I had a coughing fit at 2am this morning that lasted about an hour. I didn't sleep well. I'm up at 9am, Stacey a little earlier, and rush out for a quick breakfast at 9:40 to meet Amy at the beach blanket buffet and Stacey, who left about 5-10 minutes before me, and sit outside at the buffet. It's a mix of sun and cloud out there, but more sun than cloud. It's warm and muggy already. Not as much breeze at the back of the restaurant as there is on the front of the top deck. The girls go to join the line for our 10am time with Anna and Elsa, and I catch up a few minutes later. It takes about 30 minutes until it's our turn. We are the last in line and the final pictures for the session.

A walk up on deck ten shows that we are coming up on Key West. A few small islands are around and smaller boats and jet skis playing follow the leader dart in front of our incoming ship, but no worries, it's not a close call. We then move down to mid-ship to wait for our time with the princesses, Rapunzel, Ariel, Belle and Tiana at 11:15am. During this time, the ship docks and not long after the officials clear us to debark, slightly ahead of schedule.

It's time for us to go back to the cabin to change into cooler clothes and grab our water bottles, and a quick snack on deck 9 before leaving the ship around 12:20pm. It's mostly sunny and about 29-30 degrees. Very warm and humid. Key West is a pretty, charming town with a nice style architecture. Very beach-y! Bike rentals, Jet Ski tours, shark tours, etc. are available. But the girls want shopping! We take a few quick pictures looking back at the docked ship before browsing along the nearby shop fronts. Stacey sees Caraloha, and b-lines inside for a towel like the one I got in Cozumel. It's soooooo soft. Again, next door is Del Sol, so we look in there too. There's another one in Nassau so we'll see if they have anything different at that store. Then it's down through a maze of tourist shops and bars and restaurants crammed in streets and courtyards and alleyways everywhere.

It's a very relaxed atmosphere. No pressure from sales people shoving things at you or calling at you. Stacey is feeling comfortable here, and at one point goes out on her own to try to find a store that she had seen earlier. We just wander checking out souvenir shops and browsing. We went into International Diamonds to look around. It seems like they have a 1 to 4 stores on every stop we've made so far. Pretty stuff, but very expensive.

Amy is looking for Larimar stuff, but we get the prices with our VIP cruise discount and decide to think about it. Larimar is a gemstone that comes from the Caribbean. A pretty light blue color. We pick up a couple of t-shirts, and Amy sees a small jewelry store crammed in a side street. She spends around 45 minutes in there while Stacey and I wander around. Apparently the Larimar in that shop is much more reasonable. Since she is spending so much time looking at the Larimar, the owner behind the counter finally says, I think I have some more back here, and pulls out another tray to Larimar jewelry for Amy to see. Aha! He's been holding out! LOL. I think Amy buys a piece or two from this new tray.

We meet up again with Stacey and I see a Tervis store. Ryan and Richard from our last cruise had talked up Tervis, who make plastic drink tumblers. Expensive but worth it they claim. We all find a water bottle we like and get one each.

It's almost 3 and Amy and I are feeling drained from the heat. Stacey, of course, is loving it and soaking it up. Amy and I are just soaking, in sweat, and need water. We decide it a good time to start back to ship and get in the pool. Along the way Stacey sees a small mall and wants to take a look. Hey, as long as it's air conditioned.

Inside the small one building mall Stacey finds a butterfly store that sells preserved butterflies and jewelry made from butterfly wings. After they are dead, of course. Stacey finds some neat stuff there. Very unique and beautiful.

Ok, back to the ship, change into swimwear, grab some water and get into pool. The pool is not as cool as I'd have liked, but it's still very nice. Stacey wants more sun so she's first out to go up to the top deck to lay in the sun. Amy and I stay in pool to cool off. Once we have enough, I go up to join Stacey to dry off and Amy stays on deck 9 behind glass on a deck chair to the gentle sounds of a Disney movie's music playing, and a married couple having an argument directly behind her.

Top deck is nice, it's hot out, so it dries my bathing suit quickly, but there's a nice breeze cooling me off as well. Stacey, naturally, doesn't like the breeze. Amy joins us short while later. The couple's argument was going nowhere but in circles and being repetitive….boring. We grab a snack and go below to our cabins. Amy goes for a nap, and I need one too. The sun and I don't get along. Stacey heads out to wander and take pictures. Amy and I both sleep through the ship leaving Key West and get up in time to get ready for dinner at Animators Palate. Stacey had gone to see the Golden Mickey's show, and is glad that she did, since Jimmy there mentions a few things about Castaway Cay that she didn't know. Like there will be a bbq lunch on the island!!

During dinner, a server drops a plate on the floor near the kitchen entrance. Why do people cheer when that happens?? That just seems wrong to me. Salmon for Stacey, red snapper for Amy and Ginger Teriyaki Beef Tenderloin for me. All excellent. After dinner, Amy says that she is tired and goes to bed at 10pm. Stacey and I go to Wavebands to watch the juggling act. He's very good and funny guy. We leave as the country line dancing starts after the juggling show. Stacey is in a long dress and not wanting it to get stepped on. We get back to the room by 11:30pm and get ready for bed.

Starting tomorrow, we have Castaway Cay for next 2 days. Woohoo. Tropical Beach Island!! Let's see if Amy and I can survive the sun.

WYWH,

Kim =) and Stacey :)