The beach reminds me of
Miami, there are so many people there! The beach is pretty long and it
was packed. I wasn't too into it, I would rather be on an okay beach
with just a few people or even better the only people. We get some
fruity drinks and rent some floaties. The water is colder then I
expected but I got used to it fast. If I could only get paid to drink
strawberry daiquiris and float around on my floaty all day. Matt and I
floated around for 2 hours. I was well on my way to getting that
perfect tan! Our floaties also doubles as beach mats. Better then
getting sand in places you have never even seen. We bask in the sun
for about another two hours. The craziest thing happened, there was
this adorable little girl walking down the beach screaming bloody
murder! It was obvious she was lost, a girl asked her if she was lost
and wanted help and the little girl screamed "NOOOOOOO!" Even louder
than she was screaming in the first place. NOOO NOOO NOOO is all she
would say, then cry some more. I guess her parents taught her well.
Now this beach is pretty long and big, so the girl followed close
behind the toddler, eventually an older woman just swooped the little
girl up, kicking and screaming. Thank goodness her Dad finally came
and found her with her Mom sprinting behind him. I couldn't imagine
that feeling of losing your kid. It was an interesting spectacle
nonetheless. We ran into the two Jersey couples and offered them to
come with us to this place called Bushwackers on Paradise Point, so
they came along. We rode this huge trolly slash bush slash tour bus
back to downtown. This probably will get us bad karma but when we
reached the town we skipped out on the 8 bucks a person, the guy
didn't notice and there was a crowd around him..shame on us...We head
to the tram that takes you to the top of the hill where Bushwackers
is, which is 21 bucks a person! Fucking insane. But people that were
leaving said it was well worth it. So we do it. The ride was is pretty
scary, especially when there is a printed sign that says, " Do not
panic, the tram will not fall!" Now that's reassuring. We reach the
top and the view puts me in awe! We can see the whole marina, the
beaches, islands, and as far out on the horizon as it goes. There was
nothing to block your view, no trees or anything. Simply amazing, and
well worth the $42. We ordered our food which was pretty good. Matt
got a drink called the bushwacker and it was delicious, a baileys and
kahlua blended mixture with whipped cream on top, nutmeg sprinkles,
and a cherry. SOOO good! We sat up there for a good 2 hours just
taking in the view. We had until 6:30 to get back to the ship so we
got to see the sunset from up there. I took lots of pictures, but I
will never forget that view in my mind ever. TIme to head back to the
boat. We have time to take a nap before the nights festivities start.
Before we take a nap Matt calls Ray and asked about the Newlywed game
tonight, and Ray said you're in! Even though we aren't
married...engaged is close enough. I'm so excited. This should be fun!
For dinner we went to Le Bistro, a french restaurant. I have only had
french food a handful of times, a little rich for my taste. We start
out with french onion soup which I have never had and it was really
good. Also, escargot...yes...snails..and they were surprisingly tasty,
maybe because they were smothered in butter? I had the faux grau
chicken breast which was good as well and Matt had the lobster. I
liked mine better. Tonight we met a new person with connections. Suri,
an indian man who manages Le Bistro. So so nice, almost too nice but I
will take nice over mean any day! We talk to him for a while after we
finished and he ordered us 2 desserts out of nowhere, the chocolate
fondue and creme brulee. Very nice man, almost child like. Anyway, it
never hurts to know people. Now its time to head to Spinnacker Lounge
for the Newlywed game! We get there and the place is packed to the
hilt! It's the largest lounge on the boat and it is packed! Now I'm
getting nervous. The stage is all lit up with chairs and everything.
Now I'm starting to sweat. Ray says a few words to the crowd and
introduces all the couples. There are 5 couples..the first have been
married for 5 days ( which we learn later they are only bf and gf but
have dated for 4 years) us who we lie to the crowd and say we have
been married since Sept. 1st. There were 3 other older couples who
have been together 9yrs, 20yrs and 30yrs. For some reason I think the
30years couple is going to win. Please welcome Mr. and Mrs. Curry, Ray
says to the crowd. All I can do is giggle. To start off the game the
men are sent to the "secret soundproof room" and we are asked the
first questions. Oh man, the questions were hilarious. For
example...what is the first thing your husband touches when he wakes
up, and what is the strangest thing your husband has done in front of
you, naked. It was the funniest thing ever. Oh, by the way, this whole
thing was taped and played on a loop on the stateroom tvs the whole
trip and we also got a burnt dvd if anyone wants to see it, you will
pee your pants I promise you. So the men come back and try to guess
what the woman say. THis part is even funnier! So far we have zero
points! Now the girls are sent away. Thank god they had drinks waiting
in the special room, I make friends with Kelly, the other couple who
lied. She is from New Jersey, we share a shot because we both can't
believe this is happening. We are welcomed back by a very loud crowd.
I can tell we women are in for it. Some of the girls questions were
"your husband buys you a bra, what size does he get?" (I'm a 34C but I
say Matt said a 32C, but he was right and said 34C! I don't know why I
went lower, but we got 5 points for that one)and where is the craziest
place you have gotten intimate with your wife?" Matt really got me
with this one, hmm the Tram on the way down from Bushwackers! The
crowd went crazy on that one and I'm sure I was very red. Overall we
got a total of 5 points for getting half a question right, I guess Ray
felt bad for us. We head to Bliss Lounge for some drinks and meet up
with the couple from Canada, Ray, and Kelly (whose husband is already
passed out) Kelly and I dance and the boys talk. Now I know how it
feels to be a celebrity, since the Newlyweds show was so packed pretty
much everyone in the club knew who Matt and I were and came up to us
laughing and joking about the show. It was hilarious! We end up having
a late night snack with our new Canadian friends. We haven't had as
much luck with the New Yorkers, too high strung for me! The canadians
are just good people, very chill, and can keep up good and interesting
conversation. They end up being on the same floor as us but on the
other side, we say goodnight and head to bed. Tomorrow is Antigua!
