The purpose of this weekend trip was strictly for relaxation… reading, napping, eating and lounging. We did do a few of the offered activities like trivia, singing at karaoke, watching the production shows and enjoying the stand up comedians. But mostly it was relaxing!
After walking along the malecon, we ventured into the shopping area to find some gifts and souvenirs that caught our eyes.
Sidewalk vendors
Candy shop.. We bought $15 worth, we'll, American dollars worth. The local rate would probably have been less than half that, but the shop dude was cool and offered up plenty of samples, so be it.
Spiced dried mango slice
Um, yeah, totally appropriate souvenirs to bring back to school
For one buck, I had to buy some!
We had all day in port, but just decided to go on an afternoon walk around town. A lot of cruisers say to just stay on the boat and skip the town altogether, but we are glad we decided to step out
Carnival Inspiration
Enjoying the sun
Sculpture
Malencon walkway
All the locals and families were out and about celebrating Easter
People feeding the wildlife
Everywhere we turned, people old and young chased one another spraying aerosol foam at each other..
We were almost caught in the line of fire with from these siblings
Fish market
Cotton candy vendor making the rounds
Easter Sunday sunrise as the ship glided towards the port. So peaceful and inspiring for the new day ahead.
Up at 4am, bags all ready to go with just a few last items left to pack. We left at 4:20am, drove out and parked near the Gateway Transit Center for our 4:57am MAX train to the airport. Once at the airport, it was less than a five-minute process through TSA thanks to our Pre-Check status – – we saw the regular line snake and stretch out for a minimum fifteen minute wait. With almost one hour to kill before our flight started boarding, we went to the Alaska Board Room Lounge to have a light continental breakfast and hang out. We came in just in time because a few minutes after we arrived the boardroom cut off other members of the priority pass and would not let them in.
Our flight went off without a hitch and we landed in Los Angeles by 9:10 a.m. After collecting our luggage, we decided to take public transportation to our Carnival Cruise port, which is located in Long Beach. It was $5 one-way vs $36 for an Uber, so we went with saving the money exchange for a longer ride. Despite some poorly timed connections, we made it to the cruise port by our check-in time and we were on the ship eating lunch at 1:45 p.m. And so begins our short three-day weekend.
Waiting for the Green Line Metro train
Queen Mary Hotel and our ship, the Carnival Inspiration
Main pool area
