As a little background, I booked this cruise as a birthday gift for my mother. It was just her and I on the cruise and neither of us had cruised before. We started preparing months earlier and were more and more excited the closer we got.

Mom was flying to Chicago and I was to meet her at the airport a little early for lunch and then we would continue together to Miami. Well, her flight from Michigan landed early and my hired car to the taxi was late! With the light traffic going to O'Hare on a mid-morning Thursday I still made good time and we had plenty of time to grab a bite to eat before boarding our flight to Miami.

The flight seemed to go by very quickly and before we knew it we were in Miami. It seemed a little confusing at first trying to figure out where to get a taxi. I easily found an airport employee and she kindly directed me. I like Miami's flat rate cab system. However, I think it does tend to encourage the drivers to rush to get you to your destination. Mom found their driving a bit on the scary side. I have experienced worse, but I will say there was a lot of weaving around traffic. Read more