Apparently, the jails here in the UK are over crowded and, therefore, our Prime Minister Gordon Bush has decided that he will grant early release for hundreds of “white collar” criminals who will be able to return to their fraudulently purchased homes to make way for the murderers.
Honestly, the jail system here is ludicrous and today, I had to go to jail myself. Well ……..I had to go to the courthouse to sign a form and give proof that I worked abroad and would not, therefore, be available for jury duty.
It was while I was waiting for the man with the beard to see me that I read Court News. This newspaper lists all the sentences handed down each day from the major courts in London and it shows that even if you are sentenced to life……you could be out in just 15 years.
For example, yesterday a man who killed and ate his lover was sentenced to 30 years behind bars. Which means, after he gets out next Tuesday, he’s going to come round to your house, sprinkle you with some herbs and pop you in the oven. Plainly, this is unacceptable and something must be done to keep cannibals out of our houses and our schools. But what?
Of course, I’m sure there are a great many people who think that if someone chooses one day to cook his best friend, he has demonstrated fairly clearly that he’s resigned from the human race and must be shot in the forehead immediately, like a lame horse.
However, I do not agree with capital punishment. But because I find the idea of state execution is too risky should proof later discover that the person you have just given a Don King hairstyle to was innocent, I’ve spent the day dreaming up new ways of ensuring that people who can’t behave properly are kept away from society for an appropriate length of time.
The problem right now is that all our prisons are full; and while there are plans to increase the number of cells over the coming years, few imagine for a moment that the supply will even remotely keep up with demand.
In Holland, Heidi tells me that they are even talking of not putting anyone in jail for less than three months. This, say the clog-wearing Dutch, will free up space for those who really need to be there.
It’s a nice idea if you are a wishy-washy liberal, but it does mean that young men in who run about town centers at night stealing mobile phones and drawing large penises on the sides of buses cannot be punished at all.
You can’t fine them, because they have no money. You can’t confiscate their belongings because everything they have is stolen anyway. You can’t give them an electric ankle bracelet because that is seen as a mark of respect – and if you can’t send them to prison, society is completely stuck.
The obvious solution is to build more prisons, but for a number of reasons, this isn’t possible. First, my sister and her banker friends have spent all the government’s money, so there’s bugger all left. And second, the new prisons would have to be built somewhere. And everywhere is someone’s backyard.
In the olden days, when I was rash, I dreamed up a plan that involved many more prisoners being housed in the jails we have already. The idea, in a nutshell, called for “massive overcrowding.”
If there are currently four to a cell, shove in another 30, and don’t worry about the cost of feeding them. Simply fit a window box and explain that they can eat only what they can grow. And if the harvest fails for any reason, well, they could take a leaf out of the cannibal’s book and eat each other. The lavatory would be a bucket, the central heating would be the bucket, too, and for entertainment, there would be daily games of “hide the soap.”
I’m afraid, however, that I went off this idea because I actually know someone doing some jail time, and I don’t like the idea of them sitting around all day trying to stop someone from eating them.
Don’t worry, however, because now I’ve come up with another plan – and it’s brilliant.
At present, the government is doing a great deal to ensure that people who are struggling to pay their mortgages are not evicted from their houses by the recently nationalized banks. This is very noble. But the idea that you can borrow money to buy a house and then not pay it all back undermines the very essence of capitalism.
People must be made to understand that if they have dug themselves into a financial hole, they have to earn their way out again. And so, I believe the government should pay these people a small rent each month, which can go toward covering their mortgage, if they agree to have a prisoner staying in the spare room.
I admit this is a bit of a lottery. You could get a cannibal who creeps into your bedroom every night with a knife and fork and some A1 Steak Sauce.
I’m not sure, though, that this is any different from the chance you take when you hire an au pair. You could get a Judge Judy look a like who wants to practise her karate on your children or you could get a raving nymphomaniac who has an allergy to wearing underwear.
And anyway, let’s be honest, it’s a lottery for the prisoner as well because he could end up at my house, chained to a radiator for 26 hours a day in the O.J.Simpson suite. Or he could end up staying with a woman who bakes him apple pie, lets him watch TV all day and on Sundays allows him to chew on her bingo wings.
Plainly, an idea this radical needs to be tested before it’s rolled out on a national scale, and I’m happy to be a guinea pig. Simply send me the chap from AIG who took my money and bought a private jet with it and now won’t give it back, and I’ll be happy to see how he likes being a prisoner in my attic for a year or two.
