Since then, we've taken two other cruises, both out of Miami, and we've been back to Disney, but we hadn't returned to Port Canaveral. then we booked the 10/23/16 cruise on Freedom of the Seas, making port in Labadee, Haiti; Falsmouth Jamaica; Georgetown, Grand Cayman; and Cozumel, Meexico.
Our trip actually began on the 22nd, as we left our home on Long Island and headed to sunny Florida.
Musical cue: Frank Sinatra, "Blue Skies"
We were up at the crack of dawn, and a friend drove us to JFK in the pouring rain. I took a fall in the parking lot while trying to move my luggage (yes, I over pack), but no harm done -- except my jeans were wet from knee to ankle. We checked in with Jet Blue, quickly cleared the TSA, and picked up breakfast at Dunkin' Donuts on our way to the gate. And before long, we were on a plane and headed towards Orlando.
Musical cue: Jimmy Buffett, "Changes in Latitude, Changes in Attitude"
Can I just say I love Jet Blue? Fly Fi, Direct TV. Sirius Radio. A full hour of Jimmy Buffett songs on Radio Margaritaville and I was in vacation mode.
I've been to Disneyworld more times than I can count, so arriving at Orlando International Airport felt so familiar. On the monorail travelling from one terminal to the other I overheard some newbies marveling that they could see palm trees. What else would you expect in Orlando?
We'd booked a package through Go Port Canaveral that included a hotel in Cocoa Beach and shuttle service from the airport to the hotel, from the hotel to the port, and back to the airport after the cruise. We were met at the appointed time, picked up in a van with a trailer attached for the luggage.
As we arrived in Port Canaveral, I could see ships -- the Carnival Valor, the Carnival Magic and the Disney Fantasy. Yes, this cruise was really going to happen!
Musical Cue: TV theme song, "I Dream of Jeannie"
To those of us who are a certain age, the Space Coast is not only home to NASA and rockets and etc., it is also the home of fictional astronaut Tony Nelson and his eventual wife Jeannie. And yes, Cocoa Beach has a street named I Dream of Jeannie Boulevard.
We were booked at the International Palms Resort. This turned out to be a pleasant but somewhat dated resort located on the beach, with easy access to shopping and local restaurants. I'd recommend it for an overnight stay or a short family vacation. There's a nice pool with a pool bar, a themed kiddie pool, tennis courts, volleyball, basketball and I think I even saw a shuffleboard court. At night we saw people sitting around fire pits, making s'mores. There are kitschy tiki poles all over the resort. The employees are all friendly and helpful.
There are no interior corridors, rooms are accessed from external walkways. Our room was clean and comfortable, and included a TV, refrigerator, microwave, coffeemaker, hair dryer and even an iron and ironing board. Air conditioning worked well. My chief complaint? The gap between the door and the door frame; w could see daylight even when we closed the door.
We arrived in mid afternoon. The Pirate King broke the zipper on his duffel bag and needed to go shopping to replace it. I decided to explore the resort. That's when I met with my first disappointment of the vacation -- the cheap, plastic camera I bought on Amazon (because it was waterproof) didn't work. So I had to use my older point and shoot. Not terrible, but aggravating.
Eventually we found ourselves on the beach. The sand was smooth, the surf rough. And we could see the three cruise ships that had been in port earlier that day. I got a nice picture of the Disney ship:
We wanted to eat dinner at Mambo's, the resort's beach bar, but it was too chilly to sit outside. Pity, because Mambo's had live music until 11:00. We went to Stefan & Aniston's, the resort's sports bar, instead. Decent burgers, hefty portions, not a bad meal. And on the TV, numerous reminders that we were in a battleground state just weeks before Election Day.
After dinner we went back to our room and called it a night.
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