Another Big Vacation - Part 2

 “We live in a wonderful world that is full of beauty, charm and adventure. There is no end to the adventures we can have if only we seek them with our eyes open.” 

 ― Jawaharlal Nehru

Having thoroughly enjoyed our previous experience in Honduras at Upachaya, we knew we wanted to go back with the whole crew on this trip.  Our reservation was made easily online and we prepared to visit the Mesoamerican Reef once again.

Carnival cruise line had crated a "tourist town", Mahogany Bay, for their Roatán experience.   Whereas Royal Caribbean ports in Coxen Hole, (named after the 17th century pirate John Coxen) the largest city in Roatán at a population of five thousand.

The two locations couldn't be more different.  Mahogany Bay is a mini resort paved, cleaned, painted and polished to appeal to the modern tourist and their ideas of vacationing in pristine cleanliness with first-world luxuries.  The beach at Mahogany Bay is made of imported sand and lined with chairs, umbrellas, and the sounds and smells of an ideal Caribbean vacation.

Coxen Hole has the usual port of entry tourist shops packed into a mini-mall type of introductory experience; 

Overlooking the island from the tourist area.  (John filming in the background)

Playing it up in the tourist shops.

...but once you set foot outside of the well guarded gates, you enter a true Central American experience.

Directly overhead, in the middle of town.

We exited onto bustling streets lined with sweaty, pushy salesmen attempting to direct you to their small storefronts.  The streets were uneven, cracked and unmarked.  Tangled power and cable lines  crisscross overhead and tropical trees and hibiscus flowers line the dingy streets.  Cars zoomed by in various degrees of disrepair, zigzagging along sometimes three vehicles wide on the narrow streets as pedestrians bravely claimed their share of the already overfilled road.  We saw one car with a large hole the size of a watermelon in the windshield filled with spray-foam insulation.  Third-world repairs are the best!!

We wandered down the street towards the nearest shops as children excitedly struck up conversations and walked along with us.  We often stepped over half-dead dogs who had flopped themselves awkwardly across the narrow broken sidewalks trying to sleep away the damp heat as tall slender chickens (which survive better in the tropics) darted under trees in nearby yards.  We found a few treasures in the modest little shops and found some empty chairs in a little ocean-side bar with a little dock for us to walk out over the water as we shared a few icy Monkey La-Las.

Still awaiting our tour, we wandered into what had affectionately been called the "local's beach", a slender stretch of rocky sand nearby the port.   We found ourselves on a small rickety dock enjoying the views of the ocean as Zoey tossed rocks in the ocean with the local children.

Our driver was prompt as usual and we, along with another family of 3, set out for Upachaya in Mud Hole (Maybe after a pirate named Mud?).  Before we knew it we were out on the water and swimming through the beauty that is the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef.

Zoey tried her best to join in, but the almost immediate introduction of salt water in her mask and eyes quickly revealed that she is not ready for this adventure.  When we were around the boat she did jump in to experience a small amount of snorkeling and got to hold a rather large star fish, but the rest of the time she played happily on the boat with Mario, one of the great guides.

We saw so many great sites, but instead of telling you, we used our new GoPro Hero 3+ video camera to document our adventure.  As it's our first attempt at videography and editing, it's a bit rough, but I hope you enjoy it. (If you can't select the video, or to see it with alt music click HERE.)

After the trip we were treated to a wonderful vegetarian snack lunch and the staff picked a fresh coconut for Zoey to eat and drink, which she loved.

When we arrived back in Coxen Hole, we dropped off our supplies at the ship and went back into town to finish our day.  As we walked we received an unofficial, unsolicited tour provided by one of the locals.  Bianca had her picture with him, which she loved......Okay, she wanted to shoot us.

After many musty hot shops, we settled back into the little ocean-side bar with a dock and enjoyed a drink of the local beer and played on the dock before departing.

