Carnival Breeze – Days 7, 8 and 9 – At sea and in the Everglades

We like ports of call, too, and shore excursions, but one the the best things about cruising is sailing along on the sunny open ocean, with nothing to do. Having two long, lazy days at sea to end this cruise – with beautiful sunsets – was just fine with us.

The final days of a cruise – especially days at sea – are an opportunity to do all the things that you planned to do when you boarded, but somehow never got around to it. Things on that list for me this time:

• play mini-golf
• do the ropes course
• have sushi
• have a burger at the popular poolside burger joint
• get a hot dog from the hot dog cart
• check out the “Serenity” adults-only lounge
• catch an after-dinner show
• listen to “Woodstock Generation”

“Woodstock Generation” was one of the bands that played daily on board.  We caught fragments of their repertoire when we passed their venue – most often the lounge area adjacent to the coffee bar, which we frequented.  They struck me as being a very talented cover band, with a front singer that could do a credible job of channeling Janis Joplin.  But, like the ropes course, the mini-golf the Serenity lounge and the hot dog cart, I never did check them off my list.  I don’t feel bad about that; it leaves something to do next time.

The hot dog cart is classified as a “good try” – I twice tried to get there, but never found it open.  I am not sure it was ever open on this cruise, so I will give myself partial credit for that one.  In any case, I did manage to get a very good hot dog – with sauerkraut, of course – at the deli.

The hot dog was good, but the burger was great. We had marveled at the long lines at this poolside stand throughout the cruise and had made some snarky comments to each other on how an American tourist just couldn’t survive without a burger, regardless of how many other international dining options were available. But, after tasting one, I withdraw all snarkiness. This burger was damn good. One of the best I ever had. Way better than the pricy one I had in Curacao, and totally free. Waiting in a long line would definitely be justified.

I also sampled the on-board sushi. I was not blown away by this fare. It was good, but not great. And it cost me $15 as the sushi joint, unlike the burger joint, was not free.

We also did not make it to an after-dinner show on the last two nights at sea. Frankly, the entertainment on this cruise was not great. We saw about 20 minutes of the “Divas” show – a tribute to female singers – and walked out. It just wasn’t very good. Other shows involved juggling. Not our cup of tea.

So how did we pass our days? Well, we did stop by the casino from time to time – long enough to make our cruise casino experience a net loss, which was expected – but we also spent quite a few very pleasant hours on the smoking side of the promenade deck playing canasta. I didn’t think I would ever say this, but I am beginning to enjoy canasta. Beating the Canasta Queen (aka Jett) once in those two days was a highlight of these final days of the cruise.

We also bought some more cigarettes on board and then spent way too much time trying to figure out how they were going to complicate our disembarkation. We heard conflicting stories – from other passengers and from an internet search – as to whether the 5 extra cartons (we are each allowed to bring one carton back into the states) would be taxed or confiscated. I even stood in a long line to ask Carnival staff that question. Their unsatisfying answer? It is up to the discretion of the customs inspector. I guess if he is having a bad day he can just take the cigarettes.

We were taking a shore excursion in Miami – an airboat ride in the Everglades – so we were prioritized for disembarkation (which was one reason why we booked the trip – the other being that we had lots of time to kill). So whether it was because we got off early, or that we looked like nice folks, or that the inspector got laid that morning, the result was that we were waved through customs, with our 5 extra cartons of Marlboros intact.

The airboat trip was interesting. We learned a lot about the Everglades and saw a few alligators in the wild. We also saw a show about alligators and tried to grab a bite at the ridiculously overcrowded cafe, but instead just hung out, enjoying the beautiful weather and speculating how the business could make a lot more money on busy days like this by putting a couple of food carts – and maybe an ice cream stand – outside. No charge for the advice, guys.

Our flight was not until 8:30pm and the bus dropped us off at the Ft Lauderdale airport at 1:30, so we had some time to kill. I read some and then got the laptop out to check emails. That is when I discovered that the seemingly harmless drop of the computer case when we were getting off the bus resulted in a cracked screen. Damn! It still worked, but I couldn’t look at the upper left quadrant of any maximized page. So I reduced the size and started researching how to replace the screen. Another story for another day.

We also tracked down a coffee place where we bought some not-very-good and outrageously expensive coffee and pastries. And we played some cards, napped a bit and watched lots of sunburned folks (like me) getting ready to go back to their real lives.

Our uneventful flight back to Providence deposited us – at midnight – into rainy 38-degree New England “welcome back, sucker” weather. Great to be back.

Yeah.