The Big, Big Boat!

What an experience! Ray & I just got back from a wonderful week long cruise with my best friend, Tonia, and her husband, Tom. We had a blast! Our boat was beautiful, the food excellant, and the service amazing. We left from L.A. on Monday evening and sailed to San Diego. Tonia & I enjoyed the shows at Sea World while Ray & Tom joined the Navy on the U.S.S. Midway. They came back with all sorts of statistics and really had a great time. Tonia & I came back very wet after having the great idea to sit in the front row during the dolphin show. After San Diego, we sailed on to Catalina Island where we rented a golf cart and "cruised" the island. Then of course we had to check out all the little shops along main street! We spent the afternoon hanging by the pool on the boat and relaxing. From Catalina Island we sailed onto Ensanada, Mexico where we toured the wine country on broken down ATV's. Ray had to push his up the last hill, mine had no left hand brake and I had a defected helment and goggles, Tonia hit a fence, and Tom made it through 3 ATV's in the 2 hour tour. However, we had a good time and lots of laughs. After the ATV tour we headed to the shopping district in Ensanada where we were "greeted" by military in full fatigue and machine guns. It's definately a whole new world down there and a little intimidating. From Ensanada we sailed back to L.A. where we killed some time by taking a bus tour of Malibu, Santa Monica, and Beverly Hills. We stopped at the Santa Monica Pier and Rodeo Drive before heading to the airport. This is definately a cruise worth taking! We couldn't believe the organization and personalization that went into every aspect of this cruise. Our waiter, Rodante, knew all of our names the second night, our room attendant introduced himself the first night and cleaned our room twice a day, and the waitress from the first night at the bar remembered us the second noight and what we had drank! It was an amazing experience and we're already talking about saving for the next cruise!