Since I'll be out of the country for the next two years we decided to have one last hurrah as a family and we spent the Christmas holiday on a 14 day cruise. Between the pools and climbing wall on the ship and the excursions in port, I would say it was the best cruise I've ever been on. Here's a fast recap of the trip, you can click on the pictures to make them bigger.
20 December, Depart from Bayonne, NJ
We decided to do the cruise in lieu of presents this year, so Christmas was pretty relaxed. Honestly I much prefer it that way...I'm a bit of a scrooge when it comes to the blatant consumerism surrounding the holidays so I really enjoyed escaping from the "shop shop shop" environment. Dinner on Christmas was formal, so we got all gussied up and took a family portrait.
26 December, Barbados
Barbados brought a break in the overcast weather that had been following us from New Jersey (no rain, just clouds) and we spent the morning hiking in the jungle and exploring a cave. After lunch dad went back to the ship and mom and I spent some time at the beach.
We spent the morning zipping through the trees on a high ropes course/zipline adventure, and the afternoon tubing down class I and II rapids on the country's longest river.
We were supposed to go sailing on a tall ship named the Lord Sheffield, but 14 foot ocean swells cancelled the trip, so after we looked around town a bit I grabbed a beer and planted myself on the beach.
20 December, Depart from Bayonne, NJ
We woke up to about 24 inches of snow which slowed down our drive to the ship, and made us all the more grateful for the warm weather to come.
23 December, San Juan Puerto Rico
We arrived in Puerto Rico around 3pm, so there wasn't time to see much, but we checked out Castillo San Cristobal, one of the old forts on the island and did a little exploring on the streets close to the dock.
24 December, St Thomas
Mom went on a bike tour of water island and dad and I took a boat out to some smaller islands to do some scuba diving. I had never been before, but I dream all the time about breathing under water. Turns out it feels about the same as it does in my dreams...
Mom went on a bike tour of water island and dad and I took a boat out to some smaller islands to do some scuba diving. I had never been before, but I dream all the time about breathing under water. Turns out it feels about the same as it does in my dreams...25 December, Christmas @ Sea
We decided to do the cruise in lieu of presents this year, so Christmas was pretty relaxed. Honestly I much prefer it that way...I'm a bit of a scrooge when it comes to the blatant consumerism surrounding the holidays so I really enjoyed escaping from the "shop shop shop" environment. Dinner on Christmas was formal, so we got all gussied up and took a family portrait.26 December, Barbados
Barbados brought a break in the overcast weather that had been following us from New Jersey (no rain, just clouds) and we spent the morning hiking in the jungle and exploring a cave. After lunch dad went back to the ship and mom and I spent some time at the beach.
27 December, Dominica
We spent the morning zipping through the trees on a high ropes course/zipline adventure, and the afternoon tubing down class I and II rapids on the country's longest river. 28 December, Antigua
In Antigua we did a combination of snorkeling and sea kayaking. A boat took us out to bird island where we hiked up to the top and met some of the locals (lizards and hummingbirds), then we hopped in the water to snorkel around the reef. After an hour the boat took us to another group of small islands for some sea kayaking where we saw starfish, upside down jellyfish and all sorts of birds. We capped off the day with some well earned rum punch.
In Antigua we did a combination of snorkeling and sea kayaking. A boat took us out to bird island where we hiked up to the top and met some of the locals (lizards and hummingbirds), then we hopped in the water to snorkel around the reef. After an hour the boat took us to another group of small islands for some sea kayaking where we saw starfish, upside down jellyfish and all sorts of birds. We capped off the day with some well earned rum punch.
29 December, St. Maarten
We were supposed to go sailing on a tall ship named the Lord Sheffield, but 14 foot ocean swells cancelled the trip, so after we looked around town a bit I grabbed a beer and planted myself on the beach.30 December, St. Kitt
St. Kitt was our last port of call before heading back North, so we went all out and climbed the volcano, Mt. Liamuiga. At 3,792 feet it was the tallest point on the island, but it was only 4.5 miles round trip. The view of the crater was pretty impressive, although not nearly as sulfurous as Villarrica in Chile. I found a little 5.3 scramble at the very top, and since its easier to ask forgiveness than permission I went ahead and climbed up. Our guide wasn't too happy about it, but the views of the ocean were totally worth it!
St. Kitt was our last port of call before heading back North, so we went all out and climbed the volcano, Mt. Liamuiga. At 3,792 feet it was the tallest point on the island, but it was only 4.5 miles round trip. The view of the crater was pretty impressive, although not nearly as sulfurous as Villarrica in Chile. I found a little 5.3 scramble at the very top, and since its easier to ask forgiveness than permission I went ahead and climbed up. Our guide wasn't too happy about it, but the views of the ocean were totally worth it! 31 December-2 January, @ Sea
The last three days of our cruise got progressively colder as we sailed back North. We rang in the New Year on the Royal Promenade and lounged around the pool and in the hot tub until hurricaine force winds kept us inside for the last day at sea.
Everyday, CLIMBING!!!
One of the reasons I was so stoked about the trip was I knew there would be a climbing wall on
the ship. I figured it would be pretty rinky dink and mostly party routes, but I was pleasantly surprised. There were a few decent routes interspersed between the jug ladders, and there was even a 5.10b that I worked on for the entire trip and managed to send on the last day. I'm a little embarassed it took me that long to get all of the moves dialed, but I'll chalk it up to the setter being ridiculously taller than me and being a bit out of shape after not having climbed in a while. I'm also not very strong so I tend to rely a lot on my balance when I climb...that ended up being a bit of a challenge on a moving boat.
Everyday, CLIMBING!!!
One of the reasons I was so stoked about the trip was I knew there would be a climbing wall on
the ship. I figured it would be pretty rinky dink and mostly party routes, but I was pleasantly surprised. There were a few decent routes interspersed between the jug ladders, and there was even a 5.10b that I worked on for the entire trip and managed to send on the last day. I'm a little embarassed it took me that long to get all of the moves dialed, but I'll chalk it up to the setter being ridiculously taller than me and being a bit out of shape after not having climbed in a while. I'm also not very strong so I tend to rely a lot on my balance when I climb...that ended up being a bit of a challenge on a moving boat.
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