2024 Feb 4-10, Five-Day Carnival Valor Cruise to Cozumel and Progresso, Mexico (5 Day Crusie) Cozumel, (Mexico) Pregresso (Yucatan) 3 Sea Days

 Sunday, Feb. 4: Travel to Slidell, LA.

We stopped at Jack's for breakfast, where we enjoyed gravy, sausage, and biscuits, and then at Murphy's in Petal, MS, to fill up on gas.

We stopped at McDonald's for some pies and used the restroom.

We checked in at Hampton Inn by Hilton Slidell, LA, room 213, and then went to Texas Roadhouse for dinner. I ordered grilled chicken and a baked sweet potato with rolls, while My Hubby ordered a Caesar salad, steak, and a baked potato.

Grilled chicken and baked sweet potato

We returned to the hotel, where we met a man unloading his car. He asked us if we were cruising with Carnival. I think he saw the Carnival luggage tag on my carry-on baggage. He and his wife were from Birmingham, AL. He said they had been cruising since the 90s. They had been on about 30 different cruises on different ships. We saw them leave the following day.  

Monday, Feb 5, Travel to New Orleans 

Ate breakfast at the hotel with 2 waffle rounds with whipped cream, sausage, and cranberry juice. 

Checked out of the hotel and headed to New Orleans around 10 A.M. 

Paid for parking at Erato St Cruise Terminal $125

We parked the car and walked to the elevator for the boarding process. For lunch, we ate at Guy's Burgers. 

And ordered a cheeseburger and fries. Our room, 6434, was ready by 1:30 P.M. 

The ship left port around 3:30 P M. Let the party begin. 

It was too cold on the Lido Deck, so everyone met in the American Lobby. 

The Crimson Trio 

We listened to the Crimson Trio in the American Lobby. 

We ate dinner in the Lincoln Room. I ordered a shrimp cocktail, a crawfish strudel (savory baked phyllo, sweet corn remoulade), Szechuan Shrimp (scallions, garlic, angel hair noodles, peppers, and bok choy), and a cheesecake with strawberry sauce. 

We sat next to a couple from Washington state. Said they lived on an island and watched cruise ships come up the Pacific Ocean. 

We also sat next to a mother and daughter from Columbus, Mississippi. 

Tuesday, Feb 6, Sea Day 

Watched the sun come up from my balcony. 

sunrise

At the Omelet Station, I ordered a made-to-order loaded omelet with bacon and a side of chocolate milk for breakfast.

9:00 A.M. made two necklaces at Creativity at Sea in the American Lobby. 

We attended the Fun Ashore Giveaway at 10:30 in the Ivanhoe Theatre, but unfortunately, we didn't win anything. 

Lunch was at the Mongolian Wok, where I ordered shrimp stir-fried veggies.

Mongolian Wok Asian flavor, your stir-fried rice noodles,  veggies, sauce, and shrimp (double) cooked in unique culinary creations. 

I met a woman from Louisiana who was passionate about Mongolian food. She had several food bowls available for crew members because they didn't have time to wait in line.

Took a long nap.

Dinner at the Lincoln Diner, where I ordered Herb-crusted salmon with asparagus, sweet potatoes, and a shrimp cocktail, as well as Carnival's Chocolate Melt Cake with Ice cream. 

We sat next to the mother and daughter from Columbus, Mississippi, again. 

We visited the VIP Show at 7:00 P.M. in the Ivanhoe Theater. 

Wednesday, Feb 7, Cozumel 

Breakfast in Lincoln. Dinner ordered waffle, omelet, sausage, and water. 

Went ashore in Cozumel around 9:00 A.M.

We walked around to several shops and bought Ron a pair of Crocs. 

Took several pictures. Walked up the street to Margaritaville, where we ate lunch. 

We ordered three tacos, one Pepsi, and a Sunrise Margarita. We walked back to our port area, stopping to take several pictures of the Coral Reef display. 

Stopped to take pictures in front of a couple of donkeys at the 3 Amigos. 

I had dinner in the Washington Dining Room, where I ordered a Shrimp cocktail, Chicken, Veggies, and a chocolate melt cake with ice cream. 

