In the past I have always chosen to go on warm sunny Caribbean cruises when the weather at home is cold and the skies are gray.
This time I chose a cruise north to New England and Canada, where it's a few degrees cooler, during hot summer weather at home.
I sailed on this ship " Vision of the Seas".
But first, I have to back up a bit and tell about the day before the cruise.
I was nearly fully packed and was giving the house a good cleaning (I like to do this each time I leave on vacation).
About 3:00 in the afternoon there was a call from the water company. They had an alert that I was using way more water than usual and they wondered if I was filling a pool.
To make a long story short...an underground leak was discovered between the meter and the house...so it was my responsibility to repair. I was able to arrange for a repairman to come out the next day. (The Sasquatch came over while they worked)
Meanwhile, the water had to be turned off at the meter. I hurried up and showered and filled buckets and clean containers with water to be able to get ready the next morning.
I'm so glad the water company got hold of me that day, or it would have been leaking the 9 days that I was away.
But now...back to the cruise. The ship is the smallest ship in the Royal Caribbbean fleet.
Still pretty big though. This is looking one direction down the hall from my cabin.
I didn't get a balcony this time. They were double the price of this "ocean view" room.
It was nice because if I had a short nap in the afternoon, I could lay sideways on the bed and look out at the ocean.
I was on deck two. Here's the rest of the room. You can see it's older, but clean and well maintained.
I'll admit, I was a little disappointed at first but after a short time I really liked the ship for it's smaller size and convenient design. It reminded me of the first cruises that Lonnie and I took back in the 1990's.
This is the main pool area.
A good spot for a bon voyage drink!
The ship sailed from Baltimore harbor. There's the harbor pilot boat ready to guide us out.
See you later, Baltimore! Great weather, too.
As we sailed out we came to the remains of the Key Bridge that collapsed last year when a cargo ship ran into it.
It was slow sailing all evening. We actually had to first head south...leaving Baltimore and heading down through the Chesapeake Bay...all the way past the coast of Virginia to reach open water and begin the journey north.
I unpacked my suitcase then had an early bedtime since I'd gotten up at 3:00 am for my 5:30 am flight. I slept like a log. The ship sounds never seem to bother me.
Lovely weather again the next day which was a day at sea. I just relaxed near the pool area but in the shade. I read a while, worked on stitching a while, and did some people watching.
I had pre-paid for a meal in the onboard steak restaurant. I had a filet that was really good.
Lots of older people on this cruise. It was a slower more laid back feeling.
So many friendly people ready to start up a conversation.
It seems like so many of the conversations start with " Where are you from?". Then we talk about cruising and our favorite places to cruise.
Fun just to sit in the lounge areas in the evening and listen to live music and talk a bit.
This is the "Centrum"...the main lobby of the ship with the glass elevators. Different performers during each evening.
These were my favorites...a Caribbean/Reggae sound.
This is getting sort of long already. I'll go ahead and stop here then I'll work on part two.
