January 3--Home

We made it home around 5:30. Now to bed. 

January 2--Driving

We were able to get off the ship at 7:40 this morning and made it through customs just fine.

By the time we loaded the suitcases and got everything ready we hit the road at 8:20.  

Traffic has been horrific.  We've added at least a couple hours onto the trip.  There was a Tennessee team that was at a bowl game in Tampa yesterday so everyone is taking the same route home that we are. We've been at a stand still on the interstate many times.  

We had a very close encouter to an accident. But luckily Dad's cat like reflexes kept us out of harm's way.  

It is now 7:10 and the GPS says we have 10 hours left. When we left we were supposed to get home at 2:00am, but now our estimated arrival time is 5:00am.  We're about 85 miles from Nashville and I predict traffic will get heavy there again. 

I think everyone is getting a little antsy to get home now. We sure miss Penny, but am so thankful to Laurie and Lynn for taking her.  We've started thinking about all the things we need to accomplish before heading back to work on Monday...I start my last full semester of my master's degree on Monday and Thom gets sworn in as Mayor on Tuesday. Lots of exciting stuff coming up! 

I'll post when we're home so you know we made it safe.  :) 

January 1--Sailing

After staying up so late we were able to sleep in on Friday.  It wasn't a very eventful day.

Thom and I got lunch in the Windjammer Buffet, and then went to the art auction.

Drew loves going to the art auctions. He doesn't buy anything, but I think he enjoys watching and looking at the art. We enjoyed free glasses of champagne while the auction was going on.  Drew ended up winning a piece of art because he guessed the closest to the retail value of a Peter Max painting.  He also was MVP (most cheerful/excited patron at the auction) so he got a free bottle of champagne.  

After the auction Thom went to work out while I went and sat on Anne's room balcony with her and her mom, Mary Kay.  We decided we needed one more day of the cruise just to relax. 

Then I joined Mom who was walking laps on the pool deck track.  We did over a mile.  

Next was back to the room to start packing....I completely over packed. Note to self--when traveling to the Caribbean you do not need jeans, long pants, or numerous sweatshirts. Oh well...I was just over prepared.  Of course we were leaving with more stuff than when we came too.

Then it was off to our last dinner. Some of the men chose to not go to dinner because they were watching the Iowa game....I think they wish they would have attended dinner instead....

For dinner I had a delicious pasta--simple, but good. Followed by key lime pie.  

At 7:30 we made our way to the Schooner Lounge for some Beatles Music Trivia. Between Dan and Thom, we got 20/20.  We also sat across from the Bon Jovi Tribute band so we talked to them a bit. Thom got their card in hopes of inviting them to the fourth of July festival in Osceola.  

Next we went to the comedian that was the headliner for the night. His name was George. I can't remember his last name. He was pretty good.  He had some great jokes and some not so great jokes. I'm not one to enjoy stand-up comedy, but he made me laugh a few times.

Next we were off to karaoke. It wasn't the best....There were some honeymooners from Texas who were also music teachers who were pretty darn good-he sounded like Frank Sinatra. No one in our group sang. After trivia we (Nolan, Nate, Ellen, Owen, Thom, me) just sat and chatted for awhile.  We sure enjoyed being on the cruise with their family.  It was wonderful because typically the only times we get to see them are holidays, so it was nice to catch up outside of that and get to know each other better. I hope they had as great of a time as we had with them. 

Then Thom and I tried to find Drew at the Viking Lounge but he wasn't there so we walked around the ship and met up with some friends we made through the week.  We chatted with them for awhile before heading to bed. 

Tomorrow the cruise ends....it was been a phenomenal trip. Loved it all.

December 31--New Years Eve

After arriving back on the boat, we dressed up for formal night dinner.  They  had a special menu because it was New Years Eve. The table was decked out with hats, necklaces and noise makers to ring in the new year.  The dinner was wonderful. I had grilled lobster and halibut. 

After dinner there was a singing celebration in the centrium done by the staff.  Different members of the crew sang and people danced. Even the captain sang.  They ended by singing "We are the World".  Peter loved dancing to all the music this week.

