Embarkation…South America

Ruby Princess Cruise Ship

Day #1…Saturday, January 31, 2015

Today is the day we will meet our ship and join our friends from Canada on our next bucket trip adventure.  We awakened early, had a light breakfast at the hotel and finished packing.  We added our last minute items into our suitcases to ready ourselves for the hotel shuttle bus that would be transporting us to Port Everglades to meet our ship.

Bonnie has improved her packing efforts and three larger suitcases and a carry-on are the extent of our luggage pieces.  The shuttle loaded four couples from the hotel that are traveling on the same ship.  We talked to one couple from Perth, Australia, who were very, very tired from the long journey they experienced to the Fort Lauderdale area.

Two hours after shuttle pick-up, we arrived at the Pier and were checked into our cabin.  Unfortunately, the shuttle bus ran into traffic delays, congestion and road construction.  The drive should have taken fifteen minutes but took over an hour to get to the pier.  Then we waited another hour in the Princess Cruise Line check-in area until their desk personnel opened for business (an hour later than scheduled). We arrived in our cabin (C422-port side) and we are quite pleased with the premium balcony size.  The cabin itself is comparable to our world cruise cabin and will be quite comfortable for the next seven (7) weeks.

We found a small café on the ship and had a light lunch and then proceeded to unpack our suitcases and organize our belongings so we spend little wasted time finding articles we have misplaced.  A knock at the door interrupted our process, but we were not upset.  Our friends, Bill and Stella, had also arrived and had checked into their cabin (C401) near us and on the starboard side of the ship.  Having large balconies on both sides (port and starboard) will allow us to go back and forth to see the port sites from the best viewpoint.

The four of us stayed on our balcony for the ship sail off, finished unpacking and readied ourselves for joining them at dinner at our assigned early seating dining time and table.   Since we requested dinner seating for six people, we will be meeting another couple joining the four of us at dinner most evenings.

Pleasantly, Bill and Stella and Dennis and I were introduced to Ruben and Ann from New Mexico.  Ruben is retired from the U.S. Navy and so Dennis and he have some stories to share.  It will be nice to get to know them as the days pass by.

The evening theater showcased a welcome by the ship directors’ staff members.  An Irish comedian, George Casey, provided an enjoyable show of laughs galore.  We then visited the international café and had a late-night drink and retired for the night to get some rest and prepare for our next two days at sea,