A tropical contact high
Jul. 2nd, 2007 04:36 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jedusorOkay, here's the vacation slideshow.
This is the cruise ship, the Carnival Liberty, docked in San Juan, Puerto Rico. This was the first port we stopped in after we left Fort Lauderdale. The ship was enormous. It had three pools and five whirlpools, several themed eating areas (sushi, stirfry, pizza, deli, salad bar), two formal dining rooms, an arcade, two gift shops, about fifteen bars and lounges... all kinds of stuff. I timed myself walking at a brisk pace from one end of the ship to the other on the second floor, and it took me over three minutes.
The view from the front of the ship on Deck 11, at sea. The sparkles didn't translate well into the camera.
There was a recycling stand there, and it was a perfect place to perch and watch the water go by. There weren't many of those recycling areas, and there were no trash cans- cruise ship workers picked up after the guests. I'll have to get out of the habit of leaving trash around, now that I'm back in real life.
I don't know who the heck thought it would be a good idea to put a water fountain in front of a huge fan. I got my shirt all wet when I tried to drink from it.
Inside the ship, in the lobby. It was absolutely gorgeous. Those are glass elevators on the left. One of the ship's staff members told me that someone once asked him whether the elevators at the back of the ship would take her to the front. (He informed her that the Carnival Liberty, while a lovely ship, is not Charlie's chocolate factory. I think he actually lost his job during this cruise.)
This is Damian Brell, the piano man in the Piano Man Bar on the ship. I went there nearly every night of the cruise. That piano revolved at a rate of one revolution per four minutes and fifteen seconds. Here's a YouTube video I found of him, though I wish I could find a better one. He really shines when he plays upbeat, bouncy songs. He reminded me of Schroeder from Peanuts, pounding away at the keys- he broke six strings over the course of the week. This picture is the only one of this bunch that I didn't take. A photographer named Rick was at the Piano Man as often as I was, and he gave me a CD at the end of the week with a bunch of photos, including this one.
That note is from me. It says "Your door is AWESOME!" and the people in the room wrote "Thanks" under it. I met them on the last night of the cruise, but I didn't get to talk to them much.
This is San Juan. I didn't realize that people were driving on the left side of the road until we got to St. Thomas, because in San Juan, people just drove wherever the cars would fit.
The beach in San Juan.
There were cats on the beach. They were wandering around the city, too. Someone in our group went on a guided tour, and gleefully informed us that there are over a hundred wild cats in San Juan, all of which are fixed.
Kites in trees.
The sunset in Puerto Rico.
We learned nothing about this fort because the plaques were in Spanish, but it was very pretty.
This made me laugh a lot. I wonder what the story is behind the name.
This is me with Brittany, a girl I met on the cruise. I met lots of people, actually, but I didn't take pictures of very many of them. I wish I had. Anyway, I took this right after we came inside from the area that was supposed to be closed due to "strong winds." We got very wet from all the spray, as you can see. It was awesome.
A plane landing on the water and one taking off. This was in St. Thomas. We took a tour there, which was fairly fun, and there were some great stores. I should have bought more souvenirs there, but I expected the shopping to be as good on the other islands we would visit.
Lots of the shops had this sticker on them. I guess St. Thomas is popular with gay tourists?
This bug was so cool.
The salt and pepper shakers on our table were clearly supposed to be a yinyang, but I kept thinking of that comma sex icon.
The Silver Olympian Dining Room, where I ate dinner most nights on the cruise. I ate at the sushi place once- I would have eaten there more, but it was only open from 5:30 to 8:30, so it was either that or the sit-down dinner.
Piotr, our waiter. I liked him a lot.
The waiters and waitresses entertained us every night with singing and/or dancing. Piotr didn't put on the little outfits, but he dutifully climbed up on a table upon request. (Later, that is. That's not him.)
This was in Tortola. I have no idea what the Office of Gender Affairs does. I sort of skipped a port, because I didn't take my camera with me on the eco tour in Antigua in order to avoid dampness. I wish I had pictures, though. The eco tour was great, and Antigua was probably my favorite of the places we visited nature-wise. (I liked Nassau best as far as the cities go.) I did take snorkeling pictures with the underwater disposable Kodak Aunt Amanda gave me, so we'll see how those turn out.
