That Cruisin Lyfe

We love cruises. Our cruise to Ensenada was so fun! It was just long enough to feel relaxed, but short enough to keep the boat a novelty. We cruised on the Carnival Inspiration out of Long Beach, down to Ensenada, Mexico.

The first day, we boarded the boat and explored. We had a lovely ocean-view room, and the boat itself was quite pretty. There were many lounges, a big pool, waterslides, mini-golf, and of course, the food! We went to the seated dining room every night for dinner, and it was delicious. There was always a good range of choices, and Matt and I always ordered more than we should eat! The best part was that we got the table to ourselves. Usually on a cruise, you get seated with about 6-8 other people for dinner. I was a little nervous about who we would be seated with, but it turned out that I didn't need to worry! Matt and I were literally the only ones at our table for 10. We definitely enjoyed our nightly gourmet meals for just the two of us. After dinner, we went to one of the musical shows, watched some (unmusical) people try karaoke, and explored the ship some more.

Dinner on the first and second night

The second day was spent at sea! The day began with the most delicious brunch! It was honestly the highlight of my day. I ordered eggs benedict and frosted flake-coated french toast. I just couldn't decide between the two so I got both haha. I couldn't finish either, but I certainly enjoyed them! It was a little cloudy but warm, so we tried out the pool for a while. We also played mini golf, ate lots of ice cream, relaxed, went to a comedy show, and saw another musical performance. It was just the right balance between relaxation and having something to do.

The third day was port day at Ensenada! We quickly ate breakfast then got off the ship as soon as possible. We didn't really have anything planned for the city, so we thought we would just figure it out when we got there. We took a shuttle from the port into town, then we caughtanother bus up to the Bufadora. The Bufadora is a natural blow-hole created by sea water rushing into a cavern, building up pressure, then being released into the air, like the blow-hole of a whale. I guess it's a pretty unique phenomenon. It was cool to see a huge pillar of water rush into the air every 17 seconds, but I did get a little too close one time! I tried to get pictures, but it was hard to catch it in action. There were tons of little shops and stands lining the way to the Bufadora, which Matt and I explored. I got some sandals, and he got candy. There was also a great taco stand which we enjoyed immensely. Best fish and carne asada tacos ever!

After the Bufadora and shopping, we looked around town for a short while and headed back to the ship. We laid by the pool again, then we went to a gameshow that they had on board. It basically takes a bunch of Hasbro board games and turns them into a show, so there was life-size Connect Four, interactive Trivial Pursuit, and Monopoly. It was really fun, especially when I was chosen to go up on stage to participate! The game I played (on a team) was Operation, in the form of skee-ball. I was terrible. I only got point for one out of seven shots, and I completely face-planted as I was running around the stage! It was so embarrassing. Matt got a really good laugh about that one. Later that night, we enjoyed dinner and another comedy show.

I was obsessed with the towel animals that they made each night! Can you blame me?!

We were a little sad that the cruise was over so soon, but Spring classes started the next day. We deboarded the cruise early the next morning and made the long drive back to Provo. The cruise was such a nice diversion from the busy semester we had, and it gave us just enough relaxation time to gear up for the term ahead of us! We'd love to go on another cruise with some friends... any takers?!

L.V. and L.A.

Matt and I decided that we needed a little rest and recuperation after Winter semester finals, so.... we went on a cruise! It was pretty last minute, but one of the best decisions. We needed something quick, since we both started Spring term the next week, so off to LA we went to board a 3-day cruise to Ensenada, Mexico. If you're going to go on vacation, though, you might as well make the most of it. Matt and I rented a car (the cutest little Fiat!.. I'm in love) and headed to Vegas, en route to LA. The drive to Long Beach is 10-11 hours, so we thought splitting it into two legs was a better idea, and it turned out to be really fun!

In Vegas, we stayed in the Riviera, which was... an experience. Let's just say we got a killer deal on a room, and now we know why. For example, no shower curtain? Luckily we just stayed there one night and checked out pretty quickly in the morning. We didn't leave Vegas yet, though. We explored the Strip a little in the morning, but it was all to reach the most delicious destination: Hash House A Go Go. I vaguely remembered hearing stories about this place, but those memories were nothing compared to what I experienced, which was the most overwhelmingly delicious breakfast I have ever tasted. We waited about 30 minutes (which was short, considering all the people waiting in line), but we needed all that time to choose what we wanted to order! I decided on fried chicken and waffles, and Matt got a meatloaf sandwich. Neither of us were disappointed. I think I still dream about this meal. I could barely eat half, it was so big! Going to Hash House was definitely a highlight of the entire trip.

Look at the size of that Chicken and Waffles! And there was bacon cooked INSIDE the waffles.

