We've Been Busy...Kinda

Hope everyone had a great holiday season.  Hard to believe it has been that long since our last post.  We will try and catch you up on what we have been doing.

Since landing in Portland, TX, we have been learning our way around and getting to know the neighbors.  Made some great friends that we have been hanging out with on occasion.  Unfortunately, they did not have a long-term reservation and had to move to another park.  Good news is that their new place is near the beach and within an easy drive.

We can now say that we survived the first Christmas alone.  It wasn't easy, but thanks to technology (video phones), we made the best of it.

The new year came and went with no big fanfare here.  Pretty much business as usual for us.

Bob celebrated a birthday on January 8th with a trip to Galveston.  We were supposed to have a luncheon and tour on Royal Caribbean's Mariner of the Seas, but due to fog in the harbor, that was cancelled.  However, he was surprised by a visit from our daughter from Ohio.  We had been secretly planning the visit for some time.  Sure was fun to spend a few days with her!

Now, why have we been so busy?  Well, for one of our Christmas gifts, we received a monthly golf membership to the local Country Club - Northshore Country Club.  We have been making the most of the membership and playing nearly every day.  Feels great to be back on the course again.

That, coupled with running our travel business, has kept us hopping.  Things are starting to get back to normal and we are feeling very settled in.  Hopefully, we will be able to post more regularly again.

See ya down the road!

Carnival Magic FUN in Galveston

Our job has some really great perks.  As travel agents, we get to experience some of the new travel products when they first come out.  Last Sunday, we were able to take advantage of one of those opportunities and attended the Carnival Magic Inaugural event in Galveston.  The ship made its US debut after being put in to service in May in the Mediterranean.

This is Carnival's newest and largest ship.  It certainly is beautiful.  For those of you familiar with cruising, and Carnival cruises in particular, will be pleased to hear that there are many new features on this ship.

One of the most popular new features is the Red Frog Pub.  This is an island themed pub setting that even has its own beer (Thirsty Frog) brewed exclusively for Carnival.  The pub area has indoor/outdoor seating and a game area complete with Foosball table and darts to name a few.  There is also an area for live entertainment.

The Cucina del Capitano is another popular addition.  The Italian restaurant offers free pasta bar for lunch and a specialty menu for dinner for $12 per person.  The decor is lovely with a lot of photos and momentos from the cruise line's past.

The Sports Square is a great place for kids of all ages.  There is mini-golf, a Sky Course (ropes), Sky Fitness and Sports Court to keep everyone in the game.  Also, an interactive EA Sports area is located here.

The adults only Serenity area that was recently added to many of the ships has been expanded.  The much larger area comes complete with large cushioned chairs and hammocks.  A very relaxing place indeed.

As you can tell, I can go on and on about all the fun things to see and do on the ship.  We will be posting a video where you can check it all out.  More to come on that later as it is still in production.

The Carnival Magic will be sailing 7-day E. Caribbean and W. Caribbean itineraries from Galveston.

Fun for all and all for fun!

Day Trip to Ft. Worth

The week has been kind of crazy here.  We were getting ready for our busy weekend. First up, Carmen goes to the vet Friday to get spayed.  Saturday, after college football, of course, we head out to the Zac Brown Band concert.  Can't wait!  And, last but certainly not least, Sunday, we will be going to Galveston to check out Carnival's newest cruise ship - the Carnival Magic.  We'll be sure to share our experiences at the concert and the ship, so be sure to check back next week.

Even with us trying to get ready for all the hubbub, we were able to slip away for an afternoon to Ft. Worth.  Anyone staying in the Dallas area should make a visit to Ft. Worth.  There is something for everyone.

Our first stop was a quick visit to the TCU campus.  The football stadium was getting renovated with a lot more seating.  The campus was very scenic and quaint.

After that, we made our way to the downtown "Districts".  They have three - Cultural District, Sundance Square District, and the Stockyards.  The Cultural District is home to the Will Rogers Memorial and several museums.  The Sundance Square is a nice shopping and eatery area.  Some of the merchants will even validate your parking garage ticket with a purchase.

Our favorite area was the Stockyards.  There are a host of restaurants and pubs located within a couple of blocks.  The streets are all brick and the atmosphere takes you back to the wild west days.  There is even a free Cattle drive daily (11:30AM and 4:00PM).  If traveling there, you must go in and check out the hotel too.  The decor and artwork inside are truly amazing.

We would have liked to have stayed longer in the Stockyards and enjoyed some dinner.  However, we had to get back to "the girls" so we stopped long enough to try a Buffalo Butt beer - brewed locally exclusively for the hotel bar.  It received two thumbs up!

Better get back to making sure we have everything in order for the rest of the weekend.

See ya down the road....