Clothes have become my enemy since I first discovered signs of being pregnant. On the cruise, the nausea was accompanied by bloating, which made pants unwelcome members of my wardrobe (except for jammy pants). Most women know the discomfort of bloating, even when not pregnant. The bloating never really went away and my belly started growing. So even though I still haven't really gained any weight, my pants have no interest in fitting anymore. I guess it was unfair to say that clothes have become my enemy. Really, it's just pants. Can you believe it? Pants?! My enemy?! I love pants!! Since returning from the cruise in December, I've spent most days in skirts and dresses with leggings. I've occasionally worn pants, using this clever contraption that attaches to regular (non-maternity) pants to extend the waistline, but then there are weird lumpies under my shirt. Plus, it's kinda like walking around with your pants unbottoned which just seems weird.
Despite my success with leggings, lately even they have put a little extra pressure on my ever-growing belly. So, I broke down and ordered some maternity clothes. Holy crap, these things are so freakin' comfortable, I can't even stand it!! Regular leggings have treated me well, but maternity leggings are amazing! That soft belly panel is the best thing ever! And maternity jeans will allow me to return pants to my wardrobe....wohoo! Of course, being the short girl that I am, the jeans were longer than my legs, so they're out being hemmed for me right now. But come Friday, I'll be wearing pants again and they'll no longer be my enemy! (Again, jammy pants never fell in the enemy category!)
So, my new best friend is maternity clothes. But don't worry, they can never replace my BFFs (you know who you are)!
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Friday, February 25, 2011
letter to lima bean
Mommy said that she was going to ask some important people to write letters to you. Since I'm important people, I figured that I should write one too, so that you'll know all about me.
For a long time, I was Mommy's only baby. I had some kitty roommates (Charlie, Banana and Hitler), but I was clearly Mommy's favorite. One night, Hitler tricked Mommy and got outside and then ran away!! It was pretty funny when Mommy went out after him. I could hear her calling, 'Here Hitler, Hitler!!' Hitler never came back.
Things changed when Mommy met Daddy. First of all, I didn't get to sleep in the bed anymore. It made me a little sad, but I did get my own bed in the bedroom and Mommy still made sure to give me lots of snuggles during the day time. I also liked having Daddy around because we would have fun together and he would play rough with me and, best of all, he would give me special treats that Mommy would never give me (like Pringles and Cheez-its...yummo!).
When we moved to Germany, Charlie and Banana moved to a new house so that they could stay in Asheville. This was fine with me because I now had Mommy and Daddy all to myself. And boy did I like that! Sometimes I forget that Banana doesn't live with us anymore and I run around the house looking for him if Mommy or Daddy say 'banana'. They seem to think it's funny, but I find it confusing!! So far, I like living in Germany. We have a big house and there are many places for napping. I also have my own yard! Mommy and Daddy stopped letting me sleep in their room though. Apparently my loud snoring keeps daddy from being able to fall asleep. It's really not that loud. Just 'cause I can be heard three floors away doesn't mean anything! When Daddy went to Iraq, I got to sleep in the bed...that was nice! Being in Germany is also fun because I have a next door neighbor, Bosley, that's also a pug. Friends are much better than roommates and family because they go home to their own house and I still get Mommy and Daddy to myself. Having a friend is also good because sometimes Bosley's mom likes to make me special treats and costumes and invites me to doggy parties!
Last year, Mommy and Daddy thought it would be a good idea for me to have a little sister. At first, I thought that was a pretty stupid idea and I didn't really like Moxii. She was always trying to sit on Mommy's lap, which is my place! And she kept trying to play with me, which was just kinda annoying. After a little while, I reluctantly discovered that I liked having her around. Don't get me wrong; it's still annoying that she follows me everywhere! But it's nice to have a friend and she likes to cuddle as much as I do. She makes a good pillow! My favorite is when Mommy sits with a blanket on the couch and both Moxii and I get to snuggle together with Mommy!
I guess Mommy and Daddy didn't think that a little sister was enough for me, so they brought me a little kitty brother, too. His name is Skittles. At first he was very very tiny and made strange hissing noises, especially
at Moxii, who kept trying to play with him. He grew big very quickly and I think that he might think that he's a pug too. But I know better. He's not as good-looking as a pug! He and Moxii are almost the same size now and they like to play rough! Now that I'm a big kid, I don't like to play rough as much anymore so I'm glad the little kids can play together and leave me alone. When Skittles isn't acting crazy, he likes to nap and snuggle. Sometimes all three of us snuggle with Mommy and Daddy...it's the best!!
Obviously, I like to snuggle. Here are some pictures of me snuggling with some special people when I was a little kid:
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| Me with Auntie, basking in the sun |
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| I love Nonna! You will too! |
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| Uncle Ryan looking like he should be in a magazine. |
Love and Snuggles,
Scooter
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
you are so beautiful
For some reason, I have this very vivid memory of a television commercial from when I was a kid living in Ohio. The commercial was for a program that showed monster movies. There were clips of the monster movies set to Joe Cocker's You Are So Beautiful. And that's what came to mind during my doctor's appointment today as I viewed the ultrasound images of our Lima Bean. The images are nothing but blurry blob and bone, yet all I can think is how beautiful they are:
Lima Bean clearly has already been working on a sense of humor. Even though today was picture day, Lima Bean decided that the best picture position was to face away from us. So not only did we not get to see Lima Bean's face, but the doctor was not able to determine the sex because Lima Bean was keeping that information private by facing away from the doctor! That's fine by us, because we don't want to know the sex ahead of time, but I still thought it was pretty funny! Even though I didn't see Lima Bean's face, I did get to see some pretty cool images of the spinal cord and femur.
It's hard to believe that we'll pretty much be at the halfway mark when we see our Lima Bean again next month!
Lima Bean clearly has already been working on a sense of humor. Even though today was picture day, Lima Bean decided that the best picture position was to face away from us. So not only did we not get to see Lima Bean's face, but the doctor was not able to determine the sex because Lima Bean was keeping that information private by facing away from the doctor! That's fine by us, because we don't want to know the sex ahead of time, but I still thought it was pretty funny! Even though I didn't see Lima Bean's face, I did get to see some pretty cool images of the spinal cord and femur.
It's hard to believe that we'll pretty much be at the halfway mark when we see our Lima Bean again next month!
Friday, February 18, 2011
they painted the car blue!!
Normally, a trip to the PX serves as a kind of birth control. The terrible behavior of children and the even worse behavior of their parents often encourages me to never have children. Today I witnessed a rare moment in the PX that made me smile and look forward to the sweet raw enthusiasm and innocence of our own child in a few years.
For the past several weeks, there have been new cars in the atrium of the PX mall. Last week, there was an orange car. But today, the orange car had been replaced by a shiny blue Mustang. A mom and a little boy were leaving the food court and approaching the atrium when the little boy said incredulously, "(gasp!) Mom, they painted the car blue!!!" There was so much joy and excitement in his discovery that it was hard not to get caught up in the moment with him, even just overhearing him in passing. The mom explained, "I think that this one is actually a different car." The boy was not convinced. His response: "or maybe they painted the car blue!!"
I'm with the kid. I think they painted the car blue :-)
For the past several weeks, there have been new cars in the atrium of the PX mall. Last week, there was an orange car. But today, the orange car had been replaced by a shiny blue Mustang. A mom and a little boy were leaving the food court and approaching the atrium when the little boy said incredulously, "(gasp!) Mom, they painted the car blue!!!" There was so much joy and excitement in his discovery that it was hard not to get caught up in the moment with him, even just overhearing him in passing. The mom explained, "I think that this one is actually a different car." The boy was not convinced. His response: "or maybe they painted the car blue!!"
I'm with the kid. I think they painted the car blue :-)
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
angels
Recently a friend in the States announced on Facebook that her daughter was selling Girl Scout cookies. I wanted to support the good Girl Scout cause, but my fat ass certainly doesn't need boxes of cookies! So I thought I'd take the opportunity to support two good causes: the Girl Scouts and our deployed servicemembers. I purchased my 16 boxes of GS cookies and told my friend that I'd provide an address for a unit serving downrange to send the cookies to. The troop is now going to send my order and other donations downrange. I know that Jerry appreciated getting care packages downrange and really enjoyed the Girl Scout cookies that came his way, so I'm happy to pay it forward!
