Quote Originally Posted by Thumper View Post
Number 1 - The LAST thing I do is go to a port side souvenir shop! I always head inland ... and seldom on one of those ship provided tours. We usually find a local and hire him to show us the non-touristy spots or to some of the touristy spots WITHOUT stopping at every souvenir shop in town to "stretch our legs"!

Number 2 - We don't eat at Carlos 'n Charlies ... we hang with the locals and eat where they eat.

Number 3 - I don't think I've ever stopped at a port for a 4-hour stop. It's always a minimum of 1-day, sometimes 2. Heck, I was on one cruise that stopped in Cozumel for three days.

Number 4 - I stated on one of these pages that there's a difference between a tourist and a traveler. I always try to be a traveler when I vacation.

Number 5 - Did I say you're an old curmudgeon?
We've seen the cruise ship crowds from the other side. Usually there are one or two 'cruise ship days' a week. They swarm like locusts and the traffic is bad, the dive boats are full of wetsuit wearing divers in 85 degree temps who suck all their gas in about thirty minutes causing everyone else to have to ascend with 1200 psi left, and those are the days we hit the nearest pool bar or local hideout and drink.

And I'm betting if Carlos and Charlie had a buffet and cricket bar you'd be there in a New York minute!

(I know it sounds snooty but I'm getting to where I hate diving with idiots)

BKb