We just arrived back into port. All the dock workers are connecting us up and preparing the offload of passenger bags. We are getting ready to head to our last breakfast before our 8:30 departure. I will say this cruise has been great and I look forward to cruising HAL again.
Last full day of our cruise and we are sitting aboard the tender for Halfmoon Cay (pronounced key). Mary hates tenders. She gets motion sick very easily and they tend to move around quite a bit.
This is our final stop for our cruise, so we will be spending our day relaxing on the beach under a clamshell. I recommend reserving one early as they are very popular. We brought a bottle of Cote de Rhone and our snorkels/masks, so this should be a great last day.
Afternoon update
Had a great time on the island. The clamshell synshade we reserved really helped us make the most of our time by providing a respite from the sun. The bbq lunch was enjoyable and the clear water was refreshing (slightly colder than other ports).
Evening update
We decided to try out the free Canaletto restaurant last night. Considering there is no cover/up charge, it was great. The best part was at desert, when they brought us a huge puff of cotton candy with our deserts.
We just arrived into St Thomas, USVI. We slept in this morning and didn't see our arrival. We will be getting ready to head into Charlotte Amalie soon and then off to our Champagne Snorkel and Catamaran Sail. We're hoping to have even better snorkeling than Grand Turk.
Mid-morning update
While St Thomas is a beautiful island, I was very dissappointed with downtown Charlotte Amalie. It was nothing but cruise ship shopping, from Del Sol to Diamonds. I was hoping for a little more. On the plus side, the architecture is interesting, we were able to see a childrens steel drum band, and we were able to get a post card out (finally). For those interested in seeing CA, it costs $4 per person each way from Crown Bay marina, whether in a group taxi or a cab. If your looking for cruise ship shopping, that can also be had at the numerous shoppes in the marina. Keep your eyes peeled for the Iguanas, which like to sun on the waterside rocks.
Afternoon Update
Had an amazing time in the Champagne Cat snorkeling Honeymoon Beach and sipping rum punch/champagne. We saw a sting ray, numerous reef fish, and coral. I came very close to some fire coral thanks to a couple errant waves. I woukd love to come back one day for some more diving.
We just arrived into Old San Juan. Once the crew assemble the gangway, we can depart to explore the city, including the Castillo Del Morro. We will be keeping our eyes open for bottles of Sangria (finished ours during arrival to port). In the meanwhile, here are some pictures of us enjoying the last of our bottle from our balcony, while cruising past the fort.
Evening Update - Just back from a soak in the hot tub, which was great on our sore feet and muscles. San Juan was much steeper than I originally thought. We started out at the cruise terminal, winding our way through the blue furnace slag cobbles, until reaching Castillo San Felipe del Morrow. We stopped into a little cantina for lunch and then tackled the massive fort. The view is commanding and the esplanade is grand. After we made out way back to our floating home away from home, the Eurodam. Tonight we are dining in the Pinnacle Grill and tomorrow we arrive at St Thomas, USVI.
