Savannah, Georgia

4th of July, 2006 My family went away for a couple of days to the most charming, historic and beautiful city of Savannah, Georgia... it was established in 1733 and was the first colonial and state capital of Georgia.

This place is truly amazing! It is like being lost in the past... wherever you look, the homes and buildings are gorgeous colonial architecture, old oak trees everywhere drapped with moss, enchanting parks and even the new buildings are built to make them look like centruries old to preserve the colonial feel in the whole city of Savannah.

My family stayed at Hyatt in the Historic Riverfront. To our amazement, the hotel is very modern looking inside and out... although it is a first rate hotel, to me it’s almost an eye-sore compared to all the old charming hotels and bed & breakfast houses around. The hotel is in a great location though! the ground level is the same as the River Street where all the shops and restaurants are an attraction by themselves. We ate at a Greek Restaurant that had the best osso buco I ever eaten. The restaurant is inside a building that was built in the early 1800’s... wow, it was kind of eerie and the streets going in and out are paved with probably the original cobblestones. The following day, we went on a guided-tour bus around the city. It really felt like we had gone by in time... the good old times!

Hyatt... where we stayed

River Street... just below Hyatt Hotel

Greek Restaurant on River Street

Historic Riverfront... just outside Hyatt

we're on a Bus Tour...
horse-drawn carriage is also available for tours...

Forsytt Park... 

the building in the background was design to make it look like the Buckingham Palace

one of the many charming bed & breakfast

Savannah Cotton Exchange

Washington guns... remains from the Civil War

shops

a sad story behind this monument... a young lady waves to passing ships in hopes that it is her beloved's ship coming back from the war to marry her... but years gone by and he never did come back... she waved the flag for 44 years! wow, that's devotion...

Royal Caribbean's Radiance of the Seas

“There's no thrill in easy sailing when the skies are clear and blue, there's no joy in merely doing things which any one can do. But there is some satisfaction that is mighty sweet to take, when you reach a destination that you never thought you'd make.”

Radiance of the Seas

3rd - 9th of December 2006

This particular cruise was special to me since it was during my birthday! My family totally loves cruising with any of Royal Caribbean’s ships. Radiance of the Seas is a smaller ship, but they did not compromise on anything. They excel in pretty much everything that’s why we keep coming back for more! This was a 7-night cruise that originated in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The itineraries include: Key West, Florida; Cozumel, Mexico; Montego Bay, Jamaica and Georgetown, Grand Cayman.

 

"Sailing alone soothes me because the sea is fair, not cruel. It judges only your ability. It does not care who or what you are. It does not ask your age, color, sex, address, sexual orientation, education or IQ, but only your competence. It requires only that you can sail. If you can, you survive. If you can't, better stay ashore. That's fair, more fair than most of us experience on land...and refreshing."

Among her spectacular features are the 10-story glass-constructed Centrum, glass elevators facing the sea, and the highest percentage of outside staterooms in the Royal Caribbean fleet.

Passenger Capacity: 2,501

Centrium

The solarium pool. It's like being lost somewhere in Egypt.

One of the two formal nights at dinner time.
Yes, bring at least two formal attire when cruising, unless of course you don't care for that sort of thing. You do have other options. There are many casual dinning elsewhere in the ship. 
  

 The gorgeous two-story dinning room!!!
Our (private) table was by the huge mural at the center back.
 Hubby was amazed by our good fortune in garnering our very own table.
The norm is always be in a table of 6 or so, where one is forced to commingle with others, whether you like it or not. 

Don’t get me wrong; some are good company, while others are just disagreeable. 

  

One of the many casual dinning @ the formal dinning room.

We welcome with both arms all the pampering and attention that we're getting in this voyage.We don’t get this kind of attention on land. Well, on occassion.

 Docking in Key West, Florida

We walked around here and shopped for souvenirs;
very touristy. Don't you think?  

Docking in Cozumel, Mexico

Alayna is looking forlorn at this point. Poor thing was sick, it looks so obvious in her expression. She must have been sea sick (no GI problem) or just in a shock of her new environment.

My family just wondered 'round the port and shopped 'til we dropped.

