Day 4 - Wednesday, January 15 - At Sea

Today was a very chill day. And I mean that in both senses of the word. It was pretty breezy out on deck, not many people were in the pools or slides, but plenty were in the hot tub, which after breakfast and lunch (yes, both at the buffet!) is where we met up with Sue and Gerry to spend the afternoon before dinner. We also sat out on one of the observation decks and enjoyed watching the ocean.

We were able to view our photos that we took on our second night, and we had no idea they were going to print ALL of them! They must have printed about 100 photos of all of us. But they charge $25 per photo, it is ridiculous! But Jaime and I ended up liking one so much we did get just the one. Sue and Gerry bought two, as they have sailed on Norwegian many times and got a discount on the photos.

We had dinner in the main dining room again, and were gearing up to enjoy the 'White Hot Party" which was to be outside on the deck where the 18 and over hot tub was. However, due to the cold and winds, it was moved inside. They had it inside this little club area, and while Jaime and I did get dressed up in our white, we only spent a small amount of time at this. Sue and Gerry had called it a night, and because there were SO many people, the room was crowded and hot and not big enough for an event this size. But we had given it a pretty good effort. I had bought a white dress specifically for this event on the cruise, so I wanted to at least wear it. We got a couple of pics, but then decided to call it a night ourselves.

I include some photos of our room/bathroom in photo album, check them out, it was all pretty fancy!

Day 5 - Thursday, January 16 - Ensenada

Phew, it was a much more relaxing day in port this time around. Part of our cruise package included a $50 shore excursion credit if booked through the ship, so we did opt for that. We also did not have to tender to land, so was way easier getting off the ship. Also, there was no time change. So Jaime and I ate a lovely breakfast at the buffet, and then met in the theater so we could walk off the ship with our group. It was there we met up with Sue and Gerry.

Now something on the back of my mind all week had been my Bodyjam submission video. In November I took a training for another dance format and it is a very intense process. Although I passed the training, I still had to submit a video of me teaching an entire class. They would then view it, assess it and determine if I could officially be a Bodyjam Instructor. Well, once we got off the ship and I was able to check my email via my phone, I got the email that morning that I had passed my video and was now a license Bodyjam Instructor! It felt amazing! I really was on a high the rest of the day.

Anyways, back to our tour. Sue and Gerry had been to Ensenda several times, and Jaime and I had been there once, on our first cruise, so we had already done the in-town stuff. Shopping, the bars, the city sites. So Sue suggested a winery tour, which they had done before, but was a great idea, since we had never ventured too far from the port before. It was almost an hour drive away into wine country, and wow, was it beautiful! You wouldn't even believe you were still in Ensenada! Our trip included a tour of two wineries, wine tasting at each, and pizza for lunch. It was a very cool experience Jaime and I never had done one of these before. It was really interesting to see the process of how the wine is made. Even though we are not huge wine drinkers, it was still a lot of fun. The wine was pretty cheap, and we ended up really liking one of the ones we got to taste, so at $6 per bottle, we bought two.

Once our tour returned, we got in line to get back on the ship. The line was a bit longer as this time we had to have our passports checked and go through metal detectors and security before re-boarding. I was anxious to return as I had received a deal with our shore excursion tickets, that on a port day, it would be $50 off a spa service. I had my eye on a spa manicure and pedicure, but as it was pricey, it being a cruise ship and all, I had passed, but with $50 off I decided to go for it. And I enjoyed a very lovely mani/pedi with a view of the water as we left port. I am actually not sure what everybody else was up to while I did that. It was well worth it.

This was our last night as Friday we returned to the port of Los Angeles. We booked our final specialty dining at Cagney's Steakhouse. Yes, not all that great of an option for me but as these restaurants usually charge per item, and each item was upwards of $40-$50, it was worth going here. Sue, Gerry, and Jaime all enjoyed their meat choices. Our server was nice enough to give me like ALL of the side dishes since I did not order any meat. And they were still VERY delicious. We all ate so much we could barely move.

Sue and Gerry celebrate their anniversary close to our cruise, so they got a little card they were to present at a meal of their choice, so they did at this one, and the servers came out and sang to them, and they got a little cake. We were all so full, but the cake was so good, the four of ate a pretty good amount of it.

As fun as vacations are, when you know the end is near, you are always kind of ready for it. Sue and Gerry missed the comedy show the other night, but there was one final one on this night, so the four of us were able to see that.

And since it was our last night, even though we ate more than any human ever should in one sitting during dinner, Jaime and did go up to the buffet for our last "second nums" of the trip.

Day 6 - Friday, January 17 - Home!

Well, today was a bit frustrating as it took a REALLY long time for the ship to be cleared and to let people off. The four of us enjoyed breakfast at the buffet together, but we pretty much just had to sit around until they gave us the OK to get off the ship. Even then, once we were able to leave the ship, there was an enormous line to pass through customs. But all around, we made it no problem, and still made it home late morning.

I went to pick up Winnie from day care, and wow did she get a send-off. Three different staff members came to say bye to her, and her report cards included reports of her hugs and snuggles. She is a star there. Plus she got a bath, so was super soft and smelled wonderful.

Well, that concludes our totally random and very inexpensive 5 night cruise to Mexico! As much as I complain about cruises, they really are a treat, and fun! Now that we know the secrets of how to book and get your money's worth, we would not turn down the opportunity to cruise again should another opportunity arise. Especially when it is with amazing friends such as our Bahamas Cruise, or this one with Sue and Gerry. And, as always, we are completely and utterly grateful for every trip and travel opportunity we get, as every experience is a gift. And we know and give thanks every day for how lucky we are to be able to have a job to provide for so many vacations, and that gives us the time off.

Signing off for now. Our next trip is booked for October 2020, and will be two weeks in Peru! Can't wait to share about that one!