Next we went to our traditional hang out spot of karaoke. Tonight was extra karaoke night. They had one our of family karaoke (so kids could sing) followed by an hour and half of adult karaoke.  Nolan, Anne, Mom, Ken, Thom, Ellen, and myself got up and sang "Dancing Queen" by Abba. We had fun.  

When that finished around 11:30 we headed to the Centrium for the balloon drop.  It got rather packed.  They offered glasses of champagne and everyone counted down. At midnight there was the great balloon and confetti drop followed my music, singing, and dancing.

Thom, Drew, Ellen, Owen, Nate, and I went to the pool deck for some music up there.  Therre was a large family dancing there that had a circle going. Of course Thom jumped in the middle and started a big dance party. Everyone made their way across the dance floor. It was a hoot. After a bit of dancing there we decided to go up to the Viking Lounge (I've been calling it the Voyager's Lounge---oops).  Theree was a HUGE dance party going on up there. Unfortunately Owen couldn't join us because he is under 18.  The rest of us danced and danced until 2:00am.  We had a blast. I was exhausted so thank goodness Friday was a sleep in day!

December 31st--Cozumel, Mexico

It has been a great day!! This  morning Anne and I woke up a little early and walked around the upper deck. It was nice to chit chat.  Although we've been together all week, I feel like we hadn't talked much so it was nice! 

Then  we decided to not do an excursion and trusted a travel agent that mom talked to on the boat which said to go to Paradise Beach.  Boy was that agent right!!

It was absolutely beautiful. It was a $40 taxi ride for 10 of us (Anne, Nolan, Peter, Mary Kay, Dan, Dad, Mom, Drew, Thom, and me).  Then $3 to use a beach chair. We chose to pay $18 to use all of the water equipment. 

They had a PHENOMENAL water inflatable toys. We got to play on all of them!! It was sooo fun! Drew, Thom, Anne and I all got passes. We had a blast!!

Dad, Mom and Nolan went jet skiing for 30 minutes. 

Peter loved playing in the sand.

They also had a beautiful pool that was heated. This  place had a resort feel without the resort.  Because we got there early we also had the place to ourselves for a bit. It was so much fun!

We went paddleboarding which was fun! But then Drew fell off his board in shallow water and cut his knee pretty bad. To clean it they put iodine and chlorine water on it. It just so happened that a doctor that Thom and Drew met two evenings ago at the Johnnie Walker tasting was there. He was able to give Drew an antibacterial thing and offered to use the liquid stitching that he had on the ship for him later.  Very kind of him.

After a bit we headed back to the shops. I got some vanilla, but found out that it isn't the true real pure vanilla as that is very expensive and they don't sell it at the ports or shops close here.

After bartering with Ken at the port, Thom and I are now enjoying chips and salsa at Senor Frogs.  Soon we will head back to the boat for our New Year's Eve fun! 

December 30th--Costa Maya, Mexico

December 30--Costa Maya, Mexico

Today was a down day for the Evans/Kedley crew. Thom and I woke up at a decent time, but by the time we ate breakfast, finished writing yesterday's blog post, and got ready it was almost 10. We then went to the port to see if we could find Mom, Dad, and Drew. Luckily within 15 or so minutes we found them-they were on their way back toward the boat.

Thom and I stayed and shopped around the port. The people were very welcoming and really wanted you to visit their shop.  We went to many shops, although many of them carry the exact same items.  Thom bartered with a worker and got two football team bags for $25 instead of just one for $25.  He also purchased a Mayan woodcarving head that says "Harley Davidson".  He talked that worker down from $35 to $20.  I bartered a little myself. I talked a man down from $8 for an ornament to $5. Not as much negotiating as Thom, but I did it.  

We then found ourselves at a restaurant/bar on the pier.  Thom ordered a DosXX and I had a lemonade. My lemonade came in a palm tree shaped cup.  We sat by the beach and watched the waves.  To the right in front of us were dolphins. Thom nearly had a heart attack when he saw a dolphin jump from the ocean into the water area where they do dolphin shows.  We didn't know there were dolphins there so it was rather surprising.