As the ship pulled away from Roatán, Honduras, we all reflected on the authentic nature of our experience.  The grit, grime, sultry heat, blooming flowers, outgoing people, and rickety nature of the town only adds to the experience of visiting a far away place.  We all agreed it's a great place, worthy of visiting again.

The next day we would awaken in another country, ready for another experience; Belize City, Belize.

(to be continued)

Another Big Vacation - Part 1

"A vacation is having nothing to do and all day to do it in."

-Robert Orben

Walking on the beach in Galveston, TX.

I've slacked a bit on the blog because life has a way of getting busy, but here's what we've been up to!!

My sisters planned a big cruise for the same dates and destinations we had gone last year:  Roatán, Honduras, Belize City, Belize, and Cozumel, Mexico.  Of course I wouldn't pass up  a chance to spend time with my sister Chrissy, and my little girl needed to see her aunt also, so the three of us booked our tickets.  We were excited to revisit these great locations, spend time with family, and curious about a different cruise line, Royal Caribbean.

John, Karlie, Zoey and myself arrived in Galveston a day early after an overnight drive of 9 hours.  Karlie and Chrissy had found us an interesting hotel with a great location.  The place itself was a little run down and the staff lacked in the hospitality department, but we couldn't beat the views we were privileged to wake up to both mornings.           

Our morning exercise took us to the shoreline to outrun the wind as fog still enveloped the town.

 As we walked collecting treasures for Zoey, I braved a touch of a jellyfish and convinced my daughter and sister to do the same...because I am a great role-model.  It is very clear why the call it a jellyfish, because it feels just like thick jelly.

 Next we drove the length of Galveston and back towards Kemah, TX.  In Kemah we toured a few great live-aboard sailboats and decided it is not only a financially feasible option for us in the future, but that living in one is not much different that our current home, so the transition would be easy.

The day was chilly (go figure it was December) so having had a long night previously, we finished a bit early with dinner at Fish Tales.  Karlie and I were challenged to our first raw oysters, and we both accepted with grimaces. We both agree, they are...gulp....slimily okay.

Brandon, Chrissy, and Bianca arrived late that night via shuttle transport after we had tucked in for the night, so the next morning we had a great morning reunion.  Waiting for the time to depart, we walked the beach tossing jellyfish back in the ocean then shuttled the crew to the pier to load onto the ship.

Once aboard we started with the essential exploration of our rooms, self-guided tours, first meal, and jumped in the hot tub as the boat launched.

Days and nights aboard the boat we ate, sat in the hot tubs, swam in the salt-water pool, drank foo foo drinks, ate, danced, watched flying fish, played shuffle board and miniature golf,

Doing it right!!!

...drank foo foo drinks, napped, shopped, ate,

...watched an ice skating show, played dodge ball,

A team to be reckoned with...

 ...ate, drank foo foo drinks, rock climbed,

Sadly I didn't make it to the kiddie bell, I might be a bit scared of heights.

Karlie is a pro!!

...dressed up, took pictures,

...participated in ridiculous game shows, and last but not least enjoyed time with each other.  Did I mention on a cruise ship you eat a lot, and drink at least one foo foo drink a day?


You may be wondering, what was Zoey doing all this time?  Although she spent much of her time with us, immersed in our activities;

Enjoying our morning balcony view.

So happy to see Aunt Chrissy.

Our waiter made her a paper animal each night.

Loving her towel-monkey our cabin steward made.

...she also enjoyed the kid's daycare area.  She played with kids her own age, created art projects, had her face painted, read books and watched shows. The first night's dinner she curled up o the chair and slept through the main course.  After that, we had to enforce an-hour-nap a day to ensure she could enjoy the night shows and stay awake during dinner.

