I took a nap yesterday afternoon for almost four hours. Then I slept through the night for eight hours. Those two periods left me feeling very rested and reenergized. The massage didn’t hurt either, though as is often the case, the massage therapist did the hard sell on their ridiculously priced products. My answer was a flatm, “no.”

This morning, I brought my breakfast down to my room and watched the news. Then I made my way up to the aft lounge for today’s extra long seminar.  All went well. We had a lunch break and I enjoyed a very good chicken fajita wrap. Our work and graduation ceremony were both complete just after 2pm. I spent some more time in the sun listening to music. Then I read a book in the atrium, posted yesterday’s blog, filled out my departure papers, packed most of my clothing, and watched another movie. Sadly, I also found out about a rule regarding pool towels. If you don't turn them in to your steward after use, they charge the passsenger or they take it out of the steward's pay. It's a ridiculous rule that tells you something about not only the class of the passnegers on this ship, but also the class of the corporation.

I ended my day by eating in the buffet once more, but this time with a couple teachers I met during the seminar. Then I returned to my cabin, not wanting to fight the unruly crowd in the theatre. I’m looking forward to getting home to my schnauzers. My cabin steward made a towel dog and a towel elephant for me. I nicknamed them Amy and Sophie and they are still sitting on a corner shelf in my stateroom.

I’m a dolt! I realized last night, after writing my blog entry that I’d forgotten to pack my scuba certification card – which means I can’t go diving today. Also, it’s too late to cancel and get a refund. So that’s $99 down the drain. I’m really ticked off with myself because I had met two fellow scuba divers who are also fellow teachers. It would have been my first chance in a long time to go diving with people I actually know. Now it’s not going to happen.

I was so upset last night that I could hardly sleep. Even if the dive master could verify my certification online (which some dive companies can do) I was too fatigued to dive due to my lack of sleep. It would be unsafe. Diving in Cozumel is always a drift dive. It can require more effort to stay with the group as you drift along with the current as well as swimming through coral tubes. If I dove through the tubes, it’s deeper and would have been more tiring. In summary, I messed up big time. Any sort of minor stress these days seems to send me on a downward spiral. Therefore, since I will remain on the ship this afternoon, I’m going to get a massage. It’s more money, but hopefully it will help me relax. Then I can take a nap and lie by the pool. I will simply have to let go of this mistake and move on.

We had a three hour seminar this morning, concentrating on special moves in chess: castling, and en passant, as well as tactics such as wall building, geographical advantages, the pin, and the double attack. We finished with an overview of games ending in a stalemate or draw. Those lessons were followed by about 20 minutes of play with a partner.

I ordered a roast beef sandwich from room service for my lunch. I read for a while, then had a Swedish massage. Unfortunately, they have never opened the aft pool, so I had to absorb my sunshine by the main pool. Of course, because we are in port, there aren’t too many people at the main pool. Listening to my iPod blocked out what noise there was. Unlike my last cruise, this time I DID use sunscreen and I didn’t allow myself to fall asleep. Listening to Barrack Obama’s “Dreams From My Father” kept me awake and aware. Also, in such a hot and humid climate, lying out in the sun loses it luster quickly.

Dinner was in the buffet, and then I watched a movie (American Treasure). Soon I will retire for an early night of sleep.

Ahhh….sleeping in until 8:30 is a good thing! After my morning shower I had breakfast in the buffet, sitting on an outdoor deck. My meal included a very good custom omelet with ham, peppers, mushrooms and cheese.

Soon after my meal, I left the ship to wander through old Key West. Typical for summer, the weather was sunny, about 90 degrees and very humid. So, I sweated my way along Duvall street, stopping occasionally in an air conditioned store or gallery.

Key West has some beautiful buildings, and it’s all very commercial and tourist oriented. It would be nice to spend some time here during the winter, when things are probably more crowded but the weather would be more comfortable. The heat and humidity drained me so that I needed a lunchtime nap to revive.

Our first conference meeting was during the afternoon. It was an enjoyable time and covered a lot of territory, but included copious notes which will help me recall the finer points at the appropriate time. For three hours we learned about the history and basics of chess and their applicability to education. The time seemed to fly by. My partner for games today was a teacher from the Lake Washington School District.

Post conference time, I had a drink and tried to find a quiet corner in one of the bars. Unfortunately, I was unsuccessful. The bar with the fewest people had ESPN playing on multiple television screens and Carnival employees generating a haze of smoke. Instead, I took my drink back to my cabin and enjoyed it with my book about the history of the White House.

By eight o’clock I had dressed for dinner, and I admit my preconceptions were wrong. Most men did dress up with coat and tie. Many wore suits, so for once in my life I was not dressed at the top of the scale. Everyone at my table looked very sharp, and though there definitely were those passengers who ignored the dress code, they were few and far between.

After dinner I went to the late show in the Palace Theater: “Far From Over.” It was a musical review of 80s music. Though it wasn’t a bad show, it wasn’t all that great either with the single exception of the break dancers. Those two guys were fantastic – real standouts in a crowd of mediocre performers.  The biggest disappointment for me was the audience.20 minutes before the show, the theatre was only one third full, but it was hard to find a seat because so many people were saving spots for other passengers – despite the notice that saving seats was not allowed. Then, during the show, a teen next to me spent more than half the time on her texting on her cell phone while seated right next to her mother. The bright LCD screen was a huge distraction. For a long time I said nothing, believing if her mother wouldn’t tell her own child to shut off the phone, what effect would I have? I finally asked her to shut it off because the light was very distracting. She did – but the show ended five minutes later. Common courtesy is dead, and on this ship with its large population of teens, expecting simple thoughtful respect is a crazy man’s dream. Even now, it’s midnight and people are talking loudly and laughing in the corridor. Thank God I have ear plugs.

