Imagine seeing different shades of crystal blue water everywhere while docking in Kings Wharf, Bermuda. Seriously the water is so majestically blue it looks unreal!!I visited Bermuda plenty of times while performing on a cruise ship. In my opinion that’s the best way to travel without breaking your bank. Especially with a country like Bermuda that is generally known to be expensive. Although I was abroad working , a lot of the passengers I met agreed that they saved so much money cruising. (Check out cruisewatch.com or http://www.travelwithsham.com/ for great cruise deals. Travel With Sham is a black owned business and the owner/travel agent has great travel tips.) Snorkel Park Beach is an ideal place to go to during the day if you’re into snorkeling. They have Snorkel tours for about $39. At night this establishment transforms into a club on the beach. It’s literally a scene straight out of Jay Z’s “Fiesta” video. “After the show is the after the party”. Literally after my shows I was at Snorkel Park! If you’re into Hip-Hop/Reggae/Dance Hall/Soca, this is where it’s at; and you’ll get to party with a few of the locals and a young hip crowd. I believe Mon and Thurs are the club nights. Let me tell you, I got my ENTIRE LIFE! The National museum of Bermuda is next door to Snorkel, if you’re interested in learning the history of the island. Personally I didn’t want to spend $15 to walk around a museum. Horseshoe Bay is picturesque and touristy. This beach is known for its pink sand! To be honest when you first see the sand it doesn’t look pink but after staring at it for sometime you’ll notice the pink color in the sand. You’ll get to see and experience the beauty of Bermuda’s cool crystal clear blue water. *sighs* (nirvana) It’s usually really crowded like all popular beaches but I do recommend going there. A shuttle cab from King’s Wharf to Horseshoe is about $7 a person and the travel time is about 15-20min. I also got the chance to visit Hamilton the capital city of Bermuda. The water taxi from King’s Wharf to Hamilton is about $5. Hamilton has a lot of shops and great restaurants. Their night life is deemed to be exciting but I got a mild dose of it, so I can’t give much of a review on that. Your Bermuda trip isn’t complete without trying their signature Rum Swizzle!!!! So get your Swizzle on!

Instead of flying to Paris I actually took a ship! To be exact I cruised with Royal Caribbean then ported in Le Havre, France and took a shuttle into Paris. The City of light was everything I expected it to be. I was only there for a few hours and I managed to take the metro, visit the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame Cathedral and the Louvre. The fashion in Paris was impeccable. Everything I heard about the fashion out here was true! I wish I stayed longer. Paris is a must see!

“Puerto Rico you ugly island “ as said by the character Anita. My “ Westside Story” fanatics will get the reference. Well baby Anita was wrong.com! PR, is B-E-A..utiful. While working on the cruise ship I was fortunate to visit Old San Juan, PR and I fell in love with the culture and the food! Mofongos and sangrias!!! If you’re a foodie that’s what you need to have! No if’s and’s or but’s. Each time I went to San Juan I made it my business to have a mofongo and sangria. I’m getting hungry just thinking about it. Mojitos a restaurant located in San Juan have the best mofongos and there customer service is great! The staff is super friendly and they’re reasonably priced. What I loved about visiting PR was that I still had phone service...lol I instantly fell in love with the cobblestoned roads and colorful buildings and art that occupied the streets. At night, Old San Juan comes alive. Along the cobblestoned roads are plenty of restaurants and bars playing music. It’s a good time. It’s also a friendly and common tourist area. There’s the San Juan National Historic Site which is about a 15 min walk from the cruise port. Its free to visit and gives colonial vibes. I did a shore excursion with Royal Caribbean to El Yunque Waterfall/Rainforest. We did a hiking trail in the rainforest and then took a swim in the waterfall. Simply majestic and tranquil. I recommend this to my nature lovers. The excursion was between $90-$100. You get your money’s worth. It lasted about 4-5 hours. Transportation to and from the ship is included. Now I visited the rainforest about 2 weeks before Hurricane Irma so I’m not sure if tours are still being conducted or the state of the rainforest. A ella le gusta la gasolina Dame más gasolina Do you remember Daddy Yankees song “Gasolina”? Throwback huh? Well right next to the cruise port is an establishment called “Gasolina”; where you can get delicious frozen and AFFORDABLE alcoholic beverages. Puerto Rico is the place to be!!

Rum punch filled catamarans, jet skis, beautiful beaches, two cultures immersed on 1 island= standard day in paradise in St.Maarten/ Saint Martin. It’s the smallest island in the world divided and occupied by two countries. Both parts of the island is beautiful, however my fave side is the Dutch side. My first time visiting, I spent a few weeks there, if you’re looking for a resort check out Little Divi Bay it’s gorgeous, the resort has a private beach exclusive for guest. The other times I visited was through working on a cruise ship. Cruise traveling is sort of like “eating at a buffet” you get a sample of different islands for one price. In other words, it might be cheaper visiting St.Maarten cruising. Upon arrival on the Dutch port side(Philipsburg to be exact) make sure you get a mojito from this stand called Mojito Lemon Letam. Boyyyyyyyy they make the best mojitos in St.Maarten!!! Andddddd it’s ONLY $5. You can customize them as well. At Great Bay beach located in Philipsburg, you can cop a ride on a jet ski for about $45-$50; or if you are traveling with a large party you can take a catamaran from Great Bay Beach to Mullet Bay Beach. (The larger the party the cheaper it is per person) I did a catamaran with Golden Eagle. I believe it starts at $75-$80 per person, HOWEVER if you have a large party you can work out an extremely affordable group rate.(Its all about having the gift of gab) This catamaran excursion includes 3hrs or more of endless rum punch, snorkeling, and pure fun.Your dollar goes a longer way on this side of the island. If you want to lay out in the sun and take an occasional dip in the water in a super low key environment hit up Mullet Bay. It’s absolutely beautiful. Thrill seekers can also tour the entire island with ATV’s and 4x4. I believe you can rent one out for about $100 for the day. Visit the famous Maho Beach also known as “Air Plane Beach”. What’s cool about Maho, is that it looks like the planes are descending and ascending to and from the water. Definitely a must see! Maho Beach also has $35-$40 half day shore excursions. As you can see I spent most of my time on the Dutch side. The French side is beautiful as well. It’s a tad pricier and the currency is of course Euro. I dined and watched the sunset at Cafe Calmos a cute beach front restaurant. My day ended with a mini photo shoot with my friends! I mean why not? Perfect lighting, bikinis, sun and sand practically yell “photoshoot”. If you consider yourself an exhibitionist (I was in my past life) and a free bird “ Orient Bay” is the beach for you! Part of the beach is nude. Now I visited St.Maarten before Hurricane Irma. I heard from friends that there are some damages to the property located at “Orient Bay” however the beauty of this beach overpowers it. Which is a plus! Needless to say St.Maarten will always have a special place in my heart. I give it 5 stars!