SDI Jan 9 -Who's Going

We're looking forward to our 2nd SD cruise on Jan 9. Despite some of the negatives recently aired on this site we're excited about our yachting experience and are going in with a very positive attitude. I just know it will be fabulous! As many have recently stated, the people who cruise on SD are really fun and interesting to share the unique experience of SD with.

I know there are are at least 3 other couples or groups that have said they are on this cruise. We look forward to meeting you.

Is there anyone else? It would be fun to get together for drinks one night, possibly at the 6:30 Cocktail Hour!

Any suggestions on a plan?

We got our Guarantee Stateroom and it was 402. I think I'm pleased since it is center ship. Does anyone know something I don't? Cammien, atleast it isn't 321!

Wishing all safe flights and looking forward to Jan 9!

Hello whatnot!

My DH and I will be joining you. We got our guarantee in the bowels of the ship--:D--I had to laugh at myself that I was disappointed in the difference of only three levels! I think I'll survive--it may even be better for me as I am VERY prone to sea sickness. What was I thinking going on a small ship?

All the more this week I've just been thinking, "what was I thinking?" DH was never enthusiastic about this trip, but was willing to be dragged along. (Let's all say "poor baby!" together, now).

I've read the various thoughts and concerns expressed. I agree that a trip is certainly what you make of it and that expectations are a large part of experience.

We just took a European Thanksgiving cruise with the family (yes, we do have children--very well behaved, but we won't be bringing them, and we won't whip out pictures at dinner :p) on Costa. The food and the service and were atrocious. But we just laughed about it (we think they should have a sign hanging at their customer service saying "The customer is always suspect."). We expected it and it served it's purpose--a moving hotel: every morning we awoke in a new city to tour.

When I'm at the Four Seasons, my expectations are that they're going to clean my sunglasses and mist me with mineral water at the pool.

I've been expecting a more Four Seasons experience, albeit in a small, bouncy room.

Now I see I may have to tone down my expectations. And I don't know what to do with DH.:o I hope he's up for laughing!

You know, I think you will be very happy in "the bowels of the ship". It probably is the best for someone with seasickness problems. We were on Deck 3 last time and didn't have the opportunity for the gty. We were fine. I never heard anyone on Deck 2 complain. Frankly. I had a friend on Deck 4 who had problems! All the staterooms are the same (except for the Windows) unless you have a suite.

Let's just hope for calm seas! Remember, most of our sailings are overnight and very short distances. The Captain will decide if he wants to go to a port or not depending upon the conditions. I think your DH will have a good time. It may not be Four Seasons but I think it is also not Costa!!

Looking forward to meeting you!

...as I planned to only be a lump on the sunbed, reading and imbibing (mostly ice tea, I'm rather a light-weight with alcohol, unfortunately the ONLY way I'm a lightweight:(). Heck, tho', if I'm going to have to bus my own glassware, might as well rouse myself enough to be social. ;)

I think vandrefalk and loving life are joining us, also. vandrefalk is even staying on another week.

I wonder if they've left already?

We leave Thursday--I know it'll be here before I know it--and before I'm ready. Are you ready? When do you leave?

Have you heard anything about the ocean conditions?

I have all the mal de mer preventatives, etc, but if the swells are TOO high...

to ALEX1, also, who apparently has the GOOD drugs for seasickness, should there be a need. :D

to ALEX1, also, who apparently has the GOOD drugs for seasickness, should there be a need. :D

If there is a need don't hesitate to ask the on board doctor for the really good stuff . While I've never had to use, I know a couple of people who really benefitted from the shots. Last time I was on SD II, when it got a bit rough, skeptical me used the wrist bands.They actually seemed to work. Only drawback was the dents on the wrists. A preventative Draminine at night kept me from feeling some of the waves others mentioned.

My husband has an inner ear problem and can't ride a single roller coaster - at Disney the dip on Splash Mountain makes him nauseous and forget Star Tours - but with the patch he doesn't have one problem, even in rough seas. So vicariously, I highly recommend it.

Safe travels, hope you have smooth seas, and have fun . . . we'd love to be on SD with you.

FT

I'm considering ALL advice, and have used a lot of the remedies before.

I'll be recognizable as the drowsy one (even bonine does that to me; not light lightweight problem) with the fashionable behind the ear patches and chunky bracelets and the faint "eau de ginger" perfume.

And I won't hesitate to "take the shot." It beats wishing to be thrown overboard. :rolleyes:

On our recent Med cruise (the big aforementioned Costa ship) they put out "air sick" bags in the hallway one night. I'd never seen that before. Of course, I'd never seen so many protein spills in public areas. At least not since college.

