Turn out the lights the party is over

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Been there done that.
As a first time cruiser I had certain expectations. Some of those expectations were perhaps unrealistic. Below is a list of my thoughts and experiences on the Carnival Cruise ship Glory...
• Food. All food is amazing on the ship. FALSE. Most of the food is mediocre at best. Most of the food is served warm - cold. The only HOT food I've received while onboard has been in the steak house that we had to pay $30 extra. It was amazing! We ate in the dining room most nights and enjoyed good company. The buffets found on the ship aren't near as good as those found in Vegas.
• Lodging. Your stateroom will be beyond your expectations. FALSE. As I mentioned in my first shipboard blog, the accommodations were less than opulent. I was expecting Marriott or Hyatt but turned out to be more along the lines of a motel 6 or travel lodge. Clean but most certainly not elegant.
• Service. You will have your every wish granted with pleasure by the staff. I'm going to have to say this was a mixed review for me. Most of the staff was very friendly. But be prepared it's more like a Six Flags. Our stewart (we called him Bang Bang I'm not really sure what his name was) was the most genuine nice guy you would ever want to meet. He somehow always knew when we were out of our room and would come in and tidy up - leaving us all of these cute little towel animals on our bed. He was an absolute pleasure.
• Shore excursions. Book with the cruise line. FALSE FLASE FALSE We booked an excursion in Belize from the boat and while it was convenient It wasn't run very professionally. We booked another excursion for Grand Cayman and it was canceled the night before. You will find better deals once you get off the boat at the ports.

Fun day at Sea on the start of the cruise was a day from HELL. As mentioned in my first ship blog the weather was terrible. I was told last night that the waves were actually 12-15 foot swells and wind gusts up to 50 mph! On the way back it was pretty smooth sailing. The morning was very nice and relaxing and we spent several hours on the top deck catching some rays and reading and just relaxing.
So now that we've done the whole cruise thing… I don 't think it's my cup of tea. If you are the type of person that likes to go on tours with people - Play bingo - watch variety shows then a cruise is your thing. Do it. But…If you are the type of person that likes to fly by the seat of your pants and not have time restrictions or be limited or confined… Don't. I don't think Chris and I will ever take another cruise. We DID have fun. We met people from all over the world… Germany, Australia, Canada, Ireland, and several sates in the US. But no, this isn't our thing. We know we want to go back to the Cayman Islands… Without a doubt.
Thanks for reading my blog. It was fun to be able to keep a log of things we did and saw. I will never forget this trip and all the wonderful people we've met.
One last note… While on our stingray excursion there was a 70 year old woman there with her daughter. She had been zip lining in Belize, touring the Mayan ruins in Cozumel and then swimming with stingrays and snorkeling. She had Alzheimer's and she told me on the snorkeling trip that this would be the last trip she would ever remember. I saw her in the casino tonight and asked if she was still having a good time. Her face lit up and said "Ohhh yes. I got to swim with stingrays yesterday and zip line in Belize, and tour the Mayan ruins in Cozumel with my daughter." She had already forgotten that she met me and spent the entire day with me the day before and told me all of this. I just smiled and listened to her story again. What a wonderful thing to remember…

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Comments

[Mom]

ME TOO!!
I know exactly what you are talking about...it was a nice experience, but won't go again!! Over all though I think it was great some of the things you got to do. You will treasure these memories forever and like child birth...you tend to forget the bad parts! Speaking of children...Cody & Kyle came for supper last night. I made them Marlboro Man sandwiches from my new Ree Drummond cookbook and they loved them. Also had some sticky pudding cake! Anxious for you to get home and hear all the stories, Love, Mom