I should imagine, after the being forced to listen to Barry Manilow 24 hours a day, having a cattle prod put up his bottom twice daily and being fed nothing but dog food, he’ll be fully rehabilitated and able to go back into the world of international finance and give me and the thousands of other poor buggers our money back.
It seems that yesterday’s collection of some of my favourite Caribbean treats were quite popular yesterday so here then are a few more.
Tulum
Cozumel is fast developing a reputation as the party capital of the Mayan Riviera. The town is currently Mexico’s fastest- growing, and it really feels that way — there’s an incredible pace to the place. All manner of feverish activity — selling, eating, drinking and building, building, building — goes on in every direction. The frenetic nightlife feels is safe and fun and watching guests who have been drinking all night at Carlos and Charlies is very entertaining. It’ amazingly clean and well tended, given its urban location — is buzzing day and night. The shopping is wonderful and oh how it has changed since the first time I went there onboard the Holiday in 1987. Then there were maybe three or four shops and a few nightclubs where Corona was 50 cents a bottle, a lobster dinner for two costs less than $20 and the legal drinking age was seven. Many guests head straight off for the shops which is a real shame because a must see are the ruins of Tulum on the mainland of Mexico. At the far end of the Mayan Riviera, a 50 minutedrive from Playa del Carmen, Tulum is most famous for its collection of Mayan ruins. For more than a millennium, this was their land, a jungle tableau on which their culture written. There were cities of temples, castles and grand, stepped pyramids; pools for sacrifice and courts for elaborate games. Then the Spanish came, with their Christianity, weapons and disease. The indigenous people were killed or enslaved, their cities lost to the forest.
They are not as spectacular as Chichen Itza, certainly, but their location – with the ancient temples almost overhanging the cliff – makes them aesthetically unbeatable. And remember the people of Tulum were the first ever people to wear underwear ……Fruit Of Tulum. Seriously, you really have to see this astonishing place and check with your shore excursion manager or cruise director who will tell you how you can do so.
Roatan
I’d cruised to the island of Roatan just once but I really want to go again. Together with other islands, whose names I can’t remember, it makes up the Bay Islands, off the north coast of Honduras. Long and thin, like a miniature Cuba in a hidden corner of the Caribbean, Roatan is an island that tourism is just waking up to but as usual Carnival was there first. Like its more established nautical neighbors, it has pristine white beaches, swaying palms and a tropical interior, home to parrots, iguanas, monkeys and hair braiding. I remember the laid-back atmosphere that comes with an average annual temperature of 80F and year-round sun. On Roatan, though, the atmosphere has a Latino twist, a product of being simultaneously part of the Caribbean and Central America.
The twist — “Yeah, maaan” one minute, “Si, si” the next — runs through everything on the islands and makes it ethnically a diverse mix, some speaking Spanish, others English, with many speaking a strange hybrid of both……..as they do in parts of Miami….Ask a Roatanian what he’s up to and more often than not the answer will be: “Nada-much.”
Have any of you been there……….as I have only been once I would appreciate any feedback as would others I am sure.
Dunn’s River Falls, Ocho Rios
As many of you will know Jamaica is one of my favorite Caribbean destinations ……….. especially Ocho Rios. I always said in my travel talks that you haven’t experienced the real Jamaica until you climb Dunn’s River Falls, and for sheer fun and exhilaration this unique attraction is hard to beat. These 600 foot falls were made for climbing, with huge boulders to scramble over, tempting pools to plunge into and waterfall after waterfall to stand beneath – letting the warm, clear waters wash over you. It takes about 40 minutes to negotiate the falls and climbers start from the beach, led by an ably footed guide. You need to be reasonably agile and have to concentrate, especially at some of the steepest points, but the pools provide a great relaxation stop. It’s a refreshing and entertaining way to spend a morning or afternoon and once you reach the top and dry off, you can wind down in the craft village where you can buy a six-foot wooden giraffe for $20………this will be a brilliant buy and you will cherish it right up to the moment when you have to pack to go home. Many of our excursions go to Dunns’s River Falls and many can be combined with shopping, dolphin swims and island tours.
