Caribbean Cruise – Day 4
I woke up within minutes of room service calling to say our coffee was on the way. After drinking a cup, I put on my bathing suit and cover-up and gathered what I needed for my excursion in Labadee, Haiti. Once Karyn was dressed, we headed up to the cafe for breakfast.
After breakfast, we headed to deck one to leave the ship and walk the long pier into Labadee. We had a few minutes to kill before our trip to the sandbar, so we soaked up some sun while looking at our surroundings.
A powered catamaran took us to the sandbar, about 30 minutes away. The tide was in, so the visible part of the sandbar was very tiny. We grabbed some floating mats and jumped into the water, which was only around waist deep in most places. Someone needs to invent an anchor for floating mats…it was very hard not to drift too far away from the boat and the sandbar. I didn’t see any marine life below me, though a lady that was snorkeling said she was finding fat sand dollars and saw some sea urchins. I saw one of the sand dollars later and I couldn’t believe how fat they were compared to the ones we find on the Pacific coast in Washington.
After the catamaran took us back to the main island, we had lunch, then headed down to the beach. We decided we didn’t need floating mats…we both have lots of buoyancy in our bottoms to keep us afloat (sometimes being fat has its advantages).
My little digital camera that I bought for when I was in the water seems to be working fairly well. I paid only $60 for it online and it has a plastic housing that can be removed if you want to use the camera away from water. It’s only a 5 megapixel, but it’s good enough for me…and way better than one of those disposable waterproof film cameras.
When we went back to the ship, we sat in the hot tub for a bit before heading to our room for a much needed nap. Now it’s time to get ready for dinner.
Back from dinner…decided to relax and read in my stateroom tonight. The sun really wore me out today and I’m a bit red (even though I used plenty of sunscreen and applied it several times).
Backing up a bit to the sandbar island getaway from earlier today…One of the Haitians that was part of the crew was talking to Karyn. He’s 24 and having to support his mother and seven children. His father is dead. Karyn asked him if he liked working for the cruise line. He said not really…what he really wanted to do is become a doctor, but since he has to support the his family, he can’t. We’re thinking of seeing if we can raise money towards a college fund for him. He’s a really sweet (and good looking) guy.
Another note about Haiti…Royal Caribbean makes room on the ship to carry and deliver supplies to Haiti to help with those affected by the earthquake in the south of the island. Also, just by visiting the island, we guarantee jobs to those working in the port of calls…jobs that are really important when things are so dire since the earthquake.
