Turn Around Day in Ft. Lauderdale

Saturday, March 1, 2025

The first leg of our cruise was over and we were back in Ft. Lauderdale. The majority of the passengers were disembarking and heading home, but around 300 of us lucky ones were going to continue on the Eurodam for another eleven days.

I didn't sleep well overnight and the insomnia was most likely caused by my concern over how our day was going to play out. Due to the large number of norovirus cases onboard the Eurodam, the ship was going to undergo a deep cleaning and disinfecting while it was docked in Ft. Lauderdale. New passengers had gotten notice that their boarding was being delayed from the original noon time frame to around 2:00 pm.

On a normal turnaround day the "in transit" guests would meet in the theater and be led off the ship, go through customs and come right back onto the ship. For a brief few hours before all of the new passengers embark it would feel like having a empty, private ship.

But because of the cleaning, all returning passengers had to get off the ship by 9 am and not return until 2 pm. How to spend those five hours was our dilemma. We could choose to just sit in the terminal the entire time, but no food or drink would be available and that sounded like a really bad (and boring) idea. There were a couple of Holland America (overpriced) tours that could have filled the time but those quickly sold out. A "complimentary" shuttle was being offered to the Aventura mall on a first come, first served basis but because I struggle to walk for any length of time that didn't sound like a favorable choice either.

Our plan was for Jon to take a shuttle to the nearby offsite parking facility where he had left his car and then he would return and pick the three of us up. It was hard for me to relinquish control over the schedule but I told Jon he was in charge for the day. I really was grateful that he was willing to keep us all from sitting in a terminal for hours on end.

The buffet was totally full when we went up for breakfast around 8:00 am (which is very typical on the last day of a cruise.) After we had eaten, Jon left to catch the shuttle to pick up his car. We hung out with Michelle in their cabin and when Jon texted he was on his way the three of us made our way off the ship. We had to go through customs but with the facial recognition devices it took just a matter of seconds.

Our timing couldn't have been more perfect. We walked out of the terminal door just as Jon had pulled up. Jon suggested we go to a nearby Holocaust museum but when we checked, it was not open on Saturday. Jon frequently works in Ft. Lauderdale and was familiar with the area and he decided instead to go to a park along Haulover Inlet. The inlet connects Biscayne Bay with the Atlantic Ocean and is known for the high volume of yacht and boat traffic as well as the extreme water conditions usually present. With Jon at the wheel, we were able to enjoy the drive through the Ft. Lauderdale area.

We found a picnic table near the inlet and just enjoyed the perfect weather as we watched the large boats and yachts coming and going. The conditions on the inlet were mild compared to what sometimes occurs. There are many YouTube videos that show boats battling some pretty extreme waves!

Enjoying a beautiful day watching boat traffic at Haulover Inlet.

The choppy waters were nothing compared to what conditions are like sometimes!

Off to explore the area.

Being back in the U.S. gave us a chance to get online and also get in touch with our kids. I also discovered that the Eurodam was making national news with the norovirus outbreak. Whenever cases affect at least 3% of the passengers and crew it must be reported to the CDC and the Eurodam had 79 passengers and 9 crew members who had reported having symptoms. I'm convinced that there must have been many more cases that never got reported. With Bob and I, our symptoms had only lasted a short time and were not severe enough that we needed any medical attention so therefore we did not report that we had been sick.

And according to another news report made by a fellow passenger the Eurodam was nearly banned from docking in Curacao because of the norovirus outbreak onboard. Those of us onboard the ship were never aware that our port day in Curacao had been in jeopardy of not happening. 

When we started getting hungry Jon decided he wanted to take us to a seafood restaurant that he knew about, Tiki Tiki. The restaurant was located right on the inland waterway and we were able to get an outdoor table overlooking the water.

All the while I was keeping close track of time. I had told Jon I wanted to be back at the port by 2:00 and it was after 2 when we walked out of the restaurant. But...we could see our ship from our table and it didn't take long to get back to the port. Jon dropped us off at the ship and returned the car to the parking garage.

