Tuesday morning we woke up to find ourselves in our first port-of-call which is Key West. We always wanted to come to Key West so even though it was still cold out we did not let it dampen our spirits. We had booked the Trolley Tour of Key West and were glad that we were on a warm trolley (with windows that were closed) compared to those folks who were on the Conch Train. Those folks looked cold in their open car and we could not help but feel sorry for them. Our tour guide was Jim and he was funny, comical and had a wealth of information. I only wish that we could have made a few stops along the way to take photos but time did not allow this. But then we do have any cruise planned in September so we will have time to do all the things we did not get to do on this trip. We got to see the "Southern Most Point in the United States" and learned that, that point, actually has the distinction of being Mile Marker 0 (yes mile marker zero). Since I am use to mile markers being in the hundreds this was actually interesting to see. Then there is the sign right before the land ends and the ocean begins that tells you how far Cuba is. Another missed photo op that will have to wait until September. Jim loved stopping the trolley, opening his window and blowing is Conch Shell as loud as he could at unsuspecting tourist walking around the street. I'll have to remember this since my next trip to Key West will be a self-guided walking tour. After our trolley ride the rest of our tour consisted of two other parts. A tour to the pirate museum, a must for young children, and the aquarium. It was nice but I have to admit it is nothing to write home about. 
Then it was back to the ship to get ready to eat at The Point. This is a definite must try. The food here is excellent and unlike some people's opinion the food here is not the same cuts of meats or Lobster that you can get in the main dining room. This is one of the things that we learned during our Behind the FUN tour. The cuts of meats are a much higher grade than you will find in the dining room. They are much bigger and since the chef is not cooking for a thousand of other passengers the preparation given here is excellent. Not to say that the chef in the main dining isn't good, he is but he and is staff are trying to pleasure thousands of passengers, all with different tastes. The saying goes that you get what you paid for and in this place you do get your moneys worth. Beside you have to realize that the waiters in the dining room are serving more tables with more people per table than the waitresses at The Point so you really get individual attention. And since it is a smaller dining area it is quiter and you can hear the person you are dining with. In my opinion this is a definite must try even if you try it just one time in all your cruises. 


Key West

We had no tour planned for Freeport and since we did dock in an industrial area we decided to take a bus (more like a van) to Port St Lucia. It is $5.00 per person each way and all I can say is it was an interesting ride both ways. It seems like some of the drivers not only disregard the safety of their passengers but try and cram 9 or 10 passengers in a van made for 7 people. Our driver going decided that the 5 cars in the front of her were going to slow for her so she started passing them even though we all could clearly see a car coming towards us, quite close. She barely made it back into her lane before the car whizzed by us. Then she laughed because she scared us and told us "no problem" she had it under control. The shops here were a higher quality than those near the port so we were glad that we had come. Beside there also was a casino that we went into to try our luck. I lost about $20.00 and my sister came ahead $37.00 not much but at least we had fun and could say that we had tried our luck at a casino in The Bahamas. 
While we found that the shop owners here where not pushy we could not say the same about the independent tour operators. They followed us around and would not let us alone. I finally at to tell them that No meant No and that if they did not leave us alone I would call for help. I think that on my next trip to Freeport that we will stay on the ship and read a good book. I am sure if you are a beach person you can find things to do here but since neither my sister nor I are beach people swimming or scuba diving is out of the question. 
Wednesday night our group had a Poodle Skirt Party with the Nik*L Beer Band and it was interesting to see every one come out with outfits from the 60s. Even people who had not even been born during this area got in own the fun and dressed up and knew the dances from our time. The band played well past midnight and since we were on the Lido Deck I had to feel sorry for the people at the Aft on Deck 8. Especially since that is why our cabin will be in September. But I spoke to someone the next day who just happened to be in one of those cabins and he said while he found it loud they did enjoy the music. 


Freeport

NASSAU - a definite 5 in my book. We booked a tour of Nassau and had another great guide, called K-K, that showed us what Nassau is really about. Since our tour wasn't until 9:30 we decided to walk off the ship the minute it was cleared and find the immigration office so we could get a stamp for our passports. The walk from the ship to where the port shops and immigration offices are is a good 15 minute walk but the pier is well laid out and have plenty of places to stop and sit if you have trouble walking far distances. And the best part is that there is a Senor Frog at the end of the pier. A place that we always visit whenever there is one in the ports-of-call that we visit. 
Back to our tour - K.K. was sure to point out the most interesting parts of Nassau and explain the little secrets that tourist might not know. For example that for every church that was build there would be three or four bars built right next to the churches. This was so that when the pirates and sailors were in port they could go to the bars, drink, get and fights and then go to church and pray for redemption. 
He also pointed out the court house where the trial involving Anna Nichole Smith's boyfriend's trial was held. Something most of us probably never thought of at the time but it was interesting to see. He explained about the Queen's Staircase and how it came to be, we learned about the jail that is now a library, saw Parliment Square with a statue of Christopher Columbus, stopped at Fort Fincastle and the water tower and toured the down town area. 
After our tour was over my sister and I headed for Bay Street to check out the stores. A great up-scale place if you have the money. There's a Coach, Gucchi, and other high end stores. But there is no dealing here. The price you see is the price you pay. 
One thing we did see that you will not see here in the United States is the way police handles a situtation. While walking down Bay Street one of their local people was so stoned that he had no idea what or where he was. He was just a heap of nothing on the sidewalk. He almost looked like a pile of rags that someone dropped and left behind. There was one police officer who kept trying to get him on his feet so he could place him on his stomach and every time he lifted him this guy just kept sliding down like his legs were jello. And everytime this officer lifted him to his feet this guy, with dead locks, just keep sliding back down. We noticed that he had handcuffs hanging from one wrist. This officer never, ever, said a word, He was quiet, did not yell for the guy to get on the ground, lay on his stomach and place his hands behind his back like we would see here back home. This officer did not have a taser out nor a gun in his hand. He just went about his duties. Finally with the help of a couple of local people he got the guy on the ground, on his stomach and was able to finish handcuffing him. If you had been walking in the opposite direction you would not have know that an arrest was being made that is how quiet it was handle. My sister and I decided not to hang around to see what they did with this guy, afterall, there were shops near the port that looked nice and we wanted time to check them out so we went on our way. 
And since it was getting chilly again we wanted to head to the warmth of our ship and get reading for our early dining. 
Next September when we are in Nassau I think we will try Frommer's Walking Tour and get the photo ops that we missed on this trip. That is what is nice about cruising. We always know that we will be going back, sooner or later, to the same ports and will be able to do the things we missed on the previous cruise. 


Nassau

We had cabin 1058 on Deck 10 and while we found that the beds we a little too close together (there was little room to walk through) it is still a room that we would consider booking again.  We had plenty of closet room for the clothes we brought and the bathroom was a good size for two people.

We had planned on dressing up for the first elegant night but neither one of us felt that great so we ate at the buffet and then rested until we met up with the 600 plus people we were with on our group cruise.So off we go to get a bite to eat at the buffet and found that even though we were one of the first people on board, that the buffet area was already filling out.

Carnival Conquest Review

The Guidry Sisters Conquered The Conquest

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