MSC Seascape – Spring 2025 Day 1 & 2 March 13 & 14

We are going out of a port we have never used before, Port Canaveral.

Our flight on Allegiant left directly from Bloomington airport at 8:24 and landed at the Sanford International Airport at 11:42, basically a 2hour and 20-minute trip.

We picked up our rental car and headed to our hotel, a Fairfield Inn & Sites in Titusville.  We are about 30 minutes from Port Canaveral but this Marriott was about $200.00 a night cheaper that one close to the port!!

We had dinner at a restaurant right on the Indian River and it was fun and had some good food.

It was a long day so we went to bed and watched on the iPad the University of Illinois/Iowa basketball game and yea for the Illini!

 

Day 2

We woke very late to temperatures in the high 70’s

Finally it was time to leave so we went downtown to a restaurant that we had read about and had their sampler patter of 8 different dishes.  A couple were a little too spicy for Ed but the rest were just fine.  Barb liked them all.

While we were walking around the restored downtown, we went into the Titusville History Museum and they told us of a great spot to watch the launch later in the evening.

After that we attempted to go view the Manatees along Indiana River; however, the police had shut off the road because of the space shuttle launch.

By this time it was 4:00pm so we came back to the hotel to change our clothes and go back downtown along the Indian River to view the launch.  From our vantage point we could look across the water to the launch site which was only 6 miles away and we could see the rocket poised for lift-off.

Precisely on time, the rocket lifted off and we followed it up and then in about 4 minutes the booster stage came down to land on a barge just off-shore.  It was amazing to watch it.

We then ate dinner at a first restaurant before going back to the hotel to watch the 2^nd half of a very bad University Basketball game which they lost.  All of our teams, Syracuse, Miami, and Illinois are now out for the Big Ten Tournament and that leaves the major tournament, the NCAA tournament for us to watch.

                                                            Becker wants to go also

                                                      By the hotel pool

                                                        First evening out

                                                     Dinner - Tuna and Shrimp

                                                            Going out - Day 2

                                                               Lunch from New Orleans

                                                                The launch site

                                                                 The launch

                                                 The booster rocket return to a barge landing

New Years – 2025 – Day 10 – Saturday, January 11 2025

We woke up to being docked at the MSC’s private island called Ocean Cay.

We were here a couple of years ago and since then they have added land and facilities.

The Yacht Club area is the farthest away from the ship and they had golf carts so of course we hopped on one to get to area set aside for us.

They brought us up lounge chairs to go on the grass between their beach and restaurant.

We had a delightful lunch of 3 entrees - Lobster Roll, Salmon, and Steak.

The weather turned very cloudy later in the afternoon so we decided to go back to the ship.

As we got to the ship, I think everyone on the island realized that it was about to rain and it did.

Thank goodness we got in before the rain.

The ship was to stay in port until 7:00pm; however, the Captain cut the visit short because of high winds starting along with heavy rain.  They called everyone from the ship off the island and set sail at about 4:00pm.  It was a little rocky at first but calmed down by 4:30pm.

Tonight the entertainment was from the music of Michale Jackson and it was very good.

We had dinner with a couple we had met yesterday from Italy and had a lot of fun.

We are docking in Miami tomorrow and taking a rental car to the St. Petersburg airport – a 4-hour drive.

We fly Allegiant and will be to Peoria at 7:22pm and then pick up an Avis rental car to drive home.

We have had a wonderful cruise on a great ship with unbelievable service, including a good casino.

Tonight, in the casino, for the second night in a row, we had the must obnoxious tables and most fun we have every had!  Their were only two of use, ourselves and the pilot from Frontier Airlines who were not playing up to $2,000 a hand and also had way too much to drink.  We certainly had fun on the table - how could we? - we did.  For the cruise and Barb was postive and Ed had a huge win and together it was the biggest 7-day cruise total ever!!  WOW!

It will be good to be home.

Night and see you at home tomorrow.

Packed and ready to leave tomorrow

Drinks in the lounge

                                                                          

                                                                     Menus

                                                 A nice win for Barb later that night

                                                                 Videos for the day

                                                             Ocean Cay and the Yacht Club

                                          (there is a bad place in the middle, just skip over it)

                                                      Having Lunch at Ocean Cay with 

                                              the Yacht Cay Head Butler and the Maitre d' 

                                                Our wonderful Butler Aryana walking us off the ship

New Years – 2025 – Day 9 – Friday, January 10 2025

Today we are at sea all day and the best way to describe it is that it is HOT!

No clouds, a little wind, and a perfect day to be up on the pool deck, which is where we were for breakfast, sun and then lunch.

We did a walk-around the upper decks of the whole ship and below you will find the regular pool and ours – quite a comparison!

At 2:30pm we came in showered, and then went to the casino for a qualifying round of blackjack.

Ed did qualify for the tournament but did not win.

At 4:00pm we went to the lounge for afternoon tea with the butlers which was fun.

A busy and fun day.

We went to the show which was called a Guinness World Record Show were passengers and crew attempted to break world records.  A little hokey and but we sat through it.

Dinner of course was wonderful and we spent time at the end of dinner with a couple from Italy and plan to have dinner with them tomorrow.

Night from the sea and tomorrow is our last day and a stop at their private island Ocean Cay and it will be fun.

