Freedom from the Polar Vortex... The GDF family sails RCCL

[Duane 152]

I'm with Andrew on not doing excursions, or even getting off the ship at port cities.  I would be just as happy to have mostly "at sea" days and a couple of stops at the ship's private island.  We have only done DCL cruises and one cruise back in the day when it was The Big Red Boat... So a couple of days at Castaway Cay and all days at sea are fine with me... However, it does cut down on the crowd when the ship does stop somewhere and all of the other cruisers get off.  It opens up more for me on the ship.

[GaDawgFan.....Kelly 799]

Wow, the underground river looks cool! Was it fresh water or salt water (meaning, was there a possibility of snakes??)?

 

Well, I didn't drink it, but I think it was brackish. No snakes. 

 

Thanks.

 

After all the cruises I've done, I shy away from the excursions now.  With my crew, $100 a pop adds up.  While I love the Caribbean islands, this is why the shorter Bahamas cruises work better for me.  When we cruise on a DCL Bahamas cruise, we don't do any excursions.  We will typically stay on the ship in Nassau and enjoy the ship, and then enjoy Castaway Cay as a beach day.  That way, I'm not laying out more money to take and excursion or to pay for food and drinks that we could get for no extra charge on the ship.

 

Plus, port towns are just not that nice.  Very touristy.  The shopping is generally a rip-off.  On a longer cruise, I understand the desire to get off the ship and do something.

 

We have good friends whose kids are also all away at college.  They often jump on cruises to Mexico that leave from Tampa on last minute deals that offer great rates.  We are going to go with them one of these times.  On Cozumel, they found a beach bar that they hang out at all day.  That sounds right up my alley.

 

TCD

 

I totally understand. My original idea for Cozumel was a beach day, and that will probably be what we do next time. With it being our anniversary and a chance to visit our honeymoon site, we splurged. Our other excursion was paid for by my mom, so this was the only one we bought. 

 

There are lots of cool beach places in Cozumel. 

 

I'm with Andrew on not doing excursions, or even getting off the ship at port cities.  I would be just as happy to have mostly "at sea" days and a couple of stops at the ship's private island.  We have only done DCL cruises and one cruise back in the day when it was The Big Red Boat... So a couple of days at Castaway Cay and all days at sea are fine with me... However, it does cut down on the crowd when the ship does stop somewhere and all of the other cruisers get off.  It opens up more for me on the ship.

 

I can totally see that. I love doing stuff on the ship and laid back beach days. 

[GaDawgFan.....Kelly 799]

Wow! This is post 328! 

 

Friday, April 4th continued

 

After our swim and snack, we headed out to see some other wildlife around the park.

 

I’m not sure what this picture is of, but a lot of the park looks natural like this and is shaded.

 

 

More flamingos, notice the cereal box snack that we brought from the ship. It’s a good way to save money.

 

 

 

 

These guys are all over the park. You’ll find out why later.

 

 

We went to the cat exhibit. Instead of using fencing, they use moats kind of like AK.

 

 

We saw some manatees.

 

 

We also went to one of the important things we wanted to visit, the butterfly sanctuary. Disney could learn a lot from Xcaret in this department. The first year we visited F&G, there were a lot of butterflies, but nothing like this. Since then, I’ve heard there are very few.

 

Before you walk in, there are displays showing the various stages of caterpillars and butterflies. Z was REALLY into it, and I guess that’s why I forgot to take a picture.

 

Then, you walk through chains into a multistory sanctuary.

 

 

They use fruit around different areas to attract them, but they are also flying everywhere.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We are walking on the upper trail here. I wish you could capture how many butterflies are flying around in a photo.

 

 

Pretty flower

 

 

Well, that’s all for now. I still have lots of pictures from Xcaret, so more of those in the next update! 

[DaveInTN 3,247]

The river pics were gorge-ous.

 

I see what you did there. 

[Beckers 1,136]

Love the butterflies!! We just ordered caterpillars for Adam's butterfly growing thing. Hopefully it works.

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

I see what you did there. 

 

I did too.

 

Good one.

 

GDF- that photo of you and Z on the trail- that's inside the butterfly house?  Very impressive.

 

It looks like they have a nice variety of animals there.  But, that $100 could have gone toward a multi-day pass at WDW where you could see just as many of those animals.

 

TCD

[AC in A2......Aaron 693]

I see what you did there.

Thanks for noticing.

The animal pics were good. The big cats are awesome. You can never see enough of them. Seeing them on a real safari would be an unforgettable experience. Maybe someday.

[Big Kahuna aka John 71]

I love the side excursion and butterflies.    Z was brave in the water and gets props for that...   It's cool that the fruit is used to attract the butterflies...  Disney would charge them  $6.99 for the fruit cup first...

