fair warning: since it took so long for me to get around to this, it's not going to be painstakingly detailed as it could be (which is a good thing since it'll cut it down to about 1/2 of what it could've been) but it probably will be more detailed than you care for it to be.
after first finding out about the cruise early last year, i was determined to go. i got really lucky that Christine liked the Backstreet Boys just as much and was just as willing to go. we started planning and booked our cabin and paid the deposit around april when the booking first started (literally. we were refreshing the page like crazy until we were able to get through).
fast forward to december 1st when chris spent the night and we left for LAX early the next morning to arrive in Miami later in the day. we decided it was safer to arrive the night before the cruise to avoid any complications or mishaps with our flight and transportation. so we stayed the night at the Port of Miami Holiday Inn and did nothing but eat and lounge/sleep. and while we were at the baggage claim, we spotted AJ! and since we didn't want to bother him, we became the papparazzi and took a picture of me with him conveniently in the background. then after thinking of what would be normal to say, we passed him on our way out and Chris said, "hey AJ. we're really excited for the cruise!" and he said, "thank you!"
day 1: the next morning, we took our time getting ready and started to slowly realize we were actually going on our first cruise as arrived and saw the ship, went through the boarding process and saw the ridiculous number of girls at the terminal. i felt like i was at my all-girls high school again except this was all ages. this is going to get long, so click to read the rest...
simply stepping onto the boat was exciting. they had a DJ and loud music in the atrium when you first boarded with banners and cardboard cutouts of the Boys for our enjoyment. took a few pictures, took advantage of the spotty reception while we could and sat around until our room was ready. after dropping off our stuff in the incredibly small room, we went to lunch. so much good food everywhere, including a 24hr room service! we definitely took advantage of that. we walked around the lido deck and above to kill time and shortly after was the sail away party with the Boys. this was the first event with them and everyone went crazy. it was very exciting to finally see them. Nick had warned us that because of the time of year and area we were sailing, it was going to be a very rough cruise (and god, he was right -__-).
first event was the game show, In it to Win it. that was pretty entertaining. they had chosen girls before the show to go up to be the contestants. we figured out later they chose people based on how they were dressed. since it was 80s night, they picked people who were already decked out. of course, i could care less watching the girls and just watched whatever the Boys were doing. Kiss the Coconut was the winner of the jaw-dropping moment award.
later that night we decided to hit up the merchandise store before dinner to see if there was anything worth buying. of course everything was overpriced, but when it's merchandise for a band you love, $30 for a t-shirt is totally reasonable. i wasn't seeing anything i liked until i saw this cute hooded top in the corner. it was a cadet blue, burn-out, long sleeve top. hooded and longer than a regular tee. very soft and the design didn't scream "typical band tour merch". after walking away with our purchases, we went to the dining hall for dinner. i was starting to notice the boat was swaying and was trying to concentrate on other things.
after dinner we got ready for 80s night. the one night we were not looking forward to. ever since they announced the themes, we were like, "eh." but we ended up having somewhat matching outfits and made it work. i also noticed that hot pink was a major trend and an intsa-80s piece in everyone's outfit. the night was fun. the Boys came out in ridiculous outfits and wigs (even their photographers/bodyguards, except brian's, got in on it. i thought it was cute). they played beer pong with some lucky girls with AJ and the judge. it was really cold and Chris was getting tired. she went back to the room first but i didn't stay long after since not much was happening.
day 2: we had marked what we wanted for room service breakfast on the little door-hang menu the night before, so that was our wake-up call. smoked salmon!!! that was delicious. we were already docked at Nassau so the boat was completely still. we kind of took too long getting ready and missed our call to meet our group to disembark the boat. after freaking out and seeing group B walking down, we were told it didn't matter and could just leave with everyone. so we stepped off the boat to see another Carnival, the Fantasy, right next to us. then we got to see the full length of the boat and i was blown away. almost literally since it was so freaking windy! we walked with everyone to where the taxi/vans were to get to our next destination.
