Fort Lauderdale, Florida              

The Caribbean


April 10-17, 2010  


We were at Port Everglades and on the Star Princess ship by 1:30 pm. Since it is the sister ship of the Diamond Princess that we cruised down to Vancouver on in September, it was easy to navigate around.

Of course the first thing that you do after you find your cabin is to check out the buffet. We made a pact to eat fairly low carb, work out every day, and take the stairs for the entire trip.

Our first stop was in the Bahamas at a private island called Princess Cays. We took a tender to the island and headed to the beach.

Just sitting soaking up the sun and watching the turquoise Caribbean waters is mesmerizing.

After enjoying the lovely beach, we went snorkeling. It was not Hawaii or Belize in terms of the number of fish and beauty, but it was great to be in the water.

Our second port was St. Maarten.

We walked into St. Phillipsburg along the beach and along some of the side streets.

We found a relaxing little bar with ice cold beer and toasted as we enjoyed the music of the islands.

The third port was St. Thomas in the US Virgin Islands.

We took a small tour bus to Magens Beach.

We spent most of the afternoon swimming in the ocean to keep cool from the hot sun and reading under the shade trees.

We were supposed to go into Grand Turk on Thursday but there were high winds and the harbor was narrow with two corral reefs on each side. We were disappointed but knew that there would be plenty to do on the ship.

The entertainment on board was varied and better than most cruises. The band, Serious Sounds from Barbados were excellent. We listened to them and danced just about every night. The lead singer had a fantastic voice and the band played just about every music genre. The comedian, Tom Briscoe, from NYC was hysterical and there was a young man who juggled and did a comedy show that was talented and funny. The cruise staff was full of energy and kept things lively all week. One thing about going on a cruise is that everyone is having a good time and in a great mood.

The food was not as good as Carnival, but the service was excellent. We mostly ate seafood: scallops, prawns, lobster, and escargot. We did splurge at dinner sampling the scrumptious desserts, fortunately they were small. It still amazes us that 2 people could go for 7 days with food and lodging included to the Princess Cays, Bahamas, St. Maarten in the Netherlands Antilles, St. Thomas in the US Virgin Islands and Grand Turk for $135 a day. It was a marvelous vacation from our road trip, but we were ready to head north to Savannah, GA.
WHERE WE ARE

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Florida

April 6-9, 2010

As we were leaving the Sanford Orlando Airport, we had company in the parking lot, an adult Sandhill Crane and a juvenile.

We drove the short distance to the Seasons in the Sun RV Park in Mims, FL, near Titusville. It was a smaller campground but had nice club house with a 2 pools and 2 hot tubs, several ponds and nature trails.

The first day we relaxed at the campground, walked on the trails, and swam in the pool. The live oaks throughout the park were lovely and gargantuous providing shade from the hot sun. No, we were not complaining!

 As we walked around the pond, I spotted an interesting sign that made us more alert as we continued our hike.

In the early evening, we drove to the Cocoa Beach Pier overlooking the Atlantic Ocean.

We walked down to the end of the Pier, checking out the shops and restaurants. On our way out, we stopped to listen to some music and have a beer.

On Wednesday, we drove to Cape Canaveral to the Kennedy Space Center.

Unfortunately, we missed the launch on Monday. It is sad to think that it might be the last for awhile, as a result of planned cuts to the Program. It was an amazing tour of the facility, especially the Shuttle Launch Experience, a simulated vertical launch on NASA’s Space Shuttle.

 The Apollo/Saturn V Center featured a 363 foot moon rocket and the exhibit of the Hubbard Space Telescope showcased some fantastic images of deep space.

The top of the observation gantry at Launch Complex 39 offered a 360 degree view of the launch pads and the space shuttle operations.

Jim Lovell is scheduled to be here on Saturday to commemorate the Apollo 13 Mission. We heard his incredible stories at EAA Oshkosh Air Show a few years ago and wish that we could be here.

We spent the next day visiting the International Sand Sculpting Festival, followed by a relaxing afternoon at Cocoa Beach.

Our last day, we relaxed by the pool and walked. The owner let us store the 5th wheel there while we are on our cruise for only $25. It would have been $35 a day to park at the Port. The next morning we were on way south to Fort Lauderdale, excited about our cruise to the Caribbean.
WHERE WE ARE:

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Plattsburgh, New York

March 27 - April 5, 2010

We parked the 5th wheel and truck at the Sanford Orlando Airport and hopped on Allegiant Airlines for the less than 3 hour direct flight to Plattsburgh, NY. We were shocked when we left the gate early, as we stretched out in comfortable, roomy seats; and all for $59 OW. Bob’s parents met us at the airport and we were sitting down to one of Mom’s delicious dinners by 6:30 pm. It always warms our hearts to see them and it was "good" to be home even if it was a little cooler than Florida.

We spent 10 wonderful days enjoying our family and getting several Spring chores done for Mom and Dad. We had lots of fun with my brother, Jim, sister-in-law, Sherry, niece, Reagan and nephew, Ryan.

One of our many walks was on a gorgeous, sunny day. Hot enough that Jim and Sherry both got sunburned. We walked to Ausable Point (7 miles RT) for a picnic on Lake Champlain.

While we were there, my brother Harold drove up from Queensbury, NY to see us.

We went for a 4 mile walk before all going up to Akwesasne Mohawk Casino in Hogansburg, NY. They all like to gamble, but once I lost my $20, I was done. While they played the slots, Bob traded stocks on the computer, (definitely better odds than the casino) and made some money.