[GaDawgFan.....Kelly 799]

I see what you did there. 

 

And I missed it. Oops!

 

Love the butterflies!! We just ordered caterpillars for Adam's butterfly growing thing. Hopefully it works.

 

Z's class is doing that right now. They're all currently in cocoons. The kids are so excited. 

 

I did too.

 

Good one.

 

GDF- that photo of you and Z on the trail- that's inside the butterfly house?  Very impressive.

 

It looks like they have a nice variety of animals there.  But, that $100 could have gone toward a multi-day pass at WDW where you could see just as many of those animals.

 

TCD

 

Yes, that trail runs around the upstairs perimeter of the butterfly house. There are also places to walk around in the lower part. It's big. 

 

As far as the money going towards a multi-day pass, I wish. I'm currently about 3 months into a 1 year ban from Disney. Apparently MGDF things we should see other things. Maybe he'll surprise me with a trip for Mother's Day and end the ban early. Or my birthday in September? A girl can dream, right? 

 

Thanks for noticing.

The animal pics were good. The big cats are awesome. You can never see enough of them. Seeing them on a real safari would be an unforgettable experience. Maybe someday.

 

Sorry I missed it! 

 

Ohhhhhh, I'd love to do a real safari someday!!!

 

I love the side excursion and butterflies.    Z was brave in the water and gets props for that...   It's cool that the fruit is used to attract the butterflies...  Disney would charge them  $6.99 for the fruit cup first...

 

He was pretty brave. Sometimes he's so brave (like with roller coasters) that I forget some things might scare him... like a river through a dark cave. Whoops. 

[Katman1356...Jason 1,140]

I am finally caught up. Thanks for sharing so many pictures and your impressions of the experiences you had. I am taking notes on things for future clients. 

[GaDawgFan.....Kelly 799]

Wow! We’re almost at 350 posts. I’ve hit the big time!

 

Friday, April 4 continued

 

We’re still at Xcaret. Another thing we wanted to revisit at this park was the bird exhibit. Xcaret breeds Macaws. Something kind of funny had happened when Jason and I visited on our honeymoon. We were looking at some of the birds and one of them just hopped down from his perch and started following Jason. He must have really liked him. We were laughing as this bird followed him down the path and kept telling him he was going to get in trouble, etc. We have a picture of the bird walking behind/beside him framed in our living room. Z loves the picture and calls him Daddy’s bird friend. So, we went to find Daddy’s bird that lives in Mexico.

 

On our way, we found more flamingos and macaws.

 

 

 

Apparently they were turtles somewhere too.

 

 

These pictures are inside the bird area. They have buildings set up where you can see macaws in various stages of life. No pictures of that though, sorry.

 

 

 

 

 

These two were up to something. And I think it was going to be naughty.

 

 

 

 

 

We tried to find Daddy’s bird, but none wanted to join our family this time.

 

 

Z actually set this picture up. He wanted us to take one of him bird watching. Funny kid.

 

 

After the birds, we were hungry and a little thirsty. We got some food and most importantly one of these…

 

 

That was probably the freshest tasting and best margarita I’ve ever had. I tried to order one on the ship later that day and had to give it back because it just wasn’t the same. There was no premade mix in this one.

More exploring….

Cool flower creation

 

 

Moneys

 

 

 

And this thing. I thought it was an anteater, but it’s not. They said it was one of the rarest animals in the park. I don’t remember the name though.

 

 

Wild iguana

 

 

Random scenery

 

 

Soon, it was time to head back to the ship….

 

 

Bye Xcaret!

 

Getting back didn’t take as long as getting there. The travel really was a pain, but Jason and I are both glad we went back to Xcaret. It was a good way to celebrate our almost anniversary, and Z thought it was cool to visit a place he had seen in pictures. I would consider it a must do if staying the Playa del Carmen/Cancun area. There are so many things to do there that we didn’t do… like snorkel in the ocean, lay at the beach, ride a river raft, see turtles, swim with dolphins, etc. And don’t forget the night show! 

[h2odivers...Ray 952]

Wow, the underground river looks cool! Was it fresh water or salt water (meaning, was there a possibility of snakes??)?

The underground rivers are fresh water until they get close to the ocean then it becomes brackish. And

Were the roof has collapsed and made an entrance to the underground rivers are called cenotes. that's one of my high level vocabulary words(right Kelly?).

Almost all of the Yucatan peninsula is made up of limestone so the water dissolves it pretty easily and runs underground making the underground rivers. Occasionally the roof of the river collapses and this makes a entrance to the rivers, cenote. The underground rivers are hundreds of miles long. It's really quite interesting to read up on them.

I asked once why I couldn't get a diet coke and was told "light" coke is the same thing but they don't use the word diet to describe something with less calories. But Kelly's right. It tastes different.

