December 4th
Well, here we are on our Delta flight back to New England. What a wonderful time we had! I simply cannot believe that it is over.
We woke at 5:30 AM, and got ourselves ready for the day. We had to bring our luggage with us, when we left our cabin, and went over to the buffet. We left a little envelope and a bottle of wine for our Cabin Steward.
So breakfast was ok. It was sad thinking this was the last on the ship. They had a full menu available, and Jack and I ate quickly.
Our walk off the ship was to happen at 6:30 AM, and we finished and made it down to the gangway right on time. We breezed through Immigration, and then caught a cab for the airport. That’s where the problem began.
Today it was my suitcase they wanted to check. Now what is the last stuff you toss in when you are going home? Yeah, dirty laundry! So here is this TSA Agent going through my bag, pawing through my undies, for all the world to see! Call me simply mortified! However, we eventually made it and got to the gate.
We had purchased tickets for the 9:45 flight to Atlanta and then on to Boston. Jack asked if we could just switch (and those of you who buy tickets and fly will already know this), they refused to change our tickets, despite empty seats, despite that Jack is retired from the Airline. One of the Agents was so rude to Jack and it made me feel bad for him.
Another agent suggested we pass ride, and he changed everything for us and we left Fort Lauderdale two and a half hours earlier that our flight.
While we flew to Atlanta, I found a flight on the web, where we could list and we literally ran from one gate to the next to catch an earlier flight. (Which is where I am right now)
This vacation was the best one, in a very long time. It was truly relaxing, the weather was great, and best of all, I got to return to Barbados, which is my favorite Island in the Caribbean!
I forgot to mention that on our last sea day, we were invited to the Captains Cocktail Party. These are usually fun and it gives the frequent cruisers a chance to meet the Captain. Tony Draper was our Captain, and he was a pleasant, kind, man.
I also forgot to mention when we departed St. Thomas. I watched Captain Draper maneuvering the ship backing out of the channel, turning and then proceeding out to sea.
The usual hum from he engines, and music from the pool area filled the ship and then…it all stopped and everything went dead! The Captain came on quickly and said that one generator had kicked off (like a blown fuse) and the two back up generators didn’t much like that so they also kicked off too. It took only 5 or 6 minutes and the ships power was up and running. Many of us hoped that we would be tugged back to St. Thomas and extend our cruise, but that was not to be.