We listened to the Crimson Trio in the American Lobby. 

Chac Mool ("Red Claw") 

Thursday, Feb 8, Progresso 

Breakfast: Omelet, bacon, pastry, and Chocolate milk. 

All-inclusive Shore Excursions are at 9 A.M. and will take you to Mi Casa Es Su Casa Private Beach, your way. 

Back on the ship by 3:30 P.M. 

Lunch consisted of avocado dip, chips, a pina colada, and Coke. We watched our host make the dip using Mangoes and tomatoes. Cilantro, salt, pepper, and avocados.

Dinner: Stuffed mushrooms, Fried Mississippi Catfish(cornmeal-crusted), spinach, mac & cheese, tartar sauce, and a banana split. 

Excursions to a private beach with around 40 people took place on a bus with 2 children. A nine-year-old named Sabrina. Our host prepared a delicious lunch for us, which included Mexican Avocado dip, chicken tacos, and more. We had a bartender who mixed drinks. I ordered a Pina Colada and my Hubby a margarita, both virgin. 

I walked along the beach, and the water was cold. Monday, a storm had come through with 50 MPH winds, so the water was a little choppy and dirty. Not many people went into the water. Most everyone sat in beach chairs, and some under umbrellas. Lunch was served around 10:30 A.M. 

Around 10:30-11, we heard a mother call out  Sabrina, where are you?

She was nowhere to be found. Everyone joined in the search for Sabrina up and down the beach, inside the house. Going from one neighbor's house to another. A neighbor called the police. Five showed up at the beach. A detective went along the coast, circling Sabrina's footprints. Neighbors called their friends, and several reported seeing a small girl walking up the beach, crying. 

She had walked about 1 1/2 to 2 miles up the beach to the nearby hotel. When they found her, she said, "I thought my family had left me, so I walked back to the ship. You could see the boat from the beach. 

They took her to the hospital to be checked out for dehydration. 

The family was returned to the beach house, where everyone enjoyed eating and drinking the rest of the day. 

Everyone was so proud to see the little girl, Sabrina.

I overheard the mother ask Sabrina about her adventure, but she said, "I don't want to discuss it." 

The mother's feet were covered in scratches from running through the thickets while searching for Sabrina. 

Everyone loaded onto the bus and began our journey back to the ship. Thank God we were able to return with everyone. 

We were back on the ship by 3:30 P.M. The ship's departure time was scheduled from 3:30 to 4:00 P.M., but we didn't leave until almost 5:00 P.M. because a bus carrying a group of people was running late returning from an excursion. 

The bus drove straight to the ship, letting people off at the boarding area. This was a very eventful day. 

Welcome to Yucatan

Friday, Feb 9, Sea Day 

Breakfast with Doctor Seuss' Cat in the Hat, thing one, thing two, in the Lincoln Dining room.

Hubby ordered Green eggs with ham and funny Belgian Waffles. I just ordered Funny Belgian Waffles with Moose Juice.

At the Ivanhoe Theater, we created a bulldog and an elephant out of towels and purchased the Towel Art Book. 

Lunch was #6 Cuban Mixto: a roasted pork, ham, yellow mustard, Swiss cheese sandwich, accompanied by 3 cookies and vanilla ice cream. 

Bought Build-A-Bear for St Jude on the Lido Deck. 

Hubby took a long nap while I watched TV.

Ate a salad for dinner. 

We watched 90s music and We Are the World in the Ivanhoe Theater. 

We did the Debark process in the Carnival App.

funny Belgian Waffles

Saturday, Feb 10, Travel Home

Breakfast Lido Deck 9 Omelets, chocolate milk, pastry. 

Waited for our app to tell us when to embark. 

We went through the immigration process, loaded our car, and started heading home. 

We stopped in Petal, MS, to fill up with fuel. 

Stopped at the Welcome Center  for a break

Ate lunch at Cracker Barrel in Meridian, MS

I ordered Fried Shrimp, Pinto Beans, cornbread, chow, and tartar sauce. 

I bought some chocolate candy and a shirt for Hubby. 

It began to rain in Russellville and continued to rain all the way home. 

