Vacation Recap

Hello my friends! I'm back and I'm here to tell you all about it. Note: this post has quite a bit more to do with my vacation than it does weight loss, so if you'd like to just skim it, I won't blame you. Matthew and I went on an 8 day cruise through Carnival and it rocked our world. :) This is the second cruise we've taken and we've loved them both. The first two days were spent at sea without porting anywhere. We used this time to familiarize ourself with the ship (we were on the Carnival Spirit for those wondering) and to eat a whole lot of free ice cream. We played adult dodge ball and shuffle board on the deck. We sun bathed and listened to Jack Johnson and just really enjoyed ourselves.

The third day we ported in Acapulco. The view from the bay was absolutely beautiful. The water was blue and the city was striking.

Getting off the ship and getting down into the streets was quite different though. The streets were full of pot holes and garbage and there were people asking for money everywhere. We chose to go on a sail boat ride around the bay where we'd stop for some ocean swimming.

I was a little nervous.

After the tour we spent a few hours at a local market and then got back on the ship.

The next day we ported in Zihuatanejo. Have you ever heard of that place? I hadn't before we booked the cruise but now I'm so happy I know about it. The city streets were lined with bricks and the locals were much better about not pushing us to buy their merchandise. We'd heard of the nice beaches there so we stopped to ask an American woman how to get there. She gave us excellent directions and within minutes we were in a water taxi headed over to the beach "Las Gatas".

We arrived to an umbrella lined beach, clear blue waters, and beautiful flowers. We rented some snorkel gear and settled in under an umbrella and beach chairs. We were then asked if we'd like a massage. Of course I wanted a massage. The woman took us to a hut on the beach that was draped with sheets. There were two massage bed covered in flower petals awaiting us. The massage was quite good, assuming that they were not licensed professionals and it was only $40 an hour for two people. Excellent deal if I may say so. We got back to our chairs and ordered a pair of virgin pina coladas.

After some more relaxation, Matt convinced me to go snorkeling with him in some rocks just about 30 feet off shore. The fish were all over the place and so beautiful! I even saw sea urchins. I'd never been snorkeling before so I did get a few mouthfuls of water, but it was so worth it!

While we were relaxing on the beach, some local fisherman pulled up to the shore and tossed out two giant fish!

After a few hours of loving life on the beach we headed back over to the city to find some food. Since I am weird about my meat I just ordered cheese quesadillas, I know not the healthiest of things, but probably one of the safest. Matt didn't hesitate to eat his fish tacos.

It was a no makeup day. Don't judge me.

We did some more shopping before we sadly got back on the ship to leave this beautiful place behind.

Manzanillo was also a great stop. It was slightly cleaner than Acapulco but not nearly as beautiful as the day before. We went again on a snorkeling excursion out to a place called Elephant Rock. There were a lot of fish but I was much more nervous because it was deeper and there was a strong current.

We also went snorkeling over a ship wreck but that really just freaked me out so I headed back to the boat. I know, I'm a pansy. We took some pictures of the pretty areas of the island and saw the motel where "Ten" was filmed. Have you ever heard of that movie? Me neither, but the locals really made a bid deal of it.

We quite enjoyed our time on the ship as well. The food was always quite good and they had a lot of healthy options. Each menu has a "spa selection" that is lighter in calories and fat. Fresh fruit is always available and I felt like if I had chose to be strict with myself on my diet, I could have easily stayed on track. They had excellent gym facilities and offered aerobics classes as well as classes on detox and secrets to a flatter stomach.

I chose not to be strict with my diet on the cruise because it was a vacation. I didn't want to have to worry about counting calories. However, I did make far better choices than I did last year. I tried hard to get a lot of fruits and vegetables in each day and didn't gorge myself on the other food available.

Remember back in this post where I told you I intended to wear a specific dress. Well, that didn't happen. But knowing that my dress was 6 sizes smaller than It was last cruise was enough success for me.

If you've made it this far, thank you for letting me tell you about my vacation. I assure you I return well rested and ready to take on the world, and blogging, once more. I'll be back tomorrow with a big announcement!

Oh...and by the way, I gained 2 lbs on my cruise. Not to shabby for a place where food is available to you 24/7.