16/12/12 (Sunday)

We made it to the ship! It was raining, windy, foggy and cold but once we got into the passenger terminal we were fine. They started boarding around 12 noon so we really didn't have to wait around too long before we boarded also, around 12.30pm. We went straight up to the Lido Deck for a buffet lunch (the first of many buffets). Our rooms were ready around 1.30pm so once we were finished lunch we headed down to our cabin 7223 on Deck 7 - Verandah Deck. We have an extended balcony cabin. It has 2 twin beds which can be joined to make a double so you can probably imagine that they aren't very wide. We have a desk, a couch, fridge, tv and plenty of room in the cabin. The bathroom is very spacious compared to any other ships I've been on also so we're going to be quite comfy for the next 8 days. Beside us is another big ship also which is the Norwegian Jewel. It is bigger than our ship and looks lovely. It left before us. On the other side of it is an aircraft carrier which is obviously now a museum but I hadn't read about it at all so not sure what it is called. There is a concord and a space shuttle on there also. We set sail on time at 4pm. My bag came first so I unpacked and then we went off to discover the ship. When we got back Danielle's bag had arrived also so we got her unpacked and then it was time for dinner. We went down to the Bacchus Dining room for our 6pm dining time. We are on table 107 which is a long table and seats 14. There are a group of 3 friends from Brooklyn (Joel, Sallie & Simone) and a mother and daughter and daughters friend from Niagra Falls (Pattie, Saige & Victoria) then us, a family of 4 from Toronto (Ron, Marg, Sarah and Dominic) and another couple on the end of the table who never introduced themselves and we didn't speak to at all. After dinner we went to the opening night show which was really good. After a few drinks we headed back to our room and fell into bed.

17/12/12 (Monday)

We got up around 9am and went up to the Lido Deck Buffet for breakfast then rambled around the ship until lunch time which was also at the Lido Deck Buffet then rambled around the ship before heading back for our afternoon 'Nana Nap' then it was time to get up and get ready for dinner which was formal wear. We headed to the dining room and caught up with everyone for dinner then we went to the evening show. Tonight we went to the Lido Deck Buffet for a midnight snack before falling into bed. The weather has been wet and windy since we left New York so going outside just isn't an option - for us anyway!!!!

18/12/12 (Tuesday)

Ho Hum……. Another day like yesterday - sleep, eat, drink, sleep, eat, drink…………………

19/12/12 (Wednesday)

Today we arrived in our first port of call at Port Canaveral, Florida which is approx. 40 mins drive from Orlando. I was awake so went out on to our balcony to watch us coming into port. It isn't raining and the sun is coming up this morning - yeah!!!! There is a huge big Disney Cruise Ship docked beside ours. Another Carnival ship docked just straight after us so it was nice to watch it come in also (although Danielle was fast asleep and didn't see any of it - surprise!!!) We booked a shuttle bus which took us to Cocoa Beach and then on the Cocoa Historical Village. We went straight on to the village which wasn't all that interesting. A heap of craft shops and cafes and lots of older buildings but that was about it so we caught the shuttle back to Cocoa Beach. Cocoa Beach was really nice. Lovely sandy beach and the ocean, although it wasn't really what we would call surf. Some tried to ride the waves though. There are surf shops everywhere and you can even rent boards. Cocoa Beach is where the tv show I Dream of Jeanie was based and across the port from the ship you could see Cape Canaveral and NASA's base over there where they launched the spaceships including the first one that landed on the moon and all of the Space Shuttle missions. Everyone had to be on the ship today by 5.30pm for a 6pm departure. Well at 6pm they were still calling for 1 passenger to check in with guest services and at 6.30pm they called the remainder of the person's family to guest services so we assume that someone hadn't checked back onto the ship. We finally left at 7pm so have no idea whether he made it back to the ship or what! We decided not to go to dinner tonight and sat and watched us leave port from the outside deck as it was the first fine day/night we'd had since we left New York.

20/12/12 (Thursday)

Today we arrived in Freeport, Bahamas. It is a really busy port which lots of oil tankers and cargo ships calling in as well as another Carnival cruise ship. They store bulk oil in big tanks all around the port which comes in from all over the world and then they take it from the tanks as and when required to send all around the world. Sounds like a lot of double handling but obviously works. The Bahamas is a totally tax free area so things are cheaper here - apparently! We didn't find anything cheaper than Australia. We caught a taxi in to Freeport township and had a look around for awhile then we looked at their beach area before catching a taxi back to the ship. Taxi's are passenger vans and they don't go to or from the ship unless they are full. $10 per person round trip which isn't too bad. When we got back we looked around the markets around the ship and then went to Senor Frogs Bar and Café. What a fun experience that was…………. We had a couple of cocktails and some quesadillas and enjoyed the entertainment before heading back on to the ship in time for a 'Nana Nap'. It was then down to dinner and off for the evening entertainment which tonight included a pub crawl for us……………….

21/12/12 (Friday)

Today we arrived in Nassau Bahamas. What a lovely port. We were the last ship in the line at the docks so we looked straight out at the ocean from our balcony. There were 6 ships docked so it was a very busy area trying to get on and off the ship. We could walk to the main shopping area, which we did. Again we didn't find anything cheaper than in Australia except for the Havaina Shop (thongs or flip flops) so Danielle spent ages there deciding on which colours to get. Just before we walked into the shop we noticed that the skies had come over very dark and while we were in there the skies opened and it bucketed down. A typical tropical down pour. We were quite comfy inside the shop, but the people outside were soaked!!!!! J Once the rain eased we went back outside and made our way back to the ship as the skies were still very dark and the wind started picking up also. The water started getting very rough also. By the time we left port at 5pm there were white caps in the harbour so you can probably imagine what it was like once we got into open water! Not the most pleasant night. It was quite bumpy but it didn't stop us. We went to see the evening entertainment then called it a night.

22/12/12 (Saturday)

Happy 28th Wedding Annivesary Noel - I miss you!

That was the worst night since we have been on the cruise. It was so rough through the night that we kept waking up. It felt like someone was shaking my bed all the time. It still isn't any better today! We both went up for breakfast and then came back to our room and went back to bed. We got up for a late lunch then wandered around the shops on the ship for awhile before our afternoon 'nana nap' then up again to get ready for our second formal night and getting all frocked up. The final show was on tonight also which was themed on the beatles music and was really good.

23/12/12 (Sunday)

We had a sleep in this morning - mostly because the ship had steadied through the night I think and it isn't nearly as rough now. We had a late breakfast then wandered around the ship before having lunch then went to an afternoon 'Holiday Show' which was the ship's entertainment and the kids from the kids club doing Christmas songs and dances etc. It was really good and seeing all the kids and singing Christmas carols etc. made me miss everyone at home. It reminded me of going to the "Hood" Christmas Carols in Cameron's Park when we all used to go down there. Great memories…………… We packed our bags this afternoon as we have to leave them outside our rooms tonight for them to be collected for us to leave the ship in the morning. Tonight's show was 'Legends' which was made up of guests singing (they were auditioned from the karaoke sessions) They sang specific songs and the ship's dancers danced around them as they sang. Some of the crew did some funny songs also and it was a fabulous show. We headed back to our room and had a late night - finally got into bed around 12.30am (late for us!)

24/12/12 (Monday)

We arrived back in New York safe and sound. I watched the sun rise behind the New York skyline as we cruised up the Hudson River which was just amazing. We went up and had our last buffet breakfast before going to sit in our 'waiting area' to disembark the ship. We were about 1 hour behind schedule and finally left the ship around 11am. We then made our way by taxi to our apartment at Metro Apartments which is where we stayed before the cruise also. We couldn't check in yet but were able to leave our bags and went uptown to look in the shops and at Macy's Christmas Display and try and get in to the Christmas spirit. We got back to our apartment and checked in around 3.30pm. We are in apartment 7J which is higher up and not quite so noisy as last time. We are at the front of the building now too so wont have to constant toot of horns - yeah!!!!! We had a quite night in and caught up with the family on skype and/or by phone as it is Christmas Day at home. We went to bed around 10.30pm ready to get up around midnight to talk to everyone on skype during Christmas dinner at Valjene's house.