Caribbean – Bless Your Heart

Carnival Horizon Southern Caribbean Day 8

February 25, 2023March 7, 2023 Shannon

Today is another day at sea- our last full day of this cruise. We went to breakfast at Meridian. It’s a v cool restaurant. Two levels.

After breakfast we went back to our room to get ready for the day and start organizing everything since we have to pack today. Around noon we stopped back by Pig & Anchor so CSP could get another one of their fabulous Bloody Marys. It’s a drink AND a snack!

We found seats in the Ocean Plaza on deck 5 for General Knowledge Trivia.

My head is full of useless and trivial information but we didn’t do so well! We only got 11 out of 20 correct! DOH!

For lunch we went to JiJi Mongolian Wok. While we were seated at our table we could hear what sounded like a thundering herd above us. I pulled up the ship map on my phone and we found out that JiJi is directly under the basketball court!

JiJi says it’s a build your own stir fry bowl place on the app but in reality you choose from premade mixes that they wok up for you. Also you have to bring your own beverage unless you want water or alcohol.

For instance I asked for no peas and they couldn’t accommodate me because it’s premade (according to our server). I had the shrimp stir fry and CSP got the steak broth. I wish I’d had gotten the broth. Who knew it was like ramen? My stir fry had no sauce or flavor, but CSP loved his dish.

Then we went back down to the lido deck for gelato for me and a slice of cake for CSP. On the way to our room to pack CSP picked up a cheeseburger at Guy’s burger joint. CSP said it was his favorite thing he ate all week! It did look yummy! We went back to our room to shower and get ready for our last dinner, plus pack a bit.

Dinner was back at Reflection.

As you can see, CSP was wearing a hoodie and NOT into dressing for dinner tonight! We chatted with our service team for a bit before we went back to our room. Darwin was leaving the next day to go home to the Philippines for 3 months and had 23 hours of flying ahead of him! Bless!

We have a very early start tomorrow so we finished packing and went right to bed!

Tomorrow: debarkation & the trip home!

csp, family, fun, travel

Carnival Horizon Southern Caribbean Day 7

February 24, 2023March 6, 2023 Shannon

This morning CSP & I had breakfast at Meridian.

After breakfast we went back to the room to get ready for the day. Luckily I was able to finally get in touch with my father & Mimi, who had fallen asleep when they boarded the ship yesterday afternoon and slept through dinner. Not kidnapped! Huzzah!

We wandered around the ship for a while and stopped in the candy shop called Cherry on Top to see if they carried my favorite, albeit hard to find, candy- gummy grapefruit slices. Unfortunately they didn’t. Whomp whomp.

We had lunch at the Pig and Anchor on deck 5.

They have a buffet set up outside in the sun’s core, but you can eat inside. Lots of beef and pork. Neither of us were impressed with the food, but CSP LOVED his Bloody Mary!

The decor is neat too and I love the country music they have playing. While CSP was at the buffet a man tried to sit down with me at our booth and have his lunch! That was interesting!

It was another beautiful day so after lunch we decided to sit out on the Promenade Deck (deck 5) in the shade and enjoy a shared slice of yummy cheesecake that CSP got from the coffee shop.

We could hear Andy from the Fun Squad leading a group in Fresh Prince of BelAir trivia. I played along and did horribly. It was SO nice out except for the family of smokers to our right who were smoking in a NON smoking area and THROWING their cigarette butts overboard!!! I was shocked an appalled! There are signs everywhere not to throw things into the (already over polluted) ocean but they shouldn’t have to even tell you that! Just be a decent human and don’t litter!!! Ugh I loathe litterers!!!

Tonight was another fancy dress up night for dinner. CSP refused to wear pants though and snuck into the dining room really quickly so he wouldn’t be noticed. Ha!

You can’t tell from this photo but CSP is wearing shorts to Fancy night!

Tonight was lobster night!

Back to the room after dinner.

Tomorrow- another fun day at sea!

csp, family, fun, travel

Carnival Horizon Southern Caribbean Day 6

February 23, 2023March 5, 2023 Shannon

Today we woke up early (6:30 am!) to get ready for our day in Aruba! We went up to the Lido Deck for the breakfast buffet and on the way back saw the coolest thing! The housekeeping staff had created dozens and dozens of towel animals on the deck chairs and around the pool!

