Cruising the high seas

For us it was the Travel Channel that did it - made the Cruise Vacations look so good, we had to embark on one.



But happily, the advertising was true - cruises are indeed getaways, in the real sense of the word.



A few years ago, when we sailed, there were no phones or internet on the ship, nor a long, pressing itinerary of must-see things. But the escape is not boring – far from it.



Nothing unique or even off the beaten track, we picked the most popular of options. Sailing out of Miami, Florida, ours was a 5 day trip in the western Caribbean with ports of call at Jamaica and the Cayman Islands. Apart from the 2 day trips, the days were spent at sea were equally amazing.



Cruisin' in Style

Our cruise ship, the Imagination, was huge -3000 plus people. 13 stories high and twice as long as a football field. The ship had a Casino, several restaurants & bars, many pools & hot tubs, a salon, spa, coffee-shop, a jogging track, a mini golf range, TT tables, a library, an auditorium, many decks and a whole lot more. Feel right at home was the general idea. Pretty much everything – from food, accommodations to entertainment – was included in the ticket. All that was left was to lie back and enjoy the resort lifestyle.

Life at Sea

Once we were aboard the ship, our time was our own. Lazed the day away on the numerous loungers on the decks where a live band played peppy music most of the day and basked in the mellow sun, swam lazy laps in the pool or floated in the hot tub. Hit the casino/ salon etc, and in my raring-to-make-the-most-of-this spirit, even joined a host of the activities onboard. A large part of the crew is devoted only to provide organized entertainment for passengers.

Every night a flier was dropped into our room listing the activities for the next day – that’s how many there are – say a session on learning the cha cha, or a how to gem shop, another on losing the holiday flab - much needed, I promise; yet another on improving one's golf strokes and so forth. Bingo games held several times a day, as are casino tournaments, free giveaways and lucky draws. I sadly, won nothing. But truly, we could pick and choose what we wanted to do. If we wanted to.



K opted to relax for most part, and stirred himself – from the sun lounger and a 1000 pg book – long enough to participate in the Ping-pong tournament. Made it till the semi-finals where he ran into a bunch of Koreans with a wicked backhand. I attended the art auctions, won a prize at the gem expo, attended a class on makeovers and basically more than recovered my investment.

All this took care of our days. Every night guests got to see Broadway style musical shows with superb performances, free, of course. There were other fun games like the Hairy Chest Contest, a Newly Weds game, one on Dancing Styles – all hilarious and great fun.





Food Fiesta!

Don’t think that since we were having such a good time, we forgot to eat. No way! The food is a huge highlight of a cruise. A typical day looks like this – breakfast is 7 onwards, noon is lunchtime, followed by high tea, then an hour of ice cream, cookies and sweet yogurts. Dinner can be had at 6 pm, or the 8.30 option.

Still hungry? Then the midnite buffet starts at 11 pm. If one still has room or the inclination to eat, then hit the 24 hr Pizzeria or the Burger counter open most of the day. Did I mention that all this was free.



So what did we do. We ate, then we took a break to rest, then we ate again, after which…..you guessed it, we ate some more! Great choices and presentation. The desserts were a true joy. Got to say though, that the paradise is a tad curtailed for the vegetarians but even so, there's a fair bit to eat.



While breakfast and lunch are casual – we'd load up our plates at the buffet and eat on the deck and enjoy the sun and the sea views, the dinners are dressy affairs in the dining room at pre-assigned tables. We had interesting dinner companions - a Chicago cop & wife, a French-American couple & another Italian pair. Plenty of people take a cruise to celebrate a birthday or an anniversary so there's plenty of cake cutting in the dining room every night.



By land or by sea

Lest I forget, our land excursions were great too. Pristine blue green waters, rolling hills, and charming coastal towns. Jamaicans are v proud of their musical heritage – Reggae – and given that Indian immigrants settled there a century ago, Rotis are a common part of the local cuisine, as are mangoes & coconuts.

There was a bunch of activities to choose from – scuba diving, snorkeling, play with dolphins, cozy up to the Manta Rays, climb a waterfall or simply take a bus tour to see a little bit of the islands. The Caymans have superb beaches, and awesome aquatic options.



At the end of it, our verdict – Wow. We loved every bit of the cruise, the food, the fun, the hospitality and attention to detail that the crew showed. The people were friendly and since everyone was out to have a good time, things were pretty relaxed.



We came back refreshed, thrilled..... Would we go again? Oh yes, in a New York minute!