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| Disney Fantasy |
My bride and I found a way to beat back the blahs for a short time: a seven day, Western Caribbean cruise on the Disney Fantasy. Oh man … great weather, great food, relaxation and not a hint of snow … and best of all? When we got home, our driveway had been cleared of the snow that fell on Wednesday, 2/19.
The cruise included four ports of call: Grand Cayman; Costa Maya, Mexico; Cozumel, Mexico and Castaway Cay (Disney’s private island). This is our third Disney cruise. (The other two were four day Bahamian trips that included two ports.)
Grand Cayman: Cayman Turtle Farm: Island Wildlife Encounter
According to our guide, one man owns 60 – 65% of the assets on Grand Cayman – I accepted the statement at face value and haven’t bothered to verify its veracity. We visited the Cayman Turtle Farm: Island Wildlife Encounter. The main attraction here is the endangered turtles that the facility is breeding to release back into the wild. Guests are able to feed and hold young turtles. It was an interesting day but due to time constraints – we only had four hours – we didn’t do much else.
Costa Maya, Mexico: The Chacchoben Maya Ruins
We drove an hour via bus. Our guide, was personable and knowledgeable and 100% Mayan. He said there were only about 1 million pure blood Mayans in the Yucatán Peninsula and 5 million Mayans in total throughout the United Mexican States.
A Mayan city might have as many as 11,000 people. Our guide said that the civilization declined because the cities’ population grew too large to support its citizens and bands of people moved into the jungle to try to start new cities.
The ruins were impressive. The Chacchoben Maya Ruins are only partially excavated. There are many large mounds of soil covered in jungle growth and underneath each mound is another structure. Our guide said there are over 1,200 Mayan sites identified throughout Mexico. Only a handful has been even partially cleared.
Cozumel, Mexico: Dolphin Discovery
In Cozumel we visited Dolphin Discovery inside Chankanaab National Park and we swam with the dolphins … OK … we actually swam with a dolphin … OK … we actually stood in the water while a dolphin swam past us, but there was a dolphin and there was swimming involved.
Our group of fifteen descended a small flight of steps onto a platform that was probably three feet below the water’s surface. We stood in a line and a trainer commanded the dolphin to swim down the line affording each member of the group an opportunity to touch the dolphin’s skin. I expected the animal’s skin to be slimy but it felt more rubbery.
Our dolphin was supposed to perform four tricks with each guest: a kiss on the lips, a kiss on the cheek, rise out of the water and plant her snout against the guest’s palm and a fin shake.
You gotta love animals; they definitely have minds of their own. Our dolphin was in no mood to show off. Our trainer had to coax her to perform. She just wanted to swim and never mind the paying customers. Eventually, she did her job and every member of our group had a chance to kiss and shake.
I enjoyed the encounter for no other reason than I just think dolphins are cool. However, I have no proof of our participation in this activity because we decided the picture they took was not worth $37.
Castaway Cay
Our last stop. We made a beeline for the adult beach (age 18 and up). We spent the whole day there. We read, swam, walked the shore and explored the shallow waters of the beach. There are all sorts of marine life. I was able to get within four or five feet of a stingray that was resting in the sand.
It was the most relaxing day of the cruise because we didn’t have a schedule to keep.
Our moment of Zen came to a grinding halt when we stepped off the plane at Bradley International Airport in Windsor Locks, CT. Back to the cold, grey, overcast that has been this New England (and beyond) winter.
But we persevere (don’t you feel bad for us?). Winter is coming to an end, spring is a couple weeks away and we’re planning our next February escape (WOOT WOOT!).
I’m curious; do others feel a need to get away from winter for a while? Let me know.
Grand Cayman: Cayman Turtle Farm: Island Wildlife Encounter
According to our guide, one man owns 60 – 65% of the assets on Grand Cayman – I accepted the statement at face value and haven’t bothered to verify its veracity. We visited the Cayman Turtle Farm: Island Wildlife Encounter. The main attraction here is the endangered turtles that the facility is breeding to release back into the wild. Guests are able to feed and hold young turtles. It was an interesting day but due to time constraints – we only had four hours – we didn’t do much else.
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| Our Mayan guide |
We drove an hour via bus. Our guide, was personable and knowledgeable and 100% Mayan. He said there were only about 1 million pure blood Mayans in the Yucatán Peninsula and 5 million Mayans in total throughout the United Mexican States.
A Mayan city might have as many as 11,000 people. Our guide said that the civilization declined because the cities’ population grew too large to support its citizens and bands of people moved into the jungle to try to start new cities.
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| Excavated temple Partial excavation |
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| Dolphin Discovery - Google images |
In Cozumel we visited Dolphin Discovery inside Chankanaab National Park and we swam with the dolphins … OK … we actually swam with a dolphin … OK … we actually stood in the water while a dolphin swam past us, but there was a dolphin and there was swimming involved.
Our group of fifteen descended a small flight of steps onto a platform that was probably three feet below the water’s surface. We stood in a line and a trainer commanded the dolphin to swim down the line affording each member of the group an opportunity to touch the dolphin’s skin. I expected the animal’s skin to be slimy but it felt more rubbery.
Our dolphin was supposed to perform four tricks with each guest: a kiss on the lips, a kiss on the cheek, rise out of the water and plant her snout against the guest’s palm and a fin shake.
You gotta love animals; they definitely have minds of their own. Our dolphin was in no mood to show off. Our trainer had to coax her to perform. She just wanted to swim and never mind the paying customers. Eventually, she did her job and every member of our group had a chance to kiss and shake.
I enjoyed the encounter for no other reason than I just think dolphins are cool. However, I have no proof of our participation in this activity because we decided the picture they took was not worth $37.
Castaway Cay
Our last stop. We made a beeline for the adult beach (age 18 and up). We spent the whole day there. We read, swam, walked the shore and explored the shallow waters of the beach. There are all sorts of marine life. I was able to get within four or five feet of a stingray that was resting in the sand.
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| Stingray |
Our moment of Zen came to a grinding halt when we stepped off the plane at Bradley International Airport in Windsor Locks, CT. Back to the cold, grey, overcast that has been this New England (and beyond) winter.
But we persevere (don’t you feel bad for us?). Winter is coming to an end, spring is a couple weeks away and we’re planning our next February escape (WOOT WOOT!).
I’m curious; do others feel a need to get away from winter for a while? Let me know.
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