It should be illegal to look this cute in the morning.
The Energizer Bunny was already up and hopping at 6:15 am, buzzing around the cabin like a bunny on a mission, getting all revved up for a trip to the tourist traps!
But first, we had our morning coffee. We looked out the window, and to our amazement, we saw a Carnival ship complete with a rollercoaster running around the top decks. We did a double-take and wondered if we had accidentally mixed our coffee with something stronger! Oh my, talk about a wake-up call!
Quick, close the windows!
Coffee got our collective hearts started, and then it was time for the torture chamber. We headed to deck 17-aft and shuttered at the signage. It said “Fitness Center”; I was not having a fit, and neither was Mary.
We tippy-toed into the chamber full of physical abuse machines.
We selected the horizontal bikes and began peddling like there was no tomorrow. After a few minutes, smoke started pouring out of the machines, and the fire alarm went off.
We coming in on a wing and a prayer!
The crew sprang into action like they were competing in a water fight! They made the fire disappear and then kindly asked us NOT to grace them with our presence again!
We peeked at our watches and had a sudden epiphany – it’s been a whole two hours since our last meal! So we high-tailed it to the 6th floor and stormed the Grille for some much-needed breakfast action.
Mary ordered breakfast; I had a dried piece of day-old toast and Crisco.
For breakfast, I really outdid myself. I indulged in the extravagance of two whole pieces of dry toast. I know, don’t be too envious of my lavish lifestyle.
Now we get cleaned up and head for the shore to visit the Dominican Republic.
Today, we all decided not to go on tour. We needed a day to recover from the past two days! We took our wallets and walked off the boat to visit the latest tourist trap in the Caribbean: Amber Cive, complete with trinkets priced at $10 and labeled “Made In China.”
Puerto Plata is on the north of the island.
On the bright side, it was clean, and the stores were air-conditioned, but no bargains were to be had.
Amber Cove in Spanish translates to Tourist Trap!
We walked through many stores, and Mary attempted to bargain with them, but she would not pay $20 for a $5 item!
Mary is on the right!
The ships were close by, making it easy to return to civilization.
Because of the heat, we took the bicycle carts; good use of $10!!
We returned to the ship and decided the breakfast was enough to hold us until dinner. When our ship pulled out, the destination became deserted.
The port is brand new and easy to get to land.
Before dinner, we had to get ready for the evening. It was the last formal evening, and the kids made a special arrangement with the portrait studio to take us out on deck after dinner and (NO, not walk the plank!) take formal pictures of us and the sunset.
Formal picture = hair parlor visit required (female); Formal dinner = beer required (male). I got dressed up and headed to the piazza to listen to the big band music and drink wine.
We figured we should fuel up at the Capri dining room before facing the flashbulbs with our best smiles. Even with a full meal order, dinner zoomed in and out faster than a race car at mealtime.
We were the first to arrive.
We enjoy dining with the kids and sharing memories.
Dinner was terrific, and we hurried to the photo office at 6:30 pm. e walked around the ship with the photographer, snapping pictures at many different locations.
Looking good!
After the photo shoot, we stopped at the Grill Bar, had a drink, and danced to the artists playing dual violins. The bar patrons gave us a standing ovation.
Time to dance!
From there, we hit up the comedy show, and let me tell you, it was epic! We were cracking up so hard; I think a few tears were shed!
Then, to finish off the evening, we went to the production show, which was interesting.
I was about “gaming,” but it left us puzzled.
We would have usually gone out for a drink, but we ended up in our cabin tonight, probably because we needed a break from spilling drinks on ourselves! On the way up in the elevator, the kids got off and headed to after-hours entertainment. Where do they get all that energy?
We attempted to watch a movie, but halfway through, we nodded off and tumbled into a slumber. Tomorrow marks our final day aboard this floating palace, so we must ready ourselves for the daunting task of suitcasery and the grand art of getting everything to behave itself.
