Ok, Lisa tagged me! I'm supposed to share six interesting things about myself and tag six other folks to do the same. This is gonna be tough.
1. I used to play the Saxophone and I own a violin. I took band in 7th grade (everybody did cause it was either that or gym) and was the only female sax player with 3 or 4 guys. I was also first chair the entire year. Is it sad that I consider that a source of pride? As for the violin...still waiting on a g-string and some lessons. Hot Cross Buns was as far as I got on my own.
2. I have a pretty big fear of edges and heights while in a car. I can snow ski, I can repel, but put me in a car in the mountains (or really any road without a shoulder) and I freeze. I got this fear from my Mom...thanks Mom!
3. I LOVE to read. I could literally spend all day every day reading a good book. Still hoping to achieve this dream job one day.
4. My sister Sherri and I look alot alike. People used to always get us mixed up. I got so sick of it that I eventually just stopped correcting them. They would ask, "How's med school?". I would reply, "It's great!".
5. I like it when other people buy me clothes. Shopping for myself overwhelms me and I end up getting the same type things over and over again(my whole wardrobe is black). I love it when I get something as a gift that I would never have picked out!
6. I am related to General Claire Lee Chenault, Commander of the Flying Tigers, and William Henry Sullivan, the 'father' of Bogalusa, LA. This makes me Irish and FRENCH!
Ok, these are probably less interesting facts and more proof that I'm a nerd.
I tag:
Rachel
Jennifer
Corinne
Meg
Shelby
Melissa
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Shore excursions
The first stop on our cruise was Progresso. We decided to book a shore excursion to see one of the new wonders of the world...the Mayan ruins of Chichen Itza.
There are so many amazing things to tell you about this pyramid. If you stand at the bottom and clap your hands, the echo actually sounds like a Macaw. During the soltices, if it's sunny, a shadow will be cast along the steps that looks just like a snake, which is a sign of life. Crazy cool stuff.
The ball court. They used to think that the captain of the losing team was sacrificed, but they now believe it was the captain of the winning team. They think it more logical that you would sacrifice your best rather than the loser. There were so many interesting carvings depicting the beheading of the player. I won't mention all the details here, but I recommend you google it some time.
A closer look at one of the rings the players had to get their ball through.
Wall lining a cemetary area.
This is the temple of 1000 columns? Once again, google this stuff if you want to learn more.
This is a cenote where they used to sacrifice people (among other things).
This is a tourist in head to toe Club Med gear. Stylin'.
Back at the dock in Progresso.
Our next stop on the cruise was in Cozumel. I took most of our pics on a waterproof camera which I haven't developed yet, so there aren't many pics yet. We did a deluxe snorkel trip- get on a catamaran, snorkel for a while, get back on catamaran and drink free beer and margaritas, go to a private beach and drink more free beer and margaritas, get back on the catamaran and drink more free beer and margaritas. See a pattern here? At least it explains the pics below.
When we got back to Cozumel from our 'snorkeling' trip, we hit up Fat Tuesdays for a drink...I think we had a drink? Well we swang in the swings and took pics with hats on.
I was desperate for some food at this point, so we moved to Los Tres Amigos where I proceeded to inhale some wonderful mexican food. Oh yeah, I also danced on my chair in a sombrero. It wasn't my idea though..the d.j. made me. :)
This photo is from the porch at Los Treg Amigos..I just love the idea of bathtubs outside looking at the ocean.
I debated not mentioning my most embarrassing incident of the cruise, but decided to give you a laugh instead. So when we get back from the 'snorkeling', the first thing I need to do is find el bano. I quickly found one, but did not realize there was about an inch of water on the floor, so when I turned to close the stall door....I busted it. Big time! The toilet actually caught me, my calves went under the stall to my right, my flip flops flew off...it was wonderful. A very nice cajun girl in the stall to the right kindly handed my flip flops back across to me and asked if i was alright. Not my finest moment. Thankfully, beer has a way of numbing embarrassment and pain!
I do actually have some pictures of fish and stuff, so I'll post those when I get them developed. It may not be obvious, but I did actually do something in Cozumel besides wear crazy hats and act like an idiot. :)
There are so many amazing things to tell you about this pyramid. If you stand at the bottom and clap your hands, the echo actually sounds like a Macaw. During the soltices, if it's sunny, a shadow will be cast along the steps that looks just like a snake, which is a sign of life. Crazy cool stuff.
The ball court. They used to think that the captain of the losing team was sacrificed, but they now believe it was the captain of the winning team. They think it more logical that you would sacrifice your best rather than the loser. There were so many interesting carvings depicting the beheading of the player. I won't mention all the details here, but I recommend you google it some time.
A closer look at one of the rings the players had to get their ball through.
Wall lining a cemetary area.
This is the temple of 1000 columns? Once again, google this stuff if you want to learn more.
This is a cenote where they used to sacrifice people (among other things).
