Carnival Miracle Journal with Pics - VD at Sea: The Miracle Cure

This is a Journal with pictures of our February 14th - 22nd, 2012 Cruise on the Carnival Miracle cruising to Grand Turk, Catalina Island in the Dominican Republic, Aruba and Curacao

For those of you who have read the Journals of our Carnival Freedom, Carnival Paradise, Carnival Dream, Carnival Splendor and Carnival Spirit cruises you will know that they are very long and detailed and include everything from the startt of our trip up until the end.

We love to have FUN, laugh at ourselves and with others and we LOVE to meet People. This turned out to be one of the Best Cruises EVER!!!

This was Group Cruise and hopefully some of the others that were on the Cruise will join in with some comments.

Numerical conclusions will continue on from the Carnival Spirit Cruise.;):D

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4 Broken Toes, a Chapel, Syringes and Security (and a Q-Tip)

The Why? and The How?

On our October ’10 Carnival Splendor Saints and Sinners 6 Group Cruise our Cabin was in between 2 couples we were cruising with for the first time and during one of our morning gatherings on our 3-Cabin wide Balcony – our Cabin was in between Donna and Dan’s and Lynne and Peewee’s and the ladies had gone to Guest Services and arranged for the partitions between the 3 Balconies to be opened - Donna mentioned an 8-day Group Cruise that Lynne had just set up on the Carnival Miracle out of Fort Lauderdale which would set sail on February 14th, 2012. Because it was a Valentine’s Day departure it was aptly named VD at Sea – The Miracle Cure.

Once Lynne let us know who all was booking this Cruise and that the Ports were Grand Turk, La Romana (eventually changed to Catalina Island) in the Dominican Republic, Aruba and Curacao we knew we were in as we had not had a drink in any of these Ports.

We returned from our Carnival Splendor Cruise on October 24th and on the 25th I contacted the Group TA, placed a $300/person deposit for the 2 of us, selected Extended Balcony Cabin # 6269, an 8J, and requested Late Dining. Conclusion #623: We were excited to experience VD at Sea. Dan, Dee’s brother, and his wife, Coral, the Carnival Splendor having been their very first Cruise, booked right away too as did a friend of ours, Tammi, who would be cruising with us for the 3rd time. Eventually Tammi found a Cabin Mate in an old friend who had moved from the West Coast to Ottawa and her name was Allison. Tammi and Allison booked Extend Balcony Cabin # 6263, Dan and Coral ended up in Extend Balcony Cabin # 6267, we were in # 6269, while Donna and Dan booked Extended Balcony Cabin # 6273 and Lynne and Peewee managed to secure Premium Balcony Cabin # 6277 so we had 5 Balconies in a row.

By about $800.00 combined for the 2 of us this was the most money we had paid for a Cabin yet and we were somewhat hoping based on the initial discussions amongst the Group that we would be able to arrange a Bar Card like we had on the Carnival Splendor but as time went along the TA dropped the ball on this so purchasing Futures in Alcohol was out. The TA did come through with a $75 OBC and a complimentary 1-Hour Private Group Cocktail Party. Conclusion #624: Noe to figure out how to drink for free during the other 190 hours.

Lynne had set up both a private Cruise Group page on a Hosting Site as well as a Group page on one of the Social Networks so we were able to chat and make plans as the 14 months went by. When we got a look at those who booked at the same time we did as well as those who booked as time went along we became more and more excited as we saw several familiar names – Allen, Rick and Laurie, Shelley and Jimmy, Donna and Dan, Lynne and Peewee – and saw many names that we recognized from past Cruise Critic Group Cruises Reviews such as, Cindy, Bonnie, Laurie, Sharon and Trevor and Angie.

When we initially booked the Cruise we fully expected the Carnival Miracle to be our first taste of the Spirit Class – little did we know we would cruise twice on the Carnival Spirit between September and November of 2011. Those 2 adventures provided us with a fairly good understanding of the layout for Carnival Miracle. In fact we had Extended Balcony Cabin # 6259 on our Carnival Spirit Pacific Coast Cruise from Vancouver, BC to San Pedro, CA so we definitely knew our way around the Ship in advance. Conclusion #625: Translation: We knew where the Bars and the Casino were.

I kept an eye ;) on the Exchange Rate for the Canadian Dollar and paid off about half of the remaining balance of the Cruise in late February ’11 and on March 28th, once the Return Flight Dates opened up, I booked 2 RT Tickets from Victoria, BC to Fort Lauderdale, FL through Air Canada’s Frequent Flyer Program, Aeroplan, with an itinerary that had us flying down on the Saturday before the Valentine’s Day Tuesday Sail-Away and returning on the Thursday after Wednesday’s Debarkation.

I mailed in our FCC (Future Cruise Certificate) to Carnival in mid-March and they reduced our Final payment by $100.00 and credited our on-board Account with $100.00 so with the Group OBC we were now at $175.00 OBC.

On the 31st of March we took care of booking our Hotel for the night the Cruise returned to Port Everglades and chose the Newport Beach Hotel and Resort on Collins Avenue in Miami Beach and booked a 2-Bedroom Pool Partial Ocean View Suite for Dan, Coral and Dee and I. Dee and I had spent a night here after our very first Cruise together which was on the Carnival Freedom out of Miami in January, 2008. We were able to save 15% by pre-paying our Reservation. Lynne and Peewee also booked a night here and both Allen and Tammi intended to share a room for the night as well.

The morning of April 15th brought about my first call to Carnival’s Bon Voyage Department to order a Dozen Red Roses for Dee for a Valentine’s Day/Sail-Away delivery, a bottle of Grey goose for Dee and a bottle of Crown Royal for myself. I emailed Dan that day and reminded him that we were setting sail on Valentine’s Day and then told him that I had ordered Dee Roses. Another call to Bon Voyage followed where I ordered Coral’s Roses.

Lynne arranged for a block of rooms at the Homewood Suites by Hilton in Dania Beach, FL which is marketed as a Fort Lauderdale Airport and Port Everglades Cruise Port Area Hotel. Conclusion #626: Marketed correctly. Dee and I along with Dan and Coral decided to share a 2-Queen 1-Bedroom Suite for the 3 nights. Allen, Tammi and Allison decided to share the same type of Suite for the same 3 nights and Lynne and Peewee also decided to come in 3 nights early. Conclusion #627: A Party of 10 for 3 nights please.

Early in June the Canadian Dollar was again trading higher than the US Dollar so we paid the remainder of the Cruise off. All in all we managed to save quite a bit of money with the strength of the Canadian Dollar. Conclusion #628: A dollar saved is a dollar drank.

The Cabanas on Grand Turk opened up for booking on June 10th so we, along with Coral and Dan, decided to reserve one as a base for the day through Carnival. We still wanted to make it to Jack’s Shack but with such an early Port time we thought this would be a good idea. The cost of the Cabana worked out to be about $65.00/couple. Once we got the Cabana ball rolling Lynne and Pewee and Donna and Dan as well as Tammi, Allison, Bonnie and Allen booked 2 more Cabanas with each one split 4 ways.

Over the next few months Lynne worked on an itinerary of Ship Activities, Donna worked on setting up a Group Island Tour in Aruba as well as a nighttime Pub Krawl on the KoKoo Kunuku Party Bus https://www.kukookunuku.com/index.asp?id=19 , I arranged for a Port Everglades Webcam Group Wave http://portevergladeswebcam.com/wave.html and Shelly worked on a Group T-Shirt Design. We all helped Shelly and eventually came up with this design for the Front ‘pocket’ ….