There were SEVEN ships at Port Everglades. The Eurodam was at Pier 19 and the lines of passengers waiting to board reached out the doors and down the sidewalks when we arrived. We walked into the terminal and showed our "in transit" cards and breezed right past everyone, through security and onto the ship. Having just had lunch we didn't feel the need to go to fight the crowds at the buffet (usually the worst part of embarkation for me.)

Jon needed to do some work while he still had cell service so Bob, Michelle and I went down to the promenade deck to watch as the other ships left port. Unfortunately all of the lounge chairs had been folded up to make room for the muster check-in stations so we moved up to the Sea View Pool area. We grabbed 3 chairs and sat by the railing watching as each of the ships took their turn going down the channel and out to sea. The Eurodam was the very last of the bunch to leave.

We saw MANY of these sailboat groups being pulled past our ship.

Bon voyage to the Nieuw Statendam!

The Celebrity Reflection heads out to sea.

And finally it is the Eurodam's turn!

Good-bye Port Everglades!

We had reservations in the MDR at 5:30 but we were so stuffed from lunch that Bob called and cancelled them. We sat by the pool until the skyline of Ft. Lauderdale was fading in the distance. We came back to the room and as Bob was just finishing his shower, Jon stopped by to return my cell phone charger that he had borrowed. He mentioned that they could see enough of the sky from their cabin (over the lifeboat) to tell that it was going to be a nice sunset. I grabbed my phone and Bob and I went back up to the Sea View Pool. We got there just in time to get some photos!

Jon and Michelle came soon after and we ordered pizza. After eating we played a couple of rounds of Hand & Foot until my brain couldn't concentrate any longer. Plans were made for our second visit to Half Moon Cay and that was it for our day. I went to bed thankful that Jon was able to salvage our day and turn it into a memorable time for all of us!

From Frigid to Florida

Tuesday, February 18, 2025

My alarm was set for 4:00 am but I woke up ten minutes before it went off. Right away I checked the weather app on my phone and it was -16º F but the "feels like" temp was -31º! 😲 Our son had the coffee ready when I walked downstairs so I grabbed a travel mug and we loaded up our car. We were lucky that he has a large heated shop area where we had parked our car last night so even though the outside temps were frigid, the car didn't feel too bad.

Our early morning view...

At that time of the morning there was very little traffic and for a change we weren't dealing with a snowstorm...just the cold. It seems like anytime we plan for our son to take us to the airport, Minnesota gets hit with a blizzard! It was a little before 6 am when we walked into the airport and the place was hopping! We got our large bags tagged and when we took them to the counter I held my breath when Bob placed mine on the scale. It showed 51 pounds! If by chance the agent hadn't noticed that it was overweight Bob gave it away when he exclaimed "uh, oh". Luckily the guy didn't say a word about me being a pound over the limit. Bob's luggage, of course,, was several pounds under 50.

Bob popped into the TSA pre-check line while I was stuck going to the regular line. It was misleading because the pre-check line snaked out into the main part of the terminal making it look longer, but in reality there really was no line once you entered the security check area. My line on the other hand, had a roped off queue that snaked back and forth to reach the security check and it took me about 20 minutes to get through. When I did, Bob was waiting patiently for me at the end of the line.

The gate for our Delta flight was about as far away as it could be. It had been a little over a year since I tore the meniscus in my left knee so it was a long and painful walk. By the time we got to the gate, we really didn't have too long to wait. I would have been panicking if we had been much later getting to the airport. Bob chose to sit by the window on the flight and I like the aisle so we ended up with a stranger between us. Susy was nice enough and I felt bad for her because she had been trying to get home to Florida for two days and the flights had been canceled for various reasons. After finally getting on this  flight she was stuck in a middle seat with a TV screen that didn't work. She alerted the flight attendant more than once and each time they promised to re-set it, but it never happened.

