Barbados and goodbye to Azura

Last night after the last passenger was poured onto our ship, we left port for the last time.  The tradition is to have a Great British Sail Off and it was fantastic. There were 2500 people on decks 15 and 16, where the pool is, singing and waving British flags. 

We said goodbye to St Lucia and farewell to our travels.  Very sad.  After an evening of excellent entertainment, as with every night of this cruise, Alan and I had the presence of mind to make a point to enjoy walking the Promenade deck and then watching the night sky and waves while on our balcony.  In fact, we enjoyed this so much, we almost fell asleep on our balcony, which I am guessing is not a great idea!

After suffering terrific sleep deprivation and waking up through the night and too early each morning, wouldn’t you know I slept like a baby last night and woke up at 6am looking at warehouses and containers loaded with food destined for the next passengers of Azura?  I was so sad at the idea that this ship would never cause me to lose my balance again that I almost started crying!

And the confusing thing was that we are not yet on our way home!  Passengers on this cruise had the choice of going home either today or tomorrow.  We took tomorrow. I am now not sure if we had the choice of today. If we had, we could have spent the night with Martin tonight and that would have been fantastic.  I really, really miss him.  (I miss all my family, but he is the one who I will not see until Thanksgiving weekend).

The Azure with flags ready for their next cruise

But to make the most of it, we took a taxi tour of Barbados.  Last year all we did was travel from airport to port and vice versa.  So today was a bonus.  Apart from the taxi disaster.

It felt like Barbados had it better organized and the taxi drivers were not so obnoxious and in your face as other islands. But we ended up herded into a taxi where everyone was going to the beach and we had asked for an island tour.  Luckily, we were able to jump out and find a better one.  At first, jumping out of the taxi and trying to get the taxi drivers and their supervisor to understand exactly what the problem was and actually listen was one of the worst experiences of the trip.  I almost just said let's go back and stay at the pool.

The tour was good though.  I can’t honestly think of anything special about it, but it was interesting.  Oh, we did see where Tiger Woods likes to golf sometimes and the taxi  driver’s mother’s house!!

Flower arrangemetn at St James Church (the first church on Barbados)

We came back to the ship for lunch and then went to Harbour Lights Beach. Another problem with these taxi drivers- We had asked to go to Carlisle Beach, which was technically the same place once we got there.  But Harbour Lights is a part of this beach, with a bar and nightclub attached.  Our driver said it was a better beach, but it was just the same beach. So we decided he must have gotten a kick back for bringing tourists there. 

Harbour LIghts is as typicial as Caribbean beaches go - clear water as far as you could see and lovely sand. Alan took a video of us in the water as a really bad shower happened. I will try to link this, the rain shower was so short and so heavy, I think I just laughed through it!  It started almost the same time as Alan started taking the video and finished right before he stopped.

It is the Barbados independence weekend now and there is lots of blue and yellow everywhere. We plan to walk to Bridgetown tomorrow morning and will probably take few pictures! Then it will be time to go back to Scotland. Yes, while I was swimming in the Caribbean sea and looking at my feet clearly from 5 feet deep, I did remind myself that it is November and very cold in my home town. But I am still on island time and intend to be on island time as long as I can get away with it!

Kensington Oval viewed from our balcony!  The game being played was England vs West Indies (veterans)

Well, since I did not publish this until after we got home, I am able to say that we never made it to Bridgetown.  The sky literally fell in, I have never seen harder rain.  It made leaving Barbados much easier since there was nothing else to do.  Unfortunately, that meant we couldn't take pictures of the buildings draped in blue and yellow.  I also never got to one of the last Woolworth's or another Little Switzerland. 

My Boat is still Rocking!

It is Monday morning and I am getting ready to return to work. Too relaxed and still on island time I am afraid!

The funny thing is my land legs did not arrive with my luggage, I am still rocking and feeling as if I am still on the Azura!  Of course, it is not yet 24 hours since I have been either on a ship or a plane, and I am sort of enjoying the feeling.  I liked the rocking and rolling feeling of the ship and will miss this lovely way to be rocked to sleep.

Friday night now! boy how time flies when you are jet lagged and have meetings every night!
I wish we were taking time out and relaxing this weekend, but of course, we are very busy, shopping with Whitney, going to dinner with Jim and Jennifer, seeing Santa arrive and loads of other things.

Welcome home to us!