The Bob Marley Experience – Ocho Rios
No cruise to Jamaica would be complete without a visit to the place where reggae legend Bob Marley was born and spent his formative years. To add an extra authentic flavour, we offer an excursion the Zion Bus, a traditional Jamaican country bus complete with roots music, for the trip inland to the tiny village of Nine Mile where the reggae king was born and is now buried. Zion Bus Line tours depart from Ocho Rios and are for adults only. ………. this is because the nearby residents sometimes partake in the local custom of smoking joints the size of palm trees. This tour is a chance to meet locals who knew Marley as a boy, and some of his relatives, and an opportunity to experience rural Jamaica at its best as you travel into the mountains to the parish of St. Ann, passing tiny tucked-away villages and local markets.
Trunk Bay, U.S.V.I.
St. John, another must see while your ship docks in St.Thomas. Most of it is national park was donated by the Rockefeller family in the 1950s, and the coastline is blessed with beach after beach of stunning beauty. One, Trunk Bay, is a pristine ribbon of sand where all the facilities – changing rooms, loos and snack bars – have been kept out of sight under the trees. I am not much of a snorkelist but, as I mentioned yesterday, one of the very best places I have ever snorkeled was Trunk Bay. The government has created an off-shore “Underwater Snorkeling Trail.” Snorkelers are provided with equipment, given a list of strict rules (“Follow the trail; no standing on the coral”), then sent into the shallow water, where stone plaques on the ocean floor lead you around a “trail” of coral and submarine life. You follow underwater signs telling you to turn left, then right and every time a fish swims past it will be holding a little sign telling you what kind of fish he is and whether or not he will taste good with chips. My favorite tour here is the 5 Star St.John Tour and again we have many for you to choose from.
OK, more Caribbean top tips soon.
I wanted to say a big thanks to all of you who continue to read the blog despite the fact that I am not on a ship at the moment and also because I know how busy everyone is at this time of the year. We have raced past 3.5 million readers and as always I am lost for words……..so for now, let me again say “Thank you.” Tomorrow, I will be posting an interview with a cruise ship captain……..can you guess which one?
I am off to the movies tonight to see Kean New Reeves in the remake of the classic Sci-Fi Movie “The Day The Earth Stood Still.” I only hope it’s better than the “War Of The Worlds Remake” in which Tom Cruise had the acting skills of a chair leg. I am a firm believer that we are not alone and that in his wisdom God did not just create us but others as well.
In 1977, men and women with beards launched the Voyager space probes began their endless journey into space carrying messages of goodwill from Jimmy Carter, night chants from the Navajo Indians and, oddly, a note from the Chinese which translates into English as “Have you eaten yet?”
Some, I know, thought it a bad idea to let other life forms know we were here in case they deciphered the Chinese message and thought: “Now you come to mention it, I am a bit peckish. So I’ll pop over and try some of that Jimmy Carter.”
As a spotty teenager and when I had finished reading the old copy of Playboy that I found in a nearby bush I liked to imagine that within my lifetime people from other planets would drop by to say hi.
Unfortunately, I hadn’t really done the math. Although the probes are screaming through space at 40,000 mph, making them the fastest machines made by manthey are now leaving the solar system thingy and of course….they haven’t discovered life on Mrs or Uranus or anywhere else for that matter.
I have no doubt that there will already be many people claiming that the $500 million that this mission has cost could have been spent on saving baby polar bears. It’s easy to sympathize with this argument. On Earth, everything is finite and very, very small. We think it’s a long way to Australia and that Everest is large. Which is why I thought the Voyagers would be broadcasting to Mr. Spock within my lifetime.
As I got older I started to realize that sending a probe out there hoping it will pass near to an alien is like……. actually I can’t think of anything to sum up how improbable this happening actually was.
And yet, what are we supposed to do now we know every last detail about our own planet and that even the nastier bits like Paris are better than the best bits of our own solar system? Do we just sit here, picking our noses? How far do you think we would have come as a species if Christopher Columbus had decided not to bugger off and discover America because Portugal was nice enough?
So we have to keep on building more Voyagers and we have to keep on firing them out there. Only let’s stop bothering with the messages of goodwill and Navajo noises. And let’s forget the political correctness of getting the Chinese to chip in with an invitation to eat Kung Po Chicken. If we really want the Klingons to come all the way over here we have to make their journey worthwhile. So next time, send photographs of Jessica Simpson’s bottom.