High seas aside, I'm SO looking forward to the cruise. Even with the recent concerns re service slippage, a bad day of SD I service sounds like it beats a good day of work.

Wish that we were joining you for this cruise but we have to wait 60 days until we board SD2:p

Here is the website I use to check marine conditions ... http://www.wunderground.com/MAR/wcm.html Just click on the island and you can get the details and forecast.

You are going in with the right attitude fpebbles;)

I'm considering ALL advice, and have used a lot of the remedies before.

 

I'll be recognizable as the drowsy one (even bonine does that to me; not light lightweight problem) with the fashionable behind the ear patches and chunky bracelets and the faint "eau de ginger" perfume.

 

And I won't hesitate to "take the shot." It beats wishing to be thrown overboard. :rolleyes:

 

On our recent Med cruise (the big aforementioned Costa ship) they put out "air sick" bags in the hallway one night. I'd never seen that before. Of course, I'd never seen so many protein spills in public areas. At least not since college.

 

High seas aside, I'm SO looking forward to the cruise. Even with the recent concerns re service slippage, a bad day of SD I service sounds like it beats a good day of work.

Deck 2 is THE best deck, IMHO. It's the only deck we'll sail. In April, we had the forward-most stateroom on Deck 3 (GTY) and poor DH was soooooo sick with seasickness that we did utilize the good doctor & his bag o' tricks. A shot, a couple of glasses of electrolytes & a good nap had DH feeling so good that we was on the banana boat the next day! :eek::D As a preventative measure, we wore the patches until we got home (we were fools & didn't get them pre-cruise). There's nothing worse than being so sick that all you can do is be a lump in a chair on Deck 6 in between trips to the loo to curse the sea's movement. Can you say do-over cruise??? ;):D

You'll have a wonderful time! We do expect you to report in at some point to let us know how much fun you're having/you had. :)

A shot, a couple of glasses of electrolytes & a good nap had DH feeling so good that we was on the banana boat the next day! :eek::D

Ack! That should read, "we WERE on the banana boat..." And, that would be an injection of anti-nausea meds, not a shot of tequila. LOL :)

If a shot of tequila and getting on the banana boat is a cure...who am I to argue?

;)

Gee, you're certainly getting lots of suggestions:D!

Yes, we are leaving very early Thursday morning. I had booked a later flight but they moved it up:mad:. But we should get in SJ about 2:00pm if all goes well. So that leaves plenty of time to do something in the afternoon. We are going through Miami so atleast we don't have to worry about icy weather anywhere according to current weather forecasts.

And I am not ready! Mentally yes, but I haven't packed a thing. I'll wash clothes and start getting things out tomorrow. I've been trying to organize it in my mind so I won't take much, but I always do!

Good luck getting ready!

I'm starting to get excited because when the packing starts you know you're almost there!

If a shot of tequila and getting on the banana boat is a cure...who am I to argue?

 

;)

Well, if you find yourself feeling seasick, remember you heard it here first! LOL :D

We are in 304.

It will be interesting to compare notes as we go along considering all the recent postings about the service. Maybe this info has gotten back to the SD folks and things are being addressed.

Meeting for drinks would be fine - just name the time and place. First time cruise and we know no one.

That of ~50 staterooms on SDI, about 5 have at least checked in here.

Being it's about 10%, I'd call that a quorum.

If we have any problems with service, we'll just commandeer the ship!

Hi Fellow Seadreamers,

I am checking in on the Boards to allow my excitement level to climb that much more than packing alone allows. This exciting thread seals it and new levels have been achieved! Thanks! I will begin to pack tonight with very high hopes that a shop in San Juan has a nice pair of white pants. Though I tried, Toronto didn't have a single pair. I found a bunch of lovely trousers at Tommy Bahama today, but not white... one pair of winter white, figures. Sigh! The challenges of preparing for this cruise.

My husband and I are not concerned with quality of the service we will receive. We are coming with a hopeful attitude and are prepared to repeat our drink orders daily if necessary without expecting them to be memorized. (although I can appreciate the expectation based on price). Our friends that are joining us for the first time are "seasoned" Four Season visitors and I'm sure will promptly report on how they find the service. Our friends basically only visit the Four Seasons and I'm quite sure consider it one of Canada's finest exports! They were very disappointed when I told them of the condition of the FS on Nevis, as reported on another thread. Looks like we'll all be riding bikes around the island that day :) All that being said, I am prepared to join in the ship comandeering if necessary!

We're in 202, closest to the dining room. Perfect for my husband. He manages to work up quite the appetite during a day. The last few trips we've been very lucky with the sea-sickness, it has been absent. It's amazing how quickly a perfect vacation can go "sour" if you're not feeling well. The advice given is very helpful. Our friends who have never cruised have not done so for fear of being sea-sick. It remains to be seen.

