Hello Karate Enthusiast,
Please be informed the following is not a part of Sensei Mattson’s Winter Fest. Please read the following, as I feel it would add so much more to your decision to join us at Winter Fest this coming year and every year to come.
To help provide a greater value for your visit to Winter Fest in sunny Florida this coming year, 2023, I have worked tirelessly to find a cruise to the Caribbean & Bahamas. This is a 4-day trip leaving on Sunday, the 12th; that’s the day after Winter Fest. Please also keep in mind a cruise is the absolute best value for everything that you get and enjoy. All inclusive.
Now before you land animals make the assumption that you may not enjoy a sea cruise; imagine this. You wake up in the morning with a splash of water on your face and meet Sensei Mattson at the top deck or the aerobics room for your morning sanchin. It’s always great to be inspired by Sensei Mattson and the enormous amount of energy he radiates at such an ungodly hour. Everything is an option; you are on vacation.
Afterward, stroll to the breakfast buffet and see more different types of food than you can imagine or try to eat. You don’t need to decide right away, it’s a buffet. There are five different types of juices with coffee and a plethora of teas. Don’t forget the many types of fruits they’ll have also.
When you finally drag yourself away from the breakfast buffet, the sun deck and the pool are right next door. Go soak up some rays, before heading back to your room to catch up on some zzzs. There is a weight room with an abundance of exercise equipment. At 12 noon, I usually go to the aerobics room to practice the full 8 katas and to work on the movements. It’s not really a class, but everyone is welcome to join me and perhaps exchange views and ideas.
At our leisure, we will go back to the buffet area where lunch will be served. There are a variety of soups, meats, and food choices from all over the world. Remember there are no limits. Yes, it’s a buffet! Most drinks are included, but there is a small fee for an alcohol package which I’ve always added to my package, and I don’t even drink.
After lunch, you’ll find an abundance of activities on cruises. No pressure. Go and do whatever you want to do. You’re on vacation. There is a casino, movie theater, bowling lanes, spas, and 3 swimming pools. Relax with a drink under the shade by the poolside. Go do some tax-free shopping. Joy and I sometimes play poker or cribbage (for money). I visit that ATM so often to pay her. I think it recognizes me by name. I put my room card in, and the darn machine says, “Hello, Mr. Yee. How much did you lose today?”
5 pm comes around, and I change into something a little nicer to go to the dining room. Usually a clean pair of shorts and a tee shirt I haven’t sweated in yet. We go sit down in a fancy dining room and get waited on by some of the nicest people in the world. There are many different choices on the menu and different every day. If you can’t make up your mind, order 2 or 3 dinners. They don’t care. You are the one carrying all that food around.
After you finish dinner, you can mosey on down to the shows with comfortable, padded stadium seating and enjoy great Broadway productions. They are all professional performers and put on a tremendous show. After that performance, maybe a drink is in order, so you step out of the theater and step Into the lounge for a drink, dance, or maybe entertain others by singing karaoke. An hour after the first show, there is another different performance. Sometimes I just go to the top deck and stretch out on a beach lounge chair and stare into the sky. Life is good.
Please go online and search the MSC Meraviglia Cruise Ship Tour and check it out.
Activities for Winter Fest start Thursday, March 9, 10, and ends on Saturday, March 11. When you get out of bed on Sunday, head to Port Canaveral, which is a half hour away, and get on board. Eat breakfast or lunch there. You will return on Thursday, March 16, docked and ready to disembark by 7:30 am. Remember you will be approximately 30 minutes from Orlando Airport, but you need to be at the airport 2 hours prior to your departure time please consider a possible traffic situation. I would consider planning a departure flight at noon time or later.
Let’s make this a real vacation. We’ll have good times, and great friends; it doesn’t get much better than that. By the way, For cheap money.
MSC Cruises
4 Night Bahamas
MSC Meraviglia
Departing from: Port Canaveral (Orlando), Florida
Ports of Call: Nassau, Bahamas • Ocean Cay MSC Marine Reserve, Bahamas
4.1 /rating out of 5 (461 reviews)
Interior from $219. $55 per person per night double occupancy
March 12, 2023 through march 16, 2023
Sunday departure/ Thursday (will be docked by 7am) I usually eat breakfast before I leave.
You can call go online Cruises.Com or call 800-288-6006
Or you can call the Cruise line direct at 877 665-4655
Please reserve as soon as possible as prices tend to escalate as time passes. Also, pay attention to all cruising information. If you need any help, please call the cruise line. If all are not resolved, give me a call, and I will try my best to help.
Please contact me and let me know if you’ve signed up.
Darin Yee
