Last week I felt at times as though I’d been dropped into
one of my favorite movies, The 5th Element, minus the aliens,
Bruce Willis, and the threatened end of the universe.
We’d taken a
short cruise to Cuba
(more about that in another post), by way of Key West,
and Viking Tours this wasn’t. Even though it was the Carnival line, I’d hoped,
considering the destination, that the atmosphere would be a bit more sedate.
How many parents tell their kids, “Forget Disney World and Universal, this
spring break we’re going to experience the collapsing, ruined beauty of Cuba!”
The food was
great, although at lunch and breakfast the every-man-for-himself buffet and
finding somewhere to sit could get a bit competitive. For our dinner meals, we
lucked out and scored a table sequestered in quiet room where we could enjoy
conversation and the creative dinner choices. Then every night when dessert
arrived, the music increased 12 notches in decibel level, and the wait staff
would suddenly throw themselves into the Macarena or the Chicken Dance,
sometimes in costume. We were having FUN! (Whether we liked it or not.)
There were
kids on board, but they were better behaved than some of the adults, who were
on this cruise to enjoy – loudly – every possible thing Carnival had to offer,
and in some cases had obviously opted for the all-inclusive drink package.
After some
scouting in all the bars, we managed to find one that was more out of the way
of the chaos, where we’d camp out for our own postprandial evenings. It was
outside of one of the entertainment venues, and I’d see parents coming and
going from the comedy club while carrying babies who might have appreciated bed more than the show.
It was the
constant hyperkinetic loudspeakers that reminded me of Chris Tucker’s
brilliantly portrayed character Ruby Rhod in The 5th Element, both of them
unintelligible. All day long up to 9:30 at night the
speaker would suddenly blast out (I think) reminders of shows yet to be seen
that night, and events coming up the next day, finishing up with the relentless
mantra that we were on the FUN
SHIP!!
I've heard this about Carnival. My stepsister and brother-in-law LOVE Carnival, but they're the up-all-night-at-a-loud-party types. Maybe you need a more sedate cruise line? I went on Holland America once and we didn't deal with any of those shenanigans.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, no other cruise line had a short cruise to the stops we wanted. Never again.
DeleteHardly sounds relaxing:(
ReplyDeleteThat sounds like a fore-taste of hell to my anti social self.
ReplyDeleteI do hope there were high lights for you. Rather a lot of high lights.
It sounds terrible to me, too. Just the opposite of what I want when looking for entertainment. Glad you are no longer being subjected to such noise and rudeness!
ReplyDeleteCruises always seemed too crowded and noisy for me.
ReplyDeleteI dont think it would age appropriate for me. Nor personality either.
ReplyDeleteI've had occasional thoughts of taking a cruise someday, but if the fun is upped to FUN, I may change my mind and take a plane or train somewhere instead.
ReplyDeleteExactly!
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