The BEST burger in the world!

My snack of choice was a juicy burger from Guy’s Burger Joint. I am not kidding when I say that this is one of the BEST burgers anywhere. They are smashed on the flat top grill and a blob of cheddar cheese is added which somehow melts perfectly over the patty. The cooks also add butter to the buns and place them on the same grill which makes the bun soft and locks in the flavor from the juices in the meat. Are you getting hungry??? I am not finished yet… The fries. These are double fried French fries. They fry them and pull them out to partially cool and then fry them a second time before adding the seasoning. These are so good that sometimes we will just go get a plate of fries to snack on! Once you have burger and fries in hand, you head over to the toppings bar. What is special about this is how thin everything is sliced. Shaved lettuce, thinly sliced tomatoes, and paper them pickles plus onions (grilled or raw), mushrooms, etc. To top it off you can go with the basic mayo, mustard or ketchup of you could try one of Guy’s signature sauces. Our favorite is the donkey sauce.

Uh oh, a storm is coming…

As the sky became darker, we decided to move under shelter. You know a storm is coming when they pull up all of the shade umbrellas around the pool. One deck up are some nice and comfy outdoor sofas and there was actually one available… We are not usually lucky enough to snag one of these since they are so comfortable that people do not usually leave them! This is the perfect spot to people watch or see a Dive-In Movie. I laid back and rested my head on the armrest and placed my feet in Jason’s lap… Not a bad way to spend an afternoon. Now Jason decides to do something he had not done in years… he smoked a cigar. This super comfy seating just happened to be in one of the smoking areas on board and he had procured himself a ‘Cuban’ cigar in Cozumel so he figured why not. He thoroughly enjoyed it but promised not to make it a habit.

We were too relaxed to move for a while and decided to forgo the dining room. Since we had just had a burger, we weren’t hungry enough to eat again anyway. We determined that we could eat at the deli after the two shows we planned on seeing that evening.

Still in a relaxed mode, we moved indoors to the lobby as we awaited the theater to open. Here they had a very talented guy playing the steel pans and we stayed and listened to him for quite a while… cold drink in hand.

The funniest show I have EVER seen!

As the time for the first show to begin, we worked our way to the front among everyone playing bingo. Once the bingo game was over we were able to snag the front row, which we absolutely love! This guy was amazing!!! His name was Rich Pupera and he had us laughing the entire time! This was billed as a comedy/magic show so we were not sure what to expect. He played this perfect… until the kids who were his assistants messed up his ‘trick’ cards which got a huge laugh from the audience. There was a lot of audience interaction and being in the front our family was included. We had three teenage boys with us and he singled them out and began to pick on them for being from Louisiana, but they loved it! My nephew, Hayden, was chosen in a trick as well and he absolutely loved the attention. I really can’t even begin to describe how amazing this show was… but luckily my camera was running and I have all of the jokes and tricks and laughs saved forever!

Want to see this story come to life and the amazing comedy/magic show?  Here is the video: Carnival Dream Day 3: Part 4

Want to see more from this trip?  Here is the full Carnival Dream Playlist. 

If you have enjoyed this post, please share!  Also, sign up for our emails so you have every new post delivered right to your inbox!

Thanks,
Alisa
EECC Travels

The post CRUISE LIFE: Relaxing Poolside & Fantastic Comedy/Magic Show on Carnival Dream appeared first on EECC Travels.

A bonus benefit to getting up this early…

Another first for me was to be the first one at the breakfast buffet. By mid-morning, the buffet can look trashed as hundreds of people get their breakfast, but it was fresh and pretty at 6:00 am when it first opens. So I proceed to fill my plate with carbs consisting of French toast, hash browns, and croissants.  PS – Carnival has the BEST French toast! However, I did manage to put one piece of fruit on my plate as well! I grabbed a cup of juice while Jason and Ethan had coffee and we easily found a seat by the window in the near-empty Lido dining room.

