Music Boat 2008... This Ain't yo Daddy's Taco Bell!

Ok...the Music Boat arrives in Mexico... but is it going to be the Ruins...Jungle...Shopping....Beach?

Normally shopping would have won out but that picture of the beachside barbecue won out!

Plus I saw that Mark Harris and a lot of other people were opting for the beach

so we decide to go for it!

OK..I admit, for a cruise we spent a lot of time on buses

but it was always cool and always with a lot of Music Boat artists around...

Being a secure male and accompanied by a real honey I was able to wear my pink WBFJ tee-shirt with no intimidation!

I just can't tell you how nice this place was but maybe the pictures will

give you a little feel for the place... NICE!

I felt like a real "Gringo"...

the sign was in english and I still couldn't read it!

But the Hammock gave me time to gather my thoughts...ha ha!

(as good as a la-z-boy!)

I actually took off my pink shirt and went in the water for awhile...

I'm thankful there are no known pictures of that event!

True story: There was a wedding setting up

for later in the day... nice place to say "I Do"!

Really the place looked like a postcard...

the water really was that "blue"...

When it came time to meet the bus to go back to the ship

my ego was really boosted when I heard someone whistle

at me Turned out to be a false alarm!

OK...bird, which way to the bus?

OOOH...got to get back in time for dinner...

and a full night of concerts and then the midnight Mexican Buffet!

One of the non-artists on the boat was Mike Williams...funny...

real FUNNY GUY!

Mike is best know for his Commercial Jingles like...

Mazda's "Zoom...Zoom...Zoom" and

Oscar Myer's "My Balogne has a first name..." jingle

Hey, it's already after 10 O'clockbut the night has just begun...

Judy and I were eating pizza at 1:30 in the morning and other fun stuff.

Sorry, I would show you the rest of the evening....but my camera just ran out of film...

Right, Judy?!!

(Guess who takes the stage tomorrow night)

Music Boat Key West: The Mermaid and The Big Bling!

(Maybe the beginning of the now infamous: Big Bling Theory!)

Early Tuesday morning...Day 2...The "Music Boat" docks in Key West...beautiful day!

And my first really good look at the ship in the sunlight compels me say to myself, "Lord, this is one beautiful Ark!"

(I imagined the Lord answwering, "Thanks Noah...and be careful where you step!")

Once we all arrived in Key West, everyone pretty much went their on way... so much to see and do! Many took the little train tours around the city...

A Few of us who arrived in Florida early Sunday and missed church decided to attend the Tuesday morning service at the cool Key West "Motorscooter Church"...

Unfortunately, the church was just about empty...

Later found out most Key West people are LUNATARIANS (only meet on Mondays)...oh, well!

Ernest Hemingway's house seem to be one of the "Must Sees" on about everybody's list...but Judy and I were longing to just settle down and meet the locals...and feed the chickens that seemed to be runnning loose everywhere!

Our first try at chatting with the locals was a little un-nerving... the first guy we met was a giant! and really stiff... I told Judy maybe we should move on and try someone else.

I looked over toward the waterfront and saw a colorful old sailor...

now this is the type of Keywester (Shortens to keester) I've heard about!

This was so exciting! ... for a moment... down deep inside... I was experiencing one of those warm Forest Gump moments as this old wind tossed lover of the sea scratched his beard as he reminised about his many encounters with pirates and sea creatures and such...

(Also noticed Papa john's four meals aday on the boat are beginning to show a little!)

I asked the old sailor where we could charter a boat for cheap... he pointed down to the water and suggested we try the "Jolly Rover"

In Key West there are boats everywhere but after a few minutes we finally came across the "Jolly Rover"

Judy decided she would just go swimming nearby while the Captain and I would throw the nets overboard for a little in-harbor fishing. He told me we probably wouldn't catch much with the nets so close-in but at least I wouldn't have to thread any hooks with worms... and he wouldn't have to charge me the regular price for actually going far out to sea.

Sounded cool to me.

We threw the nets overboard and waited a few minutes.

While we were on deck just cooling it a little , Captain Jonah and I talked about how times had changed... how he used to encounter pirates at sea but as the old pirates aged out they had come back to land and set up shop.

Right when I was going to ask him what he meant by that, we heard this loud rustling noise coming from our nets...

WOW... I believe we got a big one this time!

I was literally beside myself as we pulled the nets in...

"Oh my," the Captain yelled out..."By gally, we've caught ourselves a real mermaid! And she's a beauty!"

"UH...Captain Jonah...which way to Ninevah?"

"Uh...uh..Judy sweetheart I am so sorry...uh..I didn't know you were swimming that close to the boat...uh..here, let me help you of that old net...uh...honey...you know I'd never ever let anything like this happen on purpose! Never!."

(Note: john in deep seaweed... needs to exercise some quick thinking pronto!)

"Sweetie...please don't be mad at me... When we get back to town I'm going to buy you that nice, big necklace set you've been wanting!

Promise!"

(While that seemed to calm Judy down a little...it didn't help me much. My heart was a fluttering as I wondered in my head where in the world will the money would come from for "The Big Bling" I promised)

Now...take a deep breath...because...

you're not going to believe this...(and you probably shouldn't)...

just as we got back in town I looked over and saw this beautiful chain, locket and giant matching earring set just hanging on this old building!

God is so good!

A perfect fit! And Judy absolutely loved it!

8 solid pounds of "Made in-the-USA" bling!

Truly a treasure at the end of the rainbow!

And as Mathew West says..."it's not the end but almost the end..."

"I'm singing this song ... And this really is the ...!"

When you are at mile marker zero and your next exit is Cuba, you know it's time to head back to the boat for "Formal Dining Night".

