My boyfriend, Avery, and I embarked on a multiday journey where we travelled by car, train, and ship all to not reach our planned destination. Let me take you back to the beginning of the journey where we took an Amtrak train from Pennsylvania to New York on January 31st which went smoothly. We got to New York a day before we boarded our cruise ship, The Norwegian Getaway. We stayed at Hilton Garden Inn New York/Central Park South-Midtown West which was in a convenient location for us to visit Times Square and watch Book of Mormon on Broadway. While in Times Square, we ate pizza and before we saw Book of Mormon, we grabbed drinks at La Macarena which had great vibes. Overall, we had a great first day of our vacation.
The following morning, February 1st, we grabbed breakfast at Pick A Bagel (I had a tasty egg and cheese bagel) before we headed to board our cruise! The boarding process was slow but smooth, however, this is where our story took a turn in an unexpected direction. Our cruise that was intended to go to Bermuda for two days was now rerouted to The Bahamas due to weather. Unfortunately, this resulted in an overnight stop at The Bahamas, and we would not be able to enjoy the beautiful island in the sun. We tried our best to keep a positive mindset, but this was a HUGE disappointment for us. We went from having two days off the boat to explore the beauty of Bermuda to only a few hours overnight in The Bahamas, which I recently visited. RIP to our Bermuda Aquarium, Cave, and Highlights excursion. We felt cheated of our vacation before we had even left New York. Anyways, we informed our families of this abrupt change, grabbed a drink, and got some food. I was happily surprised with our room size; my favorite part was our window seat nook. For dinner this evening, we had specialty dining at Moderno Churrascaria, which is modeled after a traditional Brazilian steakhouse. This was my favorite specialty dining restaurant that we went to. I had an array of chicken, salmon, shrimp, steak, and sushi - everything was delicious!
Throughout our cruise we went to many different activities to fill our time. We went to Adult Karaoke Madness, Comedy shows by Billy Bonnell and J.F. Harris, Howl at the Moon Dueling Pianos, Million Dollar Quartet, 30-Thousand Years of Art History Talk, Newlywed Not So Newlywed Game Show, Mr. Sexy Legs Competition, Battle of the Sexes (the ladies won, yay!), The Weakest Link, Deal or No Deal Game, Bingo, Burn the Floor, Wheel of Ill Will Game Show, Glow Party, Battle of the Cake Masters, Perfect Couple Game Show, and many dance parties. My favorite activities were the Newlywed Not So Newlywed Game Show and the Mr. Sexy Legs Competition because they were both so funny. We also utilized facilities such as the casino, gym, and lounging on the deck chairs. We ate at the complimentary dining options Garden Cafe Buffet, O'Sheehan's Bar & Grill, Savor, and Taste. We had another specialty dining at Cagney's, which was a steakhouse. I had ahi tuna, lobster bisque, filet mignon with port wine sauce, baked zucchini, broccoli, and seven-layer chocolate cake. While the food was very good here, I still preferred Moderno Churrascaria. We tried multiple bar services including Atrium, Garden Cafe, O'Sheehan's, Sail & Sustain (my favorite), SKY VODKA Ice Bar, Spice H2O, Sugarcane Mojito, Sunset, Syd Norman's Pour House, and more! The SKY VODKA Ice Bar was completed made out of ice (we were given jackets and gloves) and cost extra. I am glad we experienced it once, but I do not feel the need to do it again. Additionally, our specialty dining, Bingo, and Deal or No Deal Game were additional fees. The only one that I would pay for again would be the specialty dining at Moderno Churrascaria (it was that good). Overall, the activities were entertaining, the food was good, the drinks were tasty, and we were able to enjoy ourselves during the cruise.
We arrived at Nassau, Bahamas at 9:45 PM on Friday, February 3rd and departed the port at 3:45 AM on Saturday, February 4th. Avery and I did decide to get off the boat for a few hours and get drinks at Senior Frogs. I felt comfortable enough to leave the boat and go to a tourist heavy spot such as Senior Frogs. I think that a part of my comfort came from being familiar with the area as I was just in Nassau in November. During my last visit to Nassau, I did not visit Senior Frogs so at least this was a new experience (ish, I have been to other Senior Frogs locations). Avery and I enjoyed a drink and then the host started up some games. We watched a scavenger hunt game go on throughout the entire restaurant, I even helped out a contestant by giving them a lip gloss for one of the rounds (don't worry, I got it back). The last round of the scavenger hunt required that everyone in the restaurant stand on stage which Avery and I eagerly participated in. All patrons then joined in on a conga line that weaved around the restaurant and included shots straight from the bottle waterfalled into everyone's mouth by staff. After the scavenger hunt and conga fun, we all danced together. After the dance party, there was a bachelorette who was given a special dance show by some of the wait staff on stage. The whole experience was entertaining and funny! I am glad that we were able to create some memories off of the boat.
While this was not the trip we planned, we still had a good time filled with laughter, love, and making lifelong memories. Would I purposely go on another cruise to essentially nowhere? Probably not. I am glad that we were able to make the most of it and come out on the other end smiling. This trip was a perfect example of the realness of traveling and life, it does not usually go as planned. However, the right company and attitude will make a huge impact on the result.
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