Return to the Cruise
June 19, 2023 – Cozumel, Mexico
After a hectic wedding with a rained-out reception, Savannah and Dane craved a relaxing honeymoon. They booked their weeklong Caribbean cruise well in advance and boarded the Carnival ship at the Cape Canaveral port. For the first two days at sea, they took full advantage of the all-you-can-eat meals and round-the-clock snacks. As recent college graduates, they were used to getting by with as little food and money as possible. Savannah starved herself even more than usual in the weeks before the wedding to ensure she fit into her dress. The ship’s buffets were a welcome luxury.
While they enjoyed their time on the boat, when they reached their first destination port, the honeymooners were happy to escape their claustrophobic cabin and explore the tropical island of Cozumel. They examined all their onboard possessions to decide what to carry with them.
“I say we leave our passports. We’ll take our paper copies of the first page,” Dane said.
“Won’t we need the real passports to get back on the ship?” Savannah asked.
“No, just our cruise ID cards.”
“Maybe we should leave our phones too. I’d hate to lose them and it’s not like we’ll have any service anyway.”
“What about taking pictures?”
“We can use the little pocket camera.”
“How will we know the time?”
“The watch my mom kept bugging me to take.” Savannah held up a waterproof watch with a dial face and strapped it around her wrist.
The couple walked to the ship’s exit dressed for a day at the beach. Savannah carried in her belt bag a bit of cash, a bank card, and the camera. They passed by signs reminding them to return to the ship before its departure time at 4 pm. Uniformed crew members shouted the same reminder.
“The ship will not wait for you! Be back early! We recommend being at the dock by 3 pm! If you miss the ship, you cannot return and your vacation is over!”
Savannah noted the time on the large overhead clock and adjusted her watch so that it matched. She grabbed Dane’s hand and they continued onto the Cozumel dock surrounded by a horde of fellow passengers.
“What should we do first?” Dane asked excitedly.
“Scooters. I’ve always wanted to drive scooters around an island. And we can get away from the crowds.”
They found a scooter rental agency and haggled over the price. Both Savannah and Dane studied Spanish in school and used it at their part time jobs. Communicating with the locals in their native language made the couple feel less like stereotypical American cruise passengers. Equipped with a map, they followed a paved road through the jungle and toward the far side of the island.
Savannah and Dane stopped to admire some Mayan ruins, but the steamy heat made them return to the scooters to find some sea breezes. They reached the island’s east coast, where the ocean waves were rough and the beaches uncrowded. The couple casually followed the shoreline until they found a beach café with dozens of hammocks in the surrounding palm trees. After a fish taco lunch, the honeymooners cuddled in a hammock and listened to the crashing waves. The mood was so relaxing, they both drifted into naps.
Dane woke first. He nudged Savannah and asked, “What time is it?”
She looked at her watch and said, “A little before 1:00.”
“Seems later than that,” Dane replied.
“Don’t worry. We have plenty of time.”
They walked down to a sandy cove and waded into the warm water. Savannah snapped pictures with her camera’s timer before they wandered back to their scooters, intending to follow the coastal road back to the dock. They made slow progress as Savannah assured Dane they had more than an hour to spare. Then she noticed a Carnival ship moving south in the open water.
“Wouldn’t it be funny if that was our ship,” Savannah said with a carefree laugh.
“It can’t be. Not according to your watch. It must be another cruise. Carnival has lots of ships.”
As they got closer to the busy harbor, Dane began to panic. He saw cruise ships from other companies still docked, but no ship from Carnival. He and Savannah raced to return their scooters and then ran to the cruise port. They found only empty space where their huge ship had once parked. Two Carnival crew members stood nearby.
“Where’s the ship?” Dane called out.
“It’s gone. You missed it. Your vacation is over,” replied the older of the crew members in English.
Savannah held up her watch and said in Spanish, “It can’t be. It’s only 3:00.”
The unsympathetic crew member held up his own watch and replied in Spanish, “Your watch is two hours slow. Maybe you should check the batteries.”
Savannah’s face lost all color as she looked at Dane. She immediately realized it was not at all funny that they had seen their ship sailing away. Tears burst from her eyes as she cried, “We’re on our honeymoon. How can we get back on the ship?”
“You cannot,” replied the unfeeling crew member. “You must find your own way home. If you don’t have your passports, I recommend going to the airport and talking to their passport office.”
The younger of the two crew members looked more sympathetic as he watched Savannah cry, but he did not dare say anything in front of his older coworker.
Dane and Savannah walked away from the dock, sweaty and desperate. They used the little money they had left for a taxi to the Cozumel airport. They found a small passport office and explained their situation to an unfeeling bureaucrat. He looked at the photocopies of their passport page and issued them temporary versions. They had two days to get out of Mexico.
The couple clutched their temporary passports as they left the office. Waiting for them was the sympathetic Carnival crew member.
“I noticed that you speak Spanish,” he said. “I may have a way for you to get back on the ship.”
Savannah and Dane immediately perked up.
“One of the ship’s crew was sick. He needs to spend the night in the hospital, but he’ll be released tomorrow. A van will take him to the next port so he can return to the ship. You can tag along if you help him with the language. He doesn’t speak good English or Spanish.”
“If we show up at the next port, they’ll let us back on the ship?” Dane asked.
“I don’t know. It’s never been done before. Meet at the hospital tomorrow morning if you want to try.”
The newlyweds were left to agonize over their options. If they took the van, there was a chance to get back on track, but they might also be left far from an airport and even more desperate. If they took an expensive flight back from Cozumel to Orlando, they would also need to find a hotel and wait for their original flights home. It would cost a lot of money they did not have. Without their phones, they could only rely on each other for advice.
