I recently sailed on the Carnival Triumph, a cruise that I had been eagerly
awaiting for almost six months.
I bought a ton of new clothes, and made a
packing list two months in advance so that I wouldn't forget anything. It
worked: I didn't forget anything, but then I also brought practically my
entire room with me! I was only going with my parents, and I was really
worried that I wouldn't meet anyone to hang out with for the week. Here is my
day-by-day account of that cruise--from the teen perspective, of course--complete with a selection of photos that you can click into.
DAY 1
Our flight arrived at Miami Airport around 10 a.m., and at 10:30 we were told
we couldn't get a bus to the ship until noon. My parents and I sat around in
a little restaurant until it was time to get to the ship! We got a bus to the
pier, and saw the Triumph for the first time at around 12:30. I was so
excited I could hardly stand it!
We saw a TON of people waiting to check in. But we had a Category 11 room, so
we got Skipper's Club treatment--meaning you get to walk past everyone in
line, practically straight onto the ship. It took us about 15 minutes to
board, while it took others an hour and a half or more!
I walked around the ship for awhile, but I already knew how to get around
since I had been on the Carnival Destiny, which has the same layout as the
Triumph. After an hour, I got really bored, and worried that I wouldn't meet
anyone for the rest of the cruise! I found my parents and ended up eating and
going on a spa tour with them. After that, we proceeded to the lifeboat
drill.
After the drill, I went up onto the Lido Deck with my parents to watch the
ship sail away from Miami. The Imagination and Explorer of the Seas were also
leaving at the same time.
As we were waving goodbye to Miami, I saw two girls, Victoria and Diane, whom
I had talked to on the bus ride to the pier. They came over with their
parents to where I was standing, and I started talking to them. I found out
that they only live about 20 minutes away from me! Once we got out to sea, I
ended up walking around with them.
We explored the ship for awhile, and as we were cutting through the South
Beach Club Buffet, we saw three guys, so we walked over and started talking
to them. Their names were Dusty, Micah, and Eric. All of a sudden, I was
feeling a lot better about the cruise - I met five people in less than two
hours!
Our first dinner was coming up, and I got my luggage just in time to change
into a nice outfit. My luck was still holding: Sitting at our table were
three other teenagers--Rachel, Adam, and Scott. They all turned out to be
really cool, and I was glad that I got such a good table.
After dinner, I went to the disco with the people I had met earlier in the
day. There were so many teenagers there--it was great!
At 11 p.m., we left the disco and went to the hot tubs, where we stayed until
they were completely drained. After that, myself, four other girls and the
three guys went down to the guys' cabin and just talked and hung out. I went
back to my cabin around 1 a.m.
DAY 2
I got up and laid out in the sun for 2-1/2 hours with my parents. Then I met
up with Victoria and Diane, and we found the three guys.
Cabin Girls Click for Pic
We all went down the waterslide, swam, and got some lunch. I went off with the girls for a while. We got milkshakes from the Cafe, and they were great!
We were addicted the second we started drinking them, so we got at least one
or two every day after that! On the elevators, we met a really cute guy named
Brandon. He was on his way to formal dinner in his suit, and we were just
chillin' in our bathing suits, so we felt very under-dressed!
That night, there was a teen disco hour on the Lido Deck stage. There weren't
Click for Pic
many people dancing. I am not the greatest dancer, so I didn't join in. I
went with Diane to talk to a guy we saw, named Tom. Diane had a thing for him
for a little while! We walked around and ran into Brandon on deck. He talked
to us, even though we didn't think he would after seeing us looking all nasty
in the elevator! After that, I went to the Midnight Comedian with Victoria,
Diane, and Tom. It was hilarious, but definitely not for little kids! Again,
I turned in around 1 a.m.
DAY 3
Snorkel Girls Click for Pic
We're in Cozumel, Mexico! We went on the Nassau Sun boat, and Victoria and Diane ended up being on our same tour.
We snorkeled off the boat for awhile, and I laughed to think how at that very
moment, all my friends were in school taking their final exams! Our school
ran really late this year.
Me and my mom snorkleing Click for Pic
We got back on the boat and headed to the beach. As we were going, waiters kept coming up to us girls and asking "Would you like a beer, or a
margarita?" It was pretty funny, since our parents were standing there,
giving us the "Take it and you're dead" look.
We got to the private beach, and there were rafts, volleyball nets, tables
and umbrellas, and a really cute little bar/hut all set up.
Cozumel Beach Click for Pic
The beach was absolutely gorgeous! We ended up playing volleyball with a
bunch of people, and some of them were really cute guys! It was fun, except
for the fact that I'm terrible at volleyball! By the end of the game, I was
just standing around. Everyone knew that if the ball came near me I wouldn't
hit it, so whoever was next to me took over!
