March 24
Our cruise will begin on April 7 when we board the plane at about 9:30 PM for Ft. Lauderdale. We aren't thrilled about taking the red eye, but at least we will have a good place to hang out on the 8th. We will arrive at around 8 AM. and shuttle to the Rodeway Inn. It has a nice looking pool, a restaurant, and a free shuttle from the airport and also to the cruise post, which is rare. Most of them charge $30 per person.
I have "met" several people on the Enchanted Princess Cruise April 9 to 19 Facebook group. We have even made some plans to meet with some of them on the ship. There is a meet and greet the first day, at Crooner's Lounge. And the second day, we are going to take part in a slot pull. Everyone puts in $20.00 and whatever the total winnings turn out to be, everyone splits it. We might make nothing, or we might make a nice little windfall. Either way, we will get to know some of the cruisers.
I bought Bill a blue/gray blazer for formal night. We have never gone to one before, but we decided that we should go. People have said that they have a special menu, with lots of offerings that are not on the regular menu. We got our medallions in late March.
Now all we need to do is finalize our packing.
April 6
One more day! We finally put everything together that we have been accumulating in the office and next to the bed. We are all packed and ready to go, with the exception of our chargers and iPads.
April 2025 Cruise
Print out booking summary
4-07-25. Delta. H0614R
Flt..391. RNO 10:20 PM - ATL 5:45 AM
Flt. 1334. ATL. 7:00 AM. - FLL 8:53 AM
*****Call shuttle. 954-792-8181
Rodeway Inn and Suites. $142.00
Confirmation. 4901434118
PM *****Catch cruise shuttle at 10:00 or 11:00.
9 Cruise. 8J4X5H. Enchanted Princess
Meet and greet at Crooner’s at 4:00 PM on April 9 - the first day
Slot pull 1:00 PM on Friday, April 11
4-19. Leave ship by 9 AM. Shuttle to Amtrak station? Or cab? Or Uber?
200 Southwest 21st Terrace
800-872-7245
Amtrak Reservation #E6B386
Ticket #3380676061370
11:43 AM - 4:31 seats paid in full $55.80
Call Bailey for a ride from train station or get cab or Uber
4-19 - 4-24 Little Harbor Inn. #205. Conf #4393965269. $729.94
611 Destiny Drive
Ruskin. 1-833-621-3589
4-24 Delta GGYJ9M
Flt. 1167. TAM 4:31 PM - ATL 6:28 PM
Flt. 391. ATL 7:30 PM - RNO 9:25 PM
A few days before ouar flight I got a letter from notice from Flight Guru. This is my response...
Good morning,
Agency Booking number 2412039051
I received an email from Flight Guru that the itinerary for my flight, GGYJ9M. has been altered. It was a change of about six minutes, in the landing time in Atlanta, on a flight from Tampa, Florida, to Reno, Nevada. I confirmed that I had been informed about this change, and today, I received the attached email stating that I was charged $25.00 for the reissue of the tickets. This is not acceptable. I did not ask for the change and I shouldn't have to pay for it. I called the phone number for Flight Guru, 213 225 9858, and was hung up on four times after explaining my problem. None of the agents with whom I spoke offered their name and when I asked, I was ignored. I called back twice, to ask to speak with a supervisor, only to be put on hold until the call disconnected. Finally, after calling back a seventh time, I reached Allen at extension 127, who explained why the charge was made, and said he would escalate this to a supervisor with a request to reverse the change. He said he will call me back today. We will see.
Billie Garrow
Cover More Insurance for trip. Confirmation # 723ZC36434
THINGS TO DO
Order tenderloin in formal nights
Find out when the Crown Grill will offer the special luncheon
Princess Cays. April 11
Clamshell at a beach - booked
St. Thomas April 12
Town at port Charlotte Amalie
Grocery store four blocks from port.
Mayan’s Bay. $7.00 - senior discount. Chairs to rent
Dominica - Roseau. April 13
Close to ship. Has a free ?botanical garden and we can walk to enjoy architecture.
Piazza at 3:00 for Feathered Follies (in case it is a bird show)
St. Lucia. April 14 Princess tour. St. Lucia, the Pitons, Coastal Cruise and Beach. $94.95 each. 4 hours. 8:30 AM to 11:30 PM ??? Or 8:30 to 12:30
Martinique, Gualaloupe. April 15 Good place to walk around the town - near the cruise port? Also has a botanical garden that requires a bus ride.
Antigua April 16
Drinks to try
Picon punch Basque
Rob Roy
Slanted Frozen Irish
Mojito
Bushwhacked
Emerald Sunset
Appeal Spritz
Miami Vice
Milky Way
Prosecco
Cruise Day 1. Wednesday April 9
The Rodeway Inn is shabby but clean and the beds are comfortable. We checked in yesterday just before noon and Bill kept for three hours. After he woke up, he remembered that he hadn’t taken his morning pills, so that, and he fact that he had been awake since 7:00 on Monday morning, might have accounted for the extra tiredness. We went to the very expensive restaurant for a very late breakfast of a chicken wrap and a salad. It was still raining and booming, so we couldn’t take a walk, so we did the next best thing. We went to our room, showered and watched Monday’s Wheel Of fortune. We couldn’t keep our eyes open any longer, so at 4:30, we called it a day.
We boarded the ship exactly one hour after getting on the hotel shuttle. It was so nice to be able to plop Bill in a wheelchair and have him taken aboard past the 3000 people waiting in the line to check in.
There are definitely advantages to being old and feeble.
We had our first Bahama Mamas while waiting for our stateroom to be ready. At 2 PM it was ready. We unpacked our carryon and went to sit in the shade in the Lido deck. At 4, we checked to see if our luggage had arrived but it hadn’t. So we went to the Meet and Greet in Crooner’s Bar. We had met and talked to a few people when Teri and Rich Wallace from Sparks walked up to us and said “Billie and Bill!”
They recognized us from Bill’s picture on theEnchanted Princess group on Facebook. We had a good time talking to them for over an hour and found that we have a lot in common.
We headed up to our stateroom at 6 and found that part of our luggage had arrived. We had just put everything away when we got the rest, so we took care of that and went to the Capri dining room for dinner. We shared a table with some folks from British Columbia, South Dakota and Henderson, Nevada. Dinner was very good. I had a Caesar Salad and Fettuccini and Bill had salmon. We both started with cold piña colada soup.
After dinner, we walked around the sun deck a few times before getting into our very comfortable bed. We quickly fell asleep to the gentle sound of the water.
Cruise Day 2, Thursday, April 10 - Princess Cays
We slept until a little after 6 this morning. We got ready quickly and went to the International Cafe to get a Mocha and a latte. We took those up to the Horizon Cafe, which is a huge buffet, with every kind of food we can think of, to have with breakfast.
Princess Cays
Lunch will be served beginning at 11 AM we already had our first cocktail of the day delivered.
We took a walk along the water’s edge and found that it is surprisingly cold. We expected that it would be like the water in Hawai’i. Also, although the waves are small, the pull is very strong. We have decided to settle for enjoying the water from our chairs for the most part.
