A Fantastic Day on a Bimini Beach, Bahamas - Day 5 of Our Virgin Cruise

TUESDAY - Bimini, Bahamas Our cruise ship sailed to Bimini, Bahamas, the second port on our 5th day cruise.

It appeared that there was not much to do on this island. I think the cruise ship companies together with the other resorts on this island created a Beach Club right by the ocean front especially for the enjoyment of the cruise ship passengers. The focus of our activities took place around the Club House on the beach. We were taken by a tour bus and dropped off at the waiting area by the Club House entrance. There were a few numbered cabanas with loungers in front of them as well as many loungers and chairs scattered throughout the beach area. One thing we didn’t do was reserving a cabana which could shield us from the sun. Fortunately, it was a cloudy morning.

We met D., her 2 girls, their friends and chatted for a bit. We picked a shaded area right in front of Cabana 25 and whats hap E. of the info in case he needed to find us. Having no desire to be roasted under a hot sun, We had never spent an entire day on a beach until today. It was a good day being on the beach as it was not too hot and the sun was not too strong. It was just perfect weather for lying around and enjoying the beach. We ordered some food and drinks provided by the cruise ship and enjoyed our first full beach day. While my husband was enjoying his do nothing beach day with a beer and a coconut by his side, I strolled on the shore along the ocean. Dipping my barefeet in the ocean and listening to the sounds of the waves had a soothing effect on me. I just loved the feeling of being close to a body of water!

There was an abundance of food avaialable for us. We simply lined up to order our drinks and food at the food counter and bars. Young people were playing beach ball, swimming in the water and playing games in the pool; some were soaking up the tropical sun while other were relaxing and enjoying a nice time on the beach. I was surprised at how fast time flew by when we were simply lying around on the beach! E. came and told us it was time to leave this beautiful place, how sad! We reboarded the ship around 5pm and reboarded our cruise ship.

After a light snack – I finally got to try the Scarlet Lady dessert from the bakery. I went to my first Zumba class on this trip on the terrace. I wished I had discovered this class on day 1 of this cruise. It was a beautiful place to have the exercise class. There were only about 7 - 8 participants but I enjoyed both the view from the terrace and the exercise to loosen my well fed body. While I was in the class, I saw E. running around the track below us a few times. Wow, he's taking his exercise seriously. Thank God that he has learnt to look after himself with regular exercises. We were too tired to attend other events after the beach outing. Though we made reservation and were given the time slot at 9pm, we arrived at the restaurant shortly after 7pm and we were seated before 7:30pm! A lesson learned- never be afraid to ask for an earlier time for your dinner even though the assigned time might be much later. We were able to change our dinner time every time we asked and were able to have it much earlier.

This was our last night of the 5 day Virgin cruise, we had dinner at the Test kitchen which served us a six course meal creatively prepared using different ingredients and beautifully presented with detail explanation by our server. That was the best meal, a fancy dinner with small portions, exactly what we needed after a few days of heavy meals. We went back to our cabin to pack for tomorrow's disembarkation but didn’t go to the karaoke with E. and his friends. I watched a great interview on MSNBC with Arthur Brook who co-wrote a book on The Science of Happiness which talks about the main ingredients for a happy life; and some practical things to do to start the path to a happy life 1. Faith – read something spiritual or pray everyday for at least 15 minutes 2. Family – call your loved ones and talk to them everyday 3. Friends – make real friends and in person connections, not online friends and zoom friends 4. Work - which makes you feel that you are helping and uplifting others A very good interview and an excellent book to buy for our sons for next Christmas or birthday! RT, Day 5, Virgin Cruise 12262023