Taryn & Brandon in KW

Taryn and Brandon have arrived in KW. I have asked Taryn to blog for you the trip down, life here in KW and the cruise.

From the moment Brandon and I stepped foot in Florida it has been a whirlwind. As many of you know Tropical Storm Fay hit Florida right in the middle of our travel plans. It all started with a flight into Fort Myers....we arrived to an airport full of paniced people stated "the hurricane is coming!". Brandon and I weren't too concerned since I had spoken to my parents several times since the storm hit and both of them agreed it wasn't anything to get upset about. We found out our flight into Key West was cancelled, so we booked a hotel room next to the airport until we could get another flight out. It had started to rain that afternoon, but Brandon and I didn't think anything of it. When we arrived at the hotel, a truck stocked full of bottled water and packaged food arrived and the hotel managed explained to us that the hotel was ready for the storm to hit and that "in case we are all stuck here for a few days, we have plenty of supplies!". Again Brandon and I just rolled our eyes since I had just hung up the phone with my mom who just said it was now clear and sunny in Key West. I called that night to re-schedule our flight for the next morning, the airport was still open.

It rain continuously through the night, and then the heart of the storm hit Tues morning. Our flight was cancelled again, and when I called to re-schedule the only flight available was for Thursday morning. Well that didn't sit well with Brandon and I since we were ready to sit on the beach and start relaxing. So we decided to check out of the hotel in the early afternoon and rent a car to drive to Key West since all other means of transportation were cancelled. The hotel refused to drive us to the airport to pick up our car due to "safety reasons", so I asked them to call us a taxi. They looked at me as if I was crazy, but I told them we were going to be in Key West by nightfall no matter what! The taxi arrived, and on the way to the airport we had to listen to the driver explain to us how the entire island of Key West was underwater and that we were crazy for going down there. During this lecture, I was on the phone with my dad who just got back from taking Dyna for a walk in the DRY, WARM streets of Key West. We picked up our car and drove to Key West in record time, only 5 hours (the tolls were suspended and no one was on the road)!

We finally arrived and to our not-much-surprise, Key West was not underwater! It was great to see my parents and my dog again. Of course it is hot and muggy, but totally worth "battling the storm" to get here. The town is completely dead from the people leaving due to the storm, which is great for us! We are now enjoying shopping on duval st, eating EVERYTHING, and soaking up way too much sun (I am already completely sunburnt). I feel bad for all those people who decided to let a "little" rain keep them from enjoying the Keys.

Tomorrow we leave for the cruise! 7 full days of excursions, eating, and having a great time! All four of us are going! We depart from Miami Saturday afternoon, with our first day on the cruise being a full day at sea. We plan to use all the luxury emenities the cruise offers. My mom and I are hitting the spa, the boys will enjoy the all-you-can eat buffets, and of course the many shows and activities that will accompany everyday life on the boat.
Our first stop on the cruise is private island the cruise ship has where we will be zip lining down a 2,600 foot line that starts on top of a mountain and ends on the white sand beach. We will also enjoy having our own private beach for the afternoon.
On Tuesday we land in Jamaica. There we will be hiking to waterfalls and enjoying the beautiful scenery.
Wednesday it's off to Grand Cayman where we will be boarding a private boat for a trip around the island.
Thursday we head to Cozumel. There we are renting a car and heading to the far side of the island to hang out and do our own thing.
Friday is the last day at sea and Saturday the 30th, we dock again. It is going to be a whirlwind of fun and adventure. Brandon and I will be home soon with a nice dark tan!

So the Adventure continues with anyone who dares to venture to the island!
Will be back blogging when we return.