Goodnight
Your friends
John, Heidi and the Thingy
Filed under: Caribbean, Destinations, Tales from the Ship, Travel | Tagged: Caribbean, Carnival Cruise Lines, Chichen Itza, cruise, Jamaica, Mayan Riviera, Ocho Rios, Roatan, Tulum, vacation
Ah John
No Problem Mon!
Except for the Bob Marley Experience I have been to all those wonderful places. The one thing that I experienced was a man on a donkey whose picture I attepted to take, Little did I know that it would cost me a dollar for that picture… Oh Well a lesson learned..
I like your plan for the riff raff of te world, 30 to a cell, with a bucket,, sounds good!
Hope you enjoy your movie!
Take Care
The Tuckers
Elizabeth & Arnold(whos never been to Jamaica )
dude i hear our new president is about to empty out gitmo. maybe y’all can work something out there! hell we won’t even punish the ones that cut off heads now so don’t think the brits are too bad. let’s just all hold hands and get along. right! yikes…
smiles, bonnie and prince charlie
John,
We are enjoying all your Carribean insights.
I gotta say the Dunns River Falls was a great experience. We took the excursion along with you private beach tour when we were just in Ocho Rios on the BC1. It was awesome!
Can’t wait for the BC2 to get to see you again and see whats in store for the Private Beach Party there!
Wishing you and Heidi and wonderful holiday season.
Cindy & Kevin
More Caribbean!!! I LOVE the Caribbean… white sand beaches… palm trees… lovely women wearing next to nothing at all… ahhh… heaven!!!
This probably explains my aversion to cruising to Alaska…
After watching the previews of ‘The Day the Earth Stood Still’ and being a HUGE fan of the original with Michael Rennie and Patrica Neal I’ve determined that there is no way I can go see it without a gag stuffed in my mouth. Nope… can’t do it. Bring back the old black and white version!!!
I believe you’re right… If there’s ANYTHING that could entice aliens to visit our tiny planet it would be Jessica Simpson’s bottom. Excellent.
Ciao, my friend!!!
Host Mach
Enjoyed your blog today, have never done a tour in St. John but will check it out, since we have done all there is to do in St. Thomas, the numerous times we have been there. By the way, what do you have against Barry Manilow? I think he is great! He was in London recently performing. I went to his concert last year, and hope he tours Florida again soon. I knew him when! Before he became famous in NY, I worked with his aunt, he was a scrawny teen, I think about 19 when I was his penpal, I was only 17. He is a great singer, so stop picking on him ok John? Your friend, Linda
Dear John the Caribbean a lavish orchid filled garden with wondrous sites fit for Kings and Queens,Foods prepared fit for the gods and goddesses.The reveling island sounds caressing the wind blown palms.Oh!! did I mention Caribbean Rum.Best wishes to Heidi and the little Thingy Gary and Bug
John…
I sat on jury duty and one question they asked, which evidently was a screening tool, was: “Do you believe jails are punishment or deterrent?” In other words, is prison punishment for doing a crime or a deterrent to thinking about doing a crime?
No one told us the right answer… but I answered it deters me from doing wrong, I don’t want to go there, and it punishes those who did the crime!
I agree with your niave thoughts… who cares how they are treated??? Did they care about their victim???
What an interesting blog… diverse… Love it!!! Your writing is wonderful! Don’t worry about it being while you’re land bound… You’re just an interesting man!!!
Tell Heidi to give us more recipes… Love them!!!!
Lambie
John:
I believe that Singapore has the solution.
I know there is one young man who will never drive a Mercedes again (much less vandalize one) …thanks to the caning he received for the crime!!!
Personally I have no problem with the death penalty. The tiny percentage of “innocent” folks who did crimes that would rate the death penalty is FAR LESS than the repeat offenders who murdered someone else…while out of prison….after serving time for assault or murder.
So you have a choice….. you can execute an occasional innocent person (although if you look at the “innocent person’s” record, while innocent of that particular crime … their rap sheets usually read like a novel… a LONG novel)……OR we can continue to bury 100’s of new VICTIMS assaulted and murdered by repeat offenders.
I vote we execute and let God sort them out!
Of course, the town we live near is usually in the top 5 in Murders for the nation….so I may be particularly sensitive. Especially when the last one was when a man (who just got out of prison for MURDER)….came to his brother’s home…got into a fight with his own brother over a leather coat and killed his brother, the brother’s girlfriend, another friend who just happened to be there and 3 of the killer’s nieces and nephews…the youngest being a toddler….and put another nephew in the hospital. The only reason this 9 year old nephew is alive is because he played dead after his uncle shot him.
