Day Cruise to Paradise

This post needs a bit of a different introduction. Back in 2010, I took an unusual trip – I went to Massachusetts to meet in person two guys I had become best friends with from an online writing forum and had known for five years. That trip ended up having a different outcome than I had originally expected in that one of the guys – Steve – and I discovered our feelings for each other were actually much deeper than friendship. Thus began a roughly 2 1/2 years long distance relationship. While it ended due to issues I won’t get into, I’m relieved to say our friendship survived, so I have no qualms posting about this trip.

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In 2011, I wanted Steve to meet my dad, since we had recently passed the one year mark. My dad lives down in Florida, so the two of us decided to plan a trip down to Florida together, and to include a quick day cruise to the Bahamas.

I could be wrong, but as far as I know, the practice of a one day cruise from Ft. Lauderdale, Florida to Freeport, Grand Bahama has now been halted. Lucky for us, it was still in operation when we were down there in May.

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2011 Bahamas Day Cruise1

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Our ship was the Discovery Sun, and we enjoyed our time aboard it. Because the cruise itself is only a day trip, you don’t have access to a room, so all of your belongings are with you. While the ship is also much smaller than most cruise ships, it still felt like we had plenty to do to keep ourselves occupied.

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We sat on the deck, we watched the limbo contest, we checked out the game room, and on the return sail, we even watched a movie in the ship’s theater. All in all, and especially for a day trip, we had a great time.

The event we most looked forward to was docking in Freeport, Grand Bahama and going on our excursion. The cruise came with three excursion options, so we chose one that offered us a traditional lunch followed by free time on a beautiful beach.

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The beach we were driven to was Junaknoo Beach Club at Taino Beach, and though the name gave me a chuckle, the beach itself was simply beautiful. White sand stretched as far as we could see, and the shallow water was the clearest I had ever experienced.

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The food was quite tasty, and if you want, you can rent kayaks, paddleboards, and other various water transport devices. As for us, we were content to just relax together on a warm beach, not a care in the world. I mean, we were going to kick ourselves later as we cursed and rubbed aloe over our sunburned bodies – guess who forgot sunscreen? – but at that point in time, nothing was troubling at all. How could it be, when this was your view?

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2011 Bahamas Day Cruise3

12 thoughts on “Day Cruise to Paradise

  1. Hey there… I am been salivating over the bahamas for a long time – so thanks for the wanderlust… I am sorry to her about your break up. That is always hard especially a long distance thing – I did it internationally for a year and all ended up in tears also.. But bounced back all the better. Great that you can look back positively on the experience and now blog about it..

    1. Dating long distance is so challenging, so I completely sympathize. I’m sorry for your break up as well. Hopefully like me you came out of it stronger than you were :). The Bahamas are definitely worthy of salivating! A handful of hours was not enough time, and I look forward to returning someday.

      1. That’s very kind of you. Mine was a long while ago and I am now happily married to a beautiful English rose! So it all worked out the way it was suppose to… I hope you find the happiness I have also. Bahamas is now on the wanderlust list that’s for sure.. Can admit that a few hours would not be enough for me either of have to explore as you can see form our blog we are big explorers

      2. Congratulations! I also feel things happen for a reason and the right things fall into place when they’re meant to. I look forward to checking out your blog!

      3. That sounds amazing! Both for where you live and where you have travelled. I’m hoping to make it to England & Scotland next summer. As for Canada – I’ve driven from Ontario all the way out to Nova Scotia, but I’ve never been west. I have to say I’m jealous!

      4. Keep reading there’s so many places to see and I think we are on 41 countries now… You never know what’s around the corner. If you need any advice or plan for the uk feel free to get in contact always happy to help a fellow blogger

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