 

Growing up in the Shoals

Earline in Story-Land was enjoyed by many children in the Shoals Area, including myself, for over 22 years.
All I remember about Earline Burns was her television show and where she lived.
Both my grandparents lived in Sheffield, and one of my grandparents went to Church not too far from Earline's house.
We moved to Florence in 1962. Sometimes, when we would travel to Sheffield, we would go by  Earline's house on Hatch Blvd., but most of the time, we would travel down Second Street.
I remember seeing her blue Cadillac Convertible sitting in front of her small pink house, which had been torn down.
My parents lived in downtown Sheffield when they married and moved to Tuscumbia when I was about 2 1/2.
Entertainment was watching a movie on the big screen, either at the Theater or a Drive-in.
I saw many movies at the Colbert Theater, Tuscumbia Theater, Norwood Theater, Shoals Theater, Wilson Drive-In, and Joy-Land Drive-In.
My siblings and I would walk to the Shoals Theater during the summer months and watch a movie for ten cents.
I was always small for my age and could get into the theater for the child rate long after I had outgrown it.
I remember Buck's night at the Drive-In.
We would go around the neighborhood, filling the car full of neighborhood kids.
We could all get into the movies for $1 per carload.

I don't remember listening to the radio, but we did own a black-and-white TV.
Dad worked for Mr. Hensley Jarrett, hauling large power poles. Our TV Antenna was atop one of those tall poles. I remember the pole had spikes, and Dad climbed to the top to install the antenna, with wires running into the house to the rabbit ears on top of the TV.
We could pick up all the local channels.

We watched shows like Gunsmoke, The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, The Bob Hope Show, Calling All Cars, The Cisco Kid, Death Valley Days, Dragnet,  & The Lone Ranger.
Since I never listened to the radio, I did not know that many of the television shows that I watched were once live radio shows.

Many famous people came to the Shoals in those early years, but growing up there, they were just another face in the crowd.

When I was a teenager, just turned sixteen, I worked at Shockley's Pancake House, which was across the street from the Holiday Inn, where many famous entertainers stayed when they were in town.

I served the Four Seasons, and I  had no clue who they were.
As a working girl who never listened to the radio, I had no clue who came into our restaurant.

Now that I am older, I am learning so much about the Shoals Area that I have been a part of.

I walked the streets of Florence, Sheffield, & Tuscumbia, and  I spent many hours at Spring Park.

I remember Dad bringing home a trunk he had gotten from the Helen Keller Home, which had been thrown away.
It had several books inside the trunk; one was a Blue Hardback Brothers Grimm's Fairy Tale Book.
I read that book many times.
When we moved to Florence in the early 1960s, the Fairy Tale Book must have been thrown away because I never saw it again.

I remember going to Spring Park, riding the train, and playing on all the playground equipment, which was like an amusement park.
There was a swimming pool just up the street, and inside the park was a large wading pool.
The park fell into disarray for many years, and its glory days are gone forever.

I remember the Liberty's & A & P Supermarkets where mom shopped, they gave S & H Green Trading Stamps, Plaid Stamps, and Top Value Stamps just for shopping at their stores.
When collected into multiple books, we would take them to the Trading Stamp store to redeem for merchandise.

So many things we no longer have as time changes.
We now have cell phones, no sharing party lines, and phones hanging on the wall.
We no longer use an outhouse; we now have portlets.
We no longer have to heat the house up to cook; we have a microwave and convection ovens.
We no longer use glass; everything comes in plastic.

Gasoline is no longer 100% and costs 25 cents a gallon.
A new Corvette, fully loaded, costs over $ 80,000.

In the next twenty years, many will be living in Space.

One hundred years sounds like a lifetime.
When I was a kid, I thought 30 was old. Now, one hundred doesn't sound that old.

🍉🍉🍉2016 Friday, Aug 19, Watermelon Festival Russellville

We arrived at the Watermelon Festival in Russellville a little before 6:00 P.M. 
We parked on the street behind the main street and walked one block to enter the Watermelon Festival.  
As we walked up Main Street, we saw Daddy's Roasted Sweet Corn, which was positioned near the Roxy Theater.  
Posted on the marquee was "Welcome to the 36th Annual Watermelon Festival." 