I could hardly sleep last night, I can't wait to get off this ship and
hit the beach! We wake up bright and early, had a nice breakfast, and
wait around for 1 to come to we can get off. Pulling into the port is
simply breathtaking. It's about 85 degrees, love it! We get off the
boat and are greeted by a most likely philippino guy because they were
about 4ft nothing, in a furry dolphin costume. I felt really bad for
them, they must be sweating profusely. We take our picture with him
and get going. There are people everywhere! There are 2 other cruise
ships in front of us. Carnival and Explorer of the seas. We heard from
both Jimmy and Ray that we should definitely head to Megan's Bay..I
was surprised there weren't that many taxis around but we spotted one,
right when another couple did. We offered to share. They were a cute
older couple from the Midwest I think. The cab driver is a really old
guy, not the nicest in the world either. But whatever, I would be mean
if I were a cab driver driving around americans all day too. I give
him a break. He brings up downtown and we say No, Megan's Bay and he
says,an "No." Whatever old man. We find another guy who is equally as
rude but he takes us to the beach. The beach has a freaking fee to get
in. Anyway for them to take our money I guess. The beach reminds me of
Miami, there are so many people there! The beach is pretty long and it
was packed. I wasn't too into it, I would rather be on an okay beach
with just a few people or even better the only people. We get some
fruity drinks and rent some floaties. The water is colder then I
expected but I got used to it fast. If I could only get paid to drink
strawberry daiquiris and float around on my floaty all day. Matt and I
floated around for 2 hours. I was well on my way to getting that
perfect tan! Our floaties also doubles as beach mats. Better then
getting sand in places you have never even seen. We bask in the sun
for about another two hours. The craziest thing happened, there was
this adorable little girl walking down the beach screaming bloody
murder! It was obvious she was lost, a girl asked her if she was lost
and wanted help and the little girl screamed "NOOOOOOO!" Even louder
than she was screaming in the first place. NOOO NOOO NOOO is all she
would say, then cry some more. I guess her parents taught her well.
Now this beach is pretty long and big, so the girl followed close
behind the toddler, eventually an older woman just swooped the little
girl up, kicking and screaming. Thank goodness her Dad finally came
and found her with her Mom sprinting behind him. I couldn't imagine
that feeling of losing your kid. It was an interesting spectacle
nonetheless. We ran into the two Jersey couples and offered them to
come with us to this place called Bushwackers on Paradise Point, so
they came along. We rode this huge trolly slash bush slash tour bus
back to downtown. This probably will get us bad karma but when we
reached the town we skipped out on the 8 bucks a person, the guy
didn't notice and there was a crowd around him..shame on us...We head
to the tram that takes you to the top of the hill where Bushwackers
is, which is 21 bucks a person! Fucking insane. But people that were
leaving said it was well worth it. So we do it. The ride was is pretty
scary, especially when there is a printed sign that says, " Do not
panic, the tram will not fall!" Now that's reassuring. We reach the
top and the view puts me in awe! We can see the whole marina, the
beaches, islands, and as far out on the horizon as it goes. There was
nothing to block your view, no trees or anything. Simply amazing, and
well worth the $42. We ordered our food which was pretty good. Matt
got a drink called the bushwacker and it was delicious, a baileys and
kahlua blended mixture with whipped cream on top, nutmeg sprinkles,
and a cherry. SOOO good! We sat up there for a good 2 hours just
taking in the view. We had until 6:30 to get back to the ship so we
got to see the sunset from up there. I took lots of pictures, but I
will never forget that view in my mind ever. TIme to head back to the
boat. We have time to take a nap before the nights festivities start.
Before we take a nap Matt calls Ray and asked about the Newlywed game
tonight, and Ray said you're in! Even though we aren't
married...engaged is close enough. I'm so excited. This should be fun!
For dinner we went to Le Bistro, a french restaurant. I have only had
french food a handful of times, a little rich for my taste. We start
out with french onion soup which I have never had and it was really
good. Also, escargot...yes...snails..and they were surprisingly tasty,
maybe because they were smothered in butter? I had the faux grau
chicken breast which was good as well and Matt had the lobster. I
liked mine better. Tonight we met a new person with connections. Suri,
an indian man who manages Le Bistro. So so nice, almost too nice but I
will take nice over mean any day! We talk to him for a while after we
finished and he ordered us 2 desserts out of nowhere, the chocolate
fondue and creme brulee. Very nice man, almost child like. Anyway, it
never hurts to know people. Now its time to head to Spinnacker Lounge
for the Newlywed game! We get there and the place is packed to the
hilt! It's the largest lounge on the boat and it is packed! Now I'm
getting nervous. The stage is all lit up with chairs and everything.
Now I'm starting to sweat. Ray says a few words to the crowd and
introduces all the couples. There are 5 couples..the first have been
married for 5 days ( which we learn later they are only bf and gf but
have dated for 4 years) us who we lie to the crowd and say we have
been married since Sept. 1st. There were 3 other older couples who
have been together 9yrs, 20yrs and 30yrs. For some reason I think the
30years couple is going to win. Please welcome Mr. and Mrs. Curry, Ray
says to the crowd. All I can do is giggle. To start off the game the
men are sent to the "secret soundproof room" and we are asked the
first questions. Oh man, the questions were hilarious. For
example...what is the first thing your husband touches when he wakes
up, and what is the strangest thing your husband has done in front of
you, naked. It was the funniest thing ever. Oh, by the way, this whole
thing was taped and played on a loop on the stateroom tvs the whole
trip and we also got a burnt dvd if anyone wants to see it, you will
pee your pants I promise you. So the men come back and try to guess
what the woman say. THis part is even funnier! So far we have zero
points! Now the girls are sent away. Thank god they had drinks waiting
in the special room, I make friends with Kelly, the other couple who
lied. She is from New Jersey, we share a shot because we both can't
believe this is happening. We are welcomed back by a very loud crowd.
I can tell we women are in for it. Some of the girls questions were
"your husband buys you a bra, what size does he get?" (I'm a 34C but I
say Matt said a 32C, but he was right and said 34C! I don't know why I
went lower, but we got 5 points for that one)and where is the craziest
place you have gotten intimate with your wife?" Matt really got me
with this one, hmm the Tram on the way down from Bushwackers! The
crowd went crazy on that one and I'm sure I was very red. Overall we
got a total of 5 points for getting half a question right, I guess Ray
felt bad for us. We head to Bliss Lounge for some drinks and meet up
with the couple from Canada, Ray, and Kelly (whose husband is already
passed out) Kelly and I dance and the boys talk. Now I know how it
feels to be a celebrity, since the Newlyweds show was so packed pretty
much everyone in the club knew who Matt and I were and came up to us
laughing and joking about the show. It was hilarious! We end up having
a late night snack with our new Canadian friends. We haven't had as
much luck with the New Yorkers, too high strung for me! The canadians
are just good people, very chill, and can keep up good and interesting
conversation. They end up being on the same floor as us but on the
other side, we say goodnight and head to bed. Tomorrow is Antigua!