Little Switzerland locations

littleswitzerland.com

When we were walking through the duty free section of the port at Barbados, there were gift bags you could pick up from Little Switzerland.  I picked one up and used it throughout the day.  Only on our last evening in the Caribbean, when doing a last minute packing, I noticed the list of locations on the bag.  So here are the islands where you will find Little Switzerland stores:

Aruba, Barbados, Curacao, Key West, Nassau, Puerto Rico, St John, St Maarten, St Thomas and Tortola.  Enjoy!

St Lucia

Sorry for this, but we didn’t like St Lucia last year and our opinion had not changed…. Even though Cheryl Cole is supposedly vacationing there just now, and I have the picture of her house, it is not anywhere I would like to visit again.  Of course, if we are ever on another Caribbean cruise, we will make the most of it and visit the rain forest or something. We had hoped to see the Pitons this time around, since last year the road to the Pitons was not passable due to hurricane damage. But in the end, it was just too difficult to run the gamut of taxi drivers and find what we wanted.  The best option is a water taxi instead of the road, but this is a very long day and we were not prepared to do this.  If we had realized there was a option of the rain forest trip…..maybe it would have been a better day. 

We were told the white house right at the top of this hill was where Cheryl Cole was staying. But I couldn't find any reference to her being on St Lucia except when she was there in 2002.  Maybe she stayed at this house then?

However, Alan and I are never ones to have a bad day, and yesterday was no exception.  Our ship had to dock at the very farthest location ever and the walk into town was not good.   Not only were there loads and loads of pushy taxi drivers, and we wanted to walk, but the surfaces were uneven and sloppy and it was a sheer struggle to get to town.  Did anyone mention a water taxi just on the other side of the ship?  No!!!  We took it back and it was fantastic.  So if you are ever in St Lucia and docked on the Pointe Seraphim side instead of Castries, there is a great water taxi that takes you straight to town.  A dollar more than a regular taxi and so much better than either a taxi or walking.  And the best bit…..it ends at an outside bar where they have beer two for $3 and music, dancing, karaoke. To give you an idea how good it was….the last passenger had to be poured onboard before we could leave last night!

Taken from the water taxi. The pink roof to the left of the ship is the bar!

This is the Catholic church that we visited last time and knew it was worth a second visit. What a beautiful, colorful church!

Last year on our Princess cruise and this year on P&O - both British liners - we did a sail away party.  When we saw other ships leaving port, they never did this.  All the other ship's passengers would watch and wave as they went by.  This one was the Great British Sail Away since it was our last time leaving a port.

The entertainment team leading songs and dances during the sail away party

Alan in his "We be Jammin" shirt

St Kitts

Here is the map of where we started and how we crossed the Atlantic.  Everyday on the cabin tv's you could look at this and see your progress, like on a plane! 

We are already on Barbados and this is our last night on the Azura.  This is when my blog gets a bit confusing even to me.  But I would like to go in order of the places we visited, so this would be St Kitts.

I was a bit concerned about visiting this island because last year it got a lot of bad press due to violence against some tourists.  Many cruise ships chose not to go there and made other arrangements in their itinerary.  However, this is a darling little island, with so much character that Alan and I have fallen in love with it.  This island is undeveloped and so far, not ruined by tourism. But it is just around the corner. 

We got a taxi to take us around the island with a few other people. 

It was the best island tour we have had!  We saw rain forest, monkeys, volcanic rocks, an old sugar plantation that is now Carabelle Batik. They also sold and demonstrated batik there.  Fabulous! 

I had to take a picture of this one because it is signed by a "Patrice":

This idyllic day was not meant to last though.  After so many days of complete togetherness, Alan and I got a  bit impatient with each other.  Mainly because it started raining cats and dogs and we got stuck on the ship instead of getting to the bar with free internet.  Of course this was all Alan’s fault.  And he took exception to this.  Ok, did he not read the marriage contract?  Of course it was his fault, isn’t everything?  Anyway, we managed to swim to the bar and he went shopping while I stayed at the bar and got more caught up on Facebook and this blog.  We met some cruise staff and other fellow passengers and ended up having a great time. 

About this time, we also decided to give up on formal dining altogether.  It is a real waste of time – 2 hours spent dining with people who are not your friends and not interested in you anyway.  Actually I think we gave this up after how free it felt to go to the Trattoria the day before and enjoy Bollywood dancing. But then, my days are so confused now……

Murphy’s Law came in to effect with a vengeance though.  On the first night of freedom, Alan and I innocently arrived at the buffet after 7pm and learned that it was a seafood buffet. Alan does not like fish at all, and there were no alternatives.  And the pizzeria closes at 7.  Hence, he had 3 different kinds of potatoes for dinner, while I really enjoyed my selection.  The next night was another Indian buffet.  After reacting to airborne cumin at the week before’s Indian buffet, I didn’t even want to be in the same room. So he enjoyed his Indian dinner and I sat poolside with a delicious pizza!  Last night, the third night, was country/western buffet, lots of barbeque and spicy fried chicken and loads of things that might have cumin, so I went a bit hungry again.   Our last night onboard is tonight and it is a carvery.  I think this will be a good last dinner….fingers crossed anyway!

