Nassau, the Bahamas!

Day 20:

After a rough night at sea, we awoke already in port at Nassau. We had a big breakfast, and jumped on the bus for the Atlantis Resort. This is one huge place! No, we didn't gamble. The plan was to spend most of the day on the beach, but because of the storm, the beach was closed and they put us in a roped off swim area away from the beach a little. It was like a swimming pool (I'm on vacation, so I just couldn't face that) and it was really hot & humid today. I lasted about 5 minutes, and said I was going indoors. We met up later, and walked through the "Dig". It is a bunch of huge aquariums decorated like the Lost City of Atlantis, and filled with a ton of fish. I really enjoy stuff like this, so I loved it. The boys really enjoyed it too. They like marine life.
The resort is located on Paradise Island, and they really try to live up to that.
We ate our free lunch, and decided to return to the ship because it was just too hot. The bus driver gave a tour of Nassau on the way back. Again, I'm reminded of how blessed I am, and how thankful I am to live where I do. There is a lot of poverty in Nassau. I know some kids who went on a Mission trip there last year, and I thought it was just an excuse to go to a tropical island... I was wrong. There is plenty of mission work to do in the Bahamas.
Anyway, remember the wild taxi ride I told you about? This bus trip was every bit as wild, minus the high speeds. These drivers are crazy, and not just the bus drivers. All the cars just honk their horn, and then do whatever they want to do.
Back on board, we enjoyed some of the things the ship has to offer. Free food, music, food, games, food, shops, food, shows, food, art, food, and scenery. Did I mention food?
Tonight, we had dinner at the Animator's Palate. This is a great restaurant. When you enter, everything is in black and white, including the server's. As dinner progresses, color begins to appear here and there, and by the end, everything is in color, including the server's.
Speaking of server's, the same server's follow you from place to place during the cruise. Our assistant server is named Masimba, but he goes by Simba (an appropriate name for a Disney employee). He is a great guy from Jamacia, and is a lot of fun. Our server is named Yavor. He is also a great guy. He is from Yugoslavia, and has been working on the ship for over 5 years.
It's kind of cool having the same serving team every night. You get to know them, and they get to know what you like, and don't like.
After dinner, we went up to deck 9, the party deck, and watched a big pirate party. Lots of people were dressed up like pirates, and it was pretty fun. Guess who showed up? That's right, Captain Hook. Parker was a little quiet at first, but then he decided Hook isn't so bad after all. He was actually pretty proud of himself for not being scared of Hook. At one point, Mickey Mouse flew over us from stack to stack, which was cool. After that, they had a great fireworks display. They shot them right from the top of the ship.
Can you tell this hotel doesn't have the time limit on their internet? I tell ya, I could go on and on about all this stuff.
The seas were calm when we left port tonight, and everyone is feeling great. This too is a nice way to travel. Man, I'm really getting spoiled!
Count you blessings!