Just
returned on Monday from 8 night Carnival Splendor Cruise to Florida & Bahamas. Had a great time! Ship is lovely. Cabin very comfortable & good
location. Plenty of room for all my
things. Bathroom & shower very
ample. Really enjoyed this ship. Food was very good throughout & so was
service from great staff. Lot of younger people on this cruise since it was
spring break. Quite a few children but
all well behaved. Fellow passengers were
happy, fun group. Met some really
interesting & nice people.
Production shows were good to very good & rest of entertainment was
OK. Didn't have any lectures or many
daytime activities that were of interest to me but did keep myself busy. Following was days at ports.
Wednesday,
3/12/14 - Port Canaveral, FL - Had a great day here. Rented a car & booked a Kayak trip with
Calypso Kayaking in Merritt Island. Went
for shopping trip to Walmart before heading to kayaking. Walmart's are huge here in Florida compared
to NY area. Left my GPS in NY by mistake
so had to rely on maps. Kayaking left
from Manatee Cove Park. Weather was bit
iffy but still OK. We got on kayaks
& stayed awhile in cove viewing several manatees. Was advised that it was going to rain so we
pulled kayaks back on shore & waited out the downpour. It was also very windy. Got back onto Kayak's & headed out onto
the Indian River. Saw some Blue &
Grey Herron & lots of Mangrove swamps.
Guide was very informative & really enjoyed the trip. Afterwards headed back & turned in the
car. Bit of a wait for shuttle back to
ship but not too bad. Turned out to be a
great day.
Thursday,
3/13/14 - Nassau, Bahamas - Originally scheduled to do snorkeling here but it
was cancelled due to high winds & some rain. Most of the day was good. Decided to take ferry ride (20 min) to
Paradise Island. Walked across the
bridge to Potter's Cay. This is area
where fishing & conch boats reside.
There are also several seafood shacks here. Bit seedy but kind of nice. We arrived in Nassau at 11am so decided to try
some conch. Went to nicest place in the
area, Twin Brothers, for some food.
Since it was so early they really weren't open but was able to get a
fresh conch salad. Sat at the window
(only one there) where guy pulled conch out of the water took the meat out the
shells, chopped up some onions & the conch which was cooked with lime &
orange juice. They put it in a stryofoam
bowl & it was really good & definitely fresh. Only cost $9 which was pretty good for the
area. Afterward, walked back across the
bridge & visited as much as I could without paying high price of Atlantis
Resort. Really hugh complex. Next time I'll probably bite the bullet &
visit the beach. Afterwards took taxi
back to downtown & walked to British Colonial Hilton to verify that snorkeling
was cancelled. It was & walked along
waterfront to Arawrak Cay where the Fish Fry Heritage Village is located. Wasn't really that hungry but decided to try
one of the restaurants in this location.
Had the typical Fish Fry which consisted of a fried, whole Red Snapper,
french fries & lettuce/tomato. Fish
was very good & reasonably priced.
They threw in a virgin Bahama Mama.
Nearby, I walked to the Ardastra Gardens & Zoo to see the flamingos
& other animals. You really are able
to get very close to the flamingos since they are roaming on the property. You can walk right up to them & take
pictures. They also have a short show
where the flamingos march around a circle.
It was closest I've ever gotten to this beautiful aninimal. Rest of facility is bit rundown but still
interesting. Took a jitney to Cable
Beach area & walked around a bit before heading back to ship. All in all had a great day even though disappointed
that I didn't get to snorkel. Nassau is
good sized town & somewhat interesting.
Lot fo colonial buildings. Didn't
get to visit the Fort on the hill overlooking city but will do next time.
Friday,
3/14/14 - Freeport, Bahamas - Had to be up very early (6am) to meet shuttle
(8am) to Port Lucaya Marketplace. This
is where the boat leaves for snorkel trip in Freeport. Went on Pat & Diane's trip which was
highly recommended on Cruise Critic site & Trip Advisor. Staff were great & trip was OK but have
done better. Lot of people for this trip
but not too bad. When you arrive you pay
& board their double decker boat.
There is no shelter on this boat.
It is all open. Took us about 10
minutes before we arrived at site for snorkeling. Seas were rough since there was lot of
wind. Snorkeling was very good. Lots of fish & coral but did get bounced
around in the water. Currents weren't
too bad so didn't have to fight to get back to boat. Snorkeled about 45 minutes before going
aboard. Was freezing on boat since no
shelter but when sun was shining was able to warm up. Got back to Marketplace & wandered
around, had a bit of lunch (fried conch of course) before heading back to port
& ship. Had to be onboard by
3:30pm. Not much else to see in Freeport
except for the Marketplace & snorkeling.
There
were 2 sea days going down to Florida & 2 sea day coming back to NY. Seas were very calm & weather pretty good
throughout. Really enjoyed this cruise
& would highly recommend Carnival out of NY. Will probably do this again sometime.
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