Hi. My name is Wanda Fisher. I just returned from my first, but by no means my last, cruise. It was aboard Royal Caribbean's Enchantment of the Seas, on September 13, 1998. The story of my wonderful week follows.......

As we approached the Enchantment of the Seas, I could see what a beautiful ship she is. Gerald snuck me onboard in a souvenir bag from Mel Fisher's museum. We boarded and I decided to take a look around the ship, since I have not actually been on a cruise ship before. I have always just seen them from the water view before now and have always wanted to take a cruise as a passenger. Even thought I had seen this ship several times during her recent trips in the Caribbean, I didn't realize the variety of entertainment that they provided to their passengers, the views of my beautiful Caribbean waters and the amount of food and drink that was available. No wonder there are so many cruise ships in my waters! I enjoyed leaving port as a passenger aboard a big cruise ship, instead of having to do the swimming myself. This is the life!!

The next morning we arrived in Cozumel. Amazing!! It would have taken me three days to get there on my own, and I just woke up and I was there!! Gerald had already scheduled a diving trip for this day. I told him I had been diving many a time and it was old hat and that I could find my way around, so he could go on his trip and not worry about me. Besides I had got what I had really wanted, which was to stow away onboard the ship! I humored him by joining him for breakfast, even though I am not normally an early riser. A Mimosa for breakfast is the perfect way to start a vacation! Since Gerald was going diving I decided to explore Cozumel. Before leaving the dock I had a couple of Margaritas at Fat Tuesdays with Eric and Carol--nice enough people but kind of boring. I did some quick shopping, then decided to take the Fiesta Party Boat. The Fiesta Party Boat is three and a half hours of unlimited drinks, beach, live music, games and watersports. I went to the nude beach, then I rode the banana boat but my top keep coming off!! What the heck, what did I care I would not see these people again, so I had the speed boat take my banana boat right by the beach as I was waving at the masses on the beach. One of the best features of the Fiesta Party Boat is the unlimited rum punches. I'm not quite sure how many rum punches I had, but I was still standing as I came off the boat, so it must be time to go to Carlos n Charlies!! At Carlos n Charlies, you can dance on the tables, take off whatever items of clothing are bothering you and have some very interesting shooters. After some fun it was time to head back to the ship. Before heading back, I just had to pick up a sombrero as a souvenir. What would dinner onboard be like unless you have some local purchases to show off to your tablemates?

Dinner must have been good, although I couldn't really tell you what I had, except for the Corona with dinner. However, the busboy "Tamer"is really a nice guy and I could get real used to him. He actually took me dancing around dining room that evening, sombrero and all.

The next day was a day at sea. I laid out in the sun for a while, and went to the spa and had a massage, as this was a special day--my birthday!! Gerald saw to it that I had a birthday cake and made sure that our head waiter, Dominick and all the waiters and busboys sang Happy Birthday to me. It was a very special birthday that I will always remember.

The next island stop was Jamaica. Gerald, Eric and Carol decided that they want to do the Dunns River Falls thing. I have seen Dunn's River many times from the ocean and believe me, it's just a bunch of water. I decided to go downtown and do some shopping instead. Besides you never know who you might meet and you have to try the local brew as you don't want to offend anyone. I have always heard about the Rastas' but had never met one before. As luck would have it, as I was having a Red Stripe at the Jerk Center waiting for Gerald, Eric and Carol, I met up with Sidney who is a RastaBear. As the others were quite a while in coming, Sidney bought me some beads and a rasta hat for my own. Since Sidney was so generous I decided to take him back to the cabin to show him what the ship was like. And since he was there, I decided to invite him to dinner also. I checked with Dominick, the head waiter, by asking "Guess who is coming to dinner? His answer was "Sidney", so I knew it was OK to bring my Rasta friend.

And Tamer--that lovely young lad--took both me and Sidney for a dance around the dining room. You may think that sounds kinky, but don't knock it until you have tried it!

The last island stop for the week was Grand Cayman. Many people were talking about doing this snorkeling tour with a bunch of Stingrays. But I can tell you the only Stingray that I wanted to see in Grand Cayman is the local beer. Believe me, a stingray is a nasty little FISH, not an advanced, intelligent mammal like me. Gerald decided to go diving again. Boy is this guy BORING! I don't understand what the big deal is about seeing fish anyway. I decided to do the tour thing--went to Hell (very much overrated), the turtle farm (Man, those turtles are CUTE!!) and the standard island tour. Then I had the tour driver drop me off at Seven Mile beach at the Holiday Inn. It is a beautiful beach and as luck would have it I met up with Raphael. Raphael was the cutest turtle I have ever seen and he happened to be a lifeguard at the Holiday Inn. We had a few Stingray beers and frolicked in the surf for a while. Then it was time to head back to the ship. Since I had put Sidney on a plane back home (Air Jamaica, of course!), there was room at the table for another friend this evening. So, "Soon Come" Raphael and I got to go to dinner together this evening.

And that Tamer-- not to be outdone--took me dancing around the dining room again this evening. Love that Tamer! And as an added bonus, the ship photographer took a formal table picture of me and Raphael, as well as a picture of the whole table, including us. Such service!

The next day was a day at sea. I just love being at sea. There is such of feeling of freedom and the stars at night in the Caribbean are unbelievable. I took in some sun up on the pool deck, listened to the steel drum band for a while and in general just took it easy for the day. Raphael had left during the middle of the night. Those turtles never seem to have any staying power. I heard that he took a dive during the night and he was on his way back to Grand Cayman. I have no hard feelings for him, as we did have a great time. Maybe I will run into him again, during my travels in the Caribbean.

The last night I finally had to break the bad news to my roommates. While they would be disembarking the next morning, I would be staying aboard. You see, Gerald, Eric and Carol had made the mistake of taking me to the Captain's Cocktail party. Since Captain Thore Thorolvsen looked so dashing in his uniform, I decided that I had to meet up with this man. Since this had been the last day at sea before our return to Miami, I knew this was my chance. The Captain really appreciates those of us who spend our lives at sea and since he had just returned from vacation he was in a party mood. So yes, you have guessed, after a couple of bottles of champagne and a promise of the Royal Suite for the following week, I just had to stay onboard for the next week as a guest of the Captain and bid a fond farewell to my new-found-friends from Virginia. I am sure that I will meet up with them again some day. They know-- as I do--that the Caribbean encompasses some of the best seas in the world. Maybe I may even meet up with some of you from the internet some day. Just remember that the splashing sound that you hear may not always be just waves. It may be ME trying to get your attention to hitch another ride onboard one of those wonderful cruise ships!!

Love, Wanda