Losing my Sea Legs

If there was ever an indication that I should have been a sailor it is this. Two days after getting back and I'm still trying to lose my sea legs. My head is still very much "at sea". Sadly not figuratively. Literally. When I sit for any length of time I can feel the ship rock and move beneath me. A pleasant feeling when you are at sea. A little more disconcerting when sitting at my desk at work. My body is clearly geared towards being at sea. The little bits I read on this say it is normally and hopefully should go away within the week. Until then I'll be bobbing along with the tides.

The trip was wonderful. I absolutely loved the boat and being at sea. Here is a picture of the front of the boat. To fully capture the length of the boat took four pictures. When people tell you these boats are huge they mean it. See how much it dwarfs the building to the right.

We started the trip in Fort Lauderdale. Of all the places we went to this was the most beautiful. We stayed in one of the oldest hotels in the city, Riverside Hotel, which is along Las Olas Boulevard. The boulevard is full of wonderful shops and restaurants. It is very much the trendy spot for the city. Here is the hotel and a little of Las Olas.

The first night Jeff and I walked all the way down to the beach (about 2.5 miles) and back along Las Olas. As you get closer to the beach, the street becomes broken up by canals. There are mansions everywhere and the yachts get bigger and bigger. The street ends at A1A, a scenic byway along the beach made famous by none other than Vanilla Ice. (yes I know the lyrics to Ice Ice Baby)

For the first time in my life I got to wade in the Atlantic Ocean. Here is a picture of Jeff down on A1A.

We mostly bummed around Fort Lauderdale and ate at some fantastic restaurants. We ate outside everywhere we could. One lunch we had included a one footed pigeon who stole french fries right off Jeff's plate. We ate breakfast at a little place call Le Bonne Crepe which had wonderful scrambled eggs with whatever you wanted mixed in. This was my first experience with dogs joining their masters for outdoor dining. I guess that is pretty typical down there. You eat outside and the dog sits at your feet. Something that wouldn't fly up here.

The next day we wandered the other way up Las Olas and ended up at the Science Museum. We got there around opening time so Jeff and I were able to play with the hands-on gadgets, something we don't normally get to do. Here I am trying to create big bubbles.

The animal section of the science museum made me sad though. There was a terrified looking possum with no where to hide. The hardest part was a strange looking fish in a tank with two lobsters. It looked like they had been cutting little chunks out of his face. The volunteer told us he had some sort of fungal infection and had been quarentined. He seemed to plead with us to let him out. It was really hard. The rock exhibit they had was breathtaking though. Malachites, calcites, and quartzes that were colorful and good specimens. Jeff and I were the only ones looking at them. As the afternoon went on, the museum filled and we had to leave. The noise was deafening. I felt bad for both the animals and workers.

The next day we boarded the boat. I can't even begin to describe how huge this boat is. 11 floors of ship and about 2 football fields in length and you still would probably underestimate the size. And it was beautiful. Marble and tile and mirrors and glass. I had heard it described as a floating resort and that matched well. The staterooms were small but well fitted. There was more than enough storage for the two gigantic suitcases we had. The main dining room was opulant and the centrum (grand atrium) was for lack of a better word grand. The solarium (adults only pool) was quiet and still and spa-like. I spent a good chunk of time reading there.

I'll spend some time in my next post talking about Key West and Cozumel. I'm at work but I wanted to get back to blogging. This last week was strange. I didn't have access to the internet or even any real news. It was a complete disconnect. I read two books on vacation and wrote more than I have in the last year. I'll post more on each later. I have reviews to do and more.

{Edit: other pictures will be loaded this evening, after I get home.}