Having never cruised before, my primary concern was whether or not I would get seasick. Prone to nausea on tiny boats, my worst fears brought me back to a little ship we took during our honeymoon during our Atlantis Submarine Expedition.* Regardless, this fear was not going to keep me from the experience. When I asked Hubby if we should purchase some seasickness pills ahead of time, he told me that was a problem we would leave for Future Jess and Lance.**
*My stomach was in my throat for most of that excursion.
**We are pretty horrible to them.
In front of Nassau’s Parliament Building
Fortunately, seasickness was not an issue at all and I was able to enjoy every aspect of our trip to its fullest. As a virgin cruiser, I quickly started to compile a list of thoughts for first time cruisers. Look for that post in the near future!
The title of this post is a little deceiving because one single snapshot cannot fully encompass every bit of entertainment and adventure that a cruise contains. Therefore, I’ve chosen several snapshots from our trip in order to reveal the highlights and noteworthy moments.
We cruised with Norwegian on the Norwegian Sky, which I learned is on the smaller side of cruise ships with a capacity of 2,004 guests. However, it wasn’t the size of the ship that brought us to Norwegian. It was the incredible last minute deal we managed to snatch up. Choosing the most basic of cabins, we paid $299/person for a 4 night/5 day cruise with not only freestyle dining*, but all-inclusive beverages**.
*Norwegian offers freestyle dining unlike most cruise ships where dining times are reserved and seating preassigned.
**I’m sure you can do the math, but, the drinks alone made this well worth our while.
If Gram had come on this trip with us, the minute we were out to sea she would have spent most of her time at the slots. With her in mind, we decided to take a gamble at Bingo. We didn’t win anything, but it was entertaining nonetheless.*
*Especially when the dreaded “Bingo” was called before it was even possible for one to have bingo.
Our first stop was Freeport, Bahamas.
It was overcast for most of our trip, which was surprisingly a pleasant relief from the ordinary pressing heat experienced when visiting the islands.
We quickly developed some favorites in entertainment on board the ship. Our top two were the group “Great Ideas” composed of Philippine singers who sang Motown hits exactly like the greats themselves, as well as other 70’s and 80’s hits, and Richard (pictured above) who performed many piano bar sing-a-longs.
While enjoying one of Richard’s performances, we noticed the couple sitting to the left of the bar.* It sent me thinking of the time where such outfits were the norm for those aboard a cruise ship, and part of me wished to see if outside the freestyle experience more cruise goers dress in such a way.
*Of course this was one of the times I didn’t have my DSLR on me, so the quality of the pictures isn’t the best, but look at the lady’s outfit!
By chance or perhaps on purpose or maybe due to fate, we ended up seeing them later on the top level of the ship, dancing at the Groovin’ 70’s Party with Great Ideas.
Our second port was Nassau, Bahamas where we broke our time up between visiting Atlantis and shopping.
Look! There’s our ship!
We couldn’t resist buying a conch shell turned horn. While most of the other places we passed had the conch horns already made, ours was crafted right in front of us!
And the fog to the left of these pictures is what I dealt with on my lens every single time I went to take a picture.
Our third port was in Great Stirrup Cay, Bahamas; a private island owned by Norwegian.
Originally, I thought this would be a day we stayed on the ship. There isn’t much to do on a private island but lay around and go in the water, I thought.
I was so wrong.
We kayaked for a few hours, saw a live stingray at the shoreline, ate, drank, slept on the beach, went in the water, and could have done a slew of other things including snorkeling, volleyball, ping-pong, paddle boarding, and hiking.
Perhaps the most unexpected experience of our trip was attending two different art auctions where artists like Simon Bull, Thomas Kinkade, Norman Rockwell, Peter Max, and even Dali and Disney were highlighted.
Seasickness fear aside, I expected to enjoy my first cruise experience, but wasn’t prepared to love it this much.
I’m already daydreaming of my next one.
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