On Friday the 26th we closed up the house and made the drive over to the Hilton Hotel at Los Angeles International Airport. We chose that hotel since they have a Stay & Fly service for parking our car.
We were not at all impressed with the Hilton. It was very hard to find a parking place in their garage, they had no carts to put you luggage on and there was no one to help with your bags in the lobby. To make it even worse the pillows on the bed were very uncomfortable. Joyce and I both like to stay at Embassy Suites but the one at LAX doesn’t offer car parking.
On Saturday we caught the hotel shuttle bus to catch our Virgin America flight to Fort Lauderdale, FL. Even though you are packed into the seats like sardines, the flight was not bad at all. Heck, Virgin even offers free movies so Joyce took advantage of that perk.
After arrival at Fort Lauderdale I used the Uber app to get us a ride over to the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood. This was our first time to use Uber and we are sold. It only took a few minutes for our car to show up, we knew the cost of the up front ride and even the drivers name. After he dropped us off at the hotel I got a bump in the app to rate our driver and to give him a tip if I wanted.
Our stay at the Hard Rock was good. We had a nice dinner and drinks in the Cafe’ and then I left Joyce to play a little while in the casino. And guess what? Winner, winner!
On Sunday we got another Uber to the Fort Lauderdale Amtrak Station for the ride up to Polatka, FL. It was a pleasant ride and we even had lunch in the dining car. Michelle picked up there so we are now in St. Augustine until Thursday.
February 3, 2018
We had a really good visit with Harold, Michelle and the grandkids. Abigail and Skyler are growing way to fast for us, both of them were very busy all the time. Abby is now a beautiful eleven year old young lady and Skyler is well, Skyler, a very happy-go-lucky six year old.
While were were there we attended one of Skyler’s flag football games. He scored two touchdowns and made the game saving flag pull.
Our visit in St. Augustine came to an end way to quickly. On Thursday morning we picked a rental car and made the five hour drive back to the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel where we spent the night.
Yesterday morning we got up early and drove to Miami Beach, turned in our rental car and then took Uber to the Port of Miami and boarded Royal Caribbean’s Navigator of the Sea, bound for Labadee (RC’s private island), Haiti, Bonaire, Curacao and Aruba.
The check-in process went smoothly and by 1:15 we were in our stateroom and unpacking. After a quick bite to eat in the Windjammer Joyce went to check with the casino marketing folks while I got to know the bartender at the Schooner Bar, Christina who is from the Philippines. Joyce scored a free drink deal for the entire cruise.
When Joyce booked this trip she got a three night speciality restaurant package so last night we had dinner in Giovani’s, the on-board Italian restaurant. Delicious!
February 13, 2018
On the 5th we pulled into Labadee. Joyce and I decided to stay on the ship since we have been there several times.
After one day of sailing we arrived at Willemstad, Curaçao, the country’s capital. We took a 2 hour bus tour of the city which included a stop at the Curacao Liqueur Distillery where we tasted several flavors of the liqueur.
As part of our dining package, we decided to use one to have a galley tour and then a specially prepared lunch. We have always been curious to know how the chef’s and galley workers get all those meals prepared and served in such a short amount of time. Know we know and believe me the process is very organized.
Kitchen Aid on steroids.
Our next stop on this cruise was at Kralendijk, Bonaire. Instead of taking a tour sponsored by Royal Caribbean we just decided to get off and check out the local tours. We found one that was a 1 1/2 hour of the southern part of the island. Very interesting and what really impressed us was how clean the roads were.
Salt, salt, salt. Bonaire's major export.
Slave huts. These were built in 1850 and were used until slavery was abolished in 1863.
These pillars lead the salt ships to the area for loading.
Next, we cruised to the island of Aruba and it’s capital Orajestad. We just got off the ship and walked around. Joyce and I do wish we had taken a tour there but we’ll probably do this trip again.
The only picture I took in Aruba.
Our last specialty restaurant in our package was at Chops, the ships steakhouse. We have eaten in Chops several times and we always had a delicious meal. This time my filet was perfect and delicious but Joyce’s ribeye was not very good.
All-in-all we had a great cruise. The Navigator is a beautiful ship and of course the staff is fantastic. We did notice some of the amenities that we usually get as Diamond Club members have been dropped but that won’t affect our love of cursing with Royal Caribbean.
Getin' the party started.
Bee Bee served Barry beer 5 years ago on Legend of the Seas through the Panama Canal. Bee Bee also served Barry beer on the Navigator of the Seas in 2018.
Until next time.
Barry & Joyce
Y'all look great and the cruise sounded delicious and fun. While you wer out carousin' we got to have fun with the Stills and of course the Peters' lat month. Our weather, frankly, stinks the winter but it sure could be worse. At least we get a sunny day now and then. Rodeo is going strong and we are pretty full and working hard to keep up with everything. Miss you guys and although I'm not looking forward to the year flying by, we do look forward to seeing you at the end of 2018. Nice catching up with y'alls shenanigans.
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