Winter is in full swing and if you’re like me, you’re craving some warm weather! Good news is it’s not too late to make Winter Travel plans. If you have kids and planning for everyone including food and activities seems daunting, why not go on a cruise? A cruise is great for all ages especially if you don’t want to worry about anything once on board the ship.
For families, Carnival Cruise Line, the leader in family cruising, carries nearly a million kids a year and offers fun for all-ages, including spectacular water parks, suspended ropes courses as well as family-friendly experiences like as the Seuss at Sea, which is an exclusive partnership with Dr. Seuss Enterprises. They also keep it close to home, all throughout the country, sailing from 19 different North American homeports, which is the most in cruising. Their ports run along the East and West Coasts and Gulf of Mexico, providing consumers with a convenient and cost-effective means for getting to and from their cruise. It is estimated that roughly half of the U.S. population is within a day’s drive of a Carnival homeport. 
The food is an important part of any vacation and Carnival Cruise Line offers a wide variety of international favorites and has partnered with Food Network star Guy Fieri on popular burger and BBQ venues. A Big Chicken restaurant, created by the line’s Chief Fun Officer Shaquille O’Neal, will debut on two ships this year along with the first seagoing restaurant by famed chef Emeril Lagasse. So, plenty of great new exciting offerings by Carnival. For more info, click here.
While you may be escaping the cold, the one thing you don’t want is to get a cold when you begin your vacation. For that I like to always have with me some homeopathic medications. First, if flu threatens your travel plans this winter, you will be well prepared by having stocked up on Boiron Oscillococcinum. Clinical studies show that when used at the first signs, Oscillococcinum helps relieve the duration and severity of flu-like symptoms such as body aches, headache, fever, chills, and fatigue. 
This homeopathic medicine is for everyone ages 2 and up is widely available in local supermarkets or pharmacies even if you are traveling, you should be able to find it easily. It is also very simple to take. Individually-packaged doses of small pellets quickly dissolve under the tongue — no water, chewing, or swallowing is required. It is easy to travel with since it is so portable and TSA-friendly. In addition, kids love the taste! Oscillococcinum is non-drowsy so you will not miss a minute of your adventures.
Another homeopathic option is Boiron Acidil. It will keep your belly happy and healthy, especially if you go overboard with food on vacation. 
These tablets provide plant-based relief of heartburn, acid indigestion, bloating and upset stomach. They melt easily in your mouth without water, and there is no restriction to when you can use them – take before or after meals, or on a full or empty stomach. This homeopathic medicine contains no artificial colors, flavors or sweeteners. Acidil is offered in convenient portable blister packs, which again are perfectly travel sized and ideal for having in your toiletry bag or carryon, in case indigestion hits while you are away! You can find more information on these and other Boiron products here.
I’ll waive to you on the open seas as we both escape the winter blues!
It’s been two days since we’ve been back from the NJ 101.5 cruise to Bermuda and I’m missing the beautiful pink beaches and the outstanding entertainment aboard the Norwegian Dawn. But most of all, I miss the new friends we made in the week on board! We sailed out of New York and said goodbye to the city skyline and cold rainy weather. 
In just a few days, we were in warmer temperatures and calm waters and awoke to a beautiful sunrise. 
While on board the Norwegian Dawn, we had the choice of several restaurants, some included in the cost of the cruise, and plenty of specialty restaurants, such as a steakhouse, French, Italian, Mexican, Indian, Chinese, Sushi and a Hibachi for an additional fee. Plus since it’s freestyle cruising, you can eat when and where you’d like. I would say Le Bistro, the French restaurant, had the best food and was worth the extra money. 
The Hibachi was also entertaining and very good, but for $25 per person, it’s really no cheaper than if you went to one in your hometown. We also enjoyed the buffet for breakfast and anytime we wanted to grab a quick bite. The good thing about sailing to Bermuda is that it saves you the cost of your meals. The restaurants in Bermuda tend to be extremely expensive, and the food not always so good, as was the case with “The Lobster Pot” in Hamilton, which claimed to have the best seafood on the island for the past 25 years. They must have been off the night we were there, and we weren’t the only ones in the restaurant who thought the fish was overcooked and the veggies just defrosted. The couple next to us definitely made their opinions known to the staff. Maybe it’s the fact that we are from the NY area and are spoiled with our food, but if you’re going to be overpriced, at least make us feel like we are paying for something!
Every night there was plenty of music, musicals and acrobatic shows, a comedian, Chicago’s Second City comedy troupe, a magician, karaoke and tons of dancing. For anyone who wanted a little pampering, the spa provided many services to fill your needs. However, they definitely were heavy on the sales pitch, so hopefully no one was suckered into buying hundreds of dollars worth of facial creams. If you take the cruise in the future, be aware of their spa specials. There were a few treatments that they said were two hours long, but in actuality, it was only a 75 minute treatment and then they told you to go sit in the sauna and steam room. With any spa I’ve ever been to, that comes included free of charge. Out by the pool and hot tubs, there were bbqs and festive music throughout the day along with a jogging and walking track to burn off all of the good food! In the gym, you could ride the ellipticals while looking out into the ocean, which was motivational.