So I was feeling pretty good about combining two great causes, but I still had the challenge of identifying a unit serving downrange to send the cookies to. Most of the units that I know personally are either about to come home or won't be leaving for several months. By chance, I received an e-mail message today about sending some care packages to medical personnel serving downrange. I e-mailed the coordinator of the project to see if it might be a good group to send these Girl Scout cookies to. It ended up not being a good fit, because the personnel are spread out, but the coordinator directed me to a wonderful site that I'd like to encourage everyone to visit: Soldiers' Angels.
I'm hoping to put the Girl Scout troop in touch with this organization. One of the Soldiers' Angels projects is delivering cases of Girl Scout cookies to our deployed soldiers. But the project that really struck a chord was the adopt-a-soldier program. I know that there are other similar programs (AnySoldier) and they're probably just as good. Basically, deployed soldiers sign up or are nominated by others to be 'adopted'. The 'angels' that adopt them have to apply and make a commitment to send the soldier at least one letter per week and one care package per month. Obviously, that's quite a commitment, but one that can mean a lot to a soldier serving downrange. I think that it could be a great program to participate in as part of a couple or a family. Everyone could be involved and could rotate letter writing. I hope that some of you will consider participating in this wonderful program.
I was also excited to see that there's a German chapter of the program and it's located at the post where I'll be starting to work in the next couple of months. I hope that I'll be able to volunteer (because I won't be busy enough with work, school, and being a new mom!) and positively impact the lives of wounded soldiers who are flown to Germany.
So I was feeling pretty good about combining two great causes, but I still had the challenge of identifying a unit serving downrange to send the cookies to. Most of the units that I know personally are either about to come home or won't be leaving for several months. By chance, I received an e-mail message today about sending some care packages to medical personnel serving downrange. I e-mailed the coordinator of the project to see if it might be a good group to send these Girl Scout cookies to. It ended up not being a good fit, because the personnel are spread out, but the coordinator directed me to a wonderful site that I'd like to encourage everyone to visit: Soldiers' Angels.
I'm hoping to put the Girl Scout troop in touch with this organization. One of the Soldiers' Angels projects is delivering cases of Girl Scout cookies to our deployed soldiers. But the project that really struck a chord was the adopt-a-soldier program. I know that there are other similar programs (AnySoldier) and they're probably just as good. Basically, deployed soldiers sign up or are nominated by others to be 'adopted'. The 'angels' that adopt them have to apply and make a commitment to send the soldier at least one letter per week and one care package per month. Obviously, that's quite a commitment, but one that can mean a lot to a soldier serving downrange. I think that it could be a great program to participate in as part of a couple or a family. Everyone could be involved and could rotate letter writing. I hope that some of you will consider participating in this wonderful program.
I was also excited to see that there's a German chapter of the program and it's located at the post where I'll be starting to work in the next couple of months. I hope that I'll be able to volunteer (because I won't be busy enough with work, school, and being a new mom!) and positively impact the lives of wounded soldiers who are flown to Germany.
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
i heart vd
And of course I mean Valentine's Day. Because I do not heart venereal disease. I realize that not everyone hearts Valentine's Day and for some, it may be on equal standing with venereal disease. It's interesting to see the varied responses to Valentine's Day on Facebook. While some love the day (those both in and out of relationships), others are a little mopey because they don't have a special someone to share the day with, and still others are quite anti-Valentine's Day.
For the past six Valentine's Days, I've been lucky enough to be in a relationship with the love of my life. So currently I have no real complaints about Valentine's Day. Prior to the last six Valentine's Days, I had never been in a relationship of the romantic type on February 14. While I remember that sometimes the day made me downy clowny and wish that I was sharing the day with someone special, I can't remember begrudging the happiness of others. In some ways, it surprises me that people can have such a strong negative and bitter response towards the day. Of course, I may be looking at my past through the rose-colored glasses of someone in a committed relationship, but I believe that I didn't harbor bitterness. And I think there's a good reason for that: my dad.
No matter what, I have always known that there's one man who thinks I'm special and who has made a point of letting me know that every year on Valentine's Day. To this day, my dad still sends me a heart-shaped box of chocolates every single year on Valentine's Day. I've written about this before and about how much it has meant to me over the years. But this year, it occurred to me that he's the reason that I haven't been bitter about Valentine's Days when I've been alone. So if any daddies are reading this, know that you have the power to make your little girl feel special and loved throughout her life. That love goes a long way in giving your daughter the confidence to be patient for romantic love and to be happy for those who are enjoying romantic Valentine's Days. For those of you who aren't daddies or who aren't lucky enough to have thoughtful daddies like mine, there are ways to make your Valentine's Days full of love too. Instead of focusing on love that is missing from your life, I think it's important to focus on the love that is in your life, even if it's not of the romantic variety.
I hope that everyone reading this felt some love on Valentine's Day this year, whether from your signficant other or from your parents or from your children or from your bffs. Valentine's Day can be a great reminder of the love that each and every one of has in our lives.
And Valentine's Day is not just for people. This year, Scooter and Moxii spent some time with their best bud, Bosley, who hosted a Valentine's party, complete with pupcakes made by Bosley's mom, Jade. Jade also made special Valentine's scarves for all of the pugs:
For the past six Valentine's Days, I've been lucky enough to be in a relationship with the love of my life. So currently I have no real complaints about Valentine's Day. Prior to the last six Valentine's Days, I had never been in a relationship of the romantic type on February 14. While I remember that sometimes the day made me downy clowny and wish that I was sharing the day with someone special, I can't remember begrudging the happiness of others. In some ways, it surprises me that people can have such a strong negative and bitter response towards the day. Of course, I may be looking at my past through the rose-colored glasses of someone in a committed relationship, but I believe that I didn't harbor bitterness. And I think there's a good reason for that: my dad.
No matter what, I have always known that there's one man who thinks I'm special and who has made a point of letting me know that every year on Valentine's Day. To this day, my dad still sends me a heart-shaped box of chocolates every single year on Valentine's Day. I've written about this before and about how much it has meant to me over the years. But this year, it occurred to me that he's the reason that I haven't been bitter about Valentine's Days when I've been alone. So if any daddies are reading this, know that you have the power to make your little girl feel special and loved throughout her life. That love goes a long way in giving your daughter the confidence to be patient for romantic love and to be happy for those who are enjoying romantic Valentine's Days. For those of you who aren't daddies or who aren't lucky enough to have thoughtful daddies like mine, there are ways to make your Valentine's Days full of love too. Instead of focusing on love that is missing from your life, I think it's important to focus on the love that is in your life, even if it's not of the romantic variety.
I hope that everyone reading this felt some love on Valentine's Day this year, whether from your signficant other or from your parents or from your children or from your bffs. Valentine's Day can be a great reminder of the love that each and every one of has in our lives.
And Valentine's Day is not just for people. This year, Scooter and Moxii spent some time with their best bud, Bosley, who hosted a Valentine's party, complete with pupcakes made by Bosley's mom, Jade. Jade also made special Valentine's scarves for all of the pugs:
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| All the pugs patiently waiting for pupcakes!! |
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| Nomnomnom...Scooter enjoying his pupcake. |
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| Miss Moxii loves her some pupcake! Happy Valentine's Day, everyone!! |
Sunday, February 13, 2011
lima bean
As we neared the end of our cruise vacation, I began to think that perhaps my constant nausea had nothing to do with the motion of the ocean. Putting the pieces together, it seemed quite likely that I was pregnant. Jerry and I had just started trying to start our family the month before, so I honestly didn't think that it would happen so quickly. But the combination of my constant nausea and extreme fatigue made me think that maybe I was pregnant. I also had become extremely sensitive to smells, which I remember other pregnant women describing. Every time I went anywhere near the casino, where smoking was allowed, my stomach lurched from the smell of the smoke! When we were in Malta, I almost bought a pregnancy test, but then decided to wait until we returned to Germany. I didn't really talk about any of this with Jerry, but he was noticing that I wasn't quite myself and saw me eyeing the pregnancy tests in Malta.
