Puerto Rico, March 14 & 15

We arrived in San Juan at 6:15pm and went to our hotel, Da House. Cute hotel, located in old San Juan. The entrance is in an alley and you have to buzz in to enter. No elevator, so Ben had the privilege of carrying our heavy luggage up to the fourth floor. Yay Ben!

The group convened at 8:30pm to head to the Biobay. The Biopay is where we would Kayak and see the bioluminescent organisms - plankton. No one knew what to expect and so we headed out, ready to see the glow! Waiting for us were kayaks... each one held two people. So of course, Ben and I were in the Kayak together. We started paddling out and it was eerie to be in a situation where you are sitting in open water with only a life jacket, a kayak, a paddle, and only minimal moonlight. It was pitch black in some places and all you could see was the glow ring that was placed on kayak in front of you. We finally figured out a system that worked - Ben steered, I yelled directions. We eventually made it through the, dark and narrow water way to the main part of the bay. We had two things against us, though... 1.) the month of March is not optimal viewing of plankton, and 2.) the moon was just bright enough that it was hard to see what was there. It's similar to viewing the stars in a city full of lights versus a rural area with the nearest street lamp a mile away. Same concept. We paddled out to the bay and the tour guide brought out a tarp. He took out the tarp and put it over the group. All of a sudden it was an amazing sight... I'd put my hand in the water and if pixie dust exists, I think I've now had it in my hands. Lights went dancing down my wrist and down my arm. Ben splashed me and it was as if a universe was displayed on my back, if only for a moment. The tour guide talked with us and kicked his feet around in the water... the lights danced around his feet. Truly magical! We finally headed back to shore and once again navigated through the darkness. There were a few instances in which fish dashed through the water and as they swam the phosphorescence echoed their movement.

We got to land and luckily we had a local with us. He led the group to an amazing taco stand on the side of the road. NOT a place that you would stop if you weren't familiar with the territory. Now, I like to consider myself a taco connoisseur. This taco was one of the BEST things I've ever had! Ben had a mammoth burrito and chicken on a stick. (On my gosh, how GOOD that was!) Needlesst o say, there were some stray dogs who were hanging out and definitely were not hurting for food.
We got back in the van and headed to town to return to the hotel.

Evidently the groom, Jeffrey, knows how to pick the hot spots because he managed to find as a hotel across the alley from a happening salsa bar! Soaking wet and exhausted from our day of traveling, we decided to head to bed. Thank God for Lindsay, one of the girls on the trip, she had ear plugs to spare. We got a good night's sleep thanks to her! But we did learn that the government shuts off their water at a certain time so by the time we got back to our room the best we could do was bathe by washcloth and water drips. The next morning I tried to take a shower - the water I was able to draw was SCALDING and for Ben it was ice cold. Nice! So again, bathe by washcloth. By this time all we wanted to do was get on the cruise and take a REAL shower!

We checked out of the hotel and headed to Old San Juan to check out some shops and explore some of old San Juan. Bought a few things, had some breakfast, then headed back to the hotel.

All guests in our party had stored their bags in the same room and the idea was to be at the hotel by 2pm to get our luggage. Unfortunately, we were the first people there (me, Ben, Lindsay and Bret, her boyfriend) - and we were told that all luggage had to be out immediately. So we, along with Heidi's (the bride's) dad, took down all the luggage. We decided we all deserved a refreshing beverage, so after a mojito and finding the rest of our troops we headed to the cruise.

We arrived at the cruise ship at about 3:30pm. The first thing you wonder as as you see the ship is, "How the HECK does this thing float???" But you suck down the anxiety, whip out your passport and you are on the water.

About six of us stuck together after boarding, and we discovered that as you board you get a free glass of champagne or a mimosa. So we each grabbed two and sat in a lounge to talk while we waited for others to join. Of course we were thirsty while we waited... so we would take turns going out and getting more. (For those of you who have been on a cruise, you'll recognize the ingenuity here... alcohol (OR COKES FOR THAT MATTER) or neither FREE nor CHEAP on a cruise!) This plan was going swimmingly well until we sent Ben out to grab some drinks...


Have you ever stood dominoes up in a pattern and pushed one down so you can watch the rest fall? Picture that... but with a full tray of FULL champagne glasses. One by one, down they went. Next time Ben went out he was recognized and we got no more champagne!!!

We headed up to our room. We had a room on the top floor of sleeping rooms and it has a balcony. The room's not too bad, in fact it's big enough that we even have a couch! To me the balcony is something that if I cruise again I will not do without. Although I've never cruised before, the views and the sea breeze are breathtaking enough that I officially refuse to do without!

We cleaned up and went to dinner. For the first night it's casual and open seating, so pretty relaxed. Our waiter, Ben, was uber accommodating and we were fortunate enough to have his service for the duration of the trip. If you can't decide between more than one item on the menu, he'll bring you every option you are debating on. Our table affectionally referred to the extra food that we'd all have as being the mystery guest portion.

After dinner we headed out to the pool area and did some mingling, closing down multiple areas of the ship at around 1am... (outdoor bar, casino - all were closing up shop!) We hiked around the boat for a bit and then Ben and I split off from the gang, hitting the bed and letting the exhaustion carry us into a peaceful slumber!