I recently got back from an eight-day cruise around the Western Caribbean. The cruising experience is very unique. If you’ve never been on one, it can be boiled down to a few key things in my opinion:
- 3,000+ strangers from across the world, placed on a boat together and left to eat, drink, gamble and dance together as one floating neighborhood
- 24-hour access to food
- ample time to nap, stare out at endless horizons, and generally zone out on island time
For some this is not ideal. For me, this is the stuff dreams are made of.
As I stare out my window during this very dreary and rainy New York City day, I can’t help but go to my happy place, which is eating a hamburger in the middle of a sunny day, smack in the middle of the ocean. But that photo is only in my head. Here are some other photos of the islands for those stuck in the rain today!
We took a quick tour of some central areas in San Juan, and this was one beach our driver brought us to. Waves were crashing, the sky was blue…it was super relaxing.
I wasn’t the only one enjoying the day, this crab was catching some rays as well.
In Old San Juan, I spied this adorable row of apartments and one was for sale. I restrained myself from calling the number listed and buying it sight unseen, even though I really wanted to.
One of my favorite spots in San Juan is this gorgeous and famous cemetery, named Santa Maria Magdalena de Pazzis. It borders the sea and is the final resting place for some of Puerto Rico’s most famous, wealthy and influential residents. As far as cemeteries go (and I weirdly love them so I’ve been to a lot), it’s definitely one of the most gorgeous and picturesque I’ve ever seen.
When we docked in St. Maarten, this super yacht was also in the same port, as was another…which had a helicopter land on it as we took a boat to the island. Through some Internet stalking, I discovered the owner of this Atessa IV is a Montana-based industrialist. In my next life, I come back as a Montana-based industrialist. This thing was unbelievable.
One of my absolute favorite things that we did was take a catamaran out of St. Thomas to snorkel near St. John. Here is my dad with the boat’s captain who was pretty dreamy.
As we drove out to St. John, we passed Michael Jordan’s house, which is in St. Thomas. Apparently Kenny Chesney also has a large house in St. John. I wondered what other celebs were lurking about. On my next trip, I will look into this!
The sun was a little scarce in St. Thomas but as we came back in the sun broke through. Here is our group enjoying the ride back.
I spied this bumper sticker in St. Thomas during our drive back to the ship. I wasn’t sure what it meant, but I was intrigued!
I also really loved this reminder to drive carefully.
I always love this view when you are getting back to your ship from being in port. It’s always looks cool.
All in all, I find cruises super relaxing, a means to unplug (no service at sea or on the islands!), meet people from around the world (which I wrote a little bit more about here!), eat and drink to your heart’s content (not necessarily a good thing but very fun!) and just unwind. And there is nothing at all wrong with a little island time! Ever! If you ever want cruise advice, email me at lia (at) the prettydelicious (dot) com. I know all the ins and outs, including how to get the best cabin on the ship, the best seat at dinner and how to properly go about exploring the islands.