This is a tourist in head to toe Club Med gear. Stylin'.
Back at the dock in Progresso.
Our next stop on the cruise was in Cozumel. I took most of our pics on a waterproof camera which I haven't developed yet, so there aren't many pics yet. We did a deluxe snorkel trip- get on a catamaran, snorkel for a while, get back on catamaran and drink free beer and margaritas, go to a private beach and drink more free beer and margaritas, get back on the catamaran and drink more free beer and margaritas. See a pattern here? At least it explains the pics below.
When we got back to Cozumel from our 'snorkeling' trip, we hit up Fat Tuesdays for a drink...I think we had a drink? Well we swang in the swings and took pics with hats on.
I was desperate for some food at this point, so we moved to Los Tres Amigos where I proceeded to inhale some wonderful mexican food. Oh yeah, I also danced on my chair in a sombrero. It wasn't my idea though..the d.j. made me. :)
This photo is from the porch at Los Treg Amigos..I just love the idea of bathtubs outside looking at the ocean.
I debated not mentioning my most embarrassing incident of the cruise, but decided to give you a laugh instead. So when we get back from the 'snorkeling', the first thing I need to do is find el bano. I quickly found one, but did not realize there was about an inch of water on the floor, so when I turned to close the stall door....I busted it. Big time! The toilet actually caught me, my calves went under the stall to my right, my flip flops flew off...it was wonderful. A very nice cajun girl in the stall to the right kindly handed my flip flops back across to me and asked if i was alright. Not my finest moment. Thankfully, beer has a way of numbing embarrassment and pain!
I do actually have some pictures of fish and stuff, so I'll post those when I get them developed. It may not be obvious, but I did actually do something in Cozumel besides wear crazy hats and act like an idiot. :)
Friday, November 07, 2008
The tour continues!
This view is from the top floor of the atrium looking down. Those floors contain, bars, shops, the casino, the photo alley, the library, the theatres etc.
This angle is from the bottom floor of the atrium looking up.
This is looking down into our dining room.
Our table for the week. Laurie and Don were on their honeymoon. They met on a cruise and he's from Sydney, so they've both just moved there. Danny, Cliff and Jenny were from NOLA. Amy and Mike were from Milwaukee area. All very nice.
Back row from Left to Right: Laurie, Mike, Cliff, Don
Front row from L to R: Amy, Daniel, Me, Danny, Jenny
This is Nona, our server for the week. She was very sweet and worked so hard.
Most nights the servers danced and sang for us at the end of the meal. This picture is dark, but I think you can see the conga line of servers.
One night we had Halloween themed desserts.
A brief word about the food. If you go to a place like CG and complain, then you might not want to go on a cruise. The dinners at night were nice and there were lots of choices, but you can tell they were cooking for the masses. Not alot of seasoning to the dishes, but still quite good. The breakfasts and lunches were cafeteria style- lots of fried dishes, simple stuff. They did have omelet stations, stir fry stations, a deli with paninis and pizza and that was all good. The water on board...well, it sux. We drank lemonade or ice tea or bottled water. I had read that some people bring Brita water pitchers on board to filter the taste, but I had assumed that was overkill. I was wrong. The water does not taste good. In fact, the first night at dinner everyone ordered water...the second night, EVERYONE ordered tea or wine.
This was taken from 'our seats' on the Promenade. Every day from 5-8 there is a sushi cart on the Promenade. Our typical routine: come in from the pool at 6, hit up the Promenade for some sushi, go back to the room to get ready for dinner at 8:15. it was a lovely schedule. The sushi was excellent, and we had 3 different roll choices every day. (you can see a candy/gift shop straight ahead and the casino to the right)
Looking to the left towards the Universe Bar.
This is one side of the lounge were we had drinks before dinner every night. The flat screens on both sides of this lounge always had sports on, so there were always men congregated here.
This is the Forum lounge which held the art classes we took, the art auction, and karaoke each night.
Next post: shore excursions and corona commercials. I'm ready for another cruise.
This angle is from the bottom floor of the atrium looking up.
This is looking down into our dining room.
Our table for the week. Laurie and Don were on their honeymoon. They met on a cruise and he's from Sydney, so they've both just moved there. Danny, Cliff and Jenny were from NOLA. Amy and Mike were from Milwaukee area. All very nice.
Back row from Left to Right: Laurie, Mike, Cliff, Don
Front row from L to R: Amy, Daniel, Me, Danny, Jenny
This is Nona, our server for the week. She was very sweet and worked so hard.
Most nights the servers danced and sang for us at the end of the meal. This picture is dark, but I think you can see the conga line of servers.
One night we had Halloween themed desserts.
