15 years in the making...

It has only taken Chad and I 15yrs to go on a cruise and it was worth the wait!

Imagine my surprise when I opened a cruise itinerary for Christmas...and I thought I was getting new faucets (and I would've have been totally thrilled with that). Yes, Chad managed to pull off a huge surprise. I've said it before and I'll say it again, Chad really is so thoughtful and awesome with his gift giving. He'd even already asked my mom and dad to stay with the kids while we were gone.

We were scheduled to sail on the Norwegian Pearl from Miami on January 25, returning on February 1. Our ports of call were: Roatan (Honduras), Belize, Cozumel and a private NCL island in the Bahamas (but was changed to Key West).

By far, the highlight of the trip was experiencing the people. Whether it was on the ship or on one of our excursions, I loved meeting people that were so different from me.

I was amazed to learn that the ship had over 1,000 crew members from 65 different countries. They sign 10 month contracts and work 10-14hrs a day, 5-6 days a week. Wow. They work hard and are so grateful for these jobs (unlike the NCL American ship that can't stay staffed because the Americans won't do the work). Our last night there, we met the cutest married couple from the Philippines...they were hoping to take 3 months off to start their family. We also loved talking to Emil from Jamaica. He teased us saying he knew where we were from because he recognized the Book of Mormon in our room. I asked if he had read it. He said he had, but that religion wasn't for him. I told him to give it another try. ;) We also met such a wonderful couple from New Hampshire. We enjoyed having Mary and Glenn join us on many activities and look forward to keeping in touch with them. We also had a great time being with another couple from our neighborhood, Jackie and Eric Peterson. It was great to get to know them better and even tease Jackie about her fear of new foods. The Peterson's are such wonderful people!

Roatan, Honduras was our first port of call. While I loved each stop for different reasons, if I had to pick a favorite this would be it (maybe because it was our first stop?). When we got off the ship, I couldn't believe how huge the ship was against this tiny village and port. I loved that this port was less developed and less prepared for the tourist...it made the experience feel so much more authentic. (although they were constructing new shops to cater to the ships). When we arrived it was gray and rainy, I was touched to see the people lining the streets just watching us drive by...maybe hoping for work...maybe just with nothing else to do. The next thing that struck me was the homes. Rusted roof shacks on stilts. I've seen pictures like this, but to see it in person is a humbling experience. As we drove up over the hill to the other side of the island, I felt like I was in "Romancing the Stone". I was half expecting to be slipping down a muddy hillside (remember that great scene) as the bus struggled to get up the rainy slope. When we arrived at the beach, it was still wet and gray, but we opted to head to the water and snorkel anyway. Can I just say, "Wow!" The reef was right there in the calm, clear waters. We headed out and snorkeled out as far as we could go. As we headed back, we got a bit off track and ended up on top of the reef with inches to spare before our tummy's were toast! While in the water I got a few small jellyfish stings...when I got out I had little red dots on my arm. Before we got out of the water, the sun was shining. The sand was so beautiful...I even brought some home and have run my fingers through it wishing to be back there. It was also fun to see the wild iguanas on the cliffs. The food. Oh the food! Lunch was prepared by the locals. Jerk chicken and rice and beans. It was so good!

Our next port was Belize City, Belize. We planned to do cave tubing. When we arrived, we were one of the last to meet up with the group. This was actually quite fortuitous. With the bus full, we got to ride in a van (this is where we first met Mary and Glenn) with two of our guides, Minor and Mark. What a wonderful experience getting such personal insights on Belize. After a bit of a drive, we arrived at our stop and were outfitted with headlamps and giant inner tubes. Now, this is the part where I feel like Indiana Jones. We had to hike a bit through the rain forest to get to the launch spot. As we crossed a river, hiked through caves and trees, we were given great bits of information about the forest. Like, "eat this if....," or "avoid this when..." We even got to sample an alternative source of protein. Termites! Yes, we really did. Our guides told us they tasted a bit minty...and well, they did! As we hiked these muddy paths, I could totally envision the Mayan living here (or Indiana searching for treasure). We finally arrived at the cave entrance and jumped in the chilly water with our headlamps and tubes. What an amazing experience to float through these huge caves...there was even a fresh spring waterfall inside! As we headed back, we had another local lunch of jerk chicken and rice and beans again, it was delicious. As we came through Belize City, our guides drove us by the local LDS chapel. Mark commented that the high fence made him feel unwelcome. I didn't want to offend him by telling him the fence was for obvious reason...the rest of the city was run down and full of vandalized buildings. Instead, I challenged him to be proven wrong by going behind that fence and seeing just how friendly and happy the people on the other side were!

