Carnival Inspiration February 2018

Carnival Inspiration

Premier Getaway Cruise

February 2018

In October of 2017, we took our first Carnival Premier Getaway Cruise out of Long Beach, CA. The first cruise was on the Carnival Imagination.  At this point, we had taken 4 other Premier Cruises by Carnival. Premier cruises are basically a "Bonus" for Carnival Casino Players. The cruise goes on as normal, but there are special things in and out of the casino for players who booked their cabins with the special promotion.

Previously, when we had cruised out of Long Beach, the cruise terminal had been under some remodeling, so we were basically sitting outside waiting on our boarding group to be called to proceed. Then when we walked through, we could see that most of the terminal was blocked off. This was our first time where the cruise terminal was actually open and we walked through the entire thing. 

The cruise on Carnival Inspiration was very similar to the previous cruise on Carnival Imagination. The ships are close in age and are the same size.  Even on 2 ships that are close in size, age and style, every cruise is a completely different experience.

Our cruise went to Catalina Island and Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico. Ironically, due to where we live in San Diego County, both places are easily driveable. Well, we can drive to the ferry to Catalina. Obviously, we could not actually drive to Catalina Island.

Our first stop was Catalina, then Ensenada, then a Sea Day, then we disembarked back in Long Beach.  Each day of the cruise, whether we were in a port or Sea Day, there were special things going on in the casino at various hours. Some of the events like the slot tournaments are open to anyone in the casino who has enough points to qualify, but there are some events that are only open to the Premier invited guests. 

Even though the cruise is shorter than the regular Premier Cruises that Carnival organizes, the Premier Getaway is definitely not an afterthought. Carnival Players Club makes sure that these shorter cruises where they have organized a Premier Getaway Cruise are just as much fun for the Premier Players as any other cruise that they have been on, Premier or not. 

Cafe Sevilla, San Diego

Cafe Sevilla
San Diego, CA
February 14, 2018
Valentine's Dinner

For Valentine's Day each year, if we are together and I am not out to sea or working, we try to do something different for Valentine's Day. In this crazy military life, there are so many times when it is an important holiday and yet we can't be together.

For Valentine's Day, we decided to check out a place that we have been wanting to try. Cafe Sevilla is in downtown San Diego. It is probably the best authentic Spanish Experience that you can get in San Diego. For Valentine's day, it was a set menu, and a special show.  The food was excellent and we both definitely enjoyed the Flamenco Show. We both have been to Spain, but it has been a long time. We both would love to go back. Cafe Sevilla was a great "mini trip" to Spain for both of us.  It made an Excellent Valentine's Day!

Las Vegas for my sister's birthday, January 2018

My sister had always wanted to have a weekend in Vegas. At one point before our dad passed away she was discussing it with some of her friends, flying and meeting in Vegas for a few days. Since my husband and I moved to California, we have gone to Vegas at least once a month. With my husband playing in the casinos, he gets frequent deals or freebies. Basically, we can go to Vegas whenever we want.

The death of my father brought my sister and I together for 2 weeks. We hadn't seen each other since she moved from Virginia to Missouri. The military life had put us in Virginia at the same time for several years. We really enjoyed the opportunity to be together, see each other and spend the time with our parents. By the time that our father passed, we have both realized that we are never going to live in the same city again. Her husband and family love Missouri, my husband and I love California. We will probably move back to Virginia due to the fact that we own a home there. 

I was missing my sister, and I randomly just texted her and asked her what she was doing for her birthday. We ended up planning for her to fly to Vegas for a couple of days.  We drove on Thursday, and then my sister flew in on Friday. 

After we left the airport, we went to the Welcome to Las Vegas sign, and then we decided to go to Freemont Street. Within a couple hours of being in Vegas for the first time, my sister talked in me into getting on the Slotzilla Zip Line. 

While my sister was in Vegas, we stayed at Planet Hollywood, we ate at Whalburgers and Mesa Grill, and we saw Jabawockeez and The Tenors of Rock. I will do separate posts for all of the things we did. 

Get Over It

We all make our own choices in life. The best thing you can do in life is make the choices that work for you and what you want out of life. We have chosen to not have children so that we can be free to travel and enjoy our free time. We wanted a life without constraints. 

Jennifer Lopez, All I Have

Jennifer Lopez

All I Have

Planet Hollywood

Las Vegas, NV

We waited until we had been to Vegas many times before we finally saw JLo. My advice, DO NOT WAIT. From what I understand her show is ending soon. The show was very good. We went the full spectrum of her career.

Even if you are not a huge fan of pop music, go see her show before it leaves Planet Hollywood. It is definitely a great show and worth the ticket price.

Knott's Berry Farm, Buena Park, California, December 2017

Knott's Berry Farm

Buena Park, California

December 7, 2017

We love Knott's Berry Farm!

This was our second year in a row taking advantage of the free military days from Knott's Berry Farm.  When we lived back in Virginia, Cedar Fair had the theme park Kings Dominion. Cedar Fair operates Knott's Berry Farm, so the rides are very similar. 

The best part of going to Knott's Berry Farm during the free military days is that the park is decorated for Christmas. We really enjoyed the day. We changed it up and saw some different shows, and tried some different food.

The roller coasters will always be my favorite. My favorite coaster at Knott's is the Silver Bullet! It reminds me of the Dominator at Kings Dominion.

Reasons to be Childfree