Much needed vacation

Well, with our new carpet finally laid, it was time for a much needed vacation. Lisa, Justin and I embarked with 5 other friends on a week long vacation via cruise ship to Ensenada, Mexico last week. Midnight buffets, friends, cuban cigars, tropical fru-fru drinks, Drew dressed as a woman…it was everything we thought it could be! We departed from L.A. last Monday, hit San Diego on Tuesday, Catilina on Wednesday, Ensenada on Thursday and then it was back home. From a screw in our tire on the way out to the other car almost running out of gas on the way home, the trip had all the fun and excitement you would expect.
To read more about the trip, click “Continue reading…”. If you want to head straight for the pictures, either click on the photo album link on the right or just follow this link:
Cruise 2005 Pictures
P.S. The pictures of me dressed as a woman are NOT online…I’m not THAT stupid!! 😉

It all started about a year ago soon after I had proposed to Lisa. Debi and Randy, two of our best friends, invited us to go on a cruise with them the following fall. However, Lisa was not a part of the final conversation and I was able to book the cruise as a surprise to her for her birthday last year. Well, the day finally arrived and we were quite ready for it!
Day 1 – Phoenix to Los Angeles
We spent the night at Debi and Randy’s house and had planned to leave Phoenix around 6am on Monday morning. However, due to some unforeseen circumstances involving a dog and lack of bladder control, we ended up hitting the road more around 7:30am. We had to take two vehicles, so Debi, Randy, Denise and Rick went in one car and Lisa, Justin, Kyle, and myself were following close behind in Little Diesel, trying to keep up.
We stopped for fuel about an hour into the trip, but seeing as they were driving a big SUV and I’m driving Little Diesel, I had no need to fill up. Therefore, I pulled up behind them and we just waited. However, while waiting, I looked down at one of my tires and beheld a significant size screw impaling it. Not quite sure if I should keep driving on it (“we made it this far!”), we took a vote and it was decided I should get it fixed across the street at the truck tire repair place.

An hour and $20 later, the tire was fixed and we were back on the road. We arrived, checked in, and immediately headed for the on-board buffet. After all, this IS a cruise, and when on a cruise you eat yourself silly. After a big farewell to LA, a couple of tropical girly drinks and a nap, we ate our dinner (well, we ate and Justin slept) and then it was time for bed…after a good cigar with the boys.
Day 2 – San Diego
We arrived in San Diego around 8am Tuesday morning. After breakfast, the guys and gals went separate ways: girls went shopping (what else?) and the guys headed over to the USS Midway aircraft carrier museum. Just was of course with us and we had fun exploring the ship, pretending to fly planes, pretending to drive the ship, pretending to “take off”, etc etc etc.

That evening was formal night, so once we were all back at the ship we took a nap, hit the pool for a while and then got all dressed up. Justin adjusted quick to the late dinner and was his vibrant self throughout. The evening concluded with “The Newlywed Show” on stage and an Impressionist singer. The highlight had to be the rapping “Barney Fife”

Day 3 – Catalina Island
We had to drop anchor at Catalina and take a tender to shore. For those who have never been on cruises, that means you go down to Deck one and board another boat from the ship that then takes you to shore. We didn’t spend too much time inland…bought a few postcards, shirts, ice cream, etc, and then headed back to the ship. There really wasn’t a whole lot to see…nice town, but there was food waiting for us back on the ship. It was this day that we discovered (or at least first took notice of) the all-you-can-eat pizza bar. With all the food we’d been eating, our appetites had grown so we now had to have a “pre-dinner”…eat pizza about 5, then head to the dining room at 8, which would hold us over until the chocolate buffet at midnight. It’s a rough life on a cruise ship.

The big event of the evening was “The Quest”, which is an adult-only scavenger hunt. Each team has a number and then the host asks for something that the team needs to run up there with. For example, the host will say “I need a woman to run up with 2 men’s shirts”. So then two guys on the team have to take their shirts of give them to one of the women on the team and then she has to run up there. The first team gets 5 points, second team 4, and so on. I will not go into details due to the vegas motto “what happens on the cruise stays on the cruise”, but we’ll just say there’s a rumor Drew ended up dressed like a woman by the end. Regardless, I’m pleased to announce that of all the teams on the ship, OUR TEAM WON!!! WOOO-HOOO! And all I got was a stupid t-shirt.
Day 4 – Ensenada
From the beginning, we had planned to spend quite a bit of the day in Ensenada. Everyone had their own mission, whether it was cheap knock-off Rolexes, massages, cigars, sandals, handbags, money clips, you name it. However, we decided to take the $2 shuttle into town, which is where we found out that for $13 we could go to a huge flee market and see one of 3 blowholes in the world, as well as free margaritas. Very cool.

We spent an hour or so there before heading back into town to continue the shopping experience. The day was exhausting but very entertaining. However, it’s always hard getting back on the ship your last day, knowing you have to drive home tomorrow. Dinner was ok, but we even skipped dessert so we could pack and enjoy our last night. The evening included another round of cigars (that MAY have been Cuban…) and some entertaining passengers enjoying their last night on the boat. Then it was to bed for an early wake-up call to head off the boat.
So that’s the story. It was a blast to get to experience it with Justin and he seems to have had a fabulous time. Now if only it lasted another week…