Bienvenido a Mexico!

That's Spanish for Welcome to Mexico, ya'll. In our dedication to squeeze every bit of fun out of this trip, our alarm went off at 7am this morning. (UGH!) We weren't very happy about it, but we know it is for the greater good. We met Bib for breakfast in the Scarlet at 8am and watched as we docked in Cozumel. Although it hasn't been THAT long since I've been here, the port looked totally different this time. I suspect they had to add on to the pier to allow for the larger ships, such as the Dream. Unfortunately, I don't have a photo from my previous trip that shows a "before" and "after." The row of shops on the left side of the photo is definitely new. Security now routes you through the shops to get to/from the ship.



This port was built specifically for Carnival. Other cruise lines dock further to the left of these photos near the "real" downtown Cozumel; however, many of the shops from the downtown area also have locations in this port. This area feels very commercial, but also very safe.

We headed off the ship at 9:45am. Bib had booked and excursion to swim with the dolphins today, so we decided to get some shopping done before she left. It was a very hot and humid, but we didn't let that distract us! We had some vanilla to buy. Although Vanilla is produced and grown in several regions on the world, it originated in Mexico. Vanilla is made from the seed pod of an orchid plant which grows organically in the southern coastal regions. Mexican vanilla is described as smooth and a little spicy. I brought some home from my previous cruise, but I gave it all away. This time, we've had several requests from people to bring some home, so we stocked up.

When we'd had all we could stand, we headed back. My plan was to hang out at the pool, and Mom's plan was to find a piece of shade. We spent the rest of the afternoon at Waves Pool and Seaside Theater. With many of our 4,200 friends exploring Cozumel, it was easy to find a good spot in the sun (or the shade). In the photo below, you can see a row of light blue chairs in the shade of the deck below the big screen. This is where Mom spent part of her afternoon. The blue chairs were molded plastic rocking chairs and were quite comfortable.

This is the view from the 11th deck. The hot tubs overhang the decks on the Promenade Deck (deck 5). This photo is untouched. The water really is that blue.

At dinner tonight, Jason (our favorite bar waiter) showed up to check on us. I think he missed us today. Ha! He arrived just in time for "Showtime." Each night, the dining staff entertains us, either with song or dance. The shows on the Dream aren't as interactive as they were on the Legend, but it's still fun. Tonight, we were invited to dance with the waiters. Of course, Bib and I popped right up and started dancing. Jason grabbed Pam and made her dance along, too. What was the name of the song?? No idea, but the words "shake it" were in the lyrics. Pam put in a good effort, but she had a little trouble "shaking it." We made total fools of ourselves, but it was hilarious anyway.

Tonight's show was a female impressionist named Karen Grainger. She was careful to point out that she is an impressionist, not an impersonator...ha! I wasn't sure what to expect from the performance, but she was really great. She had a table of wigs behind her, and she would introduce her next song, turn around, put on a wig, and instantly become that person. She had the mannerisms, the voice, everything down pat. She BECAME Celine Dion. It was so bizarre and very hard to describe. Jason, of course, was our waiter in the Encore theater. He was flirting with Bib's mom, Annette, tonight. Here was her quote from the night. "If I was a drinking woman, I'd show him the time of his life." HA! I've laughed and laughed about that.

After the show, we went to catch karaoke in The Song (one of the many clubs). Some of it was pretty good, but most of it was really bad. Bravo to anyone brave enough to get up and try. When we'd had our fill, the moms headed to bed, some of the gang headed to a comedy show, and Bib and I went exploring. We headed to the Lido deck for a late night snack of pizza, but we ran into the Atlanta girls (without Leslie) and visited with them for quite a while. (We never got our pizza.) They were hilarious. They now had adopted their own bar waiter, too. I'm pretty sure his name is Darwin, but he told them to call him 911, because if they needed him, they only had to call 911 and he'd be there. I don't know if they had scared him off or if his shift was over, but we didn't get to meet him tonight.

We moved on to Club Caliente! Caliente must be hispanic for "lame dance club where every song has it's own specific dance" or it might also mean "dance club that reminded Tami that she's old and probably should be in bed by now." So I went to bed.

Feliz cumpleanos, Deana! We missed you today.