We got back to Germany on a Friday evening, and just missed getting back to post in time to get to the PX or commissary, so I had to wait one extra day to get the pregnancy test. On Saturday, we bought the test and I peed on the stick as soon as we got home. Boy, did that plus sign appear quickly! I left the bathroom shaking and Jerry asked what the test said. I told him that we were pregnant and with a big smile, he said, "I told you I was potent!" That made me laugh and cry and he gave me a big hug and said, "Congratulations, baby!"
Wow, the flood of emotions was overwhelming! Of course, this is what we had both wanted. But the reality of bringing a life into the world is a bit scary! Along with the joy and excitement came the worry of being a good parent and of taking the best care of this child, starting now while it's in the womb. The first trimester is also a little stressful because of the higher chance of miscarriage. I was worried about getting too excited or too connected to the little lima bean already growing inside of me.
Of course, I was excited to tell my family the news...they (especially Ma) have been asking about when we were going to have a baby for quite some time now. But no one was answering their cell phones. They were at a baby shower for my cousin Megan at the time and didn't have good cell reception. I wanted Ma to be the first to know, but I had to tell someone. So my best friend Kathy got to hear the news first and she was very excited for us! Then I was able to get my sister on the phone and told her. She was beside herself!! I ended up leaving my mom a message saying that she couldn't expect to be the first to know if she didn't answer her phone and that she could call Kim for the details. I spoke to my parents the next morning and they were over the moon with excitement....finally they get to have a grandbaby!
I was able to get the pregnancy confirmed at the health clinic on Monday and then had an appointment scheduled with a German OB the following week. Though I was only a little over 7 weeks along, the OB did an ultrasound and I was able to hear my Lima Bean's heart beat! What an amazing experience. It made the whole thing real for me. The image was nothing more than a pulsing speck, but knowing that it was our baby made it the most beautiful sight in the whole world! The OB was extremely kind and gentle and I was so glad that we chose him, even though his office is 40 minutes away and we'll be having to change doctors when we move in the next couple of months. He repeatedly said that everything was perfect, just the word that a mom-to-be wants to hear.
The weeks between the first and second doctor's appointment went by so slowly! We were waiting to share the big news with everyone until we had a good report from the second visit. Which really means that we were waiting to put the news on Facebook. Because by the time the second doctor's visit came around, we had already told a lot of people! It seemed impossible not to share such amazing news with our friends and families!
I wish I could say that the nausea and tiredness faded away, but it's still going strong, even now in the early weeks of the second trimester. I'm hoping that will change soon, but if this is how it needs to be to grow Lima Bean into a strong and healthy baby, then I'll just have to live with it.
The second doctor's visit went as well as the first. The ultrasound image was so different. Instead of a pulsing speck, our Lima Bean actually looked like a baby:
You can see a spinal cord and little toesies! Lima bean even hiccuped during the ultrasound...how cool!! We were so excited to be able to 'officially' spread the news that I posted a status update on Facebook in the car on the way home from the doctor's. The outpouring of well wishes on Facebook was amazing! Sharing good news on Facebook is such a great experience!
I'm now starting my 14th week and am looking forward to the months ahead and to the birth of our precious baby. At least for now, we're not planning on finding out the sex of our little one until he or she makes his/her appearance in the world. But these days, the 3D ultrasounds may show a picture that's too clear for us to ignore. Jerry is certain that he's having a girl, while my dad is planning to be here 'for the birth of his grandson.' Whether a boy or a girl, I know that Lima Bean's life is going to be filled with a lot of love from a lot of people!
We got back to Germany on a Friday evening, and just missed getting back to post in time to get to the PX or commissary, so I had to wait one extra day to get the pregnancy test. On Saturday, we bought the test and I peed on the stick as soon as we got home. Boy, did that plus sign appear quickly! I left the bathroom shaking and Jerry asked what the test said. I told him that we were pregnant and with a big smile, he said, "I told you I was potent!" That made me laugh and cry and he gave me a big hug and said, "Congratulations, baby!"
Wow, the flood of emotions was overwhelming! Of course, this is what we had both wanted. But the reality of bringing a life into the world is a bit scary! Along with the joy and excitement came the worry of being a good parent and of taking the best care of this child, starting now while it's in the womb. The first trimester is also a little stressful because of the higher chance of miscarriage. I was worried about getting too excited or too connected to the little lima bean already growing inside of me.
Of course, I was excited to tell my family the news...they (especially Ma) have been asking about when we were going to have a baby for quite some time now. But no one was answering their cell phones. They were at a baby shower for my cousin Megan at the time and didn't have good cell reception. I wanted Ma to be the first to know, but I had to tell someone. So my best friend Kathy got to hear the news first and she was very excited for us! Then I was able to get my sister on the phone and told her. She was beside herself!! I ended up leaving my mom a message saying that she couldn't expect to be the first to know if she didn't answer her phone and that she could call Kim for the details. I spoke to my parents the next morning and they were over the moon with excitement....finally they get to have a grandbaby!
I was able to get the pregnancy confirmed at the health clinic on Monday and then had an appointment scheduled with a German OB the following week. Though I was only a little over 7 weeks along, the OB did an ultrasound and I was able to hear my Lima Bean's heart beat! What an amazing experience. It made the whole thing real for me. The image was nothing more than a pulsing speck, but knowing that it was our baby made it the most beautiful sight in the whole world! The OB was extremely kind and gentle and I was so glad that we chose him, even though his office is 40 minutes away and we'll be having to change doctors when we move in the next couple of months. He repeatedly said that everything was perfect, just the word that a mom-to-be wants to hear.
The weeks between the first and second doctor's appointment went by so slowly! We were waiting to share the big news with everyone until we had a good report from the second visit. Which really means that we were waiting to put the news on Facebook. Because by the time the second doctor's visit came around, we had already told a lot of people! It seemed impossible not to share such amazing news with our friends and families!
I wish I could say that the nausea and tiredness faded away, but it's still going strong, even now in the early weeks of the second trimester. I'm hoping that will change soon, but if this is how it needs to be to grow Lima Bean into a strong and healthy baby, then I'll just have to live with it.
The second doctor's visit went as well as the first. The ultrasound image was so different. Instead of a pulsing speck, our Lima Bean actually looked like a baby:
I'm now starting my 14th week and am looking forward to the months ahead and to the birth of our precious baby. At least for now, we're not planning on finding out the sex of our little one until he or she makes his/her appearance in the world. But these days, the 3D ultrasounds may show a picture that's too clear for us to ignore. Jerry is certain that he's having a girl, while my dad is planning to be here 'for the birth of his grandson.' Whether a boy or a girl, I know that Lima Bean's life is going to be filled with a lot of love from a lot of people!
Cruise: Day Twelve, The End
Thursday, 16 December
Day Twelve– At Sea
I started the day with Bingo, where I lost lost lost lost. Then I checked out the lame-o clearance stuff at the store and then got a coffee for Jerry Giant.
Lunch buffet.
Check out shops with Jerry
Started watching Tango Buenos Aires, but lost interest and got a hot chocolate instead. I met Jerry at end of the show to play final jackpot Bingo….again, we lost lost lost. But had fun doing it!
Shower and then dinner time.
Packed.
Casino Watching. Last drinkies…beer for Jerry. Vanilla white Russian for me.
Bought pictures.
Retired for the night.
Overall, the cruise wasn't the best vacation for us. In addition to the obvious issues in Egypt, we discovered that 12 days is just too long for us on a cruise, especially if there are a lot of days at sea. The activities did not really interest us and the outrageous drink prices dampened the enjoyment. Jerry moped a lot of the time and spent a lot of time in our room, which just made me feel bad, since I had done most of the trip planning. The full refund certainly went a long way in not feeling too bad about it, but we definitely learned that we wouldn't do a similar trip in the future. We're looking forward to other cruises, but they will be shorter!
