The first post of each season:

Thursday, March 5, 2015

Day 133: Cozumel

We were moving slowly on this, our very last port day of the winter, but that wasn't a surprise. After 26 days on the Caribbean Princess, we're moving slower by the day. We have never had such fast paced; more fun-per-minute cruises as these have been. However, we can't keep up this pace much longer, and, thankfully, we won't have to.

We enjoyed a leisurely coffee and light breakfast in the International Cafe, and had an earnest discussion about our plans for next winter that led us to complete the paperwork to purchase (warning:  cruise terms to follow) an additional ten FCCs for each of us.  That completed, we walked off the ship intending to go to Paradise Beach Resort. Then we saw that the Oasis of the Seas (nearly 6000 passengers) was at the International Pier and that there were six cruise ships again in Cozumel. That means there were close to 20000 cruise ship passengers descending on tiny Cozumel. Yikes!  I remember when we used to travel to Cozumel to dive several times a year. Cruise ships were allowed to come just one day a week, and were limited to just two ships at a time. Even then we'd avoid going to town on that day, because (said in a horrified tone) "the cruise ships are here". Ha. 

We decided to just stay in the Puerta Maya pier area again, and spent the afternoon relaxing in loungers in the shade of palm trees. 

My view for the day. I may enlarge this and hang it in a prominent place at home to get me through the next few weeks. 

Whatever antics we expected to see today from our fellow passengers, we didn't see any. There were not the drunken college students of yesterday. We saw plenty of students, of course, but they seemed downright sober. Once we were back on the ship, steward Antonio filled us in. The Spring Breakers near our cabin didn't get out of bed until dinner time. I knew that Costa Maya would do them in!  What we might expect tonight and in the early hours of tomorrow morning is kind of frightening, but they were well behaved and subdued today. 

We had a pretty light dinner (still not hungry) and then went to this cruise's Most Traveled Passengers cocktail party in Skywalkers. We're heading back out tonight for the Mardi Gras party and then production show Caribbean Caliente. 

No time to write more...another party awaits!