Cozumel, Mexico was our next port. We scheduled to snorkel here. After meeting our boat and guide, the five of us headed out (us, the Peterson's and Glenn). Our first stop was two sunken ships. Very cool. While there our guide did a free dive to the bottom (about 30 ft) to show us a big conch shell and big starfish. We all got to handle them. Very fun...except for the small jellyfish stings my leg incurred. Somehow I was the only one the jellyfish seemed to like! The bites were a nuisance more than anything...not too painful. Next we headed to the other side of the bay to a reef. The snorkeling was okay. I understand there was a big hurricane a couple years ago that severely damaged the reefs. We were able to see the huge fallen piers under the water...amazing they could be destroyed. After our snorkeling we were ready for food and shopping. This was definitely the place for shopping and haggling. While shopping we asked some locals were they eat and decided we wanted to venture out of our way a bit. (not too far...neither of us speaks Spanish) Ohhh yum. What a delicious adventure. We had an unusual queso with the chips and a lentil soup (mmm!) to start. Of course we had to get Coke and Coke "light" in bottles. I had steak and shrimp, Chad had a chicken with black bean sauce. It was so good!

While on the ship we enjoyed the shows. They had a fabulous couple that did amazing and graceful acrobats, a great comedian and fun juggling/comedy act. The crew also did a talent show. I even got to dance with the group from the Philippines. What fun.

Okay, so I do have one negative review: the food on the ship. Maybe I'd heard too many stories of bountiful and incredible food that my expectations were too high. Yes, the food was plentiful, but incredible? Chad and I concluded that quantity was being confused with quality. The other problem was there were only 4 "free" dining rooms, but 7 restaurants with cover charges. So to get some better food, you had to pay for it. I did eat plenty of banana ice cream in the buffet!

Because of bad weather our last stop was changed to, Key West, Florida. I think had we planned to go here and it hadn't been so chilly and windy, we would have enjoyed this stop a lot more. It is a tourist town with lots of charming,quaint buildings....kinda like Park City with palm trees. While here, we had to sample a piece of key lime pie. Here, I ventured off on my own to the local Mel Fisher museum. He was a diver that recovered the treasures from a 16th century Spanish Galleon ship. It was cool to see what was recovered and how it would have been to travel by ship back then (nooo thank you!). For a mere $65,000 I could have purchased a gold trinket box recovered from the wreckage.

We arrived in Miami on Sunday morning. Since we were in Miami both Sundays, we were able to attend a local ward twice. We visited a small, struggling ward. Another humbling experience. Humbling to see many new converts and diverse members working together and showing so much love for each other. Also humbling to recognize what a blessing it is to be in a large ward the functions with more ease. I felt for the bishop. A young father of three boys under the age of five who had just moved from Riverton, Utah 10 months ago. Can you imagine the adjustment?! What a treat it was to attend this ward. After church we did some site seeing along South Beach. I loved seeing all the Art Deco buildings. What a beautiful community. And umm, also diverse. It was hilarious driving by a proudly gay cafe with a drag dancer in the middle of the street stopping traffic. All the while, men screaming and taking photos! It was wonderful walking along the beach and enjoying homemade churros from the local restaurant, Manalo.

So worth the wait....BUT I do not want to wait 15 more years to do it again!