Westways (AAA Southern California) Magazine
February 1, 2001
Just for Fun

While it sure doesn't hurt, I found you don't have to be a couple
of swinging singles to enjoy a Carnival cruise. Happily marrieds
like me, and the blissfully betrothed like my pal Nina, realized
on a recent cruise we could leave the guys at home and enjoy the
show from the sidelines! A week on the Carnival Paradise to the
steamy western Caribbean islands of Jamaica, Cozumel, and Grand
Cayman was an ego-boosting flirting fest, with plenty of 30-somethings
to go around. The 2,040-passenger Carnival Paradise, like her sisters,
is festively decked out like a Christmas tree, with twinkling lights
and colorful baubles covering nearly every inch of her 70,367 tons.
The trimmings include the jaw-dropping six-story atrium festooned
with sparkly Faberge-like eggs and the whimsical public rooms named
after famous ocean liners. The Rex disco grabs you with its jungly
faux animal-skin upholstery and carpeting, and the red, white and
blue America piano bar makes you want to salute. There's upwards
of 8 bars around the ship, plus a huge gym, spa, three sprawling
restaurants, a 24-hour pizza counter, sushi bar, and what seems
like miles of outdoor deck surrounding the pool and snaking slide,
with a live band blasting Bob Marley and Jimmy Buffet tunes to set
the party mood. With all of these places to meet and mingle, coupled
with the thousands of fellow passengers, officers and crew all marooned
together with you for a week like a floating summer camp for adults,
you'd have to lock yourself in your cabin to avoid meeting a ton
of people.

It was only hours into our cruise that Nina and I met four strapping
single guys in the 30 to 40 range. They were so clean cut, we called
them the priests. John worked for the IRS, Bob was a federal express
guy, and the other two, oh I can't remember. They were decent is
all, and frugal too --- they were sharing one of Carnival's roomy
190-square-foot standard cabins (ok, roomy for two, but reeeal cozy
for 4). They approached us with your classic: "hey, what are nice
girls like you doing in a place like this." We enjoyed the banter
for a while, but then, sensing their interest, I flashed my wedding
ring and Nina mentioned the b-word --- boyfriend. We didn't want
to lead them on, but of course down deep we loved the attention!
By night, the Rex disco was swarming with prospects, including a
bevy of dashing white-suited officers eyeing the herds from the
edge of the dance floor. The Chief Engineer chatted me up for a
while one night before I flashed the ring and moved on. I could'a
danced with him, I thought, as if I was keeping score. A married
gal's got an ego too! Another night in the disco, Nina and I found
ourselves having a ball doing the campy YMCA routine with the portly
purser, before running off to make the midnight comedy routine in
the Queen Mary lounge.

Our encounters weren't limited to the ship, either. In Jamaica,
where Nina and I signed up for an awesome river tubing adventure
down the White River, the eau de aphrodisiac seemed to be wafting
around the lush island as much as it was on board the ship. The
group had barely floated past the first clump of towering emerald-green
bamboo trees, then the tubing guide paddled himself next to Nina
and stayed there, plying her with sweet nothings the entire trip.
Then there was the tax lawyer, Bill from Baltimore, who was on the
cruise as part of a business convention. In the warm Mexican sun
one morning, we met him on line for the bus to the horseback riding
excursion. A shortish, balding guy is his 30s, he was the cute "guy
next door" type and very easy to talk to. He told us, as the bus
rattled along to a ranch in Cozumel's remote hinterland, what he
was looking for in a woman: a wife who was willing to stay home
and manage the household chores. Hhmmm, I was surprised at my feminist
self for respecting his honesty.

Then again, I also thanked my lucky stars that my man Arun didn't
mind washing the dishes! I returned home from my week on the Paradise
to my own little slice of nirvana --- a bouquet of flowers and a
big hug. While it sure was fun dipping our toes in the frolicking
Carnival sea solo for a week, next time it'll be even more fun to
bring the guys along!