…and this for the back which also doubled as our Door Sign…..

You will see these T-Shirts featured prominently in some future pictures.

About this time we received notice from our TA that our Port Day in La Romana in the Dominican Republic had been changed to a day at Catalina Island in the DR; a Private Island that would involve a Tender to the Island from the Ship.

On October 21st I saw a thread on Cruise Critic talking about a MasterCard promotion where you could get $50.00 OBC if you registered and used a MasterCard for your S&S Account. $50 Bucks is 50 Bucks so I quickly registered for the ‘Get and Extra $50 of Fun promotion and received a Confirmation a day after registering. This would bring our total OBC to $ 225.00 Conclusion #629: That should be good for the first afternoon.

During our November ’11 Carnival Spirit Cruise the Casino Host instructed us to contact Carnival’s Ocean Player’s Club as he had rated us based on Dee’s Slot Play and my Table Play so on November 28th I sent them the following email:

Hello

We are cruising on the Carnival Miracle on February 14, 2012

Booking Number: ******

Cabin Number: 6269

Names and Past Guest Numbers:

***** ***** ########

****** ****** ########

The Casino Host on our recent Carnival Spirit Cruise (Nov 13 – 18, 2011) suggested we contact you to see if we qualified for any perks on our upcoming cruise

Looking forward to your reply

Jim and Dee

And on December 14th we received the following reply:

Hello Jim & Dee

Thank you for contacting Casino VIP Services!

We apologize for the delayed response; our emailing system has been down. Congratulations! According to your last cruise we would like to extend a Deluxe gift package to your stateroom and a $140 casino cash comp for ***** *****. This amount can be picked up at the casino cashier’s cage with an ID and your Sail & Sign card. The gift package includes a free photo coupon, bar credits, complimentary champagne, and chocolate covered strawberries. I have added all your details to our guest list, so you are all set. If you have any other questions please contact me at 1-800-522-7466.

Have a great cruise!

Best Regards,

Alina Lenz

Casino VIP Coordinator | Carnival Corporation & plc | www.oceanplayersclub.com

Conclusion #630: Bonus!!!

The same day I sent the email to the OPC I arranged for and pre-paid for a 2 day, 9 hour Rental Van through Avis that could accommodate 7 of us which was split between Dee and I, Dan and Coral, Tammi, Allison and Allen.

Shortly thereafter we sent off a Money Order to Shelley for our T-Shirts and one to the TA for as Private 2-Hour Cocktail Reception that we wanted – this would be on a different Sea Day than the 1-Hour Cocktail Reception the TA was ‘gifting’ us.

After some discussion back and forth between Rick and myself the 4 of us booked the Natural Pool Off-Road Adventure on December 31st through Carnival at a cost of $ 84.95/person for the first part of our day in Aruba and then the KuKoo Kunuku Pub Krawl for $ 34.00/person about a week later to complete our schedule for the day. Dan, Coral, Allen, Tammi and Allison as well as Allen booked the exact same excursions as Rick, Laurie, Dee and I. We decided against booking anything for Curacao and Catalina Island.

Our last piece of business was another Bon Voyage order consisting of 2 of the Carnival Beach Towels and the Fruit Basket Supreme with White Wine on January 20th .

Conclusion #631: Hurry up and wait.

Air Canada, United Airlines, US Air, Red Nail Polish and Beer

Our alarm went off at 5:00am and after posting a “We’re up and we’ll be in Florida tonight. Safe travels everyone!!” message to the rest of our Group on the Group facebook page we showered, finished our last second packing and waited for Dee and Dan’s Mom and Dad, along with Coral and Dan to pick us up.

While waiting we checked the Weather Forecast for Fort Lauderdale and saw that they were experiencing lower than normal temperatures – much warmer than we were accustomed to for February but probably a little frigid for the native Floridians. We saw the headlights of the Van in the driveway at a few minutes before 6:00am and grabbed our luggage and carry-ons and out the door we went.

We were very relieved to see Coral sitting in the Van as she had spent Wednesday and Thursday in the Hospital with a Medical Issue. It was touch and go right up until about midnight on the Friday night as to whether or not they would be flying down on the Saturday. They had already looked into cancelling their Saturday Flights and rebooking for the Monday but it would have definitely been a financial hit for them. Although this would be their 2nd Cruise it would be their first time to Florida and to the Caribbean so we were just as excited for them to experience it all as were for ourselves to get back there. Conclusion #630: LOVE FLORIDA AND THE CARIBBEAN!!!

Because the itinerary for Dee and I had 5 Airports, 3 different Airlines and 2 very tight connections that day Dan and Coral had agreed to check our large suitcase as they were flying Air Canada the entire way and had booked their flights prior to Air Canada instituting a ‘Luggage Fee’. The thought had crossed our minds to put a few ‘toys’ in the suitcase as a joke in case it had to be searched; would have loved to see the look on Dee’s brother’s face however we decided against it. Conclusion #631: We like Coral. Our checked luggage had a couple of 2 litre bottles of Canadian Cider in it that our American friends can’t get enough of, our shoes, toiletries, ‘Glowing-Home Party’ essentials and a few other things that could be easily replaced if for some reason the luggage did not make it and also one of our large collapsible Carnival Duffel Bags that we had purchased on one of our previous cruises which we had folded up. We had decided to pack our ‘must haves’ in our carry-ons and were amazed at just how much we could fit in them with some proper planning and folding. The plan was to transfer all of the stuff in our carry-ons into the Carnival Bag and our large Suitcase prior to boarding the Ship and using our carry-ons for our case of Coke, 2 bottles of wine and case of Red Bull. Conclusion #632: Water Schwater. Conclusion #633: The Canadian Cider would not make it to the Ship.

Once at the Airport we checked in with the 4 of us plus Tammi all on the first flight together. We headed up to the Tim Horton’s Restaurant in the Terminal for some morning refreshments and a bagel and sat in the Waiting Area and relaxed for a bit. After finishing up our drinks and snacks and a couple of trips outside for a smoke it was time to head through Security. “Where’s Tammi?’ we wondered. We called her and when she answered she said she was about ’10 minutes away from the Airport’.

Once through Security we grabbed a seat by our Gate and ended up chatting with a couple who were flying down to LA for a Mexican Riviera Cruise. We heard the ‘voice’ and the ‘laughter’ belonging to Tammi at Security and once she made it over to where we were she finished dressing and then decided we needed to see her wound. Tammi had not only dislocated but had completely shattered the ring finger on right hand about 3 weeks earlier while holding onto the leash of a rather large dog that she was dog-sitting for a friend. So as she changed the little cast, dressing and splint on her finger she decided we had to see. As Tammi was showing us the scar from her recent surgery I was feeling more and more like my Show and Tell item would be the Tim Horton’s bagel I had just eaten.

Once on board the little Dash-8 we settled into Seats $c and 4D with Tammi directly behind us and Dan and Coral across from her. Tammi turned to the guy sitting beside her and said “if I fall asleep on your shoulder just push me back onto my side” to which he replied that “Don’t worry. I will” Tammi then added “Oh by the way I am a drooler.” She kept talking and we kept laughing until the fellow next to her said ‘he wished he had brought his ear plugs’ Conclusion #634: Okie Dokie.