okay, apparently Nassau doesn't have stop signs. we went through a few intersections where the driver basically honked a couple times and inched his way into traffic before crossing. the streets were also mostly one-way. it was definitely an experience.
at the Wyndam Hotel, we walked through the lobby (where they had a starbucks!) to the beach which was basically the back yard. a good amount of girls were already there. half were planted in front of the stage and half were laying out on the sand. since we were on vacation, we laid out with everyone else and enjoyed the sun. there was music playing so it wasn't all that bad. lunch was announced and we had some could've-been-better burgers and salads. the crowd in front of the stage kept growing and the Boys still didn't arrive. it took them a good couple hours (probably because they were up until late the night before and could take their sweet time sleeping in and getting ready).
when they did come out, things got a little crazy. ESPECIALLY when KEVIN SHOWED UP!!! it was definitely cool to see all 5 of them on stage together. they talked, threw beads, and announced the games. first was musical chairs. apparently it was AJs first time because of a deprived childhood. in the end, it came down to Kevin and AJ and Kevin won. there was also limbo and Twister where it was down to a girl and Nick (and he won). then an impromtu wet tshirt contest...with AJ in the mix as well. he sold it most. if you haven't guessed, though i love them all, i'm a little partial to AJ. right after than, Chris drops her camera and runs off towards the water. i stared after her for a good 10 seconds before i realized why she ran off. Nick, following his actions of the previous year, jumped into the water where a bunch of girls followed him in. Chris eventually came back, clearly evident she went into the water completely. she was all smiles because she got to touch his "sexy shoulder". the Boys left the stage and did different things after that. instead of trying see them, we went ot the other side of the beach so i could get my feet wet and see the water. the water color was incredible! it was this beautiful turquoise color. and the thing that baffled me most was it was that awesome color at the dock! usually, dock water is muddy and nothing special. but i don't know what was happening on the ocean floor, but the whole island was surrounded with turquoise.
before hopping back on the van at our group's call time, we got some Bahama starbucks. we met some cool people on the ride back and joined them for a quick souvenir buying trip before getting back on the boat. we quickly changed enough for dinner and joined Chris's online friends. it was a pretty funny dinner. they were telling us stories of their experience the night before the cruise at the pre-party.
then we got ready for prom night! group B was having their concert that night so we had time to get ready. again, we somewhat matched with our short, bubble skirt dresses. the lido deck was super windy since we were going to be docked overnight (which was heavenly because there was NO swaying). so my nicely curled hair was kind of wasted when i had to gather it all up to prevent it from becoming a tangled mess. we met up with our new cruise-friends, Bryan and Meaghan and their group for a little bit. we danced in what turned into the "dancing area" and had a lot of fun. the DJ was good and they had a drummer adding extra oomph to the music. we walked around the deck some more and then a nice man pulled us aside and gave us wristbands for...VIP!!! we were able to go up on the second level of the lido deck and have (limited) open bar, which Chris took full advantage of. VIP was awesome but it was twice as windy up top. we did have a better view of the Boys when they finally came out. i have to say Kevin looked most handsome in this black tux + bowtie. AJ and Nick had some Dumb and Dumber thing going on with the orange and powder blue suits. Brian had a sky blue suit and Howie had a white suit with some sort of printed silk-looking shirt, unbuttoned to show chest. he looked like a latin lover.
before they met their dates, who were 5 extremely lucky girls randomly chosen by finding a tiara in their goodie bag, they got together and sang a song. Kevin came out at the end of the concert and sang with the Boys and to make it fair for the other half who didn't get to see it, they performed again since Kevin was leaving the next morning. they sang "I Still" and i almost cried. it sounded so beautiful and while it a song i liked, it quickly became a favorite. i got very teary-eyed but composed myself so i wouldn't turn into a blubbering mess. it was very nice to hear all their voices, together, and live.
