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Renaissance Festival Cruise 2007

The Doctor

By The Doctor
in November

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  • 4 weeks later...
The Doctor

The Doctor

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This is shaping up to be one action-packed cruise for us! Excursions to the Mayan ruins at Altun Ha (Belize) and Chacchoben (Costa Maya - thanks again for the tip, Black Hearted Pearl!), and swimming with the dolphins in Cozumel... I can't wait! :lol:;)

Yo ho ho! Or does nobody actually say that?

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Capt. Sterling

Capt. Sterling

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Sounds splendid even if it means no RF2 for you folks... just becareful with those dolphins!


"I being shot through the left cheek, the bullet striking away great part of my upper jaw, and several teeth which dropt down the deck where I fell... I was forced to write what I would say to prevent the loss of blood, and because of the pain I suffered by speaking."~ Woodes Rogers

Crewe of the Archangel

http://jcsterlingcptarchang.wix.com/creweofthearchangel#

http://creweofthearchangel.wordpress.com/

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  • 1 month later...
The Doctor

The Doctor

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AFTER ACTION REPORT - RENAISSANCE FESTIVAL CRUISE 2007

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Part 1

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The cruise was fantastic! Janelle and I had cruised before with Carnival, on the Celebration in 1996. Our ship this venture, the Carnival Miracle, outclassed Celebration on every front. Huge, spacious, comfortable; everything you could ask for in a luxury ship. It's the 21st century, folks. We can be posh pyrates. :rolleyes:

We'd heard damned little real information before we embarked on this journey. But we took it in stride. After all, how often did those what signed on to a ship in the GAoP got a straight story? We knew we'd have fun, no matter what. What little information we did have said that we'd have entertainers from all the Mid-America Festival (MAF) faires around the country, and that at least one "formal night" would be a Feast of Fantasy. Not surprisingly, MAF dropped the ball. The only entertainer we had was a fine gent by the name of "Sir Ryosus" (Steve Ryder), a 20+ year veteran of the Ren Faire circuit. Given the current uproar at MAF, I wasn't surprised in the least that they left us in a lurch. Steve was kind enough to join us on short notice, and has taken over the planning and booking of talent for subsequent Ren cruises. This enterprise can be a huge success, and Steve's the man to make it happen.

We weren't about to let MAF's flub ruin our cruise. You get a group of Ren Rats together, and a party will happen. We went in "drag" at least 4 out of the 7 nights, and some went 6 out of 7. The hilarious part was that the mundanes felt incredibly out of place, as they should.A few of them showed outright contempt for us, which served to egg us on to the point of criticizing them for not knowing how to dress properly for such occasions.

Your's truly went on to be quite the hit among the passengers and crew. Even though my persona has drifted away from that Sparrow fellow, that's what they wanted, and they got it in spades. I became known as the ship's second Captain. Even out of "uniform", the crew grinned and called me "Captain Jack", and were disappointed when I didn't show up in drag. I had lots of pictures taken of me with people I'd never met before, and I found out later that people were buying portraits of me even before I'd had a chance to look at them myself. Fortunately, the staff were kind enough to reprint the ones I wanted to buy.

George Town, Grand Cayman, was our first stop. What a glorious town! Caymanians are a warn and gracious lot, and I highly recommend spending time amongst them. Life there is significantly slower, but their wit is sharp and fast. I could have spent a year or more with them, if only to learn how to slow down and enjoy life. We ate lunch at Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville and had the obligatory "Cheeseburger in Paradise", washed down with a "Nobody's Fault" margarita. They ran a trivia game based on old TV show theme songs, and you get a shot of tequila for a right answer. I got 7 right.

We took a tour of George Town on the "Trolley Roger", a Jeep-driven ride to the most historically interesting sites. Our tour guide was a wonderful goofball who managed to deepen my appreciation of the Caymanian people. They truly appreciate the influence pyrates had on their way of life. The church on the waterfront illustrates their feelings fully; for there lie the bodies of more than a few lesser pyrates. The people of the Caymans believe that even a pyrate deserves a proper Christian burial, unlike their English overlords.

From there, we went to Cozumel, that pearl off the Yucutan peninsula. I hardly recognized it after the devastation wrought by the hurricanes. The entire waterfront has changed - the beach is so much smaller, and many of the places I wanted to revisit simply do not exist anymore. No longer can one stroll along and see magnificent loose gems in one storefront, then slip in and take a few drinks where Ernest Hemingway once drank. It's all gone, replaced with anything that will entice the tourist to spend money.