A brief word about the food. If you go to a place like CG and complain, then you might not want to go on a cruise. The dinners at night were nice and there were lots of choices, but you can tell they were cooking for the masses. Not alot of seasoning to the dishes, but still quite good. The breakfasts and lunches were cafeteria style- lots of fried dishes, simple stuff. They did have omelet stations, stir fry stations, a deli with paninis and pizza and that was all good. The water on board...well, it sux. We drank lemonade or ice tea or bottled water. I had read that some people bring Brita water pitchers on board to filter the taste, but I had assumed that was overkill. I was wrong. The water does not taste good. In fact, the first night at dinner everyone ordered water...the second night, EVERYONE ordered tea or wine.
This was taken from 'our seats' on the Promenade. Every day from 5-8 there is a sushi cart on the Promenade. Our typical routine: come in from the pool at 6, hit up the Promenade for some sushi, go back to the room to get ready for dinner at 8:15. it was a lovely schedule. The sushi was excellent, and we had 3 different roll choices every day. (you can see a candy/gift shop straight ahead and the casino to the right)
Looking to the left towards the Universe Bar.
This is one side of the lounge were we had drinks before dinner every night. The flat screens on both sides of this lounge always had sports on, so there were always men congregated here.
This is the Forum lounge which held the art classes we took, the art auction, and karaoke each night.
Next post: shore excursions and corona commercials. I'm ready for another cruise.
Thursday, November 06, 2008
Because it's a little dreary today...
how about some more cruise pics?
First, a quick tour of some spots on the boat.
This is our room when we first arrived (hence Daniel's sweaty back from carrying luggage :)). Apparently, I was too excited to wait for him to not be in the pic. Sorry! We originally planned to get an interior (ie cheaper) room, but decided at the last minute to switch to an ocean view. I'm so glad we did! It was wonderful to wake up and look out at the ocean and to watch as we pulled in and out of port from our bedroom.
Our room steward did a wonderful job and ,of course, left us lots of towel animals...some of which we had trouble identifying.
Since our room was near the back of the ship (M192), we spent most of our time back there for meals and such. Here is the view from our breakfast spot looking out at the ocean and a view from the top deck looking down at the Serenity deck (adults only area) with our breakfast spot on the next level up on the right. The second pic is while we were still in NOLA, so the water isn't blue yet.
Below is a view of the waterslides. This was taken before we left NOLA as well, so they aren't turned on yet.
Daniel enjoying the slides the last day at sea.
Staying on a water theme. This is the pool. It has saltwater in it. I didn't swim, but Daniel got in briefly. Since there is always an ocean breeze blowing and a waiter to keep you supplied with fun drinks, I never got hot. It was wonderful. We found this spot on the very top level that let us have great views of the pool and the ocean and away from most of the hustle and bustle.
9-Hole Putt Putt Golf Course
I'll take a break now. I'll post some interior shots tomorrow!
First, a quick tour of some spots on the boat.
This is our room when we first arrived (hence Daniel's sweaty back from carrying luggage :)). Apparently, I was too excited to wait for him to not be in the pic. Sorry! We originally planned to get an interior (ie cheaper) room, but decided at the last minute to switch to an ocean view. I'm so glad we did! It was wonderful to wake up and look out at the ocean and to watch as we pulled in and out of port from our bedroom.
Our room steward did a wonderful job and ,of course, left us lots of towel animals...some of which we had trouble identifying.
Since our room was near the back of the ship (M192), we spent most of our time back there for meals and such. Here is the view from our breakfast spot looking out at the ocean and a view from the top deck looking down at the Serenity deck (adults only area) with our breakfast spot on the next level up on the right. The second pic is while we were still in NOLA, so the water isn't blue yet.
Below is a view of the waterslides. This was taken before we left NOLA as well, so they aren't turned on yet.
Daniel enjoying the slides the last day at sea.
Staying on a water theme. This is the pool. It has saltwater in it. I didn't swim, but Daniel got in briefly. Since there is always an ocean breeze blowing and a waiter to keep you supplied with fun drinks, I never got hot. It was wonderful. We found this spot on the very top level that let us have great views of the pool and the ocean and away from most of the hustle and bustle.
9-Hole Putt Putt Golf Course
I'll take a break now. I'll post some interior shots tomorrow!
Tuesday, November 04, 2008
A little more Halloween
First of all...GO VOTE if you haven't already. Sorry, had to get that out of the way.
No great shock here, but Daniel and I had a wonderful time at the Halloween party friday night. When you have the owner's of Two Stick hand rolling sushi for the party, about 20 different kids of beer to choose from, and lots of fun people in costumes...it's kinda hard not to have a good time.
Our Friday night costumes...and yes, it's slightly incestuous. Give me a break.
Elizabeth and Josie...hostesses with the mostesses
No great shock here, but Daniel and I had a wonderful time at the Halloween party friday night. When you have the owner's of Two Stick hand rolling sushi for the party, about 20 different kids of beer to choose from, and lots of fun people in costumes...it's kinda hard not to have a good time.
Our Friday night costumes...and yes, it's slightly incestuous. Give me a break.
Elizabeth and Josie...hostesses with the mostesses
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