It got very hot on the island but 11:30, and we had been there for almost three hours, so we went to the buffet lunch that was set up under a huge canopy. There were hot dogs, hamburgers, chicken and ribs along with several sides. We ate at a picnic table overlooking the bay and when we were done we decided to get our bag and head back to the ship. We found a couple sitting in chairs in the sun near our clamshell and told them that we were leaving, asking if they would like to move in. They jumped at the chance. On second thought, we probably could have auctioned it off to the highest bidder.
We made our way back to the tender where we were able to snag a shade spot to wait until they were ready to come back to the ship.
We are sitting in a perfect shade spot on the 17th deck. The Retreat pool is just below us but the chairs are all in the sun. We have a great view and the breeze is cool and refreshing.
We are content.
6:35 PM
After a shower and a rest, we went to the Piazza to play cards and listen to the piano player in Crooner’s Bar, which is right next to the Piazza. Two ladies named Jennifer stopped to talk to us about our cocktails. They wanted something lemony and my drink was yellow, so… After they went on their way, we continued our game. A few minutes later, the Jennifers came back to tell us that they had found a fizzy lemon drink that we would absolutely love. They stayed there talking with us for quite a long time before going to dinner.
We finished our game and went to the buffet. I had roast beef, broccoli, carrots and a wonderful focaccia roll and Bill had jerk chicken, a fried dumpling, garlic bread, grapes and pickled onions. For dessert I had a piece of Carmel cheesecake and Bill had a freshly made crepe with chocolate and strawberries. We went to the buffet because we want to see the comedian/magician in the theater and we wanted to get good seats so we’ll be able to see well. We’re there now so I have time to update my blog.
After the show, we’ll probably go back to the Piazza for music and dancing.
The show was fantastic. The comedian, Nathan Coe Marsh, did some amazing sleight of hand tricks with the assistance from some of the audience members. For the finale he had random people call out numbers, after asking us to open our calculators. He had us add, subtract and multiply the numbers until we got the total, which was 410,813. Then he pointed out that the date was April 10 and the exact time was 8:13 PM. Astounding!
We decided to call it a day and went to our stateroom to watch season one, episode one until I fell asleep.
Cruise Day 3, Friday April 11- At sea
Today is the slot pull that one of the ladies on the Enchanted Princess Facebook group organized. There are 80 people participating. Everyone invests $20.00 and any winnings are distributed evenly among everyone.
We got up and out early so we could snag primo spot at the Retreat.
The slot pull has been changed to 1:00 PM, so we will go to lunch first. We went to lunch at Amalfis, where we had delicious salads and fish and chips. Unfortunately, our food wasn’t delivered quickly enough so we were late to the slot tournament and we couldn’t join in. On the bright side, we saved $40.00. It turned out that, even with 80 people participating, they didn’t win anything.
We spent a wonderful, lazy day playing games in Sabatinni’s Restaurante. We talked with several people who were also playing games. One of them asked for our Stateroom number so she can call us to get together with her and four of her friends.
Today was our first tea on this cruise. The tea only is served on sea days and it the scones are so good. We wish they served it every day. 
It was hot outside, with the humidity at 80%, so we didn’t really want to go to the pool. But at 3, when we went to tea, I realized that my shoulder was hurting, probably from carrying our bag with all of our necessary stuff, like Rummukub and cards. So we went up to the Sun Deck to find an empty hot tub. We were in luck and we had a great soak with a jet right on the sore spot for a half hour.
We went back to shower and rest with an episode of The Love Boat. We got dressed for the evening and went to the Vista Lounge for the cocktail hour that had started at 5. We got there at the tail end, met some friendly people and went with them to Princess Live Lounge for a game called, Before They Were Famous. They showed 25 pictures of kids who had grown up to be stars and we guessed who they were, I got 12 right; Bill got 17 right and our new friends got 12 and 15 right. The prize of a goodie bag of Princess swag went to a person who got 23 right. It was a fun half hour diversion.
We went to dinner at Gigi’s Pizza at 7, which is rather late for us to eat. It was a complimentary restaurant the last time we were on this ship. Now it is is one of the speciality restaurants. We used one of our free specialty passes and had delicious salad, minestrone soup and pizza. The pizzas were very large so we couldn’t finish them.
I wrote the following on the Facebook Cruise group page - To anyone going to Gigi’s for their casual dining meal, we suggest that two people split an appetizer and a pizza, because the pizzas are quite large. If you do that, it should count a one meal and you’ll be able to go back another time to do the same thing. We were only able to eat half of our pizzas so there was a lot of waste. The food is delicious there.
After dinner, we listened to an Irish band in the Piazza. It isn’t our usual genre but we enjoyed it a lot, especially the dancers, who made the jig look easy.
Helene Angley was the comedian in the Vista Lounge tonight. People who saw her last night said her show was very good so we stayed up for her 10:30 show. She was worth every yawn we made while waiting up for her show to start. We will look her up on some of our streaming services to see if she has done any specials.
We’re getting to bed at 11:45, awfully late since tomorrow we will be in St. Thomas. There won’t be any hurry to leave the ship because we don’t have any excursions planned. We’ll just walk to town whenever we decide to go. This was a very good day.
Cruise Day 4, April 12 - St. Thomas
Silly us. We thought we would sleep in this morning. Then we could have breakfast quietly in a semi deserted restaurant and walk to town after the rush of people who have to be first. So, I woke up at 6 and Bill woke up just after 6:30. We’ve been sitting on the balcony for a bit more than an hour, watching the sea and the slow arrival to St. Thomas. Taking pictures and talking. It’s so relaxing just being next to the water.
We had a small breakfast and headed into the port town. We have no idea what it is called. We walked past all of the people hawking their excursions very aggressively. We walked past all the little port stores pausing in doorways occasionally to catch some of their cold air. We momentarily thought about hopping a bus for a tour but, honestly, we were happy to be able to say we walked on St. Thomas. After a while we’d had enough fun so we went back to the ship and we are now at the Retreat, with 15 other people enjoying the 50s music. In a while we’ll go to an area with a view to play cards.
We exercised in the nice cool pool. Then we read our books in the shade while rain tried to ruin our time there. That didn’t work because all it did was help to cool us off. Suddenly, I felt Bill’s hand on my arm. I had fallen asleep sitting up. It was almost 1:00 PM. We decided that six hours of sleep last night hadn’t been enough so we went to our room to have a nap.
That revitalized us so at 3:30, we went to the Piazza to listen to music and play Five Crowns and Phase 10. We hadn’t eaten anything since about 8 this morning and we realized that we were a little bit hungry. We went to the Horizon Fresh Marketplace. I had a salad and a little bit of pulled pork. Bill had some brisket and some tortilla soup along with some fruit. After that, we went back to play games in the Piazza and listen to music. There was an Irish group again, a violin trio and a trio who played piano and drums. One man played a handpan or steel tongue drum, which was new to us. The music was all enjoyable but it wasn’t really dance music so we just sat and watched. We had super yummy sundaes for dessert.
Tomorrow we’ll be at the island of Dominica, discovered and named by Christopher Columbus, not the director. We plan to take a trolley into town as early as we can so the heat doesn’t stop us again. We’re thinking we’ll turn in no later than 9 tonight.
Cruise Day 5, April 13 - Dominica
Today we will be at Dominica until 6 PM. We have already had a light breakfast and we’re ready to go to town. Our plan is to take a trolley to Roseau. There are rainforests, waterfalls and gorgeous beaches but we are so into just seeing what is around us.
