Adios Mexico!

Last week was our cruise to Mexico! Get comfy, this is going to be a long post! We left Sunday afternoon to drive to Mobile, Alabama. Our friends Micah & Kelly joined us for the trip, so driving 4 people was much more affordable than flying 4 people...and more adventurous too! We drove all through the night, got about 90 minutes away from Mobile and got a flat tire! Then, since we left the car doors open while the men were trying to change the tire, the car battery went dead! Well, we needed a mallet to get the tire off anyways, so we called a tow truck to rescue us. So 90 minutes and $80 later we were on our way again. We finally arrived and the weather felt nice...about 55 and sunny-ish...much better than 30's in Ohio! We boarded the ship, which was almost exactly like the ship we went on in June, explored a bit, ate some food and watched the ship pull away from the dock. The best part of the day came at dinner time when we ordered Chocolate Melting Cake for dessert...the BEST FOOD that Carnival makes! I missed it since our last cruise! Ha! Tuesday was our first full day at sea and it was wonderful...we just lounged at the pool, watched the Men's Hairy Chest contest, sat in the hot tub, ate a bunch of yummy food, played bingo and had Formal Dinner Night...so we got all prettied up! It's so fun to play dress up when you're an adult...kind of like Prom for grown-ups!

Wednesday we arrived in Calica, MX and it was raining and gloomy for most of the day. That kind of stunk because I was really looking forward to a nice sunny day and being able to see the sun reflect off the crystal clear water...but we had fun. We rented a car and drove to Tulum, MX to the Mayan Ruins...that was pretty stinking cool! The ruins were on a cliff over the ocean, so we climbed down and figured since we were all soaked from the rain, we might as well go swimming in the rain too! I had to change into my swim suit on the beach, under my rain poncho, which was quite the task. But the water was great and it was beautiful, even under the cloudy skies. As we were leaving the Ruins, a man holding a huge iguana came up to us and practically forced us to hold it...which was crazy scary to me, but very cool...then proceeded to make us pay him! It seems like everyone in Mexico is out to get our money! Very odd, but still a nice place!

Our port of call on Thursday was Cozumel, MX and it was gorgeous! It was a little windy in the morning, but it was sunny and beautiful and about 85. We did a ton of walking around town, then went to Paradise Beach...it was amazing...perfect white sandy beach, they served you food/drinks in your lounge chair, grass huts/paloppa's everywhere, etc...very cool! After a few hours of relaxing we headed to Playa de Carmen (I think) for some snorkeling. We saw a lot of fish...as in SCHOOLS of fish...and some coral. Wayne and I both agreed that while we saw more fish in Mexico, the coral was more colorful in Grand Cayman. But still a good time. Then we hit up some of the shops for some souvineers and had some drinks at Senor Frogs before boarding the ship again.

Friday, our last day at sea, was very windy and pretty cloudy...we were getting close to America again, so I was bummed that the weather was already chilly...so we did mostly indoor activities. We did, however, play mini golf on the top deck of the ship, which was pretty impossible! We had to put our foot on the ball to keep it from blowing away before we hit it! Wayne and I also woke up with sore throats, which made for a pretty icky feeling drive home on Saturday...but we made it home!

Other notable moments...the food was amazing...I had lobster tail one night, lots of other fish, Wayne enjoyed steak and we both LOVE LOVE LOVE Warm Chocolate Melting Cake...it's like a brownie, fresh out of the oven, that's still ooey-gooey in the middle...instant yummyness! We also had a fun time rooting for this random guy Steve, and his wife Deb, that we met. We kept bumping into them at various games/shows so we'd yell "Go Steve" or "We love Steve" to get him on stage for a game or to root for him or whatever...very silly fun! We saw a pretty funny comedian, played along with the Love & Marriage game...kind of like the newlyweds show...we got 5 out of 8 correct, which was average for everyone playing...there were some pretty silly questions though! Ha! Anyways, our trip was a blast and it was great to get away and have some adult time for a bit...but we missed Kaitlyn a lot! I have yet to put the cruise pictures on Shutterfly, but I will when I get a chance! :o)