Eccentricity llc

The day started with us at Port Everglades.  We were in the first batch off the ship to catch our flight back to Atlanta from where we drove home.  It was a smooth flight and the drive was uneventful.  Once home I picked Ashleigh up and we all opened our Christmas Presents.  The trip was excellent and will be something we will remember for years to come.  It was a great way to spend Christmas.

A plane lands at the Fort Lauderdale airport. In the background you can see the ship we spent the week on.

For the last full day of the Cruise our stop was Princess Cays.  It was a great beach and a lot of fun.  The most relaxing of all the stops.  Rachel and I went ashore, Lily stayed on the ship and rested.  We built sand castles, went snorkeling, hid out from the rain and had a great time.  The tender ride from ship to shore was pretty rocky, huge waves.  Actually the night before the seas were very rough, the ship was really rolling and shuddering.  I am very surprised neither Lily or Rachel got sea sick.

Arrival at Princess Cays.

Making the sand castle.

Finished

Ready to Snorkle

Snorkeling at Princess Cays, Bahamas Christmas Day 2009

Snorkeling at Princess Cays, Bahamas Christmas Day 2009

Then the rains came.

Then the rains came.

Another day at sea today.  It was cloudy and cool most of the day and in the evening it was rainy.  We did not do a lot on ship, swam a little, that was about it.

Lunch in a Pub on the ship, English style Fish and Chips.

Dressed for Christmas Eve Dinner.

In the dining room.

Stormy deck.

The stop today was Cozumel.  It ended up being the only really nice day we had on the entire cruise.  Nice and warm, sunny with little puffy white clouds.  Every other day we had rain.

Arrival in Cozumel.

Going ashore.

Ashore with the ship behind us

Waiting for our tour

In Cozumel we visited the San Gervasio Mayan Ruins.  San Gervasio is the largest and most famous Mayan Ruins site on Cozumel, dating back to 300-400 A.D when this urban center was dedicated to Ix Chel, the goddess of fertility, medicine, midwifery and weaving,.  Mayan women used to make a pilgrimage from the mainland to visit the temples and many statues of Ix Chel found here.

The San Gervasio Ruins

The San Gervasio Ruins

After visiting the ruins we shopped in the area near the ship.  Once back on the ship Rachel and I went swimming.  While we were docked a Carnival ship was docked next to us so we had a chance to look at their top decks, our ship was larger and taller.

It was kind of odd to see Christmas decorations when it was so warm. I had to keep reminding myself Christmas was the day after tomorrow.

Looking at Cozumel with a Carinaval ship in the foreground.

Our ship and the Carnival ship.

The port of call today was Roatan, Honduras.  The stop was ok, but we felt things were way over priced and the stops were not quite as nice as what we expected.  Everyone we talked with on the ship after this port of call did not enjoy the stop either.  Rachel and I did the dolphin encounter, it was very good and we enjoyed it, but the same thing on the Cayman’s was $100 less!  Lily did a beach only excursion and the bus they put her in she said was rattly and kept breaking down.

Roatan, Honduras. A port the ship could easily have missed. Not much there and everything was way over priced.

The pier on the beach at Roatan. Lily made this photo.

The location of the dolphin encounter

The little boats they used to take us to the dolphin encounter.

The Dolphin encounter at Roatan, Honduras.

The Dolphin encounter at Roatan, Honduras.

Rachel with a dolphin. Photo by the people who did the encounter.

Me with a dolphin. Photo by the people who did the encounter.

Both of us with a dolphin. Photo by the people who did the encounter.

The sun came out for a while as we were leaving Roatan.

The sunset made this cloud beautiful.

Today was a little sad as our stop at the Cayman Islands got canceled.  The ocean was quite rough and we could not go ashore.  So all we got to see of the Caymans was a view of them from off shore.  Rachel was sad as we were supposed to swim with the dolphins today, but we did get that rescheduled for tomorrow at Roatan.

After the canceled stop the ship spent another day at sea.  Once again we wandered around looking at the stores and walking deck 7, the promenade deck.