Sorry….that dude should fry…period!!!
The double murder case I was on a few years back was one “friend” who shot and killed his two BEST FRIENDS…in the head…execution style …while they slept.
Why? Because his best friends disrespected him.
Also, I don’t believe there is any other “beings” than us. I think God took a good hard look at his “creation” and said…. “no way am I making that mistake again”….
We look forward to hearing from Captain?????
Linda (Mom of your friend DJ)
I couldn’t tell you how many times I too have thought of how to find a way to deal with the prison system in the US! I at one time thought we should take one of the less populated states and move all the law biding citizens to another state and build a mote around the entire state. Then we would move all the prisoners from all the states here and they would have to provide for themselves–building their own housing, building their own furniture, growing and cooking their own food, doing their own laundry, etc. All the people that currently work at prisons could have jobs guarding the motes and there should be plenty to go around the whole state. But then the people in the states that surround the Prison State would say not in my back yard and then we are back to square one–oh well, I tried too.
Ahh Cozumel–have been there many times and have done a lot more than shop but have to say that my favorite passtime when I get back to the ship is watching the drunks come back to the ship. I don’t know why this place seems so much worse than other islands in this department but geez do you see the sights here. Was there on the Legend a year ago and we had been back and were on the balcony watching a pair of sea turtles swimming near the docks when the drunken masses began to return to the ship. There were many I was surprised didn’t fall into the water off the pier they were swaggering so but the best was a couple that got the bicycle driver to bring them to the gangway. The man got out of the seat and helped the woman hang on him and he pulled her out of the seat–the driver made a quick exodus and I never saw him get paid so he must have either gotten it before he brought them or just wanted to get away from them. The woman proceded to barf and then her companion dropped her in it! Then realizing what he had done and that she wasn’t attempting to get up herself, he went to get help from the crew at the gangway. By the time they got her up and onto the ship I suspect they all needed a shower. YUK! God Bless all the crew that have to work at that port! That’s my latest tale of Cozumel.
Hi John, You asked about Roatan. Yes Dave and I have been there. It was one of the first places we ever snorkeled. Loved it. The fish are there. All kinds of fish. I never forgot it. I would love to go back.
Jo
John, Please reply..
Hi John, the blog has been a must read for over a year now, please keep on blogging, and thank you for sharing.
I am sailing the Legend on 2/22/09, Western Carribean (5th Carnival cruise). My question is which Mayan Ruins tour would you recommend, Tulum in Mexico or XUNANTUNICH in Belize. This is something my Dad really wants to do, but with the length of the tours really only want to do one of them. Thank you for any info you can provide.
Tell your mate, Kevin, he is doing great on Grey’s. I first saw him on “Rome” and have enjoyed his work since.
All the best to Heidi and the thingy, and may You and Yours have a joyful holiday season.
RonRN
Hi again John, No need to reply to my last note. I didn’t know that was in there.
I do have to mention St John. It is my most favorite island of all. It is almost like going back to Ernest Hemingways’ time with wood houses and huge paddle fans. My most favorite spot is Mongoose Junction a small stone shopping center about two blocks from the ferry terminal. All kind of wonderful treasures can be found there. I could spend hours there. And you are right the snorkeling at Trunk Bay is not to be missed.
Jo
John,
Our government is joining yours soon. Over the next four years we’ll be releasing every criminal in the country, because it’s not right to judge them, and they can no doubt be rehabilitated. Terrorists are frothing at the mouths, laughing in the streets waiting.
Jeff
Hi John,
Just a quick note to say that cabin assignments have been released for the Blogger’s cruise. So if you booked a GTY, lets hope the Upgrade Fairy was in the Christmas spirit.
Speaking of Christmas, who put in the wish for it to snow in the South? Come on, four inches in S. Mississippi today. (even New Orleans got some) Of course my daughter’s got a snow day from school because folks down here dont know how to drive in the white stuff.
Since you are well traveled, where does the white go when the snow melts? Enjoy y’alls time off.
Dave
Hello John/Heidi:
Good evening from a cold, wet, dreary Brooklyn NY. I am here on my birthday for the wedding tonight of my sister.
Your descriptions of Tulum, Roatan, St. Thomas, and Jamaica are making me very warm on the inside. Much appreciated.
