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Review: Ben the Bendy Man's Gem of an Adventure, Dec 13 - Dec 22, 2012


kylenyc

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Review: Ben the Bendy Man's Gem of an Adventure, Dec 13 - Dec 22, 2012 (and Other Exploits)

Hi everyone!

 

For those of you who don't know me (and yet brave enough to click on this review in spite of the title)... I'm Ben the Bendy Man, and I've just returned from a beautiful 9 day 4 island Eastern Caribbean cruise aboard the Norwegian Gem. This is my second review/blog and it follows my September review of the Norwegian Star to Bermuda (Ben the Bendy Man's Stellar Star Adventure Sept 23 - Sept 30, 2012).

 

If you've read my previous review, you'd know that I'm a solo traveler (albeit with my invisible photographer/typist) and that I had one of the best cruises ever aboard the Star back in Sept. I've been on quite a few cruises and the Star has a fantastic crew and Bermuda is one of my favorite islands, so I was cautiously opti-pessimistic about my chances of having another fun-filled time aboard the Gem.

 

I hope you'll find this review entertaining and informative, and that you'll stayed tuned to find out...

 

Will Ben have a "Gem" of a time, full of exciting fun-filled adventures? Will he find old friends and make new ones... And be saved from eating alone in the main dining room... Or be banished to the solo abyss of all-you-can-eat-buffets and room service? Will his frown ever turn upside down?

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Day 1 - Off to the Gem (Ben's late, Ben's late, He's gonna be late...)

 

Day 0 - Prologue

 

Ben had been on a cruise binge since August, having went on a cruise in August, September, October, and November, yet he still woke up excited the day before this December cruise. He'd was looking forward to making new friends, visiting new destinations, and all that a cruise has to offer such as free shampoo to keep his head shiny and the adrenaline rush of wrangling towel animals. But first he had to (once again) poke his procrastinating pictographer to get started with much needed laundry, packing, and stuffs.

 

Day 1 - Ben's frantic rush to the Manhattan Cruise Terminal

 

By 2 AM day of the cruise, Ben's assistant was still embroiled in late night double work shift (mumbling silly somethings about earning money to pay the bills blah blah blah), and by the time he finished they were off in search of a 24 hr laundromat.

 

You'd think that Ben would have replaced his assistant by now after the late-minute mad rush to the pier back in September. Alas but no. They were stuck together on another (mis)adventure.

 

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4:05 AM - Ben luckily finds an empty but open laundromat... "Where's Ben?"

 

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Ben finds the wash cycle strangely soothing and mesmerizing.

 

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4:20 AM - Ben's fascinated by his typist's strange ritual desire to wash and wear outer garments but eventually falls asleep during the spin cycle.

Ed: You may be wondering what happened to the reviews for the Oct/Nov... Ben might be persuaded to share the scandalous details later on. But in all seriousness, the October cruise was during Hurricane Sandy and Ben didn't feel comfortable writing a review back then but he might do it later on. Ben still feels for those affected by Sandy and wishes them the best.

By 6 AM Ben's assistant was finished washing, drying, and folding and was home once again. Ben kept poking the lazy procrastinator but couldn't keep him from taking another nap. He finally got the typist moving again by 10 AM in order to finish packing with barely enough time to print Ben's itinerary and boarding documents, and time to only research one of his four vacation destinations (San Juan, Puerto Rico).

 

Ben was out the door after 1 PM and again taking MTA mass transit to the pier. After a short bus ride, he arrived at the subway station. He made a point to slap his assistant on the back of the head to make sure they got on the correct subway this time.

 

Ed: Details of Ben's similar trip to Manhattan Cruise Terminal - Pier 88 via MTA NYC mass transit as well a sailaway pictures of Manhattan, Intrepid Sea Air Space Museum, World Trade Center, Lady Liberty, Ellis Island, and Verrazano-Narrows Bridge can be found in his previous review here

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Ben arrives at the Manhattan Cruise Terminal and the Norwegian Gem

 

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(Continued)

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Day 1 - Ben's frantic rush to the Manhattan Cruise Terminal (Continued)

 

Ben arrived at the the cruise terminal shy of 2 PM and took the elevator to the second level. As with his Sept cruise, Ben hid in his typist's backpack in order to pass through U.S. Customs and Border Protection and Norwegian's passenger (mental) health and safety officers to avoid raising any yellow flags. :rolleyes:

 

After passing through security, Ben was surprised to see some of the longest lines he's ever seen on Norwegian. Luckily, Ben's a frequent cruiser and has stood in plenty of regular check-in lines in the past and so has earned enough Norwegian Latitudes Reward points to have "Gold" status along with the perk of priority check-in. His typist was directed to a shorter line and minutes later checked-in by a friendly receptionist, on his way out of the terminal, and up the gangway.

 

Tips:

- Be sure to check your email and read your boarding documents (eDocs) for instructions and recommended time for arriving at the terminal.

- See Ben's previous review for various tips for the new or solo cruiser. Ben will focus on new tips and those unique to this itinerary and ship.

 

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Ben exits the terminal and towards the gangway

 

Upon boarding, Ben's experienced assistant/porter/photo made a bee line to their cabin to unpack and settle in. Ben decided to splurge on a balcony cabin this cruise with floor-to-ceiling sliding glass doors. He also wanted to experience more rocking on the ship and so picked the most forward deck 9 balcony.

 

The balconies on the most forward balcony cabins on the Gem (and Jewel-class ships) have a metal frame wrapping around the opening. Most other balcony cabins don't have this. However, this type of "framed" balcony is common on other cruise ships.

 

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Balcony Cabin - Category BC. The winter afternoon sun gave Ben's amateur point-and-shoot photog a bit of trouble.

 

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Deck 9 forward balcony with atypical wrap around frame.

 

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Ben was welcomed into a comfortable cabin decorated in the typical Norwegian style. This particular cabin had two twin beds pushed together and made up in a queen configuration. This made for a sometimes uncomfortable sleep across the resulting noticeable seam in the middle of the bed. Ben didn't bother to ask about a foam filler/top and didn't think to ask his travel agent about cabins with regular queen beds. This cabin was designed to fit three passengers and so also had a convertible twin sofabed.

 

Tips:

-- Check with your Norwegian Personal Cruise Consultant (PCC) or travel agent for details about cabin features, layout, and bed configurations.

-- Ben only found two 110V outlets plus a "razor only" outlet in the bathroom. He didn't find any 220V outlets. Bring a convertor and/or surge protector with extra outlets if needed.

 

(Continued)

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Day 1 - Ben's relaxed casual sailaway (Continued)

 

After finally getting settled in, Ben's assistant was exhausted. Having recently sailed out of NYC in September aboard the Norwegian Star, Ben decided not to attend the poolside sailaway party or brave the now chillier December sea breeze. However, he did take a short stroll around the ship just before the 3:30 PM mandatory safety drill.

 

Ben definitely recommends the sailaway party and being up the open Decks 13 or higher even during the coldest winter months in order enjoy the fantastic views of NY/NJ skylines and sailing past famous landmarks. Pictures of his September NYC sailaway are here.

 

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Pool (lido) Deck 12 Midship - The calm before the sailaway party.

 

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Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum a few blocks south of the pier. The Enterprise Space Shuttle exhibit shown missing its pavilion cover. The exhibit and other parts of the museum and pier were damaged during Hurricane Sandy.

 

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Jogging track Deck 13 aft.

 

(Continued) Tomorrow - More of Day 1, Ben meets friends old and new, Cruise Critic Meet & Greet, food porn, and towel animals. Woo hoo!

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