Cruising New England (continued)

Day 3 (10/28, Sunday) click here for pictures – We checked out of the hotel and headed back to New York City. We stopped for a quick visit to Yankee Stadium and then visited Grant’s Tomb. After driving past Alexander Hamilton’s home, we headed to the cruise ship terminal. Robby dropped Stephanie and Tara off at the terminal and then headed to drop the rental car about a mile away. We went through thec check-in process easily and were aboard the ship by noon. We found a lunch spot quickly and then toured around the ship. Our rooms were ready at 2:00 and then headed back up top of ship. We sailed away at 4:00 out of New York harbor – we had a great view of the Statue of Liberty as we sailed past. It was pretty windy and we walked back into the lounge as we continue sailing out of New York. Our luggage arrived in our room around 5:30 and we changed clothes and headed to dinner. The show tonight was an Aussie acrobrat family and a comedian.

Day 4 (10/29, Monday) click here for pictures – It was a lazy day today as we sailed all day. We slept in late (amazing how dark an inside room can be even at 9:00 in the morning). We did manage to squeeze breakfast, lunch and dinner. We read our magazines and books and a couple of naps. It was formal night on the ship which mean they were serving lobster and the trimmings. The entertainment was the ship’s production company performing “On the Radio,” a collection of popular radio hits.

Day 5 (10/30, Tuesday) click here for pictures – We arrived in Halifax this morning and were off the ship by 9:00. We rented a car and drove out Peggy’s Cove and surrouding area. After visiting the lighthouse, we stopped at the Swiss Air flight memorial which crashed nearby in 1998. We arrived back in downtown and visited Fairview Lawn Cemetery, resting place for many of the Titanic casualities;The Citadel, a Canadian National Park and then drove to the harbor walk for a quick walk around. After returning the car, we walked back to the ship and boarded. We soon set sail and it was time for dinner again. The show tonight was Second City, the improv group from Chicago. We enjoyed it so much – we went back for the 9:30 performance. Later that night, we enjoyed watching some of the guests play The No So New, Newlywed Game.

Day 6 (10/31, Wednesday) click here for pictures – We arrived in Bar Harbor, Maine this morning. It was a beautiful day with the sun out. We had to tender in to port but it was easy. We caught Oli’s Trolley tour through town and Acadia National Park. We stopped at various points in the park, including Thunder Alley and Jordan Pond. We came back in town for some shopping (since we were one of the last ship’s coming through – there some good deals to be had.) We managed to find a fudge shop as well and then walked along the harbor before tendering back to the ship. We ordered room service a quick snack and then rested a bit before dinner. Not to be left out of the Halloween festivities, we got decked out in our costumes. Robby went as a pirate, Tara as Maid Mariam and Stephanie as a witch. We wore our costumes to dinner where we managed to even get some trick or treat candy from a few of the older ladies. The show tonight was a magician and the comedian returned a a return appearance. The ship threw a Halloween party on the upper deck later that night where around 100 different folks had dressed up. We skipped the Halloween costume contest but enjoyed watching the others.

Day 7 (11/1, Thursday) click here for pictures – Today was our day to walk off all the calories and walk we did. After catching a city bus into the center of Boston, we walked the Freedom Trail from Boston Commons all the way to Bunker Hill. We saw various sites including the State House, Old State House, Fanieul Hall, Quincy Market and the U.S.S. Constitution. After seeing Bunker Hill, we backtracked for a late lunch at Union Oyster House, the oldest restaurant in the U.S., where we enjoyed the chowder and baked beans. We walked along the habor back to the ship and rested a bit before heading to dinner. The show tonight was the production group performing, On Broadway, which including selections from Wicked, Mama Mia and other recent Broadway hits. Afterwards, we went to the lounge for a return appearance by Second City. Later that night, it was time for the Chocolate Buffet.

Day 8 (11/2, Friday) click here for pictures – We tendered into our final port today which was Martha’s Vineyard. It had turned much cooler from the day before but we walked through Oak Bluffs and then caught a town bus out to Vineyard Haven and then over to Edgartown where we walked through the shops and found another fudge store. By the time we got back to the dock, the wind had really picked up and turned cooler. We had to stand in a line for awhile and then the return trip on the tender was pretty rocky but we made it back and found a late lunch at the Blue Lagoon. After resting in the room for a bit, we made our way to our final dinner on the ship. It took six days of cruising but we all decided we were pretty full and tired. We called it an early night.

Day 9 (11/3, Saturday) – We slept in late and then waited for our luggage color to be called. We were off the ship by 10:00 and through customs with no problems. We hailed a taxi and were at La Guardia before noon.