Dinner:
Jerry – Calamari, Beefsteak tomato salad, Lamb chops, Flan and Pistachio Ice cream
Hev – Calamari, Caesar Salad, Spinach Quiche, Baklava and Pistachio Ice cream
Finished our wine package with a bottle of bubbly
Day Twelve– At Sea
I started the day with Bingo, where I lost lost lost lost. Then I checked out the lame-o clearance stuff at the store and then got a coffee for Jerry Giant.
Lunch buffet.
Check out shops with Jerry
Started watching Tango Buenos Aires, but lost interest and got a hot chocolate instead. I met Jerry at end of the show to play final jackpot Bingo….again, we lost lost lost. But had fun doing it!
Shower and then dinner time.
Packed.
Casino Watching. Last drinkies…beer for Jerry. Vanilla white Russian for me.
Bought pictures.
Retired for the night.
Overall, the cruise wasn't the best vacation for us. In addition to the obvious issues in Egypt, we discovered that 12 days is just too long for us on a cruise, especially if there are a lot of days at sea. The activities did not really interest us and the outrageous drink prices dampened the enjoyment. Jerry moped a lot of the time and spent a lot of time in our room, which just made me feel bad, since I had done most of the trip planning. The full refund certainly went a long way in not feeling too bad about it, but we definitely learned that we wouldn't do a similar trip in the future. We're looking forward to other cruises, but they will be shorter!
Dinner:
Jerry – Calamari, Beefsteak tomato salad, Lamb chops, Flan and Pistachio Ice cream
Hev – Calamari, Caesar Salad, Spinach Quiche, Baklava and Pistachio Ice cream
Finished our wine package with a bottle of bubbly
Cruise: Day Eleven
Wednesday, 15 December
Day Eleven – Malta
Late Start - getting some much needed rest on a docked ship!
Windjammer Lunch Buffet
Walk to top of the hill. I've been so exhausted throughout the trip that I wasn't looking forward to the steep walk. But it wasn't too bad! Along the way, we encountered a Cat café, where food and shelter were left for the many feline inhabitants of the area. We then visited a human café for cappuccino and hot chocolate. More drizzlage.
Window shopping….great glass store!
Looked for interesting chess board, possibly with knights of Malta, but no luck.
Returned to the ship and said goodbye to Malta. Although I'm sad we missed Egypt, I'm glad that we got the extra day in Malta. We'd love to go back for a longer visit. It's a beautiful and charming place that doesn't seem extraordinarily overpriced!
Dinner
String Fever show - really great!
Quest. Super funny. I had a frozen mojito….different and yummo.
Bottle of wine in the room with middle of the night room service treats: Caesar salad, pepperoni pizza, international cheese plate, cookies of the day (oatmeal raisin…I hate raisins and had to eat around them on my cookie). Room service was a challenge because we discovered that our ‘incident’ broke our phone. We could hear the other end, but the other end couldn’t hear us. But we were determined and found a way!
Dinner:
Jerry – Onion soup (not French, so no cheese), Tempura, Banana Parfait
Heather – Spinach artichoke dip (a little bland), Gnocchi in cream sauce (not so good so I exchanged it for tempura), Fish & Shrimpy Tempura (super yummy), Brownie/Mousse thing that wasn’t so moussey, Jerry’s was yummier
Day Eleven – Malta
Late Start - getting some much needed rest on a docked ship!
Windjammer Lunch Buffet
Walk to top of the hill. I've been so exhausted throughout the trip that I wasn't looking forward to the steep walk. But it wasn't too bad! Along the way, we encountered a Cat café, where food and shelter were left for the many feline inhabitants of the area. We then visited a human café for cappuccino and hot chocolate. More drizzlage.
Window shopping….great glass store!
Looked for interesting chess board, possibly with knights of Malta, but no luck.
Returned to the ship and said goodbye to Malta. Although I'm sad we missed Egypt, I'm glad that we got the extra day in Malta. We'd love to go back for a longer visit. It's a beautiful and charming place that doesn't seem extraordinarily overpriced!
Dinner
String Fever show - really great!
Quest. Super funny. I had a frozen mojito….different and yummo.
Bottle of wine in the room with middle of the night room service treats: Caesar salad, pepperoni pizza, international cheese plate, cookies of the day (oatmeal raisin…I hate raisins and had to eat around them on my cookie). Room service was a challenge because we discovered that our ‘incident’ broke our phone. We could hear the other end, but the other end couldn’t hear us. But we were determined and found a way!
Dinner:
Jerry – Onion soup (not French, so no cheese), Tempura, Banana Parfait
Heather – Spinach artichoke dip (a little bland), Gnocchi in cream sauce (not so good so I exchanged it for tempura), Fish & Shrimpy Tempura (super yummy), Brownie/Mousse thing that wasn’t so moussey, Jerry’s was yummier
Cruise: Day Ten
Tuesday, 14 December
Day Ten – Malta
We started the day with a great excursion: walking tour of Valetta, bus ride to Mdina, walking tour of Mdina. We had a wonderful tour guide, Daz (Darryl). We split off from group when they went to the boring Archeological Museum and checked out the shopping and ate delicious cannoli instead :-)
After the excursion, we briefly went back to the ship to get jackets. Though the day was sunny and beautiful, it was December and a bit chilly. We planned to take the bus back into Valetta, but it never showed up. Instead, we shared a cab with a lovely honeymooning couple and returned to the city. We went back to the main street and had a meal which included local beer (Cisk), local wine, bruschetta (yum!), and octopus in wine and garlic (not so yum, but very octopussy!). We also made a new cat friend who liked the octopus WAY more than we did!!
For dessert, we went to a gelato café and got some expensive scoops. I got experimental flavors, coffee crunch and biscotto, while Jerry played it safe with hazelnut and stracchiatelli. All was yummy but I think I like my German eis better.
We walked along the shopping area and got Jerry a Maltese soccer shirt, me some Hello Kitty Woman perfume and both of us more cannoli. So yummy and only 80 cents each! We walked back (downhill) to the ship and rested shortly before dinner.
We had a beautiful night view from our room:
After dinner we rested a bit and then went out for some drinks, majority rules game, more drinks and a chess game, which I totally lost! Great day after many not so great ones!
Dinner
Jerry – Creamed wild mushrooms in puff pastry (really a roll), Prime Rib, Cherries Jubilee
Hev – Creamed wild mushrooms in puff pastry (really a roll), Thai “BBQ” chicken (not BBQ at all, but very tasty), Low-Fat Passionfruit (?) Cheesecake
5th Bottle of wine – Castle Rock Cab (sound familiar?)
Drinks –
Jerry – Two Ulitmate pina coladas
Hev – Guava Lava Flow and Patron Perfect Margarita
We got the glasses!
Day Ten – Malta
We started the day with a great excursion: walking tour of Valetta, bus ride to Mdina, walking tour of Mdina. We had a wonderful tour guide, Daz (Darryl). We split off from group when they went to the boring Archeological Museum and checked out the shopping and ate delicious cannoli instead :-)
After the excursion, we briefly went back to the ship to get jackets. Though the day was sunny and beautiful, it was December and a bit chilly. We planned to take the bus back into Valetta, but it never showed up. Instead, we shared a cab with a lovely honeymooning couple and returned to the city. We went back to the main street and had a meal which included local beer (Cisk), local wine, bruschetta (yum!), and octopus in wine and garlic (not so yum, but very octopussy!). We also made a new cat friend who liked the octopus WAY more than we did!!
We walked along the shopping area and got Jerry a Maltese soccer shirt, me some Hello Kitty Woman perfume and both of us more cannoli. So yummy and only 80 cents each! We walked back (downhill) to the ship and rested shortly before dinner.
We had a beautiful night view from our room:
After dinner we rested a bit and then went out for some drinks, majority rules game, more drinks and a chess game, which I totally lost! Great day after many not so great ones!
