HappyPappy Blog

Well we got up around 8 (EST from now on) as we’re getting accustomed to and as usual when traveling is involved Shareen started packing in a panic (wasn’t too bad but I enjoy making her sound crazy). The day was shaping up nice and sunny with the expected temperature in the mid 70s. Had breakfast with the kids with Natalie giving us the guilt trip for the first time. Don’t think she was going to miss us too much (as she gets to go to Disney world during the week) but she did say we had to take her along on our next cruise. Jeremy was slightly upset the previous day but I think that’s more from a change in scene, he was asking when we would we be going home and why mommy and daddy had to go on the boat since he likes us very much.

Snifff/Snork. Martin and Shareen were both suffering from separation anxiety at this point.

Embarkation

Dad drove us to the port and we left with plenty of spare time in case there were any problems. The boat is huge (962 feet long) and you can see it for a good ten minutes before you get there.

Carnival Glory

We abandoned our suitcases right in the parking lot and these were taken away by highly trained and experience Carnival luggage handlers….these guys can drop a suitcase from great heights like no one else….Marty had breathing problems for the rest of the day as he had (stupidly) left LOLO in one of his suitcases not wanting to carry LOLO around. Never again LOLO….never again.

The Carnival loading terminal is a set of buildings and a huge parking lot where guest who come with their own cars can leave their vehicles for the duration of the cruise. We had to go through security and passport checks along with three thousand other people at the end of which we got issued these little “Sign and Sail” cards which are a combination of cabin keys, ship id, and on board credit cards. Kind of a cool concept but I think it’s just the cruises way to make it easier to spend money.

We eventually found our way to our cabin, Shareen and I are determined to take the stairs everywhere on the ship to help work off some of the famous Carnival food.

Our Cabin

We had to do lifeboat drills which consisted of us making our way to deck four, muster station H and stand around for forty minutes while the US Coast Guard evaluated the ships readiness. We were assured this was the last hoop to jump through before the boat got underway.

At pretty much 16:00 Zulu we left our birth and proceeded out of Port Canaveral and out to sea.

We hung around our cabin until about 6:00 at which point we proceeded to our designated restaurant (Gold Upper) and designated table (212). We met our table-mates which are a bunch of Americans from Georgia and North Carolinas. The menu consists of a choice of appetizer, salad, main course, and desert; food is free (part of your cruise), but anything other than water is charged back to your “Sign and Sail” card which ultimately ends up on your credit card anyways. Food was excellent and if you’re a real glutton you can order more than one appetizer or main course or whatever.

Feeling stuffed yet bold we headed off the the Cinn-A-Bar lounge where they had a Margarita special (as a tribute to Margaritaville in Key West I presume) where we listened to a pretty talented Kiwi lounge performer and Martin and Shareen both inhaled four Margaritas each before heading back to our cabin where I promptly passed out.

So far we’re having a good time, but we’re trying hard to slow down and enjoy ourselves instead of stuffing in as many shipboard activities (and there are plenty) as we can in a day.

More to come.