We then split up, trying to find out who to talk to. I was going back and forth between Stove, Aaron, and Judy to communicate our options. I learned that there was a bus going to Maracas Beach that wasn't there yet. They needed to fill all 28 seats on the bus, so we could take six of those seats. As I was explaining this to Judy, I convinced a family that was standing by us to come along to the beach.

The bus arrived, and 12 of us were ready to board. We then sat on the bus for 20 minutes, waiting for them to fill all of the seats because of course they weren't going to leave with an empty bus.

Leaving the parking lot was just the first part of the journey. We were in for a 40 minute bus ride!

We learned that the entire excursion was 4 hours, and that included the 40 minute bus ride each way.... so 2 hours and 40 minutes total at the beach.

They pulled the bus over at a lookout spot for us to take photos.

Then, they took us to a roadside market. Pretty sure it was an obligatory shopping stop for the tour bus. The bus driver told us to take a photo of the bus with the license plate because there are many buses that look the same, and we need to make sure that we get back on the correct bus.

It was pretty crowded with all of the tour bus traffic!


Behind the tents and vendors, there's a lovely view -


Now to the beach! The beach looked crowded (probably because of Boxing Day). As soon as we got off the bus, Landon lead us to Uncle Sam & Son's Bake & Shark.

Bake and Shark is a popular street food in Trinidad and Tobago. It's basically a fried shark in a fried bun. Richard's Bake and Shark and Maracas Beach is attributed as the origin of the dish.



There was a steel drum band playing, and they were SO LOUD!

I really wanted to go to the beach, but I was outnumbered. Instead, we got buckets of beer (for $2 per beer).








Aaron crossed the street to see what they were serving out of these large plastic bins.

It was Souse, pickled pigs feet.



I asked Aaron how much he spent on the souse, and he said that they gave it to him for free.

In the meantime, Landon returned from a very long line to get food from Uncle Sam and Sons.

Bake and Shark -



Aaron and I ventured over across the street to the beach.

There are life guards, restroom facilities, and chairs available to rent.



We decided to do a little exploring.







I hung back with our bag while Aaron navigated out to a nearby rock...

Definitely required careful stepping to get out there and back.





Alright, my turn! Can you spot me?!

Had to go for a quick swim, of course! The was a hot day, so the water was refreshing.

Meanwhile back at the bar...

We finished up another bucket of beer before it was time to board the bus and return to the cruise terminal.






Back at the cruise terminal, our adventurous eater Aaron couldn't pass up a hot sauce tasting.



He told me to request a sample of the Trinidad scorpion pepper sauce, and I foolishly did so. Wow, did that wake me up! And it gave me the hiccups that lasted at least half an hour. Not fun.

Aaron purchased the Habanero Culantro sauce to take home.

Back to the ship!

Sir, you're a little too close to the edge there...



Landon fake proposed (they're already engaged), and Aaron posted a photo to his Instagram story captioned "She said yes (again)!" The next day when he had Wifi again, he opened Instagram to a handful of messages congratulating him on our engagement.





Luckily it was pretty empty in port because otherwise it would be very difficult to get the entire sign in the photo...




Are we boarding the ship, or are we dancing?

Come along, gang! Big thrills ahead!

Back on the ship, we decided to compare stateroom views. Aaron and I were down the hall from Judy and Stove on the 7th floor, so our view was partially obstructed by the lifeboat cover.




Rachel and Landon were on Deck 10, forward, and did not have the same obstruction!

We booked guarantee balcony rooms, but if you're selecting your own stateroom, I'd definitely recommend a balcony cabin on a higher deck for a better view.

They were very close to the bridge, though...


We headed to the Solarium Bar for rum punches.


Then at 5, headed to the Crown Lounge. Stove and I were ahead of Aaron, Landon, and Rachel, and we were wondering what was taking them so long.... they should've been right behind us. Well, we found out later that they were denied entry because of their attire. Which was interesting because Stove and I were also in beach attire.... so I think I was granted access because I was with Stove, and apparently Stove has unlocked some sort of status on this ship.





After setting sail, we took Stove to see Aaron's favorite spot, the helicopter pad.

Excuse my grainy photos, I was shooting low light, no flash.

Helipad vibes.

Tonight was Caribbean Night. For my starter, I ordered the Asian-Style Pork Bao Tacos. I liked them, good flavor.


For my main course, I ordered the Caribbean-Style Chicken. It was pretty good. Could've used more ride and beans. However, Aaron had the Jerk Seasoned Pork Chop, and we thought it was much better than the chicken.

For dessert, Aaron ordered the Carrot Cake, which was pretty good.

I had the Warm Blueberry Cobbler which came with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

After dinner, I got a Lavender Daiquiri from the Schooner Bar before heading up to the Caribbean Deck Party.

Time to Dance Under the Stars!

The Caribbean Deck Party was..... lame. Attendance was low, and instead of playing Caribbean music, they just played line dances on repeat. This is the same music they were playing in the club all week. Cha Cha Slide and the Wobble. Super annoying.

I was expecting a Caribbean band. They had a steel drum duo on our cruise - where were they?





The face you make when you wanna dance, but not in a line...




We turned in early tonight.