I’m starting to believe what I have long heard is true:  Carnival is the WalMart of cruise lines – affordable, popular, and basic but lacking refinement and class. To extend my metaphor, Princess strikes me as equivalent to Nordstrom – classy with excellent service, but not snooty. Holland America seems to be more like Brooks Brothers - classy, but very traditional and stogy. Cunard is more like Sacs Fifth Avenue – upper class, a little snooty, and expensive and for some, boring. Which do you think fits me best?

I woke up at 9am local time. Breakfast was downstairs in the hotel buffet restaurant. Then I returned my rental car after searching for a gas station. Overall, it was an easy task. At 12pm sharp, I checked out and boarded a shuttle van while wearing my blue American Foundation for Chess T-shirt. We arrived at the port in just 10 minutes and I got in line for security and check-in at 12:30pm. There were several groups of teachers wearing the same shirt, scattered among the crowd. From start to finish, the check-in process took about 40 minutes. Everyone is in a good mood.

Once onboard, I was told by a fellow passenger that none of the cabins were ready for occupancy. Therefore, to fill time, most people headed to the buffet or snack/burger bar.  I, instead, wandered around the Fascination, getting familiar with the layout and taking some pictures.  True to the reputation of Carnival, this ship looks like a sparkling Las Vegas casino. The theme is Hollywood movies. The promenade deck is called “Hollywood Boulevard”.  Most of the public rooms are themed according to famous movies or actors. There’s Bogey’s coffee bar, Diamonds are Forever disco, the Coconut Grove buffet, and more. Not exactly my style, but interesting none the less, and pretty in its own way. The atrium is a full 6 decks tall from top to bottom and crowned with a large glass dome. My cabin is located near the bottom of the atrium amidships.

I located my dining room for later in the evening then sat down in the “Tara” library to write part of this blog entry. It was one of the few quiet spaces on the ship until a man came in and started talking loudly on his cell phone. I soon left.

There are a lot of young people on this ship. I extrapolate that because it’s a short and inexpensive cruise (and on Carnival) this will prove to be a party crowd. Thankfully, I expect my conference group will be a little more sedate since we have seminars to attend and work to do. There are almost 175 teachers – many with a guest/friend/spouse.

By 2pm I was in my cabin on the Empress deck. It’s small but nice – recently re-decorated. Gone are the old glaring Carnival colors. My room is decorated in cream, rust, and bronze with wood trim. It’s a clean fresh and pleasant room with a large window. There is a small desk, a side chair, plenty of light and storage. The bed is firm, but not too firm. The sheets are silky smooth. The bathroom seems  larger than those on a Princess ship. I think I will be very comfortable. I’m also glad I paid to have this cabin to myself. It will be my retreat spot when I need it.

At 6pm, we all met in the forward show lounge: Puttin’ On the Ritz. Free cocktails and food were flowing without restraint. I made a point to sit down  with someone I didn’t know and introduce myself. As fate would have it, I sat next to a woman who not only teaches second grade as I will next year, but is also a fellow scuba diver. We will both be diving in Cozumel. She is a very nice gal who has been diving for many years. Later, during the reception, I met up with the group from Seattle – about 10 teachers from throughout the city. Included among them was one teacher I knew from my two years teaching at Madrona. I even taught her daughter. After about an hour of talking and eating, many of us, including myself, got  up for some line dancing. Thank God I attended a few line dancing classes on previous cruises. I sort of knew what I was doing.

Dinner was at 8:15. The menu was simple, far from elegant, but enjoyable. The Caesar salad was terrific. I also had duck breast with rice noodles and Mandarin oranges – tasty. For an entrée I had a pork loin chop in a berry demi-glace.  It was like home cooking – served with macaroni and cheese. Strangely, I was the only one at my table who drank any alcohol, and all I had was one glass of wine. I finished the meal with one of the worst slices of cheesecake I have ever had. It was virtually tasteless and had a smooth almost slimy texture.

My table mates were a diverse group – all involved in some way with the First Move chess curriculum and the American Foundation for Chess. Two were Mormon ladies –teachers from a small town in southeast Idaho. One has 6 children and 13 grand children. The other has 7 kids, but no grand kids yet. Two other folks were video technicians from Saint Louis (they are making videos of our training seminars) and two more folks were from Atlanta.  They were all nice people, but first night jitters kept the conversation safe and confined mostly to teaching and chess. I and the ladies from Idaho were the only ones who dressed for dinner. Everyone else was wearing T-shirts and/or shorts. That is standard garb on this cruise line.

Tomorrow will be “Cruise Elegant” night. We’ll see what that means. I would venture to say I will be the only man with a coat and tie. Believe it or not, the ship includes jeans as appropriate for the Cruise Elegant dress code – though supposedly T-shirts and shorts are off limits tomorrow.

When dinner was complete, I went to the main show lounge. I got as far as the introductory musical number, but then I left. The screaming, cheering, and talking was more than I could take. The cruise director had been talking for a full ten minutes when I gave up and left. I’m glad there are folks that like to treat a show as if it’s a football game, but I am not among those who enjoy that style of fun. I’m just not a party boy.

For me, the highlight of the day was the cocktail reception where I got to meet, chat with, and dance with teachers. That was the best hour for me. But then again, no one was screaming and no one was saying, “Dude, let’s get wasted until we throw up!” Yes, I actually heard that today –from a group of girls.