Cruise Wrapup

It's a fine, cool Friday evening here at the Briscoe abode. MOBB is off in Dallas somewhere at some historical something or another. The kids and I have been to Cici's, where we all pigged out to the tune of about $11.

I got back from the cruise yesterday evening.

It

was

GREAT!

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I could really see doing this as my vacation of choice in the future. It's like being in a nice hotel full of good stuff to do and restaurants, and it takes you to interesting places. No rental cars, no parking, no paying for food...

I'm not going to cover every detail here. Just some general impressions about it.

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Boarding took a long time. I wasn't awfully impatient. I figured the snarl there at the port was due to the newness of it all since their usual port in Galveston was out of commission.

***

My room was R232 (remember that number), which was on the aft, starboard portion of the ship. The room was tiny for sure, but nicely set up. Only one electrical outlet though.



I had a window, which I appreciated. I spent a lot of time just staring out of it, watching the water.

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Our group of 14, which included a couple of the employees' spouses, was quite fun. We found a nice balance. Several of us would get together for excursions or meals, or we'd break off and go solo. Our CEO and a VP were among the 14.

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There were tons of things to do onboard. Each day we'd get this little newsletter/schedule listing activities. There was comedy, music, shopping, eating, and outdoor activities like swimming and mini-golf. I explored every nook and cranny of the ship. Oh, and there was a casino, where I spent more time and money than I meant to. I ended up down about $40, even after a little winning streak my final night there.

***

Thing is, puke-a-phobe that I am, I was using the anti-motion sickness patches, and they gave me a serious side effect: Blurred vision.

I mean it was BAD. Even with bifocals on I couldn't read the book I brought. Menus and the ship maps were extremely difficult.

***

Cozumel was a nice enough port, though very commercial. We hit Mr. Sancho's beach, where you had to buy two drinks just to sit on the chairs. I opted for my towel.



We did eventually move up to a table, where we ate a bit.

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I spent a lot of time with my iPod on, just like I do at home. I had about 160 songs on there, and it never did cycle through them all.

***

The ship had a definite "international" flair, with employees from across the globe everywhere we turned.

For example, the entertainer in the piano bar, Bob, was from Germany.



Oh yeah, and that's me in an Elton John wig and feather boa. Seems I got signed up to sing "Rocket Man."

***

I actually preferred our stop in Progreso over Cozumel. It was a lot less slick, and the beach was nicer.

I shot some video of the local cops putting a beatdown on some guy, but my camera died after that, and I don't know if the video is salvageable.

On the beach and in the mercado, the sales folks were extremely aggressive. It was easy enough on the beach to politely say no.

In the mercado, though, it was a bit more difficult.

A hammock salesman got my attention. I looked at his wares with mild interest. He tried a new approach, telling me that his family was poor, and that since selling hammocks was their only income, I really should buy one.

I explained that I don't exactly make a ton of money myself.

Then he showed me his hand and said that because making hammocks had so painfully jacked up his thumb, I REALLY should buy a hammock.

I said I'd think about it, and I left.

***

I did buy the kids new Spider-man masks while there though.



THEGIRL warns evildoers to beware.

***

We had a lot of fun. Our particular group was just a hoot. We made a ruckus wherever we went, and ended up being the only real entertainment at a "game show" with a lame host one evening. We attended other shows where our reputation preceded us.

And we posed for some group shots that were just hysterical! As soon as I can get copies I will post them.

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My vision returned to normal about 24 hours after I took off the patch.

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One last thing...

As I returned to the ship from the Cozumel port, two older women approached me. Drunk and laughing, they asked me to block the wind as they lit cigarettes. I obliged, and the latched onto me, walking arm-in-arm with me up the pier as we made introductions.

They said they'd been eating and drinking a lot in Cozumel. They went on to say that they wanted to have "adventure like we've never had."

They then asked me for my room number.

I said, "R240," which...

...happened to be the room number of the VP in attendance.

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Heh heh.

Happy travels. It's good to be back.