The 15 minute flight to Vancouver International Airport went quickly and once inside the Terminal Dee and I headed towards the International Departures Terminal while Dan, Coral and Tammi headed off towards the Gate for their flight to Toronto. Although we were taking much different routes to Fort Lauderdale we were arriving within a few minutes of each other.

Dee and I headed straight to the United Airlines Ticket Counter in hopes of upgrading our Economy Seats to Economy Plus as Dee is somewhat claustrophobic and prefers the front of the plane and we were able to do. For a nominal fee we moved from the very back of the Airbus 320 right up to Seats 7A and 7B. We had almost 3 hours to burn so we headed outside for a couple of smokes before heading through Security, then through US Customs before making our way towards the Duty Free Shop.

We each ordered a Carton of Smokes and knowing that we would be cutting it close over the course of 12 days Coral was going to get us another Carton at the Duty Free Shop in Toronto. When the Sales Clerk asked us ‘if that was all we wanted?’ I replied “I wish I could buy more cigarettes.” She said ‘I could buy as many Cartons as I wanted.’ We have done a fair bit of travelling and this was the first we ever heard of this so we purchased a 3rd Carton and quickly texted Coral to let her know that we were good for smokes.

Next up was a planned 2 ½ hour stay in Air Canada’s Maple Leaf Lounge. It was finally time to get some of the excessive Annual Fee I pay for my particular American Express charge card back. I get a free admission and can pay for a guest. Conclusion #635: Membership has its Privileges…for a fee. We walked in and handed the Maple Leaf Lounge Attendant my Card and our Boarding Passes. She handed us back our Boarding Passes and told us to make ourselves comfortable wherever we wanted and she would process Dee’s admission and bring me a receipt and my card shortly.

We found a table, checked our phones for messages and after doing so the Attendant came over to give me my Card and a receipt for Dee’s Admission which was $15.00. She said that she “always has trouble processing the 50% of Guest Fee before 11:00am.” “Why is it 50% off?” I asked “We don’t charge the full Admission Rate until 11:00am because that’s when we unlock the Cabinets with the Alcohol and the Fridges with the Beer.” Conclusion #636: EPIC FAIL. I told Dee “There is no way we are going to be able to eat an Annual Fee’s worth of Toast and Raisin Bran”

We decided to make the best of it made ourselves a bowl of cereal. I searched for the 2% milk figuring that after paying the Entrance fee for Dee this was no time to cut corners. Our flight was scheduled to board shortly after 11:00am and we did throw around the idea of sticking around and shot gunning a couple of beers but didn’t think it would mix well with the Raisin Bran, Rice Krispies, Corn Flakes, Raisin Bread, Bran Flakes, Fruit Loops. Oatmeal, Brown Sugar, Porridge, Whole Wheat Toast, White Toast, Jam, Peanut Butter, Croissants, Bagels, Coffee, Milk, Tea, Orange Juice, Grapes, Cantaloupe, Coke, English Muffins, Danishes, Marmalade, Apples, Oranges, Melons and Tums. Conclusion #637: Marmalade doesn’t agree with me.

At about 10:45 we accepted the fact that this Lounge was going to continue to operate in the Pacific Time Zone and made our way down to Gate 78 for Flight UA 246 to Chicago’s O’Hare Airport. Soon after arriving at the Gate the boarding process began. We weren’t able to place our carry-ons in the overhead bin above us as some of the other passengers felt like they needed additional space. The Flight Attendant was able to help us secure some space for our carry-ons and we settled in for what was supposed to be a 4-hour flight to Chicago. The nice thing about flying from West to East is the normally prevalent tail-winds. Conclusion #638: Tail-winds reduce both flight times and drinking times. Thankfully the In-Flight Service did not offer breakfast but did have a Bar Cart.

We arrived at O’Hare 20 minutes early so we had just over 1 ½ hours until our next flight but did have to find a US Air Ticket Counter in order to get Boarding Passes for both this flight and our next one from Charlotte, NC to Fort Lauderdale, FL. We were not able to get Seats as close to the front as WeDee would have liked but were able to do so for the 2nd flight. Those 2 tasks completed we had time to slip outside for a smoke in the Windy City.

Back inside we headed through Security and made our way towards Gate F8 and shortly after arriving boarding for Flight 3114 started. Although our Boarding Passes stated this was a US Airways this flight was operated by Republic Airlines and we were flying in an Embraer ERJ-175 Aircraft. We settled into Seats 21D and 21F. I am not normally a nervous flyer but this plane was showing some wear and tear. The back of the seats in front of us were torn; both the outdated Magazine and Emergency Information Card in the Seat Pocket in front of us looked like they had pieces torn out of them as if they had been used as toothpicks by passengers before us and as it was a bit of a bumpy flight to Charlotte the sounds and creaks coming from the interior of the plane were enough to even make me a little hesitant. The Bar Cart was in GREAT shape with 4 solid wheels that rolled smoothly in our direction.

According to our itinerary this was supposed to be a 1 hour and 57 minute flight giving us a 42 minute window to make our next flight. We arrived in Charlotte after only 1 ½ hour flight so we not only had time to dart outside for a much needed smoke but we also we3re able to stop at fresh Attractions for a couple of Turkey Sandwiches and Sodas. Conclusion #639: We had not eaten since between 8:37am and 10:45am in Vancouver.

The only reason we had picked this milk-run of an itinerary was so we could meet up with Allen who lives in Charlotte, and was joining us for the last leg of the trip. Although we chat on-line and over the phone with him frequently we had not seen him since our Carnival Splendor Cruise in October ’10 so we hurriedly made our way towards Gate C12. Dee thought she caught a glimpse of him behind some glass but I told her that was just a Display Case of some of the early settlers in the Charlotte area and reminded her that ‘Allen was much older than those people.’

Soon enough we saw his smiling face and after some hugs and kisses – I am going to talk to him about putting a halt to greeting me that way – the laughs started. The first came at a result of the look on Allen’s face when after about 5 minutes of reacquainting ourselves Allen looked over and saw 2 Charlotte Police Officers and an Airport Security Staff Member talking on their Radios as they stared at his unattended carry-on which he had left leaning up against a column when he first arrived at the Gate. I mentioned to Allen that there should be PA Announcements at Airports to instruct Passengers like himself to ensure they don’t leave their luggage and personal items unattended ….maybe even add that Passengers make sure they pack their own belongings. With hands behind back and chin to chest Allen made his way over to the Officers to tell them it was indeed him ‘that had caused this Security Scare and to asked if they could cancel the Evacuation of the Terminal.‘ Thankfully this was not a Southwest flight and we didn’t end up on the A&E Channel.

The Boarding process began so we asked Allen if he was ‘going to play the “passengers needing assistance with boarding” Card?’ and ‘if so could we pose as his Great-Grandchildren and ride that Gravy Train?’ Those 2 questions were met with the oldest middle finger ever to be flipped at us. “Where’s your bag?” we asked. With him having none of that we made our way onto US Airways Flight 959 and settled into Seats 5A and 5B onboard the Airbus 321 while Allen sat down in his Upgraded First Class Seat. Conclusion #640: *#%@!)^ we thought.

The 4th and final flight of the day was as uneventful and quick as the previous 3 and came equipped with a mechanically sound Bar Cart which rolled our way several times. We landed in Fort Lauderdale about 10 minutes ahead of our scheduled 12:06am arrival time and made our way inside to collect Allen’s checked luggage. We suggested he leave his carry-on ‘over there by that pole while he waited for his bag’ but he thought better of it. While waiting for the luggage carousel to start up we texted Coral and made arrangements to meet her, Dan, Tammi and Allison at Avis Shuttle Bus Stop. A soon as we saw Tammi she informed us that she had not only lost her little cast, splint and the dressing but she seemed to have misplaced all the replacements as well. Somewhere on an Air Canada flight a passenger just made what they thought might be a gruesome discovery.