St Kitts is shaped sort of like a guitar. At this smaller part of the "guitar" you can see the Atlantic on one side and the Caribbean on the other.

I am going to finish this now and start a new entry so that next time we visit, I can see the individual islands as titles.  I didn’t do this last year and St Lucia and St Vincent are actually in the blog chapter listed as Trinidad!

I have also run out of proverbs.  I saw a cool book of island proverbs today, but felt it did not warrant the space in my overfilled suitcase.  Sorry!

St Maarten

Good morning again!  This is the first time I have actually slept until 5;30am!  With only 3 days to go, my sleep pattern should be just about normal by the time we get back to Ayr and have to deal with jet lag!

St Maarten was as special as always.  Actually this is only our second visit, but it is just a wonderful and beautiful island.  We wandered in early and found an internet café on the beach.  I even got a Pina Colada while waiting for Alan to finish sending emails and checking his Facebook.  (it was only 9am so I did have the presence of mind to get a “Virgin PIna Colada”, very tempted though, for only $1 it could have had rum in it!). 

The little beaches in front of Philipsburg and perfect in everyway and I really had intended to swim there.  But once I got  my feet in the water, I remembered how sticky and grungy I would feel afterward, and this was supposed to be shopping time!  I do have my priorities and went back to the bar!  I must have been on St Maarten a grand total of 30 minutes before I made my first jewelry purchase!  I had just wandered into a jewelry store, not intending to buy…….

The connection was so slow that we finally gave up and went shopping. 

 My favourite jewelry store of all time is only located on some Caribbean Islands, I cannot figure out the reason why it is on some and not others though.  It is Little Switzerland and I cannot walk by one!  It seems a common myth that jewelry in the Caribbean is a good deal and that is true.  But this is mainly if you intend to buy top quality stones and name brand jewelry.  Anything else is usually too expensive for me, but there is a section in Little Switzerland that makes my heart sing and I can find a variety of necklaces, bracelets and earrings that I love. Last year, I discovered this and did not buy enough, thinking I would wait until the next island.  But that was the last one I saw in that trip. So this year, I made up for it!

The red bag over my shoulder is the free bag I got from Little Switzerland after shopping there!

Alan also wanted to buy some camera equipment and was not sure what he really wanted, so we went to quite a few shops until he made his mind up. And we got a table runner for our new dining room furniture, thanks again, Sue!

Alan also hoped to go to Maho Beach, where the planes take off and land at what looks like 20 feet over the beach.  He wanted to go later in the day this time because he believes larger planes come in later. Last year, we saw a few smaller planes, but every so often you see a Boeing 747.  In fact, one flew over today at 12:15, but we were not there then.  In fact, we never got there.  Once inside the taxi to go, we got stuck in a huge traffic jam.  It was obvious the driver really did not want to go and I was remembering just why we went so early last year – traffic!  He told us it would take an hour to get there, when it is usually a 20 minute drive.  So that was approximately a 3 hour trip, and a struggle to get back to the ship in time (potentially).  Alan thinks he really did not want to go but I think it might have been good advice.   But, this also makes another island we have to return to!

We have also now abandoned formal dining altogether!  With the dining room all filling up at the same time, dinner lasted about 2 hours with everyone in the room being served at the same time.  This was causing us to rush to see the early shows, then spend 2 hours sitting and eating and then literally sleeping through some tremendous entertainment.   With this being our first night of “freedom” we were really looking forward to a relaxed evening, after disembarking from St Maarten. 

Best laid plans and all that – sadly there was a medical emergency about 5 minutes before sail away and we had to wait for island medical staff to deal with this.  We were sad about this person, but delighted that it meant we were last of the 4 cruise ships to leave!  First was the Royal Caribbean Grandeur of the Seas, next was the Norwegian Epic and last was Disney Magic.  What beautiful sights these large ships are as they sail away.  And an added bonus – the Disney ship’s horn plays “When You Wish Upon a Star” instead of HOOOONNNNNNKKKK.

First cruise ship to leave St Maarten

St Kitts on Port side, better go get breakfast and visit a new island for us!

“Walk too fast or be too impatient and you will miss much!