Looking at the Caymans. This is as close as we got, the weather was too rough for us to go ashore. We were quite sad about this.

Deck 7, the Promenade Deck.

The front of the ship on Deck 7, the Promenade Deck.

At the back of the ship on Deck 7.

At the back of the ship on Deck 7.

Waiting for a show to start.

Waiting for a show to start

We spent today at sea.  Rachel and I explored the ship, looking to see what all was on her.  We wandered around most of the decks and had a good time seeing how huge the ship is.

We ate breakfast and lunch in the deck 15 buffet.  It was very good and we are all eating way too much.  For supper we had a formal dinner so we all got dressed up for the evening.

Breakfast on deck 15.

The Crown Princess midship looking aft.

The Crown Princess midship looking forward.

The aft decks of the ship with the pools.

The room balconies.

Lily in the theatre.

Ready for the formal dinner

Ready for the formal dinner

Rachel and my favorite deserts. That chocolate cup was excellent.

We arrived in Fort Lauderdale and boarded “The Crown Princess” for our Christmas Cruise. It was a pretty day and a good flight to Ft Lauderdale from Atlanta. I was not happy as I left my sunglasses at the TSA check point and lost them on the way. So I am having to make do with the clip ons on my regular glasses the rest of the week.

The lobby of the ship.

Rachel playing golf on the ship while we are still in Port Everglades.

Another ship docked at Port Everglades.

The RCL Oasis of the Seas, the worlds largest cruise ship. It's first cruise was on Dec 5 2009. It was docked behind us at Port Everglades as we left.

Step back to the era of Charles Dickens and his many colorful characters in the 24th annual Dickens of a Christmas festival in Franklin, TN.

As you stroll along Main Street you will pass many of the characters of Dicken’s stories. Jacob Marley is there wrapped in his chains warning Scrooge to repent. David Carter, the man who portrays Marley, has been doing street characters in Franklin for over 20 years, and the Dickens festival for at least 16 years. He says “I do it because its a lot of fun and I love entertaining.”

Of course Scrooge is present greeting all with a BAAA HUMBUG. Mr Scrooge strolls along the streets allowing his photo to be made, but no touching! You may be a pick pocket, or worse.

Further along the road a pair of English Bobbies are walking patrol. These fellows are more than acting the part of police officers, they are members of Franklin’s police department. The department has the consumes made so that the officers can fit in at the festival and enjoy the day while they are working.

Other characters are dressed in period costumes, ladies in hoop dresses, men in top hats and long coats. The ghost of Christmas Future is also seen wandering the streets.

Several street performers line the street. One such performer is thirteen year old Kayla Balda playing clarinet. Balda says she plays to make a little extra money to buy gifts for her family. “Its fun spreading a little cheer” she says of playing at the festival.

Another performer is folk harpist Abigail Bobo. She has played in the festival for four years. “Its a great deal of family fun and it helps to bring music to the little ones” she said. She began performing in the Dickens event because she had enjoyed the festival and wanted to be a part of it.

Perhaps the most unusual musical talent at the festival is Donal Hinely who serenades his audiences with glasses filled with water. He plays Christmas classics by rubbing his fingers over the tops of glasses partly filled with water. His songs are filled with wonderful tones and the music is a resounding success with his listeners. In between performances he pours warm water into a glass, he says it is hard to keep his wet fingers warm in the cold weather.

Video clip of these performers

The streets also have numerous vendors selling arts and crafts and food. The festival is a great place to shop for special gifts, and to try different foods from many of Franklin’s restaurants. There is a kids area with a small petting zoo. There are performances at different locations along main Street through out the days. Carriage rides are also offered around the square.

I had another shoot for the Art Glass project today.  On the way to the shoot I was about 45 minutes early so I stopped at Stones River Battlefield in Murfreesboro for a few minutes.  It was a grey rainy morning and fit  my mood perfectly.  I made a couple of photos there then headed on to the job.

I left the park and was to the shoot on time.  The day was taken with shooting different pieces of glass art ranging in size from small to about 3 feet tall.  Some of the pices were multiples.  I have found this shoot to be challenging and fun.