CSP & I got off the ship and walked to Diamonds International, our prearranged meeting place with the dude from Speed car rental. He came and found us and gave us our Jeep Compass for the day. We then picked up my father and Mimi and took off for Ling and Son’s grocery store. Such a nice store! We bought loads of apples and carrots and water (the water was for us). Then we hit the road for the Donkey Sanctuary! CSP & I arranged today to thank my father and Mimi for treating us to this cruise and we all had so much fun! First up was a treacherous roundabout with 4 lanes going around it! I was driving and frankly, we are all lucky to be alive!!! But we miraculously made it to the donkey sanctuary.

At the sanctuary you park then go through a gate and walk to the visitors’ center where you can be in the shade and feed the donkeys. Each of us grabbed a bag of carrots and a bag of apples and we set off for the visitors’ center. A donkey decided to pick off the smallest of our crowd and set his eyes on Mimi (she’s only 5 feet tall). He followed her all the way to the center grabbing at her carrots and apples the whole way! It was hilarious hearing her try to shoo him away!

Not only does the sanctuary house and care for over 130 donkeys, they have chickens (and tiny baby chicks!!!) and peacocks! I was in heaven! It was yet another gorgeous day and we all had the best time feeding and loving on the animals.

CSP & the donkeys. Note tripod on the far left. My heart!!!

When we were finished at the Donkey Sanctuary we got back into the car to head to Chapel Alto Vista. On the way there we saw a mama chicken and her 3 teeny tiny baby chicks crossing the road. They were like 3 wee cotton balls bumbling across the road! My heart was in my throat watching the whole scene! But they made it! Whew! Then we came across a big family of goats in the road, including a baby!

It’s wild in those Aruba streets I tell you! We stopped at Alto Vista Chapel. It’s so beautiful.

A sweet dog who found shade in the chapel.

When we left the chapel we drove back to Oranjestad to find a place for lunch. We happened upon Gostoso. We pulled over and looked it up to find great reviews so we gave it a try. It was sooo good! I should have taken pictures. Also, it is home to the narrowest, tiniest restroom I’ve ever been in!

After lunch we dropped my father & Mimi off at a farmer’s market while we filled the car up with gas and returned it. We boarded the ship and went up to the coffee shop so CSP could get a coffee. We went back to the room to get ready for dinner. Dinner was back in Reflection and we waited and waited for my parents but they never arrived for dinner! I texted Mimi on the Carnival HUB app, but got no response. Back in our room after dinner I called their room, but no answer! Were they still in Aruba?? Were they kidnapped?? Did they miss the ship?? We will find out tomorrow!

Side note- the Horizon is really easy to get around. Lots of you are here ship maps by the elevators so you really can’t get lost even though it’s a huge ship (at least to us). The crew and all of the passengers we’ve encountered have been really friendly!

Tomorrow is a sea day!

csp, family, food, fun, travel

Carnival Horizon Southern Caribbean Day 5

February 22, 2023March 4, 2023 Shannon

This morning we woke up and went to breakfast at Meridian, which is in the back of the ship. We had a table next to a big window (and a ton of high chairs!) which was nice. There was a loud talking lady behind CSP who was a major expert on Bonaire without ever having been there! She was so loud talking that we could barely talk amongst ourselves. Sigh.

Today’s homepage of the Carnival HUB app.

After breakfast we went back to our room and got ready for the day. We docked in Bonaire at 1pm ish. By 2 pm we were on the island. We walked into town, the capital Kralendijk. It’s sooo pretty!

We went to Karel’s and tried their conch fritters. So yummy! CSP had a Polar beer and I had a cocktail called Yellow Bird. Wooo! They sure do pour their drinks strong in Bonaire! One and done for me! We sat on the deck part that’s over the water and it was such a gorgeous day again today! It was so relaxing. There are pigeons all over the place begging for food. They are NOT scared of people! They cracked me up. AND there was a dude snorkeling just off the dock. Bonaire is world famous for scuba diving and snorkeling and this guy chooses the area right beside a beach bar??

