Western Caribbean: Cozumel

Tuesday morning I got up early and went on a sunrise run on the Promenade Deck. It was beautiful but I forgot to take a camera!  We ordered room service and breakfasted on our balcony so that we wouldn't be rushed to get to our big day out with the ship in port at Cozumel. Turns out we had plenty of time.  As we were in the long line waiting to depart the ship, an announcement was made that the they were pulling up the gangplank to let another ship dock and we would have to wait 30 minutes. A few people around us got grumpy. No one in our group, of course, as usual we cheerfully adapted and adjusted, taking the opportunity to observe the behavior and clothing of those around us. Soon another announcement told us to go wait in another area with seating, so we made a bee line there and I was able to get a fancy coffee from my coffee card, which made the waiting quite enjoyable.

At last we were on our way. Venisa and Anthony had an exciting zipline excursion at an Adventure Park, while we old folks headed to a boat that would take us to Passion Island. We got on the yellow boat farthest to the right.

Passion Island is a tourist resort with plenty of places to relax and soak it in. The tour guide greeted us with, "Hello, is this your first trip to Cuba?" Ha ha.

Below is the restroom building….containers were provided to dispose of toilet paper, because you weren't allowed to flush it. Eeuuw.

The water was not as warm as we hoped. That didn't stop Will and Carol from taking a swim. Galen and I got our feet wet. (We are Troyers from Nebraska who were very underprivileged as children, and we never had the opportunity to learn to enjoy water when we were young.)

Will and Galen chose to relax in the shade. Carol and I enjoyed the sun.

 A delicious Chicken BBQ lunch was part of our package. Sadly, by the time we went through the buffet line, they were out of forks. Yes, out of forks, and had been for awhile. They were also nearly out of chips with which to enjoy their famous salsa and guacamole. Our waiter brought us forks shortly after we started our meal.

 Then more time to relax.

 There are worse ways to spend the day.

 Carol looks like she's enjoying the ride back. Just look at the color of that water!

 We had a little time to do some shopping before it was time to board the ship.

 Carol did some hard bargaining with this vendor for a birthday gift for a grandchild. When he came down to the final price, the condition included a kiss on the cheek. I took this picture the second before he leaned over, tapped his cheek….and Carol actually moved in and sealed the bargain! Oh, the things people do when they're on vacation! I so wish I could have captured the moment on camera!

 Time to head back to the ship after our exciting day!

 We had a chance to relax on the deck and share the stories of our day.

 The sun was setting as we departed Cozumel, and the other ship departed as well.

 Another sunset at sea.

 More delicious seafood for dinner! The night before, I had told our group about the monthly guide for three daily gifts to look for (from the Joy Dare, Ann Voskamp). This day's gifts were three things from God's world. Some of the gifts shared at dinner were: Venisa loved seeing the beautiful fish as she snorkeled, Will was happy to be healthy and able to swim in the ocean, Carol was happy that the six of us were enjoying God's world together. (I also had to confess that when I looked at the list again, it actually said "3 things from God's Word". Those reading glasses are really important!)

And surprise, when we went back to our room for the night, balloons and a birthday card awaited Will, who celebrated his 60th birthday 10 days earlier.