It was time to head back, so we got back onto the Nassau Sun. The ride back
to port was a lot more fun than the ride out: Music was playing and we were
dancing all over the decks. A conga line started, and when we did the
Macarena, a woman we didn't even know came over and took our picture!
Carlos 'n Charlie's Click for Pic
My parents and Victoria and Diane's parents got along really well, so we
ended up getting cleaned up and going into Cozumel with them. We ate lunch at
Carlos 'n Charlie's, which was very interesting--It was only 3:00 in the
afternoon, and there were already people dancing on the tables. The waiters
loved us.
After we finished our lunches, a waiter came over and said I had to come
dance with him. I said I wouldn't unless Diane came, so he had another waiter
dance with her! Victoria thought she was safe, but she was wrong--a third
waiter grabbed her, and he was doing some pretty freaky dance moves! It was
hilarious.
Afterwards, we shopped around Cozumel for a while and went back to the ship
around 6 p.m. It was so hot we couldn't stand to walk around any more! When
we got back on the ship, it was practically empty, and there were no
activities going on. So we ended up going into the Rome Lounge and dancing
around on stage, since a guy was in the booth working on his light set. That
got old really fast, though. We were sitting in the seats and I was so bored
I took a picture of our feet!
Crafton, Lauren, Diane, and Tom Click for Pic
The three of us walked around the ship and did absolutely nothing until about
11:30 p.m., when everyone had to be back on board. We went to the disco for a
little while, but I didn't really want to dance. Diane and I and a couple of
the guys--Crafton and Tom--ended up going to the Lido Deck at the very back
of the ship and just talking for a couple of hours.
DAY 4
This was our second day at sea. I slept in kinda late, and got
breakfast/lunch with Victoria and Diane. They had to meet their parents, so I
went up on deck and laid out with Brandon. Victoria and Diane came up later
and we all laid out in the sun some more. (Why didn't I get tan? That's what
I'm wondering!) We decided to get something to drink and we ran into all the
guys we had played volleyball with in Cozumel.
We talked to them for a bit, and then went to watch the Marriage Show. It was
really cute--the guys had to go up on stage and sing love songs to their
wives. The three of us went to get milkshakes, and then it was time for
dinner.
The Past Carnival Cruisers party was that night, so I had to go with my
parents. It was kinda boring, but the three guys we were hanging out with
showed up there, so I talked to them until dinner. At dinner that night, we
had our first conga line of the week! Of course, I had to join in on the fun.
Towel animals Click for Pic
I went back to my cabin and changed after dinner, and what did I see? All of
our towel animals from the previous nights were sitting out together on the
bed! They looked so cute that I just had to take a picture of them.
I hung out with the volleyball guys for about an hour in the lobby, and then
we went to the disco for the rest of the night. I went in around 1 a.m.,
since I had to be up early for Grand Cayman the next day.
DAY 5
I think Grand Cayman was the prettiest of all the islands we went to. We took
a tender to shore, and from there took a bus out to a small dock, where we
got on a boat for a half hour ride to the Stingray City Sandbar.
I wasn't that nervous until I got there. The water at the sandbar was perfect
- warm, totally clear, and so blue! The bad part was the school of gigantic
stingrays swimming all around--it freaked me out! I quickly learned that the
best way to avoid touching the stingrays is to just snorkel and float on top
of the water. They'll come really close and swim right underneath you, but
they'll never actually touch you.
We came back and ate lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe, then went shopping and
headed back to the ship. That afternoon, I checked my e-mail, although it
cost me 75 cents a minute - I think I am seriously addicted to the computer!
I looked around the ship's stores and hung out with a couple of the guys
until dinner.
Click for Pic
That night, I went with Victoria and Diane and we got our pictures taken by
the ship's photographers. It was fun, we felt like models! That night I
danced in the disco most of the time, and I also hung out with Dusty for
awhile.
DAY 6
We docked in Ocho Rios, Jamaica, and my family took a small boat out to
My family Dunn's River Falls Click for Pic
Dunn's River Falls. On the way, I had my hair braided by a woman who worked
on the ship. It was $2 per braid, which seemed kind of expensive to me since
I only got my hair braided halfway back! Still, she did a really great job.
Then we climbed up the falls - wow! It was amazing. For the most part, the
climb up the rocky waterfall was pretty easy but a few parts were so steep a
guide had to pull you up.
After the falls, the boat stopped at a snorkeling area but I just laid out in
the sun and talked to some teenagers that were on there with me. After the
yacht tour, my parents and I went to Soni Shopping Center. I got all of my
souvenirs for friends here. I wish I would've bargained sooner--my parents
told me I could get really good deals if I tried, but I was too scared at
first. In the last store we visited, I saw some crystal tattoos that I really
wanted. They were $20, so I told the guy I could buy them cheaper on the
ship. So I ended up getting them for $12, and I was pretty proud of myself!
