Unencumbered by our large suitcases, we left our cabin shortly before 8am. The only issue with using EZ Check is that none of the liquid toiletries that are used the final morning can go home in a carry on unless they are less than 3 ounces. Luckily, we were down to the last drops of so many things: shampoo, conditioner, sunscreen, mouthwash and deodorant, etc. that we just tossed what was left. It worked out perfectly.
We had a last leisurely breakfast in the Botticelli Dining Room, enjoying two small bottles of Korbel in mimosas and indulging in blueberry pancakes and crispy bacon. Yep, it was my first bacon of the winter, and something I'm not likely to eat again until next winter. We left the dining room and went directly to the Adagio Lounge, with its quiet solitude...and power ports. We needed to keep our iDevices charged to 100%; our Southwest flights offered free TV (and the thought of something other than Love Boat reruns made my heart beat faster). We kept waiting for the 'last and final' announcement, calling all of us non-in transit passengers to disembark, but when it didn't come by 11am, we simply walked off the ship.
Weep. We had said goodbye to the Emerald Princess two years ago not knowing when we'd see the ship again, and today felt much the same. We've now spent 471 nights on that ship, and, despite the many small cutbacks we witnessed (it's death by a thousand cutbacks), it remains our favorite large ship.
I cannot recommend Global Entry strongly enough for any passengers doing multiple back to back cruises out of Fort Lauderdale. Having it has saved us hours in the past two months, and today we bypassed a long, weaving queue to go through immigration and went right to the head of the line. So nice!!
We were in a taxi by 11:10am, and then enountered the inevitable traffic that surrounds the area between Port Everglades and the nearby Fort Lauderdale airport. Our driver chose to go down 17th Street to Federal Boulevard, and I kept my window rolled down, waving to the waiters we knew who were walking over to the stores. As we passed the Embassy Suites, I thought how it seemed like yesterday that we were meeting Suzan and Greg there at the start of our Emerald Princess cruises. Time goes way too fast...
...unless one is stuck in traffic watching a taxi fare climb. Then it seems to crawl. Our Prius taxi had had a hard life, and kept making loud noises like the driver was rolling over dead bodies in the road. Clunk. Clunk. Clunk. I gave G a questioning look, to see if he could diagnose its disorder from the back seat, but he shrugged. No clue. It got louder and more frequent as we finally approached the airport, and by the time we were in the clover leaf leading from the expressway, I knew we could walk the rest of the way if necessary.
Oy vey, the Fort Lauderdale airport on a Saturday is a caution. We expected that, and had discussed the wisdom of disembarking the Emerald Princess on a weekday instead, but our flight options were so much better on a Saturday that it was a worthwhile trade off. Plus, EZ Check is not available on cruises of less than 7-nights. It was nice not to have to roll our large suitcases across that carpeted (what a ridiculous choice for airport flooring!) Southwest terminal.
We could have gone right through security and to our gate, but G still had a can of pop to drink and so we joined the masses, finally finding one chair and one stool at a charging station. Many people had their large suitcases piled around them, as they couldn't check in until 2-3 hours before their flights. We've been there, done that in the past. EZ check is so much better!!
We walked right though security with our TSA pre check, and then down to our gate. We should have stayed outside security a little longer. There was no place to sit, and so we stood until it was time to start boarding the plane. Our flights were all on time, and Martha was waiting for us when we (and our EZ Checked bags!) arrived at our home airport.
Everything at home is fine, though I know from experience that it will take a week to feel things are under control again. I made Kraft Mac and cheese for a late dinner (what a come down!!); I remember buying it in December thinking it would be a handy thing to have in the pantry when we got home, and it was handy, but it was not tasty. In less than two hours I've cooked, done dishes, started laundry and cleaned the master bedroom (I'm allergic to dust). I'm lying in bed with the ceiling fan on, trying to convince myself it's an ocean breeze and its hum is the sound of gentle waves washing ashore.
This is my new normal.
Still, life is good. :-)