Days #5 and 6: Sea day and Key West

Hello from Charlotte! I'm back home (and dang it, it's COLD!), but didn't want to leave the blog without writing about my last two full cruise days. It's been a blast, and definitely wanted to share pictures. So, without further ado..... 

Dinner on night #4 was at Sakura, the Asian restaurant on the ship. We put faith in the waiter when he asked "Can I bring you some things to try?", and boy, did he! It was also a good move on his part - he knew there was a table of 11 on the other side of the restaurant, and by ordering a large number of apps for us, it bought some time because they ordered a lot of food! We also discovered you could order smaller portions of each main dish in order to try more options. Not that the smaller portions were much smaller (see picture below), but still fun. Overall a great experience. 

Sea day: We booked it (can you really "book it" on a cruise ship?) from Guatemala to Key West, which took an entire day and night. I made the most of it by parking myself in a cabana and enjoying a tasty beverage. I also learned you get the better seating options the earlier you get to the pools. By 11:00am or so, there were still chairs left but they were in the direct sun and wind. I very much enjoyed sitting with a covering above and a table to the side. It's something to be writing this while I'm wearing jeans, turtleneck and sweater, while knowing two days ago I was in a bathing suit sipping an Aperol Spritz..... 

Key West: No joke, this was one of the stops I was most excited about. Everything I had read about Key West said it had a personality, and it did! It was the home of Jimmy Buffett and one of my Uncle Rick's favorite vacation spots, so I was looking forward to seeing what there was. I loved it! I spent most of the day wandering Duval St, people watching and stopping in all the shops. Such a great experience, I would love to go back. Got into a great conversation with one of the street vendors - when I pressed her for more information about the low crime rate she said "It's an island, and there's only 25,000 people. If you commit a crime, you're gonna get recognized by someone, and where are you gonna go?" She had a point..... 

I'll upload one more blog tomorrow with travel advice and links to places I visited on this trip. 

......and now, the pictures! 

Forgot to include earlier, but these are the ladies of the trip - Nora, Amanda and myself. Great group to travel with! 

OOTD (OOTN?) for Sakura. From Poshmark and Eshakti. I figured a cruise was a great time to wear a dress with coral embroidery.... 

Love how they folded the napkins at Sakrua

Pumpkin soup

A loooooong time ago I ordered a soft shell crab sandwich while on vacation. It was one of the only things I've sent back, because it was too realistic of what it used to be! This was similar, so I had to laugh. Fortunately, all the meat was already in the dish (lobster Pad Thai) and the shell was for presentation only.  Under the sea, under the sea.....  :) 

Nora shaking her head at the "smaller portions" and Michael just grinning...... 

Smaller portions? 

Waiting for me back in the room - chocolates! 

Day at sea - think I can convince work that I can do it remotely? 

Key West OOTD - J Crew Factory

Good morning Key West! 

One of the many pedicabs available at the port. This one had an added bonus..... 

Christmas at the pier - a Christmas tree of lobster traps

The roosters were everywhere! 

Jimmy Buffet's recording studio. I took this from the hop on hop off train so didn't get all the shots I wanted (the front of the building was covered in stickers), but still cool. The sad part - the building is now up for lease and will likely be transformed in the next year or so. 

Decorations at the Butterfly Museum. Add this one to places to visit the next time I'm there. 

It's an institution. 

Made me smile - apparently a very popular place for nightlife. Seems pretty accurate. (IYKYK) 

Wastin' away again.... Yes, it's touristy and not the original location. Don't care. :) When in Key West, it's practically a requirement. 

Found a really cool street vendor who made jewelry from wine bottles, plates and sea glass. Bought several pieces and got great stories. 

Technically this is Kelly McGillis' signature in the pavement, but we're going to pretend it's just my name. 

Floors 2 and 3 of the only 3-story bar in Key West. Supposedly the Garden of Eden on the 3rd floor is "clothing optional". Guess it depends on how much you've had to drink before you get there.....

Mama Chicken and babies

Key Lime pie - another Key West institution. In the background you can see two older ladies. They grew up in Elkin, NC and went to UNCG when it was the Women's College. An absolute hoot to talk with. 

Location shots - an absolutely gorgeous place! 

