Most of my cruises lately have been to new ports in Europe, some on new ships and even new crise lines for me.
This time I return to an old favorite, Oasis of the Seas heading to my favorite destinations, Curacao. I have probably made this trip a dozen times over the years.
Two of my three children and two of my grandchildren will be on board also.
I was awake at 4:00 despite having my alarm set for 7:00. We are underway on time, and pick up Adrienne and Steve at 8:00. The plan is to meet Scott, Melinda and the grandkids Eliza and Tiger half way to Ft. Lauderdale in Ft. Pierce. A good place to refuel, both the car and the body.
We arrive within 5 minutes of each other. Grab a bite at the McDonalds, and top off the fuel tank. Soon we are on our way again.
We arrive at Park N Go. They are busy but efficient. My luggage is loaded on the shuttle bus before I can even turn the car off. We are a little concerned about Fluffy (Scott) as he wasn't able to make a reservation. Time to play dumb, he made reservations for a day later, and just showed up. The young attendant didn't know what to do and told him they would figure it out when he returned. Pull forward and get loaded on the bus.
Minutes later we are in the terminal. At security the agent is unable to find gloves before I can get a pat down. Dictated by my pacemaker, I can't go through the normal detectors. Eventually he finds some gloves that are way too small. After a 10 minute delay I am on my way.
The cabins are open, but the cabin steward is still working. He probably finishes a hour late. A very rare occurance.
The first stop is the dining room. Par for course, ICruise didn't link our reservations together properly and we are not assigned dining together. The group behind me had a bigger problem, 7 people that were supposed to be together assigned to 3 tables on 2 decks.
There are hundreds of passengers with similar problems. We are told to arrive at 5:15 and they will have a table for us somewhere. Pinnancle status helps.
By the time I return to the cabin, the luggage has arrived. Everything is quickly stowed away in its temporary home for the week.
We arrive at the dining room and taken to a table way at the back of the room. Half bench seating and half chairs. Our wait staff was excellent, service was quick, and the food good. The bench seating was good for the grand kids.
A little time in the Schooner bar, and it is an early night for me.
The next two days will be sea days.