I had convinced myself that I would wear a mask during the flight, but when we got onboard I just couldn't bring myself to put it on. The plane was totally full and odds were that someone sitting near me was probably fighting some type of bug, but just thinking about having my face covered for four hours caused me to get anxious. I heard coughing from a couple of young kids nearby, but no adults in the rows around us seemed to be experiencing any signs of illness. Time will tell if I should have been more careful. I am actually more fearful of contracting norovirus on the ship than I am covid or some type of respiratory infection. I don't even want to imagine what it would be like for two people with vomiting and diarrhea to be cooped up in a tiny cruise cabin and sharing one bathroom!

Our plane had to be de-iced, which put us about a half hour behind schedule. But because of a strong tail wind, we still made it to Fort Lauderdale as scheduled. 

A view of the de-icing process through the frosty window.

During the flight I watched news reports from the Delta plane that crashed and flipped over in Toronto the day before. I tried to envision what it would be like to be strapped into my seat hanging upside down and dangling from what now is the ceiling. How in the world do you ever unbuckle a seatbelt and manage to NOT crash to the floor? Much more video was available and it was unbelievable to watch a large plane totally flip over on landing.

It took a little time to get our bags but as soon as we had them, we phoned the hotel to request the shuttle pick us up. By the time we walked outside, it was approximately a 10 minute wait. The warm, humid Florida air felt wonderful after coming from the subzero temps in Minnesota. It was raining a bit while we were waiting to deplane and then really poured on the shuttle ride to the hotel.

Waiting on the hotel shuttle.

Our hotel, the Sleep Inn & Suites Ft. Lauderdale Airport was one we had stayed at in 2015. The hotel wasn't anything special, but the price was reasonable, the airport shuttle was free and the location was convenient. After checking in, our lunch consisted of some snacks we had brought from home and then, because of our early morning, a nap was in order. 

Our room at the Sleep Inn & Suites.

When we woke up, the rain had stopped and we walked across the street to a small shopping center where I could pick up a couple of things I needed for the cruise. I was tempted to take a swim in the hotel pool, but the clouds were still thick and it really wasn't as warm as I would have liked to be in the water. Bob and I did sit by the pool for a little while when we got back to the hotel. It was fun to Facetime with our middle son with palm trees in the background of our video call!

Over a dozen years ago we discovered a fast food restaurant in Ft. Lauderdale called Pollo Tropical. Since then we have gone there for our "pre-cruise" dinner several times. The price is cheap and the atmosphere is lacking, but we like the chicken and all of the interesting sauces. 

Copied from pollotropical.com

I knew I couldn't walk the distance to get to Pollo Tropical so Bob went on his own and got our meal to go which we ate in the hotel room. Bob and I each ordered the 1/4 chicken with rice, black beans and Caesar salad.

The rain showers returned and Bob got interested in a paramedic show on TV (bringing back memories of his former career) so we showered, got into our jammies and called it a night.

Tomorrow we will meet up with our friends, Jon and Michelle on the Eurodam. They are driving to the port from their home in Georgia and are spending the night with Michelle's brother near Orlando.

Ft. Lauderdale - Turn Around Day

Wednesday, November 13, 2019

For most of the passengers, this was the end of their cruise. For us, it was "Turn Around Day", and the beginning of our second week of cruising. After going to the Western Caribbean for our first week, now it was time to sail to the Eastern Caribbean.

Actually it was the announcement for those passengers doing "self-debarkation" that woke me up. We had considered doing breakfast in the main dining room to avoid the last-day-of-the-cruise crowds at the Lido buffet but nixed that idea when we found out they were only serving until 8 am.

Michelle sent a message via Navigator app when they were on their way up to the buffet and we met them there. We took our time eating as we listened to the different debarkation groups being called when it was their turn to leave the ship. While we were eating, a lady sat down beside us and was holding a bag of ice on her ribs. She was in pain and obviously not happy. She explained that this cruise was to have been a mother/daughter trip and at the last minute the daughter's boyfriend (whom she didn't like) invited himself along. The boyfriend had suggested they do an excursion in Key West (on the first day!) where they were pulled behind a jet ski and she had been flipped off. She had been in pain ever since and suspected that she had broken her ribs. She might have been the only one on the ship who was glad the cruise was ending.

