Graduation and Vacation

My sister, Kristin, is officially a UNC grad! Graduation day was really long but it was great. We started off the morning with the big ceremony at the stadium. It was quite chilly at first but as soon as the sun got a little higher in the sky it warmed up nicely. Since she was a double major we had two departmental ceremonies to attend, that's what made the day long. But we had fun! Funny story from the day: We had to high tail it from one departmental ceremony to the next or we were going to miss it. If we walked we wouldn't make it but we had more people than seats in the van. So... I sat on Krisitn's lap and Tyler and Steven sat in the trunk... and found the bags of chips from lunch... and proceeded to have a snack... in the trunk of a van... priceless.

Steven and I just got back a few days ago from a wonderful cruise! We both were getting really stressed with work and life, and he's about to leave for training soon so it will be a couple years before we take another vacation together. In my boredom at work I came across an awesome last minute deal on a Carnival cruise to the Caribbean. It didn't long for us to decide to go! We went for seven days, visiting: Cozumel, Belize City, Roatan Island (Honduras), and Grand Cayman. Let me tell you, it was a much needed vacation! We both came back much more relaxed, and in better moods. I think we just needed a break and to get away for a few days. 

The boat was really nice. We had an inside room but that didn't bother us one bit! Steven preferred to be out on the deck anyway. I think at least twice a day I heard him say "this is a REALLY big boat." It made me smile! There was great entertainment onboard, including a comedy club which we frequented almost every night. Steven made friends with our stateroom steward, but I mean, does that really surprise anyone? Arifin was his name, and every time we saw him Steven would yell out his name. The guy even knew our names by the time the week was over! 

Cozumel was fun. We've been there before, with his Grandparents when they took us to Cancun. So we kinda new where to go. We took a taxi downtown and did some shopping. Then we stopped for a bit of lunch, we shared a few Cokes in glass bottles and a plate of fajitas. Oh were they delicious! I got a beautiful new pitcher for sweet tea. It's stoneware and is painted with the Mexican pattern of blues, greens and reds... I love it! 

The next stop was Belize City. It was a very disheartening place to visit. We got on a tender boat and when we pulled up to the tender pier there was a collection of shops right there by the dock, just like most other places. We started walking around and trying to find a way out to go visit the actual town. But then we noticed that the entire port area was surrounded in fencing. And I'm not talking just a picket fence, I mean very tall serious fencing. Barbed wire and all. And then we noticed that there were more than quite a few locals sticking there arms and faces inside any hole they could find in the fence trying to get our attention and get us to take a carriage ride or what not. And at every exit we saw (which there weren't very many) there was at least one posted armed guard. We decided to stay inside the fence. I wasn't interested in braving the actual city. It was really quite sad.

But we did find a small art gallery. Inside the fence obviously. That had all kinds of things made out of different types of wood found in Belize, and they were really pretty. I brought a small vase home with me!

Roatan, Honduras was my favorite place! They could have left me there and I would have been perfectly fine. No really, I'm not kidding. It was beautiful and green, with plants everywhere, even on the beach. And it was warm, so warm! Basically it was perfect. While sailing away we kinda rode around the island and there seemed to be some rather large cities with some beautiful houses. There's even a small airport, I mean what more could you need? Could I live on a tropical island, heck yes I could! We did some shopping here. I found a pearl store, and they were having a "sale." I fell in love with a strand of Tahitian peals. It sits right at my collar bone and in the center there's a big white pearl. Then I found a pair of drop earrings with a single Tahitian pearl. Steven let me buy them :) he's such a good hubby! We also went to the beach. A beautiful beach lined with lounge chairs and tropical trees. And warm beautiful, clear blue water with no waves. Absolutely divine!

The next and last stop was in Grand Cayman. And it rained... all... day. On top of that I was sick. Oh so sick. I swear I had strep throat. My throat had been sore for a few days, and I was achy, and had chills, and a fever. Steven had to take me to the physician, kicking and screaming mind you, who gave me amoxicillian. I felt better after that but I was miserable on Grand Cayman day. So maybe it was a good thing that it was raining. We still got off the boat though and took a bus through town which was kinda neat. We got to see parts of town that we wouldn't have otherwise saw. Sidebar: there are chickens EVERYWHERE. You think I'm kidding but I'm not. They're in store parking lots, roaming around people's yards, on top of cars and fences, CROSSING THE ROAD. Brings a whole new meaning to "why did the chicken cross the road?" Okay moving on, Steven wanted to go to Hell. Yes, I said Hell. There is a place in Grand Cayman called Hell and probably for good reason. It really does look like a spot of earth spontaneously combusted into fire leaving nothing but jagged black rocks behind and unable to support plant growth. Kinda creepy actually.

I wasn't kidding about the chickens!

All in all, it was a great week and an awesome vacation! We're already planning for another cruise after he completes SF training. Hopefully to the Mediterranean... we'll see! I will now leave you with some awesome sunset photos.