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It’s finally spring break!! I can’t believe this is my last college spring break. While it’s exciting to be entering the “real world,” I’m definitely trying to make the most of what time I have left in college. So, what to do for my last spring break? Go on a cruise! Since we live in Los Angeles, it was fairly cheap for us to find a 7-day cruise down the western coast of Mexico. Now the time has finally come and to Mexico we go!
Here we are at the port of Los Angeles getting ready to board the ship!
Here we are after dropping off our luggage and about to check in! We’re sailing on the massive Norwegian Star.
Now, I’ve never been on a cruise before so there were definitely a few things that I’ve noticed. First, the ship has a very specific vibration. Obviously this is to be expected because the engines to move a ship this big this fast through the water are massive, but I was surprised by how consistent the vibration is throughout the entire ship. Our room is in the aft end of the ship, closer to the engine, but the vibration is equally noticeable regardless of where you are.
Another thing that I’ve noticed is that you definitely don’t get the traditional “ocean waves” sound. Instead, there’s a consistent “water rushing by” sound which is rather soothing. It’s cool how from pretty much anywhere on the ship, you can look out and see the ocean. In fact, I’m sitting on the balcony of our room right now to write this, and since we are on the left side of the boat, it’s pretty much just ocean as far as you can see. I’m amazed by how much light pollution there is, even this far off of shore because I still can’t see very many stars.
Another note is that the ceilings are all very low. Again, this is to be expected since it’s a ship and they are trying to fit as much stuff into it as possible, but as a 6’ tall person, this can be slightly unnerving. Since I’ve been walking around all day, I’m starting to get used to it, but it was definitely a little weird at first. Being on the ship essentially feels like being in a weird hotel where the floor vibrates, the ceilings are low and the rooms are tiny. And I mean really tiny. We’re not even in the smallest size room since we upgraded in order to have a balcony. If I ever cruise again, I would definitely pay more to have a larger room. Our room is essentially just one big bed with very little room to walk around it.
I can already tell that I packed too much luggage. Obviously, having never been on a cruise before, I really wasn’t sure what to pack so I brought some clothes for everything. I’m realizing now that it probably would have been a lot smarter to bring less clothes and just recycle them throughout the trip. Especially since our room is so small, it makes it hard to search through all the luggage I brought along.
Saying goodbye to Los Angeles as we pass the harbor light house!
Anywho, the cruise so far has definitely been very relaxing! One of the first things we did was grab some magazines and go lounge by the pool. My goal for this trip is simply to relax. Honestly, the fact that I have to set goals for “relaxing” should be an indication of the fact that I pretty desperately need to let go a little bit.
The pool on this ship is pretty cool. Definitely very kid friendly with lots of slides and water games but also adult friendly with all the bars and hot tubs!
I mean, it’s vacation! Of course we had to acquire a beer bucket pronto.
Trashy magazine, check, alcoholic beverages, check, sunshine, check, alright I’m ready to cruise!
For our first dinner on board, we ate at the complimentary French-themed restaurant, “Versailles.” It’s got that cheesy, movie-set French décor going on, but honestly it’s kind of fun. The food was definitely delicious so no complaints there! I’m going to have to be sure to go to the gym in the mornings otherwise I am going to completely derail my two months’ worth of dieting!
After dinner, we came back to the room to get dolled up a bit before heading out to some of the ship’s bars. After a few drinks, we were having a great conversation about Boeing, work, and life post-graduation. So, overall, a very fun night.
Anyway – it’s only day 1! There’s still so much to come and it’s all very exciting! Day 2 is spent entirely at sea so we’ll be exploring the boat more tomorrow. But that’s all for now!
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