Montego Bay, Jamaica (MoBay)

We hired a cab and had a fantastic city tour. Our driver was awesome, he took us wherever we want to go sight seeing, shopping and even where the locals hang-out!

A terrific experience considering that drivers are very wild... reminds me of the Philippines :))

Atop a famous mountain resort in MoBay.

Last destination: Georgetown, Grand Cayman

getting ready to tender...

We purchased a hand shaker for Alayna to keep her entertained,

but now Bill is annoyed with that noise :))
It's hard to please everyone.

A sea of ships. 
There must be 7 to 8 cruise ships out there.

Bill have scuba dived at StingRay City the prior years, long before we meet.  
He loved the experience!

Last day of our cruise...

Alayna got sick on this trip, so she's praying to get home soon.
Love that sweet smile!  
 

My birthday! December 7
Black and white tandem.
 

Tribute night to the waiters and waitresses from all over the world!
Thank you! 
Merci!
Gracias!
Grazie! 
Maraming salamat!
Arigato!
Paldies!
Va multumim frumos!
Etc!!!
 

"Ships that pass in the night and speak each other in passing;
Only a signal shown and a distant voice in the darkness;
So on the ocean of life we pass and speak one another,
Only a look and a voice; then darkness again and a silence."

Farewell night... 2nd formal dinner

We had the best table, just for three!

Bill asked me how I convinced the cruise line to give us our very own table,

little did he know that I had nothing to do with it, just got really lucky! :))

Here are some of the ship's highlights:

Rock-climbing wall

Portofino Italian Restaurant

Chops Grille

Seaview Café

Themed bars and lounges

Casino RoyaleSM

The Colony Club, a unique British colonial-style lounge with self-leveling pool tables

African safari-themed Solarium

Indoor/outdoor country club with golf simulator

Adventure Ocean® youth facilities

Day Spa and Fitness Center

Sports court with basketball/volleyball court

"If you have to be somewhere by a certain date, you aren't cruising, you're racing."

Loved it! We are coming back for more!!!

*****

Eastern Caribbean Cruise '04

Welcome Aboard!

The Mariner of the Seas... 22nd- 29th of August 2004

Port Canaveral- Florida, Nassau- Bahamas, Charlotte Amelie- St. Thomas U.S.V.I. and St. Martin, N.A.

Alayna’s first cruise was a hit. There is no question that Bill & I love cruising, so when we took alayna on her first cruise, it was even more fun for us... Living in Cocoa Beach at the time was so convenient for us to take cruises since Cape Canaveral was only 15-minute drive from our house. No flights, no claiming of the baggage and no over-night stay in hotels and that entire nuisance. Our ideal vacation, just pack-up our bags, jump in the car and board the ship just 30 minutes after leaving the house. What could be better?

Royal Caribbean’s Mariner of the Seas was the biggest cruise ship we ever travelled with. The best part of the whole vacation was having our very own balcony. Every time we want privacy, we just ordered drinks and meals delivered to our room and enjoy the breezes in our private balcony... also when the ship anchored at every port, we have a different view every time... marveling at the beautiful turquoise waters and watching people having fun in the water, jet skiing, wind surfing and other water sports.

Our first destination, Nassau, Bahamas... we never arrange anything prior to arriving at any port. The cruise ship offers several planned itineraries for the guests to enjoy during the duration of the stay, which is usually 8-10 hrs. After having breakfast, my family just gets off the ship and looks around the port and sees what looks interesting. After minutes of getting off the ship, cab drivers approached us if we want to take a tour around the city. We are always reluctant in taking a ride at a strange vehicle in an unfamiliar country (especially if they’re not recommended by the cruise line), but we always end-up doing it anyway... this time was even more tempting, because it was a very nice limousine and they only want to charge $60 for the three of us! The going rate for city tours and other tourists trips costs at least $60 per person, so it was a great deal, we thought... the two-hour tour was very good except our driver took us to the “poorest area” of Nassau as he calls it, which was strange... Actually the area didn’t look poor to me... I have seen worst neighborhoods in the Phils. The houses looked middle-class and are well-built. He must have thought that we needed to know that? Anyway, it was a bit disappointing for me, because we didn’t have enough time to go and check out The Atlantis Resort. It was newly built at that time. So I just ended up buying postcards. We did see it from the ship and while driving around town looking at monuments of Columbus and other historical sites. When in land, we collect souvenirs from every port of call. Bill loves his hat collection and I like my postcards, photo frames and t-shirts.