“I say we try to find the ship,” Savannah bravely said. “Things can’t get much worse, can they? And we’ll be together.”
They found an ATM and withdrew some cash. Then they found an inexpensive hotel room and spent the night longing to be in their cramped but air-conditioned ship’s cabin. They were at the hospital early the next morning to meet Han, the sick crew member they would follow back to the boat. He looked stick-skinny dressed in his uniform and not entirely cured. Savannah and Dane quickly learned he spoke little English and less Spanish.
The sympathetic crew member arranging transportation gave the newlyweds the name of the van company that would pick them up in Playa del Carmen after a ferry ride from Cozumel. Everyone hurried to the ferry landing and Savannah and Dane were soon plowing through the water toward the Mexican mainland. They kept a careful eye on Han, who sat quietly watching the churning waves.
The three passengers departed the ferry among a crowd of locals and tourists. Dane led them to a parking lot where he found the contracted minivan and driver.
“We’re with Carnival,” Dane said in Spanish. “Please take us to the port.”
The driver nodded and the three boarded the minivan with Han in the front passenger seat. Dane smiled at Savannha thinking the plan was going to work. Then the driver looked at his paperwork.
“I’m supposed to drive one person, not three. Someone named Han.”
“We’re all going to the same place.”
“I’m only paid for one. It’s a very long drive. I cannot take you for free.”
Dane gulped. “What if we paid?”
“If you pay, then I’ll drive.”
After heated negotiations, Dane agreed to $200. The driver located an ATM and Dane withdrew more money. He handed half of it to the driver. “You get the other half when we get there.”
The drive from Playa del Carmen to the cruise port at Costa Maya took three and a half hours. The minivan’s air conditioning was suspect, so the ride was warm and sticky. Han fell asleep and after some initial conversation with the driver, the radio provided most of the noise inside the van. Savannah did not complain about how hungry and thirsty she felt.
Costa Maya existed primarily as a port of call for cruise ships that followed the Mexican coast. The stop offered activities like ziplining, water sliding, and beach lounging. Passengers never got very far from their ships. The road to Costa Maya was carved out of the jungle with heavily guarded entrances to the city. When the van carrying Savannah and Dane crossed through the first checkpoint, Savannah was confident she saw their ship in the distance.
“Almost there,” she whispered.
The van drove through the streets of the local village and then reached what looked like an official entrance to the cruise port. They got in line behind several tour buses and delivery trucks. Guards at a gate checked papers and schedules. Dane reached up and handed their driver the remaining $100 he was promised.
“These people work for Carnival,” the driver announced when he reached the gate. He handed over a document.
“I only see one on the list, not three,” the guard said.
“I’m only the driver. Three people got in the van and I brought them for Carnival.”
The guard stared at the paper and looked at the line of vehicles behind the van. “Pull over up there and wait. I need to talk to the supervisor.”
The minivan pulled close to a walkway inside the gate. Savannah and Dane flashed each other worried expressions. If the guards found out they were stowaways, they could keep them away from the ship and they would be in real trouble.
As they nervously waited, a group of over fifty tourists walked past the gate after a waterpark excursion. Barely thinking, Dane pulled open the minivan’s door and got out. He motioned for Savannah to follow him before opening Han’s door and pulling him out too. Dane smiled at the driver and then quickly blended in with the tour group.
Pushing Han forward, Dane and Savannah marched without looking back. They were soon in a wide-open beach area filled with cruise passengers and crews. They walked quickly toward the docks and did not stop until they were in front of their Carnival ship.
Dane and Savannah found the line to board and held their cruise ID cards nervously. This was the moment of truth. When it was their turn to scan their cards, the indicator light flashed green. Welcome aboard. They did not wait for Han and went directly to their cabin.
Their cards opened the door and everything inside was just as they left it. Savannah guzzled a bottle of water before collapsing on the bed.
“I’m so hungry. I want to take a shower and eat until I’m stuffed.”
“Take a shower, but I don’t think we should leave the room until the ship leaves port. What if those guards took our picture and they’re looking for us.”
“That sounds crazy,” Savannah replied with a laugh. But she stayed locked in the cabin with Dane until they were sure they had left Mexico behind.
The couple emerged for dinner and were met in the hallway by a surprised crew member who seemed to recognize them. “Oh, you’re back,” she said.
Savannah and Dane smiled in return as if nothing unusual had happened. While they sat in the dining room, they noticed other crew members gesturing toward them.
“Why are they looking at us? Are we in trouble?” Savannah whispered to Dane.
“Just ask natural,” Dane replied.
“Should we go back to the cabin?”
“No. Let’s eat dinner and act like everyone else. Then we’ll go watch a show like everyone else.”
After a nervous dinner, Savannah and Dane made their way to the ship’s giant theater where half the ship’s passengers were gathered. Before the lavish show started, the cruise director walked on stage with a microphone.
“We have a very special couple onboard. If the newlyweds Dane and Savannah are in the audience, will they stand up?”
Dane and Savannah looked at each other and then reluctantly got to their feet. The entire ship turned to look.
“These two accomplished something never done before. They missed boarding the ship at our first stop but somehow they got back on. I don’t want to know how you did it, but I have a couple of prizes for you. First, a watch so you can keep better track of time and second a compass so you can keep better directions.”
Savannah and Dane blushed crimson as they walked up to the stage to receive the gifts. The crowd clapped and laughed and for the rest of the cruise the newlyweds were treated like celebrities. When they went ashore at the next stop in Belize, the other passengers kept reminding them when the ship was leaving. Savannah good naturedly pointed to the new watch she was wearing to show she was keeping track of the time.
The watch and compass became favorite souvenirs from their honeymoon. They were a reminder of a traumatic 24 hours and that with a little courage Savannah and Dane could do the impossible together.
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