Winter Paradise

By Skeeter It is so cold in my Georgia Garden that I would like to go back to my Winter Paradise. Come along on a cruise with me today! The Saint and I along with two other couples took a cruise in December. We were celebrating birthdays, anniversaries, Christmas and we all just wanted to go on a cruise together! Here you see my Saint basking in the sun on the back deck of the Carnival Fascination cruise liner. We chose Carnival for its fun laid back atmosphere and also the price was right!
I had never before seen such beautiful blue waters!
As I said we like a laid back atmosphere so I just had to be a bit silly and break the ice in the Formal Dining room by putting the crown shaped napkin on my head. Can we say, the Hillbilly's go on a cruise? ha ha...On elegant night, I had to dig the dirt out from under my gardener fingernails and play dress up.It just so happened that Elegant night was also the Saints birthday! The Saint rarely smiles when he knows the camera is on him but on this night, he was all smiles with the dining crew serenading him with that special song we all love to hear in the middle of a restaurant. The staff on the cruise were most accommodating and really friendly. Each name tag tells what country is their homeland. Our Head waitress, (you see on the far left here) was Empee. She is from South Africa. She was so funny and fit right in with our crazy antics... Empee, made dinner fun for us each night. Here our entire gang was saying goodbye to her on our last night at dinner. The Cruise ship was awesome and we do plan another cruise as soon as we save the money! Here you see the pool glowing at night on the Lido Deck.
Each evening as we returned to our room for the night, we would find the most cute critters made from towel and wash clothes. The covers would be turned back inviting us into a nice cool bed with a chocolate awaiting our tummy. Here is the scorpion.
This little piggy never went to market.
A Crab was trying to give the Monkey my chocolate!
The bunny was the cutest of all the critters as it was so welcoming and gave us such a chuckle.
The lobster was big as you can see with the Saint posing beside him...
There are tons of activities to do on the boat. They claimed there were about 500 on the boat under the age of 18 but we rarely saw any children as the cruise ship kept them busy with fun filled adventures. They even included some of the kids in the Christmas program on stage with the cast of singers and dancers! This show was my favorite being the Vegas Style program.
The food was all gourmet type meals that just plain melted in your mouth. This chocolate delight was one of many fun sweets on the boat as well. Everything is included in the price of your cruise ticket but the only free drinks were juice, coffee, water and tea. They had a pizza place open 24/7 for my every need of pizza! Free Pizza 24/7, I was so in paradise...
Our first stop was in Key West as the sun was rising. What an awesome view that morning.
The water in Key West looked as though they had put chemicals it it, the kind you find in swimming pools. It was so aqua in color.
We were greeted by some of the famous residents known as the roosters. There were not nearly as many as I thought there would be after hearing of these critters for so many years. I assumed you had to walk around them there were so many but no so.
The 6-toed cats at Hemingway's house were interesting.
This little fella here named Charlie Chaplin gave us a show. He would paw at the tour guide for some loving. He was hamming it up for all the tourists. He has his own post card so he is quite a character.
I was captivated by this boat shaped planter full of greenery and poinsettias.
Ah, yes it was warm in Key West. We had gone from cold to hot in no time at all.
I could hardly keep my eyes off the water and white sand. The colors were just unbelievable.
I do not remember the name of this tree but a very interesting one for sure. It reproduces itself by growing roots downward. Each root you see here is becoming another tree.
The lush green and humidity reminded me we were on a Tropical island.
A scary monster made from Sponges sits outside the Trolley Station. The Trolley ride is so worth it as you learn many things about Key West and the people.
Another Sea Creature made from all natural materials.
Nope, we are not inside a Human Control building, we are in the open air of the tropics!
The lighthouse was awesome but I was not in the mood to climb the stairs with my headache at the time. If, I ever get back to Key West again, I may take on those stairs.
Ah, we finally made it to the Southern most Point in the Continental USA...

Ah, there is nothing like a WINTER PARADISE, In the Garden...

**I will show you part two of my Winter Paradise next week...