Michelle went back with us to our cabin while we waited for the in-transit guests to be called. Jon had already left to pick up their car that was parked at the port to go out shopping. He was determined to get some athletic shoes so he didn't have to play pickleball in his water shoes! Twice there was an announcement where passengers were called by name and asked to get off the ship. It was a little after 9:30 when the ship was finally cleared of all debarking guests and the in-transit passengers (like us) were called to the theater. From there we were lead off the ship in a group and through a passport check.

Not everyone followed directions however, and we were left standing in the terminal until everyone made it off. I'm not sure, but to me it looked like a couple hundred passengers were staying on for the next cruise. The couple standing next to us in line had gotten on the ship in Montreal and had been on for five cruises!

Several tours were available for passengers doing the back-to-back cruises, but I just wanted to stay on the ship. For a few hours we would be able to enjoy an almost empty ship. Michelle and I changed into our swimsuits and went to the midship pool. With blue skies and warm temps, the retractable roof was open.

Bob went to the gym to work out and then met up with us at lunch time. We ordered a couple of pizzas (something I had wanted to do all week and just hadn't gotten around to it). While we were waiting on the pizzas, we went through the salad bar line. We sat at a table on the aft deck and watched as clouds were starting to build. The rain began and by the time we had finished eating, it was pouring. We moved inside the buffet and got some dessert and coffee and moved to a table near the midship pool. The roof was still partially open and the rain was coming in pretty heavy until they closed the roof.

Michelle was starting to worry that Jon wasn't going to make it back on the ship in time. He was texting us updates and we were all relieved when he announced he was onboard. Bob, Michelle and I sat in a hot tub and watched as all of the new passengers were arriving...excited to begin the cruise.

Around 3 pm I went back to the room to shower and get ready for dinner. I had hoped to be done in time to watch sail away from the aft deck as we had the previous week, but the wind and rain would have undone all of the work I just did to get my hair fixed.

While I was in the cabin getting ready, Bob had gone out on the Lower Promenade deck and watched as the supplies were being loaded onto the ship.

Dogs sniffing the crates.

Lots of pineapples!

We were not required to attend the muster drill for this cruise so I met Bob at the library. We sat in the comfy chairs and did some last minute "internetting" while we still had a cell signal. It was raining quite hard at 5 pm when the Veendam sailed out of the channel. Instead of being on the top deck and waving at the webcam (as we had done the previous week) we watched from the large windows in the library.

The Konigsdam was docked next to the Veendam. 

What a difference a week made! Last week we sailed from Ft. Lauderdale under bright blue skies!

A cozy place to read. Bob got in the habit of coming to the library each night before dinner while I was getting ready.

Pretending to wave to the webcam as we sailed by.

When we got to the dining room at 5:15, Michelle was there alone. Jon was back in their cabin finishing up some work while he still had a cell signal. Michelle ordered for him and he got to the dining room about the same time as the food was served.

Once the ship reached the open water it began to roll...big time. The movement intensified to the point that Jon and Michelle were both starting to feel sick. They had brought motion sickeness patches, but had not put any on for the last few days when the seas had been so calm.

They excused themselves and left for their cabin. Bob and I decided to skip dessert and get something in the buffet later so we left too. Once we got up and started to walk we realized just how much the ship was moving. We went out onto the promenade deck but didn't stay long...it was so windy!!

At that point we both agreed that we really didn't want to go to the Lido for dessert, but went back to our cabin for a quiet evening instead. We each took a dose of Meclazine but Bob worried that he might have waited too long. The best place to avoid movement was his bed, so he crawled in shortly after 8 pm and within a few minutes was sound asleep. I tried to work on my blog notes, but found myself getting so sleepy I just gave up and joined him at 8:30.

Throughout the night I woke up several times and was aware of the ship movement. At times I could hear groaning and gurgling noises as the ship rolled. I thoroughly enjoyed being tucked into my bed and being rocked all night long.

The Airline Paid Us to Fly

Tuesday, November 5, 2019

My alarm was set for 3:45 am, but I needn't have bothered setting it. After a fitful night of sleep, I was awake before the alarm even went off. While Bob took our overnight bags to stash in the car, I checked out of the hotel. The shuttle left from the lobby precisely at 4:30 am for the airport.

