1/19
I am writing this from my cabin on the ship. I am finally at sea. I can hear the engines turning as the ship moves through the waves. The ship rocks back and forth a bit, definitely a new sensation but it doesn’t bother me.

I arrived in the Bahamas yesterday. It is beautiful here. Having never been outside of the country alone, it was a weird feeling going through customs, hailing a taxi, and checking into the hotel. I felt old and young at the same time. I was doing tasks that I have always left up to my parents when I travel, so I felt very grown-up. However, being in completely foreign territory made me feel a little bit like a lost child.

That simile is a perfect segue for my next story. Upon checking into the Atlantis Resort I found that my room would not be ready for another two hours. So I checked my luggage and decided to explore and lay by the pool. Turns out the Atlantis is gargantuan and the map (yeah that’s right….a map) is very deceiving. On my way to the Lagoon Pool, one of many pools, I found myself in the casino which is decorated with a beautiful blown glass sculpture, then the outdoor mall, then the indoor mall. After that little debacle I sat in the lobby for 15 minutes just trying to get my bearings. Why didn’t I ask for help, you say? Because I am an adult, obviously, I mean I checked into a hotel by myself. I did finally find the pool and had a little rest. By the time I was burnt to a crisp (just kidding, family I was protected by sunscreen) my room was ready and I proceeded to get lost again. My room was 4301, but I went to the wrong tower where all the 4200s were. That’s how big this place is.

As I said, the Atlantis is huge but it’s also rather ridiculous. Por exemplo, to work out at the gym for one day it is $15.00. FIFTEEN DOLLARS. I was floored by that. But the lady working assured me that it was worth it because I would receive a water bottle, a sweat towel, and an apple. I forgot to get the apple as I left. Damn it. Another example of ridiculousness: My friend Jill came to visit me at the hotel and we went to water park. We went down a sweet tube slide that goes through a tank with sharks and fish. One shark was just resting atop the tunnel and you could totally check out its underbelly. It was freaky. That was awesome, so we obviously wanted to go on more slides and the lazy river (who can’t resist a lazy river?) We traipsed over to the lazy river only to find it was closed. Bummer. So we decided to just go lounge in the pools. Closed. Wait, what?!?! Closed! They close their pools at 5pm, all pools, 5pm. A little disappointing, but oh well.

Now I’m sitting in my room, resting a bit from all the chaos.