Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Taking a Cruise But Didn't Care To Ask, Part 3

Cruise

Exciting and steep
Come aboard
We're fleecing you
Yeah, cruise
Life's expensive reward
Let it sail, it rocks back and forth for you

Yes, my apologies to Jack Jones, but it seemed fitting!

In three days time, we had launched on our cruise ship, the Carnival Firenze, took an excursion to Catalina Island, and took a shorter trip (for me and Vickie anyway) to Ensenada.

And now we were on Day 4, which they call Sea Day, essentially dropping anchor (no I don't mean their pants...at least not that I saw) and sitting  for several hours.

For many, this was probably just another day of fun on the ship since several people did not explore Catalina or Ensenada, and that is ok. There are many things to do on board, not the least of which is eating and drinking. The leisure decks have pools, a ropes course, mini golf, an arcade, and basketball. If one wants to, they can just sit and look at the Pacific Ocean. If you're a desert rat like me, that last one is quite enjoyable.

For us, we partook in our final breakfast in the Michelangelo Dining Room, which was actually a brunch on Sea Day. We then went to see about a trivia game in one of the lounges. WOW WAS IT PACKED! The problem was not the excitement of the activity, but rather a lack of off-ship opportunities...all the rats were stuck on the floating ship. It seemed quite disorganized, so Vickie and I watched for a bit then went elsewhere.

Later on, we hit another trivia game which was better prepared, but as we were a team of 2, we got 4 out of 20. Not our best or worst.

After that was our final dinner on the ship, where I had an appetizer of frog legs (yum!) and seafood penne.

And then we went to see the ship's comedian perform. Vickie and I always love a good stand-up act and this guy was no disappointment. The material was definitely for 18+ of age. Later in the night, we went to the Lido Deck for a little late night snack.

And then came debarkation day.

It's funny how for several days, you're treated like a valued guest, but when it's time to go, THEY WANT YOU TO GO! All passengers were to be out of their rooms by 8:30 a.m. and off the ship no later than 10 a.m. No wonder, they were getting ready for the next voyage, which I believe was the weekend 3-day trip to Ensenada and back.

So, once again, we stood in long lines to get back into the USA officially. It was then a tale of 2 Uber trips to find the right bus depot in Long Beach to find the bus I reserved to take us to San Diego and the ANOTHER Uber to take us to my Dad's place. Natalie was anxious to get home, so after some pizza and telling our cruise tales, and getting a battery jump from AAA, we coffee'd and gassed uo and headed for home, arriving at 2a.m.

Some thoughts...

I know this is a world of long lines when there is food or fun involved, I need to stop be a curmudgeon on that stuff.

It's always a fun mystery to come back in the stateroom to see what towel origami was created by the staff and put on our freshly made bed.

The ship's layout was so intricate that even I was still a bit lost at times near the end. But that was ok, it created a daily sense of adventure.

It was expensive for sure, and took a whole year to pay off...but well worth it if you go only once in your life...we want to go again!

There was no drama...everyone was happy to be there and got along fine. The cruise was definitely a multi-cultural gathering. The United Nations could take notes and learn from this.

And finally there was a definite sadness upon returning. Our stateroom was practically home away from home and our time together was wonderful.