Our shuttle driver was obsessed with planes and airports. When he found out we were going to the Caribbean, he told us all about the airport in St. Marten where approaching planes fly over the nearby Maho Beach at a very low altitude...visiting this airport was on his bucket list. Even after we mentioned that we had already been there he continued to rattle off all sorts of facts and trivia about the airport.

As we were getting close to MSP, the driver started pointing up in the sky to planes getting ready to land. He was able to identify each one (in the dark mind you!) and from there gave a long string of details about Fedex and their flights. If anyone needs an aviation expert for a trivia team, he’s your man.

I am fortunate to be married to a man that doesn't say "I told you so" because we breezed through security and then had a long wait until our flight boarded. Waiting another hour to take the 5:30 am shuttle would have gotten us to the airport in plenty of time. Yes...it would have been nice to have an extra hour in bed, even with poor sleep.

Well before dawn with a Caribou coffee to start the day.

Our airfare had been a great deal using very few points, but to get such cheap tickets meant booking basic economy fare. No seat assignments until 24 hours before the flight and at that point only middle seats were left. At least we were in consecutive rows.

The flight went smoothly and we landed a few minutes ahead of schedule for our layover in Atlanta. While waiting for the second leg of the trip to Ft. Lauderdale, the gate agent announced that the flight was overbooked and they needed volunteers to give up their seats. I didn't wait for her to repeat the request. Once I was sure they could get us on a flight the same day we agreed to be bumped. Our compensation? We each were to receive $400 which would be applied to a gift card of our choosing. 

Our layover became a little longer than planned, but well worth it!

We were confirmed on a flight for 3:58 (less than 4 hours later than our original flight) but then asked to be put on standby for an earlier flight at 2:30 pm. It didn't look promising since that flight was also fully booked but luck was on our side and we got the last two seats! We arrived in Ft. Lauderdale just two hours later than our original flight...and $800 richer!

Once in FLL, we had to retrieve our checked bags which had arrived earlier on our original flight. It was a relief to see them safely inside the baggage office, but a letdown when we saw that my luggage had been severely damaged. It looked like an elephant had sat on the bag. There was a gaping hole where the side had popped loose. Luckily the lining was still intact which kept the contents from spilling out.

Knowing the bag still had to make it through the cruise and then another flight to get home, I was not sure what to do. The lady working at the baggage office said "oh, it isn't so bad". What?!?! I had visions of it on the bottom of one of the huge bins of luggage being loaded onto the ship with my unmentionables being strewn all across the dock.

She and Bob worked to get the side pushed back somewhat into place and then she scrounged around in a back room and came out with a dirty luggage strap to help hold things together. The strap had an ID card from someone from Tokyo so I know it was a lost & found item. I filled out a damage report and they assured me that Delta would compensate me in some form for the damage. 

Fingers crossed that the strap holds things together!

Having flown into FLL for previous cruises, we knew where to go to catch the shuttle to our hotel, the Holiday Inn Express on 17th Avenue. It was the first time we had been at the HI-Express although we have stayed at the Hyatt Place and Embassy Suites nearby. The regular hotel entrance was blocked off for construction and there was only a temporary lobby, but our room was fine. It looked like it had been newly renovated with modern furniture and a very large screen TV. One indication that the room had just been redone were the many USB outlets available. The bathroom had a nice glass shower and a sliding door between the bedroom and entry/bathroom area made it possible for one person to get ready in the morning without the light or noise bothering someone else trying to sleep later.

Our room looked out over the pool.

View from window.

For dinner we walked across the street and had gyro platters at a little spot in a strip mall. Nothing to get excited about but it was incredibly nice to sit outside soaking in the warm evening air.

The long travel day caught up with us so after showering we crawled into bed. Bob enjoyed watching some sports on TV while I updated my blog notes. As I was working on my iPad a weather alert came through. There was a winter weather advisory for our county back in Minnesota! 

WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 6 AM Wednesday. Snow. Additional snow accumulations of 1 to 3 inches. Plan on slippery road conditions. The hazardous conditions could impact the evening and Wednesday morning commute.

So...please disregard the statement I made at the beginning of yesterday's blog saying there were no weather issues! Honestly...it didn't affect us, but it is just the idea that EVERY SINGLE TIME we travel it seems a big weather system comes through at home or where we are headed.

Zaandam - Our Home for the Next 23 Days!

Saturday, April 14

It was 8:30 before we crawled out of bed…our bodies needed the sleep to make up for the early start to the previous day. The blue skies and warm sunshine were the exact opposite to the blizzard conditions that were taking place at home. I felt a little guilty knowing that our kind neighbor would be spending his day clearing the snow from our driveway and sidewalks while we were boarding a cruise ship.

The Hyatt Place has a better than average breakfast in the lobby which we (and many others) took advantage of. Our timing was good and we grabbed a table for two as people stood up to leave. We enjoyed a breakfast of oatmeal + toppings and a sampling of the scrambled eggs and bacon. Starbucks brand coffee was also available (for free) which I enjoyed.

Afterward, Bob grabbed his sunglasses and headed out for a walk while I showered and got ready for the day. He walked as far as one of the port gates and was able to see an electronic sign showing the Zaandam was at Terminal #26.

It was less than 24 hours since we had arrived at the hotel, but in that time my stuff had gotten strewn all over the room from me trying to find things in the luggage. (This is the reason I shun away from land-based trips. I would spend half my time trying to keep my luggage organized!) I managed to get everything repacked although not necessarily in an efficient manner.

Bob finished watching a Star Wars movie which he had already seen multiple times (do all guys watch movies over and over like he does?) and then we left the room around 11 am. Bob had downloaded the Lyft app on his new cellphone and with my referral had a $5 credit to use. Once he called for the car, it took 3 minutes to arrive and was a much better value than using the hotel shuttle at $7 per person. The total bill for our ride to the port was $8.73 but only $3.73 with the credit.

The distance to the port was very short, but with 5 ships in port, the traffic was pretty crazy. Our driver did a good job, but when 3 lanes narrowed down into 2, it took some creative maneuvering. At the entrance we were stopped and had to present our passports and boarding passes to the security guy. The driver also had to show her credentials and open the trunk for inspection.

As we were heading to Terminal 26, I got my first glimpse of the Zaandam. Only she wasn’t at 26…the ship was docked at terminal 19. 

Our driver quickly got into the turning lane and was able to drop us off at the correct spot. Very few people were arriving so she was able to immediately pull up to the porters who grabbed our bags. It was just a few minutes before noon as we walked through the doors.

Inside there were no lines so we breezed through the security check of our carry-ons, filled out the health forms, and walked right up to the counter to check in. The agent commented that they still had our photos on file from the HAL cruise we had taken in the fall so they didn’t need to take new ones. Because of our credit card issue from the day before, we also took care of switching our account over to a new card.

Boarding had not yet started. The ship was just out of dry dock and we had been informed ahead of time that the Coast Guard would be doing an inspection. Around 1 pm they announced boarding would begin soon but cabins would not be ready. It was around 1:30 when we walked on board and just as we got to the elevator to head up to the Lido buffet, the cruise director walked by and said he had just been told we could go directly to our cabin. (So glad we didn’t have to lug 2 carry-on bags and 2 backpacks to lunch!)

We did a quick inspection of our room, especially the new, large glass shower that had replaced the bathtub during the dry dock renovations. My first reaction to the cabin was “how small!” I had an idea of how it would look, but instead of a couch, we had a very, very small love seat. Could the two of us survive living in such a tiny space for 23 days?

The beds were made up as a king when we arrived but this made it hard to see out the window. We requested that the beds be split with the nightstands between the two beds which seemed roomier and gave us a better view.

The TV shelf basically made one end of the desk unusable. I noticed in other cabins that the TV was on an elevated shelf.

Our brand new glass shower! A bathtub was removed during the drydock.

The walls of the bathroom had also been replaced and I believe the vanity top and mirror were also new. 

