Picture Show - Part 1 of 2

Here is part of my vacation pics in a slide show. I am putting them in two parts so the show won't take forever to view -- just half of a forever :)

Enjoy!

Love,

Still Catching Up

I apologize for not having the pictures up but I am getting caught up at the office and have not had the extra time (and it takes time) to go through the pics and post them. I promise that they will be coming very soon.

Are you all having a beautiful Autumn? We are. We almost had frost on the pumpkin this morning. It's supposed to warm up a little. I hope so. Boy, coming from steamy Costa Rica, Panama and Columbia to 50 degree and cooler weather is a shocker for the body :z

Excuse me while I go blow my nose.

Love,

Nice to be home

We arrived home around 7:30 PM after stopping for some long awaited hugs from family :)))

The ship docked in Fort Lauderdale, FL. We rented a van (we traveled with friends, so . . . size was a priority b/c of the LUGGAGE!) We drove to Tampa and met with our niece and her family. They live in Gainsville and by meeting in Tampa saved us many hours of driving. She's a doctor and her husband is in dental school. They have three beautiful children so we appreciated them sharing some of their valuable time with us.

The trip was wonderful! Cruising is the most relaxing way to vacation. We do realize how blessed we are to be able to do this and are truly thankful.

I have pics and will put them up in a slide show so that you will not be bored to tears. You know . . . pics of people's vacations and grandkids . . . not what others REALLY care to see. (To Esthermay: No, the pics I used in the daily posts were not from my camera. They were from the internet I do have some good ones, though.)

Today I will be unpacking, gathering up items for the cleaners and doing some laundry. I did utilize the laundry service on board Friday so that will minimize my time in the laundry room today :)

Thank you for following along. I hope you enjoyed the bloggy voyage. Did it take you very long to figure out where we were going - meaning the Panama Canal? Pardon the typos. I was determined to get all of the posts up before I left so I was flying through them as quickly as I could.

Have an awesome . . . . . . . Tuesday? Yes . . . . it's Tuesday, October 21, 2008.

Love,

Homeward bound

Off to the airport in Tampa this morning. Thank goodness it's not too early!
I hope you have enjoyed traveling with me. I loved having you along.
Let's do it again sometime!
See you at home!

Love

Disembarkation

Today we begin our journey home.
First we will pick up our rental car and drive to Tampa.
We are on our way to visit with our niece and her family.
Til tomorrow!

Love,

Cruising right along

Our last day at sea.
This evening we will be packing our suitcases, filling out forms and making all the preps to disembark the ship tomorrow morning.

Love,

At Sea

We are at sea today!
Plenty of time to read and relax or whatever "floats your boat" :)

Love,

Colombia! Port #7

Today we dock in Cartagena, Colombia. We will be here from 8:00 A.M. until 5:00 P.M. Be sure to get back to the ship by 4:30! They don't wait for late comers!
Tonight will be our final formal dining night.

Love,

Cruising on the other side of Panama

We are at sea today.
You can relax and do anything you like!
As for me,I'm off to have some fun.
See you later!

Love,

Slo-o-o-ow Cruising in . . . . . & Port #6

THE PANAMA CANAL!

If you guessed that we where going to the Panama Canal, you were right! It will take us from 6:00 A.M. until 4:00 P.M. to go through the canal. This is so-o-o interesting to see how the ships are taken through the locks.

This s a good view of the locks. This ship will be raised as it goes through the Panama Canal.

To give you an idea of how huge this freighter is, each of those containers are the size of a semi truck trailer.
Do you see the little train looking thing just to the back and left of the freighter? That engine pulls/pushes this huge ship through the canal. Cables are hooked to the ship and the little train engine actually power the ship through the series of locks. The last time we went through, it cost our ship around $170,000. 00 to go through the canal!

This is the beautiful Centennial Bridge.

At the end the day we stop at the Cristobal Pier where we will be greeted by dancers. They have a huge market and restaurants at this pier. We will only be at the pier for 2 hours before moving on.