Lauren and Cruise Director John Heald Click for Pic
Back on the ship, I went to Victoria and Diane's room, where we watched the
passenger talent show on TV. It was really good, and the bedtime story they
put on afterwards was hilarious! That night, I had been invited to the
captain's cocktail party, so my parents and I went to it before dinner. I got
to meet the captain and the cruise director, John Heald.
Dinner was formal, and everyone looked great.
Lauren and Dusty Click for Pic
There was a problem though. I had forgotten to take my seasickness pills that
morning, and the ship was really rocking. I didn't get a salad or appetizer
at dinner, and when I got my dinner I barely touched it. I left the dining
room and went to the cabin to get some seasick medicine. I fell asleep until
about 10 p.m., and then I met up with Victoria and Diane. It wasn't a very
exciting night--a group of people got pizza and we ended up hanging out in
the guys' cabin for a few hours.
We were all sad because the next day was going to be the end of our awesome
cruise!
DAY 7
This was our last day at sea! I was super tired, and slept in until almost noon. I went to the South Beach Club and ate lunch with Brandon, Eric,
Victoria, and Diane.
I went to my cabin to change and go lay out in the sun. As I was going
upstairs, I ran into Josh and Dusty. I was really mad--Dusty and I laid out
for three hours in the sun with no sunscreen on at all. Did I get tan? Nope.
Did I even burn? No! I didn't get anything. It was very depressing. I
figured, at least I have the braids. Maybe SOMEONE would be able to tell that
I went somewhere!
Then it was time to go back to the cabin and pack... It was really hard
because I kept thinking, "Tomorrow at this time, I'll be home." The final
dinner was terrific as usual, and I said goodbye to all my tablemates.
All week I had been determined to go in the casino but we were always too
busy. The last night, we were in the casino for about an hour. I was just
glad that they didn't ask me for ID! I spent $10 on the nickel slots, and won
$2. I can see how people get addicted to gambling!
We danced in the disco for a little while and then went to the guys' cabin.
They turned on the movie "The Littlest Vampire," and everyone made fun of me
because the movie cracked me up! I just couldn't help it. One kid said, "Is
this the kind of movie you watch in Michigan when you aren't driving your
tractor around?" (For some reason everyone thought I was a hick because I'm
from Michigan. I'm really not, though!) We danced in the disco and got our
final slices of pizza. I went into my cabin around 4:30 a.m.
DAY 8
I got up the last day at 7 a.m., and after just two hours of sleep I was not
a pretty sight! I had bags under my eyes the size of Montana. I met up with
Dusty and Trevor at the South Beach Club, and then we went down to the guys'
cabin.
Everyone was saying goodbye and just trying to stay awake. Dusty came with me
to my cabin to say goodbye for the last time, and I felt like the biggest
idiot because I started to cry! People were walking by looking at me like I
was crazy.
My dad got us VIP luggage tags, so we were the first people off the ship. It
was so sad to look at everything one last time and think that I would
probably never see it again! We sat around the airport for about two hours.
Victoria, Diane, and a family that sat at our dinner table were all on my
flight, so I talked to them while we waited to board. The worst part was when
I fell asleep on the plane: I woke up and thought I was still on the ship -
imagine how disappointed I was when I opened my eyes. At the airport we
picked up our luggage and drove off into the sunset... back to reality!
POST-CRUISE
Coming home is always hard, but I think it's a lot harder for us teenagers
than for our parents. When our parents come home, they still have the people
they hung out with on the cruise - their spouse (if they have one) and their
kids. When we come home, we are so far away from all these new people we met!
I met people from Oklahoma, Florida, Oregon, Ohio, and tons of other places.
We don't know when or if we will ever get to see them again, and it's not
fun! The night I got back, it didn't feel like the cruise was officially
over. My two best friends came over, and I told them every single detail of
the cruise.
Also, Dusty called me! It was really cool to hear from him. The next day, I
dropped my pictures off. About four days after the cruise, I met up with
Victoria and Diane at the mall, and we exchanged pictures and hung out for a
few hours. That was really cool--it was the first time I got to see people
from the cruise again after it was over. I'm trying to have fun, but nothing
this summer will be as fun as the cruise was.
around 6 p.m. It was so hot we couldn't stand to walk around any more! When
we got back on the ship, it was practically empty, and there were no
activities going on. So we ended up going into the Rome Lounge and dancing
around on stage, since a guy was in the booth working on his light set. That
got old really fast, though. We were sitting in the seats and I was so bored
I took a picture of our feet! 
