Travel with us!
Beyond Voyage
  • Home
  • Blog
  • Destinations
  • Gallery
  • Pack
  • Tunes
  • About

But Wait, There's More: Cruising the Polar Vortex

1/21/2014

5 Comments

 
After eight months of travel, Chris and I moved back into our place on December 31st. That night we had a fantastic New Years with friends in Boston and spent our first days home catching up with people and surviving our first blizzard of the year. Winter was already taking its toll on me, and five days after moving back to Boston I was flying to sunny Florida.  My sister-in-law, Jen, and I booked a last minute four-night Caribbean cruise with Royal Caribbean leaving from Miami.  I was thrilled to be back on the road and in the warm weather again!  

We boarded the ship early on Monday and sat on the deck soaking up the sun, which lasted about an hour.  Then, a few intimidating clouds rolled in, but we ordered another round of piña coladas and willed the sun to come back out.  Apparently our willing didn't work.  In fact, it had the opposite effect, because the sun didn't come back out until we stepped off the ship five days later.  We spent four full days stuck on a boat packed with people bobbing through the tumultuous Caribbean Sea.  We later discovered there was a giant polar vortex over the country which caused the blustery, cold weather.

So what do you do on a boat amidst a squall?  You have a heck of a good time! 
Picture
Arrived on the boat in Miami! Cheers to the sun!
Picture
A few hours later, Mother Nature slapped us in the face.
Picture
So we went inside to find our room. Our room attendant asked us if we need anything else, to which I promptly responded, "Yes. Space".
Picture
Luckily, Mom and Dad Barbier surprised us with a bottle of champagne and chocolate covered strawberries!
Picture
First stop was Nassau where we picked up these sweet ponchos.
Picture
We didn't last long outside in Nassau. We hit up the bar for a few Margaritas along with the rest of the ship...at 11:30 am. Notice Jen's sweater. When we first arrived, I made fun of her for bringing a sweater to the Caribbean. At this point in the trip, I was eating my words and chasing them with that massive 'rita.
Picture
On Day 2 we were supposed to be basking in the sun on Royal Caribbean's private island. Instead we were stuck at sea because the waves were too big for the boat to anchor.
Picture
The giant yellow ponchos proved to be very entertaining....
Picture
...until they split apart. They were no match for the vortex.
Picture
Our last day was in Key West where we found a tiny patch of blue sky in the distance.
Picture
The rain stopped and we could finally toss our yellow ponchos (which were destroyed at this point).
Picture
We strolled through Key West
Picture
and checked out the local art scene
Picture
I found a life sized Barbie car. I really wanted to drive this around the island, but only if Jen sat in the back seat clad in her yellow poncho greeting the locals in a formal Brindian manner. Sadly, this did not happen.
Picture
We spent a lot of time in the Schooner bar. Much of it was spent playing trivia and sharing drinks with our new friends - a group of 70-something retirees who looked like Whitey Bulger, Bernie Madoff and Judge Judy. Later on our motley crew tore up the dance floor.
Picture
We ordered most of the desserts on the menu. No surprises here.
Picture
We gambled, won, then lost.
Picture
But smiled:)
Picture
One night this little guy was waiting for us in our room. We have no idea what animal it is supposed to be. Any guesses?
Royal Caribbean, not quite as regal as it once was...
As you can see, the weather was a BIG bust, and Royal Caribbean wasn't quite equipped to handle all the people stuck inside the boat. Their service was definitely underwhelming. We have been on two other cruises together as an entire family - most recently several years back - and remember their service being wonderful.  Perhaps that was because we had nice weather and weren't stuck on the boat the entire time.  The company is also way behind the times in terms of technology - you have to pay for internet per minute and when I asked them about changing my rewards number to my married name they told me I'd need to send a FAX to their Crown & Anchor club.  Not an email with a scanned attachment but a freaking 1990's style paper fax.  I told the guy that I haven't seen a fax machine in about 10 years and asked why I couldn't settle this there in person since I had my passport and he apparently had access to a fax machine. Nope, that wasn't his job and I'd have to call later and find a fax machine. First I need to find a time machine to take me back to 1998.  

It's not where but who...
Despite the polar vortex, mild seasickness, miniature room, and lack of technology we still had fun.  Sometimes it really isn't about where you are but who you are with.  And there are very few people I'd prefer to be stuck with on a boat in the middle of a storm. Luckily for me, Jen is one of those people!  We laughed A LOT and I think we'll continue to laugh about this trip for many years to come. 

Miami Surprise!
Go figure, when we got off the ship in Miami the sun came out.  We were psyched because, thanks to Chris and his Dad, our vacation was extended through the weekend. Chris came down to meet us in Miami and the sunshine followed him. More about Miami in the next post...
5 Comments
Deb
8/20/2014 12:35:11 am

I am scheduled to sail out of Miami and down to Aruba September 27-Oct 5. I have been hearing about the Polar Vortex at that time. Any advice?

Reply
Eva link
8/20/2014 04:04:40 am

Yes - enjoy your trip! Aruba is one of my favorite islands in the Caribbean and home to one of my favorite beaches in the world. Even if you get bad weather in Miami you'l probably find sun in Aruba since it's typically arid. Bring sea-sickness medicine, a raincoat/poncho and a sweater just in case you encounter a storm or chilly temps in Miami. I doubt you will in Sept/Oct but you never know!

Reply
Big FM 92.7 Advertising Chennai link
10/31/2020 03:30:02 am

Advertising in Big FM 92.7 is a proven way to improve sales. Discover the Best Rates from the Big FM Ads through Eumaxindia.

Reply
gst return consultant Chennai link
11/20/2020 01:14:47 am

MyGSTZone - GST Return Filing Online with Learning about How to File GST Return Online at Lowest Fee for Business in Chennai, Tamilnadu anywhere. GST filing service & GST return consultant Chennai.

Reply
NCERT solutions for class 10 Maths link
1/20/2021 10:04:13 am

Nice blog!

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    Picture

    Author

    Eva has been traveling for 15+ years, including an 8 month journey around the world.  

    Archives

    October 2016
    May 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013

    Picture

    Categories

    All
    Amalfi Coast
    Amazon Rainforest
    Amsterdam
    Argentina
    Art
    Aruba
    Asia
    Austin
    Australia
    Austria
    Award
    Baby
    Bali
    Barcelona
    Beijing
    Belize
    Berlin
    Bogota
    Boston
    Brazil
    BVI
    California
    Cambodia
    Cambridge
    Canada
    Cape Town
    Caribbean
    Cartagena
    Central America
    China
    Colombia
    Connecticut
    Costa Rica
    Cuba
    Culinary Delights
    Cusco
    Europe
    Family
    Family Travel
    Flights
    Florence
    Florida
    Food
    France
    Germany
    Hawaii
    Hong Kong
    Hotels/resorts
    Iceland
    Indonesia
    Ireland
    Italy
    Itineraries
    Lake Titicaca
    Live Like A Local
    Luxury
    Machu Picchu
    Maine
    Malaysia
    Massachusetts
    Mexico
    Nantucket
    New England
    New York
    New Zealand
    North Carolina
    Pacific Northwest
    Pack
    Paris
    Peru
    Pisa
    Planning
    Prague
    Provence
    Puerto Rico
    Puno
    Rhode Island
    Rincon
    Rome
    Rtw Trip
    Safar
    Safari
    Shanghai
    Sharks
    South Africa
    South America
    Spain
    Switzerland
    Thailand
    Travel Education
    Travel Tips
    Tunes
    Turkey
    Usa
    Vermont
    Washington
    Where To Stay

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.