John and I had been able to experience the Carnival, Magic (which runs the same course at the same time) on our previous trip and were able to now compare it to the Royal Caribbean, Navigator of the Seas.   Both were great vacation ships, but when we went on Magic, it was less than a year old, and we were on Navigator's last sail before refit.  Comparing them based on that was a bit difficult.  The ship was a bit worn, and so was the staff, probably ready for a much needed vacation.  Although both ships had comparable amenities, the Navigator's buffet had shorter lines and Carnival's snack shops were more plentiful, flavorful, and diverse.  We preferred Carnival's dinner menu, much to our surprise after reading some other reviews.  One plus when in port was disembarkation via tender was much quicker on Navigator.  In the end they were both great ships and vacations, but we didn't really see a justification in price increase for Royal Caribbean over the cheaper Carnival, when comparing these two ships.  Note: Perhaps I would change my mind after a refit, but unlikely.

For us, the purpose and highlights of cruising are the destinations. Our three ports of call were as exciting as ever.  After three days at sea, our first port of call was Coxen Hole, on the isle of Roatán, Honduras.

 (to be continued)

Before School Started, We Departed

 "Guns have metamorphosed into cameras...Now nature tamed, endangered, mortal , needs to be protected from people."

-Susan Sontag

 

A family on the Riverwalk.

Summer was winding to a close and so much needed to be done to prepare for the fall.  It's a feeling I hadn't had for fourteen years, but the ritual carefree summers, school in the fall, and the countdown to spring begins; is once again a part of my life as my little one started her first year of school.

We decided to take one last trip to Seaworld to use those season passes before they expire and enjoy the last of summer.  Zoey was ecstatic, but I was nervous we would have to leave John behind once again.  Fortune smiled on us and last minute John finished the job, so we picked him up in Ozona, (a few hours south of here) and made our way to San Antonio once again, arriving late Friday night.

In the gardens at the Alamo.

Our hotel was right near the Alamo, which we hadn't visited previously, so I insisted we visit the
landmark on our way to breakfast.  The small mission/museum/battleground contains beautiful gardens, accounts of famous historical figures, and intriguing artifacts.  This provided an excellent brief history lesson for Zoey and a nice detour for the morning.

Driving into Seaworld in the summer was much different than it had been before. Steady streams of cars clogged the entrance and a flood of people poured forth and through the gates.  Strollers, large families, and mounds of backpacks and bags jammed up the checkpoints until we were allowed  into the park. 

The sun reflecting off the  dark pavement combined with 100°+ temperatures caused us to all feel overwhelmed by the heat almost immediately.  We ducked into indoor exhibits to find relief from the heat, but it was only temporary.  We decided to try a roller coaster and found that most of the visitors were either watching the aquatic shows or escaping to the water-park, leaving little to no lines for the roller coasters.  YAY!

One good-looking couple in downtown San Antonio.

Karlie, John and I traded off Zoey duty on the larger rides and thoroughly enjoyed the cool breezes and thrills of the coasters.  Zoey had recently gone through a growth spurt and now qualified for the 42" height restriction rides.  Approaching each new ride lead to lots of anxiety for her, even tears at times, but immediately after each ride she insisted on going again and again, which was fine due to the lack of lines.

Having already seen all the water-shows, we decided to brave the water-park.  The lines were massive and the  pools were crowded, but we enjoyed ourselves, not even noticing the heat the rest of the day.

On the Riverwalk.

Dinner in downtown San Antonio was an amazing churrascaria (Brazilian Barbeque) named Fogo De Chao, followed by a couples evening on the Riverwalk as Karlie took Zoey to bed.  I couldn't have asked for more.


We rose early the next morning to travel towards Natural Bridge Wildlife Ranch, a drive-thru safari, expecting the animals to be most active early in the morning.  I had seen these safaris on Travel Channel and the like, so once I found we had one here in Texas, I didn't want to miss out.

