We had a beautiful 7 days on the Carnival Valor - it only rained once as we were leaving Miami. Our pictures are mostly from on board because I didn't want to damage/lose our digital camera. We went on our own every day but one, and left the ship with backpacks, snorkel gear, towels, suntan lotion, drinks, and maps! It can be rigorous and we walked quite a bit, sometimes catching a bus (van) or taxi.
We had been to Grand Cayman before, so it looked familiar - we snorkled at Cemetery Beach and saw lots of pretty fish. Then we changed locations to Eden's Cove, which is a short walk from where the ship docks - there were plenty of fish to see there also. Rob saw a barracuda!
In Roatan, Honduras we ended up getting a taxi driver to take us to the Mayan Princess Resort where we got a day pass. The snorkeling was good and then we enjoyed their big swimming pool before meeting our taxi driver again. Roatan was very hilly - different from most islands.
In Belize we took a water taxi to Cay Kaulker - about 35 minutes from the mainland. This was third world - you could rent a bike or golf cart to get around! I was disappointed to see people just throwing their bottles, papers, pudding cup containers on the ground when they finished eating or drinking! Rob snorkeled here, said the current was pretty strong. I had forgotten my snorkel vest and didn't feel like getting possibly swept away, so I sat on the beach under a palm tree and read.
In Cozumel we took an excursion from the ship - had a guide who took us out on a nice boat to 3
different reefs. We saw many different varieties of fish, learning their names from "Monte" our guide. He would dive down and point out lobsters, king crabs, a barracuda, conch shells - all very interesting. The currents were pretty strong here, but we just floated with it and then the boat would come around and pick us up.
The first and last days were sea days, so we read, slept, went to some short presentations, and ate lots of soft serve ice cream - available on deck all the time:) We went to the buffet for breakfast and lunch, then to the formal dining room for dinner. Our table companions never showed up the whole cruise, so we didn't meet many people. But our waiters were very talkative- George, probably around age 50, from Nicaragua, and Brice, in his late 20's, from Haiti.
We appreciated Rich and Char's hospitality and rides to and from the airport and cruiseport. It was fun to spend some time with them and Jon, Christiana, and Darren.
So back to the real world, where the grass needs cut, the laundry needs done, and some people have to go to work:)
