For spring break my junior year, I went on vacation with my family, my friend, Sarah, and my brother’s friend, Blake. We flew out of the Hubert H. Humphrey terminal in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The flight was smooth and quick, and before we knew it, we had landed at the airport in Fort Meyers, Florida.
My grandparents have a condo in Fort Meyers where they stay during the winter, so we stayed there for the next two nights. It was a bit cramped and two people had to sleep on the floor. But on Saturday March 10, we woke up early and embarked for Miami, which was where the cruise port was. My mom, my dad, my brother, Blake, Sarah, and I were the six people that went on the cruise.
The port of Miami was huge. It held at least five cruise ships that were all boarding at the same time. Our cruise ship was named the Carnival Destiny. Boarding the ship was hectic and chaotic because there was so many people all trying to board the ship at the same time.
Once on the ship, I was in awe. It looked like a five star resort on the inside. Everything you could ever want while on a cruise was there. Restaurant after restaurant, stores, gift shops, activities, pools, bars, clubs, and so much more were all on the Carnival Destiny.
Before we could embark into the ocean we all had to cram onto the decks and go to our assigned lifeboat to figure out what to do in an emergency. I feel like this really didn’t work. They squeezed thousands of people onto the decks and barely anyone could see what was actually being demonstrated.
After that was done, it was time to leave! I was nervous about getting seasick, but my nerves were quickly relieved when we started moving. One of the coolest memories I have is standing on the lido deck next to the pool and watching the port slowly fade from view. On the ship, there were so many things to do. I was never bored the entire time. I felt like I was at an all-inclusive resort. Anybody can eat at any time of the day. On the ship you could get at least ten different types of food.
The first island we stopped at was Jamaica. The group I was traveling with had booked in advance an excursion. In Ocho Rios, Jamaica, we were going to climb the Dunn River Falls Waterfall. Standing at the bottom of the falls looking up 600 feet to the top was quite intimidating, but I was going to have fun with this activity no matter what. After climbing to the top and looking down, I felt accomplished. I had a blast doing it! From the falls we went to the Dolphin Cove in Ocho Rios to go watch some sea life. It was so cool to see all the animals.
The following morning we docked in the Cayman Islands. In Grand Cayman, we just walked around, shopped, and enjoyed the atmosphere. It was not long before we were back on the Destiny heading back to Miami where we would fly home from.
This trip opened my eyes to how many types of people there are in this world. On the ship, I met so many people from all different walks of life. It was so cool and rewarding to see so many people come together to create an amazing vacation and to make many memories that will stick with them through life.
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