they took their dates to the middle stage on the lido deck and had their first dance. then they kept the music going and danced some more and took pictures. by this point, i saw very little of Chris. she either kept going to the bathroom since she had a few drinks, making new friends with every other person she said hi to, or had to go back to the bathroom because she took too long talking to said new friends. i was getting a little tired, very cold, and slightly bored with not much to do. when i finally got more than two minutes with Chris around 3am, we decided to go back to the room. then we had this slight incident with the air conditioner in our room. we turned it off when we first got in the room, but turned it on while getting ready because we used a hair dryer and two curling irons. we didn't turn it off completely and because of a hard-to-turn dial and loose installation, the whole thing just kinda popped out of the ceiling. it was a little funny to watch a tipsy Chris fiddling with it, trying to get it back in and turned off.
day 3: the following morning was brutal. we had left port around 7am so it was super rocky. we figured out that the swaying gets worse when we're close to land because of the shallowness of the water. we had pre-ordered breakfast again but i didn't want to touch my smoked salmon and had to force myself to have a few bites of toast to get something in my stomach. the water was sloshing about my feet while i was in the shower and all i wanted to do was to levitate off the ground to avoid the movement. it was also picture day! our chance to take a picture with the Boys. we dressed up a little cutely and was visited by Bryan (who's room was right down the hall) with an update on his group. each group needed 8 people and we hadn't found anyone yet. Chris wanted to join her online friends but couldn't get a hold of them. Bryan said his group opened up again and needed two people. we went downstairs to the line when we were ready and Chris found her friends. turns out their group was full so we stayed with Bryan. everyone had a preference on who to stand next to and i got lucky and was able to stand next to AJ. two girls already claimed Nick (who was Chris's favorite) so she chose Brian. since we had a full group, we were able to go ahead of half the line.
it was a very quick and short meeting. we went into the room while one group ahead was taking their picture and were given a rundown and what we could and couldn't do. no pictures, autographs, gifts or hugs. but we could talk and shake hands. it was our turn and we all cycled through and quickly said hi to each one then scrambled around to stand next to our choice. i went through and shook each one's hand and said good morning. Howie still had his coffee in his hand, but he responded. Brian was nice and responded too. Nick was kind of disappointing. he didn't seem very awake or responsive. i honestly can't remember if he said anything to me at all. AJ was at the end so i got to him last and said good morning and he came back with a very friendly, "good morning!" i don't know how he usually is or how he talks, but with that and the airport reply, he is very good at sounding sincerely friendly. then i stood next to him and got comfortable for all of 5 seconds while the photographer snapped one quick picture. i was waiting for, "okay, and one more..." but it was one click and we were ushered out.
we grabbed lunch with the same group and then went back to the room to start getting our things together. we killed a little bit of time when went back out on the lido deck for the karaoke event. before they started, they made a little announcement of a girl who was going to start chemo therapy and had requested that the Boys cut her hair. so they brought her out and cut and shaved her hair off. it was a really nice thing they did and again, i got a little emotional. the karaoke event itself was alright. the only good singer was the second girl up who sang "Raise Your Glass" by Pink. everyone else either could have practiced some more once they knew they were chosen (since apparently you got an email before the actual cruise) or could have chosen a better song (like the girls who chose The Thong Song- apparently there aren't many words in the song). it started lightly raining towards the end of the event so Chris retreated to the cover of the middle stage. we went back to the room to pack some more and get ready for dinner. we thought it was supposed to be the Captain's Dinner so we dressed up a little more than usual but saw people in casual clothes...so we didn't know what was happening anymore.
