Wednesday - Private Island

Apparently many of the cruise lines have their own private island out there in the Bahamas. It is all the rage to have your own little piece of heaven for your guests. Here is a list I found:

• Castaway Cay, Bahamas - Disney Cruise Line.
• Half Moon Cay, Bahamas - Holland America Line.
• Great Stirrup Cay, Bahamas - Norwegian Cruise Line.
• Princess Cays, Bahamas - Princess Cruises.
• CocoCay, Bahamas - Royal Caribbean

So we got to go to CocoCay. Really, this is not a big island. It is Pirates of the Caribbean sized. You can walk from one end to the other in less than an hour, easily. The cruise ship can't dock there, so you take a boat over to the island. Here we are...ready for the day.

One side of the island is quite rocky, but the other has white sandy shores. There was a designated beach for cruise goers. Meaning, they have chairs laid out and areas where you can swim or snorkel. (I think there might have been a small wreck to explore out there.)

We opted to take a nature trail through some of the island's natural terrain and it would spit us out on the same beach a little farther up. It wasn't hard to find the trail head.

The hike was very nice. Much of it was shaded. You had to watch your step, there were lots of rocks and stones to step on or over and a few friends to watch out for. (We even saw some small lizards, but the boys couldn't catch them.)

I was carrying snorkel gear. I put it over my shoulder and it didn't go on right. Beth thought it was funny, so she took a picture. Sadly, it took my two more tries to get it right.  (It shouldn't be that hard.)

Sometimes the trail would lead down to the water, but the guys were pretty intent on following it to the end of the island. We found a look out tower and Tyler took a panorama.

You can see the ship from here.

And our group hiking back. We checked out the umbrella you can barely see to the right. It was a lookout over the rocky side...not quite what we were looking for.

Beth and I knew exactly what we were looking for. We wanted a nice place on the beach. We passed several, so we decided to head back. Jonny and Tyler opted to see the end of the island. As we trekked back down a different path, we came across a wishing well. It looked like a natural hole/cave in the ground, so I think they built a well around it to discourage guests from climbing down.

We didn't want to explore a hole...we were headed for the beach. We came out on a pretty secluded spot and saw two chairs in the water. It was karma...or Beth had made a pretty good wish back at the well. Even better, I found a lizard floating on the water so I scooped him up. (Ha ha boys...who is catching lizards now?)

It was pretty perfect. We pulled the chairs under some shade and kicked back. It was a little breezy, but such a gorgeous day.

We did some snorkeling, but since there was a sandbar that went fairly far out, there wasn't much depth to explore. Instead we found lots of shells and creatures.

This is my favorite picture! I had to take it out of a video, but it seems to capture the essence of that day.

We sent the boys back to cruise central, since they were making lunch out there. Beth curled up with a book, and I took a snooze. I wanted the warmth from the sun, but I did not want any more burn, so I put some layers on. The breeze kept blowing my hat off, so I finally came up with a solution.

The guys came back with some lunch. And then Jonny sees a shark. A shark!! Just a little guy, maybe 4 feet long. Naturally, the boys race into the water to get a closer look. The shark didn't stick around for long. They can be quite speedy when they want to be. Both Jonny and Tyler leaped back at one point because they didn't expect the shark to move quite so rapidly. It was really fun after that to tell passersby to watch out for the shark.

Later Jonny spotted a ray that had also come right up to the shore. It was beautiful. We definitely need to keep him around for his eagle eyes.

Finally, it was time to pack up. We wanted to check out the straw markets before getting back on board. Doesn't Beth look content with her sandy feet, basking in the private island glow?

Saw this guy as we headed back. One guess who spotted him first.

p.s. Do not try to take any shells back. They don't allow that. And I believe there is a fine involved. Luckily they told me before I got back on board. I emptied out my cash of shells. Sorry kids.

Back on board we had extra time before dinner. We played some shuffleboard. Jonny taught us how to play and then creamed us. Okay, we didn't lose by too many points. (I think we got to 60 something before Jonny won.) But I had my own cheer squad. Several ladies lounging nearby said, "We want the girl in white to win!!" (We saw them later in the dining room. They pointed at us and told their friends, "Oh, those guys were so funny." If by funny, they mean I wasn't very good at shuffleboard, they are absolutely correct. But we have fun wherever we go.)

Before dinner we tried one more show. A magician. His tricks were really cool, but he was such a jerk. I've never seen anything quite like it. I wondered if he thought it was comical to insult his audience over and over and yell at children. (I'm not kidding.) If we didn't clap constantly, he thought we were slighting his skill. He kept saying, "Altogether or not at all." I finally gave up clapping. I wanted to see the whole trick through, but he figured we should clap throughout the entire thing. Needless to say, we were less entertained. But the company was still good.