It was nice not to have to hop on and off the ship every day at a certain time. We had almost three full days to explore, and we really got to see so much. When we arrived on Wednesday, we took a four hour cab ride around the island to get a lay of the land. He showed us some really pretty beaches, gardens, and the popular aquarium in Hamilton. There are many cab drivers who are like tour guides and know the island backwards and forwards. They charge $40 an hour for a minimum of three hours for up to 4 people, so it is definitely worth it. Our guide, Lenny Holder, was terrific! We had asked him what foods are local to the area and when he mentioned there were avocado trees, of course, I had to ask if we’d be passing any since I LOVE avocados. At the end of our tour, we passed by his house, and he had arranged for his wife to put one in his mailbox with some seasoning for us. Talk about Bermudian hospitality!
As most of you know, I was recently scuba certified, and I couldn’t wait to dive in Bermuda. However, half the fun of diving is sharing it with others, so I scooped up a few people from our group and we went for a scuba lesson with 
I would highly recommend Fantasea Bermuda. Not only do they run diving lessons and boat dives, but they also offer kayak and glass bottom boat sightseeing tours, whale watching, catamaran cruises, jet ski and other recreational rentals. The staff is so friendly and really knows their stuff. Melissa was our divemaster and led us around the wreck and reef we explored. She made sure to stay with the uncertified divers and really made them feel comfortable.
I had heard so much about Horseshoe Bay Beach, and Lenny had told us that not only is it considered the nicest beach in Bermuda, but had been ranked by Conde Nast as the second nicest beach in the world. Between the combination of the pink speckled sand, the beautiful rock formations, coves, great snorkeling and gorgeous sunset, I could definitely see why.
We also managed to squeeze in a few rum cake samples from one of the shops! The ferry ride itself from the Royal Navy Dockyard is very pretty and scenic. At the Royal Naval Dockyard, where the ship was docked, you’ll find the Bermuda Maritime Museum, a small shopping mall, a craft market, the Dockyard Glassworks, where you can watch the workers blowing glass, and the Bermuda Rum Cake Bakery, with lots of free samples of rum cake made with 80% proof alcohol. Snorkel Park, a small beach with great reefs for snorkeling and a fun bar called Hammerheads, is located right in the dockyard, along with the popular Frog and Onion Pub, serving local Bermudian beer. We hear that the few of us who chose to try the beer were also the last ones to get back on the boat..oops! As much fun as we had on the ship, if they had left us in Bermuda, I don’t think we would have been too upset!
I know I’ve said it before, but it was a true pleasure meeting everyone who came with me on this trip and I look forward to seeing all of you again on the next one. Here’s to new friends and to the ones I will meet next time! Cheers!
I’m sitting on the plane back from Bonaire and I still cannot get over the incredible week I just had. I love to travel, as I believe with each trip, you learn something new, whether it’s a new culture, language, or way of life. For me, this trip was truly life changing as I discovered a new world…the one underwater. I have snorkeled and done some introductory dives in the past, but I finally decided to get scuba certified, and I couldn’t have asked for a more enriching and spectacular playground than that of 
The casual and open setting facilitates easily formed bonds between people of all ages and diving levels. One of my biggest fears before arriving was the fact that I would be a new diver and everyone else would have much more experience. However, my fears quickly dissipated as experienced divers and divemasters offered to be my dive buddy. They were quick to help me double check that all of my equipment was hooked up correctly or pull me back down if I was ascending too quickly as I started to do on my first dive (you have to do a safety stop at 15-20 feet for 3 minutes so you can slowly let the nitrogen out of your body).
The night dive was an experience unlike any other. When I first jumped in off of Captain Don’s pier, I couldn’t believe how dark it was, but with our dive lights we were able to see around us. Again, I had such a wonderful dive buddy, who held my hand for the whole hour. There were four of us that went out and we wanted to make sure we all stayed together. As we ventured through the waters, we had a big tarpon following us, probably using our light to hunt for his dinner. Its skin was shiny and glistened off of our light. 
One of the guys the night before had seen an octopus and I was really hoping we would as well. Turns out just as we were heading back, this huge octopus was beside us morphing into different forms and colors. The color changes were amazing, a new one every few seconds. It’s probably the coolest thing I’ve ever seen!
On this dive, I saw two turtles, one that was swimming and one sleeping, which I was really excited about, and a flounder making his way along the bottom of the ocean. He was the same color as the sand, but you could see his eyes open and close as he scurried along. In addition, we saw beautiful butterfly, cowfish and trunkfish. It was a remarkable experience and Hendrik makes you feel completely at ease so you can explore while he takes care of the rest. He has a way of getting the fish to come to him, as he captures their true essence. Even if you are an experienced diver, you should bring him along on one of your dives or if you are in a group, he will film you all jumping in and interacting with the fish. I know I haven’t been to many other dive spots yet, but I can’t imagine one more beautiful. It is ranked as one of the best spots in the world for its sustainability. 
Hendrik also just released a DVD entitled Bonaire Ta Dushi which talks all about Bonaire’s past and present, the Bonairean people and their history and highlights all of the things you must see and do in Bonaire. A naturalist teaches you about their birds and beautiful flamingos, while marine park gurus explain why Bonaire still has such pristine reefs.
Dr. Earle is an extremely interesting and accomplished individual who has worked practically her whole life studying marine life and trying to teach so many what is going to happen if we don’t work on conserving our lifeline. Dr. Earle has led more than 60 expeditions worldwide involving over 7000 hours underwater in connection with her research and is known as the ambassador to world’s oceans.
Program.
