Cozumel, Mexico

Thursday we were in Cozumel, Mexico.  Here we signed up to go scuba diving.  It cost about $100 per person and was worth every dime!  It only took five minutes to get to the beach and when we got there I was a little worried.  I could see our cruise ship!  How in the world is there going to be any fish here?  Thankfully my worries were for naught.

 I won't lie, it took me a while to get used to scuba diving.  The idea of breathing through my mouth the whole time and never my nose unnerved me.  Especially since I could feel the water around my nose.  I became totally paranoid that I was going to breathe in and start choking.  So most of the time I was concentrating on not dying.  But not Jon,  I think he led the instructor most of the time.  He was in his element down there.  He looked so happy.

 This is where we scuba dived.  Because I was a first time diver I was not allowed to bring my camera with me.  Which is good because it's not waterproof.  So I wasn't able to get any pictures of the fish that we saw. But I will let you know we saw a yellow stingray, a puffer fish, angel fish, parrot fish, an octopus eating a conch, and lots of coral.  The colors down there were amazing and to see these animals face to face and not through a tv screen was amazing.  

 We scuba'd for about an hour then they let us snorkel around the same area for about another hour.  We backtracked to where we went before and got to hang around and really check out everything.  This was by far my favorite part of the trip.  I think Jon and Ken would agree!

 Ken loves shopping for junk.  He likes haggling with the men about prices and buying everything that we don't need.  I just shake my head and walk away.

 One lesson I learned on this trip, don't ever pose for pictures with people who are dressed up.  They will make you pay after the picture is taken. 

 We ate lunch at the Three Amigos cantina.  While we were waiting forever for our food, a song came on and Jon and Josh jumped up on the chairs to dance.  Never ever say Jon doesn't know how to have a good time.

Hellooooo blue water

Progresso, Mexico

Wednesday found us in Progresso, Mexico.  Never heard of it?  Allow me to welcome you to the club.  It is on the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico.  We signed up for an on shore excursion to a Mayan Ruin and a beach.  Guess who wanted to go where.....

 What does this sign say and mean?  I have no idea.  So don't ask again!

 Tequila!!!  Agave tequila to be exact.  OLE!

 This is a replica of a Mayan hut that is still being used by the forest dwelling Mayans.  Yes, they are still around.  I thought the Mayans went down with Atlantis, but nope, they are alive and well and working as tour guides.  Ahhhhhh, progress.

 The temple in the back is located exactly where the sun lines up during the solstices.  Don't ask me which one because I couldn't understand a word the guide was saying.

 Ken had a lot of questions so he corned the tour guide.  According to Bob, not his real name but I have no idea what it was, the Mayans never predicted that the world would end in 2012.  The end of the 5000 year Mayan calendar ends December 21, 2012 and a new calendar begins December 22, 2012.  Bob was extremely adamant about this.  

A temple of some kind.  All of the Mayan "books" were destroyed by the Spanish when they came to Mexico so most of the history of this culture has been lost.  There are three remaining books but they are all in Europe now.

 This is an ancient Mayan spring.  We were able to cool off in the waters for a little bit.  Jon of course was the first one in.  

 Who wouldn't want to swim in the middle of hundreds of lily pads?

Me!

 Jon couldn't resist doing a dive.  This part of the spring was very deep.  Where Jon is diving is an opening to a cave.  Many Mayan relics have been found in there.

 Ken cooling off after he went exploring.

 Our last stop was at an all inclusive beach.  This is Josh enjoying a margarita.  Because he was 17 he was allowed to get one.  Gotta love Mexico!

 Jon chillin' in a hammock

No idea what this tree is but I LOVE it!

Day 2 Fun at Sea

Tuesday was a Fun Day at Sea.  This is one of my favorite things about the cruise.  A whole day to just sit around the decks and relax.  And relax we did.  Ken and I spent about 4 hours on deck reading and soaking up the sun, then went to our room for about a 2 hour nap.  To say we were relaxed is an understatement.

 Also on this day was the formal dinner.  This means that in order for us to eat in the dining room, as opposed to the buffet, we had to get more dressed up than usual.  Some people were in tuxes, some suits, or just button down shirts and slacks.  Which is what my boys did.  Jon and Josh looked so handsome.