January 6th at sea on the Norwegian Gem
Today was definitely not a wake up and head to the gym day. It was a
wake up at noon day and chug some water. We decided to walk the ship
again today and find some new things. It's our second day at sea and
our last until we head back to New York. It's actually warm today, we
are almost near Puerto Rico. It's really windy and a bit cloudy but
right when the wind stops and the sun comes out it's hot! We tried to
lay out today but it was just too windy. The most hilarious thing
happened today, a down poor happened, luckily we were sitting under a
hut when it hit and we had a great view of the whole pool area, and
everyone just split, people running for cover everywhere, people
falling. It was the most hilarious thing I have seen so far. It gave
me a pretty good laugh. I got tired of getting goosebumps on my
vacation so we head inside. We found a new lounge today, the Spinnaker
Lounger. It's larger then Bliss Lounge and not as cheesy. We also
found a really cool computerized blackjack game. I actually played
this time, just to get some practice in incase I decided to play with
a real dealer. Lucky us, it was karaoke night. I guess it was just a
funny sort of day. 75 year olds singing songs I have never heard of?
Also, very entertaining. There is a comedian onboard, Bill Bernhardt.
So we decided to see his show tonight. He started off horrible but
after he warmed up a bit he was actually very funny. It takes a very
funny person to make me laugh hard and he got the job done. Tonight is
the white hot white hot hotty hot party, or something equally as long
and confusing. All the crew was in white outfits today so we decided
to follow the trend. Luckily I brought a white dress. It was pretty
cool, with all the black lights and glow sticks..reminded me of a
small version of a rave. The after party was at Bliss, where we ran
into Ray again and talked the night away again. Matt and Ray really
hit it off. We danced for a little while there. We decided not to get
as crazy as last night, we ended up going to bed around 2 instead of
4. We hit up the Blue Lagoon again for a snack and then off to our
stateroom sweet stateroom. Tomorrow we will be in St. Thomas! I can't wait to step foot on our first island.
wake up at noon day and chug some water. We decided to walk the ship
again today and find some new things. It's our second day at sea and
our last until we head back to New York. It's actually warm today, we
are almost near Puerto Rico. It's really windy and a bit cloudy but
right when the wind stops and the sun comes out it's hot! We tried to
lay out today but it was just too windy. The most hilarious thing
happened today, a down poor happened, luckily we were sitting under a
hut when it hit and we had a great view of the whole pool area, and
everyone just split, people running for cover everywhere, people
falling. It was the most hilarious thing I have seen so far. It gave
me a pretty good laugh. I got tired of getting goosebumps on my
vacation so we head inside. We found a new lounge today, the Spinnaker
Lounger. It's larger then Bliss Lounge and not as cheesy. We also
found a really cool computerized blackjack game. I actually played
this time, just to get some practice in incase I decided to play with
a real dealer. Lucky us, it was karaoke night. I guess it was just a
funny sort of day. 75 year olds singing songs I have never heard of?
Also, very entertaining. There is a comedian onboard, Bill Bernhardt.
So we decided to see his show tonight. He started off horrible but
after he warmed up a bit he was actually very funny. It takes a very
funny person to make me laugh hard and he got the job done. Tonight is
the white hot white hot hotty hot party, or something equally as long
and confusing. All the crew was in white outfits today so we decided
to follow the trend. Luckily I brought a white dress. It was pretty
cool, with all the black lights and glow sticks..reminded me of a
small version of a rave. The after party was at Bliss, where we ran
into Ray again and talked the night away again. Matt and Ray really
hit it off. We danced for a little while there. We decided not to get
as crazy as last night, we ended up going to bed around 2 instead of
4. We hit up the Blue Lagoon again for a snack and then off to our
stateroom sweet stateroom. Tomorrow we will be in St. Thomas! I can't wait to step foot on our first island.
January 5th At Sea on the Norwegian Gem
Out to sea! We wake up early and head to the gym. I can't wait to get in the
sauna! We went to the sushi joint today and I was pleasantly
surprised. The sushi was amazing! It's all you can eat and I'm pretty
sure I ate a whole tuna fish to myself. Today was mostly a gambling
day, I'm not much of a gambler but Matt loves to play blackjack and he
is really good at it! I like to watch but today I gambled a little, a
wheel of fortune slot machine and a quarter machine which I slightly
got addicted to. They have a bowling alley on the ship, with 6 lanes!
So we played a game, Matt won of course. I'm not a big fan of bowling
but the alley is nice. We decided to go to one of the shows tonight,
called Colors! It was pretty interesting, entertaining but in a laugh
so hard because it's so lame sort of way. It was a song and dance show
about, well colors. They had some pretty good songs like pink cadillac
and goodbye yellow brick road. The singers were decent but the dancers
were a joke. We tried out the buffet today, I was pleasantly
surprised. The buffet so far is better then any restaurant we have
been to, figures. Personally I like having a plateful of ten different
foods. We decided to get our groove on tonight so we hit up Bliss
Lounge, the nicest lounge on the boat. Everything is crushed velvet.
They have beds in there too which I love. We met a really cool
canadian couple who we talked to most the night. We met two couples
from Jersey when we were out for a smoke and they were super nice. One
of the girls really liked me for some reason and kept telling me we
had to hang out. I got pretty sauced and danced the night away and met
a short little girl from Jersey who forced me to teach her to salsa
dance. It was pretty funny. We also met the cruise director tonight,
Ray, who is coincidentally from Seattle! West Seattle to be exact. We
talked for him for almost 2 hours. He told us how he missed the people
from Seattle, since we were on a boat full of New Yorkers and they are
all super crazy and us Seattlelites are way laid back in comparison.
We really lucked out meeting Ray, in his words "Its good to be king"
he can get us hooked up with all the best things on the boat...and
even better, free drinks! We also met Jimmy the assistant cruise
director. A young kid from London, Ontario. He's a funny guy, Ray's
right hand man basically. Matt and him also hit it off for their love
of hockey. We stayed out till 4. I don't even remember what was
probably the longest walk ever to the room...
sauna! We went to the sushi joint today and I was pleasantly
surprised. The sushi was amazing! It's all you can eat and I'm pretty
sure I ate a whole tuna fish to myself. Today was mostly a gambling
day, I'm not much of a gambler but Matt loves to play blackjack and he
is really good at it! I like to watch but today I gambled a little, a
wheel of fortune slot machine and a quarter machine which I slightly
got addicted to. They have a bowling alley on the ship, with 6 lanes!
