The first day of this cruise was an "at Sea" day. So the ship is packed with everyone...this time that's 2,500 passengers. They're all couped up so it can be frustrating to move around the ship. This is a very early night crowd so the bars and restaurants have been empty at night. I know they're all in the cabins sleeping but the ship feels a bit like a ghost town when everyone's gone by about 11pm.
Our first stop was Coast Maya, Mexico. It was lovely. We got to dock and we're deposited into a shopping area. Basically it was a big pink complex of tourist shops - jewelry, liquor, t-shirts, postcards, cowboys boots and other leather products and in the middle of i all there was a wading pool with a swim up bar. We didn't stay there long. It was super touristy and expensive.
We got a $2 ea. cab ride to town....the cab was a big bus. As we drove through Costa Maya, you could see they were building a lot of roads, houses and hotels. Costa Maya is in the early stages of development. The cab/bus dropped us off kind of in the middle of town and from there we were free to wander and find our own place to hang out. There we found a great beach next to a hotel - it was uncrowded, friendly and they had swings for seats at the bar. We also had great guacamole and really strong rum and cokes. We all spent a little time snorkeling, taking photos and looking around the rest of Costa Maya. Just as we were getting ready to leave, a tropical rainstorm started so we got to take a super fast taxi back in the rain.
Before we had left the touristy port area, I had spied an octopus pendant that I wanted. When we first arrived, I ask the clerk for the price and he said "$35" but when I went back at 3:30 it was $20 so I got it! It's a nice remembrance of a place that we won't visit again on this cruise....boo!...maybe next time.
Not everyone on our cruise was so thrilled with Costa Maya. As we were riding on the taxi/bus, several of the people seemed to be upset by the white sand beaches and the tiny bars dotting the street. They thought it was ugly - they wanted a Sandals resort. So one woman kept shrieking "Oh, Welcome to Beautiful Costa Maya!" Then she would look around and scoff and then shriek it again. I have no idea what her problem was - Costa Maya was great. Yes, a little rough but as one woman said to me, "It's beautiful, safe and at the moment it's not overdeveloped. I moved here with my son because I knew he would be safe and I would have work. Look at where I work, it's beautiful."
Today we were in Santo Tomas, Guatemala. This was a weird stop. We docked in an industrial area and when you get off the ship you're in this shipyard. The shipyard is surrounded by high walls and the walls are rimmed with razor wire. Inside the gulag, there is a building filled with vendors. It's very touristy. Outside is a military housing base and the town is miles away. We walked out and walked right back in because in minutes we were surrounded by taxi drivers wanting to take us on an excursion and children begging us for money and big dudes beyond that were just staring at us. I just wasn't prepared for the onslaught and for everything to be so far away. We tried to negotiate a tour by taxi but they were all very expensive and long. We could've bartered with someone outside the gulag but there's no guarantee with them that they'll get you back in time or wait for you if you stop somewhere. Also the extreme poverty of stops like Santo Tomas and Samana is alarming. What can you do?
All in all Santo Tomas was a bit of a bust....so everyone else went back on the ship except for Andy and me. We went into the shopping area with Andy's friend, Edward. Edward works surveillance for the ship and is a lot of fun. We walked around an chatted with each other and he gave us tips for Belize and Cozumel...our next two stops.
As we sailed away from St. Tomas, the citizens came out to bid us goodbye. They stood on the dock - played live music, danced and waved. As we cruised away from this very poor city, the cruise director was announcing how we could all win $1,000 cash or a free cruise just for playing bingo--probably more than a year's wage for a family here. What a juxtaposition!
I guess I should mention New Year's Eve on the ship. It was a party in every room. They covered the hot tubs and made them towers of champagne. There were balloons everywhere, many of which flew into the sea (beware, sea creatures!) as well as noise makers and goofy hats. We took a series of photos. Celebrated New Year's Eve in the crystal atrium - which did it at the same time as New York (In Mexico we're in Central Time). Then stopped in the crew bar. The crew bar was crazy. The JARS (dancers) were all in 5 inch heels and I felt like I was in the Valley of the Giants. After a bit, we said good night and went to our little stateroom which was ten times nicer than any bar.
Tomorrow we have our showcase show, then our improv show on Wednesday and on the last day we're teaching a workshop. I'll try to upload some photos on Miami day. Until then, ciao!
~Jen
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