Background note:  Several different Holland America ships (and ships from other cruise lines as well) get transferred from the Caribbean to Alaska for the summer season in April. These are called “repositioning cruises” and they all go through the Panama Canal. Doing a cruise through the Panama Canal had been a bucket list item for me for some time. When we were comparing the different ships and itineraries, we discovered one of my old high school friends, Danny, had just booked the Zaandam for its repositioning cruise. It didn’t take us long to decide to book the same cruise and join him. The itinerary looked great and it would give us a chance to get caught up on the last 40+ years that we hadn’t seen each other.

When we got to the buffet for lunch, it was a zoo as it usually is on embarkation day. With our dinner time at 5:45, neither of us wanted to eat much at 2:30 in the afternoon. We had just finished our meal when Danny texted me that he and his friend, Stan, were on board. We waited for them to get to the buffet, said some quick hellos and then let them take over our spot. We found out that we had not been assigned to the same dining table (as we had requested) so we went directly to talk to the maître d and got that taken care of with no problem.

Our next stop was the shore excursions department. For this cruise, we had nearly a thousand dollars of on-board credit (OBC) that I wanted to use for tours. I could have booked the tours in advance but would not have been able to use our credit so we crossed our fingers that the ones we wanted would still be available. Three of them were, but one I was really hoping to do was full. They put us on a waiting list and the staff member thought we might have an OK chance of still getting in the tour if others cancelled. Bob also wanted to book a scuba excursion for Cabo San Lucas but decided to wait a little longer to decide for sure.

Back at the cabin our luggage had been delivered so we set about to unpacking…not the easiest task in such a tiny space. I was griping and grumbling about not having enough space, but by the time we finished I realized that we still had a couple of unused drawers! Our cabin steward was also able to provide some extra hangers which I appreciated.

The mandatory muster drill was routine and then it was time to start getting dressed for dinner. Sail away had been scheduled for 5 pm, but the captain announced that it was going to be a little late. I did a quick FaceTime call with my sister so she could see the cabin before I had to shut off my cell phone.

The back side of the safety drill! Just before we went outside I snapped this picture of people lined up on the promenade deck. The window was like a one-way mirror. We could see out, but people could not see in.

Bob went out exploring while I got dressed but he quickly came back to get me. We walked out onto the promenade deck (our faux balcony) and there was an ambulance waiting…a sign that someone’s cruise was not getting off to a good start. We heard later that someone had fallen and needed stitches so the captain waited while they were transported to the hospital and then returned to the ship. True story? Who knows. I do know that the ship didn’t leave Ft. Lauderdale until sometime while we were eating dinner.

Bob is a paramedic so I take his photo with ambulances we see on our travels. (I know...that's weird.)

Our assigned table in the dining room was at the very back of the second level…right by floor to ceiling windows overlooking the wake. It was just the four of us that showed up at the table for six. Our assistant waiter introduced himself as “Lala” and said the head waiter’s name was “Yes Sir”! The little table marker revealed the actual names were Fadila and Yazzir. 😀

Not being extremely hungry, I ordered the cold fruit soup with a seafood noodle pot. Bob got a Caesar salad and shrimp cocktail with mangoes and a Caribbean pork dish for his main course. Danny is a dessert lover and ordered 4 desserts!

Only a 4-dessert night. A couple of times he ordered 5!

The distant skyline of Ft. Lauderdale taken through the window in the dining room.

The only evening entertainment was the movie "The Greatest Show".  I had started watching this movie on our flight the day before and didn't care for it so Bob and I explored the ship instead. The area around the aft pool was closed off and workers were busy cleaning the floor. We found out later that this area had been used to store construction equipment during the drydock and needed a good cleaning before it was ready for passengers.

I stopped by guest services to get a hole punched in my key card and was surprised at the extreme vibration of the ship in that location. Unfortunately, it wasn’t just at guest services. Back in our cabin, the vibration was so bad that I wondered if I could tolerate the movement for even the night, let alone for the next 23 days!! Between the shaking of the ship and my continued cough it was not a good night.