Insight: Caregiver Cruise

We cruised to Bermuda, June 3-8, 2017!

In Bermuda, our participants and caregivers enjoyed a glass bottom boat tour, visiting the pink sands of Horseshoe Bay, viewing the beautiful coastline from the Fantasea Sightseeing Boat tour, and exploring the city of Hamilton. We also had some time for shopping, sampling rum cake, and of course a little eating and drinking at the Frog and Onion Pub!

We took advantage of all the amenities on the Anthem of the Seas as well. Several participants were selected to participate in a jewelry fashion show, many raced in bumper cars, enjoyed a wine tasting, and took in evening shows at the theater. Joel and Christi, the Insight staff members on the cruise, were the only ones brave enough to try out the roller skating rink!

While everyone enjoyed all the sights and attractions, many said the best part of the cruise was the company and the support.

Check Out What We Did!

We made daily posts here with trip highlights and excursions so you can feel like you've cruised along with us!
We departed from New Jersey on Saturday, June 3rd, traveling to King's Wharf, Bermuda, and returned on Thursday, June 8th.

Day 5: Rocking and Rolling….LITERALLY.

June 7, 2017

As they say “the sea was angry that day, my friends.” Today the sea was quite rough, causing the ship to sway back and forth and up and down. We saw many a folks with Dramamine patches on today! Unfortunately, because of the rough seas, Royal Caribbean ended up cancelling some of the events and shows due to safety concerns. But, that did not stop us from having fun today!

After having our traditional morning grub at the Windjammer, we headed to the trusty Schooner Bar for a rousing game of morning trivia. The category was “general trivia.” They might as well have called it “the most random questions ever” trivia as our group did not fare so well. But, that did not get our spirits down as our next stop was Bumper Cars!!! As we arrived at the SeaPlex section for the deck, the line for the bumper cars wrapped the entire rink. But, we persevered and were actually the last group on. One word to describe our bumper car adventure – FUN! We laughed and laughed and laughed as we chased each other around the rink, bumping into each other head on, t-boning each other and just having a blast! Jack was quite nimble with his bumper car as he had the group chasing him at one point, evading the other 17 cars hitting him!

After we regained our composure, Christi and Jim were craving a hot dog from the SeaPlex Hot Dog stand. Apparently from what we hear (from Jim and Christi), we were missing out! We made great use of our time at the Hot Dog stand because at the same time, the on-board activity was “The Scavenger Hunt” where folks who were participating had to run around the ship and do random things. One of those was get a picture of them eating a hot dog. A group of people who were sitting at a table left their plates with one bit of a hot dog left, so we suggested that people coming use that leftover hot dog as their prop for their photo! It was quite hilarious as group after group used the leftover hot dog!

Then, par for course, random people were coming up to Joel asking him where things were on the ship, different activity suggestions, dining questions, and also for him to take pictures of them. One family needed a picture of them jumping and out of the hundred some odd people in the SeaQuest, who did they approach? Joel. But, after they had their picture taken, they actually came back and asked if they could use Sarah as their Guinea Pig because they needed a picture of them doing a “marriage proposal!” So being the good sport she was, and Jack being the understanding husband he is, allowed the proposal to take place! I think we made Al’s day!

Next up was a change of venue for lunch. We opted to try out the Two70 Café. This was a lighter fare option at the back of the ship. Most everyone enjoyed their choices, but agreed that they liked the Windjammer better! After lunch, the group went to an on-board Wine Tasting event, where the Royal Caribbean Wine Manager, Robert, lead us through how to identify wines, taste wines, and pair them with foods that would complement the wines and bring out the flavors. We tasted a champagne, two red and two whites. The group was split; some preferred the whites and some preferred the reds. Some preferred lighter, sweeter wines, while some preferred heavier, drier wines. But no matter what your taste, it was very helpful having Robert guide us through HOW to identify wines that will suit the individual.

Joel was elected to be the one to do the Trapeze back in the SeaPlex, but due to the rough seas it was cancelled. Sarah actually had gotten up the nerve to do it, and was disappointed to hear about the cancellation! So, some folks took the opportunity to check out the shops on board, others relaxed in the Library, and some took in another rousing game of trivia. Joel actually decided to go to the gym, but found running on the treadmill, while having to hold on for dear life quite difficult, so that did not last too long!

The group reconvened for dinner back in the main dining room. Our fabulous wait staff had arranged for us to be joined at one large table instead of two separate ones. As part of the dinner celebration tonight, it was their Farewell Parade, complete with a champagne toast and chocolate covered strawberries, compliments of the chef. We gave all of the dining room staff a standing ovation for all their hard work and really appreciated everything they did for us! Omega and Abhishek were just amazing!

To cap off dinner, we had cakes to celebrate all the birthdays and anniversaries our group was celebrating (6 birthdays, a 50th wedding anniversary, and a 41 year sobriety anniversary!) Granted, we had our standard desserts on top of the cakes; but it was well worth it to end this cruise in style. Joel also gave everyone a copy of the group portraits as a parting gift and something to be able to remember the great times they had on IMCC’s 3rd Annual Caregiver Cruise.

Well, the waves were really starting to pick up and as we headed back to our rooms to pack and get our luggage out for pick up, we noticed “barf bags” being placed around the ship! A few of our cruisers were feeling a little woosy, and after they packed up their bags, decided to hit the hay. A few folks wanted to roam around and take in the last minutes sights of the Anthem of the Seas.

And come to find out, our final show was cancelled this evening because of the weather conditions. Apparently having a trapeze act while the ship is swaying so fiercely, was not in the best interest of the performers. Oh well, we will have to hear about it from others who saw it.

The night ended with the group sharing their stories of “what this cruise meant to them.” Joel asked if everyone would take a minute to answer this one question because we (IMCC) can only share what it means from our point of view and we wanted to be able to share it right from the caregivers and the individuals living with memory impairment to share their thoughts. So, stay tuned for the mini video in days to come!

Finally – we have wonderful news to share! We got ALL the elevator animal pictures! I know all our readers were sitting on the edge of their seats hoping we would do it, and I am happy to report that we got them today!

Tomorrow is our departure day. Bright and early departure from the Anthem of the Seas and heading back home to Virginia (and Nashville) for yet another successful Caregiver Cruise! Joel and Christi did stop by the Next Cruise booth to gather some information for our 4th Annual Caregiver Cruise to be determined in 2018! They ran into Sarah and Jack as well. Apparently the cruise bug bit them too!

The day started off with bumper cars!

And they're off...

We had a great time!