Onboard!

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As the old saying goes there is a sliver lining in every dark cloud. For us, our experience Saturday was a prime example of this. Although the ship was late, the weather cloudy, at times wet, and we were homeless for a short spell with no place to lay our head. We still managed to do what we do best, create memories that will last us a life time.

After I posted the last entry we met several souls as lost as we were. The lobby to the hotel was small and homey and the hotel staff did a great job keeping us informed as to the ships status. All of us refugees just walked around the lobby looking for a space large enough to accommodate our backside. I found mine on the floor against a wall. My beautiful bride was lucky enough to find a comfy spot on a couch next to me. As Kenny Rogers said in the song the gambler “Then boredom over took us and we began to speak”. Once the conversation started we found ourselves in some rather interesting conversations with families from all over world. John and Jane were from England, John being a retired investment banker had very interesting outlook and comments on the global economy. One couple from Iowa was in the medical profession which led to conversations on universal healthcare and regulations. Of course, the conversation always comes back to taxes, food, beer, and when the *^&%$#%^ ship would finally board. Then before we knew it the shuttles were loading. After waiting all day for this moment everyone in our little group decided we would wait for the last shuttle. The company was good, new friends made, and lots more conversation to be had. An hour later we boarded the shuttle a little wiser to the world around us and richer in our life for the experience.

I was amazed at how efficient Carnival handled the boarding process. They worked hard to make us feel welcome and check-in only took about 30 minutes. When our feet hit the deck our cruise began!

Once on board we went straight to the dinning room. We had managed to find two couples that we met at the hotel and sat with them. Both couples were from Tennessee and avid Titian fans. There was lots of talk over dinner about sports, kids, motor homes and retirement. An hour passed and my beautiful bride and I said our good nights and went to deck eleven to get our first look at our stateroom.

The nice thing about deck eleven is that there are only 18 cabins on the entire deck. That means a quiet little corner of the ship all to ourselves. Normal decks will have 150 cabins. Most people think that only the spa and gym are on deck eleven. They are here. However, so are these staterooms and unless you know they are here you would over look them. This has to be the best kept secret on the ship. The rooms are called family staterooms due to their larger size. A huge window that takes up the entire wall looks out over the oceans. Which gives the room a even larger feel. Other amenities include a full size couch, a queen size bed, mini bar, TV and a table by the window. When we opened the door I was in awe. It of course wore off quickly as we unpacked in preparations of our first official trip to the casino.

Inshort, after 3 hours in the casino it’s JW up $31. We wont speak of my beautiful bride. At 2:30 AM we called it a night.

Until next time 

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