A fresh pot of coffee arrived on Wednesday morning and we sat out on our balcony watching the boats and staff go across to the Portuguese Island to set up for our day on the island. The weather is just beautiful and the ocean swells aren’t bad at all, so we will definitely be heading out.

After a quick breakfast on level 5, we headed to the excursions desk, booked a beach lounger at the private beach, and then went back to our cabin to pack a beach bag.

We stood in the queue to get onto one of the Zodiac boats taking passengers across and as we got closer to the front, we popped bright orange life jackets on, were scanned out of the ship and climbed into the Zodiacs. Within minutes we were at the Portuguese Island.

It has definitely changed in the past 4 years. When I originally came with Karolina, there were no structures at all. Not even a bathroom.

Now they have decks, a thatch structure and bathrooms. Since the island is a conservation area, MSC have built and placed structures that are completely eco friendly. There are recycling areas and everything is set up without disrupting nature.

It’s an incredibly slick operation and the excursions cater for everyone. There is snorkeling, stand up paddle boarding, floating mats, music, restaurant excursions and then of course the beach braai.

Sox and I headed over to our private beach lounger, which is set slightly away from the main jam-packed area. We chose loungers on a wooden deck, had our own bar, fruit plates on arrival and there was even someone brushing any sand off our loungers when we returned from a dip in the bath water ocean. I honestly couldn’t recommend it enough.

The beach braai is delicious and you can pig out completely on burgers, hot dogs, chicken breasts, fresh juicy watermelon and sweet melon.

We eventually caught the second last Zodiac back to the ship, got scanned back in and hit our balcony for a glass of wine and a shower.

Before we knew it, it was time to get ready for the first sitting of dinner. The evening’s party is a tropical theme and I’ve brought along my tropical maxi dress I purchased last year in Greece. Actually, truth be told, it was complete fluke*. As I stepped out of our cabin everyone started commenting on my dress and how I fit into the theme. I hadn’t even known about it, but I just acted like it was all planned.

*Disclaimer 😉

Speaking of themes, it was Italian Night at the restaurant, L’approdo and as dessert was being served, the music came up and we all had to swing our white, red and green serviettes around, whilst beautiful Tiramisu desserts came spinning out by all the waiters. It was amazing. I took photos of the dessert, but stuck to my fruit plate. #NoBadSugar2015

It hasn’t been easy sticking to no sugar and no hidden sugar, but I’ve been making as many good choices as I possibly can. You really can only do your best when in these settings.

Again, I photographed all the dishes that came out to the table.

Mirrors on the ceiling

 

After dinner we headed up to the deck where the Tropical party was for a drink, before making our way to the Teatro dell’ Opera for the show, Casanova.

After the 30 minute show of dancing and singing, we made our way back to the deck to watch guests being taught a dance.

My eyelids were so heavy from the day of fresh air, salt water and sunshine that we eventually retired to our cabin. Sleep comes so easily here. You get so much out of a day but it’s also so incredibly relaxing too.