We walked off the ship at 9:30, bypassed all the hawkers at the port and found Gerard while looking for the town shuttle. He started out offering a two and a half hour tour for only $30.00 each. For us, he reduced it to $20.00. After we discovered we only had $50.00 with us, I asked if he would take $35.00. He looked around to see if anyone was listening before agreeing. 
Graham and Roxie joined us at 9:45. They are from Ohio. Nice folks. We chatted while waiting for more people to fall for his ploy.
We’re going to visit a botanical garden, waterfalls, a beach and whatever else.
We got nine more people to join us and we left at 10:30. While we waited, we visited with all the other passengers.
Mooney, sawersalt, and lemon grass are local remedies for fever, cancer, etc. Gerard stopped several times along the way to point out different plants - nutmeg, ginger, banana trees, etc.
We went to a sulfur spring, which was very stinky. We saw coleus, which we grow in our kitchen, growing wild along the path to the spring. Then there was the obligatory stop for refreshments and washrooms. The last stop was a botanical garden. First was the Bamboo House. It is a30 foot circle surrounded by bamboo. For at least 50 years, people have had their weeding there for good luck. Hurricane David came through the island in 1979. With sustained winds on up to 175 MPH, it was the most destructive storm to make landfall in recorded history. There were 2,078 people killed in Dominica and the Dominican Republic. A Baobob tree fell on a brand new school bus that had been donated by Canada, but nobody was hurt. They left the tree, which is still growing, and the crushed bus in the botanical garden. We went by huge white cliffs in the Roseau Valley. They were caused by previous volcanoes. The notable active volcanoes on Dominica are Morne, Diablotins and Watt. On the way back, we saw the president’s house and the magistrate’s court.
The tour took just over three hours. Everyone else paid more than we did but nobody seemed unhappy with the price or the tour. Gerard was so much fun - he is perfect for the job of entertaining tourists.
We returned to the ship at 1:50 so it was three hour+ tour. It is now 2:13 and we have found a shady spot at the regular pool because we were too late for the Retreat. All 35 seats were occupied. We don’t want to go into one of the big pools because they are basically kid soup, so we got into the shower to cool off and we are reading and having our first cocktail.
Pork schnitzel, tempura vegetables, beets, spaghetti bolanese, beef goulash, spring roll, fried zucchini, chicken finger, Gouda, French bread BBQ pizza, pineapple, cantaloupe, and watermelon.
We went to the Piazza to play cards and listen to music. The combo wasn’t great but they sang several good songs so we danced to a few of them while playing Five Crowns. Lisa and Mal walked by and commented that they play that game so we invited them to join us. Lisa and Mal wanted to play but they were on their way to dinner so they only joined us for one round or about 40 minutes.
At 8:30, the game, Do You Wanna Dance? began. We had thought it would be fun to watch so we were waiting for it. It was a competition with passengers teaming up with crew members. They played different kinds of music, like waltz, tango, Macarena, and Bollywood. Each round found a couple eliminated until there was a winner. The last dance off with only two couples left was the Theme To the Titanic. So funny! The entire thing was hilarious. We were so glad we went early because we had never seen so many people there before. They were lining all the rails of six and seven and the Piazza was full. It was a super fun way to end the evening.
After we got to our room, we read the following from another passenger. “We had a little excitement this morning. We didn’t book a tour through Princess and decided to “wing it” today. Well we found an island tour being offered in the parking lot. $25.00 per person for 2 1/2 hours. Not bad.
Then about 15 minutes into the drive up the hill a man on a motorbike thought it would be a good idea to pass a car coming down the hill on a blind turn. Well he didn’t see our bus and hit us head on. Thankfully he was ok and all of us as well.
This will sure be an excursion I will never forget”
That could have been us, as the buses were all clumped up together.
We got to bed at 9;30. Tomorrow we have to be on the pier at 8:20 for our tour.
Is it really comfortable to wear a swimsuit this way? No faces so no privacy invasion.
Update: I posted this exact photo on the Enchanted Princess April 9 to 19 Facebook group. Apparently the administrator didn’t approve because it seems that I’ve been removed from the group. We met some fun people through the group but it’s their loss.
Cruise Day 6, April 14 - St. Lucia
We are at breakfast at 6:30 because our adventure for the day is a catamaran tour and a swim at a beach.
We landed in Castries, the capital and largest city in Saint Lucia. We are ready for our next exciting time.
We had to wait in line for our excursion. Unfortunately, we were at the end of it because there were a couple of hundred people on the tour, distributed among several boats. So, after standing in the line in the sun for over 30 minutes, we boarded our boat last. There were only two seats left and they didn’t not have back rests so our backs were killing is all the way to our swim spot. We reached it in an hour. It was pretty but really, not great. We didn’t go on the beach at all, but walked down the stairs of the boat into the water. We had expected it to be a little bit warmer but it was refreshing. We swam for ten minutes or so. When we got back on, we found two spots that weren’t being saved for anyone, where we could lean back so we were much more comfortable. 
They played extra loud music, a combination of Reggae and pop and everyone danced and sang on the trip back to the ship. They served Mai tai’s. We had ice water. It was fun to watch two of the men drink several mai tais each, and we made bets on if they would be able to walk back to the ship unassisted. (We never saw them on the way back so we didn’t find out if they needed help or not.)
They served bananas, packaged fruit cake and little egg salad or tuna sandwiches. I got some to share but they were very dry so we just shared a banana. The ride back took just over an hour and with everyone dancing and singing it was lots of fun. It was supposed to be a four hour trip. We think that for almost $100.00 each, it should have been a nicer boat, with comfortable seats. We were glad we had used on board credits instead of real money. Next time I look for an excursion, I’ll be sure to examine the information about it more closely. At least, we got to swim in the Caribbean Sea.
We got back to the ship at 12:45. We had to run the gauntlet of gift shops to get to the entry to our ship. They hope people will spend their last dollars in the shops. We were hot and tired and all we wanted to do was get wet. We snagged our two favorite chairs at the Retreat. Our plan was to stay there for a long time. We didn’t even get in the pool as there were lots of people standing around in it. We took a nice cold shower and read our books for almost two hours. Then we did what we’ve been doing every day. We went back to our room, took showers and rested on the bed to watch The Love Boat. Even the interesting ones put me right to sleep.
At 5 o’clock we went to the Captain’s Circle for some cheese and veggies. We only stayed long enough to take a few bites and get drinks served. At 5:30, we went to Amalfi’s for dinner. Bill had potstickers and salmon and I had potstickers, cod and a Caesar salad. Dinner was excellent.
We went directly from dinner to the Piazza, where we sat playing Five Crowns. Nobody joined us this time. The music wasn’t our style so at 8:30 we decided to call it a night.
Tomorrow we’ll be in Martinique. We have no plans so we’ll see what comes up.
Cruise Day 7, April 15 - Martinique
We walked off the ship at 8:00 this morning after a light breakfast at the buffet. It started drizzling so it was a short, damp walk to town. That was great since it made the walk much cooler.
We had seen a church from the ship so we made that our first destination. 
