Alligator Alley - 1/31/14

Did you ever notice what people do while they are driving 70 mph? As a passenger, I am able to observe drivers and it scares the daylights out of me. Talking on cell phones and driving with one hand is very common. Texting is, unfortunately, very common. Reading a book is not common, but I saw it today. And peeling a banana - holding it with one hand, and peeling it with the other hand, and steering on an as needed basis. Yikes!

Fortunately, Alligator Alley is about as straight a road as they come. The land is perfectly flat and the road goes in a straight line for about 100 miles through cypress swamps and saw grass and everglades. If you weren't going so fast you could probably see lots of alligators. There are a couple of rest stops and a Miccosukee Indian casino, and a whole lot of nothing else. Then all of a sudden, you can see a power line up ahead, you cross under an underpass that appeared out of nowhere, and there you are amongst subdivisions and strip malls.

The rest was easy. We dropped off the car at FLL and took the shuttle bus to Port Everglades. We were dropped off at the Island Princess. We checked our luggage at the curb and after a short, well-organized boarding processs, we found ourselves welcomed aboard. Our luggage arrived in our room shortly after lunch, we unpacked, and we attended the muster drill. The sun was out it was finally warm, and the ship left on time!