<p>We are back from our cruise and what a cruise it was!!? </p><p>On Saturday, January 7, 2006, we flew to Miami with Justin's parents and stayed the night at a Marriott Hotel down there.? That night, we went to a Cuban restaurant (La Rosa), and that was a treat!? None of us had ever had Cuban food before, and it was not what we expected.? I would almost describe it as "sweet."? Not only was the food great and the service outstanding, but there was entertainment, too!? There was a pianist that was absolutely phenomenal!? Someone could talk to her while she was playing, and she could take one hand off the keyboard to talk or write or whatever and you'd never know it unless you saw her do it!? Brilliant talent!</p><p>After La Rosa, we drove down to South Beach just to have a look-see.? There were a lot of expensive cars and old buildings, but that was about it.? Nothing very spectacular, in my opinion.</p><p>Sunday came and we all headed to the Cruise Ship.? Although we boarded around 1:30,?we set sail around 5pm on <a title="Carnival Victory" href="http://www.carnival.com/Ship_Detail.aspx?shipCode=VI" target="_blank">Carnival Victory</a>.? Sunday night we discovered that we would be treated like royalty all week when it came to the amount and types of food we were served at dinner.? I'm talking 3 course meals — shrimp, lobster, steak, speciality starters, things I can't pronounce, caviar, brie cheese, smoked salmon, baked Alaska, sinful desserts, etc.? They rolled you out of the dining room each evening!? The service was spectacular, too.? The waiters learned our names and?our preferences fairly quickly, they laughed and joked with us, they were courteous…just very enjoyable to be around (and not one was American)!</p><p>Sunday night we watched our first show.? It was pretty entertaining - it was informational, and the cruise director, Dana, was very funny and energetic.? They also had the "Victory Dancers" and "Victory Orchestra" that performed throughout the week.? The dancers were good, but they were crowd pleasers, which isn't really my thing.? I really enjoyed the "orchestra," which was more of a jazz band than an actual orchestra.? There were two Vegas-style shows throughout the week, and while the dancers were great at what they did and I appreciate their talent, still not my thing.?</p><p>Monday and most of Tuesday we spent the time familiarizing ourselves with the ship, going to various activities, shows and comedians, an art auction and?the casino.? I believe it was Monday when we went to an informational about how to play some of the casino games.? After the talk, we all got $5 vouchers to play at one of the tables.? Justin lost at roulette, but I ended up winning $15 and then joined a $20 slot tournament (I lost).? That was the extent of our gambling on board.</p><p>It was also pretty windy and the seas were far from calm.? We had 20 knot+ winds and 7-12 foot waves.? So much for stabilizers on the boat — although, due to the rocking of the boat, it was kind of fun trying to guess who was drunk and who was sober!? Monday I thought the rocking was pretty humorous…Tuesday, though…it was getting old.? It was also a bit disconcerting to see so many?vomit bags hanging by the elevators…</p><p>Tuesday night around 5pm, we landed in <a title="San Juan, Puerto Rico" href="http://www.carnival.com/Port_Of_Call.aspx?portCode=SJU&itinCode=ECE&embkCode=MIA&durDays=7" target="_blank">San Juan, Puerto Rico</a>.? We took the <a title="City and Shopping Tour" href="http://www.carnival.com/ShoreExcursionDetails.aspx?portcode=SJU&excursionname=San+Juan+City+%26+Shopping+Tour&excursioncode=427008" target="_blank">City and Shopping Tour</a>, which was a disappointment for all of us.? Our driver took us around the city first, and then took us to the?San Crist?bal fort.? That sounds great, but by the time we got to the fort, it was almost closing time (darkness was setting in), and we weren't allowed to walk around much — not at all on the walls, which should have been the highlight of the tour.? Nonetheless, the fort was pretty neat — I just wish we could have seen more of it.? After our tour, we did some shopping and then found a place to have a drink.? Once we were rested, Justin and I took a walk along a sidewalk next to the City Wall.? It was a very nice walk — the trees along the sidewalk were covered in lights and there was a nice fountain at the end.?</p><p>Wednesday morning, we landed in <a title="St. Maarten, NA" href="http://www.carnival.com/Port_Of_Call.aspx?portCode=SXM&itinCode=ECE&embkCode=MIA&durDays=7" target="_blank">St. Maarten, NA</a>,?my favorite part of the trip.? Here, we did <a title="Discover Scuba" href="http://www.carnival.com/ShoreExcursionDetails.aspx?portcode=SXM&excursionname=Discover+Scuba&excursioncode=433004" target="_blank">Discover Scuba</a>?– neither of us had ever been scuba diving.? This was an awesome experience for me!? We took a boat over to where there were a couple of shipwrecks, got a brief instruction, and then followed our instructor in groups of four 25-30 feet below the surface.? It was amazing!? It took a bit to get used to breathing right, but it was incredible!? Unfortunately, because of the recent wind and rain the visibility was only 8-10 feet, but for beginner scuba divers like us, we didn't care!? We had a great time here!</p><p>Thursday morning we had to pass through immigration before we left the ship to go into <a title="St. Thomas, USVI" href="http://www.carnival.com/Port_Of_Call.aspx?portCode=STT&itinCode=ECE&embkCode=MIA&durDays=7" target="_blank">St. Thomas, USVI</a>.? Here, we went on the <a title="Ultimate Island Experience" href="http://www.carnival.com/ShoreExcursionDetails.aspx?portcode=STT&excursionname=Ultimate+Island+Experience&excursioncode=434025" target="_blank">Ultimate Island Experience</a>.? This was both incredible and disappointing.? We spent 2 hours at Magens Bay, which was <em>beautiful!? </em>We even saw a bride getting her pictures made there.? The sea was clear, calm and warm, and it really wasn't too crowded.? There wasn't even a hotel in sight.? That was the best part of the day.? After Magens Bay, we went to Blackbeard's Castle, which was a let-down.? All that was left was a tower, and then there were some old homes to explore, which didn't interest us a whole lot.? There were quite?a few statues of historical pirates, and the descriptions were pretty entertaining.? After visiting the "castle" and shopping downtown, we headed back to the boat.</p><p>Friday and Saturday we spent on the boat at sea.? We enjoyed the sun, played bridge with Justin's parents, attended a few shows and another art auction,?and just plain ol' relaxed.</p><p>All in all, the cruise was really nice.? It was a great vacation to warmer weather in the middle of winter.? Unfortunately, I blinked and it was over.</p><p>Sunday came.? Time to go home.? We got off the boat, headed to the airport, got in line, checked in our luggage, etc.? Then we waited…and waited…then heard, "flight 5011 to Ft. Myers?has been delayed because of servicing on board."? As it was, we only had a 1/2 hour layover in Ft. Myers, so any delay would make us miss our connecting flight to St. Louis.? We ended up switching flights, so we went through Washington, D.C. instead (which, we've been wanting to go there anyway, right?).? Not only did we get home 4 hours later than expected, but our luggage never left Miami.? I'm assuming they got the message to take it off the airplane to Ft. Myers, but never got it onto the plane to D.C…At least we're home and not on our way to the cruise, right?? Hopefully we'll have it delivered sometime today or tomorrow.</p><p>I should have lots of pictures posted today, so visit our gallery and see what we saw on the cruise!</p>