Still, cold is relative. As chilly as it was, Nassau was supposed to reach 67F, which I imagine sounds pretty good to many of you.
When we read in the Princess Patter that the dining room would be open for lunch today between 11:30am and 1pm, G suggested we eat there before getting off the ship. After all, he explained, he hadn't eaten much for breakfast. No, just eggs florentine and fruit and bacon...it's understandable that he'd be hungry again three hours later. ;-)
We stepped off the ship into the wind tunnel created by the Caribbean Princess and the Carnival Liberty on the other side of the pier. Brrrrrrrrr; it was so cold that it was almost enough to make us change our minds about leaving the ship. The poor Philippino security staff was visibly suffering, with hands in pockets and hoods pulled up over their uniform hats. They welcomed us to Alaska as we stepped onto the pier.
It wasn't quite so bad when we walked beyond the two ships, though it was cute to see the local kids wearing winter parkas and pom-pommed ski caps to stay warm. The adult locals had wrapped blankets around their jackets to add some more insulation. We made our way through the crowded and crazy cruise ship terminal (there were also two NCL ships at the second pier) and picked up a walking tour map at the information center. We had learned from the Nassau Port Guide distributed to us in today's Princess Patter that there was a fort (G was immediately interested) reachable by a 65-step staircase carved by slaves into a limestone wall. A fort AND a climb; this was right up G's alley. We set out to find it.
We had been in Nassau on a Sunday last year, and had spent most of our time there at Atlantis, but even when we returned to the Emerald Princess, there was almost no traffic in town. Not so today, where narrow sidewalks with large holes had G yelling back at me "Tourist trap!!" to alert me to yet another opportunity for disaster. How we managed to cross streets with left-sided drivers and constant horn blowing and even a prison bus racing through town accompanied by leading and following police cars with sirens blaring, all of them taking corners on two wheels is beyond me. Captain Pomata had made an unusual announcement last night during dinner alerting us to a US Department of State warning about high levels of criminal activity in Nassau. Honestly, I was more concerned about getting taken out by a car.
We did finally find the Queens Staircase, at the end of a limestone canyon lined with tropical foliage right in the middle of town. On the top of that limestone cliff, called Bennet Hill, was Fort Fincastle, dating back to the 18th century. Fincastle's unique appearance is a bit like a ship's bow, and the fort served as a lookout against possible attacks as well as a signal station and lighthouse. Even in my slightly infirmed condition, I had no trouble climbing the steps, and G provided me the motivation to do it safely by calling cadence as we made our way up: "Lift your feet and hold them high (lift my feet and hold them high), so that you won't fall and die (so that I won't fall and...WHAT?)". What a support he is! ;-)
We swung through the souvenir booths and straw market on our way back to the ship, but were satisfied buying only a postcard. Once back on board, we warmed up with coffee and hot chocolate from the IC, which looked to be a popular thing to do. After a quick clean up (we certainly didn't get sweaty today), we were at dinner with Marian and Slava at 5:30am. We have been seated at a table for two that was added as an afterthought to the Coral Dining Room. It's actually a table for two relocated from the Horizon Court Buffet, and is so narrow that Marian and Slava have to keep removing every single thing when we're done with it (i.e. butter dish and bread bowl). Its size is compounded by the fact that there is not a sliver of light above the table. We read our menus by iPhone light, but it's actually hard to see what we're eating. After two cruises of tolerating that, we've asked to be moved to the table for two next to ours that is larger AND has light. Fingers crossed...
Following dinner, we raced up to Skywalkers to watch first the Carnival Liberty, then the Caribbean Princess sail away. That might have been something enjoyed from an open deck if it wasn't dark and cold and windy. Instead Skywalkers provided a better observational venue. It was funny; docked just the width of the pier apart, the Carnival Liberty backed up and spun one direction, but the Caribbean Princess spun the opposite. Sailaway with the lights of Paradise Island and Atlantis was beautiful...but even Skywalkers felt chilly. It felt like a night that should be spent in front of a fireplace.
With no fireplace in sight, we grabbed hot tea from the Horizon Court Buffet and returned to our cabin, where we turned the thermostat up to BAKE. Entertainment tonight is magician Alex Ramon; who was fantastic; but tonight he can't compete with a book (me) or a Comcast TV2Go show on his iPhone (G), finally toasty and warm under a fluffy duvet.
Fort Lauderdale is supposed to be 75 tomorrow. Fingers crossed on that, too.