Cruising the Ocean Blue
I have been MIA lately with this website! I have so much to write about that this will most likely turn into an entire page entry. Feel free to stop reading here. J
I realized that I forgot to write about our most recent vacation. Very shortly after graduation, Matt, his Mom, his Mom’s best friend, my parents, and I went on a cruise to the Caribbean and the Bahamas. It was an absolute blast and it is a trip that I will always cherish. Having said that, I think that unless we find a fantastic deal, Matt and I may prefer land trips. We felt rushed at the ports and didn’t feel like we were able to experience the islands in their completeness. I do have a hysterical commentary on one part of the trip though.
We spent one day docked on a Princess private island, Princess Cays. We decided that we would do the clear hull kayak trip earlier in the morning. During that tour, all of us agreed that the banana boat looked like a blast and we booked it for later in the afternoon.
Matt and I, being thrill-seekers, were excited about the banana boat, but we weren’t thinking that the ride would give us a thrill. We were more excited to be able to go on a tour with our parents and make some memories. Boy, did we make a memory.
Five minutes before the tour, we met up with the other people who were coming out with us. These women (4 in total) had been sitting on the dock most of the day working up the courage to go on this excursion. Two of the women were deathly afraid of water and I believe that all the women could not swim. They decided that our crew looked friendly enough and we would be perfect to go out with. They suited up, complete with a swim cap and goggles. The fact that we even needed a life jacket amused Matt and me, but I thought the goggles were priceless.
When we were climbing on the boat, I noticed the side of the raft said that it was not to exceed the speeds of 15 mph. I remember thinking, “Great, this may be even slower than I suspected.” I was wrong. We no sooner got on the boat and it was zooming out of the dock’s inlet. Fifteen miles per hour was certainly surpassed. Everything was going well. Our family was enjoying themselves and the ladies along with us were squealing and ducking at the water flying in their faces. I was already completely entertained when the drivers decided to get the party started. My ever fastidious husband noticed that the boat we were attached to had made a very sharp turn. The banana boat was attached to a long rope and the rope was quickly winding out. Matt had little time to say to me, “Baby, you might want to hang on,” before the rope yanked tight and our banana boat jerked to the left. The force of the jerk was huge and it caused our boat to rock over on its side. The side that flipped up was the side that Colleen, Melanie, and the water-scared ladies were on. I looked up in time to see a lot of legs flipping into the water. Just as quickly as I saw the legs go into the water, I see my mother-in-law…Colleen decided that she was not getting thrown off this boat and she held on. The boat was so forceful, that it literally laid Colleen out flat (imagine someone on a bucking bull). I looked over to see her body jerking up and down, smacking the banana boat and then being flung back into the air. I’ll give it to her, she held on.
It took the crew a little time to realize that we lost half the passengers. Either that or the crew was so amused with the situation that they didn’t stop the boat. We somehow managed to get Colleen sitting up straight. I was laughing so hard that tears were streaming down my face. My poor husband thought that I hurt myself. I guess after all these years, he still hasn’t figured out that, just like my mother, I have the World’s most inappropriate laugh reflex. For the record, she was bawling too. Lucky for us, Colleen was a great sport and found the situation pretty funny. Unfortunately, the ladies in the water were having anxiety attacks. Melanie who can swim was being assaulted by 3 women who thought they were going to drown even with their life jackets on. We eventually got some them back on the boat and the others on a jet ski. The ladies were not the least bit amused by the situation and they wanted back on land quickly. Normally, I would be very upset to have my tour cut short, but I couldn’t have asked for a better time. I think I added 10 years to my life by all the laughing that occurred. Even today as I type this, I am cracking up in my head. It may be one of those “you had to be there” experiences…
The rest of the trip was great, but not that funny. It certainly will go in the record books. I have other things to write about, but I will spare your eyes for now. Stay tuned for an update about my new life after school! My new job, which I will bore you with details about, is amazing. Plus, I passed the NAPLEX. Woot, woot!
Posted by Beth on June 30th, 2008 | Filed under General
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