It was beautiful inside as we have found most churches in other countries to be. We stepped into a park where a lady was sitting in one of the peddle carts that can be hired for $25.00 per hour per person. She had no passengers so when she greeted us, she tried to get us to go for a ride around the town. We said we were enjoying the walk. She then pointed to a caterpillar on the tree next to where she was parked. She said it will become a beautiful butterfly but that there aren’t many left now because their season is over. After we left her, we found that their season isn’t as over as she thought because we found dozens on the next tree. Google told us about them. “Pseudosphinx tetrio is a species of moth in the family Sphingidae. Its common names include tetrio sphinx, giant gray sphinx, frangipani hornworm, and plumeria caterpillar.”
It was beautiful inside as we have found most churches in other countries to be. We stepped into a park where a lady was sitting in one of the peddle carts that can be hired for $25.00 per hour per person. She had no passengers so when she greeted us, she tried to get us to go for a ride around the town. We said we were enjoying the walk. She then pointed to a caterpillar on the tree next to where she was parked. She said it will become a beautiful butterfly but that there aren’t many left now because their season is over. After we left her, we found that their season isn’t as over as she thought because we found dozens on the next tree. Google told us about them. “Pseudosphinx tetrio is a species of moth in the family Sphingidae. Its common names include tetrio sphinx, giant gray sphinx, frangipani hornworm, and plumeria caterpillar.”
We wandered back to the ship at about 11:30 after walking almost three miles. We were hot and our feet hurt so we went to the Retreat as quickly as we could get into our swimsuits. There were only two people in the pool. When we got in, they greeted us after laughing as we expressed shock at how cold the water felt. We talked to Jennifer and Russell in the pool for over an hour and a half. They are from North Carolina and they drove to Ft. Lauderdale, an eight hour trip. They said the monsoon was with them all the way last Tuesday, which is when we flew in and had the rain and loud thunder boomers. Jennifer knew about me being thrown off the Princess Cruiser’s Group for posting the swimsuit pictures. She said the pictures were removed before she could see them so I’ll show her my regular post of them when we see them next. They want to join us this evening for Five Crowns and Rummikub.
We are having our afternoon rest before heading to the Vista Lounge at 5 for the Captain’s Circle and dinner at the Horizon Fresh Marketplace.
We only stayed in our room for a short rest. Then we went to the Promenade deck to play Rummikub while waiting for our cocktails to arrive. I haven’t mentioned much about the drinks. We have tried several new ones. I love Piña Coladas and Bahama Mamas, which are almost the same but the Bahama Mama has grenadine. But I wanted to try some new ones. I didn’t like the ones that are less sweet or taste like bourbon or rum. I do like Coconut Rum and this afternoon I ordered a Paradise Punch, made with vodka, Southern Comfort, Amaretto, pineapple juice, lime cordial and grenadine. Bill likes drinks that aren’t so sweet so he usually orders a Blue Hawsi’ian, or a Captain’s Bounty which has coconut rum, dark rum, Bacardi rum, coke, pineapple juice and lemon. While we’re were in the pool we got vodka and cranberry juice with a splash of pineapple juice. That was refreshing after our long hour walk. The one I’m having right now, Paradise Punch, is the only one I’m actually feeling. It would be perfect to have just before going to bed. I would be asleep in three minutes.
We went to the Horizon Fresh Marketplace again, tonight, because the dining menu looked kind of mediocre and we have had such good dinners at the buffet.
It was Italian night and it didn’t disappoint us- mini pizza, spaghetti bolognaise, beef stew, broccoli with carrots and several kinds of cheese. Bill had a freshly made strawberry crepe and I had tiramisu for dessert.
It was Italian night and it didn’t disappoint us- mini pizza, spaghetti bolognaise, beef stew, broccoli with carrots and several kinds of cheese. Bill had a freshly made strawberry crepe and I had tiramisu for dessert.
We enjoyed the music in the Piazza until 8:30 and then we decided to go to Karaoke. That’s something we used to do when we cruised with Joe and Gee. There were some wonderful singers and some awful ones. But they were all brave enough to get up there to perform. We had a wonderful evening.
Getting to bed at 10:55.
Cruise Day 8, April 16 - St. John’s, Antigua
The ship schedule shows on the Princess app, that today and tomorrow are sea days. Yesterday, we were discussing the places we had visited and Bill said he thought we were going to Antigua. I had thought that too, but you can’t argue with an app. Surprise, surprise! We are now docking in St. John’s, Antigua.
Formed by volcanoes, the earliest settlement on Antigua dates back to 2400 BC. St. Johnson was established in 1666, after invasion by the French, and it became an official trading point in 1675. The main exports are refined petroleum, passenger and cargo ships, soybean oil, and crustaceans. The population of the island is only 94,000.
We have been surprised that walking in humid 83 degree weather was so draining. The breezes are very welcome but they don’t happen often enough. We’re going to see if there is a less humid month to travel to the Caribbean.
We spent only about an hour exploring some of St. John’s, Antigua. The “sidewalks” are in the worst condition that we have ever seen in any place that we’ve visited.
We are trip hazards at the best of times, so we had to be extra careful walking through town. We didn’t want to take any offers of taxis or other types of transportation. We only walked about two miles before turning back. We got to the Retreat at 10:15 and here we still sit at 12:54, although we had to move three times as the sun moved. Now we’re in our favorite shade spot watching it rain. It was funny to see people scrambling to get out of the pool. I guess they were afraid to get too wet. (This is not an electrical storm, BTW.)
Mongolian BBQ at the buffet tonight. I was going to have that but too many other good things got in my way. I tried Pancit, an Asian noodle dish, but it was too spicy. The quiche Loraine, spaghetti bolognese, beef Wellington, and Caesar salad were perfect.
The music when we arrived at the Piazza was a violin duet. They play beautifully. Unfortunately, they only played three songs before it was time for them to move on. They will be playing in the Crown Grill at 8:15, so we’ll try to go there to see their performance. If we’re busy with something, they’ll be at another venue tomorrow.
Well we went to a game show at the theater at 8:30. It was fun but not great. Since we already had seats, we stayed for the production show, “Craig Glen Foster, Sharp Dressed Man.” He sings songs from ZZ Top, Josh Groban, the Eagles, and the Jersey Boys. We’re near her back of the theater, so if we aren’t too excited about it, we’ll be able to sneak away.
The pictures I’m posting of Antigua are mostly showing the sidewalks and a few buildings. We didn’t see anything interesting in town. One shot we caught while walking away from the ship, showing two men using a roller to paint part of the ship hull.
Oh my gosh, we were blown away by the show. He did a little rock, some opera, some country and a couple of other genres. I’m so happy we decided to stay for it. Craig Foster is a name that I’ll remember. I would pay to see him perform! I posted a few short videos separately on Facebook.
I’m tired but I had a Butter Pecan Latte with dinner and I’m afraid the caffeine has caused a problem because we went to bed two hours ago ands I'm still awake at 1:51. Oopsie on me.
Cruise Day 9, April 17
Today is a sea day, our favorite kind of day of any cruise. It’s so peaceful to wake up to the sea right outside our door. I had a bad night, not because I was uncomfortable, but because my brain wouldn’t turn off. I’m sure the Butter Pecan Iced Latte I had
with dinner last night was the cause. We normally don’t drink any caffeine so I guess any amount affects me. Lesson learned.
We spent the whole day doing nothing but playing games and reading. We watched the line dancing lessons in the Piazza for a few minutes. They occur every day and they are very popular. We were looking forward to tea at 3 PM. Those scones are the best with a huge dollop of Devonshire cream.
