Carnival Inspiration

This was my second cruise. My other cruise was on the Carnival Spirit in December of 2003. This was my parents’ 5th cruise (4th with Carnival).

October 9th:  We had a layover in Kansas City, where if you want to use the restroom, you have go out of security and back through it.  Then we had to fly to Nashville and let people off the plane.  We got to Tampa about 10 pm and stayed at the Hilton.

October 10th: Embarkation was a long and dull process of going through security and waiting in line for at least 2 hours. When we got there, they gave us a paper with itinerary changes (Grand Cayman to Progreso, and Cozumel to Calica/Playa Del Carmen).  We had a lifeboat drill in the Rock and Roll disco which had a guitar theme.  Our cruise director, Maraschahl Staton gave a shore excursion talk.  Since we had the 8:00 dinner seating, it seemed like all the activities were going on while we were eating and they didn’t have much going on for the late sitting crowd while the early sitting crowd was eating.   We were seated in the dining room with a lady named Tracy, her son Chris, and his stepbrother Ryan, from Tampa.  After dinner, we went to the Welcome Aboard show.

October 11th: Our first full day at sea.  We went and saw Maraschahl give another shore excursion talk and we watched the Austin Powers Dance class.  It was our first formal night and I wore my red dress.  I accidentally spilled butter on the front of my dress.  We went and watched Karaoke and Bingo. The show was "La Nuevo Caribe" dedicated to Caribbean and Spanish music.

October 12th:  We docked in Progreso, Mexico.  We took the shopping and city tour to Merida. They have a lot of stuff (like Chili’s, Sears, Wal-Mart, Home Depot, Mercedes and Jaguar dealerships) that we have at home. We visited the governor’s house and a church that was built in the 1500s (the oldest church on the American continent). The vendors were absolutely obnoxious. I told this guy like 5 times I didn’t want to buy one of his fans and he would not leave me alone. I pretended I was asleep until the bus came back. We tried some authentic nachos at one of our stops. They were delicious, but very hot. My dad ordered the escargots and thought they tasted like cheese pizza.   We went to Karaoke and this guy got up and sang "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend."  The show was a juggler and a comedian.

October 13th: It was raining when we got off the boat in Calica, which is next to Playa Del Carmen. We took a bus tour to Cancun. At our first stop at a flea market, the bus driver hit the windshield into a tree branch and broke the glass. Besides hotel row by the beach, Cancun is really grungy. We got to go to a couple of malls and to the beach. They have remnants of Mayan ruins right on the golf course. The water is light blue and really pretty.  The show was fire Gauchos and a comedian.

October 14th: We had to take a tender into Belize, because they don’t have a pier big enough for the ship. Then we took a bus city tour to some Mayan ruins called Altun-Ha. The tour guide said it existed between 250 AD and 500 AD. It was a neat experience to walk through the circle of temples and imagine where the people worshipped.  I videotaped Dad climbing up to the temple and his walking around up there.  It was our second formal night and I wore my blue dress.  I had an appetizer that was shrimp, mussel, and squid, which tasted like a pasta noodle.  The show was "Shout," a tribute to rock and roll.

October 15th:  We docked in Costa Maya, Mexico.  My Dad had a snorkeling excursion, while Mom and I went through the shopping village in Costa Maya. I didn’t buy anything. Most of the goods they have are hammocks, blankets, and sundials or silver-platted jewelry.  When he came back, we went and sat on the lido deck and watched the water.

October 16th:  In the morning, we went and played trivia.  We heard the disembarkation talk.  Later they were playing the video on TV and it showed Mom and I clapping.  After dinner, we watched The Newlywed Game and the Guest Talent Show.

October 17th: We got off the ship today.  We did early disembarkation when we were on the Spirit, and knew it was a painful experience, so this time we waited for our luggage number to be called in the Paris Lounge and got off the boat around 10 in the morning.  After we got our rental car, we went to the International Mall in Tampa that had some really nice stores in it. For dinner, we went to Tia's Tex Mex and the waitress spilled my soda on me when she brought it to me. We stayed the night at Amerisuites.

October 18th: we went to the airport and flew home.