Leaving Antigua while watching God’s Fireworks

What a wonderful feeling to be off the ship and back to one of our favourite islands from last year!  It was also very comforting not to leave and be unsure what to expect.  I had hoped we could locate Dennis – our taxi driver from last year.  He would be 71 now and possibly no longer working.  The good news, he is still working, but the bad news was, we could not find him. When you leave the ship on most of these islands, you run the gamut of taxi drivers offering tours of the islands.  It can be a very random choice who you pick but they all offer essentially the same thing.  We wanted something a bit different.  Looking back, we possibly could have tried to contact Dennis prior to leaving the UK.  I think he has a website…..but it was not meant to be. 

Alan and I tried to find a tour that did not include Nelson’s Dockyards.  We did this last year and wanted a bit more exposure to the rain forest, and also to see a different beach.  With 365 beaches to choose from, that was the easy part.  On the information about Antigua, it really stresses Nelson’s Dockyards and I am afraid that is why everyone wanted to go there.  What the literature does not tell you is once you agree on your taxi route, with the cost $25 per person, once you arrive, there is an additional fee of $8 just to get in!  Last year, we had a vote with the 8 people in our taxi whether we wanted to pay the extra and go in, and it was a resounding no.  So Dennis took us up to Shirley Heights, where you could look down and see the Dockyards anyway.  Then he dropped us off at Darkwood Beach for a few hours before returning.

With no success for a rain forest trip, we found another couple who only wanted to go to the beach. We found Hercules and he offered to take us to Dickinson Beach for $3 each way.  The first appearance of Dickinson Beach is beautiful.  Long stretch of sand and various colors of blue and turquoise water.  However, as I look back at the day, I realize I would not recommend this beach.  The water is murky and very surprising.  It gives the impression of being clear, but looking down, I could never see my feet til I brought them about one foot from the surface.  By comparison, I could always see my feet at Darkwood Beach, even in shoulder deep water.  And the man with us was actually stung by something!  Thankfully, it was only uncomfortable for a short time, but never the less, I like to swim in clearer water…..

Then the jet skies began arriving, I have always hated the noise pollution they cause, not to mention how unsafe they are.  Luckily, they only came out on hire one at a time and we were so early, this did not really become a problem.  Next?  How about a huge catamaran that landed right in front of our sun loungers?  Not so bad?  Well, Alan and I were in the water in front of what became their path.  How did we know they were going to swerve in and land?  It looked like any other party boat, certainly not a boat acting as a bus and coming to a stop!  About 15 people, including a screaming little girl had to run out of the way as it plowed right where we had been swimming!  It felt like a scene from a horror movie when the monster appears from the sea and has his eye on you!

On the way back to Azura for lunch, I stopped by a few jewelry stores, as you do when in the Carribbean!  And discovered some lovely rings, at affordable prices.  I was hot and sticky and uncomfortable so decided to come back after changing clothes.  Certainly not the dramatic way I bought a ring in Curacao, running back to the ship, jumping a moving drawbridge and just about having heat stroke!  No, this time, I calmly returned to the shop, asked for Olive, who showed me the rings. Of course, none were big enough, that was probably why they were on sale.  But then she showed me the first ring that had caught my attention and one I thought I could not afford.  I was wrong!  And now I own it!  This one is silver with an assortment of gem stones including amethyst, peridot, blue topaz and one other I just can’t think of right now.

Next, my return to Cheers Bar to check emails and Facebook and put some entries on my blog.  Just like last year, the connection is very slow, later on I realized the bar up the street had cheaper beer and also free wii fii.  Maybe next time….

I also met a DJ from the other cruise ship here today, the Norwegian  Dawn.  His name is Alex and this job is only for a month!  How cool is that?  He seems to also have a job in New York and is just doing this short term.  But what a way to see the world?  I am thinking of all the young people in Scotland who are unemployed and know, if it was me, I would be applying to a cruise company!

Although it sounds like I was not as enamoured with Antigua as I had hoped, this is not the case.  It is all a learning curve and there are still 363 beaches to see! 

After leaving Antigua, we were beside a tremendous thunderstorm!  All we could see from our balcony was the skies lighting up, not good enough. So we went down to the Promenade deck, still not good enough. So we ended up on the top deck with about 30 other people and oohed and aahed at the beauty of nature.  These lightning bolts were stunning and some travelled up and over the entire sky.  Alan spend over an hour trying to get the perfect shot.  Once it began to rain, we all had to come in though.

St Maarten is now just outside the balcony and I need to go feast my eyes!