December 28- Costa Maya, Mexico

Tired and weary, the Cheek family returned from a fun day of boat rides to little villages in Guatemala. The kids had saved their money and bought school supplies to give out to children in a school, but it turned out the schools are closed from November through January. They went into a town and distributed what they had purchased and brought along from home. Both children commented on seeing the poor children who were selling necklaces made from seashells. I think they have learned much from seeing these cultures and communities where people don’t have much in the way of materials possessions.

Many purchases were made from the vendors at the dock- small beaded purse, a beaded lizard, a cute t-shirt and a clever wooden turtle puzzle box.  After “show and tell” , the kids settled down- Ella to color a lovely picture and complete a maze and Christopher to search the menu for his choice for dinner food. He has loved the chilled soups, but last evening the melon soup didn’t work for him….however  the four Cheeks ate 8 bowls of soup- chicken gumbo and bacon cheddar. The service was really fast and correct and our various comings and goings didn’t make that easy to do.

Kids went up to the HAL Club for an hour and the adults visited.

Today we are in Costa Maya, Mexico. This is a port created for cruise ships so off the ship there are stores with stuff and a beach resort. Neither is something we need to experience or purchase.

We learned that Holland America Cruise Lines has two new safety and environmental additions. This ship is testing a thermal imaging system that detects if a person accidentally falls overboard. Don’t know what happens if it wasn’t accidental!!

The Cruise line is spending $1,000,000 per ship to outfit them to be able to plug  into shore power facilities while in port. We decided that is a good trade off- the community gets to sell power to the ship and the ship reduces the amount of fuel being used to just operate their generators.  Interesting changes reflecting the changing times. BUT the Internet is still so slow and I can’t figure out why someone doesn’t tackle that.

From our balcony we can see the resort, hear the big waves and see the many shades of beautiful blue water. Wonderful place to relax. What a life!

December 27- Santo Tomas de Castillo

After dinner last evening both Ella and Christopher were exhausted, so Kathryn put them to bed and went to sleep herself. We had a great visit with Will as he recounted the day’s activities. He ordered room service and had his nightly snack and was off to bed.

Today we are in port in Santo de Tomás de Castillo on the east coast of Guatemala. Interesting that one information sheet has Castillo and the other has the spelling Castilla. Couldn't find out why- except maybe someone made a mistake....but which one?  We are in Amatique Bay. The area was settled in the 19^th Century by Belgian pioneers. The spectacular Mayan ruins of Tikal are nearby. The ancestors of the Maya gave up hunting, fishing and gathering at some point before 2000BC and began growing crops. Corn was the reliable staple that allowed the great civilizations of what is now Mexico and Central America to develop, and the Maya inhabited a large area. Their civilization was still in existence when the Europeans arrived in the early 1500’s. The Spanish conquered the weak and divided Maya and took control of present-day Guatemala in 1524. The country gained independence from Spain in the early 1820’s and became a republic in 1847.

This port was the primary base for the Guatemalan Navy in the 1960’s but has only been a cruise destination for about 8 years. It is a busy port with many small boats around the harbor.  We are the only cruise ship in port so the area is somewhat quiet. Our view is out to the water and a small jut out of land. The port side is a busy commercial port filled with lots of containers. 

We are enjoying our spacious suite. We are really glad that is how it finally turned out because it makes it much more comfortable for hanging out…of course it isn’t like the Penthouse we had this summer but doubt that ever happens again. The living area has a big sofa and two fairly comfortable chairs. There are lots of drawers and cabinets for storage. The bar area is nice and the dressing room is really a large with lots of closets.

The pool area of the ship is a very popular spot with ping pong, big sized chess game and hot tubs too. We went there was a burger for lunch- tasty time!

Naturally there are vendors at the pier selling the usual local crafts. Jim wandered out but returned with out a purchase.

This is definitely the lazy way to spend a week. 

December 26- Roatan

Roatán is the most developed of the Bay Islands chain located 40 miles northeast of mainland Honduras. We   docked this morning, December 26, 2012, at about 7:00 AM. This Caribbean secret is steeped in culture and history. The friendly English-speaking population offers a unique blend of African. Spanish, Paya Indian, and British cultures. The island itself is a mere 28 miles long and an average of 4 miles wide creating easy navigation of tis one major paved road.

We are docked at Mahogany Bay, a spot owned by the Carnival Corporation so only ships in that family of cruise lines come here. We were along side the Carnival Dream- a huge ship. The day is bright and sunny and the air is very warm- you might say hot!!!!

Last evening we had the same difficulty getting a table for 6 until Jim talked with the Dining Room Manager. Now we are set with a table for each night we have left aboard. We had a great dinner. The children were tired so we returned to the cabins and Kathryn put Ella to sleep. Christopher stayed up a bit more and then he was off to sleep.

Who Has the Biggest Feet

You can see that Jim and Will entertained themselves trying to see who had the biggest feet. Nothing like a family for fun entertainment!!!! Kathryn and Will went to the Crow’s Nest but returned quickly because it was Karaoke night. We had a great visit.. The clocks were moved back an hour last evening. We had a big debate about how far west or east we were. It dawned on me that it makes perfectly good sense for Central America to be in the Central Time Zone…..and it is.

The view from our balcony of the ferry terminal, some beautiful catamarans , and a large house on the hill. Was a peaceful place to sit, relax and read!