Dinner as always, was fantastic. We took some pictures of the dining room. Oddly, Tyler was the only one who noticed the My Fair Lady statue, for which the room is named, on the first night. I didn't see it until day three.

Then back to our rooms for another creature. He was watching TV. Funny, but oddly a little creepy too.

Tomorrow...Key West. Back in the states, but still on vacation.

Tuesday - Swimming With the Sharks

Our first stop on the cruise was Nassau, Bahamas. We were docked when we woke up, so we simply had to get ourselves some breakfast and then head off the boat.

*Note to self: We thought it would be easy to bring a cooler and put food in it for the day. This only partly worked. There are a lot of signs about not bringing meat or fruits and vegetables off the ship. So, we left fruit and took yogurt, pastries, and muffins. (Does yogurt count as fruit?) I'm not even sure we were supposed to take that stuff, but we did.

Here is the sign as we got off the boat telling us when we needed to get back on. Don't worry, I'm sure we can be back by 11:15pm.

There are dozens of things we could have done, but we opted to try out Aquaventure over at the Atlantis Resort. You can buy your tickets through the cruise, but we opted to get them earlier because they can sell out and they are a bit cheaper online. You do have to get a taxi over to the resort. We found plenty of people willing to shuttle us. You can take a water taxi or a regular mini-van. We found one for $5 a person. Not too bad, but remember, you are paying both directions.

Over at the park, we got our wrist bracelets right away, but then we couldn't find the entrance. Everyone seems to know where it is. We kept getting vague statements, like 'go inside, you'll see it.' We wandered all over before we found the actual water part. But the area is amazing. There is plenty to see when you are wandering.

Finally we came across the water park section. It was all super amazing. There were plenty of pools; eleven at least. There were slides and tubes. One ride took you through a shark tank. Can you see the tube behind the sharks. While you are in the tube, you plunk down into that tube and have a relaxed ride watching the sharks as you float down. (I guess it might not be as relaxing if you are scared of sharks, but I don't mind the ones behind glass.)

Probably the best part of the park is the lazy river. Well, it isn't so lazy. There are rapids and waves. There is a conveyor belt that you take up and down at one point and you can exit the river to join a ride part way through. It was ridiculously fun. We could have stayed on the river all day. Here we are going up to take a slide back down.

And here are my toes. (I know you were hoping to see them.) Robyn did my nails with little starfish before I left.

We didn't get a lot of pictures because of the water aspect, but we did get some fun video. You probably saw some in this post. Here is Tyler hogging the tubes. Didn't anyone tell him he only  needs one?

And don't forget our lovely water ballet. First try. We were that synchronized.

After becoming thoroughly burned...yes, I got burned, we went to check out the aquarium. (And this after putting on sunscreen at least four or five times. Why can't I apply evenly?) The Aquarium was really cool. Although they didn't have an octopus. I really wanted to see one. Here are just a couple pictures.

We took some photos in a grotto with weird helmets above. They symbolized something, but we didn't take the tour, so I guess we'll never know. They may have something to do with the elements?

There was actually another aquarium in a different section of the resort. We scouted out that one as well. We took a picture of Beth by her favorite sea creature. (Meaning, she wouldn't even turn around and look at them she loves them so.)

Here we are in a walkway where sharks swam over our heads. 

Eventually, we had to head back. It was a very full day, but the taxis only run for so long. Bethany realized at some point that she still had an apple in her backpack. She took one out earlier on the ship, but missed the other. She was in possession of forbidden fruit. So naturally, she hid in the bathroom while she ate it. :)

That evening was formal night on the boat. We got all dolled up and enjoyed another spectacular meal on board. (Just ask Jonny and Tyler about the garlic scallops.)

We decided to see a musical/dance show that evening. It was okay. They seemed to do songs from very random musicals. (We decided later this must have something to do with copyright.)

I believe we watched a comedian the first night. It was okay. I can't say we were terribly impressed with any of the shows. I think we would skip them next time and play games instead.

Outside you could see another cruise ship in the harbor. It was lovely at night. (Please ignore Tyler's awkward pose.)

And indoors, we found fun creatures on our beds. They were a little strange, but I thought the steward was creative using our sunglasses.

I slept very well despite by burns. I think I got the worst of it. The boys burned their feet (which I did not...I got my feet okay with sunscreen) and I think Beth wasn't burned at all. But a minor burn wasn't going to slow me down.

Next up...Cococay, Island Paradise.

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