So we played a game, Matt won of course. I'm not a big fan of bowling
but the alley is nice. We decided to go to one of the shows tonight,
called Colors! It was pretty interesting, entertaining but in a laugh
so hard because it's so lame sort of way. It was a song and dance show
about, well colors. They had some pretty good songs like pink cadillac
and goodbye yellow brick road. The singers were decent but the dancers
were a joke. We tried out the buffet today, I was pleasantly
surprised. The buffet so far is better then any restaurant we have
been to, figures. Personally I like having a plateful of ten different
foods. We decided to get our groove on tonight so we hit up Bliss
Lounge, the nicest lounge on the boat. Everything is crushed velvet.
They have beds in there too which I love. We met a really cool
canadian couple who we talked to most the night. We met two couples
from Jersey when we were out for a smoke and they were super nice. One
of the girls really liked me for some reason and kept telling me we
had to hang out. I got pretty sauced and danced the night away and met
a short little girl from Jersey who forced me to teach her to salsa
dance. It was pretty funny. We also met the cruise director tonight,
Ray, who is coincidentally from Seattle! West Seattle to be exact. We
talked for him for almost 2 hours. He told us how he missed the people
from Seattle, since we were on a boat full of New Yorkers and they are
all super crazy and us Seattlelites are way laid back in comparison.
We really lucked out meeting Ray, in his words "Its good to be king"
he can get us hooked up with all the best things on the boat...and
even better, free drinks! We also met Jimmy the assistant cruise
director. A young kid from London, Ontario. He's a funny guy, Ray's
right hand man basically. Matt and him also hit it off for their love
of hockey. We stayed out till 4. I don't even remember what was
probably the longest walk ever to the room...
January 4th New York
Waking up with another wicked hangover. Thinking why do I do this to
myself, but I remembered all the fun we had last night and don't
really care as much. It was an epic night last night! We slept in way
too late and didn't do anything we wanted to do before we got on our
cruise ship. Alex brought us falafel to eat on the way to the boat,
not as good as I thought it was going to be but good hangover food. I
was sad to say by to Alex, we were so lucky to have met him and he
made our NY experience probably the best it could have been! Matt and
I decided we need to come back and stay for like a week, there is
still so much we want to see and experience here. We do still have a
day and a half back here after our cruise. Maybe we can squeeze some
in then. Bye Alex! Now onto the boat! The cruise ship is crazy
colorful and huge! The Norwegian Gem! I don't even know what to expect
so I just follow Matt, the cruise master. We check in, go through
security and all that and step foot on the boat. The second we get on
we are offered a glass of champagne. I almost puke in my mouth and ask
for an orange juice instead. I can tell this is going to be a crazy
trip already. This is my first cruise, I have always looked down on
cruises thinking they are for old fogies, lazy people, and cheapskates
but I am still excited. There are people everywhere, already getting
tossed at the bars, running around all crazy like. Matt said there are
actually a lot of younger people then on most boats, but still a lot
of old wrinkled people too. The boat is brand new and is nicer then I
expected. We make our way to our stateroom, I walk into a room that
actually hurts my head it is so colorful! It is much larger then I
expected, I imagined sleeping in a closet with a cot..but the room is
very nice and it even has a balcony which I'm very excited to take
advantage of. We start unpacking and organizing everything. We still
both feel like hell so we just kick back and relax...when some overly
loud announcer comes on and we have to do a safety drill, life vests
and all. I really want to ditch it but the man on the intercom said
mandatory about ten times. We sit through a safety talk for about 20
minutes with our bright orange life vests on. Time to explore this
thing. We walk around aimlessly. We got a tour of the spa and gym
which I can't wait to use. We walk by all the restaurants, stores,
casino, and go to the pool area which is still freezing NY weather and
people are already in the pools and hot tubs? Most of the people on
the boat are foreign and have accents which is strange. All of the
crew members I have met are foreign as well, I asked Matt why and he
said the cruise companies go to poor countries and hire these people
and train them for cheap, I notice all the employees are like robots,
they say the same things, do things the same ways, but they are all
very nice so far. We eat at a restaurant called Tequila, not the word
I want to hear right now but I'm in the mood for mexican. The food
here is worse then I thought it would be. My tex mex rolls are most
likely frozen ones. It reminds me of school cafeteria food. If I
choose my food wisely I think I can survive this cruise. We go back to
our room and I find a bow cam on our TV, which I love! I can see
myself watching it forever looking for a whale or porpoise of some
sort. There is also a map that shows exactly where the ship is, it
shows the temp. outside, the wave height, and all those other nautical
terms. We decide to take a napper, the bed is actually comfortable! We
wake up at 2 am, but we had planned to wake up around 10pm..our sleep
schedules are way out of whack with the 4 hour time difference in NY
and our late night partying. We decide to go get a snack at the 24 hr
restaurant Blue Lagoon, the food here was actually very good, in a
fattening kind of way, comfort food. Back to bed for us. What to do
tomorrow?