It was 1:00am by the time we got to the Avis Office and having Preferred Service we grabbed our Paperwork out of the hanging folder, by-passed the line-up and the 7 of us made our way directly to the Van. Now began a process of trying to fit 7 large Suitcases, 7 Carry-Ons, and 4 purses – would have been 5 purses but we will give Allen the benefit of the doubt and call it a Personal Article - 2 Knapsacks, 1 Binder, 1 Personal Article and 7 Adults into a Dodge Grand Caravan. Conclusion #641: Fit better than the glove at the OJ Trial. We made our way out of the Parkade and fired up the GPS for the short drive to the Homewood Suites by Hilton in Dania Beach.

As we were driving we saw a number of Police Car Lights across the Freeway ahead of us and ran into a bit of a Detour because of an accident that looked like it involved several cars. After navigating the Detour and listening to the Nerd on the GPS yell at us to turn around before finally he finally decided to reset the Route we arrived at the Hotel.

The Front Doors to the Hotel were locked and once we finally got the attention of the Front Desk Clerk we made our way inside and checked in. Lynne and Peewee had talked about waiting up for us but seeing that they had been up even before us we weren’t surprised that they were not in the Lobby.

I got Dan, Coral, Dee and myself checked into our Suite which was on the Ground Floor just a few doors down from the Lobby. While checking in we asked the Clerk if there was anywhere close by that we could get a beer and he said “No not close by but that he would sell us Beer out from their little Convenience Shop if we wanted.” Conclusion #641: That seemed close to us….and convenient Conclusion #642: We definitely ‘wanted’. The 4 of us headed down to drop off our luggage with a Plan to meet the other 3 back in the Lobby after they dropped their belongings off in their Room which was on the 2nd Floor of the Hotel.

When we got back to the Lobby we saw Tammi and the Front Desk Clerk down on their hands and knees on the ground. When Tammi was grabbing her wallet out of her purse she accidentally pulled out and dropped a brand new bottle of Red Nail Polish that shattered all over the tile floor. Conclusion #643: Been here 10 minutes and we are already ‘Painting this Town Red’. The 2 of them wiping the Nail Polish with paper Towel was just spreading it around and after 3 suggestions of “Try using Nail Polish Remover” fell on deaf ears we purchased a dozen beers for the 4 of us and headed out by the Pool.

Eventually the other 3 made their way out with Tammi and Allison only sticking around for a few minutes while Allen joined in on the Beverages. The Front Desk Clerk cut us off about 3:00am - Conclusion #644: We had bought all the beer – so we took the last few beers to our Room and called it a night.

Air Canada, United Airlines, US Air, Red Nail Polish and Beer

 

Our alarm went off at 5:00am and after posting a “We’re up and we’ll be in Florida tonight. Safe travels everyone!!” message to the rest of our Group on the Group facebook page we showered, finished our last second packing and waited for Dee and Dan’s Mom and Dad, along with Coral and Dan to pick us up.

 

While waiting we checked the Weather Forecast for Fort Lauderdale and saw that they were experiencing lower than normal temperatures – much warmer than we were accustomed to for February but probably a little frigid for the native Floridians. We saw the headlights of the Van in the driveway at a few minutes before 6:00am and grabbed our luggage and carry-ons and out the door we went.

 

We were very relieved to see Coral sitting in the Van as she had spent Wednesday and Thursday in the Hospital with a Medical Issue. It was touch and go right up until about midnight on the Friday night as to whether or not they would be flying down on the Saturday. They had already looked into cancelling their Saturday Flights and rebooking for the Monday but it would have definitely been a financial hit for them. Although this would be their 2nd Cruise it would be their first time to Florida and to the Caribbean so we were just as excited for them to experience it all as were for ourselves to get back there. Conclusion #630: LOVE FLORIDA AND THE CARIBBEAN!!!

 

Because the itinerary for Dee and I had 5 Airports, 3 different Airlines and 2 very tight connections that day Dan and Coral had agreed to check our large suitcase as they were flying Air Canada the entire way and had booked their flights prior to Air Canada instituting a ‘Luggage Fee’. The thought had crossed our minds to put a few ‘toys’ in the suitcase as a joke in case it had to be searched; would have loved to see the look on Dee’s brother’s face however we decided against it. Conclusion #631: We like Coral. Our checked luggage had a couple of 2 litre bottles of Canadian Cider in it that our American friends can’t get enough of, our shoes, toiletries, ‘Glowing-Home Party’ essentials and a few other things that could be easily replaced if for some reason the luggage did not make it and also one of our large collapsible Carnival Duffel Bags that we had purchased on one of our previous cruises which we had folded up. We had decided to pack our ‘must haves’ in our carry-ons and were amazed at just how much we could fit in them with some proper planning and folding. The plan was to transfer all of the stuff in our carry-ons into the Carnival Bag and our large Suitcase prior to boarding the Ship and using our carry-ons for our case of Coke, 2 bottles of wine and case of Red Bull. Conclusion #632: Water Schwater. Conclusion #633: The Canadian Cider would not make it to the Ship.

 

Once at the Airport we checked in with the 4 of us plus Tammi all on the first flight together. We headed up to the Tim Horton’s Restaurant in the Terminal for some morning refreshments and a bagel and sat in the Waiting Area and relaxed for a bit. After finishing up our drinks and snacks and a couple of trips outside for a smoke it was time to head through Security. “Where’s Tammi?’ we wondered. We called her and when she answered she said she was about ’10 minutes away from the Airport’.

 

Once through Security we grabbed a seat by our Gate and ended up chatting with a couple who were flying down to LA for a Mexican Riviera Cruise. We heard the ‘voice’ and the ‘laughter’ belonging to Tammi at Security and once she made it over to where we were she finished dressing and then decided we needed to see her wound. Tammi had not only dislocated but had completely shattered the ring finger on right hand about 3 weeks earlier while holding onto the leash of a rather large dog that she was dog-sitting for a friend. So as she changed the little cast, dressing and splint on her finger she decided we had to see. As Tammi was showing us the scar from her recent surgery I was feeling more and more like my Show and Tell item would be the Tim Horton’s bagel I had just eaten.

 

Once on board the little Dash-8 we settled into Seats $c and 4D with Tammi directly behind us and Dan and Coral across from her. Tammi turned to the guy sitting beside her and said “if I fall asleep on your shoulder just push me back onto my side” to which he replied that “Don’t worry. I will” Tammi then added “Oh by the way I am a drooler.” She kept talking and we kept laughing until the fellow next to her said ‘he wished he had brought his ear plugs’ Conclusion #634: Okie Dokie.

 

The 15 minute flight to Vancouver International Airport went quickly and once inside the Terminal Dee and I headed towards the International Departures Terminal while Dan, Coral and Tammi headed off towards the Gate for their flight to Toronto. Although we were taking much different routes to Fort Lauderdale we were arriving within a few minutes of each other.

 

Dee and I headed straight to the United Airlines Ticket Counter in hopes of upgrading our Economy Seats to Economy Plus as Dee is somewhat claustrophobic and prefers the front of the plane and we were able to do. For a nominal fee we moved from the very back of the Airbus 320 right up to Seats 7A and 7B. We had almost 3 hours to burn so we headed outside for a couple of smokes before heading through Security, then through US Customs before making our way towards the Duty Free Shop.

