Cruise to the Bahamas -- Part I

My super-duper fantastic husband got us a cruise to the Bahamas for Christmas last year. We just got back a couple of weeks ago. After waiting 10 months to go, it was all worth it! We had a wonderful time! I was really anxious about leaving the kids for a week cause we had never done that before. I drove up on Friday to Branson and met my in-laws there and left the kids with them. So, they spent the whole week in Kansas City.

Kris and I got up Saturday morning and flew to Miami. We spent 2 nights there. We had a great hotel right near the port. It was near a little area called Bayside. There was lots of shopping and lots of great places to eat. We spent the first day hanging out here.

The outdoor shopping mall right on the bay.

They had some live entertainment---music, dancing, and one of those guys who stands really still. He would change positions when someone would give him money. He would pull a sucker out of his bag and hang it for you to come get. For some weird reason, this was good entertainment!

Thought this tree was cool.

This building was lit up pink for Breast Cancer Awareness. It was neat the way it made the sky look around it. This is downtown Miami.

Looking out at the port/bay area. You can see a big cruise ship!

Sunday morning we looked for a church but couldn't find one that wasn't a long, expensive taxi ride away. So, we went to the restaurant, The Big Pink, for breakfast and then took a taxi to South Beach. It was a gorgeous day!

Kris getting the first sunburn of the trip.

Me too.

At one point Kris looked over at me and said, "Does it feel like we are in another country to you?" I said, "YES!!!!" Everyone around us was speaking a language other than English. It was strange. Miami is just a different kind of place. We did lots of walking/sightseeing while we were there and we saw lots of things! I decided I don't really care for Miami and the lifestyle there. It is VERY different from home!

Sunday night we went to a Miami Heat vs. San Antonio Spurs NBA preseason game. We really enjoyed it. There were no real big names on either team, but the game was close the whole time.

One of the only players I recognized was Tony Parker #9 for the Spurs. He is Eva Longorea's husband.

The Spurs won the game in the last few seconds.

Monday around 2:00 we got on the boat! This thing was huge!

We were scheduled to leave until 5:00 so we ate a big buffet lunch in the Wind Jammer Cafe on the boat and then hung out on the top deck where we had a great view of Miami.

We had been able to talk to the kids each night we were there and gave them one last call before we left. They were doing fine--having a blast at Grandma and Grandad's!!

Getting ready to leave!

Bon Voyage!