Day Two: Nassau, Bahamas on RCL Wonder of the Seas, January 2023
January 8, 2023
We had never planned on getting off at Nassau. We used to own property there and are no longer fans.
I didn’t sleep well at all due to knee pain – only 2 hours, 15 minutes.
A first look at Atlantis on Paradise Island. Back in the day Paradise Island was known as Hog Island but that didn’t do much for tourism.
And the Paradise Island lighthouse
! did take lots of pictures of docking. 2 Carnival ships, NCL Escape, Independence of the Seas and us. I never figured out who we docked in front of, below left.
Some building developer took the time (and money) bo construct a building that looks like a cruise ship.
This was a very low-key day partly because of my knee pain. After breakfast in the Windjammer, I took a nap in solarium.
Back for lunch in the Windjammer I told Tom we should pay less in port fees because we weren’t disembarking in most of the ports. He said we were eating more on board so it should average out. Hmmm.
I started Pender work. Even though we’re supposed to have this super-fast Starlink service, the video download was very slow as was audio upload.
As always, Tom had a meeting in the MDR at 3:00.
It was fun to see people trying to get back onboard on time
This tour boat brought people back really late – I assume it was an RCL excursion or we wouldn’t have waited.
It was a Formal Night – I have no idea why they do those on port days instead of sea days.
We went to a show called “Tap Factory” which I assumed (remember that? https://youtu.be/LfvTwv5o1Qs) would be like Fred and Ginger? Or the Nicholas Brothers?
The Tap Factory was less tap dancing and more drumming and acrobatics but still a great show.
Dinner in the Main Dining Room was “French Night” we didn’t go, partly because we didn’t want to dress up for Formal Night and also because we had reservations to the inTENse Aqua show.
A friend had told me that she loved this show so much that she has a cabin on a future cruise that she chose just so she could watch all the shows and rehearsals from her balcony. Tom told me it was the best show hs has ever seen. Luckily, we have reservations for a second night, too!
From RCL: The judges’ scores are in… and it’s inTENse, the awe-inspiring athleticism and mesmerizing technology are cranked all the way up in this AquaTheater production —only on Wonder of the Seas℠. This high-energy show brings next-level intensity to everything from pool plunging to tightrope teetering and beyond. Shift all your expectations of what entertainment can be into high gear and prepare for the maximum performance level of inTENse. The only question is, are you ready to push the pedal to the metal?
Our show was slightly different but this is the basic performance.
Blue, blue water.
Tonight we head back north to CocoCay
Travel to RCL Wonder of the Seas, January 2023
Thursday, January 5, 2023.
After a hectic week of work and trying to get as many things done early for work – so I wouldn’t have to do as much on the cruise – I finally got packed for this trip.
Somehow, I wasn’t thinking, and typed the wrong street number for the Uber. I realized when I saw him pull in 5 houses up the street. Oops!
Other than that, the ride to National Airport (technically Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport) was smooth. JetBlue check-in was pretty smooth, security a PITA, the hike to the terminal endless. We had thought we were way early but it ended up not being that much.
Throughout the airport, they were still playing Christmas music. I guess it was ok since Epiphany isn’t until January 6.
The flight to Orlando was uneventful except that I started a movie I want to finish at home – “Why Didn’t They Ask Evans”
In Hugh Laurie’s clever adaptation of Agatha Christie’s beloved novel, the mysterious death of a stranger prompts amateur detectives Bobby Jones and Frankie Derwent to set out to find the meaning behind the dead man’s final words: “Why didn’t they ask Evans?” Starring Will Poulter and Lucy Boynton.
I have been a huge fan of Hugh Laurie since House, Blackadder and Jeeves and Wooster.
Anyway, we arrived at Orlando Airport and they were also playing Christmas music and had some decorations up. I wonder if there’s a code of some kind which dictates when airports will decorate for holidays and for how long.
After locating our checked bags, we called the GoPort Shuttle. I can’t say enough about this service. They seem to be only in Orlando – they picked us up at the airport, dropped us off at out hotel (Holiday Inn Orlando-International Airport). On Saturday, they picked us up and delivered us to the cruise. When the cruise was over, got us back to the airport.
While we were on the shuttle, someone called from a different terminal bo be picked up, so we circled back – no rush.
This hotel was pretty nice and the room bigger than I thought. There was a refrigerator (I could have brought my Growth Hormone!). There was also a nice pool, hot tub, gym. We never used any of those – but we could have.
The bed must have been really comfortable and/or I was exhausted because I slept 7:13 – unheard of these days.
Friday, January 7, 2023.
We had gone to Florida early so we could do some sightseeing. Um, no.After breakfast at the hotel, Tom was trying to find his back brace. No such luck so he called CVS. It took a long time to get someone to find one and they set it aside for us.
We Ubered with Timothy (from Maine) to CVS. I was stunned that CVS in Orlando, FL, home of Disney, Universal, nearby Cape Canaveral had no t-shirts or sweatshirts! I was a tourist and I needed this stuff. I did get some new earrings so all wasn’t lost.
Tom found a couple possible back braces and took them to the counter where one was set aside for him. That was the one he chose.
After ubering back to the hotel, I immediately lost the back to one of the new earrings. And Tom, of course, found the original back brace so he now has 2.
I took a nap while Tom did laundry.
We walked the street to look at gift shop (still looking for cheesy Orlando t-shirts). There are no sidewalks here. Everything seems to be a ride away. None of their souvenirs were acceptable at a price I would pay so no new clothes from here.
In the hotel before the cruise – I couldn’t figure out what airline they were with but there were more headed to the elevators and some sitting. The tags around the luggage say Azul on them. I haven’t seen stewardesses (cabin attendants?) with hats for a long time.
Saturday, January 7, 2023
Unfortunately, I work up too early not about the excitement of getting on the ship but my knee is killing me. I keep telling myself it would be awful at home, too, but it’s not quite working. LOL
After breakfast, we followed instructions (Imagine that!) and got into the lobby for the GoPort shuttle. they were running 5 busses for 200 people at 5 different ships – all from our hotel. It seemed like we waited for our bus for quite a while, so I was checking Uber availability when our shuttle arrived – and we were off!
