Originally, we were going to be in Honduras on Day 3, but it was too far to go with out late start on Monday, so they altered the itinerary to Costa Maya. I wasn't thrilled with the switch, because it was the only port where we didn't have an excursion, but really it was no big deal. Plus, it gave me a chance to explain the geography of it all of the boys.
We woke up early enough to go to breakfast at Cagneys, and take advantage of our suite perk. They didn't have a table for six, so we split two and four, but that was fine.
I loved the French Press Coffee. Asa, Hayden, Peyton and I all had some.
Asa ordered the crab cake eggs benedict. It's exactly as awesome as you would expect it to be.
I had challah bread french toast with berry compote. This is probably one of my favorite things I had on the ship, but I'm a breakfast kind of girl.
Hayden got a waffle, and mom had some lobster and poached eggs. It was a weird presentation (it was kind of like, wait, where's the lobster?), but the flavor on it was delicious.
Peyton went with the classic steak and eggs...
And Calib also got the crab cake eggs benedict.
Thats our concierge, and he was super cool. He was from the Philippines, as denoted by the flag on his name tag. Peyton had used the flags all over the ship to brush up on his capital cities while we were gone, and when Roel heard him doing this, he told Peyton about how the colors on the flag can switch positions depending on if the country is at peace or not, Peyton was asking him about life in his country (He was very impressed with our kids), and he was awesome talking to Peyton all about how unsettled politics are back home. He said his dad is a mayor, and it's a very dangerous profession. His mom even made him promise he wouldn't go into politics. He also told us the amount of islands in the Philippines depends on the tide. Low tide can add as many as 400 islands!
Anyway, long story short, he really took to our kids, and he ended up giving them a little keychain made in the Philippines. So, I'll go ahead and count that as home school for the day.
After breakfast, the ship was nearing the port, so we stood at the top deck to watch us come in.
Costa Maya is basically a town made just for cruise ships. There really isn't a whole lot there. They're rebuilding from a hurricane that basically decimated the place a few years ago, so they're still rebuilding.
We were lucky that two out of our three ports docked on our side of the ship, so we could see everything from our room.
Hello, Mexico!
I wanted to make a point to get their picture taken under the Mexican flag.
Costa Maya is a lot of touristy shops...
...with touristy goods....
...for the tourists...
There wasn't a whole lot offered in ways of excursions, and I heard the port was nice just to hang out in, so we decided to just do that.
They had a pool for the cruise ship guests to swim in, and after my experience in the wavy cruise ship pool, I was happy to go in one on solid ground.
Plus we had a lovely day for swimming.
They were selling coconuts, and even though I had one in Hawaii (and hated it), I wanted the boys to give it a try.
I still wasn't a fan, in case you were wondering.
And while everyone tried it....
...nobody really liked it.
They also had a swim up bar, Calib saw all the drinks in the big cup and really wanted one, so we asked if we could get one with Sprite. The guys at the bar were confused and said Calib could have any drink he wanted and Asa was all "um, no".
But, that doesn't mean Asa didn't get himself a drink.
It was a nice couple of hours off the boat exploring the tiny port of Costa Maya.
But around lunch time, we decided to head back to the boat.
Goodbye, Costa Maya!
And hello again, cruise ship!
Asa and mom discovered the buffet was serving sangria, so they helped themselves while we had lunch at the Market Cafe.
We decided to hang out by the pool the rest of the afternoon, and Asa got me a drink. I did have a sip of every one of Asa's drinks, but this (and the champagne at the captains reception) were the only drinks I had. It was an ok mudslide, but I didn't even finish it.
Asa started letting Calib pick out his drinks... and Calib went with the moscow mule.
Note to Asa: don't let Calib pick your drinks ever again. Blah.
We went swimming...
...and hit the hot tub..
...before the ship was ready to leave port.
Asa wanted his usual afternoon snacks and O'Sheehans...
where he discovered the 'toasted almond' was much better than the moscow mule (thanks to Peyton's suggestion).
Hayden was at kids club, Calib and Peyton were off with their friends, and mom was working on her school work, so Asa and I wandered the ship looking for things to do.
We tried out the driving range, where I was still terrible.
Asa, meanwhile, could at least hit the ball.
We played ping pong...
...and shuffle board. Which, we didn't exactly know how to play, we just made up our own rules.
When we got back to our room, Made had been there, and he left WAY TOO MANY snacks.
I think for the most part, we only ate the grapes and a few cookies.
We spent more time in our room this time around, mostly because it was so awesome.
Plus, all that eating and playing is exhausting.
A little while later we were headed to dinner, and we flipped our room number to "turn down the room". I loved the concept of that, instead of hanging something on your door. It was great, so bravo to whoever thought up that feature.
Dinner on Wednesday was at the specialty restaurant, La Cucina. Usually there is a cover charge, but it came with our package, which was awesome.
By now the boys were putting their napkins on their lap without being reminded, and were getting the hang of the fine dining things. Hayden decided from here on out he wanted his drink served to him in wine glasses, and of course, they were more than happy to accommodate him. (Since he was so polite about it and all).
He also wanted to order everything himself. Even when he ordered things like : Bruschetta, Pork Scallopini Marsala, and Affagatto.
I again skipped the appetizer, but Asa went with caprese. I love fresh mozzarella, so I stole a bite.
Hayden ate all of his bruschetta, minus the anchovies.
Mom had minestrone soup...
And Peyton wanted to give Beef Carpaccio a try.
I'll give you one guess how that went. But bravo to him for trying, right?!
For our main dishes, I ordered grilled shrimp with baked eggplant, and it was amazing. I actually wished I had like three eggplant rolls, and I am not an eggplant fan.
I was glad I went with the shrimp, because all the other portions were huge.
Asa got the veal shank.
Mom and Calib got lobster alfredo, and they probably could have just split one.
Peyton's chicken parm was bigger than him.
But Hayden's Pork Scallopini Marsala was a good size for him, although he wished he had more broccoli.
Nobody finished their meal, but that doesn't mean you can't have dessert, not on a cruise ship anyway. Peyton and mom had the chocolate tart. Peyton isn't a huge chocolate fan, but he liked it.
Hayden liked the Affagato, even with espresso!
And Asa and Calib got Rhubarb Panna Cotta.
This had mixed reviews for us, we couldn't decide if we liked it or not.
I went with the classic tiramisu!
While the Italian place was my least favorite of all the Specialty restaurants, this dessert was my favorite on the ship. Well, next to the nightly crepes.
We went back for Hayden to change in time for his nightly kids club event, and we had our next towel animal waiting for us.
Mom, Asa and I went off to the theater for the show, and it was actually pretty awesome. Think a mini two person Cirque Du Soleil.
Then we hit the Spinnaker Lounge for drinks, and Who Wants to Be a Millionaire.
There may have been more than one drink.
We picked Hayden up from Splash Academy, and he had made me a bracelet. You know, to go with my sea sickness bands that were oh so fashionable.
And we had to stop for our nightly crepe.
We headed back to the room to relax, but I was feeling a little sea sick. The nice part about the room was how each bed could be curtained or walled off to be their own room.
Mom and Peyton's bed were completely surrounded by heavy curtains.
A pull out wall separated me and Asa from Calib and Hayden, and then we had a curtain on the other side.
It was a pretty awesome set up.
We also had Made bring us a movie almost every night, for Hayden to watch.
Around 11, Asa wasn't feeling tired, and I was feeling sea sick so he took the boys off for their own adventures while I went to sleep.
I guess there was ping pong..
...golf...
And then they went out for even more food.
That's it for Costa Maya and Day 3!
Up Next: Roatan, Honduras
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