after dinner we changed back into our photoshoot clothes for the concert. oh my gosh the concert. it was so much fun!!! we lined up early again to get the bench seat but that didn't matter once it started because everyone in our booth ran out and around towards the stage anyway. they played quite a few older songs that i never thought i would get to hear live. they also each performed a solo song. Brian sang "Mary Did You Know" and it was beautiful. i can't remember where i've heard that song before but it wasn't my first time hearing it. he just gave into the song and couldn't continue at some point because he started crying. it was nice to see him let himself be open like that. he had a lot of love at the end of the song. when Nick sang his solo, he did the sexy dance that goes with it and since a majority of fans seem to be Nick fans, the audience went wild. i told Chris she could run to the front if she wanted to and off she went.
i was so happy after the concert. you know that feeling when you see a concert and you try to retain every last bit of it so you don't forget anything? that's what we were doing. then we were craving dessert so we used that room service and ordered some chocolate cake and cookies. we got dressed for the pajama jam party and headed to the atrium since it was moved indoors "due to weather" (but after reading other reviews, i have my doubts). it was absolutely packed. the Boys and DJs were at the top of the center staircase and everyone else took up every available viewing space on every floor. we stayed on the bottom floor. they played truth or dare with some picked girls and later brought out some pillows to throw out and have a "pillow fight" with. that was a bad idea. pillows are large and have lots of grabbing space. therefore, when it gets thrown out, several girls will reach for it and hold on. this is where i saw how aggressive and determined Chris can get. she got a hold of one pillow, along with 4 or 5 other girls, but was one of the last two standing. actually last 3 because the other girl had a friend try to help and they started prying and scratching at Chris's hands to get her to let go. Chris had the firmest grip ever and told them that they could take the pillow and she'll take the case. stupid girls. the pillow case was signed!!! so Chris yanked the case off, shoved it down her pants and came out of crowd a happy camper. the "party" wasn't so much a party, more just staring, cheering, and taking pictures of the Boys so when they took a break and disappeared from view, we took the opportunity to actually dance and enjoy ourselves.
it seemed like it was slowing down and i was getting tired so we went back to the room around 3am i think. i can't remember. Chris said she might go back out later but ended up not. i cleaned up, packed up the rest of my stuff and tried to sleep since the boat was still rocking a litte.
day 4: we were woken up by room service again and i saw they were very busy getting out their last deliveries before time to disembark. our bags were packed and we were ready to leave what i came to think was our cozy little room. we wore our matching blue cruise shirts and made them look cute (because on some people, they did not look very cute at all). our time and group to disembark was already announced so we looked through the pictures taken from throughout the cruise and Chris bought the one of the both of us before we stepped onto the boat and i bought my solo one because i didn't look half bad and it was a souvenir from my first cruise. after going through customs (?...i think. it was very casual) we waited outside the terminal for Bryan and Meaghan. we saw Chris's friends and said our goodbyes to them. i kept freaking out, thinking we missed them or that there was an exit on the other side and they left. they eventually came out and since our flight times were close we thought we could hang out for a little bit, but our airlines were different and aftering learning they were on opposite ends of the airport, that idea got shot down. so we shared a taxi to the airport and said our goodbyes.
we were able to check in, check our bags (after transferring some things because Chris's was over the weight limit), and go through security with no problem. one good thing about Miami airport is that it offers free wifi. so we became anti-social for a little bit, engrossed in our laptops until boarding time came. we were able to sit next to each other on the flight back so that was nice. my parents picked us up and we went to Sanuki no Sato for dinner. towards the end of the dinner, i noticed things were swaying. everything started swaying! and that continued for a least a day and a half. it didn't make me sick, but the world was definitely rocking. we took Chris home and then i was able to fall on my own couch at home.
it was definitely a fun experience and we found out at the airport that the next planned cruise was for summer of 2013. plenty of time to financially recover from this one and save up for the next. and yes, we are going again. if you got this far reading everything, then congratulations, you are very patient with my writing. either way, here are several picture from the cruise and thanks for reading! ♥
the massive ship
all five Boys!
the beautiful color of the water
my prom picture with the cutout
our group picture!!! ♥
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