Condomize! I got four books at that thrift store: a bit of Meg Cabot fluff, the newest Castaways of the Flying Dutchman book, a book about Truman Capote, and Silence of the Lambs. I've seen the movie version of Silence of the Lambs, but didn't even know there was a book until I spotted it there.
The beach in Tortola.
When none of the entertainment venues on the ship were open and I couldn't find anyone to chat with, I read books on the upper decks with the ocean as a backdrop. It was heaven. And that fruit punch was damn good, too.
Sunset over another cruise ship. This was really, really beautiful in person. The photo seems almost fake in comparison.
These signs were all over the ship. I have no clue what they meant. Any ideas?
Nassau was as adamant about condom usage as Tortola.
This is the coolest library I've ever seen. It used to be a jail.
The books are kept in the former cells.
Human skulls in the library!
I guess duct tape really does fix everything.
The guy I talked to at this antique shop was really neat. He's met Bono and Enya, and didn't realize who either of them were until hours later- in Bono's case, not until Bono had left the bar and three guys across the room leapt up and demanded to know what he was like.
We had towel animals in our room every day. This was the only one I got a picture of. There was also a stingray, and a rabbit, and an elephant, and an anteater... I don't remember the rest.
This is Brenda. Brenda is from Essex, and found the American attitude toward sexuality highly amusing. She told me about a particular incident in which someone indignantly condemned a glimpse of breasts, and she said in her sweet little British accent, "Oh, dear! Had you never seen any before?" I wish I'd gotten her contact info- she lives in Washington, and I'd like to hang out with her again.
This is Dmitri (I think; I don't know how he spells it). That's a Threadless shirt.
There was a sanitary napkin on the conveyor belt when we got to the baggage claim in New York. Amanda said we should report it as a suspicious package.
This is Leah, in New York.
Back in KC. My bag was light enough that Link could wheel it around. It was very cute.
This is the cruise ship, the Carnival Liberty, docked in San Juan, Puerto Rico. This was the first port we stopped in after we left Fort Lauderdale. The ship was enormous. It had three pools and five whirlpools, several themed eating areas (sushi, stirfry, pizza, deli, salad bar), two formal dining rooms, an arcade, two gift shops, about fifteen bars and lounges... all kinds of stuff. I timed myself walking at a brisk pace from one end of the ship to the other on the second floor, and it took me over three minutes.
The view from the front of the ship on Deck 11, at sea. The sparkles didn't translate well into the camera.
There was a recycling stand there, and it was a perfect place to perch and watch the water go by. There weren't many of those recycling areas, and there were no trash cans- cruise ship workers picked up after the guests. I'll have to get out of the habit of leaving trash around, now that I'm back in real life.
I don't know who the heck thought it would be a good idea to put a water fountain in front of a huge fan. I got my shirt all wet when I tried to drink from it.
Inside the ship, in the lobby. It was absolutely gorgeous. Those are glass elevators on the left. One of the ship's staff members told me that someone once asked him whether the elevators at the back of the ship would take her to the front. (He informed her that the Carnival Liberty, while a lovely ship, is not Charlie's chocolate factory. I think he actually lost his job during this cruise.)
This is Damian Brell, the piano man in the Piano Man Bar on the ship. I went there nearly every night of the cruise. That piano revolved at a rate of one revolution per four minutes and fifteen seconds. Here's a YouTube video I found of him, though I wish I could find a better one. He really shines when he plays upbeat, bouncy songs. He reminded me of Schroeder from Peanuts, pounding away at the keys- he broke six strings over the course of the week. This picture is the only one of this bunch that I didn't take. A photographer named Rick was at the Piano Man as often as I was, and he gave me a CD at the end of the week with a bunch of photos, including this one.
That note is from me. It says "Your door is AWESOME!" and the people in the room wrote "Thanks" under it. I met them on the last night of the cruise, but I didn't get to talk to them much.
This is San Juan. I didn't realize that people were driving on the left side of the road until we got to St. Thomas, because in San Juan, people just drove wherever the cars would fit.