 After eating, we started our journey to Long Beach! We naturally stopped in Primm at the outlets (can't stop me from shopping), made it to California, then experienced LA traffic. That was fun. Finally we made it to Long Beach, and we were MUCH more satisfied with our hotel situation! We settled in and explored Long Beach for a while, then we grabbed dinner at Bubba's Shrimp. The next morning, we headed to LA to explore some of Matt's old stomping grounds from back in the day. First, we visited the temple, which was beautiful! We had been planning on doing a session, but someone (*I*) forgot their recommend... so we just went to the Visitor's Center instead.

Afterwards, we stopped by Tito's Tacos for some lunch. No regrets there--it definitely lived up to the hype. Those are probably the only hard-shelled tacos I have ever truly enjoyed. (Are you sensing a food theme here?)

A delicious box of tacos...

That day was cruise day, so we had to hurry back to Long Beach to board the Carnival Inspiration. Stay tuned for details on the cruise!

Oh Jerusalem, If I Forget You...

So, I've been putting this post off for about a month. This is my final wrap-up of the most amazing semester of my life- my semester abroad at BYU Jerusalem. I haven't been wanting to write this final post because then it would feel like the experience is actually over. But it is. At least, the actual experience is over, but the memories, friends, and influence that the experience had on my life will always remain. As I've said in many other posts, it's impossible to try to recount all of the things I did in Jerusalem and all of the amazing things I saw; so as my final post, I'd like to just write about what I'll take away from the Holy Land. On one of the last nights, I write a pretty long entry in my journal, and I think it just about sums up how I feel. Here are some parts of it:

This past week I've been pretty homesick, but now that we leave this Thursday, I'm really sad to be letting this go. Never again will I be surrounded by such amazing children of God that have the same goals and focuses, where we are all learning about ourselves and our Savior, in the very place that the Bible took place. I know it will never be like this again. But, I can carry this feeling with me, along with all that I have learned and my strengthened testimony... When Elder Holland visited here last April, he said something that I heard a few times, and it's really stuck with me. It was to the effect of: "Shame on you if you are not changed by this experience forever and go right back to the way you were before." That just really struck me, and it has bee the motivating force behind my actions here, that I will be a changed, improved servant of my Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ, my Lord and King. I am determined to be changed. I am resolved to keep progressing and learning and becoming each and everyday a better disciple and true follower of Christ. When He comes again, I will know Him because I will be like Him. I have, over this semester, come to know Jesus as my friend, truly my elder brother and protector, my Savior and comfort. I know that He was born just a few miles away in Bethlehem, in a humble manger, to a young and pure virgin Mary. I know He taught in the temple, raised the dead, fed the multitudes, calmed the storm, and walked on water. I know He entered the Garden of Gethsemane, just on the Mount of Olives, and pleaded with the Father, bled from every pore, suffered all my pains, felt all my loneliness and trial, was comforted by an angel, then submitted His entire will to the Father. I know He then was arrested, falsely accused, mocked, burdened with a cross, and crucified. I know He died for me, and most of all, I know He rose on the third day and now lives for me. I couldn't be more grateful for anything else. I truly stand all amazed at His love, and it is so wonderful and joyous to me. I am so blessed to have had this opportunity to study in Jerusalem and come to know my Savior as a person and friend... I am so richly blesses, I really don't deserve it. But, that just places a responsibility on my shoulders to fully internalize this and incorporate it into my life, so much so that my testimony and light are apparent to all I come in contact with. I want it to be obvious that I am a true believer and follower of Christ. 

 The final two weeks in Jerusalem were probably my favorite. Classes were basically over, all the finals were done, and we just went on field trips and talked about Christ all the time. What could be better, honestly? I loved walking through the last week of Jesus' life and spending time in the Old City and West Jerusalem for the last few times. On my last day, I had a few places that I was determined to visit, and I got to do just what I wanted :) We started off by going to the Church of St. Mary Magdalene (wasn't on my list, but that's ok), then I went to the Garden Tomb. This was the main place I wanted to go. We got there at the perfect time too--usually it is full of tour groups, but for some reason, it was perfectly peaceful and calm. It was just the way I wanted to remember it as my last time. After having lunch back at the JC, we went to the Garden of Gethsemane. I was feeling a little stressed about packing and cleaning and leaving and sticking to a schedule, but as soon as I sat down in the private garden, I felt at peace. My worry melted away, and all I had to think about was Christ. My experience there was definitely one of the highlights of my entire semester.

Leaving the JC was very surreal. I didn't cry, I didn't really say a lot of goodbyes, I didn't really feel like we were leaving at all. Even the plane ride home was calm for me. In fact, I still don't think it's truly hit me, and it's a month after the fact. Maybe because the whole experience just seems like a dream. I mean, I just lived in Jerusalem for three and a half months... Who does that??? The first time it really and truly sunk in was when we had our first JC reunion in Provo and I realized how much I truly missed living on top of everyone and talking about the amazing experiences we had. It's crazy how influential something so short can be on your entire life. But it happens, and it definitely happened to me. And I couldn't be happier about it :)