Hurricanes? Where?

During the week prior to Card Player Cruises' recent poker adventure to the Caribbean, Hurricane Wilma warnings started being sounded. This prompted calls from more than 100 nervous cruisers to inquire if the ship would still be sailing as scheduled. I assured our passengers that the cruise would still go, and that we would be safe. From prior experience, I knew that the captain of the ship would steer us out of harm's way, and that if necessary, we would be rerouted to avoid rough seas or inclement weather while in port. Sure enough, we had perfect weather and tranquil seas, and with the exception of one alternate port (we substituted Ocho Rios, Jamaica, for Puerto Limon, Costa Rica), the itinerary was as scheduled. We never would have known that there were hurricanes in the area if it wasn't for the e-mail from friends who were concerned that we might be having a rough time.



We were lucky to be cruising with Holland America, who allowed us to set up our poker room in the Explorer's Lounge, a public room with a piano bar, big picture windows, and plenty of room for 12 tables. After a welcome-aboard party and dinner, we opened the cardroom for live play and had games ranging from $1-$2 to $20-$40, plus no-limit. The games went all day and late into the night while we were at sea, and there were four tournaments with $100-$200 buy-ins.



If you've never been on a cruise, I'll run through some of the highlights. Typically, each day there are four different first-run movies in the cabin, plus one in the movie theater, as well as a Vegas-style show every night. There also are games such as Outburst, Yahtzee, Pictionary, and Scattergories, ping-pong, shuffleboard, crafts, golf putting and chipping, karaoke, athletic activities like yoga and Pilates, art auctions, trivia, a full casino, and lectures on a wide variety of topics. Of course, food is available around-the-clock, including complimentary room service, buffets multiple times a day, a pizzeria, salad bar station, ice cream bar, pasta bar, sandwich bar, and a gourmet restaurant. There always are lots of dance venues, including the disco and various lounges around the ship. A full range of spa and beauty services are available from morning until night, and those who like to shop can browse in the duty-free stores.



The first stop of our cruise was at Half Moon Cay, Holland America's private island in the Bahamas, located less than 100 miles southeast of Nassau. The beach there is the prettiest I have ever seen. Some of the available excursions include fishing, swimming with the stingrays, snorkeling, parasailing, horseback riding, nature walks, banana boat rides, and kayaking.



A day at sea was followed by a stop at Willemstad, Curacao. There, our cruisers had choices of shopping, a canoe safari, the trolley train, a beach excursion, folkloric show, dolphin encounter, scuba adventure, or semi-submarine trip. The next day in Oranjestad, Aruba, we had ideal weather for ATV trips, horseback riding on the beach, kayaking, a four-wheel drive expedition, scuba, the screamer jet boat, and more shopping. I took a group of people to De Palm Island, where we enjoyed a Sea Trek adventure that involved walking 25-feet down on the bottom of the ocean, snorkeling, and a tasty barbecue lunch.



Following another day at sea, we transited the locks of the Panama Canal and dropped anchor in Gatun Lake for a while. Most of the passengers who went ashore in Colon, Panama, opted for either the Panama Canal experience or the aerial tram over the rain forest. I decided to stay on board and have a relaxing day watching a movie and getting a massage.



That evening, the captain announced that because of a possible hurricane situation, he was going to skip Costa Rica and reroute us to Ocho Rios. This turned out to be very fortunate for me, as one of my all-time favorite shore excursions involves climbing the 924-foot waterfall at Dunn's River. We assembled a group of 24 brave souls who made the exhilarating climb, and celebrated escaping any injuries by going to a Jamaican "jerk pit" and chowing down on jerk chicken and pork. Yummy!



Tomorrow will be our last day of the cruise. Personally, I'm ready to turn it around and sail for another 10 days, but duty calls in the form of a trip to Minnesota for a charity fundraiser, and then to Foxwoods for the World Poker Players Conference and the filming of a WPT event there. I hope you're enjoying your poker playing and get to combine it with some wonderful travels.



Now, let's play poker.

Linda is available to host corporate nights, poker events, and seminars. You can contact her through her websites at www.cardplayercruises.com or http://www.lindapoker.com/.