Cruise 2K8- Day 6 and 7

On Day 6 we arrived in Cozumel at 8 am. Our Dolphin swim was scheduled for 10 am, but we weren’t sure if that was ship time or Cozumel time and we didn’t even know what the time difference was! So we got off the boat at about 8:45 and found a taxi to take us to Chankanabb Park . We were early and the park wasn’t even open yet (we only had to wait about 5 min. though- until 8 am Cozumel time). Pretty much the only other people there were the 100 or so people for the Carnival Dolphin swim.

We checked in with the Dolphin swim people and then we were free to explore the park. It was so pretty. They had these big wood Adirondack chairs and straw cabana huts everywhere. They had a big blocked off snorkeling area, a nice pool, a lagoon swim area, an outdoor bar, a restaurant, and a shop where you could rent snorkeling equipment (they even had those bubbles you put over your head!) We walked down the beach and looked for Play Uvas (that’s where the rest of our group was going). Apparently it was right beside us, but in the opposite direction we walked. We saw a couple wild iguanas sunning themselves. We finally decided to go hang out in the pool until our dolphin swim. It was so relaxing.

After our dolphin swim we decided to hang out by the pool area for a little while until heading back to the port to go to Carlos and Charlie’s. We tried getting a drink at the swim up bar, but they didn’t serve alcohol. So we took turns going over to the bar by the lagoon. They had great pina coladas and a great strawberry/banana margarita! After getting some sun and cooling off in the pool we headed over to the bar together for one last drink. I got a coco loco (which is like a long island except with coconut milk instead of soda.) The best part about it was it came in a real coconut! So cool! At the bar we met a local tour guide who was really nice and was teaching us lots of funny (aka-bad) Spanish phrases. He was super nice and also gave us a coupon for some free nachos at Carlos and Charlie’s.

We then got a taxi back to the port and headed to Carlos and Charlie’s. There were all these people with monkeys/parrots/iguanas and they were charging to take a picture with them! Crazy! Carols and Charlie’s is crazy! It is loud and the energy is so upbeat! The drinks come in these long yardsticks. We each ordered fish tacos and used our coupon for the free nachos and each got a yardstick drink (our total came to like $30 each at the end). I went to the bathroom and when I came out they were doing a conga line through the restaurant so I jumped in. Well, this wasn’t any ordinary conga line. They had about 4 people throughout the restaurant that would shoot tequila into your mouth as you passed. It was crazy! Shortly after that the rest of our group got there and we had a great time! Some people had their specialty tequila shots where the girl pours it down your throat, shakes your head around, and pats and jiggles your whole body. Kristin and I got a free drink with our armbands from the dolphin swim- Sweet! But sadly the party had to come to an end so we could get back on our boat by 4 pm. That night some of us missed the second formal night due to our over-indulgences!

The last day was pretty lazy. Just packing, laying by the pool, and our last meal (Roger’s B-day!). We all pretty much did our own thing during the day which was nice because 7 days in a big group like that can get stressful. We set out our luggage that night and went to bed early. We got up early, cleared out our room and had our last breakfast in the dining room (it was all very bittersweet). We had to wait around just a little bit before debarkation, made it to the airport super early, and made it back to Raleigh safe and sound by 2 pm. It was so nice to be home!

Here are some pics from Cozumel :
Hint: Don’t click “Download this Video” just use the arrows at the bottom

Some other funny/interesting/strange/notable moments from the cruise:

- Stephanie and Brooklyn trying to figure out where the camera was on Medusa’s dance floor

- Carnival staff having to drain the pool because a kid pooped in it on our last sea day

- Thinking a burger and fries in Cozumel was $77 because we didn’t know everything was in pesos

- Finding “Zeta” brand water in Belize !

- Slipping all around on the pool deck

- “Butt-hole covers” (seriously some of the suits were way too skimpy)

- Almost our entire table special requesting mac and cheese every night

- Jeff throwing a cigar off the boat and into the ocean because it "sucked" (reminiscent of the watch incident!)

- Running into the same people over and over on the boat (hello Clayton Family)

If there are any that I missed please leave me a comment. These posts are really for me so I won’t forget what a great time we had! (But I hope you enjoying reading it too!)