 

We each ordered a Carton of Smokes and knowing that we would be cutting it close over the course of 12 days Coral was going to get us another Carton at the Duty Free Shop in Toronto. When the Sales Clerk asked us ‘if that was all we wanted?’ I replied “I wish I could buy more cigarettes.” She said ‘I could buy as many Cartons as I wanted.’ We have done a fair bit of travelling and this was the first we ever heard of this so we purchased a 3rd Carton and quickly texted Coral to let her know that we were good for smokes.

 

Next up was a planned 2 ½ hour stay in Air Canada’s Maple Leaf Lounge. It was finally time to get some of the excessive Annual Fee I pay for my particular American Express charge card back. I get a free admission and can pay for a guest. Conclusion #635: Membership has its Privileges…for a fee. We walked in and handed the Maple Leaf Lounge Attendant my Card and our Boarding Passes. She handed us back our Boarding Passes and told us to make ourselves comfortable wherever we wanted and she would process Dee’s admission and bring me a receipt and my card shortly.

 

We found a table, checked our phones for messages and after doing so the Attendant came over to give me my Card and a receipt for Dee’s Admission which was $15.00. She said that she “always has trouble processing the 50% of Guest Fee before 11:00am.” “Why is it 50% off?” I asked “We don’t charge the full Admission Rate until 11:00am because that’s when we unlock the Cabinets with the Alcohol and the Fridges with the Beer.” Conclusion #636: EPIC FAIL. I told Dee “There is no way we are going to be able to eat an Annual Fee’s worth of Toast and Raisin Bran”

 

We decided to make the best of it made ourselves a bowl of cereal. I searched for the 2% milk figuring that after paying the Entrance fee for Dee this was no time to cut corners. Our flight was scheduled to board shortly after 11:00am and we did throw around the idea of sticking around and shot gunning a couple of beers but didn’t think it would mix well with the Raisin Bran, Rice Krispies, Corn Flakes, Raisin Bread, Bran Flakes, Fruit Loops. Oatmeal, Brown Sugar, Porridge, Whole Wheat Toast, White Toast, Jam, Peanut Butter, Croissants, Bagels, Coffee, Milk, Tea, Orange Juice, Grapes, Cantaloupe, Coke, English Muffins, Danishes, Marmalade, Apples, Oranges, Melons and Tums. Conclusion #637: Marmalade doesn’t agree with me.

 

At about 10:45 we accepted the fact that this Lounge was going to continue to operate in the Pacific Time Zone and made our way down to Gate 78 for Flight UA 246 to Chicago’s O’Hare Airport. Soon after arriving at the Gate the boarding process began. We weren’t able to place our carry-ons in the overhead bin above us as some of the other passengers felt like they needed additional space. The Flight Attendant was able to help us secure some space for our carry-ons and we settled in for what was supposed to be a 4-hour flight to Chicago. The nice thing about flying from West to East is the normally prevalent tail-winds. Conclusion #638: Tail-winds reduce both flight times and drinking times. Thankfully the In-Flight Service did not offer breakfast but did have a Bar Cart.

 

We arrived at O’Hare 20 minutes early so we had just over 1 ½ hours until our next flight but did have to find a US Air Ticket Counter in order to get Boarding Passes for both this flight and our next one from Charlotte, NC to Fort Lauderdale, FL. We were not able to get Seats as close to the front as WeDee would have liked but were able to do so for the 2nd flight. Those 2 tasks completed we had time to slip outside for a smoke in the Windy City.

Back inside we headed through Security and made our way towards Gate F8 and shortly after arriving boarding for Flight 3114 started. Although our Boarding Passes stated this was a US Airways this flight was operated by Republic Airlines and we were flying in an Embraer ERJ-175 Aircraft. We settled into Seats 21D and 21F. I am not normally a nervous flyer but this plane was showing some wear and tear. The back of the seats in front of us were torn; both the outdated Magazine and Emergency Information Card in the Seat Pocket in front of us looked like they had pieces torn out of them as if they had been used as toothpicks by passengers before us and as it was a bit of a bumpy flight to Charlotte the sounds and creaks coming from the interior of the plane were enough to even make me a little hesitant. The Bar Cart was in GREAT shape with 4 solid wheels that rolled smoothly in our direction.

 

According to our itinerary this was supposed to be a 1 hour and 57 minute flight giving us a 42 minute window to make our next flight. We arrived in Charlotte after only 1 ½ hour flight so we not only had time to dart outside for a much needed smoke but we also we3re able to stop at fresh Attractions for a couple of Turkey Sandwiches and Sodas. Conclusion #639: We had not eaten since between 8:37am and 10:45am in Vancouver.

 

The only reason we had picked this milk-run of an itinerary was so we could meet up with Allen who lives in Charlotte, and was joining us for the last leg of the trip. Although we chat on-line and over the phone with him frequently we had not seen him since our Carnival Splendor Cruise in October ’10 so we hurriedly made our way towards Gate C12. Dee thought she caught a glimpse of him behind some glass but I told her that was just a Display Case of some of the early settlers in the Charlotte area and reminded her that ‘Allen was much older than those people.’

 

Soon enough we saw his smiling face and after some hugs and kisses – I am going to talk to him about putting a halt to greeting me that way – the laughs started. The first came at a result of the look on Allen’s face when after about 5 minutes of reacquainting ourselves Allen looked over and saw 2 Charlotte Police Officers and an Airport Security Staff Member talking on their Radios as they stared at his unattended carry-on which he had left leaning up against a column when he first arrived at the Gate. I mentioned to Allen that there should be PA Announcements at Airports to instruct Passengers like himself to ensure they don’t leave their luggage and personal items unattended ….maybe even add that Passengers make sure they pack their own belongings. With hands behind back and chin to chest Allen made his way over to the Officers to tell them it was indeed him ‘that had caused this Security Scare and to asked if they could cancel the Evacuation of the Terminal.‘ Thankfully this was not a Southwest flight and we didn’t end up on the A&E Channel.

 

The Boarding process began so we asked Allen if he was ‘going to play the “passengers needing assistance with boarding” Card?’ and ‘if so could we pose as his Great-Grandchildren and ride that Gravy Train?’ Those 2 questions were met with the oldest middle finger ever to be flipped at us. “Where’s your bag?” we asked. With him having none of that we made our way onto US Airways Flight 959 and settled into Seats 5A and 5B onboard the Airbus 321 while Allen sat down in his Upgraded First Class Seat. Conclusion #640: *#%@!)^ we thought.

 

The 4th and final flight of the day was as uneventful and quick as the previous 3 and came equipped with a mechanically sound Bar Cart which rolled our way several times. We landed in Fort Lauderdale about 10 minutes ahead of our scheduled 12:06am arrival time and made our way inside to collect Allen’s checked luggage. We suggested he leave his carry-on ‘over there by that pole while he waited for his bag’ but he thought better of it. While waiting for the luggage carousel to start up we texted Coral and made arrangements to meet her, Dan, Tammi and Allison at Avis Shuttle Bus Stop. A soon as we saw Tammi she informed us that she had not only lost her little cast, splint and the dressing but she seemed to have misplaced all the replacements as well. Somewhere on an Air Canada flight a passenger just made what they thought might be a gruesome discovery.

