Denise's Mexican Riviera Cruise

Vacation Day 5 (Cruise Day 4)

First port today, we arrived into Puerto Vallarta at around 8am. We took a really nice shore excursion that went up into the mountains to see the less touristy areas. We drove through three different towns/cities and were able to stop in two. We learned about dating rituals, local tequilas, ate hot, fresh tortillas made right in front of us, and enjoyed homemade popsicles.

On the way back we stopped at a restaurant to grab a bite. I was scouring around for a menu to decide what to order. Turns out there is no menu. There’s only one item – you get it or you don’t.

We ordered one quesadilla platter to share and it was absolutely delicious. The tortillas were made by hand right in front of you and then cooked on a large open grill at the front of the restaurant.

There was a little excitement after lunch when one of our tour mates slipped and fell into one of the pools around the open-air restaurant. He was fine, but embarrassed. On the plus side it was about a million degrees and he was the only one who wasn’t hot on the way back!

We got dropped off a ways from the Malecon so we caught a cab and went shopping! We walked along the Malecon of course, and enjoyed a few stores for souvenirs. After returning to the ship for dinner we decided to pop across the street to Wal-Mart (I know, I know, not exactly “enjoying the local culture”!) to grab a little of this and a little of that. We’ll take home a few new hot sauces and grabbed a couple of drinks for on the ship.

Day 5

Today was Mazatlan. We had a long excursion booked to see local industries up in the Sierra Madre Mountains. There was going to be brickmakers, tilemakers, tortilla factory, bakery and a local restaurant. Unfortunately my back was acting up after everything we did yesterday and we had to skip our shore excursion today. Very disappointing, but hopefully we’ll be back again. We’ll enjoy the local culture, see the cliff divers and check out the Golden Zone.

On the ship we didn’t do much. Watched some of “This Is It” on the big screen. Waved goodbye to the Federales who rode alongside us while we sailed out of port. Laughed at the weird fish that jump out of the water sideways and always jump three times. It was a quiet day, and even though we didn’t get to do what we originally planned, there’s enough to do on the ship (plus movies on the TV) to keep us busy. And it was nicer weather today too, staying under 25 degrees.

Speaking of weather, Colorado’s getting snowed on like there’s no tomorrow with blizzards expected Friday; we change planes in Denver on our way home Sunday. Hopefully it’s stopped snowing by then. The other potential snag is that huge storm front that’s hitting SoCal. We sail into Long Beach, which yesterday and today is experiencing severe flooding, and then head to LAX, while LA is expecting mudslides over the next two days. It’ll be interesting to see what does or doesn’t end up happening.

Denise's Mexican Riviera Cruise

Day 4

What an awesome day!!

At lunch, as we were passing Cabo we had whales off the port and starboard sides. Then after lunch we enjoyed (??) the Hairy Chest contest. Played a round of mini-golf (where I won of course!). After dinner we watched dolphins play beside the ship, right from our balcony.

Truly fantastic. The only thing we missed was finding an open ping pong table and the Rock’N’Roll Dance Party.

We even got to take in a shopping talk and jewellery talk where we picked up a free charm bracelet, free earrings and a $100 certificate for diamond jewellery. Nice haul.

Busy day and yet so little to write. So I guess I’ll tell you about food! For lunch I ate at the Mongolian grill. I didn’t like the mild and hot flavours of sauce, so I decided to try the extra hot – how bad could it be, right? One little bowl of vegetables took me a whole glass of iced tea to get through. And then as soon as I was done the last bite I ran to the ice cream machine to dish up a few scoops to tame the heat! Hubby grabbed lunch from the Burrito Bar and thoroughly enjoyed it. For dinner we just had grand buffet, but that cheesecake was addictive – had to have 2 pieces! Again hubby went for something different and devoured a Kahlua and chocolate mousse dessert.

It was a beautiful and HOT day today. And tomorrow is supposed to be hot too, about 27. Pool and deck chairs were packed today, nice to see after the cooler day we had yesterday.

