dmoten

I started carrying a first aid kit when I was on vacation once and fell down some stairs. It was not fun driving around VA Beach bleeding at 10pm trying to find an open drug store. From that trip, my kit includes triple antibiotic ointment, bandages of all sizes, gauze, tape and even a small bottle of peroxide. It is the first thing that goes in my suitcase every trip. My portable medicine cabinet is next. It has something for everything from upset stomach to a cold. I have been stuck at sea with congestion and flu before, so that is a must have in my suitcase as well. We learn by experience.

I did see the one in Vegas when it was at the Tropicana, I think it is at the Luxor now or at least it was. It was awesome. I really enjoyed it and both times I went the passenger I had survived. :)

Nice review Jan. I want to do the New England cruise as well. We were stationed in Newport RI and I love the area. I want to do the the Titanic exhibit in Canada as well.

One of each night of my most recent cruise except my last night when he made a big heart. My faves were the bear and elephant. I would place them on my night stand and he let it stay until he made a new one for me.

I went to Alaska this summer as well and enjoyed it very much. If I do Alaska again, I think I would try for at least a couple different ports. My next cruise is Hawaii as well, I haven't booked it yet but that is definitely where I want to go next.

My first cruise was in 1997 on Carnival Fantasy out of Port Canaveral. Neither my boyfriend at the time, nor I had ever cruised before. We checked in and was escorted to our cabin. Turned out we had been upgraded to the top of the line suite (the one and only time the upgrade fairy has sprinkled her dust on me). I was a little nervous because I get severe motion sickness but I did not experience any sickness the whole trip. I was looking forward to just being at sea and not being able to see anything except the ocean. Our steward was stealthy because we did not see him until our last day. We were always in and out of the cabin and there was evidence of him being there but we never saw him. We did an excursion in Freeport and wished we had just stayed on the ship because there was nothing interesting there. Nassau was a lot more interesting. We took one of the party cruises that went to the beach, we had a Bahamian band on board that played a lot of Caribbean music. My boyfriend was from Jamaica so I was familiar with the music and some of the dances. We danced to the beach and we danced back to the ship. We chose the short trip to the Bahams mainly since neither of us had cruised before we didn't want to start out with a long cruise to find out we hated it. When we arrived back in port, we wished we had booked a longer trip.

It depends. If I am in my time zone, I usually keep my normal schedule but have nap time at some point. If I travel to a different time zone then I try to stay on mine (which is sometimes difficult to do). Seattle/Alaska through my body all off track and I came back with jet lag and I haven't had that in a very long time.

I travel alone sometimes and I invested in Addalock. It positions on the door mechanism on the inside, you slide a piece in place and the door cannot be opened from the outside even with a key. You have to undo the mechanism in order for the door to open.

I bought this new gadget off QVC earlier this year - Halo Power Charger and it was a life saver. It is about the size of a tube of lipstick but you charge it and it has a USB end, my camera battery died and I plugged it into that and I was able to keep snapping. My phone went low and same thing. I was glad I invested in it. I was able to use my devices until I got back to the ship and could plug them in.

I enjoy boarding early so my vacation can officially begin and it gives me a chance to get a feel for the ship. I like to walk around and see where things are located. I like to know different ways to get to my cabin and which way is the closest to the elevators, stairs, etc.

I knew you would have a blast Jan. I just finished scrap booking my trip and I have a lot of pictures. The beauty...it was awesome. Glad you made it back safely.

A Med cruise will be in my future, I cannot wait to hear about it when you return. Your planning looks on point, but always keep in mind that you should have a Plan B (just in case life steps in and makes you change your mind about something).

I sailed a Jazz Cruise a few years back. It was so much fun because it was original jazz artists like those who played with Ray Charles. They would have jam sessions until 3 in the morning. I could not hang with them, they were going strong when The Sandman was calling me. :). Dave Koz has a cruise this year to the Meditteranean that looks fun too.

Great article. I packed a duffle and was able to put all of my purchases in it for return home. It lightened the load in my suitcases because I carried it on the plane and checked my other two bags. It was light and easy navigating the airports.

I am glad it was at the end and not the beginning. :)