 

It was 1:00am by the time we got to the Avis Office and having Preferred Service we grabbed our Paperwork out of the hanging folder, by-passed the line-up and the 7 of us made our way directly to the Van. Now began a process of trying to fit 7 large Suitcases, 7 Carry-Ons, and 4 purses – would have been 5 purses but we will give Allen the benefit of the doubt and call it a Personal Article - 2 Knapsacks, 1 Binder, 1 Personal Article and 7 Adults into a Dodge Grand Caravan. Conclusion #641: Fit better than the glove at the OJ Trial. We made our way out of the Parkade and fired up the GPS for the short drive to the Homewood Suites by Hilton in Dania Beach.

 

As we were driving we saw a number of Police Car Lights across the Freeway ahead of us and ran into a bit of a Detour because of an accident that looked like it involved several cars. After navigating the Detour and listening to the Nerd on the GPS yell at us to turn around before finally he finally decided to reset the Route we arrived at the Hotel.

 

We haven't even reached the hotel yet and I've already been the victim of 17 cases of Elder Abuse. Little did I know at that point that, before we even got on the cruise ship, inanimate objects and furniture would also be abusing me.

I am SUCH a victim! :eek:

Looking forward to reliving some great memories. :D

We haven't even reached the hotel yet and I've already been the victim of 17 cases of Elder Abuse. Little did I know at that point that' date=' before we even got on the cruise ship, inanimate objects and furniture would also be abusing me.

 

I am SUCH a victim! :eek:[/quote']

 

Poor thing

 

Looking forward to reliving some great memories. :D

 

It will be fun....and get to create more memories in just over 90 days

Always enjoy these.:D

Keep 'em coming!! We have to live vicariously through you and Dee! Loving your Review as usual!

Always enjoy these.:D

Keep 'em coming!! We have to live vicariously through you and Dee! Loving your Review as usual!

Thanks Anna and Jacqui

Will get a day posted/day starting tomorrow....very much feeling the effects today of an Octoberfest Celebration we went to last night

Thanks for starting this Jim. Well worth coming back here to read. Wonder what hppens next?.....LOL

Thanks for starting this Jim. Well worth coming back here to read. Wonder what hppens next?.....LOL

I bet its bad.....

Thanks for starting this Jim. Well worth coming back here to read. Wonder what hppens next?.....LOL

Lots :D

I bet its bad.....

What could possibly go wrong on one one of our Cruise MM???;)

You need to do some Signature updating...just sayin

Subscribing! :D I love your reviews. We are really looking forward to cruising with you on the Victory B2B next Oct. How many more weeks do we have?? :cool:

Denise

Subscribing! :D I love your reviews. We are really looking forward to cruising with you on the Victory B2B next Oct. How many more weeks do we have?? :cool:

 

Denise

Thanks Denise!!!...Very much looking forward to cruising with you as well:)...maybe we'll have some Hockey to discuss by then:D

Little jealous of you when I see you are going to be on the Miracle in a week;)

Have Fun...When you get back we'll be under 50 weeks til the B2B!!!

Jell-O Shots, Hard Rocks, Tequila, Beer Pong and an Ice Cube

Wanting to get on East Coast time ASAP I woke up about 8:30am. I had slept really well except for the fact I had been awakened by someone in the Bathroom, which was right next to our bed, in the middle of the night and let’s just say that person was having ‘issues’. Knowing Coral had been in the Hospital for a couple of nights earlier in the week and not knowing the reason for her hospitalization I assumed it was her and to be truthful the sounds I heard coming from the Washroom were nothing I wanted to hear coming from someone who would soon be my Sister-In-Law.

I shook the cobwebs and memories off, showered and then headed out to the Lobby to grab some eats. Once there I saw a couple of Hotel Maintenance Workers on their hands and knees using circular wire brushes on the end of a couple of Electric Drills attempting to grind Nail Polish out of the ‘Pink’ Grout on the Tile Floor. I walked over to them and suggested that they try Nail Polish Remover and they looked at me, nodded their heads and smiled. I went back to the Suite, grabbed some Nail Polish Remover out of Dee’s Make-Up Kit, went back to the Lobby, grabbed a piece of Paper Towel, bent down and quickly removed a couple of inches of Nail Polish from the Grout, looked at the 2 Maintenance Workers, nodded, smiled and said “They don’t call this Nail Polish Remover for nothing” and headed back to the Suite to put the Nail Polish Remover back in Dee’s Make-Up Kit.

Once back in the Lobby I saw Tammi, Allison and Allen, who were looking no worse for the wear, sitting at a Table and thought Tammi was motioning me over but when I got closer I realized it was just the way her not so healing finger was bending. Nevertheless I went back and grabbed a plate of food and sat at their Table. Shortly thereafter there was a strong smell on Nail Polish Remover wafting our way. About the same time the colour of Tammi’s face began to match the colour of the Grout in the Lobby.

After I finished eating I headed back to the Suite with a plate of fruit, danishes and pastries for the other 3 who were now showing signs of life. I was having a little trouble looking Coral in the eye and after asking the 3 of them ‘How they slept?’ I was ecstatic when Dan said that he “had a terrible sleep” and that he had “to get up in the middle of the night to use the Washroom.” “That was you” I asked excitedly. “Yes” he answered before asking “Why? Did you hear me?” “Unfortunately I did” I replied before adding “But I am so happy it was you cause I thought it was Coral.” We all had a good laugh and got ready to start our day.

I phoned the Front Desk and asked if they could connect me with Lynne and Peewee’s Suite which they did and after getting a “Wooo Hooo!!!” from Lynne we called Allen, Tammi and Allison’s Suite and let them know we were on our way up to Lynne and Peewee’s Suite on the 3rd Floor. They said ‘they’d be up shortly’.

As was the case with how long it had been since we had seen Allen we had not seen Lynne and Peewee since October ’10. The four of us knocked on the Door and with GREAT BIG GRINS on all our faces the hugs and “So Good to see you’s” began. Conclusion #645: Love these 2. Can’t say enough about what a GREAT Group Leader Lynne was for this Cruise. With the underlying theme of the Cruise being ‘Jell-O Shot… Stat’, Lynne and Peewee had come prepared with one of their suitcases being dedicated strictly to Jell-O Shot Supplies.

And the Booze for the Ship Jell-O Shots packed neatly away:D

It was time for ‘after breakfast dessert’ so we had our first of what I would guess would be 100+ Jell-O Shots each over the course of the next 10 days.

Conclusion #646: Have not touched Jell-O since. Conclusion #647: Can’t say the same about ‘Shots’

Lynne had an entire Jell-O Shot Recipe List with her and over the course of the 10 days we found out that we were all good with lists. The 6 of us had a Syringe Shot and after Tammi, Allison and Allen made their way up to the Suite we had a 2nd Round of Syringes with them. A couple more after-breakfast treats along with a lot of reminiscing and loads of laughs had us ready to take on the day. Lynne and Peewee decided to stay close to ‘home’ as they had a lunch date with the Group TA and a few other people who we didn’t know who were in Fort Lauderdale and going on a different cruise than us.

The first stop for the 7 of us was the Hard Rock Café – Hollywood for Lunch and to get a Souvenir Hurricane Glass for Dee and I to add to our Collection, a set of Drumsticks for each of Dee’s sons and the Signature Bear for my daughter to add to all of their Collections.

