Florida Corvette Club Inc. - The Most Active Club In Florida

5th Anniversary Cruise
April 1, 2006

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The FCC celebrated their 5th year anniversary with a Royal Caribbean Cruise to the Western Caribbean. There were seventeen couples who enjoyed the seven day cruise to paradise. We met at the rest stop off of I-4 where we wore our teal blue cruise shirts so we would be noticed as a club. Thank you Kevin for having those made for our trip.

We arrived in Tampa approximately 12:00pm and boarded; heading straight for the buffet for lunch, drinks by the pool, and walked the decks. Grabbing our life jackets and heading for our drill stations, like cattle, the guides instructed us on what to do in case of an emergency. It was 5:00pm and the Bon Voyage Party began with drinks of the day, pina coladas. We chose the 8:30pm seating for dinner so it was back to the room to dress and attend the 7:00pm show in the lounge. The staff was very efficient and service on the boat was excellent. We attended the 10:00pm show which consisted of music, dancing, magic shows, and comedians through out the week. People gambled; some won and some lost. Kevin, Carol, Allen, Laura; just to name a few; participated in a scavenger hunt and almost won, but some old lady wouldn't give up her false teeth and Kevin was down to his briefsBway to go gang!! Kevin, Carol, Patrick, Karen, Dick, Linda, Bill, Sheri, Allen, and Laura played 'name that tune' in the Schooner Bar several nights and won Royal Caribbean hats. There was miniature golf, rock climbing, swimming, a Jacuzzi, and many enjoyed the spa. Mike and Ro visited the spa daily (how nice!). Gina and Kelly got on stage with a member from the Temptations and helped get the crowd going as everyone else joined in on the fun.

Our first stop was The Grand Caymans; what a beautiful island. There was so much to do and see; some shopped, went to the beach, some went to Hell and back. Frank, Sue, Jim, Kelly, Patrick and Karen took a catamaran tour to Stingray City. Beautiful ocean waters, different shades of blue, went as far as you can see and were crystal clear to the bottom. We arrived at a sand bar with other boats and jumped into the water. It was waist high with stingrays swimming about. We fed them squid, held and kissed them, and they kept coming back for more. We should be set for awhile for all the kisses the stingrays were getting. The females are larger (approximately the size of a large inner tube) than the males (about the size of a pizza). We swam, took pictures, and purchased the DVD that was made from our trip to Stingray City. On the way back to the ship, we napped in the beautiful sun. I highly recommend taking this excursion if ever in the Grand Caymans.

Costa Maya was our second stop; the port was beautiful for hanging around all day. There were shops, restaurants, and a pool with a swim up bar. Frank, Sue, Patrick and Karen took an air conditioned bus with a group of 25 people to the Mayan Ruins. We ate a box lunch on the bus ride up and fed the rest to a pack of stray dogs that looked hungry as we got off. Arriving at Kohunlich, our guide informed us of the history of the Mayan people and how they built homes and cities out of stone. These were very proud people and hard workers. They worshiped many gods and built their temples so that they resembled the faces of the gods. They were painted with red clay for color. Once we got back to port, we enjoyed a local beer Dos Equis.

Belize was our third stop in an English speaking country that was once a colony of Great Britain. There was plenty to do. Larry, Cindy, Allen, Laura, Wil, Charlie, Dave, and Elaine went to view the monkeys. They walked and fed them while one curious monkey decided to play with Cindy=s hair. The mother was close by screaming. Frank and Sue decided to go on an ATV tour on which they got very dirty. Jim, Kelly, Dick, Linda, Patrick, and Karen took the aerial trekking and cave tube tour. Our guides were two women whom were great hosts of their land and loved hanging out with us. We boarded a van with another couple from Chicago; Sara and Brent who are newlyweds on their honeymoon. We took the back roads though the mountains to a resort where we meet with Jose and DeJesus, and they hooked us up in our gear; helmets, leather gloves and harnesses. We began hiking to the top of a platform where there were two steel cables able to hold 60,000 lbs. The guides hooked us to the cables and we took off through the tree tops. Gliding all by yourself, it was so peaceful and serene, until we landed on the next platform waiting for the others to join. Then it was off again. Patrick is afraid of heights and he loved it. Next it was cave tubing where we grabbed our tubes, life jackets, and mining head lights. Then we hiked about 1-1 2 miles to the cave at the top. We got in our tubes and hooked together as our guide steered us though the caves with stalagmites. Once seeing the light at the end of the cave, we just floated down the river in our inner tubes, which was very relaxing. We then had lunch with the locals on the patio deck consisting of grill chicken, rice, fruit, bread, corn, dessert, and a drink. We boarded the van and Rose, the guide, took us to her mother's house where there were chickens, birds, and dogs running around. They served us coconut and the milk straight from the tree with their machetes. Rose held up a bobcat they found dead in the yard one morning. Our next stop was Rose's sister's house where she showed us cashew fruit, which tasted like star fruit. It grows on a tree, like most fruit, except this one has it's nut on the outside of the fruit. They say God and Satan got into it one day. Satan said, "Anyone could make fruit and put it on a tree." God said, "If you think it's so easy then you do it." So Satan made the cashew fruit but forgot the nut. God makes no mistakes but Satan tried to fix what he couldn't perfect by placing the nut on the outside of the fruit. The people call this Satan's fruit. I highly recommend this tour if ever in Belize.

Our last stop was in Cozumel. Much of the group shopped and walked around town. Lisa, Bob, and Ellen took the horse back riding tour. They had a great time but were sore the next day. The Telum tour to the ruins showed the city enclosed by a wall of rock, which was built by hand. Here, people still speak the Mayan language. This city was built on a cliff so they can see the ships coming in and still be protected by the steep cliff. Xel HA was a beautiful water park interacting with nature, such as, swimming with the dolphins, snorkeling, scuba diving, snuba driving, rope swinging, and much more. The fish were 1-2 feet long, swimming all around you and very colorful. There were beaches with hammocks and paths to stroll along. You could spend all day exploring the shops, restaurants, and locker rooms. Xel HA is highly recommended for people who like water sports.

We all had a great time on the cruise! We hope that those who couldn't make this trip will please try to make our other events in the future. Maybe even another Cruise!