The prison systems in this world are a joke and its only going to get worse.
Jessica Simpson could definitely bring far away life forms to our planet.
Thanks for posting and take care!
David
Hi John! (Please reply)
I’m pretty new to your blog but am loving it! A friend was on a sailing on the Splendour in September and met you and reccommended that I check out this site.
My Fiance and I are going on the Splendour on April 26th, 2009. We’re actually getting married on board that first day! Any suggestions on what excursions we may want to check out for the Mexican Riveria stops? And would you happen to know who the cruise director is? (I’d love to be able to meet you!) I’ve been on one Carnival cruise before on the Pride on October ‘03 and had a blast. It’ll be his first time on a cruise and in Mexico. We’ve very excited.
Congrats to you and Heidi on the Thingy!
~Andrea
Hello John
Just a quick note to thank you again for all you do for us. It has been a loooooong eleven months since we booked our cruise, but the day is almost here! We leave tomorrow night for Tampa where we will board the Legend this Sunday and spend a week in (and on) paradise!
Thank you for sharing your life with us, entertaining us, and educating us. Thanks for the personal favors you do for us to try guanantee our trip is as close to perfect as possible. A big thanks to Stephanie, Heidi, and everyone else behind the scenes who make the whole blog thingie possible.
This is the last opportunity I’ll have to post befor we leave, so I just wanted to thank you one last time for everything you do for us. I hope you don’t mind, but I have added you and Heidi to the list of friends I will be having a drink of the day for on our vacation
Cheers Mate!
Codfish
John, Please Reply
I’m not sure what to tell my blog, but while being in miami on sat. I saw the Liberty(which I once sailed on) and I know she recently underwent a drydock, however I’m not sure what thoes two new very distict windws are on top of the bridge. They are located right before the wings on top of 8 wher the actual bridge is, but this is located on 9 wher it is open to walk on. Anyways my grandmother is currently on the Regent seven seas navigator, and unfortunaly was not able to sail last month on the Eurodam due to an injury, however she is now booked oboard ruby princess, and is looking into the Carnival Dream blooggers cruise.
thanks, JAKE
Hi John!
I agree – Roatan is an island I would love to visit again. We spent a week at Anthony’s Key scuba diving. Absolutely fantastic! I’ve never been there on a cruise, but plan to add it to the upcoming list.
Only 3 more days til we’re on the Miracle. AND we got cabin assignments for the Blogger’s Cruise today!! Woo Hoo!!!
John, I was on the Liberty September 6-13th when we were rerouted to the exotic west in place of exotic east (darn it, I really wanted to go to Half Moon Cay and Grand Turk). I was booked (an booked and 23 days out) to go the same route. I thought it of as a primer for January. I loved Belize, it was amazing. I did the smaller ruins of Altun Ha and loved it. I may have melted because of the heat/humidity, but it was truly wonderful. The shopping was good and cheap!!! As for Roatan, that was out last stop and the island truly is a beautiful place. I loved it there. I did Discover Roatan and it was well worth it. I’m going to do Belize Zoo and Roatan West Side in January to see the other sides of Belize and Roatan.
I must admit, I also booked the West Side tour for the shopping stops. They have amazing/incredible wood carvings. I’ll be buying another carved box (for ME to keep) and some local handicrafts.
John, check out Roatan, you will love it!!!!
Hi John,
I LOVE Roatan! I’ve been there three times, twice on the Valor and once on the Legend. It is my all time favorite Western Caribbean port. So lush and green and not overly built up (yet).
I confess I’ve never done a Carnival excursion there. I’ve always booked privately. The first two times I hired a private driver who took me and whichever kid was with me all around the island. We went zip-lining and had so much fun. We encountered monkeys and iguanas and an overly friendly anteater! In October I went to a private cay, Fins and Flippers, run by Anthony’s Key Resort and relaxes and snorkeled. It was wonderful.
I’m looking forward to doing a land vacation there and scuba diving on the reef.
I’m glad that Carnival includes that beautiful island on its itineraries.
Cheerios,
Laura (aka divetrash, aka Princess Laura, the sweet and innocent of Big Ed’s Evil Krewe)
Hi John,
It’s me, PennyB, from Snowy New Orleans.
