After a restful night’s sleep without any thump, thump, thumping going on next door, we arrived in Nassau, Bahamas for Day 4 onboard the Carnival Liberty.
“We feel it is necessary to make you aware that the U.S. Embassy in the Bahamas has issued a safety advisory due to an increase in crime in Nassau against tourists. Visitors to Nassau, like visitors to any foreign destination, need to be mindful of their personal safety. We encourage you to remain in the main tourist areas or consider participating in an organized tour. Additionally, please do not carry large amounts of cash and other valuables or wear expensive looking jewelry. This common sense approach and heightened level of awareness will help you enjoy your visit to the Bahamas.”
That was the only warning issued to passengers onboard about the rash of crime that has been plaguing Nassau recently. Jim Walker in his blog, Cruise Law News, calls attention on a regular basis to crimes that are committed against tourists in Nassau and other Caribbean islands, but the cruise lines continue to bring their ships to the islands. Even after a crew member from Norwegian Cruise Lines was murdered in Roatan, ships still make regular visits.
By now, you should all know that I very rarely get off the ship and if I do it’s usually just to walk off, find a sign with the name of the port on it, take a selfie, and back to the ship. I’m not comfortable in any of these islands cruise ships visit, not just because of the crime, but because of the high-pressure junk dealers that try to sell you trinkets, drugs and their youngest sister. Unless there is something very compelling to get me to visit the city center, don’t expect me to pull myself up from the lounge chair and get off the boat.
Any person visiting a foreign country like Honduras, the Bahamas, or Newark, NJ should always be aware that crime against tourists is rampant and oftentimes goes unreported, leading to a false sense of security. Call me hypersensitive to these things, but one of the reasons I don’t get off the ship when I cruise or even visit foreign countries, not on a cruise, is my fear of being murdered in a foreign land.
Anyway, enough of that!
I awoke early and hit the Lido for a little breakfast before heading off the ship for the obligatory selfie. There were four other ships in port, so I took a bit longer to take some pictures of those vessels before heading back for a day up on the pool deck.
Once back onboard it quickly became apparent that nobody but myself read that safety warning on the cover of the daily program because the outside decks were pretty much empty and loungers were in abundance. It was like hitting the Carnival jackpot because when all 3,400 people are onboard, good lucking finding a chair or a square inch to stand up.
Not wanting to let the cruise end without having what I called the best burger at sea in yesterday’s blog, I once again hit Guy’s Burger Joint for the burger with the word “pig” in its name. Yeah, the one with the “super melty cheese”, the buttered and grilled on all sides bun, “donkey sauce,” lettuce, tomato, onions, and that bacon patty that put it over the top.
For those who have eaten too much at the buffet and may feel a little blocked up, eating one of these burgers will get things moving again. They’re absolutely delicious but pack the laxative power equivalent to that of three boxes of ExLax followed by Milk of Magnesia chaser.
But if it doesn’t stay in you that long, it doesn’t count as calories, right?
I keep saying that to myself as I try to eat as healthy as humanly possible.
Oiled up and in the sun, I baked for most of the afternoon as a pre-recorded, live Bob Marley concert played on the world’s most annoying big-screen TV on the pool deck. I say annoying because the acoustics suck and all you hear is an echo. When some romantic comedy came on later in the afternoon, it was adios muchacos as there was no way I could tolerate Jennifer Aniston’s voice hitting me from three different directions.
If she was calling my name in a seductive voice, I could tolerate it all afternoon, but this wasn’t working for me.
Since most people were now back on board, giving up my coveted deck chair resulted in me not finding another one anywhere else on the ship, including the adults-only area.
Speaking of the adults-only area, it’s a quiet spot reserved for the 21 and older. The chairs up there have padding, and there are sundials, hammocks, and living room-style seating for those who want to remain in the shade. Unfortunately, hogging is prevalent up there as well, with some people laying across multiple chairs just to save them.
I’ve taken good note of the behavior of my fellow passengers. Some just don’t get the fact that dress codes apply, and they show up in the buffet without a shirt or shoes on. Last night at the steakhouse the table next to me was in shorts and one gentleman was wearing a baseball cap, despite the dress code being “cruise elegant” every night in the steakhouse. What aggravates me even more, is that the crew does nothing to enforce it.
A fight broke out between two women who apparently were friends traveling together. While I was listening to the previously mentioned bad Bob Marley music, I heard a woman with a southern accent that would make Paula Deen screech, and yell, “You f&%*ed my husband?” As the scene straight out of the soon-to-be-released TV show, Rednecks of Macon County, unfolded in front of me, the two went at it screaming back and forth with the one admitting that she did indeed sleep with the other woman’s husband “because he needed more that you can give him.”
The whole time this was going on the fella in the center of it all was curiously missing. As the claws came out and slaps were exchanged, security closed in and broke up the ruckus.
I also witnessed two areas on board where someone with the name “Aaron Summer” scratched his name and declared his love for Jen. I would have thought the Portuguese guy who walks around with a bucket of white paint would have covered it up already, but it’s been there since day 1, so I guess Aaron’s writings will be around for a while.
As I’m writing this, I smell body odor which means that Mary Jane is somewhere in the vicinity and some soul is enjoying the time they’re spending together. Maybe it was all that Bob Marley music yesterday.
As daytime turned into night, I once again chose the steakhouse for dinner. I sat next to two couples from Orlando who were quite entertaining. They pretty much sent everything they ordered back including the “Ahi Tuna Tartare” because it was “too rare.”
Damn, this smoke is getting pretty intense around me at the moment.
I opted for the Maine lobster tail, which actually turned out to be 1 ½ small lobster tails that resembled something out of the Caribbean rather than the cold waters up north. But it was good. Small but good. I’ve had better and will be opting for some beef tonight. Cause you know beef. It’s what’s for dinner.
Before trekking back to my cabin for the night, I reluctantly stopped off at the Alchemy Bar – the one I wrote about yesterday where they hand-craft some amazing cocktails in a pharmacy-like environment. I enjoyed several “bartender’s choice” selections and two hours later made it back safe and sound to some chocolate on my pillow.
Someone just yelled, “damn that smells good!” To which a voice replied from down below… “it’s just a cigarette man, just a cigarette.”
Personal Day-By-Day Carnival Liberty Cruise Review:
Photo Tour of the Carnival Liberty:
No vacation would be complete without a ton of photos, right? For this particular cruise, I took a bunch of photos of the ship’s interior, pool areas, the stateroom itself, and more. Photos can be found by in the Carnival Liberty Photo Tour as well as in the day-by-day review of the cruise at the links above.