We spent the last week doing one of four things: eating, sleeping, relaxing and diving.1. Eating. You can't help but eat on a cruise ship. In fact, we observed people who come on the cruise ship to do nothing else. They simply meander from one buffet to the next, visiting the 24-hour ice cream machine on the way. I got a good laugh, thinking what Uncle Mike would have to say about all of them and their physical shapes and appetites. After being on diets for the past two months, we were eagerly anticipating all the food, especially John. Wouldn't it figure that Johannah and I would bring a stomach flu with us, and Johannah actually spent the first day of the cruise, holed up in her cabin (while we were diving in the Bahamas)? John sampled everything possible, including fried frog legs and alligator and cold soups every night.
2. Sleeping. The girls and I did a LOT of this. Seriously, Johannah and Glo would sleep up to 13 hours every night, and I didn't let a day pass without a 2-hour nap. The only reason the girls would get up earlier than they had to? See #1, or #4.
3. Relaxing. John was very smart before we left on our trip and had everyone outline their goals for the cruise. John wanted to compete in trivia contests and WIN! (We accomplished this on the 2nd day of the cruise.) He also chose to spend every waking moment exercising, trying to counteract the effects of #1.I wanted to sit on the deck of the ship (in the shade for any dermatologist friends), and read. I didn't write at all--not a single post, or thought. I unfortunately also didn't take pictures. I was thankful at the time to not think about hauling my camera around, but now I regret it.
Glo and Hannah? I'm not sure what they did all day, everyday--I was too busy sleeping. I know they DID get their practicing done each day (and yes, this was THEIR idea, not mine). See Glo? She stayed in the cabin to practice while Hannah took her viola, music and stand up to the discoteque "White Heat". Yes, just writing that makes me laugh.4. Diving. This was the reason we took the cruise at all, because as I've said before, I'm not a cruise person. We like to "sample" different diving sites before committing to anyone of them for a week-long trip. We chose this cruise because it was Mark's spring break, and we bought the tickets last year. Little did we know at the time that Mark would make the Michigan Men's rowing team and would be required (as well as want) to attend training camp in Georgia during this week! So much for Mark coming along (and goodbye to our money)!
The diving wasn't awful, and it wasn't the best. The girls and I aren't particular--we're just so happy to be diving. John, however, wants to either go deep, go long, or see really cool stuff.
We dove in Nassau (the Bahamas), St. Thomas and Puerto Rico. Thankfully, our last dive site was Grand Turk because it fulfilled all of John's expectations. The water was unbelievably blue, and for once, there was a shore! Usually we just catch a boat off a dock and don't see much sand. The dive site was so close that we didn't even need a big boat to get us there (no nausea), and the boat just went back to shore in between dives to pick up new tanks. This was prime opportunity for us to play along the deserted, white sand beach. There was more color here than any of the other sites. Too, there is a 10,000 foot abyss just off the shore (where whales were spotted that morning), and we swam right up to it. There's nothing like hanging over "nothingness" like that. It's awe-inspiring.It was a wonderful trip, full of lots of good stuff, and nothing at all. And that's totally okay.
It sounds wonderful!
ReplyDeleteWhat a fun and relaxing time. It sure is too bad we had to come home instead of staying on the Glory.
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