                                                             Time for dinner

                                                              Snacks in the lounge before dinner

                                                                      More snacks

                                                                   Salmon for Ed

                                                 Lamb for Barb and yes she picked them up!!

                                                      Having High Tea in the Yacht Club Lounge

                                         This was the tour of the Yacht Club kitchen from last night

New Years – 2025 – Day 8 – Thursday, January 9, 2025

We docked at the island of Ise de Roatan, Honduras, an island off the mainland of Honduras.

We are not going into this town as the reports from the US government and what we have read are not very good.  The ship even said “Don’t wear any Jewelry”

So we laid out on the pool deck and ate lunch with the former football player and had a great time with him.

After lunch we stayed on the pool deck until later in the afternoon when a couple came to the deck for musical entertainment.  They played Reggie and were very good.

At 4:00pm we came back to the room, changed, and went to the casino to play in the slot tournament and blackjack qualifying rounds.

Then we came back to the room to get ready for the evening.

Tonight the entertainment in the theater was a production show featuring all of the singers, dancers, and acrobats of the cast.  It was one of the best of any cruise.

Then we went to dinner where we met the football player and his wife and had arranged a tour of the kitchen by the head chef and we were invited to go along.  It was amazing how small of a kitchen it was.

Dinner was great as usual.

Tomorrow is a day at sea and it should be very relaxing.

We have included a video of the entertainment that came to the Yacht Club and they were very good.

Night from somewhere in the ocean heading towards home with only one stop left.

 

It's White Night

Barb's Lamb Shank

Enjoying dinner with new friends

Lisenting to music on the pool deck

New Years – 2025 – Day 7 – Wednesday, January 8, 2025

We had already docked at our second stop – Cozumel when we woke up.

This is a very short post because we really did nothing and there was no reason to get off the ship!!

Breakfast was on the pool deck. 

Then we laid out on the pool deck and ate lunch.

After lunch we stayed on the pool deck until late in the afternoon.

Then we came back to the room to get ready for the evening.

Tonight the entertainment in the theater was a magician and he was very good.

Then we went to dinner where we met a couple from Cleaveland.  He is a huge man and a former football player.  He was a star through college; however, he did not make it to the pros in the US.  He did play a little a pro league in Europe. 

We have included some videos that we have made so far that we thought you would enjoy.

Night from the sea – heading to Ise de Roatan, Honduras, which is an island off the coast of Roatan.

Our for dinner

Having some wine in the lounge before dinner

                                                     Beef Tartare for an appetizer

                                                                   Salmon

                                                                Beef Short Ribs

                                    Here are some videos from the trip

                                              Boarding the MSC Seaside in Miami

                                        A walk around the pool deck of the Yacht Club

                                                  Wishing Barb a Happy Birthday

New Years – 2025 – Day 6 – Tuesday, January 7, 2025

We had already docked at our first stop – Costa Maya when we woke up.

It had been raining; however, the good new is that it had stopped.

Since it was cloudy, we decided to walk into town on a very long pier.

Costa Maya is basically a made for the cruise industry “town,” but we had fun walking around even if it was drizzling.

We went to the restaurant to have lunch and had an enjoyable lunch while meeting new people.

Finally we got ready a little early and went to the lounge for snacks and some wine.

Then our butler took us to the show and show tonight was a comedy show and the comedian was pretty funny.

We met a delightful couple at our blackjack table tonight and snuck them into the Yacht Club Lounge and spent a couple of hours just haveing fun talking about all things family.  He is an airline pilot for Frontier Airlines and she travels the world for her work.

Tomorrow, we dock at Cozumel, Mexico, and if the weather is sunny, we will probably stay on the ship.

Let’s hope so.

Night for now.

                                                                Ready to leave the ship

                                                   On the shuttle getting to the port

                                                             Just had to sit for a face "fix"

                                                           Testing something strong together

                                                                   Walking back to the ship

                                      Time for dinner, the show and then the casino

A salad for dinner with tuna

New Years – 2025 – Day 5 – Monday, January6, 2025

We woke up to beautifulhot weather as we are at sea and headed for our first stop – Costa Maya.

One of the nicer things about the Yacht Club is there are so few people that you don’t have to get up early and save lounge chairs.

There are 2200 cabins on the ship and of those only 80 are in the Yacht Club – now that is being spoiled!

After breakfast by our pool, we spent until 1:30pm relaxing there, including eating a great lunch of carved Salmon.

Then we came back to the room to change and go to the casino for the first day of qualifying for the Blackjack tournament.   Ed did ok but there are two more days of qualifying so we will just wait and see what happens.

We then went into the general area see what kind of shops they have.  They have lots of shops and things for people to do on the ship, including 2 lanes of bowlng.

Tonight is elegant night and we enjoyed most everyone dressing up in our area.

The show tonight is called Moondance and it is a tribute to Michael Bublé and it was very, very good.

Tomorrow is our first port; Costa Maya and we don’t know if we are going to get off or not.  We will see what tomorrow brings us.

Night from our first sea day.

Eds's breakfast

                      Barb's lunch at the pool with of course a little wine always makes lunch special!

                                                   Going out for the afternoon

                                           The brought us wine during the afternoon.

                                                    Ready for the evening

                                          Barb's Lobster