#fbf Carnival Cruise 2016

So what I have learned about myself is that I forget a lot of things from the past. Everyone does I guess, but people ask me if I remember this or that, I don't. For example, I do not remember anything from a trip a took to the Philippines when I was 5 or what I used to enjoy watching as a child. So, I found that to be one of the main reasons why that I want to make a blog of all the memories I have, especially the ones I have with Darlyn. So since this is a flashback, I'll try my best to remember everything I can.

Carnival Cruise, August 2016. I have been on a couple cruises and this was Darlyn's first, and this certainly is not our last!

So before I went to Los Angeles for a year of post-bachelor training, I wanted a way to relax and enjoy life before going back to school. Plus, I wanted to spend my money on stuff I wanted to besides having the save it for something silly, like an education.

Anyways, Carnival Cruise Ship Inspiration, 4 days, from Long Beach with stops at Catalina Island and Ensenada, Mexico. I mostly initiated the cruise idea to Darlyn, because I was more experienced than she was so I wanted her first time to be a great one. I chose a Baja Mexico cruise because I prefer hot weather and when you think of cruises you think of relaxing poolside drinking Pina Coladas! Plus, it was less likely it was going to rain and it was closest to home because when you book cruises ahead of time, you never can predict the future, you can only do your best to plan.

Day 1, we arrived at Long Beach to check-in to our home for the next 4 days. I was able to sneak triple-sec and vodka onto the ship by using empty contact solution bottles! Shhh don't tell! I was scaring Darlyn a bit as we walked on the bridge entering the ship because it was her first time, and of course the most popular "ship" movies out are of tragic events (Titanic, Captain Philips, Speed 2, etc.). After we dropped off our bags in our room we headed up to the buffet to eat. As we were getting our food we always kept seeing other peoples plates full of other food that wasn't at the buffet. Burgers, tacos, fries. One mistake we made was going directly to the main buffet before looking at all the options. But the food was always going to be there, we had 4 days! So after we ate we explored the ship before we got to cruisin'. We took pictures topside and planned out what we wanted to do around the ship at what days. But our plan from the start was to get in the pools before it got packed. So we headed to the back of the ship where it was adults only and went in the hot tub. That sh*t was HOT. First time being in a hot tub and we felt like soup!

We watched the ship sail away from Long Beach and enjoyed the sail away party! That night we went for a dinner at their formal restaurants because eating at those type of places is rare and expensive outside of a cruise ship so we took advantage of it. We already knew that on the first night of the cruise the attire was casual because people haven't unpacked their formal outfits and are tired from traveling, so we didn't dress up. Afterward eating we listened to live music at the lobby where a guy was singing a Justin Bieber song with his guitar, then we caught a live show in their theater.

Day 2. We arrived at Catalina Island! I believe this was our favorite port of the trip because it was more lively and less ghetto than Ensenada. To get on shore we took a tender boat because Avalon does not have a dock for ships. The ride on the tender was bumpy and fun, kind of like a free roller coaster ride. When we got on shore we walked to the main part of town. We didn't have much planned so this port was more spontaneous. We had ideas of either parasailing or another water activities but we had stuff already planned for Ensenada, so we just walked around. Of course we took lots of pictures and shopped around. We went to look for magnets for Darlyn's mom and stickers for our new hydroflasks! But what we did end up doing was taking a golf cart to drive around the island. We only had 2 hours of rental to travel the island or else we would be charged more so we hauled ass! But it was a nice way to view Avalon instead of walking and getting tired. The map that the rental place gave us was super confusing and the directions they provided ensured that we would not make it back within 2 hours so that they would make more money. But we made it back with a couple minutes to spare by taking a short cut some guy gave us and by following the directions of locals. Afterwards, we walked back to the tender docks but stopped by some stores to do more shopping. I was looking for a cheap lifeguard tank that said "Catalina Island" on it and I was able to find one at the last store we came across! However, it was a size small. I still got it and it is pretty tight on me haha.

When we got back we ate a quick lunch and went to drink! At night we dressed to impress and drank the wine we brought from home. It was just Stella Rosa, but no one knew that, so we looked fancy holding wine glasses everywhere we went! They had formal photo booth stations scattered throughout the ship so we took advantage of the free photo shoots. But we knew the shots were free but the picture copy would be expensive. So we took some pictures of our own using a tripod. We went in to the formal dining for dinner to eat like we were rich and had a great time. We looked through the shops because they opened that day. When you shop while sailing on sea whatever you buy is duty free. After, we settled in the theater and watched the show for the night. In the end of the night we checked out the night club and it was pretty lame. It was empty and unattractive.