Dinner
Jerry – Creamed wild mushrooms in puff pastry (really a roll), Prime Rib, Cherries Jubilee
Hev – Creamed wild mushrooms in puff pastry (really a roll), Thai “BBQ” chicken (not BBQ at all, but very tasty), Low-Fat Passionfruit (?) Cheesecake
5th Bottle of wine – Castle Rock Cab (sound familiar?)
Drinks –
Jerry – Two Ulitmate pina coladas
Hev – Guava Lava Flow and Patron Perfect Margarita
We got the glasses!
Cruise: Day Nine
Monday, 13 December
Day Nine – At Sea
The day at sea after ‘the incident’ was really quite boring. There were still many things that weren’t open, areas where there wasn’t power, and the kitchens had really taken a hit, impacting food service throughout the day. Our day started quite late, since we took advantage of the calmer sea to get extra sleep in. On our stateroom door, we found a letter stating that we would receive a $200 credit to the stateroom to compensate for our troubles. That seemed quite insufficient, though I was glad to see that there was quick response and action taken to address the inconvenience and the fear that we all endured. A little miffed at the paltry compensation, we proceeded to the lunch buffet. The lunch buffet was pretty meager and not that great. The afternoon was fairly uneventful, though there was supposed to be a meeting with the hotel manager in the afternoon to discuss the compensation. Apparently, the Spanish-speaking guests got out of hand and ‘revolted’, screaming at the hotel manager. The meeting was canceled and an announcement was made letting everyone know that a shipwide announcement would be made at 7:00, during our dinner. Dinner service was much better , with full service, though the pre-planned menu was missing many items. The highlight of the dinner was the 7:00 announcement, which informed us all that in addition to the $200 credit, we would each receive a full refund for our cruise! Wow…that was completely unexpected and very generous and went a long way in lifting spirits. Of course, there are still people griping, but those people will never be happy. After dinner, we went to the evening’s musical production, which was quite enjoyable, especially the swing number. After that, I hit the casino and turned $20 into $60, setting me ahead $70 on this trip…woohoo! While I played the slots, Jerry took advantage of the free internet service being provided for the day. I followed suit and e-mailed my family to let them know we were okay.
Then it was time for bed since we had an excursion scheduled the next morning in Malta.
Dinner:
Hev – Maryland crab cakes, Rack of lamb, Apple crunch
Jerry – Shrimp Cocktail, Rack of Lamb, Cappucino cake?
Fourth bottle of wine – Castle Rock Cab
Day Nine – At Sea
The day at sea after ‘the incident’ was really quite boring. There were still many things that weren’t open, areas where there wasn’t power, and the kitchens had really taken a hit, impacting food service throughout the day. Our day started quite late, since we took advantage of the calmer sea to get extra sleep in. On our stateroom door, we found a letter stating that we would receive a $200 credit to the stateroom to compensate for our troubles. That seemed quite insufficient, though I was glad to see that there was quick response and action taken to address the inconvenience and the fear that we all endured. A little miffed at the paltry compensation, we proceeded to the lunch buffet. The lunch buffet was pretty meager and not that great. The afternoon was fairly uneventful, though there was supposed to be a meeting with the hotel manager in the afternoon to discuss the compensation. Apparently, the Spanish-speaking guests got out of hand and ‘revolted’, screaming at the hotel manager. The meeting was canceled and an announcement was made letting everyone know that a shipwide announcement would be made at 7:00, during our dinner. Dinner service was much better , with full service, though the pre-planned menu was missing many items. The highlight of the dinner was the 7:00 announcement, which informed us all that in addition to the $200 credit, we would each receive a full refund for our cruise! Wow…that was completely unexpected and very generous and went a long way in lifting spirits. Of course, there are still people griping, but those people will never be happy. After dinner, we went to the evening’s musical production, which was quite enjoyable, especially the swing number. After that, I hit the casino and turned $20 into $60, setting me ahead $70 on this trip…woohoo! While I played the slots, Jerry took advantage of the free internet service being provided for the day. I followed suit and e-mailed my family to let them know we were okay.
Then it was time for bed since we had an excursion scheduled the next morning in Malta.
Dinner:
Hev – Maryland crab cakes, Rack of lamb, Apple crunch
Jerry – Shrimp Cocktail, Rack of Lamb, Cappucino cake?
Fourth bottle of wine – Castle Rock Cab
Cruise: Day Eight
Sunday, 12 December
Day Eight – Alexandria (sort of)
Sleeping was pretty difficult; the extreme rocking made it hard to do anything other than doze on and off. A little before 3:00am, we were woken up by a large noise, followed by us moving with the bed across the stateroom! Back and forth we went as the boat tilted one way and then the other. It was very scary and I was shaking. I had one arm across the bed holding onto the back of Jerry’s t-shirt and the other arm out keeping me from slamming into the balcony door when the bed slid to that end of the room. In the middle of the sliding, elevator music started playing which was a little surreal. Apparently the phone had been knocked to speaker and we were listening to hold music or something. Everything was falling and sliding and then finally it stopped. We turned the lights on and the room was a mess! The floor was strewn with papers and shoes. The table was knocked over and against the door. All of the bathroom toiletries were all over the bathroom floor. The bed had slid a couple feet away from the headboard and was almost against the balcony doors and the nightstands were both tipped over. The light switch was hanging off the wall, with exposed wires, but still functioning.
A few minutes after the crazy rocking subsided, the captain of the ship addressed us all over the PA system. Apparently, we were heading into the port of Alexandria and it was littered with unanchored ships riding out the storm. It was impossible to continue into the port, so the ship had to be turned into the wind and the speed slowed down so much that the stabilizers couldn’t do their job. He assured us that everything was fine and made several announcements throughout the night, first telling everyone to go to their staterooms, then letting us know that our stateroom attendants would be checking on each room, and then telling us that a great deal of damage was sustained throughout the ship and that the crew was working on cleaning it up and assessing the damage. Too shaken up to fall back sleep right away, we started watching the karate kid.
We left our room around noon and the effects of the night before were everywhere. There were bags of broken items at every landing. The giant Christmas tree in centrum had fallen and lay across the center of the centrum. Glass walls were shattered. Furniture broken.
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Before |
Cruise: Day Seven
Saturday, 11 December
Day Seven – At Sea
We’re on our way to Egypt and excited, but not enjoying the choppy waves that are taking us there. We woke up pretty late, but in time to participate in the Make a Wish Walk, or so we thought. Unfortunately the rough water meant that the walk had to be postponed to another day when it wouldn’t be so dangerous to be briskly walking around. All sorts of stuff was cancelled including a poolside barbecue, the big production for the evening, and both pools and the gym were closed. We went back to the room after buffet lunch and watched some Scrubbies. Jerry wanted to stay in the room, but I was a little stir crazy so I went out and about. I picked up our passports, now bearing Egypt stamps and then spent a little time in the casino, where I turned $40 into $81.50 on a slot machine! I checked out the ship shop, still debating on whether to buy a necklace that I’ve had my eyes on. I went to the coffee shop and ran into Jerry. I got some cookies and then we split ways…he went back to the room and I went to the Solarium so that I could get some studying done. That was a mistake. The solarium had water sloshing around on the floor and there was no soda service. Defeated, I returned to the room where we finished the season of Scrubbies and got in some napping. I haven’t been feeling that great and wasn’t up for formal night in the dining room, especially with heels on this rockin’ boat. Strange that I'm feeling queasy. Even though the water's been rocky, I can't say I can remember ever haveing motion sickness in my life! We went to the buffet and walking around on this ship was challenging, but kinda a fun adventure. It was interesting seeing the barf bags left on each landing just in case passengers needed it. The rocking was so severe that the centrum elevators were closed for awhile.
We also took advantage of the empty arcade to get in some air hockey...my favorite!
Back at the room, we settled in for a quiet evening. It wasn’t as quiet as we’d like because the rocking was causing the medicine cabinet in the bathroom to slam open and shut in the bathroom and the television to swing loudly back and forth. In addition to being loud, it made it difficult to watch television! Jerry remedied the situation by stuffing a pillow next to the television, keeping it firmly in place!