myself, but I remembered all the fun we had last night and don't
really care as much. It was an epic night last night! We slept in way
too late and didn't do anything we wanted to do before we got on our
cruise ship. Alex brought us falafel to eat on the way to the boat,
not as good as I thought it was going to be but good hangover food. I
was sad to say by to Alex, we were so lucky to have met him and he
made our NY experience probably the best it could have been! Matt and
I decided we need to come back and stay for like a week, there is
still so much we want to see and experience here. We do still have a
day and a half back here after our cruise. Maybe we can squeeze some
in then. Bye Alex! Now onto the boat! The cruise ship is crazy
colorful and huge! The Norwegian Gem! I don't even know what to expect
so I just follow Matt, the cruise master. We check in, go through
security and all that and step foot on the boat. The second we get on
we are offered a glass of champagne. I almost puke in my mouth and ask
for an orange juice instead. I can tell this is going to be a crazy
trip already. This is my first cruise, I have always looked down on
cruises thinking they are for old fogies, lazy people, and cheapskates
but I am still excited. There are people everywhere, already getting
tossed at the bars, running around all crazy like. Matt said there are
actually a lot of younger people then on most boats, but still a lot
of old wrinkled people too. The boat is brand new and is nicer then I
expected. We make our way to our stateroom, I walk into a room that
actually hurts my head it is so colorful! It is much larger then I
expected, I imagined sleeping in a closet with a cot..but the room is
very nice and it even has a balcony which I'm very excited to take
advantage of. We start unpacking and organizing everything. We still
both feel like hell so we just kick back and relax...when some overly
loud announcer comes on and we have to do a safety drill, life vests
and all. I really want to ditch it but the man on the intercom said
mandatory about ten times. We sit through a safety talk for about 20
minutes with our bright orange life vests on. Time to explore this
thing. We walk around aimlessly. We got a tour of the spa and gym
which I can't wait to use. We walk by all the restaurants, stores,
casino, and go to the pool area which is still freezing NY weather and
people are already in the pools and hot tubs? Most of the people on
the boat are foreign and have accents which is strange. All of the
crew members I have met are foreign as well, I asked Matt why and he
said the cruise companies go to poor countries and hire these people
and train them for cheap, I notice all the employees are like robots,
they say the same things, do things the same ways, but they are all
very nice so far. We eat at a restaurant called Tequila, not the word
I want to hear right now but I'm in the mood for mexican. The food
here is worse then I thought it would be. My tex mex rolls are most
likely frozen ones. It reminds me of school cafeteria food. If I
choose my food wisely I think I can survive this cruise. We go back to
our room and I find a bow cam on our TV, which I love! I can see
myself watching it forever looking for a whale or porpoise of some
sort. There is also a map that shows exactly where the ship is, it
shows the temp. outside, the wave height, and all those other nautical
terms. We decide to take a napper, the bed is actually comfortable! We
wake up at 2 am, but we had planned to wake up around 10pm..our sleep
schedules are way out of whack with the 4 hour time difference in NY
and our late night partying. We decide to go get a snack at the 24 hr
restaurant Blue Lagoon, the food here was actually very good, in a
fattening kind of way, comfort food. Back to bed for us. What to do
tomorrow?
January 3rd New York
Matt and I both woke up pretty hungover, we actually slept in until
about noon. Which we both said we weren't going to do, but what can I
say, it was worth it. But today was my shopping day so I forced myself
to look halfway decent. We were both in the mood for some good
hangover food. So Alex took up so this place called Cafeteria, every
guy that worked there was gay. It was hilarious, and most the guys
eating there were gay too. Alex warned us beforehand, he said this
place is so gay! The food there was amazing and I recommend it to
anyone who visits NY. I had a croissant french toast with maple apples
in it. Like a french toast apple pie, OH MY GOD, to die for! I would
eat that meal every day! Matt got a humongous croissant egg sandwich
which looked good but I was too into my meal to try his. Alex drove us
through Chinatown which was interesting. The craziest shops ever. Now
off to shop! Alex took us to Spring Street which has all the small,
unique boutiques. We didn't want to hit all the stores that we could
easily go to at home. The stores are so well decorated and well
thought out. Nothing like the boring boutiques in Seattle. It was a
definite blast and I got some really cute stuff. I picked out some
things that I normally wouldn't, I think the NY fashion was getting to
me. We cut it pretty close so we had to get ready in fast forward.
Tonight was going to be our big go all out night and was it ever.
First, we had reservations at a small but very very very famous
restaurant called El Melino, supposedly owned by a mafia family named
Greene. Like I said Alex has connections. The place was TINY and the
tables were a foot from each other, I have no idea how the waiters got
around but they did. I felt like I was in the Sopranos. Tons of big
bellied italian guys sitting at the bar. A minute after we sat down
several waiters were bringing us all sorts of breads, deep fried
breads, tomato toppings, one waiter had a giant block of a parmesan
type cheese and cut us each off a huge chunk. It was simply delicious.
Zucchini chips, these were SO good and I probably ate more than my
share. I was full from all of that but ready for more. Matt, Shannon,
and I were all already impressed and ready for more! We ordered some
wine, well make that a lot of wine. My entree was a Lobster Ravioli in
a vodka sauce. It was delicious! Matt got jumbo shrimp which were the
largest I have ever seen, and the tastiest! The whole experience was
like nothing I have had the pleasure of. THis place is now one of my
favorite restaurants. Alex came in for a drink too! He also secretly
ordered us dessert. We all got our own plate, which was an eclectic
mix of tiramisu, chocolate sticks, creams, and random other tasty
treats. By this time, I was ready to puke. I don't think I have ever
in my life eaten the amount of food I did this night. It was a meal I
will never forget though. Now it was time for some night life. We went
to Pastis, one of the places where Sex in the City was filmed a lot.
It was a fun place to say we went, and get a drink. While Matt was
getting drinks, Shannon and I met an Australian couple named Joelle
and Mark. Joelle was a very reserved, sort of shy, plain woman, but
very sweet. Mark was a loud, funny, crazy, tall dark haired man with a
thick Australian accent. Matt came back and we all chatted for a
while. They were a cute couple but had no idea what to do or where to
go...so we took them under our wing. Then we went to Spice Market
which was a couple blocks away. The place was dead but we had a few
drinks with our new australian friends there. I learned some great
australian phrases, like bobs your uncle, you only call very good
friends mates, like a lizard on my belly, which I don't completely
remember what it means but it was funny, and other crazy aussie
things. We all were ready for some more so we headed to Buddha Bar,
the doorman here was a real dick and wanted us to buy 3 bottles for us
5 people. So we told him to shove it and headed next door to Tenjune.