Watching the ship pull into Cozumel…

My guys watching the ship pull into port

A little over an hour from our last progress check, the ship had sailed much closer to land. We are excited to see that we are the first ship into port for the day as we are used to arriving when the port is full of ships and also full of people. Because we had such an early, laid-back morning, we were able to stand by the railing and enjoy ourselves seeing first hand how such a gigantic ship can maneuver close to the pier. The Dream has huge engines with thrusters that can turn 360 degrees so can move the ship in all directions to get in and out of small spaces. Did I mention the sunrise? Well, let me tell you, this must be one of the most beautiful sunrises we have ever seen. The sun shining brightly on the horizon in a picturesque blue sky which is shimmering on the perfect turquoise water with an island paradise…. Yeah, it was pretty amazing!

Interesting about Cozumel…

From high on the top of a cruise ship, you can really see the landscape of this island. Cozumel relies heavily on the tourism industry and you can see the areas where the tourists go and that a portion of the island is uninhabited. From this distance, you can see vast expanses of untouched jungle and shoreline. The west side facing the Yucatan Channel and Mexican mainland coast are where the locals live.  The east side is where the ports and resorts are. It is the center of the island which is filled with undeveloped jungle and has no electricity. On one trip we rented a Jeep and explored the island, it truly is beautiful.

We make our way down to deck 0, off of the Carnival Dream and walk down the long pier into the port. We were still the only ship here… This has never happened before as it is usually brimming with people. I must say that it was very nice to be able to walk and enjoy the sights with much, much lower crowds. We quickly find the meeting spot for our excursion and see the first glimpse of the speedboats that will take us on a wild adventure for the day…

Want to see the story come to life?  Here is the video: Carnival Dream Day 3: Part 1

Want to see more from this trip?  Here is the full Carnival Dream Playlist. 

If you have enjoyed this post, please share!  Also, sign up for our emails so you have every new post delivered right to your inbox!

Thanks,
Alisa
EECC Travels

The post CRUISE LIFE: Arriving in Cozumel – Carnival Dream appeared first on EECC Travels.

What a beautiful family!

It’s time for a formal night!   Or as it is now called… Cruise Elegant Night.  Believe it or night, our kids love to get dressed up on the ship… not at home but on the ship, it is something special!  Once we are all dressed up we head down to Promenade to see what all is going on…  This is the area of the ship that comes alive at night.  During the day most people are on Lido deck around the pool and the buffet but in the evenings it is Promenade.  Our first stop is the Taste Bar where tonight they are severing Nona’s Italian Meatballs with bruschetta and ricotta cheese, these meatballs are amazing!  I remembered them from last year… so good!  There was some live music playing and we sat and enjoyed the atmosphere until it was closer to time for dinner.  When you have your entire family dressed to the nines, you should always record the moment with a photo.  And that is not a problem on a cruise as there are photos op stations all over.  We picked a background we like that had a not-so-long line and took some beautiful family photos.

On to dinner!  

What everyone loves about formal night is that this is lobster and prime rib night  And yes, you can get two entrees so you don’t have to choose between them.  We started out with cheese plates for the table and it was so funny to watch the kids descend on the cheese like they hadn’t eaten all day!  Luckily our amazing wait staff saw this and brought us an extra.  Here is a tip, the cheese plate is technically on the dessert menu, but you can ask for it with your bread service and it is so perfect with the warm bread!

For appetizers w, like to be brave and try things we have never had before.  There is always a ‘rare find’ that is something unusual that several of the kids like to try.  I had the Italian Wedding Soup which was fantastic and the small meatballs were very similar to Nona’s meatballs at the Taste Bar… one of the best appetizers I had on the cruise!  As we have a spoon-on-the-nose tradition, our family also has a lemon challenge tradition.  The kids, and sometimes the adults too, place a lemon wedge in their mouth and bite down to release all the juice, this also makes a ‘lemon smile’ over your mouth… it’s so funny to see everyone’s expressions!  Almost everyone at the table ordered the lobster and Cameron started something last year that has spread to the rest of the kids… the lobstercicle!  These are small lobsters so he determined the best way to eat it is to pull the entire tail out stick it on a fork and dip it in the butter…  and the lobstercicle was born!

It’s ShoooowwwwTime!