Nestled on the coast between Miami and Ft. Lauderdale, "City of the Future" Hollywood, FL was named October 1997 Money Magazine's best representation of what an American city will look like in the year 2022. Racially and culturally diverse, the city hosts a population of both young and old living together in an atmosphere of complete harmony. A city whose average yearly temperature hovers around 80° Fahrenheit and is one of the fastest growing in South Florida, Hollywood is a "must visit" for anyone's travel agenda.

In the middle of this unique city lies the Seminole Indian Reservation, home of the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino complex. With a 130,000 square foot casino, a 5600 seat Hard Rock Live venue, and a 4-star Hotel, the complex is alive with festivities 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

The 7 of us hopped in the Van, plugged in the GPS and programmed in 1 Seminole Way and made the short trip over to the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. We parked in the Casino Parkade and when we jumped out of the Van the wind was blowing fairly hard and we quickly realized it was a lot chillier than we thought especially with most of us ‘Northerners’ dressed in shorts. We made our way inside and it took the strength of 6 of us to pull Dee past the Slot Machines to the Café where we requested a Table for 7.

A Round of Drinks were first up as we perused the Menu. Dee and I try and have the Local Legendary Burger with some authentically mouth-watering local flavor and today was no different. We all thoroughly enjoyed our Meals, the drinks and the Rock Memorabilia adorning the walls. After I finished eating I headed over to the Shop to purchase the Souvenirs and get our Hurricane Glass from the Signature Drink I had oreded and after dropping the bags back at the Table I asked our Waitress ‘where the nearest Washroom was?’. She said they were having some “plumbing issues today” and ‘that I would have to go out into the Casino and use one of the Bathrooms there’. I looked and Dan and remarked “Don’t feel bad. It’s not just you that’s having plumbing issues” before heading out into the Casino. It seemed like the plumbing issues were fairly extensive because it felt like I had to walk the entire 130,000 square feet to find a Washroom that was open. Honestly don’t know how the Casino was still open that day as 1 Bathroom for that size of a Complex seemed a little lacking. I headed back to the Café where we paid our bills and headed out into the Casino once again. A few others had top ‘freshen up’ so while waiting we hit the Slots and each made a $20.00 donation to the Seminole Indian Band.

Once everyone was back together we headed out to the Van and programmed the GPS to take us to the Bayside Marketplace where the Hard Rock Café-Miami is located. The plan was to get our Miami Hard Rock Souvenirs and then wander around the Bayside Marketplace for an hour or 2 and do some shopping. The ½ hour drive was easy and soon enough we found a Pay Parking Lot just off Biscayne Blvd.

Miami has everything - climate, beaches, food, music, unsurpassed nightlife and fabulous art deco style. But it's the people more than anything that make this city unique. Half the population is Hispanic (mostly Cuban), and there's a large influx of Jewish and Jamaican culture flourishing as well. The Hard Rock Cafe Miami, true to its "Love All, Serve All" motto, is proud of this city's diversity and honors it at their thriving Biscayne Bay location in bustling Bayside Marketplace. It’s located in the southernmost part of Bayside Mall by the Marina.

We made our way to the Café, purchased our Souvenirs and then as planned began to wander around all the Shops. The Marketplace has a great view of Biscatne Bay and the Miami cruise Port. We could see 3 Ships readying to set sail that afternoon – Soon it would be our turn.

As it turned out, besides the Souvenirs we purchased at the Hard Rock Café, our shopping consisted of buying several Beers at one of the Shops and sitting down, drinking, people watching and taking in the beautiful views. The next time we cruise out of Miami (October ’13) we plan on looking into getting a Hotel close to this area.

We decided to make our way back to the Hotel around 3:00pm to try and avoid as much of the Rush Hour Traffic as we could. Conclusion #648: Mission somewhat accomplished. Once back in Dania Beach we headed to a Grocery Store and a Liquor Store to buy our supplies for the next 2 nights and the Cruise + Tammi needed a new bottle of Red Nail Polish.

I bought what we call a ‘Handle of Crown Royal’ (66 ounces) for myself with a plan to ‘Rum Runner’ any that might be left after the next 2 nights onto the Ship, a 40 ouncer of Captain Morgan’s Spiced Rum for Dee with a same plan of attack planned for any leftovers, 2 bottles of Wine to carry on the Cruise, a case of Red Bull for the Bon Voyage Grey Goose and a case of Coke for the Bon Voyage and any left-over Crown Royal + a couple of bottles of Coke for mix at the Hotel. Everyone else loaded up on supplies as well. Unfortunately for Allen one of his purchases was a Pint Bottle of Tequila.

Back at the Hotel we called Lynne and Peewee and made a plan to meet in the Lobby because it was time to get the Party started!!!!

Interesting jello Shots!

Interesting jello Shots!

Not only that but tasty too!!!;):D

We all met in the Lobby at 7:00pm, drinks in hand, and because our Suite was just off the Lobby we used it as ‘Drink Making Central’. Dee did an awesome job of Bartending for all of us that night, well almost everyone but more on that later. Lynne and Peewee had brought a bunch of Red Solo Cups and Ping Pong Balls so we decided a Beer Pong Tournament was in order...

after a couple of Jell-O Shots each, as Lynne and Peewee had also come equipped with their Jell-O Shot Cooler Bag.

We play a lot of Beer Pong at our Parties up here - Conclusion #649: Not all Canadians play Hockey – so we ended up teaching Allen the finer points of Beer Pong and some ‘distraction strategies’. Allen caught on quick.

We decided on a 4 X 2/Person/Team Elimination Tournament with Tammi abstaining because of the finger issue on her Ping Pong Ball throwing hand so we put a couple of Tables together and got started. As the Tournament went along the Front Desk Clerk made his way over and our first thought was “Oh-Oh. Game over” but he was just curious and even said “You people are different than most of our Guests. They just sleep. No Fun”

During the Game between with Dee and Allen on one team and Lynne and Dan on the other I just about spit my drink all over the place when I looked over at Allen to see him using one of the more advanced ‘distraction techniques’ that Dee had taught him. Allen was leaning over the Table towards Lynne with his hand down his Pants and his finger sticking out of his zipper wiggling around. Conclusion #650: Lynne was easily distracted.

In retrospect it would probably have been better to play Beer Pong with actual Beer in the Cups instead of Vodka, Crown Royal, Tequila, Spiced Rum and Canadian Cider depending on who was playing because the Tournament Bracket kinda fell apart after 4 or 5 games.

Needing a little something to soak up the Beer Pong losses we asked the fellow at the Front Desk to order us 3 X-Large Pizzas and to get toppings on one of them that he and the other Person working liked and we would treat them to Dinner. Conclusion #651: We also know some ‘Don’t get kicked out of the Hotel Strategies’.

Love it!!!:d

As I mentioned earlier Dee had been playing the role of Bartender during the night and Allen was drinking Tequila straight up. He wanted it neat but we insisted he have at least some ice in his drinks so Dee made his Drinks ‘on the Rocks’. Unfortunately this did not keep Allen from being ‘on the rocks’. Eventually Dan and I decided it was time to help Allen up to his Suite and put him to bed. We borrowed Allison’s key and made our way slowly to the Elevator and then up to the 2nd Floor.

