Carrie and I woke up early. Instead of going back to sleep, she got up and went to the window.
My computer has a new background as a result.
We have felt the waves ever since we left New Jersey. Being at the absolute front of the ship doesn't help. North Atlantic waters are choppier than in the Caribbean (or so I'm told. It felt true). It's not enough to bother me, but I would be lying if I said they weren't noticeable. Now that we're further south and going slower they are less evident.
Carrie, Shane, and I were getting breakfast in the rear of the ship when we noticed we were backing in to the harbor! We were surprised at first, because it looked like most of the island was under construction. We started to turn away and then the island got closer.
Islands fascinate me. I like to think about living on them and the remoteness.....and then I'm glad I don't live on one, because I wouldn't like to be confined to so small an area.
But that makes them fun to visit.
Before we hopped off ship, though, we had a stop to make. Carrie signed us up for iFly before Nana and Pop heard of it! She scheduled us for this morning, because she figured most people would be off ship and it'd be quieter.
It's not very quiet in the wind tunnel! Shane got to go first and never stopped smiling.
"Black Magic" slung him around and made a memory that's sure to last a lifetime.
Carrie was so intense the whole time, I couldn't find a picture with her smiling. If iFly was a Top Gun simulator, she would have been Ice Woman! I need to find a pic she approves of before I can post one.
I smiled like a madman.
Between the helmet, goggles, flight suit, and my beard I almost didn't recognize myself in the pictures.
We only got to fly for a minute, but it was worth all the waiting. I would do it again!
As we left, we stumbled across a trapeze. There was no line, so Shane and I geared up!
Nana did it the day before and said it was a lot of fun.
Shane can be a wimp about some things, but he's fearless about others. Heights don't bother him.
He couldn't do much other than swing around. He was hesitant to drop at the end, but I'm not sure if that was because he was worried or because he didn't want his turn to end too soon!
I was up next. The g-forces made it harder to swing my legs up over the bar and swing upside down than I expected. To dismount, I tried a backflip.
She was right. I hit it the first try.
I'd thought she'd meant to kick like with a swing to gain speed, but she really just meant "kick back and forth with vigor a few times and let go."
Carrie had disappeared to the room to work while the rest of us poked around the sports complex. Grandma and Grandpa played some ping-pong.
Shane drooled over Fortnite on the Xbox. I didn't want him to sit around and play, but he started a game so I let him finish.
I thought he would have died much sooner, but being totally clueless can offer some immunity. He wandered around where none of the action or items were and survived all the way to 33rd, if I recall correctly. First person to see him found him an easy mark.
Carrie opted to stay on board while Nana, Pop, Shane, and I hit the beaches.
We would have gone as a team, but Nana lost her ID card. Shane and I were already off the ship while she and Pop turned back.
Random observation: The Royal Caribbean logo looks like a "Royal Transformer" at the right angle. You have to be sufficiently nerdy to see it.
Shane and I were on our own.
I display certain ADHD and sensory seeking peculiarities from time to time. There was a rope barrier that I popped up onto my shoulder as I walked. I felt it slide over my shoulder and bounce an vibrate with my step as we walked the dock.
When I turned around, I noticed Shane was doing the exact same thing.
There are so many little things he does that tell me he's my son.
I like to look at everything and imagine how things work as we go. If I'm not scanning something specific in the area, I'm scanning the people in general.
Shane's eyes seem to be more attuned towards wildlife. He spotted a fish in the water I had no clue was there. It was very long and narrow and Shane was sure it was a baby swordfish. I think it was another type of fish I've seen, but couldn't tell you the name (Feel free to tell me if you know).
There was a ton of construction for a water park on the island.....that didn't open until May (assuming they actually got done on time). That didn't do anything for us.
Shane and I sat and listened to a live band and shifted for shells to wait for Nana and Pop. I hadn't brought sunscreen and wanted to sit in the shade. I knew that Nana had some and had counted on using hers when we got to the water. I wasn't worried about Shane, though.
We waited as long as I thought I could hold him and then headed off to the water. We stopped at the first beach to make ourselves easy to find. I kept all my valuables on me since it was crowded and no one was around to watch them. I prayed Shane wouldn't do anything too crazy where I'd have to react instantaneously.
I left all of the shells on the towel, at least. Shane considered them quite valuable, but with 1,000,000 others all around us I wasn't too worried.
Nana and Pop showed up a little later. Nana talked to a little boy had a hermit crab and called Shane over. The boy's mom said there were a ton of them on the rocks.
You have two guess where Shane went next.
There were indeed swarms of tiny hermit crabs. There were a few larger ones, too. Shane got a nip on the leg he was expecting and squealed loudly. He swore it was "huge!" and had several people laughing at how the size increased each time he retold his story.
I tell you, what, though. I did see some larger crabs well hidden at the last set of rocks we were at. I wouldn't have wanted to be pinched by them! They were nowhere near as big as Shane advertised, or he could have lost a limb.
Shane did not want to go when I told him it was time to head back. I'd told Carrie we'd meet her at 1 PM and I didn't want to overtax my skin early in the trip (or at all).
I had the moron boy wash the sand off and then he laid down again right before we left. He had no idea that would recoat him in sand again!
At 2:30 PM, we had an appointment to ride the "North Star." It's an extendable arm that lifts a globe high above the ship.
It was neat to see the island. I would have liked to have walked the whole place. I spotted some inflatable water toys on the far side that looked like fun for later.
The island next to us was owned by Norwegian Cruise Lines. The employee with us recognized us from the trapeze earlier (She called Shane, "Minecraft," because of his shirt). She had worked for NCL and had some stories about what life was like there versus on RC.
We never made it back to the beach. With the length of the walk, Shane preferred to hop into a pool on the boat. He just wanted to swim!
We hopped in a few different pools and hot tubs before I told him it was time to quit. He would have kept going, but I felt the sun heating my skin up to the point I'd start burning.
Self-serve ice cream took the sting out of calling it quits.
I did end up with a slight burn. My calves got hit the worst. I hadn't put sunscreen on them since I got them wet before Nana and Pop showed up with supplies. The burn was enough to heat up the skin, but not anything that would cause peeling or anything worse later.
Shane had a very minor burn on his shoulders. He hammed it up when I asked him to stop for a picture (The wimp!).
He didn't peel at all. It looked red a few days and became a tan. It wasn't as red as my calves, either. He milked the "Don't touch my shoulders! It hurts!" Not that he got much sympathy.
By this point, Carrie and I had some good news about the house. I won't write about it here, but I will say there were points here and there where the trip was less relaxing than you would have thought (with good news and being on a cruise!). Carrie was stressed and anxious and feeling torn between working and participating in activities. Shane was oblivious, overstimulated, and overeager which added some friction to the mix. I was hoping to hear back from some interviews and to keep everyone sane, but it was still a lot of fun overall!
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