The Funkes/Rohdes went to a beach/village called Mahahual.  This was a village I did some research on and wanted to visit, but we decided to just stay on port today.

After a bit we got our picture taken with some people who were dressed as native Mayan people then headed back to the boat.  

Once back on board we decided to get in the pool and hot tub. After relaxing in the hot tub we moved outdoors on the deck. I started reading a new book called "Wonder".  It is about a little boy who is going into fifth grade and going to school for the first time. As if this wouldn't be hard enough, he also has a face deformity. I'm just in the beginning of the book, but I really like it.

Thom had to run back into the port to switch out his bag because it was already falling apart, so Mom and I walked the deck.  By the poolside they were teaching 70s line dancing.  So we joined in and danced.  Then it was back to the room to get ready for dinner. A couple of us met up for a drink before dinner.

Dinner was good as usual. I sat by Mary Kay and we had some good conversations about traveling and our days. The majority of us had chicken cordon blue for dinner. I had a crab cake and arugula/pear salad for an appetizer and a strawberry trifle for dinner. All were delicious. The strawberry trifle was very light and fluffy.

Peter has really taken a liking to our second waitress, Sarah. He is a big flirt with her. It is very cute. He laughs and giggles when she moves her eyebrows quickly. 

We then went to the centrium to get our picture taken, but they were also having name that tune. Thom won 3 Royal Caribbean writing utensils.  

Then we headed to the Masquerade Theater for "Slippery When Wet" a Bon Jovi tribute band. They were good.

Then most of us headed to bed. Dad went to the casino and came out ahead again.  then we grabbed a quick snack before bed. 

Tomorrow is our last port-Cozumel.

December 29-Belize

December 29--Belize City, Belize

This morning we ported a lot earlier than yesterday. Nobody had official plans for today, so we decided to wing it. We all met up at 8:15 to come up with a plan. It was decided that most people wanted to do some sort of a beach.  However, this would be tricky due to the fact that Belize is not a beachy place where we were. 

Due to the fact that the port does not have large enough docks for the cruise ships we had to be tendered in. It was a 20 minute ride into shore.  Of course there were many people who wanted to get off, so our group actually got split up before being tendered. Drew, Mom, and Dad went ahead of the rest of us and scoped it out. Dad was on the mission to figure out our plan for the day.  By the time we arrived on the pier, Dad had a couple options for us. The best option was to go outside the gate, get a water taxi, and head to a small beach at Caye Caulker. 

The next water taxi didn't leave for an hour so we had a chance to walk around the port. Thom enjoys bartering with the people. He got a pair of sunglasses, a Belize flag, a Hawaiian shirt that says "You better Belize it" and I got another "speak no evil, see no evil, hear no evil" group of monkeys and a Christmas Ornament.

After shopping a bit we met back up and headed out for the Caye. In order to get to the water taxi we had to go out of the gates. Of course we got heckled a bit for things like taxis and tours, but we just said we had plans. Walking through the area outside the gate you could see the beginning of how poor the country was. Then we arrived at the water taxi station.  It was very true to the culture. I think we were the only tourist people there, the rest were locals.  It cost $30 BZD (Belize Dollars) or $15 American dollars for a round trip to Caye Caulker. 

At 10:30 it was our chance to load the water taxi boat. We were close to last to getting on. Saying that it was packed is an understatement. There were people nearly sitting on each other. There were benches around the outside, but also in the middle. There were all ages of people including a baby which was only a couple months and a dog. Due to the fact that it was so packed the lady came in and asked for a group of 3 to get off to take a different boat. We offered a group of 11. So we got off the first very stinky, close quarters boat, and moved to another boat. 

This boat had more room and a bit more of the touristy crowd. Mom, Nolan, Drew, and Thom sat at the back of the boat, while the rest of us were up at the front. It was a bit of a bumpy ride, but was very beautiful.  After 45 minutes or so we arrived at Caye Caulker. We weaved in between other islands so we were never quite sure where we were going. As we were going occasionally you would see little houses pop up in the middle of the ocean. We were told these were basically fishing houses. Fishers would go out all day in their boat and then would find a fishing house and stay there for the night. That way they didn't have to go all the way back into town. They were open to anyone. We also saw a huge house in the middle of the ocean. Come to find out, it was the owner of the ship tenders that built himself his own private island with his own house on it. It looked like it was still under construction.

