Sunday, January 19, 2014

Carnival Miracle

Friday: had a delay at the airport. Bird hit the plane on the previous flight and the plane had flight control problems. Had a chicken Caesar great wrap for lunch. Flew to long beach on Jet Blue. Rented car with Alamo. Stayed at Howard Johnson express in Huntington Beach. That place was a dive. We were originally in room 111. There was a water leak, above my head when I tried to sleep. Moved to room 110. Read the book, Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter. Met Ryan and Sara at El Torito in Orange and had the Grilled Chicken Mexican Caesar Salad. Walked around the Outlets at Orange. 

Saturday: we ate breakfast at hotel. The room had three tables with two chairs, so I let mom and dad sit down while I stood. The muffin was stale and the orange juice looked kinda brown. Went to walmart to get soda and juice bottles for the ship. Went to Downtown Disney. I bought some character pins with my gift cards. Mom bought a picture of Sleeping Beauty castle and a minnie and Mickey valentine antenna topper. We went to the Jazz Kitchen express and got yummy beignets covered in powdered sugar and mint juleps. We walked on the Huntington Pier and got a banana cream dream shake at Ruby's. While we were taking a nap, the hotel crew was doing construction, fixing the water leak in our old room. We met Ryan and Sara at the Crab Cooker and I had the shrimp skewers, mashed potatoes, and coleslaw. We went and looked at baby stuff at Buy Buy Baby in Mission Viejo with Sara. We went to Balboa island and got a butter brickle chocolate bar. Mom had a tremor, because she was cold, and had to go sit in the car with the heat on full blast. 






 Sunday: we ate breakfast at Denny's. We went to walmart to get mom a shirt. We returned our rental car and took a taxi to the long beach pier. We checked in the Captain's lounge and went through security in the dome where Howard Hughes had his plane, The Spruce Goose. We were on board at 12:45 PM. We ate lunch in Horatio's. It was Italian and they had strawberry cake pops. We unpacked. We had the muster drill at 4. I sat on our balcony and watched the sail away from Long Beach and Sunset over Catalina Island. We ate dinner in the Bacchus dining room at 6 at table 233, a table for 6. Only us three showed up. I had fruit, sweet and sour shrimp, and Black Forest cake. We watched up or out trivia in the atrium. We watched the ballroom dance class and game show mania in the Phantom lounge. I read the book, the Spectacular Now by Tim Tharp. 








Monday: we ate breakfast in horatio's. We went and looked through the photo gallery and shops. We went to the Fun ashore talk and shopping talk in the Phantom lounge. I read the book, Man Up! by Ross Matthews. Ate lunch in Horatio's, it was American. Had some cheesy potatoes with pot roast. Key lime pie for dessert. First formal night. Wore my coral dress with yellow polka dots and tan leggings, with a black sweater and a coral heartnecklace. Mom and Dad got interviewed for the cruise video, while we were waiting forthe dining room to open. We got moved to table 209, a table for 3 in front of the dining room. Our waiters were Zoran, Raymond, and Dudik. I had the strawberry bisque, prime rib, and diet banana gateau. The waiters performed "That's Amore." We had our photos taken against a red backdrop. We went to the Mad Hatter's ball to see the comedian, Stanley Ullman. The main show was Generations, a tribute to 1930's to 1980's.  









Tuesday: we ate breakfast at Horatio's. There were only stairs to go down to the tender. We tendered into Cabo San Lucas, Mexico around 10 am. This was my first visit to Cabo. We went shopping and Mom collected free charms from the jewelry stores. We went on the Whale Watching and Coastal cruise for two hours, from noon to two. It was amazing! They took us past Land's End, Lover's beach, and the Arch. They gave us pineapple juice, potato chips, and Oreos. We saw humpback whales flap their fins and tails, and blow water out of their blowholes. After our tour, we got back on the tender to sail back to the ship. There was one really drunk lady in a bikini, who crawled over us, licked the neck of one of the tender workers, and bit the finger of a guy who was trying to help her walk. She walked head first into the security poles. We were back on board the ship at 3 pm. We ate lunch at Horatio's and it was Caribbean food. I liked the beans with rice and the banana cream pie. We took a nap, while we were sailing away from Cabo. We ate dinner in the dining room. I had the fruit, the chicken breast, and warm fig and date cake. The waiters performed "Shake Shake Shake." We went and looked at our photos and the shops. We went and played, Guess that Song and Gender Showdown. I had a raspberry smoothie. We had to set our clocks an hour ahead. 








Wednesday: we docked in Puerta Vallarta at 8:30 am. This was my first visit to Puerta Vallarta, Mexico. I watched us sail in and dock next to the Crystal Serenity. Dad and I saw two stingrays swim between the cruise ships. We took a cab for 4 dollars a person and went shopping downtown at the Malecon. We had to buy some cold medicine at one of the pharmacies. Mom bought a coral stone pendant, bracelet, and ring. Dad was supposed to go on a snorkeling and kayak tour to Los Argos, but it was cancelled due to lack of participants. We took a cab back into port. We had pizza for lunch, as the French food didn't seem that great. After our nap, Mom and I watched the Crystal Serenity sail away and the pirate ship come back. We ate dinner in the Bacchus. I had peach soup, farfalle with turkey and peas, and bitter and blanc. The main show was a Mexican Folkloric Show, with dancers and a mariachi band. We set sail at 9 pm, so we sat on the lido deck and watched the sail away from our room. I read the book, Where'd you go Bernadette.  







Thursday: this was our second day at sea. We ate breakfast at Horatio's. We went and look at our photos and the shops. Mom's wheelchair kept setting off the security alarm in the photo gallery. We had to sail back up to the bay of Cabo San Lucas to evacuate one passenger for medical reasons, so a tender had to meet us with a gurney. They took the passenger off and probably took him or her to nearest hospital. We got to sail past Lover's beach and Land's End again and see some more whales. While we ate lunch, we saw the people dance for the Groove for St. Jude. They danced to the "Cupid Shuffle," "The Wobble," and "Cha Cha Slide." Lunch was Italian. I had some chicken fingers and vegetable pasta, with some fruit for dessert. We went and saw the Newlywed Game. It was our second formal night. I wore black dress pants, a red with black lace blouse, and a black sweater. We ate dinner in the Bacchus. I had the cherry soup, chateaubriand, and baked Alaska. The waiters performed "Gangnam Style." The comedian was Seth Buchwald. The main show was Ticket to Ride. I read the book, The Sky is Everywhere.  









Friday: this was our third day at sea. We ate breakfast in Horatio's. We went and looked at our formal night photos and the shops I read the book, The Interestings. We ate brunch in the dining room. I had the Mac n cheese with chicken, a peach smoothie, and a Caramel salted brownie. Dad went on the backstage tour while we were taking our nap. For dinner, I had the mango soup, chicken fettucini, and the warm chocolate melting cake. We went and listened to a band and a singer/songwriter.  






Saturday: we disembarked the ship in the morning right after breakfast. We had to wait at the airport for a long time. I read the book, I Remember Nothing. We ate lunch at the food court. We flew home in the afternoon. We drove home and unpacked. 





Sunday: we picked up our cats at Idlewire.  It was the 7th anniversary of my grandpa Hyrum's death.  

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