Cruise

I recently vacationed on a Caribbean cruise. This being my second cruise I became overwhelmed with excitement the day of departure. It was very early on a Thursday morning when the cab came to pick us up. We journeyed to New York City where our smiling ship was waiting (I say smiling because the art work on the front of the ship makes it look as though a happy face was purposely placed there-using windows as the eyes). So,  after hitting some traffic we arrived in front of the Norwegian cruise ship. After checking in we headed to our balcony room. It was just like I remembered, somewhat small, but lovely. This would be my "home" for the next 10 days. After settling in a bit, we explored the ship. We started with the pool deck where I had my first drink of the vacation, a mojito in a souvenir cup. After walking around the pool deck, I realized I was not dressed properly. The weather predicted cold and rain, which had been the weather for the many days leading up to the cruise. However, it ended up being the only sunny day in weeks. Yes I was grateful, but that did not help the clothing situation. I had worn yoga pants and a juicy couture zip up, not exactly fit for walking around on a sunny pool deck. Still, I had no choice, for my luggage had not yet been delivered to my room after check in. So I rolled up my sleeves and continued to enjoy my drink. 

After exploring the outside decks, we went on to take a tour of the gym and spa. Yes gym, I did actually try to stay healthy on this trip, and yes it was a miserable failure, but I will get to that later. So we took a tour of the gym, and decided to sign up for an afternoon spin class to take place the next day. Next was the spa tour. As a late Christmas present my boyfriend offered to pay for massages. I was thrilled. So we took a tour of the spa to decide which massage we would like. Maybe this was not the best tour to take while the ship was still in port, for the air conditioned had not yet been turned on and again me being dressed fairly warmly I was sweating. The tour ended and we made an appointment for a massage an employee recommended for the last day of the cruise. After the spa, we explored the ship a bit more, ate lunch, and then made our way to the top deck to watch the ship depart. Being in the city, the ship gave us amazing views of the skyline, the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, and the Verrazano Bridge. This was a picture perfect moment that included lots of wind. At this point I was once again glad I was all bundled up. 

After we took in all the breath-taking views we went back to our rooms. My suitcase was the first of my group's luggage to arrive. I was very happy, for I always get a little nervous that somehow my luggage may get lost, which would of course ruin my whole trip. I am obsessed with clothes, and I always tend to pack my favorite outfits on trips. The people I travel with also worry about my luggage being lost because they too know that the whole trip would be ruined if that were to happen. Luckily, that was not the case this trip. So I began to unpack my bulging suitcase, as the rest of my group began to wonder when their own luggage would arrive. After everyone unpacked and showered it was dinner time. We enjoyed the first all you can eat meal of the trip, then went on to enjoy the first night's show. It was an introductory show that included a hilarious comedian. After the show it was bar time and soon after bed time. I was overly tired from a night of packing and almost no sleep to an early morning wake up that made me pass out very quickly. 

The next day started with the buffet breakfast. For those who have not been on a cruise, all inclusive means all you can eat, including 24 hour room service. Since I knew it was going to be impossible to for me to eat entirely healthy on this trip, I decided I was going to stay fit by working out. I was excited to get to the spin class my boyfriend and I signed up for the day before. After eating lunch we changed into workout gear and headed to the gym. There was a group of about ten people in the class, including a very fit and young instructor with an accent. I had not taken a spin class in a few weeks and felt out of the loop just entering the room, so I opted to take a bicycle in the back of the room. However, my boyfriend insisted on being front and center. So we adjusted our bikes and got ready for an intense workout. As I started to warm-up by pedaling I started to feel dizzy and hot, thinking I may not have eaten enough, I brought this concern up to my boyfriend. I was then informed that I was not in fact dizzy, but that the ship was rocking and I was not used to taking a spinning class on the sea. As for the heat, the room did not contain as much cool air as I would have liked. This should have been the first sign that I was not ready for this class, but I ignored such signs and got ready to work out. The instructor took his bike, his first question "has anyone taken a spin class before?" I proudly raised my hand, and was wondering why I was the only one who answered yes, especially when I knew for a fact my boyfriend had taken a few spin classes before. The instructor then responded to me by asking "you've never taken a spin class before?" with a puzzled look on his face. I then realized I had misunderstood his accent and corrected my answer. I looked over to my laughing boyfriend, who had just realized I could not understand the instructor's accent. I leaned over and said I love the Australian accent, but I can't understand one word he is saying. My boyfriend responded with the instructor has an English accent not Australian, I still do not believe him to be right. I know I heard an Australian accent. So the class continued, I continued to not understand one word, and felt out of place when my bike's pedals kept getting stuck. I stopped pedaling as hard or doing any of the standing moves since my bike kept getting stuck. While again I felt out of place, I fantasized about being in the cold refreshing pool just outside the tinted windows of the gym. After an hour the class was finally over and I felt gross. I needed to get to a shower, and fast! Needless to say, I did not sign up for another gym class on the cruise. 

After another enjoyable dinner and show, day two was coming to an end. The third day I decided to spend as much time as possible relaxing by the pool, drinking buckets of beer and wine, and enjoying the night sky on my balcony. It was perfect.