Following our full day in Crete we were absolutely prepared to relax on our ship for another day at sea in order to get prepared for our big Israel stop. Today was also the day we found the perfect rhythm at-sea days. We laid in bed until 10AM where I went to go work out and Jenn stayed relaxing in our room thinking about future trip plans. 

After two unbelievably relaxing days at sea (not sure I’ve ever slept that much in my life) we were primed and ready for our first stop on this cruise, Crete. We’ve been to almost every major island in Greece (Santorini, Mykonos, Rhodes, and of course Athens) but the one that we hadn’t been to yet was Crete. We woke up at 6:30AM, got ready and grabbed a quick bite to eat at the Café in the middle of the ship.

When we booked this cruise at the start of 2015 we obviously had a lot going on. Beyond the stops which sounded incredible, hanging out on the boat during the at-sea portions of the trip sounded wonderful as well. However, like any vacation you have to find your groove and that’s exactly what the first two days at-sea were like aboard the Explorer of the Seas.

Our last day in Barcelona went by in a snap. By the time we got up, re-packed, and looked at the clock it was already past 11AM. We walked down the boardwalk in search of wine (for the cruise) and lunch (for our stomachs). We looked everywhere for something quick but on the boardwalk were only coffee shops or restaurants. We walked quite a bit before giving up, grabbing some wine at the local market and going back to the hotel. 

I thought we'd finally solved jet lag. Having never gotten to a European destination in the morning I thought if we powered through the first day, took a short nap, and went to bed at a normal time that we would be able to jump into the new time zone. I was sadly mistaken. We ended up going to bed at a reasonable hour but then woke up in the middle of the night (2AM) bright eyes and ready for the day. Probably sounds familiar if you've read about any of our past Europe trips.

What a crazy year. I’m sitting on a plane 39,000 ft. above ground writing the first half of the recap for the first day of our Royal Voyage 2015. It's surreal. To the point where I’ve stared at a blank word document for a long time wondering how do I even begin? I want so badly to encapsulate the peace and joy that was restored in our lives and also how much this trip means. But I guess instead of finding the right words, I will just write about the start of yet another amazing journey for Jenn and I.