New Orleans Cruise - Port of Costa Maya, Mexico

   All day Monday we were at sea so we did not pull into our first port until Tuesday at Costa Maya in the Yucatan pennisula of Mexico. There was not much there until the cruise port was built but the location is well suited for visiting several of the ancient Mayan ruins in the area. Right off the end of the dock is a shopping area with bars and a big swimming pool.

   Bridgette and Karen opted to swim with the dophins. Margaret was the photographer.
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Mayan child winking at us

Terre on the temple

   I went with my Mother, aunts and sisters on the Mayan Reality Tour. Unlike a lot of ancient civilizations that have disappeared over time, the Mayans have survived and are still living on their ancestor's lands. We were bused to a small Mayan village which does not appear that different than many Mexican towns but has the remains of a Mayan temple. The school children attend school half the day and the other half are at the temple greeting the tourists, selling hand made crafts and posing for pictures. 
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Scenes from a Mayan family farm

    Next we visited the home and farm of a Mayan family where they cooked lunch for us in a clay pot buried in a pit with hot coals. Lunch was a type of barbecued chicken served in fresh home made tortillas with home made guacamole - delicious! We were able to tour their home which was divided into different thatched huts, one for living and sleeping, one for cooking and one for worship. Lush foliage and beautiful flowers were everywhere.
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New Orleans Cruise - Port of Belize City, Belize

   On Wednesday we anchored off the shore of Belize and were taken into port on small tender boats. Belize is known for having hundreds of islands and a coral reef along its shore. This coral reef is second in size only to the Great Barrier Reef in Austrailia.

   My sister Terre, Mom and her sisters went on an airboat ride up the Belize River.
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Barb in her snorkel outfit

Underwater view of the reef

   My sister Kathy and my cousins Mary and Erin and I went on a snorkel trip followed by a visit to an island beach. Kathy was having trouble keeping the snorkel mask from leaking so one of the staff pulled her around the reef on a life preserver (I thought that was awesome of them).

Kathy, Mary and Erin at the beach

After snorkling we got all the free rum punch we could drink while we went to the private beach.

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New Orleans Cruise - Port of Roatan, Honduras

    Roatan is an island off the mainland country of Honduras in Central America.  This island is one of the prettier islands in the Caribbean with lush green covered mountains and beautiful blue water. At this port people chose many different activites.

Shipwreck in Mahogony Bay

     Terre and I took a tour of the island that was part by bus and part by boat. On the boat part we rode through the harbor where the cruise ships were docked. There are a couple of ship wrecks in the harbor. The guide said they were wrecked off shore and blown into the harbor by hurricanes. Now they are popular dive locations and serve as reefs for the fish.

View from the top of Roatan

Garifuna dancing

Our bus tour route took us around the island where we could see the villages people lived in, their schools and homes and many scenic overlooks. We stopped to view a performance by the Garifuna, the native people of Honduras. They sang, danced and cooked for us.
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Bridgette surprised by a parrot

Karen on the rope bridge

Karen with a monkey on her head

    Bridgette and Karen went to Gumbalimba Park. They toured a lush garden with rope bridges and got to interact with parrots, iguana and monkees.
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Margaret, Kathy and Grace holding a dolphin

Kathy getting kissed

.   Aunt Arlene, Aunt Grace, Betty, Kathy, Mary and Margaret went to the Dolphin Encounter at the Roatan institue for Maritime Studies (RIMS). After seeing the dophins do tricks, they each got a kiss from a dolphin and got to pet one and hold it.
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New Orleans Cruise - Port of Cozumel, Mexico

Cozumel waterfront

    Cozumel has a pretty and lively waterfront. There is a wide sidewalk with a seawall and bench along the water. Across the road the street is lined with shops, bars, restaurants and museums. The water here has beautiful shades of deep blue to turquoise.
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With our server at Torro's

     We decided to just walk around town. I had the intent to walk to the town square but our ship docked next to a shopping plaza that you had to walk through to get into town. We got waylayed in the shops and found some good bargains. By the time we made it down to the street we were already getting tired. We decided to walk upstairs to Toro's Place restaurant which has a open air patio with a great view of the water, street and the cruise ships. A marriachi band was playing. We so enjoyed sitting up there we just stayed there until it was time to go back to the ship.

Posing on the seawall in Cozumel