Cruising on the Mariner

This was a special week....Cruising down to the Mexican Riveria on the RCCL's Mariner of the Seas. It's a huge ship (3,100 passengers) and takes almost the whole week just to learn where everything is! It's Jack's first cruise and my 16th (I think). We had a great time!

Sail away was a bit cool and windy...but exciting!

We had incredible sunsets-and a few beautiful sunrises, too

Lots of views of the ship

Day two is a formal dinner nite-if you choose to eat at one of the three dining rooms. We chose "My time" dining which meant we could go eat between 5:30 and 9:30. It was a great way to have dinner. There were 2 formal nights and five casual which meant you could wear almost anything except bathing suits...

Here's a shot of the Royal Promenade with a view of a portion of the decks...15 in all.

We went up to the forward deck 14 to do our version of the "Titanic" pose. We're on our way in to Cabo San Lucas

The calendar caves of Cabo....

As we parked the car back in LA I noticed a guy leaving his car and I said to Jack "That guy could play Santa". Well, little did we know! A group of the Fraternal Order of Real Bearded Santas were aboard- all 25 of them! We hadn't been following the news online so we were so surprised! Jack is talking to one of the Santas on shore while they waited for the media.

Of course, the public was curious-and this little girl was thrilled to talk to Santa on her birthday. Most passengers were very excited that they were vacationing with Santa.

This is the solarium-very inviting hot tub.....

Yes, a roller blading track! There's so many options and stuff to do onboard...

The crew have to prepare for every emergency so while we played the newest crew members practiced maneuvers...

Dining was fun! We had what I thought was one of the best tables in the dining room-and the best staff! Food was yum!

Loved the sunsets-No, that's not a space ship in the sky, just a reflection.

All the Santas had their picture taken with the Captain. I don't know who had more fun! What you don't see is the hundred or so passengers also taking pictures..

Then all the "Mrs. Santas" got in to the picture-It was an amazing experience! Whether Jack was in "Santa mode" or not he was viewed as Santa...and I've never had my picture taken so much in my life! I got a taste of what it's like to be in the public eye...

And suddenly, it's time to say goodbye! Michael and Ade were outstanding servers and went the extra mile each time we were in their section.

The team sang Happy Birthday to Jack and presented him with a special slice of birthday cake even though his birthday isn't until the 14th.....Nice touch and a fun way to end the cruise...