We got off the ship about 9:00 and headed to meet our tour. The walk was long and uphill. We finally decided not to try to go the entire distance. We chatted with other cruisers and returned to the ship. Holland America would do well to have a shuttle to make it easier for people to get to taxis.

We had planned to have a short tour visiting a couple of furniture making shops but the walk was too long, the hill too steep and the weather too hot.  Oh well!! No doubt saved us some money! There were lots of shops and beautiful plants and flowers in what looks to be a shopping/tropical paradise. 

Be interesting to hear the tales Kathryn and her family have to tell about their activities today! 

Christmas Day -At Sea

Wreath on our door

What a morning! Happy Birthday Baby Jesus!

We got up early since our cabin was Christmas Central.  We had ordered lots of pastries, coffee and juice so everybody could have something to eat. We were dressed and ready when the food was delivered. Almost immediately Ella and Christopher arrived. Santa had spread the stockings out on the long counter under the window and we had placed our presents under the small tree. Looked very festive.

Food was consumed and stockings were opened. Christopher liked his shark sunglasses. He finally hung the flashing rings that Kathryn and Ella received from his glasses and made quite a sight. After several trip to the Lido with food being brought down to our cabin, everybody at last seemed to have enough nourishment to sustain them through the day.

Ella had created a dress with wood block prints and Christopher had decorated a shirt. Here are the front and the back views.  

By the time all had been unwrapped and the food had been consumed our cabin was a wreck. Our cabin Stewards- Nurdin and Supry- arrived and hauled away the dishes. The Cheeks went to the Theater to see Santa and we went to the Neptune Lounge to get out of the room. Nurdin came and found us in the lounge to say it was all cleaned. Great Service!!!!

The Cruise Director kept making announcements tracking the arrival of Santa onto the MS Ryndam. Tried to be funny but was pretty hokey. Christopher thought at first it was a serious announcement about a storm because Eric, the Cruise Director, began talking about a radar sighting of something big and red.  The kids got gifts from Santa and families got their pictures made with the jolly old elf.

We have had a lazy day. Kids in the pool, some lunch and then to the HAL Club. Kathryn and Will were off to shop in the shops onboard. Jim and I went to lunch and then read and watched the sea go by.

Going for an earlier dinner tonight.

As this Christmas Day comes to a close we are reminded of family and friends in other places celebrating- Bradenton, Cornelius, Morganton, Charlotte, Rochester, Athens, Alexandria, Berkeley and more. God's blessings are so rich- as we rejoice in the healthy birth of Matt (my nephew) and his wife, Lynn Lyon's daughter Sienna yesterday. God's presence and strength also surround those for whom this time is a time of loss as we think about a friend whose husband suddenly died. Each day is precious! Each family member and each friend is remembered and loved. So we say like Tiny Tim "God Bless Us Everyone."

Christmas Eve in Key West

Mallory Square in Key West

Two other ships were docked but we parked right in the same spot overlooking Mallory Square where we had docked the last time we cruised this route.  The Cheeks were off to explore and we watched the life unfold below and around us.

Kay West Aquarium

We watched the feeding of a number of fish at the Key West Aquarium. The fish are free to swim in and out of the enclosure where people stand to watch…..but being smart fish they come back often to eat. At one point we heard a conch shell being blown and blown. Turns out it was our crowd trying to get our attention but we never looked the right way.

Juggling Knives and other things

As Will said , “Key West is almost like going to a foreign country without having the leave the US.” People  were in and out of the shops and the condos around. We watched the performers begin to gather in the square. There must be a very careful pecking order because at least 8 different performers and about a dozen vendors rolled right to a spot and began to set up their wares or get prepared to perform.

Straitjacket  escape

The first one began calling to the crowd to assemble as he marked off his spot with some sort of liquid. He got on a tall ladder and walked back and forth in his spot. He juggled pins and then flaming things. He got onto a very tall unicycle and continued his patter to entertain the crowd while he peddled around.

Next came a guy who finally stood on top of three layers of boards that rolled back and forth. Quite a balancing act. He then proceeded to juggle a threesome of a knife, a potato masher and a meat tenderizer. Seemed hard to me since they all weighed and must have felt different. The crowds seemed to move back and forth between the number of performers.

We then watched a guy who put on a straitjacket and rolled around on the floor trying to take it off. People were enthralled with that.

There were two guitar players, a singer and a banjo player in various corners of the square. Vendors were selling everything from Popcorn, to lovely jewelry, to woven palm baskets, to painting on vinyl records, to beautiful photography. 

We watched Kathryn and the children stopped and search for their ship ID's and then board. Quickly they appeared at our door to share stories of their explorations- the butterfly conservatory, the conch train, the aquarium. They had a great time!! Will came back from doing a little shopping. We were all aboard to watch the sail away at 6:00.

We went to the Rotterdam Dining Room about 6:15 but couldn't get a table together. Jim and I ate on one side of the room and they were on the other. Had a delicious meal of prime roast beef and then shared a piece of pecan pie for dessert.

The evening ended perfectly- at least for me. We all went to the MIXX Lounge and sang Christmas songs. Having Christopher sit on my lap and sing was so wonderful. We even sang the funny version of Rudolph that all the grandchildren have loved- "like a light bulb."

Kids were off to bed so Santa could do his work when he arrived.