Love,

Just Cruising

Happy Monday to you!
Today we relax from all the sightseeing in Costa Rica.
We are continuing to move Southward. Can you guess where we are going next?

Love,

Port #5

Coffee beans in beautiful Costa Rica!

Costa Rica used teak wood for their telephone poles! Teak wood! I love the people of Costa Rica. So glad that we can visit this little country again!
Come back tomorrow. We have more traveling to do!
We are docked at Puntarenas, on the beautiful Lord's day from 7:00 A.M. until 7:00 P.M.

Love,

Cruising Today

A relaxing day at sea!
(I'm getting less wordy b/c I'm relaxing ;)

Love,

Port #4

This is Huatulco, Mexico.
We are docked here from 8:00 A.M. until 4:00 P.M.

Love,

Port #3

Can you guess where we are today?
It's Acapulco, Mexico!
We are docked today from 8:00 A.M. until 6:00 P.M.
A day of sightseeing and trying not to feel like a sugar cube on an ant bed!
They love to see the tourists come!

Love,

At Sea

This picture shows the ship docked, but we are at sea again today. Love the sea days of relaxation! After all, we ARE on vacation. (We have 24 hour room service at no extra charge! Let's have coffee delivered while we're getting ready for the day.)

Love,

Port #2

Do you know where we are today?
This is Cabo San Lucas bay.
We are in Mexico today.
We will be tendered to and from the dock today and we be here from 9:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M.
This is a new port for me. Have you been here?

Love,

Sailing Along

Today we are at sea again. Relaxing in the sun and doing whatever we choose to do. There are at least two swimming pools and hot tubs. The dining is unbelievable. We will see a show after dinner each night that we are on board. They will have movies during the day, games, lectures, classes on various topics such as make-up, cooking, napkin folding, health, exercise, etc. The is basketball (now that's interesting if it's windy and the ship is moving. You have to compensate for the movement in order to make the basket.

Some ships we have been had roller blading, ice skating, miniature golf, rock climbing, walking/jogging paths, and a MALL that looked like something you would find in Europe!

Come back tomorrow and see where our 2nd port of call is.

Love,

Port #1

Today we will be here.

This is Catalina Island.
This is my first trip to this island. I heard so much about it when I was growing up from my parents who went there several time on dates ;)
Our schedule is to be here from 7:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. We will be tendered to and from the dock. (The water in the harbor is too shallow for the ship.)

Love,

At Sea

Today we are at sea -- my favorite part of the cruise. I like the ports but sea days are so relaxing. We usually take a mile walk before breakfast. If there is golf, we may do that too before breakfast. The ship provides all kind of things to do. We love to play games with our friends so I am sure Norma and I will be doing our best to win over the guys (Oh, how they hate to lose to us --hee, hee). I will be checking out the exercise spa and the shops on board :)
Reading -- can't forget that!

Tonight will be our first formal night. (There are a total of three on this cruise.)

See you tomorrow!

Love,

Setting sail

Today, we board the cruise ship Infinity by Celebrity Cruises. We depart from San Francisco harbor at 5:00 P.M. We will meet up with our luggage quickly unpack, wait for the lifeboat drill, then . . . we're officially on vacation. Let's sit back and be waited on for the next 16 nights aboard the Infinity. (I do wish you could really join me. What fun we would have!)

Love,

On the bay

We are in San Francisco.
We will do some touring today and enjoy this beautiful city on the bay.
Come back tomorrow as we set sail on the high seas and our begin adventure!

Love,

It's sooo early!

We're up at 3:00 a.m. to be ready to leave at 4:00 a.m. in order to be at the airport by 5:00 a.m. . . to wait. We are finally on vacation!We are going a cruise (that explains the wardrobe). It am working on doing posts ahead for each day with pictures of our ports. So, travel along with me for a few days and see where I am going (hint - there are no Wal-Marts that I know of).

Love,