Monday, May 16, 2011

The rest of the Panama Canal Cruise

May  2
Puntarenas, Costa Rica
Today was very pleasant I must say. I got off the ship and jumped in the water. It was cool to be back here since I went when I was 13….or 15 I think… haha I can’t remember. We had virtually no time to really do anything adventurous such as zip lining or feed monkeys, so we went to the beach and then wandered around the market. It was beautiful, and I would have to say, uneventful….haha.
May 3
Corinto, Nicaragua
I think the main attraction for going to Nicaragua is to see the rainforest, not too far from the port. The port in itself was really dirty and broken down. There were guys bicycling 4 seaters just to make ends meet. I heard that they only get visitors once a month. So that must be really hard if they depend on ships for tourism. I felt bad. We basically just went swimming, and headed back to the ship, but I remember thinking how adorable the children were. I got so excited because I know in a short amount of time; I get to squeeze my adorable nieces. Oh I cannot wait to see my family in San Diego!!!!!
May 6, 2011
Puerto Vallarta
Today was so relaxing! From the minute I stepped onto the beach, I felt like I was home again. The architecture is a lot like San Diego here…makes sense. It was a huge resort area, so Eli and I walked through a hotel and went right to the beach. Then after a long walk, we took a taxi to a restaurant called Pipis where we were going to meet some friends. There was amazing sand castle architecture everywhere in this area. There was even a huge sand copy of the last supper. It was pretty phenomenal. Then, because the restaurant was closed, we stopped and got massages for an hour for 25 bucks each……incredible, but a little sketchy too. Haha. Then we ate the most amazing Mexican food, (fresh guacamole made at the table) and swam in the ocean….what a day.
May 9 SAN DIEGO!!!!
Ok, yes I was home for a day, and usually it is not something to blog about, but I just have to tell you what a refresher it was to see my amazing family. And, a tad but stressful too trying to organize it. The morning of San Diego, we had something called Coast Guard, which is like the FBI of cruise ships, come and test us on our safety knowledge. I mean, I hate being put under pressure, especially when it could be a big scary police man drilling me, so I studied. I know, ridiculous. Eli and I were basically quizzing ourselves the night before on the basic stuff they might ask us. It turns out, in the morning, I didn’t even see them. Phew! But at that time, I had cell service, and my Mom tells me that Goldie is not on the list to come on and visit with the whole family on the ship. Here’s the thing. I can only have 4 visitors on the ship at 1 time to visit me. So, I had my friend David sign on 4 people, and I signed on the babies and my parents. I guess Davids paperwork didn’t go through, so my brothers and the girls didn’t make it on. Oh I was so mad, but it worked out that the girls got to take a tour of the ship. They were amazed. It was adorable to see their faces and Kaela asked “is this where Captain Hook lives?”….I seriously cried when I got to hug my family. I am so blessed. We had such a nice day out in San Diego, I just had to share it with you.
May 12
Vancouver, Canada.
Today, I hung out with my guitar player friend, Dan. He is leaving in Seattle, so we got to basically say goodbye today. It was so nice. Vancouver is so gorgeous, it’s a shame we don’t get to go back after today. We talked about our futures and dreams and it really hit me that this contract is only 4 more months….and then what? Dan and I have been playing and singing together and sharing our music, he made me feel confident in my continuous pursuit of music. Vancouver is a big music area, it would be interesting to go back and check it out. In fact, that is something I have been giving a lot of thought to recently. I have saved a good amount (haha, gotta keep saving) and I think what would be good for me is to look at cities that might suit me after this. I don’t want to move permanently right now anywhere…but I want to explore. I was thinking of traveling and staying with people in Portland, New York, Asheville, Nashville, Vancouver, and Seattle. Maybe even Texas. I don’t know…but there are a lot of places I need to check out. I’m just keeping my mind open to all the possibilities life holds.

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