After Karel’s we walked around Kralendijk for a while, just exploring. We went to Luciano’s where CSP got a coffee and we shared a delicious warm waffle with a scoop of chocolate and sea salt ice cream on top. They served it with the tiniest little fork and spoon. So precious!

We really like Bonaire- it’s clean and safe and no one bothers you. Highly recommend! We walked back to the ship. The Horizon is a HUGE ship! Over 4000 passengers! It’s the biggest ship we’ve ever cruised on. You don’t realize how big it is until you’re standing next to it and you feel like a tiny bug!

We got showered and dressed for dinner. After dinner we went back to the room and to bed early because we have an early day tomorrow in Aruba!!!

csp, family, travel

Carnival Horizon Southern Caribbean Day 1

February 18, 2023March 2, 2023 Shannon

Today we drove from Melbourne, Florida to the port of Miami. Yesterday we drove from home to pick up my father & his wife Mimi in SC, then on to the hotel in Melbourne (with an obligatory stop at Buc-ee’s of course). Melbourne to Miami should have taken 2.5 hours. It took 4 hours due to wrecks and horrific traffic on I95. We got to the port, parked, and went through the boarding process. At one point they had a group of us line up against a wall while a drug sniffing dog went down the row of us, sniffing us out to see if we were packing! I’ve never experienced that! The boarding process was smooth and efficient and in no time we were onboard the Carnival Horizon!

Once we got on board, CSP & I went to our room to drop off our carryon bags. We met Gede our room steward. SO nice!!! CSP immediately began the search for electrical outlets next to the bed for our CPAP machines. There were none. A quick tour of our room.

Nice large tv. Door behind it is to the bathroom.

The vanity& closet area. Only one small drawer in vanity area and half of it is taken up by small hairdryer that can’t be removed. 3 drawers and 2 shelves in closet. Plus a safe.

Bath with shower. Shower gel and shampoo are provided.

So we went up to the Lido deck (deck 10) for lunch. We met up with my father and Mimi for a bit and ate from the buffet. It was super crowded and there were already people in their swimsuits walking around. And thongs! So many thongs! With no coverups! Nothing like lunch with a side of tushy.

Next we went to our muster station for a very quick muster drill. Then we headed down to Guest Services to stand in line for extension cords for our CPAP machines. There are 2 regular 120 volt outlets in our room and they are under the vanity light. It took 45 minutes in line because Diamond and Platinum cruisers are allowed to cut in line. Hmmm.

In front of Guest Services there’s a bar and lounge area with this cool funnel thing that has a video screen that wraps all around and changes designs based on what’s going on at the moment! Very cool!

Once we were finished at Guest Services we called home from the lounge there as we had no cell service in our room and up on deck was too loud. We checked in on our pups and family then went back to our room for a quick nap and to freshen up for dinner. That’s when we noticed my large suitcase was damaged (by the porters maybe? or maybe something caught on it? who knows?!?). I tried calling Guest Services but they were so busy I kept getting disconnected. So we took pictures of the damage to show them later.

Because of where the rip is and how the suitcase is made, when we opened it up it about split right in two!

Dinner tonight was in the Meridian restaurant. We met up with Mimi & my father at 7. You have to check in on your Carnival HUB app for dinner. Well, you and the rest of humanity who was all congregated at the entrance of the restaurant! And the entrance was right in front of the elevators. And there was nowhere to sit. Anyway, I checked us all in and the app said there was less than a 10 minute wait at 7 pm. Then every 10 minutes I would get a notification that there was still less than a 10 minute wait. It was odd. What if you don’t have a smartphone I wonder? Anyway, after over 30 minutes of waiting, my father bugged the host staff enough that they sat us and we had a great dinner. CSP had a steak and I had chicken parm. We were seated near the kitchen doors that would swing open and give us a peek of their escalator! The restaurant is on 2 decks/levels so the escalator makes it easier for waitstaff to go between levels. So smart!