[h2odivers...Ray 952]

Looks like y'all had a blast.

Thanks for sharing your awesome pictures with us.

And you should have seen it 25 yrs ago when I went. There was nothing compared to what it looks like now.

I need to go back.

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Is Mr. GDF wearing Jorts?

 

 

GO GATA!

 

TCD

[CCIntrigue...aka Gwen 547]

Xcaret is beautiful!  Thanks for sharing, Kelly!

[Helmsey......Todd 134]

Caught up again and still enjoying all the pics. Looks like you guys had a blast there!

[Helmsey......Todd 134]

Caught up again and still enjoying all the pics. Looks like you guys had a blast there!

[Helmsey......Todd 134]

Well, thanks to the ghost I just added an extra reply for your count. Hey wait, this is a bonus as well :D

[Seals 111]

 

 

And this thing. I thought it was an anteater, but it’s not. They said it was one of the rarest animals in the park. I don’t remember the name though.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I believe this is a tapir.  I've seen one in a zoo.

 

Still really enjoying your TR and not looking forward to having to get off the ship and end this tropical vacation we are enjoying.

 

What a wonderful experience for all of you but especially Z. I think spending the money for something like this where you are seeing the natural animals and features of a particular part of the world is worth it.  

[AC in A2......Aaron 693]

Those are definitely jorts.

That thing does look like an anteater.

[GaDawgFan.....Kelly 799]

I am finally caught up. Thanks for sharing so many pictures and your impressions of the experiences you had. I am taking notes on things for future clients. 

 

Welcome back! But I posted another update, so you're behind again. In all seriousness, I'm glad it's helpful for you. 

 

The underground rivers are fresh water until they get close to the ocean then it becomes brackish. And

Were the roof has collapsed and made an entrance to the underground rivers are called cenotes. that's one of my high level vocabulary words(right Kelly?).

Almost all of the Yucatan peninsula is made up of limestone so the water dissolves it pretty easily and runs underground making the underground rivers. Occasionally the roof of the river collapses and this makes a entrance to the rivers, cenote. The underground rivers are hundreds of miles long. It's really quite interesting to read up on them.

I asked once why I couldn't get a diet coke and was told "light" coke is the same thing but they don't use the word diet to describe something with less calories. But Kelly's right. It tastes different.

 

Yes, cenote is advanced vocabulary. I remember learning it in science at some point.

 

Yeah, they claim Coke Light and Diet Coke are the same, but we know the truth! 

 

Looks like y'all had a blast.

Thanks for sharing your awesome pictures with us.

And you should have seen it 25 yrs ago when I went. There was nothing compared to what it looks like now.

I need to go back.

 

They've added a ton in the 11 years since we've been. There's also a big circulating tower you can go up in. That would have been cool, and I'm kind of sad we missed it. The park is HUGE now. The cool thing is that it doesn't feel busy at all though, except at some parts in the river. 

 

Is Mr. GDF wearing Jorts?

 

 

GO GATA!

 

TCD

 

Those are definitely NOT jorts. It's a blue/gray plaid bathing suit. But thanks, now he's going to have a complex, and I'll probably have to buy him a new one. 

 

Xcaret is beautiful!  Thanks for sharing, Kelly!

 

It's so pretty! You would love taking pictures there. 

 

Caught up again and still enjoying all the pics. Looks like you guys had a blast there!

 

We did! 

 

Well, thanks to the ghost I just added an extra reply for your count. Hey wait, this is a bonus as well :D

 

Thanks for your efforts. LOL

 

I believe this is a tapir.  I've seen one in a zoo.

 

Still really enjoying your TR and not looking forward to having to get off the ship and end this tropical vacation we are enjoying.

 

What a wonderful experience for all of you but especially Z. I think spending the money for something like this where you are seeing the natural animals and features of a particular part of the world is worth it.  

 

That is what it is!!!! You win!

 

Z is a lucky kid. He's seen a lot. And he remembers a lot more than I would think. At least at this point. He loves nature, camping, roller coasters, Disney, and UGA, so I think we're doing a good job with him. 

 

Those are definitely jorts.

That thing does look like an anteater.

 

No and no. Nice try though. 

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

 He loves nature, camping, roller coasters, Disney, and UGA, so I think we're doing a good job with him. 

 

As that great philosopher, Meatloaf, once said:  "Four out of Five ain't bad."  Or something like that.

 

TCD

[BigTom 76]

One more to 350, beautiful pictures

[dblr....Rennie 224]

Great pictures that place looks really neat to visit

Ok one more post for 350 who wants it?

[DaveInTN 3,247]

Great pictures that place looks really neat to visit

Ok one more post for 350 who wants it?

 

I do!