Which none of us thought we would get into because it is a total celeb
hangout. Britney spears had her birthday there, and it wasn't looking
good with the huge line outside. But somehow Alex worked his magic and
got us in. We only had to buy one bottle here. Shannon and I were so
excited! Keeping our eyes peeled for some form of a celebrity! We got
our own table and were ready to dance! THe place was packed, like I
have said before everywhere in NY is a fraction of the size of places
in Seattle. Matt came back from the bathroom and told us he just peed
next to Justin TImberlake, of course Shannon and I started our crazy
hunt for him, but no luck. He had some sort of private back room but I
thought that was pretty cool anyway. We danced the night away and were
one of the last groups there. Matt was craving some Joes pizza again
so we stopped by there on the way back to the hotel, I skipped it
because I was still stuffed from dinner! What a fun night though, New York nightlife is way better than Seattle.
about noon. Which we both said we weren't going to do, but what can I
say, it was worth it. But today was my shopping day so I forced myself
to look halfway decent. We were both in the mood for some good
hangover food. So Alex took up so this place called Cafeteria, every
guy that worked there was gay. It was hilarious, and most the guys
eating there were gay too. Alex warned us beforehand, he said this
place is so gay! The food there was amazing and I recommend it to
anyone who visits NY. I had a croissant french toast with maple apples
in it. Like a french toast apple pie, OH MY GOD, to die for! I would
eat that meal every day! Matt got a humongous croissant egg sandwich
which looked good but I was too into my meal to try his. Alex drove us
through Chinatown which was interesting. The craziest shops ever. Now
off to shop! Alex took us to Spring Street which has all the small,
unique boutiques. We didn't want to hit all the stores that we could
easily go to at home. The stores are so well decorated and well
thought out. Nothing like the boring boutiques in Seattle. It was a
definite blast and I got some really cute stuff. I picked out some
things that I normally wouldn't, I think the NY fashion was getting to
me. We cut it pretty close so we had to get ready in fast forward.
Tonight was going to be our big go all out night and was it ever.
First, we had reservations at a small but very very very famous
restaurant called El Melino, supposedly owned by a mafia family named
Greene. Like I said Alex has connections. The place was TINY and the
tables were a foot from each other, I have no idea how the waiters got
around but they did. I felt like I was in the Sopranos. Tons of big
bellied italian guys sitting at the bar. A minute after we sat down
several waiters were bringing us all sorts of breads, deep fried
breads, tomato toppings, one waiter had a giant block of a parmesan
type cheese and cut us each off a huge chunk. It was simply delicious.
Zucchini chips, these were SO good and I probably ate more than my
share. I was full from all of that but ready for more. Matt, Shannon,
and I were all already impressed and ready for more! We ordered some
wine, well make that a lot of wine. My entree was a Lobster Ravioli in
a vodka sauce. It was delicious! Matt got jumbo shrimp which were the
largest I have ever seen, and the tastiest! The whole experience was
like nothing I have had the pleasure of. THis place is now one of my
favorite restaurants. Alex came in for a drink too! He also secretly
ordered us dessert. We all got our own plate, which was an eclectic
mix of tiramisu, chocolate sticks, creams, and random other tasty
treats. By this time, I was ready to puke. I don't think I have ever
in my life eaten the amount of food I did this night. It was a meal I
will never forget though. Now it was time for some night life. We went
to Pastis, one of the places where Sex in the City was filmed a lot.
It was a fun place to say we went, and get a drink. While Matt was
getting drinks, Shannon and I met an Australian couple named Joelle
and Mark. Joelle was a very reserved, sort of shy, plain woman, but
very sweet. Mark was a loud, funny, crazy, tall dark haired man with a
thick Australian accent. Matt came back and we all chatted for a
while. They were a cute couple but had no idea what to do or where to
go...so we took them under our wing. Then we went to Spice Market
which was a couple blocks away. The place was dead but we had a few
drinks with our new australian friends there. I learned some great
australian phrases, like bobs your uncle, you only call very good
friends mates, like a lizard on my belly, which I don't completely
remember what it means but it was funny, and other crazy aussie
things. We all were ready for some more so we headed to Buddha Bar,
the doorman here was a real dick and wanted us to buy 3 bottles for us
5 people. So we told him to shove it and headed next door to Tenjune.
Which none of us thought we would get into because it is a total celeb
hangout. Britney spears had her birthday there, and it wasn't looking
good with the huge line outside. But somehow Alex worked his magic and
got us in. We only had to buy one bottle here. Shannon and I were so
excited! Keeping our eyes peeled for some form of a celebrity! We got
our own table and were ready to dance! THe place was packed, like I
have said before everywhere in NY is a fraction of the size of places
in Seattle. Matt came back from the bathroom and told us he just peed
next to Justin TImberlake, of course Shannon and I started our crazy
hunt for him, but no luck. He had some sort of private back room but I
thought that was pretty cool anyway. We danced the night away and were
one of the last groups there. Matt was craving some Joes pizza again
so we stopped by there on the way back to the hotel, I skipped it
because I was still stuffed from dinner! What a fun night though, New York nightlife is way better than Seattle.
January 2nd 2009 New York!
We woke up bright eyed and bushy tailed for a morning workout. The
view from the gym is amazing. The buildings are so enormous and on
most the sides of them are some type of billboard ad. So we are ready
to see the city, we start walking around aimlessly, so touristy.
Luckily our hotel is right in Times Square. A total tourist trap, but
awesome nonetheless. Every corner they are trying to sell you some
piece of crap I heart NY shirt, or mini statue of liberty. It's
incredibly hard to walk around, it seems like no one knows where the
hell they are going or want to go or how to get there. I know we had
no clue. I was bumped into real hard a good five times but maybe it
was because I was in awe looking at all the displays and lights. I
heard about 20 different languages today, people come from all over,
it's very crazy! To add to it all, it was about 20 degrees out. We would
only walk 5 blocks and I couldn't feel my face, hands, or toes. So we
went to this sushi spot called Haru for lunch, it was very good. We
chatted a bit with a couple next to us from CA, both having gotten
there and both having no idea where to go and what to see. So we came
to the conclusion that we need to just go back to the hotel and talk
to them. We almost got into a cab outside of the hotel which would
have been the worst mistake we could have made, instead the doorman
called over this black BMW 7 series with tinted windows, it was Alex, a
concierge driver. An almost to the point of being too nice, Egyptian
man. Where do you wanna go? So we explained we wanted to see all the
spots that most tourists don't see. He knew exactly what we meant. He
took us everywhere except the East side. We saw where Madonnas
penthouse was, where John Lennon was shot which is in front of
Madonnas building. Yoko Ono still lives there we found out too. Alex
knew all the good stuff and fun facts! Which, I love. I'm a dictionary
of strange and interesting facts, and now I am being brushed up on NY
trivia, fantastic! We went to Ground Zero, which was a spot both Matt
and I wanted to see. Alex parked and we got out to get the best view.
The whole area was fenced off with guards but we walked around the
whole area. It was well lit so we could see all of it. It was the eeriest place I have ever been. More eery than a cemetary. To think of how many people died in this very place. We went to a
tribute fire station seen with names of the firefighters from that
station that were killed. There was even a store with pictures and
memorabilia from 9-11 but it was $5 to get in so we just ogled from
outside. This was a pretty special moment because it still feels like
it was yesterday I was watching the burning towers on TV. He took us
through Central Park which isn't as pretty as you see in the movies
with it being winter, it wasn't very green. He took us through the
richest neighborhood in New York where the elite and celebrity live.
