By Pirate Captain Mike
We
like the Bahamas. We have been to the Bahamas a couple
of times, and we think that it has some of the clearest
water out of any of the Caribbean islands. This was a
really easy cruise because we didn’t have to fly
anywhere. The ship left out of Norfolk around 8 pm. The
lines to get on the ship were really long and took about
two hours.
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We had
a day at sea which we spent at the pool. The first stop
was Nassau, and we didn't leave until the following night.
We only had a half day in Freeport which we spent at a really
nice beach. Then we had another day at sea, then home. Even
though Cruise 9 was the shortest cruise we have ever been
on, it was a lot of fun.
A
lady named Pickles told us about this cruise. On Cruise
6 (on Holland America out of Norfolk), we were talking
to a tan fellow by the back pool. We gave him (Ken)
one of our cruise cards. He gave it to Pickles, and
she sent us an e-mail telling us about the Carnival
cruise out of Norfolk. (Cruise 9). Kim wanted to book
the cruise immediately, and we did. Leaving out of
Norfolk saved us around $700, and it is just so much
easier. Kim also wanted a balcony room.
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We
e-mailed back and forth with Pickles before the cruise,
and she arranged for us to be at the same dinner table.
We met her the first night by the Red and Black Bar.
Pickles turned out to be really nice and fun. She
was traveling with her friend Jean. Pickles and Ken
broke up shortly after Cruise 6. They had been together
a long time and had taken 14 cruises together. Kim,
Jean, Pickles, and I had fun together. We hung out
after dinner and went to a lot of the shows together.
They really liked the Karaoke Bar. |
Cruise
9 came really quickly after Cruise 8. Cruise 9 was fun,
but was not a huge cruise like Cruise 8. We booked both
of them almost at the same time.
Carnival
Victory
The Carnival Victory was a nice ship. Our room was a good
size, being a balcony room. The ship caters to a younger
crowd. There is a lot of night life. The disco opened at
11:30 pm. Most of the other cruises we have been on everyone
is in bed by 10 pm. The shows were really good. Carnival
advertises itself as a fun cruise, and they do a good job
at it. Carnival is also a little cheaper than other cruises,
but the food and the service suffer a little. The food is
definitely not as tasty as Royal Caribbean. Our dinner was
too early at 5:45 pm. I would have preferred 6:15 pm.
Nassau
Day 1
We had a good day snorkeling. We booked it through the ship.
The catamaran wasn’t one of the nice ones, and it
was crowded. After that we went to Senor Frogs and went
to the Straw Market. After dinner we went to the Atlantis
Casino. We saw a fantastic aquarium for free, and the taxi
ride was only $6. It was really worth seeing.
Nassau
Day 2
We went on the Pearl Island Stingray and Snorkeling tour.
It was ok, but not as nice as DePalm Island in Aruba or
the Stingray City in Grand Cayman. The stingrays were captive,
and Kimmy likes them to be wild. We had a lot of fun snorkeling.
I brought crackers in a ziplock bag. I threw some crackers
in the water, and a million Sergeant Majors swarmed to feed.
They were very aggressive and even started biting at the
bag of crackers. It was really fun.
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On
the ferry back from Pearl Island, a couple of the crew started
Limbo dancing. They were really good. They didn't just go underneath
the pole, it was a whole dance. I even tried it.
Freeport
We had a quick day in Freeport and had to be back on the
ship by 2 pm. Pickles and Jean booked the Tranquility
Beach Break for $50 per person. ($200 for 4 of us). Kim
and I took a taxi to Lucaya Beach for $6 instead. It was
a really nice beach. We had some fun in the sun. We swam
with floats, played paddleball, and jumped on a floating
trampoline. After the beach, we did some shopping but
didn’t find much.
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Cruise
9 Web Site
The web site as usual took me about a month and a half.
It’s a smaller web site than most of the others. We just
didn’t have as many interesting stops. Make sure you check
out Cruise 8. It is a little more action packed.
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Mike
& Kim's
Cruise Schedule
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Sunday
June 4 |
Norfolk,
Virginia
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Depart
7 pm |
Monday
June 5 |
At Sea
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At
the pool |
Tuesday
June 6 |
Nassau,
Bahamas |
Arrive
1 pm |
Wednesday
June 7 |
Nassau,
Bahamas |
Depart 10 pm |
Thursday
June 8 |
Freeport, Bahamas |
Arrive
8 am
Depart 3 pm |
Friday
June 9 |
At
Sea |
At
the pool |
Saturday
June 10 |
Norfolk,
Virginia
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Arrive
8 am |
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