CARIBBEAN CAPERS

CARIBBEAN CAPERS 2004

By

Jerry Stubbs

Water, water everywhere and not a drop to drink.

I hope this ship keeps running smooth, I don't want it to sink.

We drove to Houston to embark and sail on Norwegian Sea.

We crossed the Gulf of Mexico and into the Caribbean Sea.

All day on ship, they keep you busy, all sorts of things to do.

Bingo, lectures, fun and games, all kinds of things to please you.

No set time or place to eat, the choice is up to you.

Four dining rooms or buffet line or pool deck bar-b-que.

Great shows for us every night with dancers, singers too,

Magicians, music, comedians, there's always something new.

Our first port call is Cozumel. We board a submarine.

From the bottom of the ocean, fantastic things are seen.

Most colorful fish and coral reef in water, oh, so clear.

We feel that we could just reach out and touch them, they're so near.

Our second stop is Roatan off the Honduran coast.

Not so much commercialized, natural beauty it does boast.

We drive up to a high point that overlooks the bay.

Our ship below makes a pretty sight on such a beautiful day.

Then along the coast we pause to view a couple of old ship wrecks.

They rust in shallow water, no one to walk their decks.

A stop at an Iguana Farm makes us careful where we walk.

Hundreds of them running free. We just stand there and gawk.

A restful stop at a private beach with a thatched roof pavilion to sit in,

While others swim we welcome the breeze and take in the view with big grin.

We wish we had brought our bathing suits, but wading will have to do.

In this beautiful spot where palm trees sway & the seas are a pretty blue.

The next port stop we anchor out and ferry into the city.

Belieze is a country where English is spoken and also it's very pretty.

Our knowledgeable guide takes us first to see the ruins at Altun Ha

Where the Mayan lived so long ago. Their pyramids we saw.

We travel on through the countryside 'til we finally reach the banks

Of the old Belieze River where lunch is served. For this we give our thanks.

Then into a boat for a river cruise as we watch for lots of wild life.

The river is peaceful and serene and drains us of any strife.

With jungle on both sides we cruise along, stopping now and again,

To see birds or baby crocodiles, the alligators kin.

More iguanas, dolphins too, and even a manatee,

And after a couple hours we find that we have reached the sea.

As the speed picks up we bounce on waves until we're at the pier.

Then it's ferry back to board our ship. We're glad that we were here.

Overnight brings us to Cancun, our 4^{th and final stop.}

^{A bus ride through the city, then they let us out to shop.}

^{But first we see some smaller ruins with iguanas all about.}

^{And lastly there's a swimming beach along our scheduled route.}

^{We wore our suits beneath our clothes, we find a shady place}

^{To spread our towels and brave the waves as sun shines on our face.}

^{We make it back in time to catch the ferry to our ship.}

^{We're glad we had the chance to take a little Caribbean dip.}

^{Our final day at sea is filled with bingo and other fun.}

^{We've won a diamond bracelet and before the cruise is done}

^{We also won the drawing for a beautiful work of art.}

^{It's more than we had hoped for as our ship we now depart.}





^{Please excuse the} marks toward the end of this piece.  I don't know what caused them nor do I know how to erase them.  When I tired to "edit", they don't show up on the draft copy.</sup>