What a surprise we all had, including the weather people, when we got a pretty good snow fall this A.M. This is the earliest ever for the city. I can count on one hand the snowfalls I remember so we all had an early White Christmas. Your talks of the Carib. beaches and blue waters are keeping me warm. Hopefully our weather for Feb. will be snowless but you never know around here. 2 days ago I ran my AC.
Adios,
PennyB
good morning John & Heidi,
As usual you start my day with a smile. More Caribbean please.
I’ve been to Roatan on the Valor. I didn’t do any excursions, just got off the ship between raindrops and walked a little. But remember, Carnival is now building a cruise center – so I’ll have to go back when it’s finished.
And St. John is absolutely the best, most beautiful, unspoiled island. I did Trunk Bay on my very first cruise and have never forgotten it. I love St. Thomas, St. Maarten & Aruba, but there is something special about St. John.
I’m not even going to get started on the prison system here, or the courts. It’s pathetic.
And Linda, I agree with you, I love listening to Barry Manilow too.
Hope to hear more today,
Hugs,
Carol
John.
Not sure how to do this so here it goes. My wife and I are platinum carnival guest. We were wondering if the Destiny has a TOPLESS
John – movie update,
I just saw a short review of “The Day The Earth Stood Still”. 3 words – “Klaatu Barada Stinko”. I hope you didn’t go and waste your money. But, I’m sure we’ll hear about it.
Cheerio,
Carol
John, We have been to Roatan twice and are returning on Jan 2nd. Love the snorkeling at Half Moon Bay and the beach time at the free section of the beach at West Bay. We have done Carnival tours and also like Victor Boddin tours. ( I guess it’s okay to mention a local tour company!) Jeri
Hi john,
I LOVE Roatan. The BEST snorkeling in the Western Caribbean these days. I’ve been to Tabyana a few times – just can’t get enough.
Here are some pictures from one of the visits:
http://www.zydecocruiser.com/valor_06/RO/ro_1.htm
http://www.zydecocruiser.com/valor_06/RO/ro_2.htm
http://www.zydecocruiser.com/valor_06/RO/ro_3.htm
http://www.zydecocruiser.com/valor_06/RO/ro_4.htm
http://www.zydecocruiser.com/valor_06/RO/ro_5.htm
regards,
bill
Great blog, John
I agree with you–there are so many things wrong with the criminal justice system everywhere! We make it way too comfortable for those in prison! TV’s, exercise yards, 3 meals a day, a roof over their heads, clothing, etc., etc., etc., could all be reasons why some folks chose to commit a crime. It is much easier to have all of that provided for you than to have to get up and go to work every day in order to provide for yourself! And, even if you murder someone and get the death penalty, you can always appeal and that “buys” you a few more years. And, we, the taxpayers, are contributing to the criminals peace of mind by providing them with a warm place to stay. Don’t get me started!!
Thanks for all the info on the different Caribbean ports! I also love Trunk Bay in St. John. Great place!
How was the movie???
Sheryl
Hi John,
For any on the Carnival Fantasy Blogger’s cruise with extra time, the following might be of interest:
http://www.neworleansrum.com/index.php?section=1
An attraction I highly recommend is the National World War II museum (formally the DDay Museum):
http://www.ddaymuseum.org/
It is incredible.
Something unusual in New Orleans – SNOW
http://photos.nola.com/gallery/4500/Snow%20in%20N.O.!/slideshow
keep up the good work!
What a wonderful blog today, John. You have such an interesting view of things and you make me laugh, which I dearly need to do. I can hardly wait to meet you both next December on the Bloggers’ Cruise.
I was in Belize a year ago on one of the “flowery ships”. One place I don’t ever care to see again. I loved the ruins, and I loved Tulum. Now I am looking forward to seeing other ports where I have never been before. But I am an “Alaska” gal, having been there twice with one more cruise there booked for 5/09 on HAL.
Have a wonderful Christmas and thanks for your blog. They make my day.
I LOVE Roatan. Best snorkeling in the Western Caribbean these days.
Here are some pictures from one day at Tabyana Beach:
http://www.zydecocruiser.com/valor_06/RO/ro_1.htm
http://www.zydecocruiser.com/valor_06/RO/ro_2.htm
and a couple more:
http://www.zydecocruiser.com/valor_06/RO/ro_3.htm
http://www.zydecocruiser.com/valor_06/RO/ro_4.htm
plus one
http://www.zydecocruiser.com/valor_06/RO/ro_5.htm