Personal Essays

We had a wonderful time. I had never been on a cruise and I didn't realize that there is something for everybody to do on the ship every hour of every day. And we weren't on the ship all the time. In Fort Lauderdale we went parasailing and hung out at the beach. We had a fun dinner one evening at Benehana's, where they cook the food in front of you and, if you are lucky, you get a chef that has a real comedic bent, which ours had.

In Key West, we rented scooters and explored the island, talking to a couple of locals and finding a great out-of-the-way Cuban restaurant. Alex and I went into a photo gallery of photographer Peter Lik. Nice, nice photos.

In Cozumel we snorkled and went to the beach. The kids had never been snorkling before and loved it. We saw a stingray sitting on the ocean bottom. At one point the fish swam around us and you could touch them. On the ride back to the ship we stood up at the front of the boat, a rollercoaster ride over the waves, and watched flying fish sail over the water.

In Belize we rode inland to visit the Mayan ruins (awesome), where I had a nice bout of vertigo at the top of the temple, to the amusement of my family. It was a very hot day, but we travelled in an air conditioned bus driven by Carlos, who must have been a New York taxi driver in a past life. I thought the bus was going to wind up on its side when we took the corners.

This trip will go down as one of the best times I've had with my family.