At tea, we enjoyed the company of six other passengers. Four were from Florida and two were from Canada. When we left we stopped by the Vista Lounge to take a picture of the bingo party because so many people at Toscana are bingo players. The picture inside didn’t come out but I got one at the entrance. I’ll try to get one tomorrow.
After tea, we went to Crooner’s Bar for the piano music, however, we found it to be very loud, so we went went own stairs to the Piazza to listen and play cards. We might not eat dinner tonight since we had plenty of scones at tea..
Lisa and Mal joined us for dancing. They do a beautiful waltz. There is another couple who we have seen every day, dancing so perfectly together. They are older than we are but they have so much energy.
It has been a long day and we’re feeling it. We danced in the Piazza for an hour and then we be to the buffet for dinner. Unfortunately, when there is something in the main dining room that looks good to one of us, there is nothing that appeals to the other. Also, the meal service is elegant, which translates to slow, so when we dine there, we tend to miss a show or a featured musician that we want to see. The buffet really has so many choices that we always find delicious things there.
After dinner we went by to the Crown Grill to hear Secret Crush. We discovered that they are the group that played the hand drum, that we enjoyed so much a few days ago. They are very talented and they have quite a following.
When the performance was over we wandered toward our stateroom thinking that if we saw anything interesting by we would stop for a while, and if not, we world head to bed. We found a game show called , Majority Rules. There was so much laughter and there were two empty chairs right at the back so we stopped to watch for a few minutes.
Nathan, the activities director, opens the productions and game shows. He is quite funny so he helps to make everything fun.
At 9:20 we headed to bed. Tomorrow will be another sea day and the last full day of the cruise.
Cruise Day 10, April 18 - The Last Full Day Of the Cruise
We slept late this morning, until almost 7:30. I slept so much better than any other night in the cruise. I have finally gotten used to the bed just before the last night. Today we’ll repeat what we did yesterday. Reading, walking, visiting with fellow passengers and loving being on the ocean.
After breakfast, we ventured outside, aft of the buffet. It is completely covered until it opens up to the wake pool so it will be cool for the next several hours. There are way too many people though and two women are sitting where we want to sit, so we’ll sit here for a while, hoping they move on to other activities. If they don’t, we’ll find another place to hang out….12 minutes later they left and we’re are where we want to be. Waiting sometimes has its rewards. 
There is definitely more movement of this part of the ship. We are very lucky that we don’t get seasick. The rocking is so soothing. I keep trying to read but my eyes keep wan bring to close. Looking out at the sea, we can see that it’s rougher than it has been. The temperature is 75 with 71% humidity and the forecast is for rain. Maybe we’re coming into a storm.
Mal and Lisa noticed us through the window and they came over to visit with us for about an hour. They have traveled a lot, mostly throughout Europe. They belong to a house share group where they stay in the house of someone in the group and they let someone else stay in their house. They earn points when their house is used and they spend points to stay somewhere. They have never had a problem or a loss in all the time they have been doing it.
They went on their way and we went back to reading and watching the water. It’s just so peaceful.
After a while we decided to wander through the ship. We knew there was a stateroom that had paper hanging next to the door for people to check in with where they came from. We planned to find it so we could add ourselves to it. We knew it was on the Baja deck so went there and walked until we found it. We counted over 20 different countries and several US states. We were the only Nevadans on it.
We went to our room to begin packing. We chose the option of having our luggage taken to the terminal instead of walking off the ship with it. We walked off in Barcelona and found it to be a real pain. It had to be placed in the hallway outside our door by 9 PM the night before arrival in the final port. Bill took the few pieces of laundry we had to the laundry room to wash a load. It took 45 minutes and by the time we were done organizing everything, the load was finished. Instead of drying it, he brought it all back to our room and we hung it all from hangers around the room to dry. Whatever doesn’t dry can be put in a large plastic bag and we’ll dry it tomorrow at our Inn.
We are excited for tomorrow. Usually, after a cruise we go to a hotel for a night out two before flying home just because a couple of thousand people going to the airport from the same place at about the same time can be pretty crowded. This time, we’re going to go to the Amtrak station and take a train to Tampa where Bailey and Jermaine will pick us up. We’ll be visiting with them for five days. But we aren’t staying with them. We have a room at the Little Harbor Inn, on the bay. Bailey checked it out for us and said it looks cute and well kept.
We were supposed to arrive in the Ft. Lauderdale port at about 7 tomorrow morning. The captain announced early this afternoon that there are three medical emergencies so he sped the ship up to arrive at 1:30 AM. It really doesn’t matter to us because we’ll be asleep anyway. The only difference will be that the sound of the water rushing by will go away when we get there.
After tea, we went to a trivia game and then to our favorite hang out, the Piazza. We played cards and watched the dance class learn the Merengue.
We had dinner at the buffet. The dining rooms had nothing to interest us. For dinner we had freshly carved turkey, mashed potatoes with gravy and salad. After dinner we went to our room to put our luggage out and then at 6:30 we to the Princess Theater to read while waiting for the comedy show at 7:30. The show was very good. Rollin Jay Moore did contemporary material but a lot of it was geared towards the older crowd so that was especially funny. 
From there we went to the Piazza for one more night of music and dancing. We were rather disappointed to find that they were showcasing several of the acts that have been playing for the whole cruise. They had taken over a lot of the dancing space so there was no room for people to dance. The music was good, though, so we stayed for a half hour, had a gelato and called it a night.
We sat on the balcony in the quiet for a lang time before getting into bed. We’re excited about tomorrow.
Vacation Day 11, April 19 - Ft. Lauderdale To Bailey
We got to the edge of Ft. Lauderdale at 1:45 AM. I felt the ship stop so I got up to see where we were. I watched as a medical boat approached the ship and pulled up right next to us just under Lifeboat 6. It only took six minutes for the patients to be loaded onto the boat. I watched as it pulled away, headed for shore. Shortly after that, we started moving again.
We fritzed around for an hour before getting dressed and heading down to the International Café for breakfast with our carry-on bags. Passengers had to be out of their rooms by 8AM, so the Plaza deck, which was the debarkation deck, was crowded with people in line and people waiting for their number to be called. Since we buy the drink package, the coffee drinks are included. That’s a very good thing because the coffee at the buffet is awful. Bill has been having a vanilla latte every morning and I have had regular coffee because it is that good. This morning, I got him a blueberry yogurt and a banana for breakfast and I had cottage cheese, pineapple and banana. It’s time to get back to a more healthy way of eating. We didn’t want a big breakfast and we knew the buffet and main dining rooms would be just as crowded.
Because the ship arrived at port so early, the debarkation process began at 6:00 AM. We are in no big hurry to leave because we enjoy watching the people and we are in comfortable chairs. When we leave, we’ll have to collect our luggage, find a way to get to the Amtrak station, and wait there until it’s time to board. Our train is scheduled to depart at 11:43 AM. We will either take a cab or an Uber.
We walked off the ship at 8:45, collected our checked luggage, and made our way to the cab area. Because we had waited to leave, there was nobody in line. As we walked by one of the loading areas we noticed an officer with a dog jumping on pallets of cargo, just like we have seen on “Contraband” on The Discovery Channel.
