On Thursday, we drove from Orlando to the Port of Palm Beach. The drive takes about 2 and 1/2 hours. When we arrived at the Port, they have valet parking for $17 per night that must be paid in cash. We left our bags with the Bell man and went upstairs in the terminal to fill out the immigration forms. We were also given our room number and cash cards. Since we were going to stay on the island, they kept our passport and said we could get them back later that night. Next, was the stop to get our picture taken, then they gave us transportation tickets from the ship to our hotel. We elected not to eat in the formal dining room. We then boarded the ship and made our way to our room.
The room was quite large by ship standards. We had a window room and it was at the end of the hallway. After locating our room, we went and got us something to eat at the buffet. After lunch, I found me a quiet place to read for a while. I met up with Jay and we went and ate supper. After supper, we went to the variety show.
The water was rough on the crossing to the Bahamas. The ship was really swaying back and forth. The captain made an announcement, that they were going to try to get across as fast as possible because of the rough seas. The next morning, we were scheduled to depart at 10 AM. We got off the boat, got our luggage and got on the bus to the hotel. We were staying at the Grand Lucayan. On the bus, the driver gave us some interesting information about the island.
Checking in at the hotel was a nightmare. We had to stand in line for 1 and 1/2 hours to get checked in. Then since it was in the morning and check-in time was not until 3, they gave us a beeper to tell us when our room was ready. Well, by 4:00 PM, our beeper still had not gone off, so I went inside to find out when our room would be ready. We were able to get our room key and we went to our room. After resting for a while, we walked across the street to the Port Lucaya marketplace and ate at a restaurant over there. Then back to our hotel.
Since we got on the ship and arrived in the Bahamas, it has been cold. I hope it is warmer tomorrow.