It's not like other rich neighborhoods where there are huge mansions
and tons of land because no ones owns houses around here. Its all
condos, lofts, and apartments. From just looking at the area, I
wouldn't have considered it to be a very wealthy area. We saw the
Trump Tower where apprentice is filmed, Matt got a kick out of that
because he loves that show. We drove by Tavern on the Green, which is
supposedly a landmark but I had never heard of it, so I took a picture
anyway. We drove by the Metropolitan Museum which I really really
wanted to visit which we didn't get to, maybe on our 1 day back to NY
after the cruise. We saw an Apple store, which was so futuristic, it
was just a glass case with the apple emblem and you get in this
elevator which takes you down into the store. Who would have thought
of that, seriously? We drove by the biggest Juicy store I have ever
seen! I was pretty excited to go there, but we reserved shopping for
tomorrow. We drove by numerous cathedrals, the really big, really
ornate, with really creepy statues you see in all the movies. I didn't
get to go in one of those which I really want to, again maybe when we
get back. We saw the big NY christmas tree that's right by the open
ice rink. Madison Square garden was fun to see. The empire state
building is more plain then I imagined, but tall nonetheless. Alex our
driver and Matt really hit it off! Alex insisted he pick us up later
that night to drive us around. He even called a friend and got us
reservations at Buddakhan. A very hard place to get into. During that
first ride, we realized Alex has a lot of connections. Even to the
mafia in NY. So we met up with Shannon, Matt's friends sister who
lives in NY and headed to Buddhakhan. The food was amazing as I had hoped
for, being that NY is known for it's amazing food! Our waiter was a
bit too gay and stuffy for my taste. But the dessert was simply
divine, the chocolate peanut butter bombe. I even took a picture of
it, it was THAT good! After an amazing dinner and some catching up
with Shannon we headed to Buddha Bar. I really love the whole asian
decorations, little buddhas and whatnot. They had a 20ft buddha in the
center of the restaurant, I really wanted to get a picture with it but
I would have been the center of attention with a huge flash ruining
everyones meal..so I settled for a 5ft buddha type statue instead. It
was still early and the place wasn't too hopping. So we had some
drinks. We asked Alex where else was a good spot to go. He said he
knew just the place. We pull up to this bar that had no signage,
Shannon bars with no big signs are the good ones. It turned out to be
a hookah bar, Alex knew everyone there and got us well taken care of.
We got our own booth and a hookah. I'm not a bug fan of hookah but I
enjoyed it anyway. Alex got Shannon and Matt up into the DJ's booth
which you had to climb up these little stairs, I was in the bathroom
and missed out. The music was a good mix of Indian and top 40. There
wasn't a dance floor but most bars in NY don't have enough room for
one so you have to make your own, which I did of course. Shannon had
some friends that wanted her to meet up so we headed to the Brass
Monkey, I was sure it was a gay bar from the name of it. It ended up
being a bar you could definitely find in the U district. A total
college bar. I can't even name the number of bad pick up lines from
guys that are probably younger then me I got there. But Shannon's
friends were nice and we made the most of it. On a late night out at
home, Matt and I will usually get some Taco Bell which we regret in
the morning but I didn't see one Taco Bell there, Alex knew the best
spot for some late night junk food. Joe's Pizza, this little tiny
pizza joint with a huge banner on the wall that said, "Joes Pizza,
best slice in NY as seen in Spiderman" and I can tell you now it was
indeed the best slice of pizza I have ever had, it could have been
that I was just drunk but it was pretty good. I was excited to get
back to my heavenly bed at the hotel, I love hotel beds!
view from the gym is amazing. The buildings are so enormous and on
most the sides of them are some type of billboard ad. So we are ready
to see the city, we start walking around aimlessly, so touristy.
Luckily our hotel is right in Times Square. A total tourist trap, but
awesome nonetheless. Every corner they are trying to sell you some
piece of crap I heart NY shirt, or mini statue of liberty. It's
incredibly hard to walk around, it seems like no one knows where the
hell they are going or want to go or how to get there. I know we had
no clue. I was bumped into real hard a good five times but maybe it
was because I was in awe looking at all the displays and lights. I
heard about 20 different languages today, people come from all over,
it's very crazy! To add to it all, it was about 20 degrees out. We would
only walk 5 blocks and I couldn't feel my face, hands, or toes. So we
went to this sushi spot called Haru for lunch, it was very good. We
chatted a bit with a couple next to us from CA, both having gotten
there and both having no idea where to go and what to see. So we came
to the conclusion that we need to just go back to the hotel and talk
to them. We almost got into a cab outside of the hotel which would
have been the worst mistake we could have made, instead the doorman
called over this black BMW 7 series with tinted windows, it was Alex, a
concierge driver. An almost to the point of being too nice, Egyptian
man. Where do you wanna go? So we explained we wanted to see all the
spots that most tourists don't see. He knew exactly what we meant. He
took us everywhere except the East side. We saw where Madonnas
penthouse was, where John Lennon was shot which is in front of
Madonnas building. Yoko Ono still lives there we found out too. Alex
knew all the good stuff and fun facts! Which, I love. I'm a dictionary
of strange and interesting facts, and now I am being brushed up on NY
trivia, fantastic! We went to Ground Zero, which was a spot both Matt
and I wanted to see. Alex parked and we got out to get the best view.
The whole area was fenced off with guards but we walked around the
whole area. It was well lit so we could see all of it. It was the eeriest place I have ever been. More eery than a cemetary. To think of how many people died in this very place. We went to a
tribute fire station seen with names of the firefighters from that
station that were killed. There was even a store with pictures and
memorabilia from 9-11 but it was $5 to get in so we just ogled from
outside. This was a pretty special moment because it still feels like
it was yesterday I was watching the burning towers on TV. He took us
through Central Park which isn't as pretty as you see in the movies
with it being winter, it wasn't very green. He took us through the
richest neighborhood in New York where the elite and celebrity live.
It's not like other rich neighborhoods where there are huge mansions
and tons of land because no ones owns houses around here. Its all
condos, lofts, and apartments. From just looking at the area, I
wouldn't have considered it to be a very wealthy area. We saw the
Trump Tower where apprentice is filmed, Matt got a kick out of that
because he loves that show. We drove by Tavern on the Green, which is
supposedly a landmark but I had never heard of it, so I took a picture
anyway. We drove by the Metropolitan Museum which I really really
wanted to visit which we didn't get to, maybe on our 1 day back to NY
after the cruise. We saw an Apple store, which was so futuristic, it
was just a glass case with the apple emblem and you get in this
elevator which takes you down into the store. Who would have thought
of that, seriously? We drove by the biggest Juicy store I have ever
seen! I was pretty excited to go there, but we reserved shopping for
tomorrow. We drove by numerous cathedrals, the really big, really
ornate, with really creepy statues you see in all the movies. I didn't
get to go in one of those which I really want to, again maybe when we
get back. We saw the big NY christmas tree that's right by the open
ice rink. Madison Square garden was fun to see. The empire state
building is more plain then I imagined, but tall nonetheless. Alex our
driver and Matt really hit it off! Alex insisted he pick us up later
that night to drive us around. He even called a friend and got us
reservations at Buddakhan. A very hard place to get into. During that
first ride, we realized Alex has a lot of connections. Even to the
mafia in NY. So we met up with Shannon, Matt's friends sister who
lives in NY and headed to Buddhakhan. The food was amazing as I had hoped
for, being that NY is known for it's amazing food! Our waiter was a
bit too gay and stuffy for my taste. But the dessert was simply
divine, the chocolate peanut butter bombe. I even took a picture of
it, it was THAT good! After an amazing dinner and some catching up
with Shannon we headed to Buddha Bar. I really love the whole asian
decorations, little buddhas and whatnot. They had a 20ft buddha in the
center of the restaurant, I really wanted to get a picture with it but
I would have been the center of attention with a huge flash ruining
everyones meal..so I settled for a 5ft buddha type statue instead. It
was still early and the place wasn't too hopping. So we had some
drinks. We asked Alex where else was a good spot to go. He said he
knew just the place. We pull up to this bar that had no signage,
Shannon bars with no big signs are the good ones. It turned out to be
a hookah bar, Alex knew everyone there and got us well taken care of.
We got our own booth and a hookah. I'm not a bug fan of hookah but I
enjoyed it anyway. Alex got Shannon and Matt up into the DJ's booth
which you had to climb up these little stairs, I was in the bathroom
and missed out. The music was a good mix of Indian and top 40. There
wasn't a dance floor but most bars in NY don't have enough room for
one so you have to make your own, which I did of course. Shannon had
some friends that wanted her to meet up so we headed to the Brass
Monkey, I was sure it was a gay bar from the name of it. It ended up
being a bar you could definitely find in the U district. A total
college bar. I can't even name the number of bad pick up lines from
guys that are probably younger then me I got there. But Shannon's
friends were nice and we made the most of it. On a late night out at
home, Matt and I will usually get some Taco Bell which we regret in
the morning but I didn't see one Taco Bell there, Alex knew the best
spot for some late night junk food. Joe's Pizza, this little tiny
pizza joint with a huge banner on the wall that said, "Joes Pizza,
best slice in NY as seen in Spiderman" and I can tell you now it was
indeed the best slice of pizza I have ever had, it could have been
that I was just drunk but it was pretty good. I was excited to get
back to my heavenly bed at the hotel, I love hotel beds!
January 1st 2009
This is the beginning of our amazing trip....
New Year's Eve wasn't too eventful, we
made a nice dinner, had some champagne and watched the fireworks at
the space needle from upstairs, but I can tell you right now we made
up for it at the nightlife in New York ten fold! I can already feel in my bones that 2009 is going to be a great year. Where did 2008 go, it went by so fast. We pretty much
traveled all day today, and worst of all we were surrounded by about 5
children under the age of 5. Most of them right in the row behind us.
Matt called it the flight from hell, I wasn't too bothered by them but
it was different then most of our recent flights because we usually
are going somewhere like Vegas or Hawaii where there are few kids on
the flight. Overall it was so worth it getting to New York. Starting
off with an $80 cab ride to our hotel, I knew New York was going to be
way different. Oh and right across from our hotel a taxi cab had
driven straight through the front door of a Duane Read (their version
of walgreens or rite aid) that was pretty crazy to see. The city in
enormous, being from Seattle which I consider a big city, this is
insane! Billboards everywhere! Lights everywhere. TImes square is a
trip. The people here definitely are a lot different then Seattle. They look different, talk different, it's a whole other world here.
Looking down from our room every car on the street is a taxi, a sea of
yellow. No one has cars here, with all the mass transit. Our room at The Westin is amazing! We have a perfect view of the city. We are staying in a corner room that normally goes for $1500 a night. Matt knows someone of course and got the room for $99 a night! I can't wait to get in bed, we have a heavenly bed, the most comfortable bed in the world! After a long
day of traveling we went to bed, ready for the next day! What does NY have in store for us?
New Year's Eve wasn't too eventful, we
made a nice dinner, had some champagne and watched the fireworks at
the space needle from upstairs, but I can tell you right now we made
up for it at the nightlife in New York ten fold! I can already feel in my bones that 2009 is going to be a great year. Where did 2008 go, it went by so fast. We pretty much
traveled all day today, and worst of all we were surrounded by about 5
children under the age of 5. Most of them right in the row behind us.
Matt called it the flight from hell, I wasn't too bothered by them but
it was different then most of our recent flights because we usually
are going somewhere like Vegas or Hawaii where there are few kids on
the flight. Overall it was so worth it getting to New York. Starting
off with an $80 cab ride to our hotel, I knew New York was going to be
way different. Oh and right across from our hotel a taxi cab had
driven straight through the front door of a Duane Read (their version
of walgreens or rite aid) that was pretty crazy to see. The city in
enormous, being from Seattle which I consider a big city, this is
insane! Billboards everywhere! Lights everywhere. TImes square is a
trip. The people here definitely are a lot different then Seattle. They look different, talk different, it's a whole other world here.
Looking down from our room every car on the street is a taxi, a sea of
yellow. No one has cars here, with all the mass transit. Our room at The Westin is amazing! We have a perfect view of the city. We are staying in a corner room that normally goes for $1500 a night. Matt knows someone of course and got the room for $99 a night! I can't wait to get in bed, we have a heavenly bed, the most comfortable bed in the world! After a long
day of traveling we went to bed, ready for the next day! What does NY have in store for us?
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