Thursday, October 31, 2024
Last night our stewards delivered this letter from the Captain advising us that the port of Martinique would be cancelled due to ongoing political unrest. Over the years, we’ve had several ports cancelled – usually because of inclement weather making it too difficult to dock. However, political issues have also kept us away.
Sometimes, the cruise line can find another port to substitute. Sometimes we just get an extra sea day. HAL is substituting Castries, St. Lucia which is a very nice island.
I always feel bad for people who take a cruise just to see one or two particular ports and then have them cancelled. They are very disappointed and feel cheated. I would recommend that if there’s a place you really want to see, you book a vacation direct to that destination. Cruising ports are never 100% guaranteed.
We had booked a HAL excursion to the botanical gardens. The cost of the excursion will be credited back to our account. If people had booked an excursion through a private organization, they will be responsible for contacting the vendor to let them know we would not be docking. Reputable vendors will refund the passenger’s money, but you have to read the fine print in their contract.
We have been to Barbados before, so we were having another day on the ship. It was already decorated for Halloween when I got up this morning to go get coffee.
The ship had a pumpkin carving contest among ship departments and the guests were encouraged to vote on their favorite. The guests were also encouraged to enter a door decorating contest and the costume contest. Chuck and I did not bring our costumes this year.
We both went to the gym and walked a mile around the Promenade. We went to the pool until it got cloudy and soon started to rain. That was our cue to go to the Lido for lunch.
We tried trivia for the first time this cruise. The topic was Geography which Chuck is knowledgeable. We were going to be a team of two but joined a Canadian couple with whom we’ve shared a table in the main dining room. We only missed two questions but there was a team of six (the max) who had a perfect score.
It was still raining so it was a perfect time for a nap until the evening activities.
The bars were decked out and featured spooky drinks.
In the spirit of the festivities, I tried the Green Monster. It was drinkable but I switched back to my go-to vodka/soda.
We ate dinner in the Lido again tonight. They even labeled some of their food with Halloween names. One of my choices was the mummy (normally called a pig in a blanket). I also chose the stuffed bell pepper and some sweet and sour shrimp. Chuck also had the shrimp and some roast beef.
After dinner, we went to see the comedian Jim Short. His show was called “My Generation.” We enjoyed it. I would call it PG.
Next, we went to the Rolling Stone Lounge. Kimberly, the Cruise and Travel Director, led the Costume Parade through the Lounge. The Captain even got into it by dressing up as Elvis. He, Kimberly, and one other officer were the judges. After seeing all the contestants, I was sorry we hadn’t brought our costumes. We would have had a good chance of winning.
Kimberly also announced the winners of the pumpkin carving contest and the door decorating contest. Soon after the announcements were over, all the people who had signed up for the Bar Hop arrived and a very long conga line started. The Band kept on singing, the crew kept the drinks flowing, and the dance floor was packed with happy passengers.
We slipped out and took advantage of an almost empty casino to have our pick of machines.
Tomorrow: Castries, St. Lucia
Photos from previous Barbados visits:
