England, of course!

In honour of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.

Just a few of my favorite spots in England, in no particular order ...

1)  Anne Hathaway's Cottage - village of Shottery, Warwickshire
The romantic in me absolutely loves this spot!  Anne, wife of William Shakespeare.

2)  Lower Slaughter Manor - village of Lower Slaughter in the Cotswolds
When 9/11 happened, I promised myself that I would not allow the crazies of the world to win.  I would not allow them to change how I live my life.  I vowed to be on the first international flight once the grounding had been lifted.  And that flight was around Thanksgiving time, November 2011 to London.  Van, a dear friend of mine, was going to be in London, as well, we decided to spend several days in the Cotswold.  We stumbled upon the lovely Lower Slaughter Manor.  Everything about this luxury hotel is exquisite!

3)  Sanderson Hotel - London
Peter, a close friend of Van's, was managing the hotel so naturally we stayed here.  A very chic and hot hotel.  Check out the elevator ... makes you feel as though you're floating in outer space!

entry with the lips sofa which I love!

very chic lobby

the 'long bar'

after hours 'purple bar', for guests only

4)  Phone booths and corner flower shops ...

5)  Beach Blanket Babylon - London
It's been several years since I was at the bar at this restaurant/bar, but it was very 'BoHo Chic'!

6)  Brick Lane - London
Once poor slums, this electic Bangladeshi area is full of bars, music, art, dancing, restaurants, shops ... fun!  Stacey & I had great fun dancing at The Vibe Bar and dining at an Indian restaurant.

7)  Countryside and Footpaths
I love the English countryside!  Love the public footpaths and the highly-hedged roads.

8)  Bath, Somerset

The mesmerizing town of Bath.

9)  Tea shop at Fortnum & Mason
Fabulous tea!  Also, make reservations and enjoy high tea here.

"God Save the Queen"!

8 Hours in Cozumel, Mexico!

Have only 8 hours to spend in Cozumel?  There's a lot you can do but I highly recommend renting speed boats!  It's fantastic (I caught air)!  And if you're with a group of friends it's even that much better.  Check it out:

http://www.cozumel-tours.com/speed-boats.htm


It's only a 4 hour gig, so what to do next?  You can ...

- swim or lay in the sun
- stroll the shops of Cozumel and buy some silver jewelry or a marble chess set
- dance on a table top with a tropical drink in hand at Carlos & Charlie's (yes, even at 4pm)
- negotiate a great deal on a marble chess set
- tequila tasting:  there's a great little tequila shop in the main road facing the water.  I don't recall the name nor can I find it online, but it's tiny...very manly in design with it's wood & leather...and they have just about every type of tequila there is (at all price ranges).  There's a small tasting bar inside that seats about 5 people.

Hasta luego!

Coast Guard Repatriates 48 Cuban Migrants

This shares what happened to the Cuban refugees rescued by our Royal Caribbean ship, Navigator of the Seas, along with the Key West Coast Guard, as well as other refugees ... 

Posted 4/8/11:

MIAMI — Coast Guard crews repatriated 48 Cuban migrants interdicted during five separate events to Bahia de Cabañas, Cuba, Sunday and Friday:

Coast Guard Repatriates 48 Cuban Migrants

Royal Caribbean International & the Key West Coast Guard Win My Loyalty!

I'm a bit surprised myself.

Mainstream brands aren't apt to capture my attention.  It takes a lot.  But sometimes the winning is in the heart, not in the tangible.

Yes,
I was impressed with our stateroom and veranda.
I was even more impressed with the stateroom and veranda of our travel companions.
I was impressed with the attention to detail and service we received.
I was impressed with the joy every staff member had in doing their jobs.
I was impressed with the piano player in the piano bar.
I was impressed with the champagne bar.
I was impressed with the musicians in the latin bar.

Those won my affection, but they did not win my loyalty.

What won my loyalty is the human kindness shown by the young Swedish Captain Patrik Dahlgren of the Navigator of the Seas.

As I sat with a friend next to the ship's rail on the starboard side enjoying lunch and a cold beer, our ship passed a small rickety boat full of Cuban refugees including children.  They were shouting for help as they bailed water out of their boat.

I became nauseous and tearful as we quickly passed them and they faded into the horizon.  The entire ship became more alive than usual as everyone was upset and contacting the ship's bridge requesting assistance for the refugees.  Very quickly, Captain Dahlgren was able to stop our extremely large ship and turn her around.

We found the refugees just 50 miles off the coast of Cuba and 35 from Key West.  We waited with them until the Key West Coast Guard arrived to complete the rescue.

I'm sure this happens all of the time so it's not 'news-worthy' given what is happening in Japan and the Middle East.  But I want it to be.  I think about their risk/benefit analysis and decision to take the risk with their lives to come to the US.  I want them to be able to remain.

I can't find anything online that tells me whether or not our 'Wet Feet/Dry Feet' policy remains, or whether the Leahy-Levin Refugee Protection Act of 2010 passed and impacts 'sea refugees.'

And I cannot find anything online that tells me what happened to these desperate people.  I'm saying prayers.

My affection and loyalty has been won.

Thank you to the Royal Caribbean and the Key West Coast Guard!