Once in the Bedroom we started to help him get undressed but Allen was having none of that. He ‘thanked us for looking after him’, said ‘We could go…that he was fine and that he needed to go to the Bathroom and he could do that himself’. We could tell he was waiting for us to do just that so we made our way out to the Living Room area and opened the door out to the Hallway, stayed where we were and let it close in front of us. We heard him get off the bed and mutter a few things to himself before checking out the structural soundness of the walls separating the Bedroom and the Bathroom on his way there. Once we heard Tequila hitting water at an excellent flow rate - Conclusion #652: Too bad he didn’t bring that kind on aim to Beer Pong – we waited for him to check the structural soundness of the Bathroom Wall and the other Bedroom Wall on his way back to Bed. Conclusion #653: Allen obviously leans to the right. Once we heard him pull back the covers, mutter what we thought must have been his nightly prayers to himself we headed out to the Hallway and made our way back down to the Lobby.

About 45 minutes later I told Dan that “I’d like to go check on Allen to make sure he is OK” so the 2 of us made our way back up to his Suite. The light was off in the Bed Room but we could hear him moaning a little bit as if he was in pain. Worried we made our way into the Bed Room and turned the light on and after spending too much time ‘on the rocks’ this evening and in an unfamiliar room Allen had gotten up to go to the Bathroom again and tripped over the Nightstand. In doing so he had knocked over a drink that one the ladies had left on the Nightstand and his pants, which were laying on the floor, were covered in that drink. He told us his ‘foot was sore’ so we had a closer look and 4 of the toes on his right foot were pointing in 4 different directions Conclusion #654: His toes looked like one of those Sign Posts in a Margaritaville with different arrows pointing in different directions saying ‘Cozumel – 50 Miles’…Montego Bay – 120 Miles. We got him tucked into bed and I grabbed his pants off the floor, took all the Cash out of his pocket and put it in the Zippered Pocket of his Suitcase and then took his pants down to the Front Desk and arranged for them to be dry-cleaned. The therapy that Dan and I have gone through after seeing Allen in his ‘not-so-tightie-whities’ is almost finished.

While we were up in Allen's Suite Dee and Lynne decided a quick dip in the Pool was in order so in Lynne went clothes and all while Dee took her pants off and jumped in. The 2 of them swam around for a little while before getting out and wrapping themselves in the Towels I had gone and got for them. I think Dan was slightly less disturbed by briefly seeing his sister in her Thong than he was seeing Allen in his briefs. Dee headed to the Suite to dry off and put on some Jammies while Lynne headed upstairs to dry off and change.

Two- by-two the night’s participants called it a night; first down were Tammi and Allison, followed by Dee and Coral and lastly Lynne and Peewee. Dan and I stayed up until about 3:30am chatting and having night cap after night cap; the 2 of us trying to drink away the memory of Allen in his underwear we had witnessed earlier. Conclusion #655: Tomorrow is another day:D

Love it!!!:d

:D...It gets better too ;):D

As I mentioned earlier Dee had been playing the role of Bartender during the night and Allen was drinking Tequila straight up. He wanted it neat but we insisted he have at least some ice in his drinks so Dee made his Drinks ‘on the Rocks’. Unfortunately this did not keep Allen from being ‘on the rocks’. Eventually Dan and I decided it was time to help Allen up to his Suite and put him to bed. We borrowed Allison’s key and made our way slowly to the Elevator and then up to the 2nd Floor.

 

Once in the Bedroom we started to help him get undressed but Allen was having none of that. He ‘thanked us for looking after him’, said ‘We could go…that he was fine and that he needed to go to the Bathroom and he could do that himself’. We could tell he was waiting for us to do just that so we made our way out to the Living Room area and opened the door out to the Hallway, stayed where we were and let it close in front of us. We heard him get off the bed and mutter a few things to himself before checking out the structural soundness of the walls separating the Bedroom and the Bathroom on his way there. Once we heard Tequila hitting water at an excellent flow rate - Conclusion #652: Too bad he didn’t bring that kind on aim to Beer Pong – we waited for him to check the structural soundness of the Bathroom Wall and the other Bedroom Wall on his way back to Bed. Conclusion #653: Allen obviously leans to the right. Once we heard him pull back the covers, mutter what we thought must have been his nightly prayers to himself we headed out to the Hallway and made our way back down to the Lobby.

 

About 45 minutes later I told Dan that “I’d like to go check on Allen to make sure he is OK” so the 2 of us made our way back up to his Suite. The light was off in the Bed Room but we could hear him moaning a little bit as if he was in pain. Worried we made our way into the Bed Room and turned the light on and after spending too much time ‘on the rocks’ this evening and in an unfamiliar room Allen had gotten up to go to the Bathroom again and tripped over the Nightstand. In doing so he had knocked over a drink that one the ladies had left on the Nightstand and his pants, which were laying on the floor, were covered in that drink. He told us his ‘foot was sore’ so we had a closer look and 4 of the toes on his right foot were pointing in 4 different directions Conclusion #654: His toes looked like one of those Sign Posts in a Margaritaville with different arrows pointing in different directions saying ‘Cozumel – 50 Miles’…Montego Bay – 120 Miles. We got him tucked into bed and I grabbed his pants off the floor, took all the Cash out of his pocket and put it in the Zippered Pocket of his Suitcase and then took his pants down to the Front Desk and arranged for them to be dry-cleaned. The therapy that Dan and I have gone through after seeing Allen in his ‘not-so-tightie-whities’ is almost finished.

 

While we were up in Allen's Suite Dee and Lynne decided a quick dip in the Pool was in order so in Lynne went clothes and all while Dee took her pants off and jumped in. The 2 of them swam around for a little while before getting out and wrapping themselves in the Towels I had gone and got for them. I think Dan was slightly less disturbed by briefly seeing his sister in her Thong than he was seeing Allen in his briefs. Dee headed to the Suite to dry off and put on some Jammies while Lynne headed upstairs to dry off and change.

 

Two- by-two the night’s participants called it a night; first down were Tammi and Allison, followed by Dee and Coral and lastly Lynne and Peewee. Dan and I stayed up until about 3:30am chatting and having night cap after night cap; the 2 of us trying to drink away the memory of Allen in his underwear we had witnessed earlier. Conclusion #655: Tomorrow is another day:D

Ahem! In my defense, they told me that tequila on the rocks made for a weaker drink. So I had Dee put one of the small ice cubes in each drink and I thought I was good. I was mistaken. And in an attempt to be sociable, I accepted every beer which was offered me, and every jello shot and every glass of wine, but of course I didn't feel a thing. I only let them take me up to the room because they are such kids and had a bias that old people couldn't hang with them. So I went up and pretended to go to bed.

Apparently, when they had been in the room earlier, they obviously moved the night stand, because when I got up after they left to do some Bible study, I apparently slammed my foot right into the nightstand.

I say "apparently" because to this day, 8 months later, I still have no recollection of that night from the point where Dan and I dominated in Beer Pong, until the next morning.

I woke up the next morning and couldn't walk. I had broken four toes on my right foot. Also, I couldn't find my pants, which had all my cash in them. This was a little embarrassing, because both of my roomies were already up and giving me "that look". I still don't remember the nightstand incident, but it must have hurt like all get out. It's probably good that I don't remember it.

Conclusions # 1 through 738.... those Canadians will get you messed up beyond belief..... :eek:

I bet its bad.....

No doubt...these people seem like lots of fun! :D

Interesting jello Shots!

Some turned out quite well well others were epic failures.

BTW Jim....just an FYI your Jello shot tally is a little understated. We actually made 50 per batch...........................:D

Unless you meant you personally had 100+ jello shots LOL

...and people worry about getting ONE BOTTLE of Booze on their cruise!!!:eek::eek::eek:

Any question about 100's of jello syringes??:D:D

Would so have loved to be there with you guys again...