We are all leaving Toronto on Wednesday morning. My husband and I will also fly through Miami, whereas our friends fly through NY. The weather will not be perfect and appears to be a mix of snow, freezing rain and rain. We've given ourselves an extra, extra day this year, so we're not too worried.

Goodness knows we're open to meeting, chatting and drinking. Since we're all in the same boat together (the puns just don't stop...), we can meet up anytime. 6:30pm pre-dinner drinks are perfect. The four of us will be very obvious, we finish all our sentences with "eh". The last time we cruised we were the only Canadians on board.

We look forward to meeting you all, and are happy that you share the enthusiasm for this special vacation that we have! This is the highlight of a very hard-working year and I simply can't wait.

LL

I'm getting more excited all the time! All the people on this board sound really great, so I know we will have a fabulous cruise:)! I think our 10% can commandeer, if necessary, as fpebbles said. Somehow , I think SD management will hear of the problems before we arrive. If they have the time to solve them is another issue. I really can't believe they are but so bad. We'll certainly find out soon!

We certainly could meet at the 6:30pm cocktail hour any day. We do not know any one on this cruise either except for our online CC connections. The first night is a little strange because of the life boat drill and getting oriented to things. If anyone would like to meet at 6:30 that evening we can make it. In the past it was on the pool deck and pretty casual. But it might be better to schedule a large group get together for Night 2 (Sat) when everyone is more settled, at 6:30 wherever the cocktail hour is that evening. Any suggestions on how to identify each other! I have short reddish brown hair and a VERY Eastern NC/VA accent and my DH is pretty bald on top! We are up for whatever day you would prefer.

I can hardly wait! It will be a great trip!

hi whatnot!

like i said, the four of us will most likely be the only canadians on board so we will be obvious as well. we'll come down to the pool deck saturday at 6:30pm and look forward to seeing you.

cheers!

ps... the snow will be starting tuesday night before our flights, so it could make for an interesting journey.

Saturday evening At 6:30 where ever the cocktail party is. I am short(used to be 2" taller before my back surgeries), grey hair - my wife is tall, brunette.

We are arriving in San Juan on Thursday, staying at the Marriott.

Looking forward to it.

We look forward to meeting all of you on Sat at 6:30, if not before! It is a small ship!

Wishing safe travels to all.

Are you all packed yet?:p

Whatnot is right ... you probably will bump into each other before 6:30:D

Bon voyage!

Is packing where you run around the house screaming, "where is my (fill in the blank)? It was just here last week!" Nope, haven't started that yet. That'll be at 2:30 am on Thursday morning when the car is coming at 3:30.

In the snow and sleet.

Wishing us all safe travels indeed. :o

We're up for 6:30 on Saturday, if not before. We're the average couple. Average height. Above average weight (me more than DH). Average hair (again, me more than DH). Hopefully, above average sense of humor if (heaven forbid) Seadream strands us on some teeny atoll because the company goes belly-up mid cruise.

Too bad I can't get a Painkiller here at work...

We're up for 6:30 on Saturday, if not before. We're the average couple. Average height. Above average weight (me more than DH). Average hair (again, me more than DH). Hopefully, above average sense of humor if (heaven forbid) Seadream strands us on some teeny atoll because the company goes belly-up mid cruise.

 

Too bad I can't get a Painkiller here at work...

Oh but you can! Send me your credit card number and I will be glad to forward the recipe to you! (What a guy)

Hope you have a great trip.

Jim.

Jim,

I appreciate, the offer, but my credit limit doesn't have that many zeros in it! You must have very good connections.

fpebbles

Is packing where you run around the house screaming, "where is my (fill in the blank)? It was just here last week!" Nope, haven't started that yet. That'll be at 2:30 am on Thursday morning when the car is coming at 3:30.

 

In the snow and sleet.

 

Wishing us all safe travels indeed. :o

 

We're up for 6:30 on Saturday, if not before. We're the average couple. Average height. Above average weight (me more than DH). Average hair (again, me more than DH). Hopefully, above average sense of humor if (heaven forbid) Seadream strands us on some teeny atoll because the company goes belly-up mid cruise.

 

Too bad I can't get a Painkiller here at work...

Guess I am the only one who pack the month before ... and then unpacks and repacks for the next 30 days:D

I would definitely NOT WORRY about being stranded on an atoll ... in San Juan maybe ... JUST KIDDING!

Oh but you can! Send me your credit card number and I will be glad to forward the recipe to you! (What a guy)

Hope you have a great trip.

Jim.

:p:D:p