Ho, ho, ho and a bottle of rum – Caribbean Cruise

image from flickr by MoToMo

Beyond relaxation, the meals and other ship board activities, cruising is all about the ports of call and the local excursions. There are numerous activities including, but not limited to, scuba diving, snorkeling, sailing, hiking, zip-lining, motor tours, shopping for bargains in the local shops or a combination of some of the above.

What we did

She said:

All the excursions that we signed up for were catamarans to remote beaches and, sometimes, even different islands. We would board the catamaran with about sixty to seventy people, and take in the sights as we would sail into the horizon to find our special destination.

Once there, we would disembark and swim, snorkel, walk the shore, and have a mediocre barbeque lunch. After several hours, we would board the catamaran and sail back to the ship.

Oh yea, one thing I left out, you are offered unlimited rum drinks throughout the excursion. They did suggest that we not partake if we were snorkeling.  I was very good and didn’t have anything until after snorkeling and only when we were having lunch.  Then I had two of the best rum drinks I had ever tasted.

We got back on the catamaran where they brought around more glasses of rum punch. The Island music was intoxicating and it was a beautiful day, and the rum drinks just added to the ambience. I felt great and didn’t feel any effects of the rum punch. Or so I thought. We docked back at the ship. Bill got up, pulled me to my feet, leaned over to give me a kiss, and we both toppled on the deck of the catamaran. People were walking over us to get off the boat and someone said, ”Ge’ez, you’d think they would get a room!” I was giggling so hard I couldn’t get up. Finally some big arms were lifting me up and trying to drag me off the boat. It was my very nice brother-in-law Jon, and he told my sister Connie to try and help Bill.

They pretty much had to carry us through the ships security. The security guards were laughing and fortunately, let us go through two at time. We got to the elevators, and my poor exhausted brother-in-law propped me up in the corner of the elevator and told me to “stay”! They deposited us in our room. We fell into bed and napped for several hours. Finally, my sister called at 7:00p.m., and jokingly asked if we were going to dinner. I felt completely sober and we said “sure”!

The next afternoon, Dave and Diane, a couple with whom we had become friends, asked if we had heard about a couple that had to be carried off the catamaran excursion the day before. It seems they had heard about “us” from a couple they had met in the casino the night before. Maybe the ship was smaller than I thought!

Once, when in between flights, I happen to be sitting next to a woman who was a physicist. We had been listening to a young couple who were on their way home from Jamaica. They were talking about how they were able to drink the rum and were astonished not to have any hangovers. The lady physicist told us that the Caribbean rum is made with pure cane sugar, and is the only alcohol not to give hangovers.

He said:

For me, being a sailor at heart when I’m not golfing, the Caribbean means taking a catamaran to some pristine, remote beach, then swimming and snorkeling, or hiking, or a simply bit of relaxing in the sun. A cook-out featuring local foods and flavors, accompanied by some sort of rum based concoction usually precludes the return sail. Of course, more grog during the return serves to enhance the memories of the day.

Has anyone ever told you that the least expensive ingredient in these rum based concoctions is the rum? Well, it is true, so be careful! Marla and I learned this the hard way. I don’t recall which port we were at since we took a rum based catamaran excursion at each one. But, for some reason, the grog was flowing particularly smoothly this day. I had no idea how much it had effected me. And, as I was soon to find out, neither did Marla realize her condition! Marla’s rendition of what transpired (above) is pretty much as I remember it. But its what happened later that is so embarrassing.

The infamy related to us by Dave and Diane, unfortunately, wasn’t the end of it. Days later, in the Ft. Lauderdale airport, I was waiting to board my return flight to Chicago (Marla was heading to Denver on a different flight). A lady came up to me and asked if I had just returned from a cruise. When I confirmed I had, she commented “I thought so. You were the one from that catamaran who weaved and stumbled all the way back to the ship, weren’t you?” Guilty – and embarrassed again – as charged!!

Category: Caribbean, Outside the United States, what we didTags: cruise excursions, rum, sailing, snorkeling, swimming |