NICOLE KROUSE: 2015

TEXAS - MONTEGO BAY (JAMAICA) - GRAND CAYMAN ISLAND - COZUMEL (MEXICO)

2015

In my years of roadtripping and general exploring, I've found that the best way to explore multiple areas (or countries) is by way of boat. And by boat I mean "giant cruise ship with Broadway shows and midnight room service." In 2015, we took a fabulous ride aboard the Carnival Freedom to see what the western Caribbean had to offer.

First we had to drive about 16 hours to get to Galveston, but we did make some cool stops along the way. We stopped at the Johnson Space Center, the Alamo, and also took a stroll along the river cutting through San Antonio. Once we finally got aboard the ship, we set sail to Montego Bay.

In Jamaica, we did a Zip-lining/Kayaking Experience through Chukka Caribbean. So beautiful! They take you on a crazy little ride from the port, through the jungle, in between 75 foot tall bamboo trees, and drop you off in the middle of the jungle. They lead you to the "outpost" where you grab your zip-lining gear, and then go on a trek into the jungle! Hiking through the forest while hearing the animals screech and caw around you is simply breathtaking. There's about 3 or 4 zip-lines on trail before you hit the outpost again, where you drop the zip-line attachments and get ready to get in the kayaks. Once it's your turn to get into the kayak, you just kind of plop in and hope you stay upright. After everyone has a ride, you start following the guides and you paddle your way down the river. The guides are really amazing and funny and really pull the experience together. Hopefully the pictures I've added do it justice. Now, if you are not a bug person, I wouldn't really recommend this. While one of the guides handed me a mango leaf, a giant spider from the third dimension hopped down and kept me hostage on my own kayak. So beware.

Next we landed on the Grand Cayman Island. We didn't have a whole lot of time here, so we chose a reef snorkeling excursion. We got ferried to the island and set loose on this huge pier. It's kind of overwhelming at first because the whole place is littered with shops and food stands. However, once you get outside the pier gates, it's a whole 'nother story. There's so many nice little shops and a grand architecture strip mall that it makes the blood pumping walk through the pier worth it. Our snorkel was great, we snorkeled at a boat wreck and at the edge of a huge reef. There was even an old toilet stuck in the sand! I don't have any pictures of this one, but trust me when I say it was great.

We then sailed to the island of Cozumel of Mexico's coast. It's a beautiful beach, but we didn't stay long. We got ferried over to the mainland to see the Mystic Coba Mayan Ruins. (I've added pictures of this too.) We drove through miles of old Spanish culture, and saw everything from straw hut homes to giant totem sculptures. Once we got to the area that held the temple, we got a real taste of their culture. I went in the little shop to buy a handmade etching of one of the Mayan gods, and was surprised to find that the native people only speak Spanish and old Mayan. (Thank you mandatory Spanish highschool classes!) I was able to buy a few things for my family while also listening to tales about the Mayan gods from the owner. We then headed over to the start of the trail to the ruins, where some native men pedaled you down the path in bicycle carts. Our drivers were very friendly and only spoke Spanish. Now, I won't even try to explain the feeling of seeing these ruins for the first time, I'll just let you look at the pictures and imagine. Amazing, truly amazing. They also had several stone sculptures and some playing fields from a game you might recognize...

After leaving Cozumel, we sailed back to Galveston and had to return to our regular day jobs. But by golly it was worth it!

JAMAICA