Benita was our cab driver. She kept up a friendly banter as she took us to the train station. It would have been $29.00 for an Uber and it was $26.00 for the cab. We got to the station and were all checked in by 9:25 so we had a two hour wait but we had a nice shady bench to sit on. We read and played all the Wordle games for the last 10 days.
The train information sign shows several cities in Florida but all of them are on the east coast so we don’t even know whether we will be going north or south before turn to the west.
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We’re on the train. It is a huge difference from the last train we were on, which went from Barcelona to Malaga, Spain. The seats are comfortable. The washrooms are large and clean. And the none of the people are transporting chickens. We took off right on time, 11:43 AM. The train is going to be completely full after a few more stops.
The train took us north to Palm Beach and then turned inland towards Tampa . When the dining car opened, we went to have some lunch. It wasn’t what we expected. The last time we had a train meal, on the trip from Reno to Chicago, there were tablecloths and cloth napkins on the tables, and wait people took our orders and served the meals. On this train, the dining car has tables with bench seats but no tablecloths or cloth napkins. There is a man behind a counter selling sandwiches, drinks and snacks. For $25.00 I had a ham and cheese sandwich and Bill had a hot dog and a beer. We split a bag of potato chips. At least the food tasted good and it was fresh.
Walking four cars away on a bouncy moving train is a challenge. It’s good for practicing how not to fall on a stranger’s lap. We came back to our seats after lunch to find a woman sitting on Bill’s seat with her things spread out on mine. We had asked the conductor if we would be able to have the same seats after lunch and he had told us they are our seats for the duration of the trip. Bill said she was in our seats and she insisted that the conductor told her to sit there. We pointed out that one of our carry on bags was above her head so we were sure the seats are ours . She again said he told her to sit there. Then our fellow passengers chimed in and said we were right and she needed to move. She apologized and moved one seat forward., where she had to sit with someone.
We read, played games and watched the scenery, which was all pretty much the same. Green, bushy, some trees and several small bodies in of water. I tried to spot some alligators hanging out on the edges of the water and finally, I thought I spotted one lying in the water . I was just starting to tell Bill when he said, “ there’s an alligator!” The train was going too fast for a picture but at least we saw one.
Finally, the map I was following showed that we were 2.1 miles away from the station in Tampa. But suddenly, we stopped. We were stopped for three minutes and then began going backwards. We had no idea what is going on. I had been in communication with Bailey so I told her what was going on. She said she was already at the station.
We backed up 2.1 miles all the way to the station. There was no announcement of arrival but everyone got up as if it is normal for a train to go past a station and then back up. So we quickly got our bag down and left the train. We found our checked luggage and walked out to the parking lot and there was Bailey. It was so good to see her smiling face.
She got us to the harbor where our inn was but once we got here, we couldn’t figure out which one of three buildings it was. Booking.com had sent the address as 601 Destiny and we knew it was right next to the water and a restaurant called Hooks. We found #205 but it was at the wrong address. We talked with some people who tried to help. They live at Little Harbor Inn at 611 Destiny and didn’t know of a 601 address. I went through my emails and found the confirmation but there was no contact information for Todd, the owner, with whom I had corresponded a few times since November. I didn’t have any check in instructions and there wasn’t an office to go to. We also tried to find a help number for booking.com but we weren’t having any luck. Bailey got on her phone, too, trying to find a contact. Finally, after several frustrating minutes, several emails to booking.com and several phone call attempts, I reached the work voice mail of Todd. I left an urgent message hoping that he monitors his work emails on weekends. He called back within two minutes, apologized for the mix-up, and told us where to go. We had been at the right place the first time we stopped , but with the wrong address, we hadn’t known that. But even though it was right, I had never received his last email with the door code and other instructions so it was partly his fault, too. He said he is going to contact booking.com and have them change the listing to show the correct address.
We got into the unit with the newly provided door code. The place is very small but adorable, with a double bed, kitchenette, tiny dining area, two recliners, and a balcony with fairly comfortable chairs. There is a beautiful water view from inside and we will be able to sit on the balcony to read. There are lots of large beach towels and two beach chairs provided. Bailey carried all of our stuff upstairs for us. What a sweetie! 
We arranged for Jermaine to join us for dinner at Hooks. The reviews said that it is very good. While waiting for him to arrive, we unpacked and put away the clothes and things we will need for this part of the trip. We won’t need any of the long sleeved tops, long pants, dressy clothes or Bill’s blazers here. All of that will be packed away in one of the suitcases tomorrow so it will be out of our way.
Jermaine met us at Hooks, where we had a table on the patio, overlooking the harbor. We ordered various things, including Gator Bites for Jermaine. Bailey and I tried them and agreed that they are okay and sort of like chicken, but we don’t ever need to eat them again. My fish was delicious and we all enjoyed our meals. We sat there until well after mosquito time so Bailey got a few bites . St about 7:30, they went back to their place, leaving us Bailey’s car. Tomorrow I will see how it is to drive in Florida. We are going to go to breakfast with Bailey and Jermaine and his mom.
We discovered another problem with our room. The balcony lights stay on all night and the window shades and curtains don’t block it out. At home, we sleep in in a very dark room, so any light is bothersome. I wet a washcloth and put it over my eyes. That helped some. We put Leave It To Beaver on for almost an hour until I was relaxed enough to go to sleep.
The bed is comfortable but we are accustomed to sleeping in a Cal-king. The room’s bad points are, the tiny closet is the only storage besides four of the drawers in the kitchenette. So all our things are spread out on the dinette table and the kitchenette counter. The bathroom has no place for our cosmetics bag except for the back of the toilet. There is no room to store our luggage so it is spread out wherever we can find a spot.
Now that is was dark, we discovered another problem with our room. The balcony lights stay on all night and the window shades and curtains don’t block it out. At home, we sleep in in a very dark room, so any light is bothersome. I wet a washcloth and put it over my eyes. That helped some. We put Leave It To Beaver on for almost an hour until I was relaxed enough to go to sleep.
Vacation Day 12, April 20 - Ruskin
We loaded a duffle with our swimsuits and games and drove over to Bailey’s to pick her up for breakfast. Her apartment complex is really nice. Jermaine didn’t join us because he went to church with his family. We went to First Watch. Breakfast was very good. After breakfast we went to her apartment for a grand tour. It is cute and has a very large kitchen. We hung out on the balcony for a little while and then went to the pool. 
We spent over an hour talking about so many things. What a nice relaxing time.
We spent over an hour talking about so many things. What a nice relaxing time.
The pool area is very large. It has a big inside seating area and a pool room, too. We sat on couches in a shady area near the pool to wait for Jermaine. The water was too cold so I only put my feet in for a minute. As the sun moved, there was a table in the shade so we moved to that to play Rummikub. Jermaine arrived with pita chips, pretzels and dip. We played for a Rummikub for a while longer, and then switched to Five Crowns. 
After a couple of hours, we all decided that it was getting too hot to sit outside and we were all getting tired. Bill and I went back to the inn for showers and a short nap.
After a couple of hours, we all decided that it was getting too hot to sit outside and we were all getting tired. Bill and I went back to the inn for showers and a short nap.