The beach in San Juan.
There were cats on the beach. They were wandering around the city, too. Someone in our group went on a guided tour, and gleefully informed us that there are over a hundred wild cats in San Juan, all of which are fixed.
Kites in trees.
The sunset in Puerto Rico.
We learned nothing about this fort because the plaques were in Spanish, but it was very pretty.
This made me laugh a lot. I wonder what the story is behind the name.
This is me with Brittany, a girl I met on the cruise. I met lots of people, actually, but I didn't take pictures of very many of them. I wish I had. Anyway, I took this right after we came inside from the area that was supposed to be closed due to "strong winds." We got very wet from all the spray, as you can see. It was awesome.
A plane landing on the water and one taking off. This was in St. Thomas. We took a tour there, which was fairly fun, and there were some great stores. I should have bought more souvenirs there, but I expected the shopping to be as good on the other islands we would visit.
Lots of the shops had this sticker on them. I guess St. Thomas is popular with gay tourists?
This bug was so cool.
The salt and pepper shakers on our table were clearly supposed to be a yinyang, but I kept thinking of that comma sex icon.
The Silver Olympian Dining Room, where I ate dinner most nights on the cruise. I ate at the sushi place once- I would have eaten there more, but it was only open from 5:30 to 8:30, so it was either that or the sit-down dinner.
Piotr, our waiter. I liked him a lot.
The waiters and waitresses entertained us every night with singing and/or dancing. Piotr didn't put on the little outfits, but he dutifully climbed up on a table upon request. (Later, that is. That's not him.)
This was in Tortola. I have no idea what the Office of Gender Affairs does. I sort of skipped a port, because I didn't take my camera with me on the eco tour in Antigua in order to avoid dampness. I wish I had pictures, though. The eco tour was great, and Antigua was probably my favorite of the places we visited nature-wise. (I liked Nassau best as far as the cities go.) I did take snorkeling pictures with the underwater disposable Kodak Aunt Amanda gave me, so we'll see how those turn out.
Condomize! I got four books at that thrift store: a bit of Meg Cabot fluff, the newest Castaways of the Flying Dutchman book, a book about Truman Capote, and Silence of the Lambs. I've seen the movie version of Silence of the Lambs, but didn't even know there was a book until I spotted it there.
The beach in Tortola.
When none of the entertainment venues on the ship were open and I couldn't find anyone to chat with, I read books on the upper decks with the ocean as a backdrop. It was heaven. And that fruit punch was damn good, too.
Sunset over another cruise ship. This was really, really beautiful in person. The photo seems almost fake in comparison.
These signs were all over the ship. I have no clue what they meant. Any ideas?
Nassau was as adamant about condom usage as Tortola.
This is the coolest library I've ever seen. It used to be a jail.
The books are kept in the former cells.
Human skulls in the library!
I guess duct tape really does fix everything.
The guy I talked to at this antique shop was really neat. He's met Bono and Enya, and didn't realize who either of them were until hours later- in Bono's case, not until Bono had left the bar and three guys across the room leapt up and demanded to know what he was like.
We had towel animals in our room every day. This was the only one I got a picture of. There was also a stingray, and a rabbit, and an elephant, and an anteater... I don't remember the rest.
This is Brenda. Brenda is from Essex, and found the American attitude toward sexuality highly amusing. She told me about a particular incident in which someone indignantly condemned a glimpse of breasts, and she said in her sweet little British accent, "Oh, dear! Had you never seen any before?" I wish I'd gotten her contact info- she lives in Washington, and I'd like to hang out with her again.
This is Dmitri (I think; I don't know how he spells it). That's a Threadless shirt.
There was a sanitary napkin on the conveyor belt when we got to the baggage claim in New York. Amanda said we should report it as a suspicious package.
This is Leah, in New York.
Back in KC. My bag was light enough that Link could wheel it around. It was very cute.
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Date: 2007-07-03 11:52 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-07-03 05:37 pm (UTC)Nope, no Dominica. I'll keep your recommendation in mind should I ever return to the Caribbean, though.
I will definitely see you in Ann Arbor, and it shall ROKK. ^_^