Today I traveled with Justina, my 12-year-old niece, to Fort Lauderdale, Florida for her first cruise on one of the world’s largest cruise ships, Royal Caribbean’s Oasis of the Seas.
It’s an adventure of firsts for both of us.
I’m used to traveling with Mr. Jones, who can’t make this cruise due to work commitments.
Traveling with a child is a new experience for me, as is sailing on a cruise ship with more than 6,000 passengers.
For Justina, this trip includes a number of firsts: her first view of an ocean, her first cruise, and her first trip outside of the United States.
Her adventure began with a 4-hour drive from Iowa with her dad to the Kansas City airport. He gave me her original birth certificate and the all-important letter with notarized signatures from Justina’s mother and him giving me permission to act as her guardian while I take her on this trip to Florida, followed by an international cruise to the Western Caribbean.
We checked our bags at the Southwest counter and headed for the security line. Luckily, being 12, Justina was able to go through the TSA Pre-Check line with me, meaning that we didn’t have to take off our shoes, or get out our liquids or computers. Since we sailed through security, and our flight was delayed, we had ample time to snap a couple of pre-flight selfies.
As an A-List Preferred member of Southwest Airlines Rapid Reward program, I receive the highest priority in the A-List boarding process. I also paid for the Early Bird upgrade for Justina.
I really didn’t need to do that, since I could not sit in my preferred emergency exit row seats with a 12-year-old.
Luckily, Justina fits comfortably in the center seat. We snapped a quick photo on the flight as we got ready for take off to Fort Lauderdale.
After arrival in Fort Lauderdale, we headed to the baggage claim to collect our bags. Since our flight was completely full, and since most of us seemed to be heading to a cruise, there were many bags. 30 minutes later, we finally got our bags, two of the last five to come out on the luggage belt. We were happy to see them.
We headed to the cab line, and got a taxi to our hotel, the Fort Lauderdale Marina Hilton. It was a quick $15 taxi ride, including tip.
The Hilton Fort Lauderdale Marina hotel has a great pool, which was a priority for Justina. Since we arrived late and it was getting dark, however, food was our priority.
On the flight to Florida I learned that Justina has a number of “I don’t eat that” foods including seafood.
I still take her to a local seafood place, saying that she might want to try seafood when she’s by the ocean. We walked to the Southport Raw Bar, known for fresh oysters, fish and clams.
While Justina orders a cheeseburger and corn on the cob, I convinced her to try some of my fried seafood basket.
She tries the clam strips first, after I say they taste “kind of like French fries.” Surprised, she actually likes them. She also tried the shrimp (okay), and the scallops (weird texture.)
Justina loves the corn on the cob.
She also loves the cheeseburger, with lettuce and onion, but no tomato.
The highlight of the meal, however, for both of us, was the freshly made key lime pie. We devoured the slice that we shared.
As we walked back to the hotel, we made a brief stop at Walgreen’s for some key supplies: a charging cord for Justina’s Kindle, plus two bottles of wine for me to take on the ship.
Back at the hotel, we are ready to crash, but are excited for tomorrow’s adventure: boarding the Oasis of the Sea cruise ship. Justina is thrilled with the comfortable beds and allocation of four pillows for each of us.
I asked Justina for her three top highlights of the day. She answered:
1) The plane flight;
2) The clam strips;
3) The key lime pie.
She also mentioned that she tried four new foods:
1) Clam strips – yum!
2) Fried shrimp – okay, better than the shrimp cocktail she tried once in Iowa.
3) Scallops – gross texture.
4) Key lime pie – delicious!
We are both excited for tomorrow.
Have you traveling with a 12-year-old that was not your child? How was the experience?
Check out these posts from my last prior cruise was with Mr. Jones on the luxurious 450-passenger Seabourn Sojourn“;.
- Setting Sail from Singapore on the Seabourn Sojourn
- A Day by Day Look at Cruising 11-Days on the Seabourn Sojourn
- Thai Gastronomy at the Blue Elephant Cooking School in Phuket, Part 1
- Thai Gastronomy at the Blue Elephant Cooking School in Phuket, Part 2
- Thai Gastronomy at the Blue Elephant Cooking School in Phuket, Part 3
- Experiencing the Life and Lore of Colombo, Sri Lanka
- 7 Favorite “Naughty” Pleasures on the Seabourn Sojourn
- Exploring the Sights of Cochin, India
- Touring Goa, India by Taxi
- 11 Days of Menus from the Seabourn Sojourn World Cruise
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