Tomorrow we reach our fist port of Puerto Vallarta. Busy day with 2 shore excursions and shopping in two different areas. Hopefully we’ll have time to get it all in because if I had to decide to leave something off, I don’t think I could.

Denise's Mexican Riviera Cruise

Day 3

Our first full day at sea. Relaxing, do as you please kind of day. Not much to report!

Started with the breakfast buffet at 11 and moved to the Deli for 12:30 (you can’t starve on this ship!)

Wandered around, just checking things out. It really warmed up today from what we had at Long Beach, and even though it’s a bit of a cloudy day, the sun was shining most of the afternoon.

We reached a point on the peninsula that juts out quite a bit, so we came pretty close to land.

We watched school after school of flying fish around the ship – they jump out of the waves and float until they slam into a wave, but with the wind today they were staying airborne for nearly a minute.

We watched “UP” by the pool on the big screen.

We skipped dinner in the dining room again today because it was formal night. Each cruise there is one special Captain’s Dinner event where women are in cocktail dresses and men in tuxes. No thanks!

After enjoying the main buffet, we found a quiet spot at the front of the ship and stargazed for a while.

Also booked a special tour today that we’re VERY excited about!! They offer a behind-the-scenes tour of the ship, with only 16 spots. You get to see the galley, the engine room, backstage with the entertainment and the bridge. There’s just one tour, escorted by a security guard, and no photography allowed. We are so stoked to be able to get into such an exclusive tour. After September 11 they stopped offering bridge tours, so it’s awesome that they’ve found a way to slowly start allowing people a peak at the inner workings again.

Denise's Mexican Riviera Cruise

Day 2

We’re on our way, finally out to sea (well, ocean).

Day started well, with a nice breakfast at the Marriott. We took the hotel shuttle to the airport to meet our Carnival Transfer at the baggage claim in arrivals. Shuttle driver was pretty crabby, but at the airport all the Carnival reps were very friendly.

Before we even got to the pier you could see the three stacks rising up from the Queen Mary. She’s been docked here for over 40 years, with most of it a hotel and all of it restored to it’s original grandeur.

The embarkation process usually takes quite a while, and after injuring my back yesterday I can’t really stand for long so they ended up taking me to the ship in a wheelchair. All of the reps were so sympathetic and helpful. Carnival crew are always great.

Once you got onboard they had live music and lunch going on Lido Deck until the cabins were available in the early afternoon. Once we got in to our room, we didn’t move again until muster. Before every cruise sets sail, all guests have to take part in a life-boat drill so you know what to do in an emergency. Certainly good information to have!

After the drill we stood on our balcony and watched the ship pull out for a while before it got too chilly and we had to retreat to our room again. I don’t know if it’s the storm front moving in, or just the way the Pacific is, but you could feel as soon as we left the safety of the harbour. Once we were passed that breakfront the waves started already. It’s been drizzling off and on too, so they closed the retractable roof to protect the new “movie theatre”.

They’re not bad waves, just enough to remind you you’re at sea. The gentle rocking is actually quite soothing while you’re lying down. But be careful for the occasional movement while you’re in the hallway – make sure you hold the rail! I get motion sickness pretty easily, and these waves aren’t upsetting at all, just enough to rock you to sleep like a baby!

We didn’t meet our dinner mates today, we decided to have a bite at the buffet rather than go to the dining room. Everything was good as usual.

We haven’t really explored much today, but we’re at sea for the next two days before we port in Puerto Vallarta so lots of time to check things out. So far we’ve seen the library, Internet Café, a couple of bars, one dining room, and the outdoor movie screen for “Seaside Theater”. Tonight is Star Trek and tomorrow’s UP. Can’t wait!

Now if you’ve never cruised and always wondered how long these mega-ships really are – well there’s a picture for you. The hallway took nearly a couple minutes to complete in one direction and that little dot at the end is me – hundreds of cabins away from where I started.