The Saturday before we left, we had a king crab feed as an early birthday celebration for Jim. It is hard to believe that my baby brother is going to be 57 on April 13th!

I remember the day that they brought him home from the hospital. I saw this bundle that everyone was admiring on our ugly plaid couch . No one had prepared this 4 year old for the big event; I told my mother to take “it” back or I was going to live with my Aunt Gladys and Uncle Neil. I did grow to love him dearly and still do to this day. That afternoon, Bob's cousin, Betty Jean and her husband Bernie and son Adam stopped by to see us. They were out "cruising" in  their new white hard top convertible. It was good to see them again.


We also got together for lunch with my best friend from first grade, Julie McNierney Lattrell and her significant other, Frank Preston. We are excited that they are coming to see us in Alaska this summer. Another old friend, Marty Connell met us one day for lunch and it was great to see him, as well. I was also happy to see my Aunt Margaret, my 101 year old God-Mother, and cousins Mary and her husband Jim. My sweet Aunt looked fantastic and was just as sharp as ever, in spite of a slight stroke early in the winter.


We celebrated Easter at Jim and Sherry’s and enjoyed a delicious dinner. The highlight was the cherry and apple pies that Reagan made from scratch.

On Monday, it was time to head back to Florida for some more sunshine and a cruise to the Caribbean.

Fort Myers, Florida

Another gorgeous day and we are on the road again. It felt a little strange to be pulling the 5th wheel after being at the beach house for 17 days. Our next destination was Fort Myers, FL. We arrived at Mark Dunham and Renee Jewett’s house in the afternoon.

We had not seen Mark in over 42 years and spent the afternoon reminiscing the good old days. On Friday, they took us to lunch at Miller’s Ale House in the Gulf Coast Town Center and showed us around the area. Later in the evening, we went out fishing on a charter just before sunset.

Fishing was slow but we did catch some grunt that were tasty. Mark caught a nice grouper but had to throw it back since the season was not open yet.

Saturday was spent at the Fort Myers Beach.
We took a long walk on the beach and could only go a few feet before all these college girls stopped to play with Renee’s Pomeranian dogs, especially the puppy who is a little ball of fur and as cute as can be. Bob decided that the college guys are missing the boat; if they brought a cuddly little puppy to the beach with them, they would be surrounded by women, oohing and aahing.

 That night we went back to the Gulf Coast Town Center to listen to music in the square. It was a lovely evening and we walked around the entire Center before having pizza at the Firepit City Grill.

Sunday was a day to relax. Bob and I went to get our haircuts and shopping. On the way back to Mark and Renee’s, we got caught in a rainstorm that came down so hard that we had to sit in the truck for 10 minutes before we could make a run for the house. Wow! We are not used to that in Alaska. Later in the day, they showed us all of the foreclosed homes that they have invested in, remodeled and rented out. They have convinced us that we should consider looking into buying one as an investment. There are definitely some good deals. That evening, Mark and Renee took us to a dance at a huge ballroom. We met several of their friends and had a great time. After seeing how much fun they were having, Bob and I decided to take some lessons…1,2 cha, cha, cha!

We were up early on Monday to get ready to go to Fort DeSoto, just south of St. Petersburg. Mark and Renee will join us on Tuesday and Wednesday. If you love white sandy beaches and being around water, this is the place to be. It is five inter-connected islands, making up 1,136 acres.

 It has also been named America’s Top Beach by Trip Advisor for the second consecutive year, as well as the Nation’s #1 Beach by Dr. Beach in 2005.

 We could not believe our good fortune that there was a cancellation and we were able to get a site for 3 days. After getting set up at our campsite, we biked to one of the beaches, and visited the QuartermasterStorehouse Museum, and Fort. This was a military post established in 1898 in Mullet Key.

On Tuesday, before Mark and Renee arrived, we walked for over an hour on the beach. In the afternoon, Mark took us all fishing in his boat.It was beautiful going out with the Gulf of Mexico on one side and Tampa Bay on the other.

Before we had any luck, the wind came up drenching Bob and I as we made our way back to the pier. We were both ready for a nice hot shower and some tea.

On Wednesday, we relaxed it the morning while Renee got some work done. While sitting outside checking email, I had a visitor looking for an handout. The Great Egret stayed next to my chair for nearly an hour.

In the afternoon, we went to Saint Pete's Beach and to see their rental condos on the water in Coquina Key.

From there, we went to the St. Petersburg Pier. We watched the sailboats and had a drink before sunset.

 I managed to get up close and personal with a pelican that was on the Pier and not intimidated by my presence, in the least.

That evening after dark, I asked Bob and Mark to empty the trash. When Bob opened the lid, a raccoon jumped out at him, scaring him half to death. We all had a good laugh. When we went for a walk later that evening, we could see the same raccoon in the woods near the trash. Mark thought it would be funny to come up behind me and give me a scare. My scream more than likely frightened the poor raccoon off. I owe him one!

We arose early on Thursday to say goodbye to Mark and Renee. We packed up and headed out later in the day, making our way over to Ocala to get some work done on our 5th wheel. While we were there, we went over to see Bernard and Annette LaClair. We had not seen Bernard since 1991 when he came to Alaska with my two brothers and another friend. They took us to lunch as one of their favorite places that served huge pulled pork sandwiches. We definitely should have split one! In the afternoon, we drove a short distance to Sanford and started packing for our trip up north to Plattsburgh, NY. Since it was 83 degrees, we wondered what we were thinking heading to the North Country for 10 days.