Good morning and good Sunday to all. Grandpa and Gommy just got back from a day-cruise to Freeport Grand Bahama Isle and did we have fun or what? You betcha' we did. The weather was cool and the day was delightful. We got up at 3:30 AM to make sure we made it to the dock by 5 AM for boarding. It was still dark when we arrived at Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale but Grandpa, who is notorious for finding the perfect parking place, came through with a spot right by the elevator to the gate we were to board the cruise ship from. The trip was a gift from my daughter Tracey to Grandpa for Father's Day and it has taken us 6 months to find the time to get away. But we did and we had a blast!!!!
Cruising is always an eye-opening and thought provoking event because it forces you to observe other people and other cultures. We all come from different walks of life and ethnicity's and countries, but the main goal of exploring other places and having a grand time while doing it, is Universal. What Grandpa and Gommy saw yesterday was hundreds if not thousands of people enjoying time together and everyone getting along while in the process of enjoying themselves. There was no color-line, no culture-line and no animosity toward anyone. It was apparent that even though we were all going and doing things as our own little groups, everyone seemed to be enjoying their own 'private' party among strangers.
Another thing that we realized on this trip is that we, in the United States, are so fortunate to be able to just 'run to the store' anytime we need to pick up a gallon of milk, some diapers, paper towels, or just about anything you can think of. We talked to some of the fellow cruisers and discovered that they were not especially on a 'pleasure cruise' as much as they were cruising out of necessity. You may ask... WHAT????? Well, it turns out that items are so expensive or not even available in Freeport (and maybe other Island spots as well), that the people have to get together in a co-op situation and come to the U.S. to purchase every day essentials.
It is actually less expensive for the families to get together and send a delegate over to our country to purchase their items at a warehouse-type store, i.e. Sams, Costco, etc. They cruise over to the U.S., buy the merchandise, ship it back on the ship and cruise back to the island, where they are met by the families in each co-op to help load a pick-up truck with their purchases! Can you imagine????
Here, we Americans are cruising to the Islands to enjoy ourselves and in the process we are purchasing items, 'duty-free', while THEY are cruising to the U.S. to buy items to survive in their everyday world. While we were waiting to leave to come back to the USA, Grandpa and Goms watched as these people loaded their trucks from the dock, with the purchases...... and the items were 4 or 5 feet above the bed of the truck. Grandpa said that there was NO WAY they could drive with all that stuff in the back and not have it fall out. Then we saw a man take a huge roll of shrink wrap and shrink wrap the entire bed of the truck. Voile', problem solved. But it did make us realize how grateful we are that we can just jump in the car any time we please to pick up a loaf of bread or anything else we want at our leisure.
The other thing we realized is that you can get along with everyone if you are patient and kind and treat people with respect in the process of any situation you are sharing. Yes, there were times that we felt like cattle, being corralled into different areas, but if you are polite and realize that everyone is going through the process the same way, it shows that it can be done with respect and decorum.
All in all.....it was a delicious and wonderful experience and Grandpa and Gommy had a memorable time together and enjoyed the day immensely. Thank you Trace.....it was a great gift that we shared together.....Hugs, Gommy
