I set sail with the crew & guest from Miami on 1/16/05 enroute to Cozumel, Cayman Islands & Ocho Rios in Jamaica with anticipation of having a good time & I was not disappointed. After reading some of the other reviews & listening to others in our group (Mayes) comments I realize that the "cruise" experience is as subjective in description as the blind man describing the elephant. The experience for me was very positive regardless of weather it was the trunk or the tail that I encountered.
I am no authority on cruises as this was only my second but whenever I dined I couldn't help thinking about the men & women in countries like Iraq or Afghanistan protecting their food from being seasoned by the sandstorms not knowing if they would be eating their last meal. The amount & variety & quality of the food at every venue was amazing but I could not help but feel a sense of guilt as I thought about the thousands of lives affected by the tragedy of the Indonesian tsunami.
The Cayman excursion was a testimonial of the force of Hurricane Ivan & the perseverance of the people to recover, overcome & get back to the business of catering to tourists that too often forget that the world does not revolve around what pleases them. Most of the people I encountered were very appreciative, friendly & courteous.