graduation cruise - april 2011

my best pal ali, her sister amy and i went on a cruise to celebrate our graduating from a 3 year masters program in school counseling. ali and amy were so kind to cruise "de-virginize" me, as they are quite the cruisers and i had never been on one. we took a carnival cruise ship to catalina island and ensenada mexico. this was the best thing that has happened to me in a long time. i loved every minute of it. it was a great girls trip. it was so much fun to visit mexico, even though it was for like 2 minutes. anyway, here are some pictures of our time. so many memories.

amy, me, ali - in line for our embarkation.

me, amy, ali - first meal on the lido deck. loved the fun reggae music they had going on and the  first drink of the trip. that night we also enjoyed the cruise director's little welcome aboard number. best sleep i have had in years. the boat just rocks you to sleep, however, my poor roommate (amy) couldn't sleep until the 3rd night because of my snoring. she finally got some goods to help remedy that at la farmacia in mexico.  

this is a view of catalina island from our boat. we had to tender and ride these scary "baby" boats to the island. catalina is such a cute town with great shops. amy lost her wallet for a while. we found it though. that was fun. we bought some taffy in a shop that marilyn monroe used to work at when she was norma gene. 

whilst on the island we found this rockin' cave. we took a ton of ridiculous pictures in this cave.

after catalina, we went back to the boat and went to the art auction. that was a blast. however, i somehow managed to spend $200 on art that i will never hang in my house. perhaps that had something to do with the free champagne (i had mine, amy's and ali's... oops). they also said that they would award the loudest people at the auction with a free bottle of champagne. bet you can't guess who won that prize.

me and amy - the 2nd night was fancy dress night. we had some lobster for dinner and danced like maniacs at the club all night.

ali

the next day we went to ensenada. this is not a very "pretty" town. however, it was quite touristy, so we had a good time. this is a picture of the "blow hole" in la bufadora (a little town in ensenada). it was quite anti-climatic. you just stare over this wall and wait for the water from the ocean to blow a bunch of water (spray) in your face. however, it is a great money maker for the locals, and very picturesque. bartering in the town of la bufadora was fun fun fun. 

ali, me, amy, baby lion cub - we took this picture right off the boat in mexico. the proceeds go to help save african lion cubs or something. in any case, it was the cutest thing ever. 

THE BEST MARGARITA EVER!!! this was my first time in mexico, so of course i had to get a margarita. it was amazing. and so was the food. this restaurant was SO good. i wish i could eat mexican food like this all the time. 

me, super viagra man - this was in front of one of many la farmacia's around ensenada. 

ice carver man - the next day was fun day at sea. ali and i laid out in the sun on the lido deck. best part of my trip for sure. it was amazing. they had all sorts of activities for people to do, hence the ice carving. i loved my day at sea.

me, bartender. this was after we got fried sunbathing. we spent some time in the casino. i did not win, however i did not partake much either. this guy was sure fun to chit chat with. 

me, steward, amy, ali - i feel like such a jerk that i cannot remember our steward's name. but it was 6 months ago. anyway, this is on debarkation day. we wanted to have a memory of our amazing steward. he brought me LITERALLY 8 extra pillows to sleep on and fluffed them everyday. he also did amazing towel animals.

needless to say, our cruise was amazing. other mentionables:

*hot rock massage on the first day. i got a 3rd degree burn and still have a scar to prove it. i didn't pay for my massage, or the infirmary bill, however mca thinks i should have gotten the entire cruise for free.

*sitting in the lobby sulking at 3 am because amy wouldn't let any of us sleep because i was keeping her up with my snoring. this sounds awful, but we were just tired and a little ornery - and this little experience has sent me into the sleep lab to figure out that i have apnea. so...

*dia de los muertos store in ensenada. i could have spent all day and all my money there. it was awesome.

*bartering for cuban cigars in mexico. then learning how to "sneak" them past customs.