After our Alaskan cruise last year, we were picked up at the airport by our friends Brandon (aka “Bojangles”) and Katie (aka “Kricket”). We bought them lunch as a thank-you for the ride, and of course they asked how our trip had been. We gushed about the fun we had, the beautiful weather, the hikes, the cruise ship, and of course the food. After our travelogue, they both suggested the four of us embark on a cruise “sometime next year”. It’s been said cruising is more fun with friends or family, and since we were so experienced we could show them the ropes (hah, a little nautical humor there).
The months passed, and eventually we got organized and booked a February cruise to the Caribbean. We figured February in Montana would be a great time to take a break from the cold dreary grey of winter and enjoy some sun and beach time.
The day arrived, and due to some utility work the highway past our house would be closed, so we had to leave several hours early to avoid the closure. Without much to do, we decided to take a hike. Here’s what the scenery looked like:
Very pretty, to be sure, and not quite 20 degrees. So it was cold. We were excited for the beach in a few days.
After a flight through Denver to Houston, we spent the night at a hotel and headed to the port this morning. As expected, it was crowded as thousands of people queued to get on the ship. Also as expected, it was a refreshingly efficient process. These cruise lines know how to handle logistics, that’s for sure. We snapped a shot of our ship, the Norwegian Prima.
It’s mammoth. The passenger capacity is just over 3,000, with a crew of about 1,500. Since our stateroom wasn’t ready– they were still turning over rooms from the former passengers who’d disembarked only hours before– we took some time to explore the ship.
We found the racetrack, which seemed like an odd thing to have aboard ship, but might make a fun diversion at some point. The little car sure looks fast, doesn’t it?
One “boardwalk” along the deck featured a bunch of art installations.
We explored for a couple hours, watched as the ship pulled out of dock, and decided it was time to eat. Cruises are renowned for their food, and although I’m not a “foodie” myself, I’m traveling with three who are. We picked one of the restaurants and were impressed with how fancy and pretty everything was.
Here’s Pepper reviewing the menu (“the steak or the shrimp?”) as the sun sinks toward the horizon beyond.
This evening, the ship hosted a big game show. It was based on the “hit TV series” Deal or No Deal, which is a mind-numbingly stupid concept based almost entirely on luck. I suppose in that way it’s like most game shows. Anyway, without much else to do, we went to the theater with about five hundred other people to watch.
They chose someone at random from the audience– her name was Karen– and she went onstage to play the game. In short, the concept is you open selected briefcases which contain some amount of money between one cent and a thousand dollars. You’re hoping to eliminate all of the low-value ones and go home with the thousand-dollar one. Although I rolled my eyes at the concept and the over-the-top showmanship, it was a lot of fun to be in an audience who was absolutely screaming at the top of their collective lungs to tell Karen what they thought she should do each time. Eventually, Karen managed to win the thousand dollars. The crowd went totally nuts. It was the best possible outcome, and Karen was jumping with joy.
The cynic in me wondered if they’d staged the game specifically so she’d win it all, but I was told later that in a second round right after, the guy didn’t do nearly as well and won something like fifty bucks. So maybe it was legitimate, and she was incredibly lucky. Good for her.
Stuffed from dinner and finished exploring for the day, we headed to our respective staterooms. Ready for a “fun day at sea”!