Intentional traveler: A Perfect Day!

Barbados and this has become a real Caribbean Cruise!

Today we were ready and up early to go ashore. Elva and I were use Viator, a super good,super reliable company for our tour to Harrison’s Cave. It had gotten a little confusing and at one point I was tempted to cancel it. Boy! Am glad I didn’t. The ship tour was s$89 dollars and this was $90. The ship tour had been full and we were wait listed. By the time we cleared the wait list it was too late to cancel. I The confusion was that were booking the tour there were two options. One was the cave and the other was the cave with a turtle swim and beach time. The Cave tour was supposed to be $90 and with the add-ons it was $130. We paid $90 for the three hour tour but were confirmed for the six hour all inclusive. So really, we didn’t know what we had booked and that was a little odd. I emailed Viator who contacted the tour operator, Glory Tours, to confirm what time we would be back to the ship and they confirmed the 6 hour tour. What Elva thought was that maybe they would ask us or bill us more money afterward. They did not.

So off we went, arriving a few minutes early outside the terminal and we waited for a young couple off the Carnival Fascination which was in port with us. They were very nice and their red card indicated that this was the second time they had sailed with Carnival. Of their three children who were in their teens they shared that one wanted to be an animator and from the photos of her drawings that she showed us, the girl has a great chance to do so. They were going to the Cave with us and then going on to Bathsheba and the other beach after a full island tour.

As soon as we approached the Cave entrance I said to Elva, “I have been here before!” It looked so familiar. I don’t’ remember which cruise but I think with the girls. The little movie about the formation of Barbados, that it is not a volcanic island but rather simple a tectonic plate shift that piled up silt, coral, and layered itself like a Napoleon dessert. Made me sure that I had been..

The tram seems to be new and improved and the driver carefully negotiated it through the narrow openings and down steep hills to a depth 160 feet below the surface. Our guide, Carol Ann, used her remote to light the areas about which she would be talking; the Rotunda, the Cathedral, the Proposal, the Altar, and Mirror Lake were the highlights. But the fascination of two men crawling through the original opening and over coral limestone, and through a rapidly flowing stream are amazing. When she put out all the lights and we sat a few moments in total pitch black darkness we knew what those men knew. If their headlamps went out they would be completely and utterly helpless. This did happen to them once and they sat perfectly still, not know what was around them, until friend followed through their path and found them. The next day they returned carrying spare lamps!

This formation is called the Village. Resembles people gathered around.

The Proposal

By the tallest waterfall and one of the lakes.

When the lights go out!

When the tour ended we took the glass elevator to the top and the parking lot and Ryan was waiting for us. He continued his tour narration and drove us to the Pirates Cove Beach. We were in the nick of time for the 11:00 boat and plunged ahead. Literally. We waded out to the boat steps and boarded the Tranquility Catamaran.

Changing into my swimsuit in the tiny marine head was a challenge. I had thought to wear my suit but then if we found we were not on the extended tour we would have been back to the ship for our included tour with no time to change and all day in a swimsuit under your clothes is inconvenient at certain points. As it happened I wished I had been believing that we had scored such a great deal - I would have been prepared. As we motored out over the bright blue waters we donned our swim vests which were very much like the airline ones. Bright yellow, inflatable, not the bulky boat-type orange ones that were used in Granada at that swim. The masks and snorkels were in a tub of disinfectant water and once in the Caribbean Sea we doused them with salt water and took off.

The newly rebuilt Hilton Hotel has a view of the beach from every room.

The hotel had been imploded under government directive because it did not meet the current code of being a steel reinforced structure.

I was offered the ‘water taxi’ because I commented that I would be swimming in circles since I was waiting for shoulder surgery. This as Rabb sat on a sort of a seat and wearing fins and paddling backwards while attached to a safety ring. I held the rope loosely as I swam and was then able to get to everything that he was talking about.

Elva also took advantage of this water taxi. We saw the turtles! They were swimming near the floor of the ocean and eating the small plants that grow there. Every now and then one would surface for air. They looked quite small to me but Robb said they were probably 10 years old. No fish were by them. But when we went to swim over the shipwreck there were hundreds of colorful swimmers. It was like swimming in your friend’s saltwater aquarium times a population 50 times greater! The colors on this bright clear day were almost neon in their clarity and just stunning. I loved the Electric blue ones and the yellow and black striped ones. On the ship was growing all kind of coral and reeds.

The second ship was even more interesting as it had cannons, and anchors and tons more brain coral and fan coral and something that looked like yellow alien eye tubes but I found out is so toxic that if you brushed against it you would swell land itch yourself to death!

After the turtle swim, Elva chose to stay on the boat. She has very painful shoulders and extending her arms to float along or swimming was too painful. Rabb told the guy that was left on the boat to drive over the shipwreck so she could see it through the glass bottom window. I was watching there myself later as we sailed away from this dream and the window was crystal clear and not all scratched up like they often are. While we were drinking our rum punch she had pineapple orange since she had sipped her punch while floating over the shipwreck. What a wonderful experience. Excellent help and a caring crew made it such a special experience.

And yes we did!

Back on shore we made our way to our reserved front row beach lounger under the Tiki umbrella.

The view from my lounge chair! Perfection!

I went swimming and loved it, loved it, loved it! I tumbled through the beach wave and it ended up that I did go home with sand in places I didn’t know I had places! We lounged with the beautiful view and friendly people around us. Mostly off the Carnival Fascination or a few from nearby hotels. We didn’t buy lunch but did take advantage of our typically included rum punch. I finished Elva’s and by the time we had Ryan take us back to the shop I was a happy camper boarding the shuttle bus to our ship. Fascination had stolen our spot but know how port charges are calculated it was no surprise that we had been berthed further along. We are a small ship. Port charges are based on the square footage of the decks added together for a total to be added to the per passenger fee of usually about $7.00. More money or more cruise lines that routinely in port will get priority.

Rosemary and Phil were on our same little van and when we went on board they said the World Café was open for a few more minutes so we hit the line. Delicious roast beef and Lyonnaise potatoes and a coconut cream bite for dessert! Elva had a couple glasses of wine and I couldn’t drink enough iced tea after the day in the water and on the beach!

Back in the cabin I showered, and left a small beach of sand on the bathroom and on the shower floor! We were only an hour and half away from our late lunch when our Chef’s table Carnival of Venice dinner began. We didn’t have our favorite waiter, Eric, but he came by our table just to say hello and say he was serving the party of Japanese guests in the private dining room so couldn’t also serve our large party. The dessert was wonderful of a passion fruit sort of upside down cupcake thing. Very delicious.

That is four glasses of different wines. One for each course.

The evening entertainment was one of my favorites! Best of Broadway! And the show was really so very good. The Singers and Dancers are a small but super talented group. They sang fully produced hits from so many of my favorites. The young man that wants to be eventually at the Met did a perfect rendition of Take Him Home. He hit those final notes perfectly! A great show that the 'kids' put together on their own so they could each sing their favorite songs. They all hope to be on Broadway eventually.