The kids picked us up for dinner at 5 and we drove to St. Petersburg, about a 40 minute drive. We can see St. Petersburg directly across the bay from where we are staying. On the way out of the harbor area, I spotted an osprey nest. Jermaine stopped so I could take a picture. He noticed that not only was there an osprey , but there was also a baby. We saw several more nests on the way to St. Petersburg, many with the birds in residence. We had discussed several different dinner options but we just wanted a good meal so we went to Outback, where Jermaine’s grandma, mom, and sister, who live in St. Petersburg, met us. It was fun getting to know them. His grandma is especially fun. She told us that she was a second grade teacher but she traveled whenever possible. She is a very interesting person. His mom is a teacher, too. She was pretty quiet but we found out that she loves to travel, but she is waiting until she retires do she can do more of it.
Dinner, as expected, was delicious. After dinner, Jermaine went to his family’s house to help them with something and Bailey took us to St. Pete Pier, a beautiful area where people gather, walk, and fish. There are lots of cafés with outdoor seating. We walked a bit and saw lots of birds and a couple of dolphins. It was getting dark and Bailey had to be at work the next day at 6 AM, so we drove over to pick up Jermaine at his mom’s house and headed back over the Sunshine Skyway Bridge to our inn.
We made a stop at the store so we could buy some bananas, grapes and yogurt for our breakfasts for the next couple of mornings. We got back and went right to bed.
Vacation Day 13, April 21 - My Birthday In Ruskin
We slept much better with the tin foil over the light. The room wasn’t totally dark, but it was not so light we could have read by it.
The sun woke us up just before 7, and we sat on the balcony until it began to get too hot. The sun rises in front of our room so the balcony might be a good place to sit in the evening. We took a walk around 8, while it was still cool. We checked out both pools, the workout rooms, and the neighborhood. The Sunset Grill and Bar is just a few steps away. I’m going to look at the menu to see if we want to have dinner there one night if Bailey and Jermaine don’t feel like entertaining us. They work so they might not want to go out for dinner every night. We could even pick up salads or some kind of to-go meal to bring back to have on the balcony. After our walk, we had yogurt and a banana for breakfast. Since the only sink is in the bathroom, I washed our utensils in the bathroom sink.
We’re going to pick Bailey up at work at 3 so we have a few hours free. We might go to the pool to read and swim. The water felt warm when we walked through the pool area this morning.
Bailey texted to let us know that Jermaine was going to pick her up at work so we had the whole afternoon to just do what we wanted. We went to the pool to read for a long time. After a while I put my feet in the water. I was pleasantly surprised to find the water much warmer than Bailey’s pool. We both swam for almost an hour. We met some people from Minnesota who we chatted with for a while.
Bailey and Jermaine got to the pool a few minutes after 4. Bailey brought me a lovely card with a special message, and a birthday cupcake with a “7” on it.
We played Rummikub. Bill won the first game, and, Jermaine won the second one. He was like a little kid, saying he didn’t think he was ever going to win one. He loves the game so we’re glad he finally got a win. We went to our room to change for dinner while the kids sat along the edge of the water. When we joined them, they said they had a dolphin playing at their feet.
Suddenly Jermaine saw a manatee! We saw both of them and I was able to get a couple of good shots of them.
We went to dinner in separate cars so they could go home from the restaurant. Uncle Joe’s New York Diner was very cute inside, with old fashioned diner decor. We each got a sandwich. After Kimberly took our order, she brought us each a plate with marinated cucumbers and a homemade beef empanada accompanied by a spicy honey sauce . They were complimentary and they were so good! We’re all liked our food but there was too much so three of us brought half a sandwich and some fries home. But Bailey wanted homemade ice cream for dessert. Bill and I had some, too. Jermaine had a slice of cheesecake. We had lots of fun at dinner. The kids are so cute together. And they kept us laughing.
We decided that Bill and I will have our sandwiches in the early afternoon tomorrow. Bailey will buy a veggie tray during her lunch hour and bring that, pitas, pretzels and dip to the pool after we pick her up. Jermaine will join us after work. We will play games, swim, and graze instead of going out for dinner.
We left the restaurant at 6ish and meandered back to the Inn. Now we’re sitting on the balcony watching for manatees and dolphins.
Vacation Day 14, April 22 - Earth Day
We decided we needed an adventure today so after breakfast,…
We went to Cockroach Bay to look around, but there was an Earth Day cleanup going on. We had thought about getting the chairs out of the car so we could read next to the water, but there was no shade. One of the workers said to go to the Cockroach Bay Greenway, so we drove a few miles to that. 
On the way, we stopped at the Hawai’ian Isles Resort, to use the restrooms. It was a large mobile home park that was still showing some damage from Helene, the latest hurricane.
On the way, we stopped at the Hawai’ian Isles Resort, to use the restrooms. It was a large mobile home park that was still showing some damage from Helene, the latest hurricane.
We were disappointed, again because the trail to get to the water was very long and the temperature was 82 with 60% humidity. We wouldn’t do well at all living in a humid place. We searched google for some other places to check out. We headed for a county park, E. G. Simmons Park. There was a two dollar entrance fee and we were surprised by how nice and well laid out it is. There are camping areas and a very nice beach. We walked around the area and got a couple of pictures of St. Petersburg, across the bay.
We had planned to take our leftover sandwiches with us in the ice chest that our host provided but we forgot to pack them, so, rather than drive back to the inn, we just found a little restaurant near Bailey’s work and had lunch. She texted us that she was getting out of work early so we hung out at the restaurant reading until it was time to pick her up.
We picked Bailey up at about 2:15 and took her back to her place because she needed to get the dip for our veggies and pretzels. We had planned on going to the Inn to swim and play games. Jermaine couldn’t join us this evening because he has football coaching with his guys so it was just the three of us.
We swam and played games with Bailey for a couple of hours and we watched the water looking for dolphins and manatees again. It’s right next to the pool so we can watch from there. It was just very peaceful and fun and we had a really good time and lots of talking. We are so glad we got to spend some quality time with her. We took her back to her place about 6:30 and Bill and I decided to be bad on the way home stopped at the restaurant we ate at last night and got dessert. I got a piece of carrot cake and he got some ice cream and it was divine. We figure we only have two more days of vacation and then we’re gonna start eating right again.
Vacation Day 15, April 23 - Ruskin
We wish we could have slept in, but the good old sun popped up at the usual time, so we got up with it. I had moved from the bed to the recliner at 2:30. We are sooo looking forward to tomorrow night when we can sleep in our big, comfortable bed and dark bedroom.
We didn’t have any plans for the morning so we took our time, got caught up on Wordle, took care of some emails, and browsed Facebook, sharing interesting things we came across. I know it’s said that people are on social media too much, but we find it entertaining and we feel that, as long as we do other things as well, we can waste time if we want to. We had our last two yogurts and an apple for breakfast along with Gevalia coffee that was provided for us.
Bailey and Jermaine will both be working tomorrow so, since we will have to be at the airport in Tampa too early for either of them to drive us, we were going to take a cab or Uber to get there. I checked the rates and found that the rate is about $97.00 for a taxi. And, Bailey has to take her car home with her tonight, so we would have to hang around the inn until it is time to go to the airport. An Uber would only be about $45.00 but we would still be stuck at the inn tomorrow. So, we’re going to pick up a rental car this afternoon, about two miles from where Bailey works. The cost is halfway between the Uber and a cab but we will have the freedom to explore tomorrow until 2:30, when we have to return the car to the airport. We’ll take Bailey’s car to her just as she is ready to leave work and she can drive home to change. Then we’ll go to Publix to buy some sub sandwiches and Bailey will come to our pool to swim and have dinner with us. Jermaine has football practice again, so he won’t be able to come over.