limo ride in Nassau, Bahamas

Columbus Statue

Nassau's Center Square


here are photos of the Atlantis Resort

Back to the ship, dinner is another interesting time during the duration of the cruise. We get to meet people from other states and other countries. The waiters and waitresses are from all over the world and they are so friendly and accommodating. We really felt pampered. If the cruise is 7 days, we get to dress-up formally, twice. Other nights are just smart casual or casual. Have I mentioned the Dinning room is huge and grand? Three-story high and an atrium in the middle of it. The meals are always sumptuous and delicious. No matter how full you are dessert is still irresistible. If you don’t want to join the formality of being served, there is always the Windjammer Cafe that serves buffet for breakfast, lunch, snacks and dinner. There is almost non-stop serving of food... everything is inclusive (well, except for alcoholic beverages). If you think you’re going to get fat in this vacation, you could always take a jog at the track outside the ship’s deck, swim in the pool, rock climb, skate in the ice skating rink, play basketball, play putt in the mini-golf course, hit the gym or just simply take a stroll in the promenade... The shopping on board is also enticing. We’ve bought some stuff and are very happy on our purchases. So many activities are available in the ship... day or night. We like to watch a show after dinner. A variety show is always nice. They have disco if you’re into that... or just sit by the many bars available, listen to a piano playing and enjoy a cocktail or two. When you finally want to rest after a long day of exploring, just head towards the elevator and go to your room, sleep and get ready for another adventure the following day.

one of the many inside lounge

alayna ready for bed, but wait she found chocolates on the pillows :D

one of the many entertainment in the ship... this was a "cirqe de soleil" inspired show

getting ready for casual dinner

pirate! i think this guy is from the Philippines

Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas, USVI... second port of call. This gorgeous island is actually part of the US. with about 19,000 populations... famous as a deep-water harbor that was once a haven for pirates and is now a famed cruise ship port of call; with about 1.5 million cruise ship passengers landing there. For me, it’s the best looking port in the Caribbean. A lot of boutiques and shoppes right outside the port. We didn’t take a land tour this time, upon arriving, we just hop on a mid-size fun boat and off we go to a secluded white sandy beach island. It was also a glass-bottom boat and we got to see some colorful fishes, nothing spectacular. The crew was good at entertaining the passengers... drinks were served and fun Caribbean songs were played. Some passengers even had a blast dancing with the crew. Few hours spent in St. Thomas was definitely relaxing... and we like it like that.

the water is so beautiful here!

boarding a party boat!

at one of the many tiny islands in St Thomas

Last port of call, St. Martin, (Dutch side)... the island is divided in half between France and the Netherlands Antilles. Again, we didn’t wonder too far off into the island. The port was very well developed and lots of shops and restaurants in the port. It was such a beautiful day, not too hot and the wind was blowing that we decided to hang around the port and enjoy the day people watching, getting some more sun and stroll along the many shoppes that offers great deals.

St Martin Port/ Shoppes

docking in Saint Maarten

alayna @ our balcony, checking out the view :)

After a relaxing day at the port, we headed back to the ship... took a short nap and get ready for dinner. Time to catch up with the other couples (from our table) and where they’ve gone. One of the couples was newly wed and they go for everything, from scuba diving, snorkeling, biking, and hiking. The second couple also does more than us. My family doesn’t like a hectic day. It’s a vacation and the main reason is to relax... Waking up early in the morning and fall in line to get somewhere just doesn’t appeal to us.

relaxing at the pool side

So many things to do in the ship... how could you get bored? Activities for children, teenagers and adults... If you are feeling lucky, there is Casino Royale and try your luck at roulette or slot machine. The last two days at sea heading back to Cape Canaveral... more time lounging in the pool area, having pina coladas and sun bathe (for Bill anyway, I tend to hide from the sun :) As our cruise was coming to an end... we are already missing the pampering from the waiters, our room attendant and most of the crew that we met. Not everyday that we get to experience a week off... out of the ordinary :))