I left you on Monday, January 28th, sailing across the Gulf of Mexico.  That was a very relaxing day and a day to explore the ship and get our bearings.  We went to breakfast at the Market Cafe, which was the ship's main buffet on the 12th deck at the rear of the ship or "aft" as it was referred to on board.  We had to use one of the elevators and then walk through several corridors of cabins to get there from our stateroom.  I continually got turned around and had to refer to little maps of the ship that were posted just outside most elevators.  We could have just about whatever we wanted for breakfast, including a made to order omelet, fresh fruit and all kinds of pastries.

Back in our cabin we enjoyed sitting on the balcony.  We saw flying fish and dolphins swimming near the ship.  Mostly they seemed to be trying to escape from the ship's wake.  We were traveling about 16 to 18 knots and the wake was wide and deep.  The ocean that day was not exactly smooth and glassy either.  We were experiencing waves about 4 -5 feet in the open ocean that day.

For dinner that night we decided to go to Cagney's Steak House and made reservations for 6pm.  The steak house was on Deck 13 Aft.  A very elegant place with soft lighting and a sophisticated atmosphere, I was glad I dressed up!  We both had steak, of course.  Steve had a New York T-bone and I had a Petite Fillet Mignon.  It was 5 ounces of the most tender delicious steak I ever had!  The waiter was very attentive and friendly.  We also got to speak with one of the ship's officers who was walking around greeting guests.  He was from the Philippines, and since we have also been there, we had a nice conversation about his homeland.

We decided not to attend theater this night and returned to our cabin for reading and wine.  The next day we would be docking at Costa Maya and our tour would disembark at 830 am.

I awoke at some time during the night almost terrified!  We had left the balcony door opened so that we could hear the ocean. (We use a fan at home for "white noise"to make it easier to sleep.) Well, it sounded to me as if the ocean was coming into our room the waves and wake were so noisy!  I had to get out of bed and look outside.  The ocean was where it had always been, eight stories below us.  I could see whitecaps in the dark, though, so I think the sea may have been rougher than before that night.  

Tuesday January 29th, Land Ho!  We could see a flat sliver of land from our balcony so I think it was off the port side of the ship (that is the left side, which I think was the side we were on).  As we drew closer, we could see a small beach and jungle, jungle, jungle! It reminded me of the scene in Jurassic Park where the little girl is attacked by little dinosaurs!  We watched the ship dock alongside a long wide cement pier and then we disembarked, walked about a mile down that pier and then we were on the island of Costa Maya.  We were herded on to tour buses and then listened to our guide tell us interesting facts about the island and the Mayan civilization for about an hour before we got to the ruins of Chachoben.  we had to pass through one of those "check points" that you hear horror stories about in third world countries.  There were guards armed with machine guns wearing camouflage uniforms.  The bus stopped and the guide talked to them so we had no trouble getting through.  It probably would not have been a problem anyway, but it made us wonder...

We arrived at the park site where we would get our first sight of the Mayan Ruins.  We stepped out of the bus into the heat and humidity.  It was about 90 degrees with 85% humidity, a recipe for instant sweat!  I was glad we were there in January instead of June!  We had a short walk to get to the Mayan city.  I walked carefully because my knees are bad and I tend to fall easily.  It was mostly a gravel path and not as difficult as I feared.  The huge Mayan Pyramid was impressive.  We also walked through what was once a little city where we could see the remains of houses that surrounded the temple area.  The guide told us about the flora and fauna that inhabits the park and we saw a spider monkey high above us in a stately eucalyptus tree.  I tried to get his picture but he was really far away.  I tried to show a lady in our group where the monkey was but I don't think she ever did see him.

We got back to the ship about 3pm that day.  I stopped at Diamonds International, a fancy jewelry store that had a branch at every port.  We had gotten a charm bracelet on the ship and if we stopped at the diamond store, the clerk would give us a free charm to add to our bracelet.  It is only costume jewelry and an enticement to get you to buy diamonds but it was fun to collect the different charms.  By the time we got back on board we were famished.  We found the Blue Lagoon Restaurant on the ship.  It was practically empty.  Many people stopped at the restaurants on the pier to eat and party.  Anyway, the Blue Lagoon ended up having the best buffalo wings I ever ate.  Steve and I shared a plate of those and then we had lunch.  Steve had meatloaf and I had fish and chips.  I don't know if it was because we were so hungry after our tour but it sure was a good lunch!

We decided to try the Versailles Restaurant for dinner that  night.  It was the most elegant restaurant as far as decor on the ship.  It had gold framed pictures on the walls, fancy French wallpaper and mauve upholstered chairs, along with gorgeous crystal chandeliers that provided a soft romantic atmosphere.  It was one of the complimentary restaurants (no cover charge) so it was much more crowded than the steak house.  I had cod fish prepared in a fancy creamy French way.  It was very good but the salad before was better and more interesting.  It was a pumpkin and orange salad with a tangy dressing.  I cannot remember what Steve had, maybe steak. Ha!

We went to the Stardust Theater after dinner.  This time there was an acrobatic show performed by a Russian husband and wife team who had been with the Russian ballet.  They used long flowing scarves or drapes, wrapped them around there feet or bodies and then flew high in the air doing flips and all kinds of ballet moves.  I was so tired from our day that I kept nodding off in spite of the exciting show.  I was glad to retire to our cabin and looked forward to the next day in Belize.