Our plan for tomorrow is to get up, pack what isn’t already packed and leave, driving toward Tampa. We will have about six hours to explore. Because all of our stuff will be in the car, we won’t do anything ambitious, so the car won’t be very far out of our sight. But we can find some places to see wildlife. Some of our options are the historic Ybor neighborhood or the Tampa Riverwalk. We’ve already decided to go to the Broken Egg Cafe for breakfast so that will be the first address we put into maps.
We frittered away the whole morning. Read, talked, watched the birds and the dolphin and the time flew quickly. We even watched a little bit of TV. 
Suddenly it was time to go pick up the rental. The clerk was pretty adamant that we needed to buy their insurance because we didn’t have proof that we had any. I told him that since we are paying with a credit card, we are covered. He mumbled a bit and finally said that he would waive it this time but not to let it happen again. Poor guy missed making that upsell.
Suddenly it was time to go pick up the rental. The clerk was pretty adamant that we needed to buy their insurance because we didn’t have proof that we had any. I told him that since we are paying with a credit card, we are covered. He mumbled a bit and finally said that he would waive it this time but not to let it happen again. Poor guy missed making that upsell.
We got a Mazda 3 with 35,000+ miles on it. We hate it. We are used to a much nicer car. But, it is only for one day. We dropped Bailey’s car off at Quest and drove to Publix to get sub sandwiches. Jermaine skipped football practice so he could spend the evening with us. When Bailey arrived at our pool, a few minutes after we did, we had already secured our table in the corner where we had the best view of the water. We all swam for a while before Germaine arrived, and then we had our dinner. The water was so refreshing. After dinner, we played Bailey and Jermaine’s favorite, Rummikub. We all won at least one game. After playing, we swam again because it was really hot. We had apple pie for dessert and watched for the dolphin, who didn’t make an appearance, but we saw two sharks and a herd of manatees, but they weren’t close enough to get any pictures of them. 
Jermaine left shortly after that but Bailey stayed for another hour. We played a couple of games which we let her win. She regretfully had to leave at about 7:30. She came up to our room to carry our big suitcase down to the car for us. She is so thoughtful. I wonder where she gets it.
Tomorrow is our travel day. Bill said he is going to sleep until noon on Friday. I hope he can sleep with the washer and dryer running because we have two suitcases of laundry.
Vacation Day 16, April 24 - To Tampa and Heading Home
We woke up late this morning - 7 AM. After showers, and coffee, we didn’t want to wait any longer, so we packed up the last of our stuff, and left at 8:40. We even remembered to take our leftover fruit and half sandwich for the plane.
We drove to Tampa, a distance of 29 miles, in 40 minutes. There was a lot of traffic at times but it wasn’t too bad. I find it pretty stressful to drive in a strange car in a strange place, but having Waze helped a lot. We figured out the cruise control with the help of the user’s manual, and we had no problem.
When we turned onto the tollway. The sign said “Toll $1.07.” A couple of miles later it said “Toll $1.73.” We only had two miles to go so Bill had $2.00 ready. We took the off ramp, but never came to a toll station. We think the license plate of the car was detected because we had seen signs about paying that way. But there is an administrative fee. We figure the rental company will charge us when we return the car. The fee will probably be $20.00 for the convenience of not having to use money.
We went to Another Broken Egg in Tampa. We each got a decadent meal and as soon as they arrived, we realized that we should have shared a meal. There was way too much food. We each got a specialty French toast, with eggs and bacon or sausage. They were very good, but we each ate only one piece of the French toast. 
They also gave us complimentary beignets. We hated to waste so much food.
They also gave us complimentary beignets. We hated to waste so much food.
We drove around Tampa, visiting the historic Ybor District. There were neat old buildings, but not much else of interest to us. We had planned to make our way to some water for a last glimpse of dolphins, manatees, or whatever else might be there, but it was so stressful, trying to maneuver through road construction,traffic and one-way streets. At 12:30, we decided to go to the airport. It’s better to be earl my than late. From where we were, it took almost 40 minutes to get there so we’re glad we we went early.
The only hitch was that I paid 7000 miles for two checked bags and the kiosk showed that I only paid for one. So I had to pay another 3,500 miles. I’ll see if someone at Delta can help me with that after we get home.
We were all checked in and waiting at the gate at 2:20. Our flight to Atlanta is scheduled to take off at 4:31. This was our most un-fun morning of the trip. The only thing that made it better was that we were doing it together.
At the airport, the rental company didn’t charge us for the toll. We think we’ll get a bill after we get home.
Vacation Day 16, Heading Home Part Deaux
Everything went great until I had to open my big mouth. I said I was proud of us for not having had any major incidents - falls, broken toenails, fender benders, etc. All that happened in two weeks was that I got a blister on my foot from the shoes I wore for dancing, and Bill got one mosquito bite.
After sitting at the airport in Atlanta for about two hours, we boarded the plane. We got to our seats and Bill discovered his phone wasn’t in his pocket. We looked in the bag where we keep our “plane” stuff, charger cords, iPads, etc. It wasn’t there. I was going to take down our other carry-on bag to search it but Bill said he hadn’t even opened it so it couldn’t be there. The flight attendant let me get off the plane to look for it. I checked the seats where we had been sitting and an employee went into the men’s room to see if it had fallen out of his pocket. No luck. I got back on the plane, which was getting ready to pull away from the gate. I tried Find My Phone but it didn’t even show that he has a phone. I called Kathy to ask if she could tell me how to deactivate the phone. She made some suggestions, but then it was time to put my phone in airplane mode. The first thing we did after getting off the plane in Atlanta was check the bag that he hadn’t opened and there it was. Thank God!
We are going to find out from Kathy what we need to do so we can use Find My Phone for each other’s phones.
The flight home from Atlanta was good. We had to toss our leftover sandwiches at the Atlanta airport because they had been unrefrigerated too long. So our dinner on the plane was grapes, potato chips and Fritos.
Somehow, our seat assignments had been changed from row 42 to row 22. That was cool because we were only four rows back from the door. I was disappointed that the row didn’t have a window because I love to look out and watch the world go by. We had gotten settled in our seats, sanitized the seat belt latches and seat trays and started chatting with our seat-mate, Steve, from Minden, when a person showed up saying that she was assigned 22 A and her husband was assigned 22 B. I got our boarding passes out and checked them. We were supposed to be in 23 A and B. So we got our ipads unplugged, and moved our things to the next row. It had a window! After we were sanitized and settled in our new row, we saw that all the seats around us were filled but 22 C was still empty. Just like the trip home from Amsterdam, as soon as the door closed, Bill moved over so we had plenty of room all the way home.
The flight had a lot of turbulence so the seat belt stayed on most of the time. We always keep our seat belts on anyway because of all the incidents we have seen where people get hurt during turbulence.
We landed in Reno just a few minutes past the scheduled time of 9:25. It was wonderful to see Rommie’s smiling face when we reached the baggage carousel. Kathy was waiting at the car and we were home in no time.
As always, even when we have a fantastic time, it is wonderful to be home.
I was so pleased to hear from a lot of friends and family that they enjoyed hearing about our travels. That is good because I love writing about them.