My dog sitter has been sending me daily pictures of Bella - this is one of the best so far. Those eyes....

One of the many Christmas decorations on board the Explora II. They were multiplying throughout the week. 

Last meal (breakfast) on board. Total first world problem, but all of us were totally, absolutely full by the end of the cruise. We decided we all ate pretty normally in real life, but the meals on the ship were much more filling and rich than we usually ate. 

Day #4 - Belize

 Good morning from Santo Tomas! We docked this morning about 8am and will spend the day here. I don’t have any excursions planned, so it’s going to be a lazy day of wandering the ship and (maybe) walking the pier. But I have to tell you about Belize! 

The first thing I need to do is give a recommendation for the tour group we used. We booked Belize Jeep Adventures through the Shore Excursions website, and they were well worth the money. For starters, I expected a tour bus full of people, with a guide at the front talking through a microphone. Instead it was just the three of us and a very knowledgeable tour guide (Roberto) in a mini van. A lot more personal, and we got a lot more information than we would have through a more typical tour. 

First place we went to was the Alton Ha ruins, about an hour outside of Belize. These were temples and living areas for the Mayan people. We learned all about how Mayans used science and symbolism to create their buildings, including the multiple use of the numbers 9 and 13 in building. 

…..and my soap opera story! Back in junior high days, I was obsessed with Bo and Carly on Days of Our Lives. The show did a location shoot in Mexico and featured Mayan ruins. One of the plot points was you could stand at the top of the temple, speak in an almost normal voice, and be heard by those on the ground (it was how Bo proposed). It was how the ruling class communicated to the masses before microphones and speakers. It was the same here - you should have to yell to be heard, but it was very easy to be understood. Amazing technology. The temples were also placed in a perfect N / S / E / W configuration. Amazing they could do all this before modern technology. Much smarter than we are now. 

Next was lunch of chicken, rice and beans, and then the howler monkey sanctuary. So cool! The sanctuary is run by the locals in the area - they give up 20% of their land to the sanctuary (keeping it natural and overgrown for the monkeys). The monkey run wild, and can be coaxed down by the caretakers who mimic their cries. We got some great pictures.  :) 

…..and now, the pictures! 

OOTD - J. Jill dress from the Junior League Thrift Sale. There’s something fun about wearing thrift store clothing on a luxury cruise. I’d rather spend the money on the experience than the clothes (but still try to dress up!) 

Part of my breakfast this morning - loved the latte art

My group for the morning - Nora, myself and Michael. We were in the middle of saying “Cheeeeeeese!” 

The tradition of named signs continues….. 

Partially funded by US AID. Yes, not spent on our country. But….preserving history that we all get to enjoy. I can go with that. 

The all spice tree. We still use the spice today, and it’s the root (pun intended) of novicane, 

Panoramic shot of the first area of the ruins 

Had a good conversation with our tour guide before I climbed the first temple. “Remember” he said “the only people allowed to the top when these were in use were the rulers and high priests and priestesses. You are walking with greatness” It was an honor to be a part of it. 

Another shot from the side. 

Walking with greatness, and being a little goofy. 

The second area of ruins. 

This is the staircase up the second set of ruins. I was sweating by the time we reached the top, but absolutely wasn’t going to turn down the opportunity! 

See those two tiny specks at the top, by the tree (right hand side)? That’s me and the tour guide. That’s how high we climbed. So cool! 

Monkeys! Their faces were absolutely adorable. 

One of the local guides, mimicking the monkey’s call to bring them to us. We got lucky - he said sometimes they come, some people don’t get to see anything. 

Dad and baby monkey. The baby was a few months old, and the guide made a point to mention the dads do as much caretaking as the moms. 

Me, Belize…..and Santa Claus. It’s a different definition of normal to be hearing Christmas carols and see decorations when it’s 82 degrees outside. 

Outfit for dinner: Old Navy linen pants, lace top from my favorite thrift store. 

The group! 

Course #1: Grilled halloumi (cheese) salad

Course #2: Steak with potatoes and spinach

Course #3: I need to look up the name, but it was like was the ice cream version of Nutella. So, so good

The ship’s captain walked by as I was writing in the cafe. Thanked her for taking such good care of us, and also said how nice it was to see a woman running things. “Coming from another woman, that compliment is double” she responded. :)