Caye Caulker is a town of about 3,000 residents.  It truly had the Belize feel. From one side of the island you could see the other. To cross the entire island took 2 minute walking. The only motorized vehicle I saw was the big truck moving sand, other than that all I saw was golf carts and bicycles.  I would not define it as touristy at all.  After walking around a bit we found a small beach. It was more of a laying on the beach reading a book beach instead of a swimming beach.  Dad was the first to head out with his snorkeling gear. The sand turned to clay which turned into sinking clay. It was like walking in snow, at different times you could sink up to your knees.  There was also seaweed.  There was a tiny shopping market across the street from where we were so some people went over there to explore and get a drink. After that Nolan, Drew, and Owen went out into the ocean to meet Dad. Anne got a fabulous burrito from a local little hut. Then Ellen, Anne, and I headed out. As we were walking a local hollered at us come back and jump of the dock. He said there were yellow sting ray and sea urchin out there and we shouldn't be walking there--oops! We never saw any and Dad and Nolan said they didn't see anything through snorkeling.  

We really just walked around and enjoyed being at a local place.  Thom and Ken met a local from Colorado who said he came there six years ago and never left. I enjoyed walking around. Toward the end Thom and I stopped at a little drink hut to get a drink. He enjoyed the Belizean beer, Belikin, and I got a piña colada. It was by far the best piña colada I've ever had. It had fresh coconut and pineapple and he added a touch of cherry grenadine.  It was delicious. Then we headed back to catch the next boat back. In order to use the bathroom anywhere you had to buy another drink so I bought another piña colada so we could use the bathroom. This one tasted much different than the first, but was still completely delicious. 

On the ride back to Belize City Thom and I got to ride on the upper seats of the taxi. It was beautiful being able to look around and see everything. 

Once we were back on the port Anne, Nolan, Dad, Thom and I grabbed a bite to eat at the Wet Lizard. Dad got killa shrimp (when asked if it was spicy or not the waitress said it was mild--it was not!), Thom and I got coconut shrimp, and Nolan and Anne tried the Belizean sampler dish. Everything was delicious. 

Then Thom and I walked around the pier a bit before heading on board. We needed to be ready to go for geography trivia at 5:00. However, once it began it was not geography trivia because the person who was supposed to lead it was sick.  So we all played regular trivia. We did ok...not great though!

Then it was off to dinner. I had garlic soup, shrimp cocktail, and tiger shrimp. For dessert I had a bread pudding with caramel glaze. All of it was phenomenal. I do think the highlight of the dinner was convincing Owen and Nate to try escargot. Owen had no idea what it was and actually thought it was okay...until he found out what it was. Thom and Dad wore their Hawaiian shirts so toward the end of dinner Ken raced to his room to put his on. He was super speedy--made it in 2 minutes and 45 seconds!

After dinner there wasn't much going on. Mom and I looked at the different photos that had been taken while others went shopping. Thom, Drew, and Nolan signed up for a whisky tasting so they went to that at 8:00.  Mom and I put on our swimming suits and met Ellen and Margaret in the hot tub. Dad, Nate, and Owen watched Skyfall on the big screen by the pool and under the stars.  

As I was heading back to the room I met Thom in the hall who was all excited about an offer to buy Johnnie Walker Blue Label (over $250-$300) in US for only $140.  This kind will no longer be able to buy in a few years as they have stopped production. Some of the bottles of the green label which are no longer available are selling for thousands of dollars.  The man who led the tasting told them this is just a bottle you put on display and don't drink. So we bought a bottle. He also received a flask and a rolling bag for his purchase. 

Then we got pizza and watched a bit of the cultural dance show (put on by the crew) before heading to bed.

Tomorrow--Costa Maya!