The nice lady at the gate took our money, handed us bags of undesirable looking pellet feed and told us to not feed the animals by hand, but to drop it on the ground...I don't think many people follow this rule, us included.  There were deer of every sort, a couple lazy rhinos (in enclosure), wildebeest, mountain sheep, buffalo, big horn cattle (bigger than the buffalo to our surprise) and the like.  The elk were super docile and patient, sticking their head into the car and accepting a single morsel of feed at a time.  

The ostriches on the other hand were anything but docile.  They showed no fear of cars or human contact,  They would spot the car and charge, then bravely stretch their neck through window into your space (if you were still in that space and not climbing over the seat) and quickly, almost violently snatching feed from our hands or wherever they could find it, sometimes trying to take a finger to two too...greedy birds.  These assertive birds even caused some cars to quickly roll up windows in fear of the overgrown chickens.

Entering the zebra area, signs warned that they do bite.  We observed the warning and began tossing feed to the roadside, when John realized, the zebras had devised a way to get hand fed despite the warning.  The result was a big toothey grin, allowing you to toss the feed pass their quivering lips into their gaping mouths. A hilarious sight.

The tour ended with a walk through monkey, parrot, kangaroo, giraffe and lemur exhibits.  The petting zoo was full of disinterested, overfed goats and one young deer. A nice gift shop displayed many souvenirs we neither needed, nor have the room for in our tiny home, so we settled with a coloring book for Zoey to remember her adventure.

The trip was a great end to a great summer, and the wildlife park is a definite must see if you are ever out that way, but be sure to get in early in the day to avoid tired animals and long lines, it was worth the effort.

(The video is a bit wiggly at first, but gets better...sorry :)

Great Wolf in Grapevine

 "Part of our responsibility as parents, as adults, is to set examples for children.  But we have to like children 

in order to be really happy fulfilled adults."

-Bobby McFerrin

John heard it through the grapevine at work, that we just had to take Zoey to Grapevine, TX for the time of her life.  Therefore, with little notice, as always, we packed up our bags and our favorite 4th person and headed out towards Dallas again for the weekend.  This time the roadside bluebells had withered and

mounds of yellow and red flowers had taken their place.  The scenery became greener and beautiful the nearer we got.


Our destination was the Great Wolf Lodge, home to a huge indoor water-park, open only to lodge guests and multiple of other kid friendly attractions designed to suck parent's wallets dry (we refrained from all the extras).   The temperatures were scheduled to be in the 70's for the weekend, which is great for most outdoor activities except swimming, so the lodge was a great excape for us and exactly what Zoey wanted.

Tickling her to smile because she's sad we're leaving.

Although Zoey is growing up too fast for me, she still is that little girl who loves her princess frilly swimsuits and the kiddie pool.  She slid down the smaller slides nearly a million times.  We talked her into a few bigger slides, one of which she refused to go down again after the first ride due to an unfortunate water-up-the-nose blast.  She loved the river where she could run in the current relying on her life jacket to steady her and she even rode the waves in the wave pool without hesitation.

The place really caters to kids, but we decided to be among the young at heart, so we adults traded off watching Zoey so we could enjoy some of the more adventurous rides.  Karlie and I had a few issues with our coordination at the rides ends in tandem tubes and once she flipped from behind me over my head and once I bit her head.  In the end we survived and had so much fun I didn't bother stopping to take any pictures inside the water park (not to mention I was fearful of what the water/humidity would do to electronics), so you'll just have to use your imagination and settle for this one leaving pic (day 2).

After a long day of driving and play, we ended the  night  at Joe's Crab Shack (yummmmm)!

Pirate John wants his crab pot.

Of course we posed in the cool mosaic bathroom.

We ordered Zoey's meal first, which was a good decision since she crashed immediately after her meal.  Those who play hard sleep hard.

The next morning Karlie and I played with Zoey for a few hours in the waterpark, even sneaking her onto one of the bigger "boat style" rides; as she was about a half inch short of the height requirement.  We thought she would enjoy the speedy ride, but the deadpan look on her face was clear...'this is not my idea of fun Mom!'