Day Seven – At Sea
We’re on our way to Egypt and excited, but not enjoying the choppy waves that are taking us there. We woke up pretty late, but in time to participate in the Make a Wish Walk, or so we thought. Unfortunately the rough water meant that the walk had to be postponed to another day when it wouldn’t be so dangerous to be briskly walking around. All sorts of stuff was cancelled including a poolside barbecue, the big production for the evening, and both pools and the gym were closed. We went back to the room after buffet lunch and watched some Scrubbies. Jerry wanted to stay in the room, but I was a little stir crazy so I went out and about. I picked up our passports, now bearing Egypt stamps and then spent a little time in the casino, where I turned $40 into $81.50 on a slot machine! I checked out the ship shop, still debating on whether to buy a necklace that I’ve had my eyes on. I went to the coffee shop and ran into Jerry. I got some cookies and then we split ways…he went back to the room and I went to the Solarium so that I could get some studying done. That was a mistake. The solarium had water sloshing around on the floor and there was no soda service. Defeated, I returned to the room where we finished the season of Scrubbies and got in some napping. I haven’t been feeling that great and wasn’t up for formal night in the dining room, especially with heels on this rockin’ boat. Strange that I'm feeling queasy. Even though the water's been rocky, I can't say I can remember ever haveing motion sickness in my life! We went to the buffet and walking around on this ship was challenging, but kinda a fun adventure. It was interesting seeing the barf bags left on each landing just in case passengers needed it. The rocking was so severe that the centrum elevators were closed for awhile.
We also took advantage of the empty arcade to get in some air hockey...my favorite!
Back at the room, we settled in for a quiet evening. It wasn’t as quiet as we’d like because the rocking was causing the medicine cabinet in the bathroom to slam open and shut in the bathroom and the television to swing loudly back and forth. In addition to being loud, it made it difficult to watch television! Jerry remedied the situation by stuffing a pillow next to the television, keeping it firmly in place!
Cruise: Day Six
Friday, 10 December
Day Six – Rhodes
We woke up at 9:30 in the port of Rhodes, Greece. We had a great view from our window/balcony and at first sight I could tell that I was going to like this port of call. As usual, we started our day at the breakfast buffet and headed out to the city of Rhodes immediately after. Unlike most ports, here the ship docks just a short walk away from the places you want to see. The old town is surrounded by a wall that is actually still the original. Going through one of the stone archways you reach a pedestrian area (though there are plenty of scooters and there were still several cars) filled with little shops, cafes and restaurants. The streets were a cobblestone made of small stones.
The morning was beautiful and sunny with a brief sprinkling of rain in the bright sunshine. The sellers in the marketplace were not pushy and aggressive, something I very much appreciated! We managed to get ourselves turned around a bit in the windy little streets, but eventually made it back to the main marketplace area. Since we still had several hours in port, we returned to the boat for a bit with the intention of returning in the early afternoon when we were hungry so that we could enjoy and good meal. We set back out around 1:30 and the day had turned cooler. We entered the city through a different archway and made our way up to the palace of the knights, which was pretty cool. One of our dinner couples told us that the palace was actually reconstructed because the original was blown up when lightning struck a tower containing a secret stash of gunpowder! We then decided it was time to eat and started toward the main marketplace. In the center square, several restaurant owners were trying to convince us to eat at their establishments. We didn’t really like how aggressive they were being, so we decided to look further. We should have picked a place then. Because the heavens opened up a few minutes later and we were soaked, huddling under awnings, trees and alleyways. We ultimately sat at an outdoor restaurant under the umbrellas that did a great job of keeping out the rain. Jerry asked for a big beer and got a giant beer in a boot.
It was pretty hilarious. When he got to the beer that was in the toe of the boot, there would be a whirlpool effect with air bubbling up and the beer would explode in his face. I found it funnier than he did! Jerry also got a gyro plate and I got some dolmidas (?) – stuffed grape leaves. Jerry made a kitty friend (there were cats everywhere) that he shared his meal with.
Everything was pretty good and seemed reasonably priced, until we got the bill – 34 euros! The food was 13 and I got a diet coke, meaning the beer must have been nearly 20 euro!!! No wonder the guy was pushing the big beer! I saw two little Indian women at a table near us had also each been served a giant beer in a boot. The rain had finally calmed down and we grumpily returned to the ship, having been beer scammed.
Back at the ship it was time for our afternoon nap, followed by dinner. After dinner, we decided to skip the show as it seemed to be a little Barry Manilow-y. We chilled in the room until it was Bingo time. Another bingo loss under our belts, but it was fun.
After the show, we took a nice walk around the ship and tested ourselves to see how well we would have done as contestants on the show. We would have lost big time!!
Then we returned to the room for the night.
Dinner:
Jerry – Onion Foccacia, Sirloin, Coconut parfait
Hev – Samosas, Cauliflower Soup, Fried Chicken, Cappucino Cake (Yummo)
Finished our third bottle of wine.
Cruise: Day Five
Thursday, 9 December
Day Five – Piraeus (Port), Athens
We had to wake up the earliest yet, to go on our first formal excursion. After a quick buffet breakfast, we went downstairs to the theatre to join up with our group and get our bus number (22). Within a few minutes we were shuffled like cattle down to the gangplank (?) and out to a bus. We were quick to separate ourselves from an annoying young couple…the man/boy in particular was extremely obnoxious and kept mocking Greek men and insinuating they were all gay. Completely not funny. Aboard our bus, we met our guide, Dmitri, who reminded me of Walter on Fringe. He was a little hard to follow at times, but well-meaning and funny. Our bus took us from the port of Piraeus to downtown Athens, where we stopped at the stadium that was the site of the first Olympic games in 1896.
Return bus ride through downtown Athens took us past the house of parliament where we were lucky enough to see the changing of the guards of the memorial to unknown soldiers as we passed by.
Other buildings were pointed out, but I fell asleep and woke up right before we got back to the ship! It’s tough work staying awake.
We went straight to lunch and then it was naptime for much of the afternoon, after completing three chapters of studying and finishing Room (such a good book!). I also had finished Mockingjay a few days before which completed the Hunger Games, a great series. I love how much pleasure reading I’ve been able to do!
After dinner, we checked our e-mail for the first time since leaving! I’ve enjoyed not being tied to e-mail, which surprised me. We took care of a few things with guest services and then went to the evening’s show, an illusionist and his fiancée pretty girl partner. The illusions were quite good, but the choreography was a little silly and the pretty girl had a freakish smile and really poor dancing skills, especially for someone who bills herself as someone who has been dancing since she was two! After the show, we gambled a little (me losing $10 on the slots after quite awhile and Jerry losing $40 quickly at roulette).
Then we went back to the room and ended our evening with some reading and TV watching.
Dinner:
Jerry – Minestrone, Shrimp Cocktail, Fried Eggplant with Tomato on a Crust Thing, Angel Food Cake, Sherbet
Heather – Creamy Garlic Soup, Strawberry Soup (cold), Roast LambShank, Tiramisu (Made with Kahlua-yumyumyum)
Started 3rd bottle – same Cab
Day Five – Piraeus (Port), Athens
We had to wake up the earliest yet, to go on our first formal excursion. After a quick buffet breakfast, we went downstairs to the theatre to join up with our group and get our bus number (22). Within a few minutes we were shuffled like cattle down to the gangplank (?) and out to a bus. We were quick to separate ourselves from an annoying young couple…the man/boy in particular was extremely obnoxious and kept mocking Greek men and insinuating they were all gay. Completely not funny. Aboard our bus, we met our guide, Dmitri, who reminded me of Walter on Fringe. He was a little hard to follow at times, but well-meaning and funny. Our bus took us from the port of Piraeus to downtown Athens, where we stopped at the stadium that was the site of the first Olympic games in 1896.
From there, we could also see the Acropolis in the distance, our main destination for the day. After our brief stop at the stadium, we continued on our journey to the Acropolis. I was nervous about the 200 to 300 step climb, but our guide took it pretty slowly with several stops and it didn’t feel like much of a climb at all! It was pretty amazing when we finally reached the acropolis and saw the Parthenon. What an amazing experience.
