Gale's Place of Travel: 5-Day Caribbean Cruise

Carnival Destiny

The Destiny is a larger ship (3,360 passengers) and caters to a younger crowd. It was built in 1997 and is in need of re-modeling – which will happen at the end of the season when the ship will go into dry dock. The staterooms are large but plain in décor and the hallways and staircases are somewhat drab compared to the Jewel of the Seas. The public areas are quite splendid including the soaring seven-deck atrium called the Rotunda. The Promenade Deck contains most of the entertainment venues. The lounges and disco are attractive spaces with unique decors. The Sushi bar was a great place to go for a light snack and a choko of saké. We enjoyed live bands including a Latin band from Mexico and a Rock Band from the Philippines. The open air Lido deck was a wonderful place to listen to live music and watch the action on a jumbo screen as we enjoyed the warm tropical air.

Theatre

Big Screen for Movies and Videos Under the Stars

Carnival Destiny

Disco on Destiny

Lido Deck

Rotunda

Grand Turk, Turks and Caicos

Grand Turk is exceptionally quiet. It has a population: 3,700 and is 7 x 1.5 miles in size. A coral island that had an industry of salt ponds, Grand Turk is now the governmental and financial center of the Turks and Caicos. The ship ports at a lovely tourist village where you can find whatever you want to pass your day including shops, free wireless internet and a long wide stretch of white sandy beach overlooking the magnificent Atlantic Ocean.

Before hitting the beach we decided to venture into nearby Cockburn Town, passing the tiny island airport and John Glen’s space capsule on the way. (In 1962, The Friendship 7 spacecraft splashed down off the coast, making Grand Turk the spot where the first American to orbit the earth returned to the planet).

Cockburn Town is the center piece of the island, with a wonderful selection of historic buildings and inns. The streets are lined with 18th and 19th century landmarks that reflect the Bermudan architecture of the salt and colonial eras. The Turks and Caicos National Museum is located in Cockburn Town. The central exhibit tells the story of the Molasses Reef wreck, the oldest European shipwreck to be discovered in the Western hemisphere (circa 1510). Some historians believe this ship could be Christopher Columbus' Pinta.

Beach at Grand Turk Port

Grand Turk

Wild Horses at Grand Turk

Grand Turk

A Little of This and a Little of That Boutique

Lodge in Grand Turk

Pirate in Store

Grand Turk - Each building has a walled courtyard to keep the wild donkeys out

Historic Building - Grand Turk

Grand Turk

View to the Salt Ponds

Grand Turk

Grand Turk Port

Grand Turk

Turks and Caicos Beer

Half Moon Cay, Bahamas

No Cars on the Cay

Half Moon Cay is a 65-acre tract of the Bahamas’ Little San Salvador Island, a 2,400-acre swath of sand about 100 miles southeast of Nassau. The area is a beach resort that is set up for the exclusive use of cruise ship passengers. There are approximately twenty-five residents on Half Moon Cay who are there to service the cruisers. Here we enjoyed watching and learning about the stingrays, talking to the gardener about growing plants on the island, walking along the beach and relaxing in the warm sunshine.

Half Moon Cay

Half Moon Port Village

Half Moon Cay Port Village

Church for Wedding Vow Renewals

Chillin'

Jack Daniels Bar

Ship on the horizon

Pretty Beach at Half Moon Cay

Half Moon Cay Lookout

Sea Planter

Entrance to Swim with the Sting Rays

Half Moon Cay Beach

Swim with the Sting Rays

Nassau, Bahamas

In Nassau we took a taxi tour of the city including a visit to the famous Atlantis Resort where the Michael Jackson estate still owns a large suite. The large complex is quite luxurious and features an amazing aquarium in the lower level. This resort is on Paradise Island which is an area for very wealthy people including one of the many homes owned by Oprah Winfrey.

We toured Fort Fincastle which was built around 1793 on Bennett’s Hill. The fort overlooks the Queen’s Staircase and is shaped like a paddle-steamer. Next on to the Queen’s Staircase which is a set of 65 steps carved out of the natural limestone wall that was built by slaves between 1793 and 1794. The Queen's Staircase is 102 feet tall, and was so named in honour of Queen Victoria.

The taxi driver showed us a middle class neighbourhood and a poverty stricken neighbourhood. It was very sad to see the contrast between the very rich and the devastatingly poor. Then we were on to Nassau’s Old Town to see slightly crumbling colonial buildings and bright-colored Caribbean architecture. We also visited the Pink Parliament building before returning to the ship.

Nassau

Port of Nassau

Atlantis Resort Nassau - Michael Jackson's Suite was on the bridge between the two buildings on the right.

Giant Fish Tank Aquarium - Atlantis Resort - There are about 12 windows this size to view the fish.

Atlantis Resort

Atlantis Aquarium

Atlantis Resort Nassau

Atlantis Resort on Paradise Island

Art in Atlantis Casino

More Art

Atlantis Resort

The "hood" - what a contrast between rich and poor in Nassau

Fort Fincastle - Nassau

The Queen's Staircase - built by slaves

Bottom of The Queen's Staircase

Nassau

Pink Parliament in Nassau

School children in uniform

Fort Fincastle - Nassau - Shaped Like a Ship to Trick Attackers

Miami Beach, Florida

I love Miami Beach with its beautiful wide beach, magnificent art deco buildings and kitschy restaurants and clubs along ocean drive. We enjoyed our day touring South Miami Beach (SoBe) followed by a beautiful warm evening ,strolling and people watching on Ocean Drive before retreating to our South Beach Hotel for a good night’s sleep.