 This was actually one of the first times I saw Jon Tuesday.  I made him be in his room by 1:00am the first night on the ship.  After that I told him as long as he behaved he was on his own.  Which meant the boys usually walked into their rooms around 3:00am.  Long after Ken and I were asleep.  They met 3 other guys and 3 girls and hung out with them the entire week.  Just getting them to come to dinner with us was a big deal.

 This night we had prime rib and lobster tails.  DELISH!!!  In fact Ken had one of each and I ended up eating 2 lobster tails.  Dinner always starts with an appetizer.  Jon was great about trying new things.  He had frog legs (gross), alligator fritters (gross) crab cakes (yum) and the ol' stand by spinach artichoke dip.  There was usually about 10 choices for the main course.  Steak, salmon, chicken, you name it, it was on there.  We were stuffed to the gills by the time dinner was over.

 This is Fernando, our waiter.  He was EXCELLENT!!  He made it his mission to make sure we could not get another morsel of food into our stomachs.  We didn't even bother telling him that we didn't want dessert because he brought it out anyway.  He made sure Jon Blaylock had his chocolate melting cake every night.  I actually tried different desserts this week.  I tried Baked Alaska, Cherries Jubilee, then had orange sherbet when I wasn't feeling adventurous.

 After dinner there was a comedy show in the Cole Poter lounge.  Every night they had something to do.

Another super cute towel animal.

Port New Orleans

 On Monday, we boarded the Carnival Elation.  This is our room, M2.  Every night we would receive a funship itinerary which is what Ken is reading in this picture.  It gave the times and locations of all the activities for that day.  Every night when we went to bed there was one waiting for us on our bed.  I looked forward to going to my room so I could see what all was going on the next day.  And there is tons of things to do on these ships.  

 We were also greeted by adorable towel animals.

 This is the view from the back of the boat.  GORGEOUS!!

 First thing Jon and Josh did was hit the buffet line.  The ship has some type of food out 24 hours a day.  I think the boys downfall was the ice cream machine.  Jon said he ate about 80 ice cream cones in 5 days.

 Looking out over the water was so peaceful.

The view from one of the upper decks looking toward the back of the boat.

Some things I will take back with me

1.  New Orleans smells terrible
2.  There is no place in the world like Bourbon Street
3.  Southern Hospitality somehow didn't make it into the Big Easy
4.  New Orleans smells terrible
5.  Beignets taste like funnel cakes
6.  Young children should not be allowed here
7.  Jambalaya is wonderful
8.  New Orleans smells terrible
9.  I need to come without kids so I can go into the joints and listen to the bands
10.  Never drive through the city
11.  The EMS and Fire Department crews are extremely busy
12.  There are alot of homeless people here
13.  New Orleans smells terrible
14.  New Orleans is a very expensive place
15.  The swamps are really awesome
16.  Always take an airboat ride
17.  I love alligators

All in all we had a great time.  Jon really enjoyed his time here.  He may never be the same after some of the things he saw on Bourbon Street.  Tomorrow morning we embark on our cruise.  Can't wait for some sun and relaxation!  See y'all when we get back!!!

Last day in NOLA

 This morning we walked to the National World War II Museum.  I had heard great things about it and was excited to see what it was all about.  I will say we were not disappointed.  I would recommend this museum to anyone and tell them they have to go see the movie Beyond the Boundaries.  It is a 4D IMAX film that is narrated by Tom Hanks.  Wonderfully done and the effects were great.  Seats rumbling when the planes went over, the radio news stories about the war efforts, everything was done perfectly.

 This museum focused more on the personal stories of the soldiers and citizens that lived through the war not just cold hard facts.  One of the questions we had going into the museum was why was it in New Orleans.  None of us had ever read about New Orleans being involved in the war effort.  Today I learned that the designer and manufacturer of the boats that landed the troops and supplies on Normandy and other shores around the world was from this area.  He is credited with the success of the D Day invasions.  In fact Hitler compared him to Noah because his boats saved the troops.  I talked with a vet who steered these boats in the pacific campaign.  He said without the work of Higgins and his company the outcome of the war could have been very different.

 A German bomb shelter.  I never seem to have problems getting Jon to pose for pictures  : D

 A super cute sculpture on one of the streets

 A human statue who was trying to teach Jon the tricks of the trade

Um, WHAT?????

 A dance party erupting in the streets

 One of the few times we actually saw police down here

 Beads!