2015 Cruise - Mahahual, Mexico, Baptist Church

This is the base of the pyramid, where our guide was explaining the particulars of what went on back in the day...you can see my wife in the hat with the maroon shirt, with her sister standing alongside.

Naturally, I had to wonder off and take some photos of the environs, including the baptist church directly across the highway:

2015 Cruise - Mahahual Mexico, Pyramid Village

We disembarked at the Mahahual cruise terminal, hopped onto a bus and ended up in this little town that sprang up around an ancient pyramid.  Supposedly the pyramid was 800+ years old, and pretty much untouched since the day it was abandoned.

There is a fascination in knowing that this was once a busy, thriving place for the indigenous peoples of the area, leaving much to the imagination.  For example, who was allowed to climb the narrow steps depicted in the photo below?  What was the purpose of the platform to which it led?  Did all who ascend do so willingly?

2015 Cruise - Night Shot In Motion

The last of the night shots on board - the remaining few dozen postings will be from the various stops and excursions we took during the cruise.

2015 Cruise - Nighttime (Glowing) Edges of Movie Deck

On the horizon here you can see the lights of the Cedar Crossing Industrial Park.  Though the ship was still full of people the movie/swimming deck was eerily silent and devoid of activity.  A scene with nuns was captured in the movie that was playing at the time...

2015 Cruise - Staircase Night Shot

There are stairways everywhere on a ship.  Making it a goal to daily climb every indoor stairway and steps such as these would be a great way to get a workout during leisurely days at sea.

2015 Cruise - Deck Seating

This and the next three postings will complete the pics captured on board the ship for this trip.  Oddly, some of the best ones were taken after we had returned and were docked at the very berth from which we'd departed a week before.  Due to weather and traffic factors we came in early, so spent the last night moored just yards from where our cars awaited us in the parking lot below.

Because the ship was so still I took the opportunity to get some night shots.  Most vacationers were in their rooms getting ready to leave, which left places of interest in the ship vacant and people-free.

What you see here is the outdoor seating in front of the big movie screen.  Mary Poppins was singing into the still night air from "The Sound of Music".

2015 Cruise - Champagne Treetop / Reflections on Alcohol

Love this color against the dark background.

It amazes me how ubiquitous alcohol is in every one of the world's cultures.  To those who argue that moderation is the key (citing the word much in I Timothy 3:8) I would ask, "If everyone in the world suddenly stopped taking in alcohol, not consuming a drop from now on, would the world be a better place or a worse place?"  The answer I think is obvious.

Yet the desire and impulse to drink is there - for some worse than others - and is tied to one's chemistry more than most imagine.  Back in '84, when I was living up in North Texas, an urge crept up on me to drink red wine.  First it entered my mind, then grew into a real desire, then finally in an obsession.  I was making plans to jump in my car and rush to the liquor store.  By the time it got that bad I was asking myself, "Where's this coming from?!?  I've never experienced anything like this before...what's different now?"  Then I remembered that a couple of weeks earlier I changed my multi-vitamin in the mornings with breakfast, from Centrum to One-A-Day's.  Just to see what would happen I went back to the Centrum and the desire for red wine, much to my relief, disappeared.

Years later - somewhere around '07 or '08 - I was talking to a work colleague in Columbus, Texas, who was a severe, hopeless alcoholic until he discovered pantothenic acid (vitamin B5).  After diligently following a regiment of B5, and also diligently exercising his faith, all desire for alcohol likewise disappeared.  He went on to become a respected member of his community and did more than most to help direct the youth of Colorado County away from the darker paths of life.

2015 Cruise - Champagne Tree in the Piazza

We found the entertainment on Princess Cruises to be a little lacking - as compared to Carnival - but the Fun Director kept things going with shows every night and activities in the Piazza, such as this one with the champagne tree.  Though not a drinker, I was mesmerized with the process of building the thing and traditional filling-of-the-glasses from the top.

Below is a closer-in shot with grapes and glasses only:

2015 Cruise - Sunrise with Lamp Post

One of my photographic objectives this trip was to go out early enough to get a decent sunrise photo.  This one was culled from at least a hundred captured in about a 20-minute time period on the second morning after departure.  The rays striking the water plus the lamp post combined to make this frame a keeper.

Below is said sun on a foggy afternoon:

2015 Cruise - Glass Corridor

One of the most entertaining aspects of going on a cruise is simply exploring the ship.  These things are incredible with their gargantuan size and variety, and in my opinion is worth the price of a ticket just to get on and ride the thing; the food, entertainment and excursions are just gravy.

Even though we'd been on this one before it didn't get old...in fact it was even better because we already knew our way around a bit.