Carnival Cruise Line has become one of our favorites. Carnival Sunshine was a fun-filled adventure in the summer of 2014. My daughter M, her friend A and my dear friend L and I had a ball for 7 nights. It could not have been a more perfect vacation for us girls. We sailed out of Port Canaveral FL and our first stop was Nassau. We enjoyed some local shopping at the Nassau Straw Market. Always a deal to be had!
Fun Day at Sea was the second day. A lot of fun activities to do on the Carnival ship and a TON of wonderful food! When we first got on the ship I went straight to the dining room to speak with the maître d‘ regarding the availability of Gluten-Free food on board. I was so surprised to discover how accommodating they are! I was able to order right then for the first night from appetizer to dessert. Each night at dinner I was given a menu for the following night to order ahead of time. Our waiter Krisztian was so helpful and made every dinner an experience. We enjoyed dressing up for dinner and looked forward to our meals all during the day. My favorite dessert was the Warm Chocolate Melting Cake served with vanilla ice cream…..yummo!!! I discovered this recipe on the Carnival website.
Warm Chocolate Melting Cake
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 pound Dark Chocolate
- 1 pound Butter
- 10 Eggs
- 10 ounces Sugar
- 6 ounces gluten-free flour
TO PREPARE:
- Melt the chocolate and butter. Mix the eggs with the sugar and whisk for a few minutes; add the flour. Combine the egg mixture with the melted chocolate and mix. Then pour into individual greased molds. Bake directly in the oven at 400°F for 14 minutes.
- Sprinkle with confectioners’ sugar and garnish with fresh fruit. Serve warm with ice cream.
- Serves 12
It’s a lot of fun to get all dolled up for dinner especially on formal nights. Meg & I had such a special time on this cruise with our friends. Great girls’ week!! Day 4 was a stop in St. Thomas USVI. Lots of walking and window shopping. Don’t forget to put on sunscreen before heading out. You will get much more fun than you think you will!
Day 5 was a stop in San Juan, Puerto Rico. So many sights to see to include the Sentry Box, Castillo San Cristobal.
Two sweet friends sitting atop the Castillo San Cristobal which began being built in 1634 for protection. It really was such a great backdrop for interesting pictures.
Hellllooooo!!! We stopped in the center of town to enjoy the local merchants selling their handmade designs. Beautiful jewelry and handcrafted items. This momma and her baby were tossed into the air towards this gal without any warning. She handled the surprise well…just slightly freaked out.
The view of the ocean was spectacular! There was a shuttle van you could hop on to tour San Juan. We decided to walk everywhere and wandered the cobblestone streets of Old San Juan. Our feet ached after a while and next time we decided we will hop on the van to see more and to give out tootsies a break.
Photo Bombed! This was hysterical as the two guys from the photo department got in the action. M took a picture of just the two of us, but we all like the four of us better! Brings a smile to our faces each time we see it! The ship had a huge 4th of July celebration. Check out L’s bracelet, purchased at the Nassau Straw Market. So many pretty things were there to buy!
Day 6 was a stop at Grand Turk for a beach day. There were plenty of beach chairs to catch loads of sunshine. We brought our beach towels from our staterooms along with the large water bottles we brought from home. We filled them full of cool water right before we got off the ship.
Day 7 was another Fun Day at Sea. I discovered towards the end of the cruise that they had a design your own pasta dish restaurant during lunch. GF pasta, different delicious sauces to choose from, then topped off with a variety of fresh ingredients at the make-your-own-pasta bar Pasta Bella. Paired with a salad it was a fabulous and nutritious lunch! Wish I had known of it earlier. If you don’t feel like leaving the pool area you can just grab a burger with all the trimmings at Guy’s Burger Joint! So yummy! No GF buns, but the burgers and fries are completely gluten-free. I did not get sick the entire week on the ship and can’t wait to travel with Carnival again and again and again!!
To say this was a wonderful cruise is an understatement! We didn’t miss a show. The dancers put so much energy into every show. It was evident they were proud of what they were doing and spent a great deal of time practicing to perfect each show! An A+ cruise ship with the most incredibly talented singers/dancers, fantastic food, and sweet staff! Loved making new friends!!! We’re walking on Sunshine….whoa oh…Don’t it feel good!!!!
Sunshine wishes,