Main Street was crowded with vendors on both sides, and many people were buying their wares. It was a struggle just to walk up the street because it was so crowded.
A little breeze was blowing, but not enough to take away the humidity. The sky was filled with dark, heavy clouds, ready to burst into rain. 

We could hear the Kerry Gilbert Band beginning to play.

We could hear the Kerry Gilbert Band as they began to play. We walked toward the sound of the music. 
When we arrived in the band area, the sun was beaming down right into my eyes, so we had to find a shaded area where we could watch the band. 

We had brought chairs to sit in, but left them in the van, so we ended up sitting on the concrete curb near the tables filled with juicy, red slices of watermelon, free for the taking. 

We sat and watched the band play while the watermelons behind me said, "Come get a slice." 
So, I walked to the table full of sliced melons and picked out a slice, making sure I had plenty of napkins.

Free slices of red juicy watermelons! Make sure you grab enough paper towels!

I listen to music while eating the melon, with juice dripping down my arm. 
I savored every bite until nothing was left but the rind. 
I found only a few seeds in the watermelon slice, which I spat onto the ground. I found a garbage can to dispose of the rind, and I wiped my face and hands of all that red, sweet juice from the melon.

Slices of the red juicy watermelon were going fast. 

Kerry encouraged the crowd to clap. 

Kerry is an Elvis Presley fan, and he sang one of Elvis's songs, Suspicious Minds.  Kerry gets way down on the base, with the song Way Down. 
Kerry, Hugh Banks, Terry Frank, Randy Kimbrough, Alyssa Ashley, Mitch Curtis, and Wendell Dean performed an a cappella of the gospel song "Sweet Sweet Spirit."
Alyssa Ashley and Mitch Curtis performed a Dotty West Song, Two Worlds Collide. 

Several women and a man got up and danced, while others clapped and stomped their feet to the music. 

SWEET TREE Productions controlled the sound system and provided the stage for the bands.

When the band ended, we walked back into the crowded streets. 

Fresh Squeezed Lemonade YUM!!!

We saw Smoothies and Tropical Treats by Dixie Concessions.
We saw Corn Dogs, Chicken tenders, Mozzarella Cheese Sticks, French Fries, Ribbon Fries, Philly Cheese sticks, Polish Sausages, and Funnel Cakes. 

We saw on the Roxy Theater Marquees facing down Main Street: Whiskey Tree Guest Kendra Hope, Travis Wammack, and Snake Band Saturday, August 27, 6:30 P.M.

We saw Captain Marvel and Spiderman.

We saw Protect and Serve Police Officers. 

We saw Protect and Serve Police Officers. 

We saw Mickey and Minnie Mouse, along with children, getting their pictures taken with them. 

We saw U.DO. IT Chill Factory, Alabama's Best Fresh Made Ice Cream, Tharptown Wildcats Cheerleaders, Boy Scouts, Italian Ice, & Dipping Dots Ice Cream.

We walked to the carnival rides where we saw Mickey, Minnie, Donald, and Daisy's Bouncing House. We saw children buckled into the Reckless ride. We saw children loading into Pirates Revenge Ride. 

Swings, Mind Winder

Monster Truck 

Reckless and Mickey, Minnie, Donald, and Daisy's Bouncing house

We saw a giant Monster Truck called Mayhem, an inflatable, and a large inflatable slide. We saw children being slung around on the swings. 
The last ride we saw was the Mind Winder.

Standing in Silence, the Festival Festivals 36 years, is this Historic Home.e 

Facing one another at the end of the festival, Silence two historic Homes.
On the right was a red-brick house with two chimneys. To the left was a white siding three-story home with a red slate, a triangular roof, a rounded dome room on the third level, and a covered front porch. 

We started back up the street where we saw a young boy riding the bull; he stayed on for 48 seconds. As we walked past, I said to myself, not me, that bull can buck someone else off. 

I ain't afraid of no GHOST!

As we walked up Main Street, we saw a Ghostbuster.
Not yet dark enough for any ghosts. 
Yet there may be ghosts lurking in the two houses just beyond the festival, or Festivalwalking among us!