Giving Up

I'm sorry, I really am.

I've decided not to write a major post about my cruise. Not that it wasn't a worthy vacation, I'm just lazy and busy (if it's possible to be both at the same time). The few times I've had the time to download photos off my camera, I've not wanted to. Instead, I want to watch football or read (currently ingesting the Fablehaven series like there's no tomorrow) or sleep or something.

It hasn't helped that my fellow cruisers have already written about it, so I can be really lazy and send you here and here if you want details about our trip. Just remember when you look at the pictures - I was sick! No, that doesn't explain everything, but it makes me feel a little better.

Side note: Recently, a friend posted about girls saying they look ugly when they're getting their pictures taken. Warnser, just so you know, I didn't say anything when the pictures were being taken; however, I had a lot to say when I saw them on those blogs! :)

Anyhoo, Cassie and Framed covered most of the details. They missed one story but that's because it happened to me, not them. Even though I've shared it with many of you, I'll tell it quickly here, for those of you who haven't heard it.

For our second port, Halifax, Nova Scotia, we signed up for a shore excursion that allowed us to "hop on and hop off" of a double-decker bus. There were various stops and we could spend as much or as little time as we wanted at each stop. We first rode the bus around the entire circuit - to see what our options were and because it was raining. On the second go, we stopped at a pretty park/garden. We walked around taking pictures of the flowers, plants, statues, swans, etc. then bought ice cream (even though it was rainy) at a shop in the park. As we consumed our treats, we realized we were hungry and that there were nearby restaurants, so we walked to a lovely Italian place that served yummy food. We discussed the other places we'd like to "hop off" and I slowly realized that I wasn't well enough to go on (I had caught a cold the morning before - Tuesday - and felt pretty crummy the rest of the trip). I said goodbye to Cassie and Framed and walked to the ship since it wasn't very far away - just a few blocks or so.

I like walking in new places - it's easier to get a good look at where you are. Also, you get to observe the people around you. It was very interesting, and since it was a cool day and the way was mostly downhill, I found it to be a very pleasant walk. Eventually, I stumbled (not literally) upon a cemetary with very old-looking gravestones. I stopped to look through the wrought-iron fence to see if I could see dates on the nearest stones. At this point, two good-looking black men approached me. One kept walking past me, but the other stopped on my left side and told me his friend thought I was beautiful. I looked at him like, Is he crazy? (because I was sick and a little rain-drenched and didn't feel pretty at all). He then told me he too thought I was beautiful. I smiled weakly at him and muttered a soft thank you. I turned to walk toward the cemetary entrance - about half a block away. He walked beside me asking if I have a boyfriend who I'm going to marry, where I'm from, why I was in Halifax, etc. When I told him I'm not getting married to anyone, he said I should get married because I'm so beautiful and that he'd marry me. Green card! flashed through my head instantly. I asked him where he was from and he said the Caribbean and asked me to guess where in the Caribbean. I guessed St. Lucia and he looked shocked and said I was right. St. Lucians love me. Anyway, he chatted a bit more 'til we reached the entrance. He asked me to keep walking with him, but I told him I was meeting friends inside the cemetary. He told me that if I changed my mind about marrying him, to let him know, his name was Wilfred. I thanked him and turned away, entering the cemetary.

It just goes to show that you can get proposed to just about any where and any time, even while on a cruise where the average age of cruisers is 65.

Despite being on my deathbed, I enjoyed the trip. Some of the highlights:

1. The million cups of hot chocolate to soothe my sore throat AND to make up for the lack of 24-hour ice cream cones.

2. Fountains. A funny routine put on by the cruise director and a few of the crew for the crew talent show.

3. Laughing with Cassie and Framed uncontrollably 'til our sides hurt. I love it when this happens.

4. The bread. I don't know what it is about cruises, but they always have yummy bread! Mmmm mmmm mmmm.

5. Drugged. Frankly, I'm surprised I remember anything about this cruise - I was taking dramamine and cold medicine and there wasn't a single second of a single day after Tuesday that I didn't have both in my system.

6. Ginger ale flavored cough drops. Why don't we have those in the States???

7. Seeing French on all the signs in New Brunswick. I miss that. It almost felt like I was in Montreal again.

8. Hanging out with Cassie and Framed. They were so patient and understanding. Plus, we had fun together!

9. The security guard in Boston threatening to call for more security when I admitted to not liking the Patriots (which I only did after I took back my boarding pass and passport).

10. Cold weather. It was hard to believe that it wasn't November - it was cold! However, we did get some sun Saturday afternoon. Just enough that I was able to get a sunburn. Of course.

11. Rest and relaxation. Being sick really helped with this. I slept a lot! I went to bed earlier than I ever did on past cruises and slept later than I ever did on past cruises.

Wow. For giving up on doing a post about my cruise, this turned into a pretty long post about my cruise! Huh. Guess that just proves yet again that I talk too much.