Today the ship was docked in San Juan, Puerto Rico. We had breakfast upstairs at the Lido Marketplace on Deck 16, with a view of San Juan. Then we headed off the ship to a press event at the port terminal.
The Carnival Mardi Gras inaugural cruise also celebrated another first, being the first cruise ship back to San Juan, Puerto Rico in 16 months. It was also the first port of call for this sailing. On top of that, San Juan, Puerto Rico is celebrating their 500 year anniversary.
The president of Carnival Cruise Lines and the captain of the Mardi Gras exchanged gifts with the mayor of San Juan and the governor of Puerto Rico at the cruise terminal. It was a very sweet and heartfelt exchange for moving forward for the cruise industry.
It was raining a bit on and off while at port. It was very hot, but we were grateful to be back. We were also grateful to have cell service at this port. Be sure to check your cell service when you visit Puerto Rico. Because it’s part of the United States, most cell providers allow your regular service with no extra charges. It’s a good port to call home and check in with family.
We went back to the ship for lunch and decided on Shaq’s Big Chicken. It was really good. They have a few different sandwiches – some sounded too spicy for my taste. But the people who love hot and spicy raved about them. I was too chicken to try them (pun intended).
We grabbed some cookies from the Lido Marketplace to snack on while we worked on stories and videos in our room. But working from our balcony with an amazing view of San Juan is not a bad day at all.
The panoramic view sailing away from the coast of San Juan is not to be missed. We sailed right by a fort and the beautiful downtown coastal area. It was just breathtaking!
For dinner we decided to try Bonsai Sushi. It’s al la carte but very reasonably priced. We ordered a green salad and edamame to start. We each got a noodle bowl and we shared a spicy tuna roll. We liked that you could customize your noodle bowl. That proved to be just enough for the two of us. I also ordered some hot green tea. The water cups were a little small, but they will probably change that in the future. We would like to eat there again if we have time before the end of the cruise. We really enjoyed it.
After that, we walked around listening to a couple of different musical acts. First was at the Fortune Teller bar on Deck 6. I order a drink called the Air of Mystery and my husband ordered the color changing Abracadabra. They were both fun and flavorful. The musical act was two guitarist and singers Owen Steven and Travis. They are usually solo acts, but they harmonized perfectly. Plus, I was happy they played one of my favorite songs, “Drift Away”, by request.
Then we walked down to the Center Stage to see New Age play popular songs with violins. We listened to them until their set was done and then we called it a night.
Click here for Day 5 of our cruise. Be sure to go back and read from the start with Day 1.
Please leave your questions or comments below.
I looking forward to cruise again with Carnival ,but out of San Juan Puerto Rico. Current moment only Royal Caribbean & Norwegian leaving San Juan Port . Why is Carnival taking forever , My first time on Carnival was from Old San Juan and now I feel disappointed with Carnival .