Then we went to a Greek gift shop, where we saw overpriced junky junk. We didn't buy anything (that would leave less money for the casino and bingo!)
Return bus ride through downtown Athens took us past the house of parliament where we were lucky enough to see the changing of the guards of the memorial to unknown soldiers as we passed by.
Other buildings were pointed out, but I fell asleep and woke up right before we got back to the ship! It’s tough work staying awake.
We went straight to lunch and then it was naptime for much of the afternoon, after completing three chapters of studying and finishing Room (such a good book!). I also had finished Mockingjay a few days before which completed the Hunger Games, a great series. I love how much pleasure reading I’ve been able to do!
After dinner, we checked our e-mail for the first time since leaving! I’ve enjoyed not being tied to e-mail, which surprised me. We took care of a few things with guest services and then went to the evening’s show, an illusionist and his fiancée pretty girl partner. The illusions were quite good, but the choreography was a little silly and the pretty girl had a freakish smile and really poor dancing skills, especially for someone who bills herself as someone who has been dancing since she was two! After the show, we gambled a little (me losing $10 on the slots after quite awhile and Jerry losing $40 quickly at roulette).
Then we went back to the room and ended our evening with some reading and TV watching.
Dinner:
Jerry – Minestrone, Shrimp Cocktail, Fried Eggplant with Tomato on a Crust Thing, Angel Food Cake, Sherbet
Heather – Creamy Garlic Soup, Strawberry Soup (cold), Roast LambShank, Tiramisu (Made with Kahlua-yumyumyum)
Started 3rd bottle – same Cab
Saturday, February 12, 2011
Cruise: Day Four
Wednesday, 8 December
Day Four – At Sea
The day didn’t start that well for either of us. It was an At Sea day, so we planned to take advantage of some sleeping in time. Poor Jerry woke up at 5 with a yucky tummy. I woke up at 9:00 from a nightmare that I woke myself up from with my own yelling. Yikes! Since there was about zero chance that I’d get back to sleep, I went to the top of the ship for a little exercise. I walked a mile on the jogging track. Or maybe more. I lost count of my laps so I may have done an extra one :-) Then I went into the fitness center and walked/jogged a mile on the treadmill and a few minutes on the elliptical. I was wiped, so I grabbed some granola and yogurt from the buffet and brought it down to the room, where I enjoyed it on our balcony. Back in the room, Jerry was cacooned in bed, still not feeling well. After a shower, I went back up to the buffet place where I set up my studying and got some good studying in until Jerry met me for lunch. After a quick lunch, Jerry was ready to return to the room and bed. I did some more studying and then returned to the room where Jerry was laying on the bed, saying he was cold. I stayed for a little bit and began my new book, Room. Soon Jerry was cacooned in the covers again and I had to go to bingo by myself. I wasn’t even close to winning bingo until the last round, where I was one away from getting a wipeout bingo. But I didn’t. When I got back to the room, Jerry was still sleeping and had red sick face. He mustered enough energy to shower and join me for dinner, but after that he was ready to retire to the room. Without any drinking or gambling! That tells you how crappy he felt! In the room, we watched our second rented episode of Glee and then watching Star Trek on Cruise TV. Not much of an eventful day!
Dinner:
Me – Mussels & Scallops in Garlic Butter (Like Escargot), Coq au Vin with Mushrooms & Polenta (yum, but bones in), Chocolate Hazelnut Tart with Ice Cream (not as good as I’d hoped)
Jerry – Shrimp Cocktail, Tuscan White Bean Soup, Penne (that was actually spaghetti) with tomatoes, onions and garlic, French Apple Tart with Vanilla Ice Cream
Day Four – At Sea
The day didn’t start that well for either of us. It was an At Sea day, so we planned to take advantage of some sleeping in time. Poor Jerry woke up at 5 with a yucky tummy. I woke up at 9:00 from a nightmare that I woke myself up from with my own yelling. Yikes! Since there was about zero chance that I’d get back to sleep, I went to the top of the ship for a little exercise. I walked a mile on the jogging track. Or maybe more. I lost count of my laps so I may have done an extra one :-) Then I went into the fitness center and walked/jogged a mile on the treadmill and a few minutes on the elliptical. I was wiped, so I grabbed some granola and yogurt from the buffet and brought it down to the room, where I enjoyed it on our balcony. Back in the room, Jerry was cacooned in bed, still not feeling well. After a shower, I went back up to the buffet place where I set up my studying and got some good studying in until Jerry met me for lunch. After a quick lunch, Jerry was ready to return to the room and bed. I did some more studying and then returned to the room where Jerry was laying on the bed, saying he was cold. I stayed for a little bit and began my new book, Room. Soon Jerry was cacooned in the covers again and I had to go to bingo by myself. I wasn’t even close to winning bingo until the last round, where I was one away from getting a wipeout bingo. But I didn’t. When I got back to the room, Jerry was still sleeping and had red sick face. He mustered enough energy to shower and join me for dinner, but after that he was ready to retire to the room. Without any drinking or gambling! That tells you how crappy he felt! In the room, we watched our second rented episode of Glee and then watching Star Trek on Cruise TV. Not much of an eventful day!
Dinner:
Me – Mussels & Scallops in Garlic Butter (Like Escargot), Coq au Vin with Mushrooms & Polenta (yum, but bones in), Chocolate Hazelnut Tart with Ice Cream (not as good as I’d hoped)
Jerry – Shrimp Cocktail, Tuscan White Bean Soup, Penne (that was actually spaghetti) with tomatoes, onions and garlic, French Apple Tart with Vanilla Ice Cream
Cruise: Day Three
Tuesday, 7 December
Day Three – Palermo, Sicily
As we neared three hours of walking, we found a small bakery/café and ordered a small pizza, German bier, Cola Light and 2 Cannoli for about 7euro (that's an amazing deal!)! All was yummy and we returned to the ship with happy tummies, even though we didn’t get to the gelato or lemoncello.
Day Three – Palermo, Sicily
Mini Breakfast in Room, followed by breakfast buffet
10:20 out in Palermo
Two+ hours of walking. Noisy, dirty, bustling city. Lots of scooters. Crossing the street felt like taking our lives in our hands. Not what either of us expected and we didn’t really enjoy it, despite some cool buildings.
If we were to go back to Sicily, it would definitely NOT go back to Palermo. We've heard good things about other parts of the island, but Palermo was pretty awful. Talking to others on the ship, it sounds like we're not the only ones who had a bad impression of the city!
Back at the ship we took a nice nappy and then headed up to the buffet for some mid-afternoon snackies. So far, the cruise definitely has napping and eating themes!
Visited the Crown & Anchor loyalty program to fix Jerry's status (since he had cruised with RC before on our honeymoon).
Quick visit to the casino to cash in quarters from the previous day.
Champagne bar for appetizers, caviar & champagne cocktails. Bellini sunset for me and our friendly bartender made Jerry a champagne cocktail with brandy. He was superfriendly as he gave us a round on the house to take with us to dinner.
Dinner:
Me – Spanikopita type thing: Pastry crust over ramekin filled with feta, spinach and peppers, tai chicken salad, beef Diane with mashed potatoes, broccoli, carrots and mushrooms and Kahlua crème brulee
Jerry – Shrimp cocktail, , beef Diane with mashed potatoes, broccoli, carrots and mushrooms and Kahlua crème brulee
Finished off second bottle in wine package (Cab)
Casino – Jerry roulette, Slots for me. Jerry lost his $40 pretty quickly but I played $5 for a very long time. I think that's why I like slots.
Back to the room for some chillaxing & studying. Studying because the cruise falls right in the middle of my finals. Both professors were kind enough to let me take the exams after the semester has officially ended, but it means putting in some study time on vacation.
My arm is sore – not sure if it’s from the workout yesterday or the slot machine pulling!