The formal night would not be complete without SHOW TIME!  We were talking and we hear over the speaker a shushed whisper that goes into shhhhhhowww time and we know what is about to happen!  Grab your napkin and twirl it high above your head and sing along… and dance along if you wish… with the wait staff as they done wild wigs and bright red, white and blue shirts and sometimes even light up glasses and jump up on the podiums and stairs to perform fun songs… but ALWAYS Celebrate good times, come on!

Want to see the story come to life?  Here is the video: CRUISE LIFE DAY 2: PART 3

Want to see more from this trip?  Here is the full Carnival Dream Playlist.  

If you have enjoyed this post, please share!  Also, sign up for our emails so you have every new post delivered right to your inbox!

Thanks,
Alisa
EECC Travels

The post CRUISE LIFE: Formal Night on the Carnival Dream appeared first on EECC Travels.

It was Easter Sunday and we discovered they had a candy hunt all over the ship.  I spoke to one employee manning a station who explained how it worked… They had random stations set up all over this ship with an employee with a big bucket of candy.  Kids of any age could get a small bag and go around and collect as much candy as they like for free!  The kids really seemed to be enjoyed it!  

There was some great music playing in the lobby… well, to be honest, there was almost always good music in the lobby area…  But this was a three-piece brass band and we just stood by the railing and listened.

Alchemy Bar is the BEST!

Next up, Promenade on deck 5… Jason walked over to Alchemy Bar to grab a drink and I hit up the Taste Bar next door.  If you don’t know what the Taste Bar is, it is set up most evenings and serves small samples from the signature Carnival restaurants.  This time was my favorite which we have had on previous cruises and is from the steakhouse.  It is a braized rib finger with a side of pumpkin soup, it is so good!  

Alchemy Bar is unique on the ship, most bartenders just ask what you want to drink. But at Alchemy, they ask what you like and will create a special concoction just for you.  Jason said he liked vodka and grapefruit juice and she built a drink for him.  It was good and it was strong… That’s another thing about Alchemy, these are the most potent drinks on board.

Off we go to gather the crew for dinner and we pass through Bonsai Sushi and Ethan tries to convince me that I need to give it a try… yeah that’s not going to happen…  He can eat sushi til his heart’s content but he will never convince me to try raw fish!  So we get back to the cabin just before the boys and when we are all assembled we see a few surprises have been left in our rooms.  For one, it’s our fits towel animal of the trip!  We debated on what it was but no one could actually figure it out.  We also had our first gold VIFP pin, a certificate for a free drink on the last night and huge bottles of water each for Being return guests.  Little things make us happy

Our first dinner onboard the Carnival Dream

On to dinner!  We were seated for late dining (8:15) in the Scarlet Dining Room.  Arriving early, there was a nice surprise that there was a strings trio serenading the crowd waiting to enter, it was lovely.  We were led to the very back of the dining room to a table along the windows.  It was dark so it was pitch black outside but this would be a beautiful view during the day.  Also, we were so happy that they were able to fit all eleven of us at a table together, we were worried about that!  Dinner was great as always with some of us trying our favorites (shrimp cocktail) and also trying something new.  

We started with cheese plates with our bread service.  Now, these are technically on the dessert menu, but if you ask, they will bring them out early.  Next came the appetizers (cue the many shrimp cocktails) and then the main course.  Jason has decided to try and eat healthy so ordered the salmon, but I was indulging and had the sweet & sour shrimp which was really good!  Last but not least was dessert.  Now I have a bit of tradition that no matter what else is offered I will ALWAYS have the Warm Chocolate Melting Cake… It is Carnival’s signature dessert for a reason… food porn!

Do you want to see this story come to life:  Here is the video: YouTube EECC Travels – Cruise Life Vlog – Carnival Dream Day 1: Part 3

Want to see more from this trip?  Here is the full Carnival Dream Playlist. 

If you have enjoyed this post, please share!  Also, sign up for our emails so you have every new post delivered right to your inbox!

Thanks,
Alisa
EECC Travels

The post CRUISE LIFE: Alchemy Bar & Our First Dinner – Carnival Dream appeared first on EECC Travels.