Brag Rag conclusion

The brag rag conclusion. These are last of the vacation photos I'll post. Honestly. I'll have to go back to posting pictures of the pets after this. Here are some shots of Lisa's family in Puerto Rico, Old San Juan (which is a World Heritage Site), and Lisa's Aunt's house. That's it. Honest. Over.

Hola...cerveza por favor....

Hola...cerveza por favor....

Okay, we're honestly winding down on the photos. Here's the last batch of vacation memories. Puerto Rico (or rich port). I really loved this Island. Its beautiful. Here's a photo of Lisa, myself, and Titi Babci having a piragua..or snow cone. They're a big hit in San Juan. Above are pictures of El Morro -- a fort built in 1533 by the Conquistadors to fend off the Brits and Dutch. It is in remarkable shape despite weather erosion and countless hurricanes. We spent the afternoon walking through the fort, which is now a protected heritage site.

We're expecting to you...

We're expecting you....





Here are a few random shots of us on the cruise having a good time: Me in Antigua, Lisa showing off her new dress, Lisa on the Muster drill (a lame safety drill that would really save no one), and my beloved white suit. Oh good times. That is a towel animal that the room attendant left for us. We had a different one every night. An elephant, rabbit, dog, and monkey. You had to use your imagination a little.

Come Aboard....

Come Aboard....

The ship was 13 decks high. Here's a look from the top. This photo was taken from the 11th floor, and that's the lobby on the 4th. The Serenade is a little like a floating mall, equipped with glass elevators, a theatre, and shopping atrium on the 5th floor. We didn't actually go to the movie theatre -- we were too busy. But we did enjoy the pool areas -- here's a shot on sea day when it was quite busy. Normally, it was pretty tame, and at some points we were the only ones in the pool.


The deck above the pool also had a running track -- which I used twice. The first day, it was just me and I guy walking around saying the rosary.
* This is the view from our room 4054.




And here's Lisa enjoying an exciting game of mini-golf. She started off quite badly, but quickly revcovered to win the match. Its alright, I kicked her butt in air hockey later that night.

*Here's one of Lisa's artsy shots. Nice huh? I'll add a few more picture on the next entry -- for some reason, I can't seem to load up more than a few at a time.

Love Boat....

Exciting and New....










Pour me another one, Isaac.

Now we've completed the Island portion of our blog tour -- it's time for a look at the actual ship. Apparently they get upset if you call it a boat. First up. Matt Soles, Cruise Director. Oh boy...imagine if you will a British stage actor and comedian turned Amercian cruise ship social coordinator. But enough about Matt, as he aways says..."You're not here for a long time, you're her for a good time....now get out there". So here we go:

That's Lisa hanging out in the Schooner Bar -- a nautical themed lounge (one of like a million aboard the ship). That's me, pretending to be America's Next Top Model...and definitely showing some potential.
Here's a shot of our ship friends -- Linda and Roxie. We had a great time getting to know them. Stay tuned for more photos -- we did take 309!

Pirates of the Caribbean...sort of

Pirates of the Caribbean...sort of.


Ah, beautiful Antigua. Discovered by the Spainish, stolen by the British. Independence gained in 1981. I had the best ribs ever at a beach shack in Antigua. I also got the worst sunburn I ever had -- and a nasty case of sunstroke. But we still managed to have a great time. Unfortunately, as I write this, I'm still peeling -- close to a week later. Pirates are really big in Antigua. Lisa and I happened upon a couple...Antigua was Lisa's favorite stop on the cruise. She really liked the people and the beach -- which really was spectacular. Hard to image a nicer beach.





* There I am -- pre-sunburn. I wore 45 baby block, and still managed to fry up like a dumpling in a hot pan. Canadian skin in the winter is like pastry -- a little heat and it begins to bubble. Lisa managed to avoid burning, despite who lazing in the sun.

A Real Gouda Time...

A Real Gouda Time...

St. Maarten was awesome! Lisa and I took a water taxi to a public beach and enjoyed warm water, friendly hospitality, and weird cultural dichotomy between local island flavour and Dutch colonialism. Earlier that day, I participated in a regatta -- America Cup winner Stars and Stipes vs True North IV (Canada's most famous sailboat, aside from the Bluenose). My team -- aboard the True North won all four laps of the 12 metre regatta -- those are victory smiles you see! Then Lisa and I had a quick lunch and headed to the beach, and then into to town -- where tourists drank freely in the streets, while mopeds squeezed passed Mercedes, and cargo trucks.


*Our Victory Lap!

*a table that's offering free samples of Island rums.







I really enjoyed St. Maarten -- but I foolishly told Lisa not to bring any money along because there wouldn't be any shopping. Oops. We quickly learned that I was very wrong. Lisa has forgiven me. I think that this may have also been our formal night -- but alas, I had sunstroke for part of the trip -- so its all a bit blurry....

*Unfortunately our picture with the Captain was terrible. And 19.95.

Who Steering the Ship?

The Stayusos Part 2


So where was I....oh yeah -- the cruise. The cruise was quite nice, but the food was pretty lousy. We met some great people, including two women from Maine (shout out to our new pals Roxie and Linda). The ship was a Royal Caribbean cruise -- and there were about 2500 people aboard. But we didn't find it all that busy. We always had our pick of lounge chairs, theatre seats, and slot machines (we lost a total of six dollars). Even on our sail day (all day and night at sea), I climbed the rock wall and we played mini-golf. No line-ups. But our favorite part of the cruise, was actually stopping along the way. St. Thomas was pretty, but undergoing some major infrastructure work. The roadways were a little crazy and the bus ride to Magen's Bay made me uber queasy. We didn't actually stay in St. Thomas too long, we spent the early morning on the ship and went to the beach after lunch. We managed to enjoy the day, despite a little rain, and generally overcast weather.

*Here's a house along the beach route we took, and my queasy mug

Caribbean Dream'in Part 1

Here are the Stayuso's on vacation - Part 1 (we have 309 pictures after all...)
















We're Back! Lisa and I have made it home from our beautiful, sunny vacation. We had an amazing time. The beach photo above is of Antigua -- where I proceded to get sunstroke. But despite the extreme nausea, and peely burn, we had a super great time. That's Lisa and I on the 5th deck on our second night at sea. The vacation started off a little bumpy -- I forgot my carry-on bag at Starbucks and our plane was delayed twice for "mechanical" problems. But eventually we were in the air. We arrived in Puerto Rico around 4:00 and Lisa's aunt picked us up about an hour later -- as we waited in the blistering afternoon sun. It was heaven sent.












Titi Babci (Lisa's aunt) then gave us a quick tour of Old San Juan (a world heritage sight interestingly enough). After much nervous laughter, getting lost twice, and almost killing a handful of American tourists, we made it to our Ship. It was huge -- a little like a floating mall. Our room was not. Cozy is how I'd describe it if I were selling it. We stopped in St. Thomas, St. Maarten, and Antigua. All had something special about them -- 85 proof rum....just kidding!
No, the Islands were spectacular -- sandy beaches, warm clear waters, and unbelievably friendly people. Stay tuned..I have to head to bed -- way past my bedtime at 8:45 pm. Tomorrow -- Who's steering the boat?

xxoxoxo