Puerto Rico and Paula Deen

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OK, it is taking some time to get acclimatized to cruising but I am loving every minute of it. There is just so much to see and do and eat!! If someone, anyone has lost weight on a cruise, they have to be anorexic.

The 6 sister + 1 are starting to settle into a good routine of meals, tours, gym time, alone time and taking care of another sister routine. Picture taking has been a challenge as Sister #1 tries to organize us and get the best picture. We did do formal pictures the 2nd night but I think we will give it another try on Friday because no one was completely satisfied with how they looked. Because of the computer systems, I can't upload pics to the blog but Sister #6 has her small Apple and hopefully I will have a chance to download the pics to her computer before the end of the trip.

The seas have been quite rough and so we don't even have to imbibe to feel tipsy. If any of you have ready about the experience Gail and I had in the floatation tanks in Sedona, you will know that Gail felt she was in the womb. I didn't get that feeling there...I was a bigger baby, 10 pounds 2 ounces, so now I am feeling the sensation on this big boat, being rocked back and forth, voices of my sisters in the background etc.

I have met the son of Paula Deen: I was coming down some stairs and saw a guy with a t-shirt that said Gracie Jiu Juistu. Jacob, in Barrie, is doing this so this was an opportunity to connect with this very nice looking young man. Everyone is willing to share his or her story and Bobby was no different. Except that I didn't clue in that the Paula he was talking about, his mother, was the same Paula who did the cooking shows etc. His mother and brother opened a restaurant in Savannah Georgia 20 years ago and it has succeded in spite of the rececession etc. I told Bobby that I would make a note to self re visiting the restaurant when I am in Georgia and he had a look of surprise on his face. Bobby told me that his mother was known in lots of circles and still I did not get it!! Then an older couple stopped to talk to Bobby. Now the gentleman is a rancher from Texas and he exports bull semen to Cuba. Who says the Americans don't trade with Cuba?? When it is a lucrative deal, I guess all the other rules go out the window. Finally, I clued in, asking Bobby, "So your mother is the one on TV?" I am still looking for him so I can reassure him I figured it all out. And I keep looking for Paula too!! And I intend to ask Paula or Bobby if they could use 2 more wonderful sons to do an internship...

Paula Deen is a self-made success story who learned the secrets of Southern cooking from her Grandmother some 30 years ago. She had no idea at the time that the love for Southern cooking her grandmother instilled in her would lead to a life-long career. Newly divorced and with only $200 to her name, Paula packed up her two sons and moved from Albany, Ga., to Savannah. There she started her own catering business called The Bag Lady, where she prepared fresh lunches to sell to downtown businesses and doctors' offices. Most days Paula rose in the early morning to grill chicken for her popular chicken salad. Every Thursday night she cooked until the wee hours to create a mouthwatering Friday barbecue special, Boston Butt. Her local specialties, such as chicken pot pies, barbecue sandwiches, lasagna and banana pudding, caught on with the Savannah business crowd and quickly became the talk of the town. In 1990, Paula opened her own restaurant in the south side Savannah Best Western. Called The Lady and Sons, it served breakfast, lunch and dinner in a small space that could seat 42 people maximum. The restaurant remained in that location for four years, where Paula and her sons built their business with a core of faithful patrons. In 1995, Paula jumped on the opportunity to relocate to downtown Savannah, where The Lady and Sons has been ever since. The Lady and Sons has gathered accolades from critics and media alike. The most important honor for Paula was when the food writer for USA Today recognized The Lady and Sons as having the Most Memorable Meal of the Year for 1999.

Yesterday it was Puerto Rico. sister #2 and me (sister #3) had hit the wall so we didn't venture off the boat. i will have to come back to Puerto Rico to explore it over a period of a few days, I think. We just docked in St. Kitts and I will head off in a few minutes to get ready for the "Essential St. Kitts" tour.

I thought I would hit the gym everyday but that has not been necessary. I am logging over 10,000 steps on my pedometer just walking from room to restaurant to different places on the boat, to the bathroom, up to the spa, back to my room, over to the bar, up to the top of the ship, down to guest relations, several trips to Celebrity Online to try and get connected etc etc.

Will reconnect now that I know waht I am doing to some extent and let you know what is happening.

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Comments

[Eelanor Jackson]

I love Paula and her boys. Paula is
the queen of using butter. my favourite celebrity cook for years!!!!!!!!!!

[jim]

where are the pictures????
sue, did you get my last email j