Although the lodge would allow us to stay in the water-park until 9pm that night, we had to be home for John and Karlie to be ready for work on Monday, so we checked out and headed to lunch.  On our way to find a place, we stumbled across the Central Market in Southlake.  John and I found some elusive fruits we had desired to try such as: mangosteen, dragon fruit, mamey sapote, and manzano bananas.  Karlie too knew what she wanted and found a huge assortment of loose-leaf tea that we could barely pull her away from.  There was so much selection I was in heaven, but with a five hour drive back, full grocery shopping was neither advantageous or a priority.

Some of our bounty. (Mamey Sapote, Kawino Horned Melon, Dragon Fruit , and various teas)

Dragon fruit is soooo cool.

 After lunch at the Cheesecake Factory...

Our view at lunch!

...we stopped by Cabela's to spy camping gear and their amazing stuffed exhibits (Zoey thought she got a zoo outing also).  We then pointed ourselves back towards the Chihuahua Desert and Midland, TX. Goodbye rivers, lakes and everything green. It was a great weekend and I'm so glad I have such a great daughter, husband, and sister to share it with.  What will future weekends bring?

Lovin' it...in Dallas.

"As a musician you just want to be able to do what you love."

-Andy Grammer

This boy shines!!

It's always been said to do what you love and love what you do, but more so, passion stems from being great at something, and my brother, Ethan Tucker, is one of the fortunate few who have found that passion because he's great, and loves what he does.  He's made friends in the music world and recently is on tour performing with Tribal Seeds and Slightly Stoopid , a couple of reggae bands.  His nine day tour takes him throughout the south...including Texas. 

Karlie and I were fortunate enough be able to take a few days to head to Dallas, TX to see him, support his career, and experience one of his shows on the road.  Karlie talked me into the trip, I honestly hadn't been to a real concert since my teens having settled down in more ways than one, so I left behind John and Zoey and we took another girls weekend just to see Ethan.

Midland to Dallas is a five hour drive and this time of year the roadside is covered in morning glories, bluebonnets, and Texas paintbrush.   Leaving behind the flat panhandle plains we found ourselves in the beautiful prairie and lake region.  We were envious of the tall trees, lakes, and hills around us....Midland, once again you fail to draw us back.

Cool, old, collapsed farmhouse we found!!

In the Dallas city center, we found ourselves on an off ramp due to big city traffic; and the detour took us by the Dallas Convention center, which after checking into our hotel, we went back to see the impressive bronze stampede at pioneer plaza which originates near an old graveyard full of the Dallas founders from the 1800's. 

Careful Karlie!!

Soon we met up with Ethan at the venue and spent some time catching up, hung around for sound check, and met members of the other bands and support staff.  Needless to say, it was apparent to everyone we were not his real sisters, but even if it's just by marriage, we'll claim each other.  Everyone was super friendly and it was clear to me how much they all support, love and admire Ethan and his music. 

When it was showtime, Karlie and I squeeeeeezed our way to the front and thoroughly enjoyed

Come on down to my level Ethan!!

Ethan's performance as he sang with heart, played with precision, and showed Dallas who Ethan Tucker really is.  He really earns a lot of respect going out there all alone, without a band in tow, playing "a musical style all his own with influences from folk, blues, soul, reggae and jazz" for a group of dedicated reggae fans, finding his way into their hearts. (Quote from Ethantuckermusic.com)

Karlie and I popped in and out of the front to experience the whole show and experienced the good (music), bad (large crowd), and the ugly (always a crazy fan or two).  We stayed late into the night enjoying every minute with Ethan then said our goodbyes with lots of hugs, laughing, and love. 

Dallas was a great experience, and I love Ethan and what he does.  Next time he's in the state, we'll be there....maybe next time he'll be the main show!!



*** If you're interested in hearing more of Ethan's music,  you can follow him on Facebook, download songs on iTunes, and order a CD on his website.