Royal Caribbean, "Mariner of the Seas" Cruise

Jan 10 – 17 ... With Doug driving we headed for San Pedro Cruise Terminal on Sunday morning. We dropped off our luggage & walked around Ports of Call Village. We boarded the Royal Caribbean “Mariner of the Seas” about noon. We started out our cruise at the “buffet line” which was just the beginning of our seven day eating experience.
After getting checked in and locating our stateroom (we were on the 9th floor almost directly across the hall from Doug and Fran) we started exploring this magnificent ship of the Royal Caribbean Cruise Line. That evening entertainment was a juggler and a comedian, both very good acts. We opted for the 8:30 dinner seating and met a very nice couple, Todd and Patsy, from Tucson, AZ.
Day 2 – At sea all day heading for our first port-of-call, Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. The weather was cool but mostly sunny. After a while in the gym, we found deck chairs and read most of the day. The evening dinner attire was formal and pictures were taken. Since we don’t do it too often, it was nice to get all dressed up to go out “on the ship”. Dinner was fabulous and the evening entertainment, the Royal Caribbean Singers and Dancers, was very good as well.
Day 3 – We disembarked the ship via tender boats around 10:00 a.m. We immediately saw a booth for a snorkeling trip and signed up for $15.00 per person. This price was much less than if we had signed up with RC on the ship. We had a fun day in Cabo, especially after meeting a local. His name was Enrique who was ironically born in Spring, TX. He took us around “old” Cabo to a authentic Mexican restaurant for lunch. The evening entertainment was good as was the 70’s “dancing in the street” routine preformed by the cruise director and staff.
Day 4 – We disembarked for Mazatlan around 10:00 a.m. The plan was to meet our Canadian friends, George and Gail, at a restaurant on the water near downtown. They are RV’ers who are spending several months in a park on Stone Island which is just off the coast. We hailed a cab, an unusual open air Volkswagen, and after an adventurous twenty minute ride, arrived at Poncho’s Restaurant. We had a wonderful visit, the view was magnificent and the food was very good. The evening entertainment was an ice show presented by a Russian Ice troupe. To say the least, it was a fantastic show. Later that evening, we sat in on the “Love and Marriage Game Show”. Needless to say, some funny and surprising things came out of the mouths of the contestants.
Day 5 – Puerto Vallarta – This once-sleepy fishing village became a popular resort after “The Night of the Iguana” was filmed here in 1964. With two other couples, we hired a tour guide to take us around the city. It was an enjoyable day for sure. Mike, Doug and Fran, even did the “Canopy Adventure”. This consisted of a network of cables, pulleys and platforms whereby you sail over a small river at heights of up to 90 feet. It was a thrilling, unbelievable, once in a lifetime, experience. Dixie stayed behind and took pictures. The evening entertainment was “Pure Energy” by the Royal Caribbean Singers and Dancers.
Day 6 – We were all day at sea on the way back home to Los Angeles. It was a rather cool & very windy day (so windy there was a tsunami in the swimming pools) but we were able to find some sunshine and got in some deck time sunning. This was our second formal evening with Lobster & Shrimp as the dinner specialty. The evening entertainment was a group called “Spectrum”, a tribute to Motown and R & B music.
Day 7 – Final Day at sea! The day was cool and cloudy so we did mostly indoor things such as a visit to the gym, bingo, a talk and Q&A from the Captain, a backstage tour, Karaoke finals, and NFL playoff game in the 19th Hole Lounge. As usual, dinner was wonderful and we said goodbye to our table mates and waiters. After dinner, the late night adult comedy show was a very funny way to end the weeks entertainment.
Our disembarkment on Sunday, went smoothly and we were off the ship by 10:00 a.m. After loading up the car, we drove around the Palos Verde Peninsula & then stopped in El Segundo at a Mexican restaurant that Doug frequented in the 70’s! From there we headed back to Indio where Mike & Dixie’s RV is parked.