Cruise: Day Two
Monday, December 06, 2010
Day Two – At Sea
Some of the days, I wrote more of an outline than a narrative. This is one of the outline days:
Hev – Gym at 7:00 (Glad I got my butt up and went to the gym, but boy did it tire me out. Usually I feel tired, but energized, after a good workout. Today, I just felt worn out and exhausted!)
Breakfast snacks in room.
Reading on the balcony (Hev) - finishing up the Hunger Games series. Great books!!
Breakfast buffet
Check out stores - the usual overpriced cruise ship stuff.
Reading/time in room
Boozey hot chocolate
Lunch buffet
Casino and bingo – won $25 at slots, Jerry won $50 at roulette! No winning at bingo :-)
More casino time. Lost $20 in slots, but it took quite awhile. Jerry played more roulette and came out slightly on top.
Back to the champagne bar for nightcaps: me, Buttered Bailey (Bailey, Buttershots schnapps), Jerry, B-52 Bomber (Bailey’s, Kahlua, Grand Marnier) – not as good as mine
Dinner:
Jerry – Lobster Bisque, Shrimp Ravioli (not a hit), Low Fat Cherry Cake (not a hit), Chocolate Souffle with Cappucino sauce (bit hit)
Heather – Escargot (not garlicy enough), Lobster Bisque, Beef (SO good), Chocolate Souffle with Cappucino Sauce (SO good)
Day Two – At Sea
Some of the days, I wrote more of an outline than a narrative. This is one of the outline days:
Hev – Gym at 7:00 (Glad I got my butt up and went to the gym, but boy did it tire me out. Usually I feel tired, but energized, after a good workout. Today, I just felt worn out and exhausted!)
Breakfast snacks in room.
Reading on the balcony (Hev) - finishing up the Hunger Games series. Great books!!
Breakfast buffet
Check out stores - the usual overpriced cruise ship stuff.
Reading/time in room
Boozey hot chocolate
Lunch buffet
Casino and bingo – won $25 at slots, Jerry won $50 at roulette! No winning at bingo :-)
Champagne bar – Sunset bellini (me), Champagne margarita (Jerry), Flirtini (share), + bartender made us blackberry champagne cocktail, tried caviar. Caviar didn't really excite either of us, but I discovered that I very much enjoy Sunset Bellinis!
Gussied up for formal dinner.
Lots of posed pictures. (We ended up not buying any of them though. Not feeling so great about how I look these days...need to get serious about healthy eating and working out!)
Dinner
Casino: Both of us played roulette and I quickly lost my $20. Jerry played well and was quite a bit ahead. At the last minute, after cashing out, he placed two ‘safe’ bets of $25 and lost them both! A little reckless, but fun…it’s vacation :-)
First musical production Now and Forever. Overall very good, but we think there was lip syncing involved. We don’t approve.
Back to the champagne bar for nightcaps: me, Buttered Bailey (Bailey, Buttershots schnapps), Jerry, B-52 Bomber (Bailey’s, Kahlua, Grand Marnier) – not as good as mine
Dinner:
Jerry – Lobster Bisque, Shrimp Ravioli (not a hit), Low Fat Cherry Cake (not a hit), Chocolate Souffle with Cappucino sauce (bit hit)
Heather – Escargot (not garlicy enough), Lobster Bisque, Beef (SO good), Chocolate Souffle with Cappucino Sauce (SO good)
my blogging head hangs in shame.
Three posts?! Three?! That's how many posts I published last year. Shameful. My new year's resolution? To beat that number this year. Even if no one's readin'.
I'll start this year's blogging with an account of our big vacation from last year: a 12 night Mediterranean cruise, which left from Barcelona and traveled to Sicily, Athens, Rhodes, Egypt and Malta. Well, at least it was supposed to. I'll begin the day by day account of our travels:
TRAVELING TO BARCELONA/BOARDING THE CRUISE SHIP
Well, our vacation started with adventure, but not the good kind. We traveled to Munich on Friday evening in order to get a leisurely start to our travel day on Saturday. We were scheduled to take a flight from Munich to Barcelona in the early afternoon on Saturday. We got to the airport in plenty of time, only to discover at the e-ticket kiosk that our flight had been canacelled. Sadly, we had been detached from news and were completely unaware of the air traffic controllers strike in Spain, and we assumed it was a weather issue. After waiting in a lengthy line, we were told that they didn’t think that there would be any flights out to Spain that day, but that they could get us on a flight the next day, Sunday. But while they thought that the flight would depart as scheduled without major delays, they couldn’t guarantee it. Naturally, we were freaking out a little…it’s not like a cruise ship will wait for you. We said okay to the Sunday tickets but started researching other options. We (along with all of our bags) took the 45 minute train ride to Munich’s main train station to see about getting a train to Barcelona. We could have done that, but it would mean a 22 hour train experience on multiple trains and would cost nearly 600 euro! No thanks! We then briefly entertained the thought of driving the thirteen plus hours to Barcelona, realizing that it was the most certain way to get us to the ship on time. Since we were already in downtown Munich, we thought that it would be silly to miss this opportunity to visit Munich’s wonderful Christmas market and to sample our favorite treats. We took full advantage of our short time at the market, consuming Gluhwein, Feuerzangenbowle, 2 Bratwursts, 3 Latkes, and a cone of warm candied almonds.
Sunday morning, we rose early and checked several websites, all indicating that our flight to Barcelona would depart as scheduled. We were cautiously optimistic as we began the day. As poorly as our Saturday went, Sunday was super smooth. Our flight left with only a slight delay. We got a superspeedy taxi to the port. And in no time at all we were on the ship and finally able to breathe a sigh of relief and truly relax.
Our first order of business was to find our cabin. We have been on one cruise together before and we had a very tiny cabin. So we were very pleased to see our cabin this time was much larger and had a balcony:
After a quick look around, we headed up to the buffet lunch and quickly commenced the ridiculous eating that is required on a cruise.
After the buffet, we completed this learn about the cruise raffle thing, which resulted in us winning zero items. Then it was on to the emergency drill. The drill was fine, but it was frustrating to listen to everyone complaining about their hardships in reaching the ship due to the air traffic controller strike. Of course, the frustrations were understandable, but at that point they were on their ship and we thought that they should get to work enjoying the vacation!
By the time that we finished the drill, it was time to go to dinner. Dinner was nice and we met the two couples that would be dining with us throughout the cruise. Both couples seemed very nice and dinner was delicious.
After dinner, we attended the Welcome Show, which was pretty much what we expected. Then we walked around the ship, checking out each desk and enjoying a second dessert along the way. We participated in the first bingo session (of many!). We didn't win anything (something that sadly held true throughout the trip), but had lots of fun and yummy drinks (I had a fozen mudslide!).
We did some final exploring and then returned to our cabin where we finished unpacking and finally got some sleep!
The foods we enjoyed:
Friday Night, Munich Hotel –Bread with strange butter (bits of bacon and chives in it), Potato Carrot Cream Soup, Bratwurst with sauerkraut (Jerry), Kaesespaetzle with Onions and Bacon (Heather)
Saturday, Munich, Christmas Market – Gluhwein (Jerry), Feuerzangenbowle (Heather), Bratwurst, Potato Latkes with Garlic Cream Sauce, Roasted Almonds
Saturday Night, Munich Hotel – Bread with strange butter (bits of bacon and chives in it)Potato Carrot Soup, Roast with Knoedel (Jerry), Flammkuche with onions and Bacon (Heather), Warm apple strudel, Hot chocolate with amaretto (Heather) – waitress asked twice incredulously when I asked for amaretto in my hot chocoloate
Sunday afternoon – Ham and soft cheese w/chives sammich on the plane, Santa chocolate
Sunday afternoon , ship – Buffet galore
Sunday evening, ship - Heather: Prosciutto w/Melon, Sea Bass, Warm Blackberry & Peach Cobbler
Jerry: Hot & Sour Shrimp Soup, Prime Rib, Spongecake with Syrup, Started our 7 Bottle Wine Package
Since I wrote all of this while we were actually on the cruise, I'll try to get the rest of the days posted very soon!
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