Day 3. We woke up early in Ensenada, Mexico which we soon realized was only 60 miles or so from our home in San Diego. We were probably one of the first people to get off the ship and we did not go where everyone else was headed because we had special arrangements.

SURFING LESSONS! Darlyn and I do not know how to swim and we definitely did not know how to surf. We got picked up by a ragged truck with a couple in it. The truck said surfing lessons so it looked like it was for us. They were holding names of other people but they took us anyways. I was sh*t scared! Mexico isn't the safest place for those who still think we live in a La La Land. Anyways, I had my GoPro with me attached to my backpack, first person POV, just in case we never returned to America, that would be our recording of our last breathes LOL. But we were dropped off by the beach where another family was already getting their surfing lessons started. We were given a wet suit and a place to put our bags. Our instructor was a Spanish speaker so we had no idea what he was saying the whole time. We got our wet suits on, mine was backwards at first and I had to take it off and put it back on, it was a PAIN! But it did keep us warm in the waters. So, what I imagined was we would get on-land training on the surf boards first. Paddling out, standing up, basic practice. But this guy took us straight out onto the ocean. Darlyn and I were like WTF. And this is where things got intense. We were not expecting this at all. Darlyn and I never really go in the ocean, especially with larger tides. But with a couple a attempts we were both able to say that we knew how to surf, with the help of an instructor of course. The waves weren't huge, they were maybe 3 feet tall, just enough to allow us to ride it all the way to shore. It was a great experience but I don't think we ever want to try it alone without an instructor. We both went under a couple times by falling off our boards and jumping over waves. My contacts were totally thrown away once I got back on the ship. After the surfing session, the instructors took us to a local taco shop! We got 5 fish tacos for $1.50 total. The cheapest fish tacos go for $1 in San Diego, but this was $1.50 for 5 tacos total! And they were gooooood! We also got free soup to go along with it. Following that, the instructor asked us if we wanted to go anywhere else in Ensenada because they would happily take is there. But Darlyn and I were pretty pooped from surfing so we decided to head back early and enjoy the empty ship. Plus, we thought Mexico was kind of sketchy.

The empty ship was nice. We were able to go to the pool without it being crowded and ride the slides a couple times without having to wait in the long lines! It was nice becasue it seemed like we almost had the ship to ourselves. No loud kids running everyone. We were able to get beach chairs with a nice view overlooking the Pacific Ocean. That night we dressed up and ate at the formal dining again but no formal pictures this time. However, we did take pictures of our own just to remember what we wore that night. We did get to watch a game show in the theater and also caught the late night comedy show afterwards. It is always unfortunate when the nights festivities comes to an end because everyone is still awake and enjoying their vacation but I guess workers got to sleep too.

Day 4. Day at sea. So this day was a day to get our drink and tan on! We had nothing planned except to enjoy this ship. So there was no rush to make it to any scheduled events. We ate the AMAZING burgers at a restaurant they had pool side called "Guy's Burger Joint". The burgers and fries there were one of the best we have ever had! That is one thing Darlyn and I both miss from the cruise and we still talk about it till this day! We got pina coladas, stawberry daiquiris, and miami vices. They were around $10 each but they were goood! Laying on the beach chairs bathing in the sun was nice. We faced the ocean and relaxed as the ship sailed back to Long Beach. Then we got chairs facing the pool to watch the events. They had a hairy chest contest and that was pretty traumatizing haha. Not many men who participated had hairy chests. We also were able to find all the pictures that were taken of us at the ships gallery and bought a couple for our memories. They photoshopped the crap our of us and gave me a good side fade but made our faces so buttery.

That night we dressed up one last time but ate in a more relaxing environment at the buffet, which was pretty good! Darlyn's favorite was the fried chicken! (She is currently craving it as we talk about it). Then we sat near the lobby and watched the music guessing game before the last show started which was a musical of the 80's or something. Also, I was able to buy Crown Royal Apple and Amarulo Gold for $40 total, duty free. It's kind of a must when you cruise because it's a little bit cheaper than in America. More later in that night they had one last party throughout the ship that led to the ships top deck pool side! Lots of line dancing, and I had no idea what I was doing so Darlyn was laughing at me as I just followed along. As the party was coming to an end, Darlyn and I headed to the last comedy show of the cruise which was a nice way to settle in before heading back to the cabin.

Day 5. We arrived at Long Beach. That wrapped up our first cruise together! It was a great experience and I hope that we go on more. To more places and different cruise lines. We are currently planning on another one to Mexico, but more deeper south and a longer cruise. But that is probably going to happen next year! We will see!

Thank you for reading! Please enjoy the other blogs on my site!