We were exhausted after dinner (I drove all the way from NC to Miami, btw) so we went back to our room and crashed! Tomorrow is a Sea Day!

travel

Disney Wonder Southern Caribbean 2020 Day 9

January 26, 2020February 10, 2020 Shannon

Today we woke up at 7am and had to be at breakfast promptly at 8 in Tritons. We hung out in Tritons until they called our luggage tag (Blue Donald), said our goodbyes to Dede our server and then we disembarked. We found our luggage in the warehouse and found a taxi van to take us to the airport. American Airlines had pushed our return flight departure time back a few hours so we had almost 6 hours to kill. It was still hard to find a seat at our gate!

San Juan- y’all need to add about eleventy million chairs to your waiting areas! At least we had lots of fun subjects for people watching.

Our flight home was smooth. We both watched Shazam. It was cute!

Ok- some random things about the cruise that didn’t really fit into the other posts:

~In Bonaire CSP picked up these cute shells because he thought they were neat.

Pro Tip: I don’t think it’s advised to bring back shells. I don’t think the cruise ships like it. Maybe it’s a US customs thing? Anyway, CSP brought a handful back and handed them to me. I put them in the shallow vanity drawer. The next day I opened the drawer to put the Daily Navigator away. BTW, they don’t deliver the Daily Navigator to you every day now because all of the information is on the Disney Cruise app. But you can still pick one up each day at the Guest Services desk. So I opened the drawer and when I looked inside I yelled for CSP. His little souvenirs had moved! They were crawling up the sides of the drawer! They were ALIVE! Little snail-ish type creatures. Crazy! So CSP immediately put them back in the ocean. I hope he learned his lesson!!!

~You can bring beer and wine onboard the Disney cruise ships. We flew so we didn’t take advantage of this option on this cruise. Plus, we aren’t wine drinkers. In Bonaire CSP saw some locally made beer he wanted while we were at the supermarket. I told him that since we were in port if he brought the beer onboard they would confiscate it and hold it until we got back to Puerto Rico. So he just bought some water and a couple of Cokes instead. As we were boarding the ship that afternoon we asked the guys at the booze confiscation station about it. Turns out I was wrong and CSP could have brought back a 12 pack (6 beers for each of us. I don’t drink beer but they allow each person 6 beers). OOOPSIE. CSP was so annoyed! I said run back out and get some then! So the next day in Aruba CSP bought an Aruban beer (pack of 10). He proudly built a beeramid in our room, much to the delight of our room steward I’m sure. I swear I’m married to a 16 year old boy sometimes!

~By today my bruises on my leg had really started to bloom from my bathtub fall. I was able to get my sneakers on and walk through the airport just fine (thank goodness!)

~My friend Jennifer made me some Disney Cruise Line earrings to wear on the cruise. They are super cute and made from vegan leather so they are so lightweight you don’t even know you’ve got them on. I wore them 2 different days on the cruise. On the 2nd occasion we were at lunch in Tritons when the lady at the table next to us said “I love your earrings!” I thanked her. Her little boy (age 5) then piped up and said “Did you win them at Bingo??” I said no, and told them that they are Little Llama Designs originals. It was so cute!

~In one port our ship was next to another cruise ship that had this CRAZY ride on their top deck. You get in this wee pod/basket/capsule thing and it lifts you up SO high and swings you out over the ocean. OH HELL NO!!! There is not enough money in the world to get me on that thing! Kudos to the brave souls who ride it!

~At the Alto Vista chapel in Aruba there are vendors waiting to sell you water and flavored ice and trinkets. We walked up and noticed right away that one vendor was selling vehicle license tags from the US. Minnesota was the state at the top of the string of tags on display. CSP is from Minnesota so he got a kick out of that. Can you imagine going all the way to Aruba (right off the coast of South America) and your souvenir is a car tag from Minnesota?!? So random!

~CSP is a bit nutty. He fell in love with the bathroom tissue on the ship. So when we got home he found it on Amazon and made me order a box for the house. EIGHTY ROLLS PEOPLE.

