Update from the Cruise #4

Antigua!!! I have to say I’ve looked forward to today as we booked a catamaran cruise so we’d know if we want to do one with the kiddies next year. I was a little concerned as I’m not a sun person and generally can’t spend more than ten minutes in the sun without getting toasted – and tropical sun is especially brutal. But we were on a large double decker catamaran with plenty of shade. Even though there were easily 60-70 people on the boat it didn’t seem crowded at all. The one we chose was a 6 ½ hour trip where they circumnavigate the whole island, drop you at a private beach to swim for a couple of hours, feed you lunch and then bring you back to the ship. Once they got the catamaran going, it was wonderful!!! The breeze was fabulous and the views stunning. They pointed out the great beaches, celebrity homes (I took a photo of Oprah’s new house) and other points of interest. It was a very fun ride as we hit the Atlantic side and the waves got bigger. Our cruise director was also on this excursion and it’s always a good thing if you see crew members from the ship as they know the best excursions. After a couple of hours, they pulled up to the private beach, lowered the stairs and we walked right out on the sand. They had snorkeling, or you could just soak in the beautiful water – which is what we did. Except Kevin forgot he had his wallet in his pocket so it got soaked. While we swam, the crew fired up the on board grill and grilled chicken and steamed red snapper for lunch. It was very good and was served on real china – no paper plates and plastic ware! And did I mention that it was an open bar? It was all included. They had beer and fruity drinks, then red and white wine was served with lunch. After lunch we got to swim a while longer as they cleaned up and then we were off again. We got back a bit early so they dropped us off at a second beach for a short swim before heading into the dock. All in all it was well worth the $99 each and definitely a “have to do” with the kids next year I think they will love it! We didn’t do any shopping and got back , went to dinner and hit the hay. John and Joella are doing the catamaran tour in Tortola tomorrow but we decided to have our own “Fun Day at Sea”. We’re too old to go go go everyday and I did get a bit sun burned and need a day to rest up so we’re sleeping in…..