What I did on my winter vacation - March 6-9

I'm home again, after a wonderful vacation, and a final travel day that reminds me that air travel is anything but fun these days. But more on that later, after I've shared photos and stories from the pre-cruise and cruise itself. By then the memories will have faded of a not so wonderful day.

My goal is to post about the vacation over a few weeks, with regular posts as I've been doing for Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday. In a few ports, and on sea days, there wasn't a lot going on so you can expect to see a post combining these periods. 

So, let's go back to March 6, about 3:50 a.m. The cab arrived ten minutes ahead of schedule and the flight to Toronto was delayed about the same amount of time. I guess that evened things out. In the Toronto Airport, I had plenty of time before my next flight, so treated myself to a Wahlburger, fries and a beer while watching some of the Brier (men's curling). My wallet was much lighter after that meal, and to be honest, the burger wasn't that great. I spent the rest of the time reading my Kobo.

My flight to Fort Lauderdale started boarding about 3:30 p.m. (2:30 Regina time). I managed to sleep about an hour before we hit some turbulence. We were on the ground in Fort Lauderdale about 7:15 p.m. (6:15 Regina time), but I had to wait for my luggage and for the hotel shuttle. The first shuttle pulled out just as I reached the pick-up point - I arrived at the hotel an hour and 15 minutes after landing. 

I stayed at the Best Western Airport/Cruiseport Hotel on State Road. It was in a decent location, with a couple of fast food restaurants, Mediterranean, pizza, and pub restaurants nearby. There was also a Winn-Dixie grocery, a Bealls clothing store, a Dollar Tree, and a Big Lots in the mall across the street, and a Walgreen's about a 20 minute walk from the hotel. 

The hotel is an older, smaller hotel, just two stories and it could use a bit of a refresh in certain areas. But my room, with two double beds (non-smoking) was very spacious and clean as was the bathroom. My view out my window was the Holiday Inn next door so I kept my curtains closed. The room had a mini-fridge, a Keurig coffee maker, and a microwave. It did not, however, have a room safe so when I went to pool, I found a hiding spot for my purse and passport.

The pool was at the back of the property, partially shaded, and well used by the guests. I sat out on a lounger reading while I was there, but the water didn't look particularly clean so I didn't go in. The family with several young children didn't have the same concerns - they provided great entertainment for me. In addition to the pool, the hotel had a complimentary breakfast each morning from 6:30 to 9:30 a.m. There were omelets one day, scrambled eggs another, biscuits, bread, bagels, waffles (make your own), sausage, fruit, yogurt, cereal, milk, tea, coffee, and orange juice. 

The hotel hired a third party to provide a shuttle to the port for $15 US per person. A taxi would have cost about the same, so I signed up the day prior to the cruise for the transfer. All in all, it was a decent place to spend the three nights prior to the cruise.

I realized when I reached the airport that morning, that I had forgotten my phone charger. I spent my first morning in Fort Lauderdale walking to various stores, hoping to find what I needed. I did not, so I ended up having to order from Amazon with delivery promised the same day between 2-6 p.m. The delivery did not arrive as scheduled. The following morning I received an e-mail that delivery would be made that day (Friday) by 2 p.m. I had hoped to ride the water taxi, but decided to hang out at the hotel waiting for my package. If it didn't arrive as expected, I'd made the decision to hire a taxi and find an electronic store, as none were within walking distance. Thankfully, the package just before 1 p.m.

I was tired of fast food by this point, and had met a server (wearing a t-shirt with the logo)  from Mini-Pita, a Mediterranean restaurant, at the Dollar Tree that morning. I asked her if they serve salads, they do, and she showed me their location. There was a lot of construction happening and their sign was hidden behind some framing but it was just across the street from the hotel. The salad was delicious and huge. I ate half at the restaurant and took the rest back to the hotel for dinner. 

The morning of the cruise, I was awake at 6:30 a.m. My shuttle wasn't until 11:30 so I had time to kill. Breakfast, packing, a walk over to the Winn-Dixie for band-aids and watching the news filled my time before I checked-out at 11. We arrived at the port to a very long line of passengers. However, the line moved quickly, and I was through security, had picked up my medallion (an electronic device that acts as a room key and a tracking device*) and was onboard in about 20 minutes. 

One of the three main dining rooms is open for lunch on embarkation day. The buffet upstairs is always crowded so I prefer to avoid it. I asked for a sharing table and was soon seated with Michelle and Mike from Vancouver - they had flown in from Vancouver that morning. They were exhausted, looking for something to eat, and then planned to go to bed. There are a few good reasons for flying in the day prior and that would be one of them.

A funny thing happened - we were sitting waiting for our table of six to fill up when the waiter approached with a group of three. For some reason, these three people took one look at us and asked for another table. No idea why, and no one else joined us, so we went ahead and ordered our meals. Mike had spent his elementary and high school years in Regina, and our conversation was easy.

After lunch, I did a bit of a walk-about. The Ruby Princess is similar to the Crown Princess, which I've sailed on previously. About 2 p.m. I headed for the Terrace bar/pool area as our Cruise Critic meet and greet was scheduled for 2:30. About ten others joined me and we sat and visited during sail-away. 

The view from Pier 21

Looking up from the Terrace pool/bar

As we were breaking up, Carlene stopped by as she was looking for the unhosted solo group. The two of us headed to the Adagio bar where a group of about 10 or 12 met that first afternoon. We spent an hour there and then headed to a main dining room for dinner. We sat a sharing table with a couple, Leon and Rose, from Massachusetts. The conversation flowed easily, as Carlene and Leon shared a history with the military, and we all enjoy cruising. 

After dinner, I did another walk-about and took a few photos before heading to my stateroom to unpack. Not sure why, but it took me an hour! I met my steward, Joseph, and he took care of an annoying motion light in the closet that cannot be dimmed or shut off. My light would shut off and then switch back on, no matter if there was any movement or not. With some tape and a laundry bag, he had the light and sensors covered. I read for bit before I settled down for the night.

One of the three pools

The buffet a night - much quieter!

*The medallion is used to check passengers on and off the ship at ports. In addition, a passenger can use an app on their phone to order food or drinks, and the waiter can find them via their medallion and make the delivery. I dropped my medallion one evening and my steward was able to tell me approximately where it was located. It may sound a little intrusive but it sure is handy.