We had a wonderful trip! Even with the hiccup of my fall and our canceled resort for a day, it was a fabulous vacation and we can’t wait to go back to the ABC islands again one day!

travel

Disney Wonder Southern Caribbean 2020 Day 8

January 25, 2020February 8, 2020 Shannon

Today we woke up early to beat the crowds to Cabanas buffet for breakfast so CSP could get one last plate of lox and salmon. I don’t know how he can eat fish for breakfast but he loves it. We went back to the cabin after breakfast for a little nappy nap. After waking up and reading for a bit we got ready for the day and went to Triton’s for lunch. Then back to our room to pack. The saddest part of the cruise! Once we were all packed up we read out on our verandah for a while.

Later we went down to the Crown and Fin pub for The Feud. It’s the Disney version of Family Feud. It was so fun!

After The Feud we went up to the pool for a while so CSP could swim and I could read. While up there I thought to myself that I could really go for a cranberry bliss bar from Starbucks. So we went into the Cove Cafe to get a snacky snack and found….cranberry bars!!! It was fate!

Finally it was time to go back to the room to get ready for our last dinner of the cruise.

Tonight’s dinner was in Triton’s.

Triton’s is my favorite restaurant on the Wonder. I love Tiana’s but it can be SO loud. Triton’s is beautiful and elegant. Tonight was lobster night. CSP had 2 of everything! Did you know you can do that? He had 2 appetizers and 2 entrees. They’ll bring you the whole menu if you ask for it! A cruise is a fabulous time to try new foods.

After dinner we went back to finish packing

and hit the hay!

fun, travel

Disney Wonder Southern Caribbean 2020 Day 4

January 21, 2020February 2, 2020 Shannon

Day at Sea!

This morning we had breakfast at Triton’s. On the way there we ran into Tiana! I love her dress.

After breakfast we went back to the room to get ready for the day.

Then it was time to shop! On each cruise we get a magnet with the year on it. Also, Mom of CSP was home in Charlotte taking care of our home and dogs so we shopped for a thank you gift for her. We found the magnet for ourselves and an Alex & Ani Disney Cruise Line bangle for MIL.

We then went up to Deck 9 for drinks and a quick bite of lunch. I love the chicken shawarma (like a chicken gyro)!

Next we headed down to the Walt Disney Theatre for Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker.

It was a full house today and a good movie! Afterwards we went back to our room for a bit and found a plate of sweets from the chef from Tiana’s Place! How nice!

Down we went to the Crown & Fin pub for the Disney version of Wheel of Fortune with Derrell. So fun!

When that was over we stopped by Guest Services to see if by chance there was any space left in tonight’s bourbon tasting. CSP lucked out and grabbed the last spot! We popped back into the shop to pick up an Alex & Ani Disney Cruise Line bangle for me.

Then up to the Future Cruise desk to book 2021’s cruise on the Magic to Key West and the Bahamas. Fun!

We went back to our room to get ready for dinner.

A lot of people decorate their stateroom doors with magnets. It helps you find your room! Here we paid homage to Stitch!

Isai our room steward was in our room at the time. He was finishing up so we went in and chatted with him for a few. He’s from the Dominican Republic and is super nice.

Dinner tonight was in Triton’s.

On the way to dinner we spotted Cinderella.

There was a woman and her daughter at dinner tonight sporting light up Minnie ears! Similar to this:

SO pretty! Tonight at dinner CSP had his favorite appetizer- escargot! And for dessert I had the Grand Marnier souffle. So yummy!

After dinner we walked out of the restaurant and into the hallway and ran right into Captain America! Of course my phone was in my wristlet and I didn’t think to get it out for a picture! Cap said he was out on patrol keeping the ship safe from HYDRA etc. I just love how committed the characters are to their roles! Even with the adults.

Then we headed up to the Cove Cafe for CSP’s bourbon tasting.

That was interesting!

It was a full house. I found it funny that CSP was the only one who drank all of his bourbon. Everyone else just daintily sipped theirs.

Once the bourbon tasting was over we made it back to our room for bed.

We have to get up early tomorrow for Bonaire!!!

travel

Disney Wonder Southern Caribbean 2020 Day 3

January 20, 2020February 1, 2020 Shannon

Today we are docked in Antigua! Because we have plans at 3 other islands this week we decided to stay onboard today to enjoy the near empty ship! We woke up early and had breakfast at the Cabanas buffet.

