8/8/12 around 3:30pm

Well today we spent a glorious day in the Bahaman sunshine. We went to Paradise Island, to hang out at the beach near Atlantis, although you can’t really go on thre Atlantis beach unless you pay like $200 or something ridiculous. I mean, seriously? Not even Disney costs that much for a day.

I wore a bikini. First time in several years, as I lost about 35 pounds between July and December of last year and have kept it off. It felt great, and what was even better was that the top was too big. It wasn’t that comfortable, and I had to keep pulling it up until I finally decided to tie it in a knot to keep it up where it needed to be.

Last night we ate on the Lido deck in the casual eatery, mainly because I just didn’t feel like getting dressed up or hanging out with other people. Before that, the ship had a great event for past guests where they gave out free drinks and some snacks. It was neat because they also showed a film with all the past and current Carnival ships, which was cool because we got to see all of the ships we’ve traveled on in the past. Five in all, we’ve been on in 7 years, plus one Royal Caribbean.

At the event, I got up on stage and danced with a group of other passengers. It was such fun. I just love being on stage. I always have.

Today, we got up leisurely and headed for the beach. If you want to go to Paradise Island beach, just take a cab to the Riu hotel as the beach access is just on the other side. It will also save you from having to walk through the entire Atlantis shopping area, which, if you’re like us and just wanted beach time, is not something you are interested in in the least.

The beach was sunny, warm, with a nice breeze, and the water was the perfect temperature. It was crowded, but it was manageable. (I can’t stand cigarette smoke, so right at this moment, I’m gagging from our cabin neighbor’s smoking habit that is now my unwanted habit.). It costs $4 US in a cab, one way per person, to get to the beach and back, so instead of booking a shore excursion for $100+, our outing today cost us $73 including chair and umbrella rental, cab fare, and lunch, for the entire day. Not bad, as most excursions don’t include lunch or the chair/umbrella for two people.

We’re seasoned travelers. We know what to pack, how much to take, and aren’t afraid to go a bit off the beaten path. If you are as well, or even if you think you’d like an adventure, take a cab and make your own adventure for the day. We’ve had some really nice shore excursions and tours, with some of our favorites being cave tubing in Belize, the jungle tour in Puerto Vallarta, and catamaran snorkeling in Kauai. The times we’ve made our own path, though, have been wonderful and much less-costly than excursions. Plus, after being on a boat with 3,000 of your closest friends for several days, it is nice to get off on your own for a bit.