After getting away from the Port, I had plenty of time to explore the ship. I had been on this ship before. My room, an internal room this time, was just a few doors down from the last time I was on the ship. The Captain told us there were about 900 crew members, and just over 2500 guests. There are lots of things to do on the ship beyond drinking....I did not figure out what those were.
I am kidding of course. I enjoyed a little gambling each day, I spent time reading a book I had brought along. It is called "The Universe in a Single Atom" by the Dalai Lama. There was plenty of entertainment to see, both by the crew and the guests. There was lots of food to eat. There were people to meet.
While sitting at the bar on day one, a large man came over to order a Bud Light. He was carrying a beautiful little girl. I asked how old she was and he said she was 13 months and she was one of the triplets. They all had names that began with the letter A, I remember only Addison. I asked who's idea was that and he said the wive's. Luckily, they had the mother-in-law and brother-in-law and his wife along to corral the triplets. A short time later, the brother-in-law came up to the bar carrying one of the other girls and I asked him if this was A--- or A--. He gives me this strange look like who the hell are you. I explained I had already met Addison with her dad and that he told me of the triplets. They were a nice family and I saw them throughout the cruise gathering up the crawling triplets.
My dinner reservation was at 8 and I was a little worried about that. When I got to the table of eight, there were two ladies near my age who were from Kentucky. One was retired and the other was a Hospice Nurse. No one else showed so we had three people at a table for eight. Our waiter was Antonio and our busboy was Allan. Dinners would be survivable.
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| Large video screen on the pool deck |
There was a large screen video at the pool area. They were showing the new Star Wars on night one which started at 10 PM. I watched the last half of the movie by the pool under the stars and moon. Kind of a cool setting to watch the death of....nope, no spoilers here. I took a photo of the screen the next morning.
Day 2 would start at the private island called Coco Cay. The last three ships that had stopped here could not disembark due to the high winds causing high waves. They said we had a 50-50 chance of being able to stop. Here is a view of the Cay as we arrived.
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| Coco Cay from the ship |
The first tender was scheduled to leave at 8:30 AM. I like this island having been here a few times before. But, the winds were still high causing swells. The first tender left 15 minutes late, but I was on it and ready for a day ashore. The ride was rocky and I took a photo of the waves crashing on Coco Cay.
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| Waves banging the rocks at Coco Cay |
Once we made it into the harbor, the rocking stopped and unloading went smoothly. Usually, the first tender is carrying the people doing the excursions like wave runners, snorkeling, kayaks, etc. I was planning to find a nice chair and read my spiritual book. To be one with the universe. Of course, I had to get through the wildlife first.
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| A wild hen with her chicks |
Where there are hens, there are roosters. This guy was definitely the alpha male because all other roosters ran away from him.
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| Alpha Cock |
I was able to get through these aggressive animals without cracking one egg. South beach was my destination and I was one of the first there so I had my pick from the chairs.
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| South Beach on Coco Cay |
I found my chair and took this photo from my morning perspective. Lunch was being served at noon so I had time to just relax in the beautiful environment of Coco Cay.
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| Coco Cay view on South Beach |
Hey look, a traveling bar!!
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| Small ATV with fluids for human consumption |
I had chosen my spot because I knew it was a five minute walk to the nearest bar. I did not know they had added the feature of a moving bar. I had my Seapass with Premium Drink Package, so I joined these folks for a morning beer. I did get a water too. As I was enjoying my cold beer and book, I heard some rustling in the group of chairs next to me. Something had jumped (or fell) from the pine trees.
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| Green Iguana |
It was a green iguana. I did not know they had these on the island. Of course, they need the sun to get them going and we had plenty of that. I guess the tree is a nice place to spend the night. I watched for a while and saw that they were building a nest in the dunes. I took this photo of a female green iguana.
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| Green Iguana looking out from her hole |
After a few hours, I knew it was nearing lunch, so I headed back to the area where most people hang out. As I approached the bar, one of the bartenders yelled "Hey Brian! How are you today?" It was my bartender friend Brian who was assigned the bar duty on Coco Cay. I had to stop and have a beer with my new friend. I took this photo from my bar stool.
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| Coco Cay from the back of a bar stool |
Lunch was crowded so I walked over to the North shore to take a few photos. I caught this one of the Enchantment of the Seas as it sat anchored off Coco Cay. You can see the tender picking up more guests for their visit to the small island.
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| Enchantment of the Seas anchored off Coco Cay |
I did stop for the barbecue lunch. The chicken was cut in such weird pieces that I joked to some new friends that maybe they were pieces of green iguana. The couple I met were well-traveled but this was their first cruise. I found out that he was a Vietnam War vet with a disability. They were a lovely couple and I hope they enjoyed the rest of the trip.
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| Mermaid protecting the Harbor at Coco Cay |
After lunch I decided that I had enough sun for the day. I grabbed a tender back to the ship. I caught a great photo of the Enchantment of the Seas on the ride back. The winds had died down a lot so the ride back was very smooth. We just had to get to the small whole in the side of the ship.
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| Enchantment of the Seas from the tender |
That concluded my stay at Coco Cay. I know I will be back.
My friend Barry in Vermont asked if going solo was okay. So far...so good. I am doing things, I am meeting people, and I am enjoying myself. But the story takes a dark turn...I hope you stay tuned for my next post!
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