2019 is off to a good start as I ended the 1st month of the year with a BANG traveling across the sea to Mexico! 🇲🇽🚢 I travelled for 7 days on the Carnival cruise line with Rastafri Braid to three cities: Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlán, and Puerto Vallarta.
This was my second cruise so I kind of knew what to expect but this was my first 7 DAY cruise! I have never been in the ocean for that long. LITERALLY I was IN the ocean multiple times throughout 3 of the 7 days 😅
Day 1 of 7
The first night is always fun. They have a big sail away party to distract people from the fact that the boat is sailing away and we will be without internet and phone services for the next 7 days 📵 We danced the night (and our service) away!
Day 2 of 7
The next day was our first full day at sea. We spent this time relaxing and exploring the activities they had going on around the ship. There's entertainment all day and all you can eat buffets around the ENTIRE ship. I miss that the most. And free room service. 🙌🏾
My #RastafriTribe and I were the stars of the ship with our colorful and unique hairstyles 👸🏾 We sprinkled #BlackGirlMagic all over that ship ✨ Everyone knew who we were. We were kind of a big deal or whatever 💁🏾♀️ And I did the lip sync battle. Came in 2nd place. * drops mic 🎤*
Day 3 of 7
Now we have arrived to Cabo San Lucas. And of course we have to ride a boat to the shore. Yes. We got off the big boat to get on a little boat to get to the city. THEN we got on a littler boat to a small beach called Lovers Cove where we went snorkeling! This was my first time snorkeling and actually submerging my body in the ocean because I'm the stereotypical black person that doesn't know how to swim, doesn't like getting my hair wet and never lets the water go past my knees in the ocean. The water was beautiful and clear (unlike Santa Monica Beach) and extremely salty. This was an incredible experience that I would do again and would 10/10 recommend everyone try at least once.
Day 4 of 7
Now we set sail for Mazatlán! A beautiful city that reminded me of Spain, not that I've ever been there but ya know. We went on a tour of the city and I really wish we had more time to walk around and explore. The city was like a mixture of New Orleans and Barcelona in the Cheetah Girls 2. The architecture was beautiful!
From here we got on another boat to a small island where we hopped on a tracker trailer truck. Yup those exist. And we were driven to our private beach! This place was beautiful! A full beach with cabanas, open bar, food, and various activities to indulge in! Our activity was a banana boat ride through the Pacific Ocean. This was pretty much a banana shaped water tube that 7 of us straddled while being pulled by a speedboat. Yeah it's as scary and ridiculous as it sounds 😅 And the "worst" part is the driver flipped us over in the middle of the ocean 😱 Yeah this stereotypical black girl who doesn't go past her knees in the ocean, doesn't like getting her hair wet AND doesn't know how to swim was dunked deep into the Pacific Ocean 😨 Ya girl panicked under water THEN went into survival mode real quick and remembered I had on a life jacket. Those things really work! I floated straight to the top.
Once I coughed up all the salt water out of my lungs and struggled to climb back onto the banana boat with my girls, we all laughed about it.
What felt like a near death experience was actually fun. I can say I've been submerged into the middle of the Pacific Ocean 🤷🏾♀️ That's something I NEVER thought I would experience. Would I do it again? Probably not 🙅🏾♀️ I don't mind risking my life for some fun experiences but I'm not risking it twice!
Day 5 of 7
Finally we went to Puerto Vallarta! Another city that required us to go from boat to boat to get to our destination. But this time we were on a speed boat! Kinda scary but a cool experience. I would do it again but this ride felt long AF and the ride back was BUMPY!
So maybe a shorter - less bumpy speedboat ride next time? Once again, I don't mind risking my life for an experience but not twice.
Once we arrived to this island it was absolutely beautiful. Full of greenery and locals. I think I like this place most because it didn't feel like a tourist city. There weren't people trying to sell you things, and guys cat calling you beyonce and chocolate mommy. It felt comfortable. Not exactly SAFE to be walking around ALONE comfortable but like a regular city where tourist were welcomed. It was full of culture. We hopped on a bus that drove through small cities where children were walking from school, people were out in their yards, and dogs would roam free. They would wave and smile at us as we drove by. It was a nice scenary. Kind of felt like a movie. Like a place where they would film a Fast and Furious scene.
Finally we arrived at our destination. Zip Lining! This is my 3rd time zip lining and I've NEVER had a bad experience! Its always a fun adventure with beautiful scenery. We did 14 zip lines! I also recommend everyone try zip lining at least once!
After that we hopped on the speedboat back to the ship that took us home. By this time I was sick as a dog from being cold and wet after being in so much water. Plus I started to feel sea sick the last night on the ship. But I pushed through and we spent the next 2 days at sea before arriving back in Long Beach to rain and windy weather. *sigh* Southern California failed us the one time we needed them.
Do I like cruising? Yeah! Its a lot of fun with the right group of people. Would I choose cruising over flying? NO! I'd much rather get to my destination and start exploring the city as soon as possible ✈️ Overall this was a much needed vacation and good quality time with my #RastafriTribe. I have been an ambassador and employee for Rastafri Braid for over a year and they have given me countless travel opportunities and adventures that I would never have experienced on my own. This trip was a real life Girls Trip! And I am beyond grateful to have had the opportunity to be apart of it!
Now back to reality and back to the grind. I got a college degree to finish and a business to jumpstart! ✌🏾💞