Just a little side note... it was neat to see the US Coast Guard escort us back out to sea..must be because of all those aged out pirates Captain Jonah referred to...LOL

OK... it's "Formal Dining Night" and the question lingers... Big Bling or no bling?

We left our love for bling back in Key West! LOL. But it was nice to dress up eventhough the Music Boat folk assured us Sunday Jeans would work as long as our running shoes were spit-shinned...no T-Shirts, though.

It was also neat to hear our waiters attempt to do Toby Mac's "Made to Love" in Spanish and several other languages all at once...It was so wild I thought the "Tooty Ta" might break out but no such luck! Still...A Great Night!

Formal Night was a great time for photos... I think Judy was flashing back from our Key West adventure... I gotta ask her about that.

Sara and Becky were a part of our local crew..I caught a quick pic as they headed down "The Red Carpet" for the evening... on our way to Leeland and Casting Crowns...

The Music Boat snow storm that suddenly appeared was a nice effect, too...LOL

Everybody loved Mark and Casting Crowns as usual.

Packed house...everybody on their feet!

Other concerts of the evening included Leeland, Joy Williams, Ayiesha Woods, Rush of Fools, Britt Nicole and Newsong on the Lido Deck under the stars...

And as usual....after the "Late night under-the-stars concert"... EVERYBODY made a mad dash to the 24 hour pizzaria or the late night buffet....

Had to race this young lady for the pizza... can't tell you who won...

Don't know about you but I'm ready to throw in the towel moo moo for the evening and kiss the cow goodnight! Hey....where's the chocolate? Oh... slipped under the cow... sorry!

Stay with me...tomorrow... less dramatic but a beautiful day in Calica, Mexico and Toby joins the boat...

(Blogger fine print: no feelings were hurt and no towels received permanent damage during the making of this blog...some events not effecting the outcome of our Music Boat experience were prerecorded, prefabricated or altered to fit the blogger format... blah, blah, blah, blah....hopefully you get the idea.LOL)

Music Boat 2008..."Welcome to Hollywood!"

OK, Ok Already...so it's Florida and not LA... but the Hollywood-Ft. Lauderdale Airport was our first stop on the way to the Music Boat...

Everything was pretty smooth except for a little "extra baggage" issue. Most people were PULLING their luggage around the airport...

WE HAD TO PUSH OURS!

(I told Judy 10 pair of shoes were a plenty...of course my toolkit added a few pounds also).

Then there was that neat bus ride from the airport to the "FASCINATION"...as I checked my rear view I saw Eddie from Newsong, Britt Nicole and other Music Boaters. But I was still nervous about getting to the boat, finding my way around and meeting the WBFJ guest crew on time. I had carried all the T-shirts and stuff on the plane with me for them and was thinking how disappointed I would be if I missed our reception.

Although our first look at the "FASCINATION" was in the rain, through a window and at a distance I still thought to myself ..."This is going to be fun if we can just get checked in and situated ASAP!)

After we actually hurried onto the boat and did a quick look around our "Stateroom" as they call it , we made a mad dash for the WBFJ Reception in the "Piano Louge".

I thought we knew where we were going until we realized all the decks don't go all the way through...you have to go up, around and back down! After asking a dozen people, I made it just after 4:30! (had to leave Judy behind to find it on her own...I was literally running by then...LOL)

Fortunately the WBFJ CREW made it ok and after I caught my breath, we had a little time of greeting around the "piano" and passing out the WBFJ goodies (yellow , lime green and a light up thingy)...can't tell you any more than that....lol)

It was really neat to have our hometown crew on the boat and see you enjoying the concerts and having fun.

OK...now that my heart has stopped racing...and can actually find my way back to the room...it's time to primp up a little and head for that famous Music Boat dining experience I have heard so much about..."The Hill's...table 145." ...yeah baby, now this is service!

NOTE:

(Judy was way too eager to share with our dinner guests some of my "shortcomings" of the day. "OK, Judy...sweetheart...that'll do for now!")

Good thing Doyle (and Nancy) our dinner mates were concentrating on taking a picture and ordering... they missed most of Judy's account of how many times I had gotten us lost in one day. LOL.

Doyle and Nancy are from the House FM in Oklahoma and are one of the big blessings we received on the Music Boat. It was so neat to have fellowship with them each day during the evening meal. Doyle even shared some of his pics me so I would have a good picture of Toby mac to bring back and put on my blog...ha ha!

After Dinner we just had to settle down a minute and catch our first Music Boat sunset. Each beautiful sunrise and sunset remined all of us on the boat just how beautiful God's creation really is and just how good God is...Beautiful!

After supper and sunset each evening... the indoor and outdoor concerts were just awesome... From Mark Hall and Casting crowns to Leeland, Newsong, Mark Harris, Hawk Nelson, Matthew West, The Afters, Britt Nicole and the whole Music Boat lineup... it all made for non-stop music and fun every night!

(more concert pics coming in later blogs)

You gotta love praising God in the great outdoors in the moonlight!

And did I mention....there was that 24 Hour round-the-clock

Soft Serve Ice Cream machine...

I had to push some of our local crew away from there...LOL

OOPS...I found out later that Wesley and Lisa were actually headed for the midnight buffet...sorry , I thought you were heading for the ice cream machine!

Ok...guys...it's about 2 in the morning... time to head back from the "Pizza -Steak room" to the "Stateroom" and get a little sleep before heading out to Key West...and then onto Mexico!

So Good night little music boat towel teddy bear... thanks for the chocolates and a wonderful day...God bless you and the crew!

Stay tuned...

Next stop: Key West!

(you don't want to miss this one...encounter with a real Mermaid!!!! lol)

AND then off to ... M-E-X-I-C-O !

PLUS...lots of concerts pics PLUS...

"Toby Mac Smokes the boat!" and more!