I’m not normally a buffet fan but Cabanas puts on a nice breakfast! After breakfast we went back to the room to get ready for the day and enjoy some verandah time.

Later, around 11:30 am, we went up to deck 9 (the pool deck) for a quick, light lunch.

We also filled up our Tervis tumblers and I got a Dole Whip.

We then watched Spider-Man: Far From Home. It was good! We spent some more time out on our verandah and before we knew it it was time to get showered for dinner.

Tonight was Formal Night so I took some extra time to get glam!

I brought with me some magnetic eyelashes and eyeliner to try for the first time. They are amazing and so easy to use!!! I’ll never go back to glue!

Dinner tonight was in Tiana’s Place.

It was delicious! CSP got rum marinated swordfish for dinner and he found a shrimp shell in the sauce. That could be a problem if he was allergic to shellfish. He told Dede (our server) about it, not wanting to cause a scene or a problem, just bringing it to their attention. Dede then went and brought the Head Server Devendra over. They both apologized and we thought that was the end of it. Then all the sudden the Chef de Cuisine was standing at our table apologizing! We never expected that! That’s Disney service for you!

After dinner we went to the Azure club.

The club host Derrell (hilarious!!!) led the room in a fun game of Intuition (just like the game Taboo).

It was really fun and our team won. I tried a mango mojito and it was ok, but I just can’t stop drinking my favorite coconut mojitos!

We stayed in Azure for the 10:30 pm magic show. Kyle & Mystie Knight were the magicians. They were really good!

After the magic show we went back to our room for bed.

It was such a relaxing day!

fun, travel

Disney Wonder Southern Caribbean 2020 Day 2

January 19, 2020February 1, 2020 Shannon

Today we woke up at 6 am to beat the rush to the free breakfast at the hotel. Then we came back to our room and had a we nap. We woke up, packed up, got ready for the day, and took a scary taxi ride to the port. Traffic rules don’t seem to really apply in San Juan!

We arrived to find millions of people in line for embarkation!!! The lines went on forever! First we had to stand in line outside on the surface of the sun with all our luggage to get to the luggage drop off.

Then we went inside to stand in another long line to check in.

Then we had to walk through a short maze that led us to a HUGE, air conditioned, EMPTY warehouse that we had to walk through to go back outside to walk the length of the ship. WHY couldn’t we have stood in line in the a/c in the warehouse?? I need answers Disney! We finally boarded the Disney Wonder! It took almost 2 hours to board! We are spoiled from the embarkation process in Port Canaveral, FL where it takes like 20 minutes from car to stateroom!

Our room was ready so we went to it and dropped off our day bags.

We went up to the Cabanas buffet for lunch, then back to the room to call home. Next it was time for the dreaded Muster Drill. We lined up on Deck 4. Luckily we were in the shade! And, we were even more lucky that it was over quickly! Shortest muster drill ever! Yay!!!

We went back to our room to watch the ship sail away from our verandah. There was an airfield across from the port. We watched as a helicopter went through a helicopter car wash! So cool!

We unpacked and it was time to get ready for dinner. As soon as we sailed out of the harbor the seas turned really rough! The ship was really rocking tonight! People (including me, I’m people) were pin balling down the hallways because the ship was rocking so hard!

On the way to dinner we stopped for a moment in Shutter’s (the photo gallery), and I’m so glad we did! Ariel stopped by to talk to us! She said my hair was aesthetically pleasing and did I do it with my dinglehopper?? She was so cute!!! I was so caught up in talking with her it didn’t occur to me to get out my phone for a picture! When she walked away CSP said to me “Who was that and what’s a dinglehopper?” Ha!!!

Dinner tonight was at Animator’s Palate.

I was so impressed that the servers were able to deliver meals to the tables without spilling everything everywhere with the rough seas! Our servers are Dede (male) from Indonesia and Judit from Hungary. They are fabulous and we liked them right away! Side note- Disney Cruise Line switched to paper straws. Yay for the environment! Luckily I’d heard about this before we boarded so I brought my reusable metal straws. Paper straws just don’t hold up unless you drink super fast!