Day 127, Huatulco, Mexico

We arrived pierside in Huatulco, Mexico, around 8am for a short visit.

All aboard was scheduled for 1:30 pm with a 2 pm departure. Speaking of all aboard times, we learned that the couple who was semi-famous by almost missing the ship a few days ago was never very far away (using WiFi nearby), but thought that the all aboard time was later than it actually was and instead of being ½ hour early they were actually ½ hour late and were almost left behind. We always take a picture of the all aboard time at the ships exit because this is always the official time. On the world cruise they changed the time that was printed in the program during one port to something earlier – so always check the gang way sign to be sure.

A little before noon we left the ship which would give us 90 minutes to explore the immediate area around the entrance to the pier. It was quite hot and humid so we walked slowly and browsed a few of the shops looking for post cards and key chains, which we found quickly. We continued to walk down the street toward the very nice, but small beach. Several passengers were taking advantage of the nice sand and inexpensive drinks, and if you were sitting in the shade with an ice cold beer or iced margarita it could actually be pretty pleasant.

We headed toward the marina to start a big loop back to the ship. We had thought about walking 1 mile to La Crucietta but with the high heat and humidity and our late start, we were not in the mood to walk that far so we headed back to the air conditioned refuge on the Amsterdam.

Once back on the ship we went to the Lido to cool off and get a snack before the SailAway party started at 1:30. They still set up a special drink stand near the SeaView pool, but there aren’t any more appetizers being passed around as there was earlier on this cruise.

At 2 pm we were underway with the Amsterdam backing completely out of the small harbor before spinning around to continue our cruise to the North.

The price for the Texas Hold’em tournament was lowered to $30 and we were able to get a game with 6 people. I had great cards in the beginning and ended up in a showdown with one other person. I didn’t have good cards for the last 3 hands and when the total of the small and big blind represented about ½ the chips in play, it doesn’t take too many hands to get knocked out.

Tonight we had Kentucky Fried Chicken on the menu and I couldn’t resist giving them another try. The coating was very good and these were a big improvement over the first time I had the Kentucky Fried Chicken earlier in the cruise.

Shayma Tash was the guest entertainer tonight. She is a comedian who has played in Comedy Clubs across the country and for American troops around the world. Her show was VERY adult and was fairly entertaining. This was probably the most adult show I have seen on any cruise ship anywhere – she was not at the Chris Rock level but well along in that direction. I have never been on Carnival and have heard that their ships feature an adult comedy club. The On Location Guide offered no hint that this would be such an adult themed show.   Not your typical HAL comedian for sure.

• Shayma Tash