We took a cab to Chaccanaab Park, where we spent the next few hours playing with a sweet, gentle, delightful dolphin named Regina. This was the highlight of the journey for me, watching this magnificent creature interact with Janelle, giving my bride far more attention than anyone else in our group got. Regina was kind and patient, and never got frustrated or confused if Janelle gave a "garbled" signal. She doted on Janelle to the point that the trainer had to give 3 or 4 signals for Regina to break off and spend time with the others. And did she ever give Janelle a ride to remember!! It was a magical experience that we will not soon forget.

Yo ho ho! Or does nobody actually say that?

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The Doctor

The Doctor

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AFTER ACTION REPORT - RENAISSANCE FESTIVAL CRUISE 2007

**************************************************

Part 2

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During our day at Cozumel, Janelle's MS decided to raise it's ugly head and weaken her left leg. Fortunately we were able to buy a stout cane at one of the shops. She didn't get around fast, but at least she was steadier.

The first official "Formal Night" was a blast. Here we were, 50+ Rennies in our finery, chuckling at the confused and sometimes indignant mundanes. Some of them thought that we worked for Carnival and that they'd been left out of some fun event. We assured them that no, we didn't work for Carnival (because we enjoy our drink WAY too much), and yes, they were left out of a hell of a roving party.

By this time, everyone in our group had gotten to know one another, so we were in full Fest mode. That's right; we were loud, rowdy, and for the most part, drunk. Our wait staff really enjoyed our boisterous nature, because we treated each night as a joyful feast. It was easy to do because the food was wonderful! Each night was a gourmet 4-course meal from a full menu, with reasonable portions. It was impossible to go wrong with any choice.

I guess there were only two things that really disrupted the "Faire" atmosphere - delicious food that didn't come on a stick or flimsy Styrofoam plate, and privies that flush. :lol:

From Cozumel, we went south to Belize. I was struck by how impoverished that country is. Their dollar is worth approximately US$0.50. Gasoline is US$5.00 a gallon, and the average annual income is US$12,500. The roads, especially in the outlying areas, are in wretched condition. Police checkpoints are not uncommon. But the greatest impression I was left with was the incredible warmth of the people. Genuinely friendly and kind. :)

A group of us took a 1.5 hour boat ride up the River Wallace, where we saw all manner of flora and fauna. Crocodiles, howler monkeys, and iguana were abundant along the riverbanks. We stopped for lunch at a small resort, then took a bus the rest of the way to the ruins at Altun Ha. I've spent years reading everything I could get my hands on regarding the Maya and their incredible empire, but nothing could prepare me for actually walking through the plazas and seeing the temples with my own eyes. I was overwhelmed. I had always wanted to climb a pyramid, and on that day, I got to climb two. The first one is known as Temple A, or the Temple of the Green Tomb. It was there that and archaeological team in the 1970's discovered a nearly ten-pound carved jade head of the sun god Kinich Ahua. The second and larger temple is called Temple B, or the Temple of the Masonry Altars. While you're only 54 feet up, the perspective of looking down the front of the pyramid into the plaza completely distorts your perspective. People look like ants, even though you can see them clearly. I could recognize Janelle and my new friends, but they seemed so tiny and distant. It was an amazing experience that I'll never forget.

Our next port was Costa Maya, and old fishing town that is being transformed into a tourist playground not unlike Cancún. We had originally intended to visit the ruins at Chacchoben, but given the problems Janelle was having, I wasn't about to ask her to try negotiating a largely unexcated site. We had booked the excursion in advance, but the Carnival staff were kind enough to refund us the entire cost of the excursion instead of the usual 75%. It was just as well, because early that afternoon it began raining steadily. We did a bit of shopping at the port, and returned to the ship once the rain set in.

That night was our second "Formal" night, and we partied like you wouldn't believe. Janelle turned in early, and she told me to go "play with our new friends, but don't commandeer the ship!" We ended up being the rowdiest of the rowdy, taking over the disco and then the fantail deck until almost 5:00 the next morning. We couldn't have been that bad, though, because the crew were still friendly and laughing at our antics. Carnival even threw us a cocktail party Saturday afternoon. I have never seen bartenders pour drinks as fast as they had to, and they still couldn't keep up. We laid siege to that bar for an entire hour, and the bartenders were ready to drop from exhaustion. Hopefully next time they'll double the staff. :lol:

In all, we were incredibly happy with the entire voyage. We're already considering going on next year's Ren cruise. I highly recommend it!

Yo ho ho! Or does nobody actually say that?

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Black Hearted Pearl

Black Hearted Pearl

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I'm sorry that Janelle's MS reared it's ugly head. It was great that Carnival refunded your money on the Chacchoben ruins. It sounds like it would have paled in comparission to the ruins at Belize.

Now here are your orders. More pictures, pleeeeeaaase. :)

~Black Hearted Pearl

The optimist expects the wind. The pessimist complains about the wind. The realist adjusts the sails.

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