XBGuy

39 minutes ago, c-boy said:

That was it, thanks. Quantas had the koala 🐨  bear. Western had a parrot or vulture 😄

Yeah, I remember that Western Airlines had an animated spokesbird.  I don’t recall any distinguishing features that would identify it as any specific type of bird—just a generic bird.

1 hour ago, c-boy said:

Remember. "The ooonly way to fly"

 

Western Airlines.  I am one of the older Cruise Critics.

Also, I know the dardest things--like what QANTAS stands for.  For the longest time I wondered why there was no "u" behind the "q."

On 11/26/2023 at 9:06 AM, memoak said:

I have no seen an elite/suite line outside a terminal in Vancouver, Seattle or San Francisco for quite awhile. I SF when we saw the line outside the terminal we dropped our bags and went out to lunch

This is an excellent workaround.  Good for you.

There are numerous restaurants within easy walking distance from San Francisco's Pier 27.  There are, of course, a number of eateries in the Pier 39 area, but right across the Embarcadero is Fog City Diner.  La Mar at Pier 2 is outstanding, and there are numerous other places at the Ferry Building.

I always chuckle at posts that ask, "Is <fill in the blank> 'worth it?'" or opine whether or not "<fill in the blank> is or is not 'worth it.'"

Here is the universal answer to that question.  Yes, it is worth it.

Presumably, the questioner has not experienced the subject event.  Is not one of the purposes of travel to expand your experience?  Well, this is what that means.  If you experience it and find the experience pleasant, or useful, then you have learned something.  That makes it worth it.  If you experience something and, for whatever reason, that you do not find it pleasant or useful, then you have learned something,  That makes it worth it.

We have not tried the 360 Experience.  For well-known reasons and for one personal reason we have not cruised since 2020.  We are, in fact, food and wine buffs.  To be honest, however, there are things about the 360 Experience that do not sound attractive to me at all.  That being said, when we return to cruising, we will be trying it at our first opportunity.  I am not going to rely on Cruise Critic reports to make the decision for me,

It appears that multiple posters have covered the Princess offerings.

HAL does regularly offer San Diego-Hawaii roundtrips.

I think Carnival offers round trips out of Long Beach, but the frequency is nowhere near that of Princess or HAL.

I'm know that Celebrity has offered round trips (out of San DIego?), but I am not sure if they still do.

Mrs. XBGuy and I really enjoy the Los Angeles-Hawaii round trips, but we absolutely love sea days.  On a round trip from the West Coast you are probably going to get nine or ten sea days.

If sea days are not your thing, I think NCL is still offering a 7-day inter-island cruise out of Honolulu.  So. you can avoid all the sea days crossing the Pacific by flying to Honolulu.

7 hours ago, c-boy said:

Celebration , Sadness 😔 calls for 

Bubbly takes the sting  out of disembarking .

WOW.  Did you bring that, or does the ship still have the 2006 vintage.  I pre-ordered Dom for our balcony sailaway 8 or 9 years ago and they delivered 2006.

21 hours ago, c-boy said:

Last night was Crown Grill adventure...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nothing against California  but. I'm glad I brought my own wine. 

 

I confess to being a California wine bigot.  However, there is nothing--not a thing--on that wine list that appeals to me.  I will bring my own wine the next time I visit Crown Grill.

I used to be able to find things on  the CG list that I liked.  Mrs.  XBGuy could usually find a white--including nice white Burgundies--that she could enjoy with the Mussel Pot.  That list that you are showing, now, is pathetic.

Somebody on another "Live From" posted the wine list from Sabatini's, and that one was much better.  I could actually find some wines that I would enjoy on that list.

4 minutes ago, c-boy said:

Mostly due to partnerships/collaborations. From what I'm told his "label"  has taken on several vineyards in the napa/sonoma region . 

Oh absolutely.  I don't think many celebs really get their hands dirty.  One exception might be Scott Pruett who seems to be very involved in the growing and the vinification.

I think another exception that I think I read about was Tom Seaver.

49 minutes ago, c-boy said:

Soul survivor of the Ming dynasty 

one bottle  left... 🤔 I'm thinkin' bout it ..lol.

Please report back.

Celeb wines are rarely distinguished, but this won seems to have garnered some respect.

1 hour ago, TxTeach79 said:

692 Gold Members

173 Ruby Members

249 Platinum Members

159 Elite Members

 

thats a lot of first timers. 

I think first timers are blue.

I think my odds are better taking my money (not sure I understand what “extra money” is) to Sabatini’s where my historical percentage of having a great dinner is 100%.

😃

2 hours ago, c-boy said:

What do you make of this look 

Grand Cru Chablis.  Très bien.

While I have taken part in the Chef's Table twice in the past.  The first experience was less than optimal because of some of the guests with whom we had to share the experience.  We signed up for the second one just in the hope that our fellow diners would be a bit more gracious.  The second one was quite enjoyable.

The news that Princess is going to a fixed menu for the Chef's Table is a bit disappointing.  To me the idea of the Chef's Table is to allow the Executive Chef to show some of his own creativity to make each event a unique experience for the diners.  Maybe they'll change the name to the McChef's Table.

My sarcasm aside, there is a "Live From" on this board right now in which the posters participated in the Chef's Table with this new standard menu.  The menu, in fact, looks pretty attractive, to me.  The posters seemed to enjoy it quite a bit, and their pictures of the various dishes were quite attractive

I am also glad to hear that the appetizers are no longer served in the galley.  That seemed weird to me.  I was not, and it seemed that others were not, comfortable in that environment.

In the future, I think Mrs. XBGuy and I will stick with the Ultimate Balcony Dinner.  Yes, the menu hasn't changed since our first experience in 2013. but we absolutely love being pampered by our own (at least it seems like they are our own} two servers.  Also, I know the wine will be outstanding because I'll bring it from my inventory.   😁

47 minutes ago, AnyMajorCruiseDude said:

He actually suggested it since we did 3 UBD's on the trip, and he told us he knew a great location.  He was right!

That's a terrific story.

Three UBDs on a single cruise????  Did you check with the Guinness people to see if that was some kind of record?

One per cruise is our max.

14 hours ago, AnyMajorCruiseDude said:

Here you go.  Best location ever thanks to Neville Saldana.  Deck 15 aft, behind the one-five, Grand Princess Transatlantic.  

Excellent workaround.  I assume you made you request courteously and, afterwards, thanked Mr. Saldana profusely.

Sometimes when when you ar Down Under gravity gets confused.

FIFY

16 minutes ago, jwattle said:

On the ship: people watched for a bit as a slow trickle began... then the gates opened and we headed for the refuge of our balcony. After a time,  we decided to try lunch in Reserve, so headed down. Tom decided to try the veggie burger. Important note: Tom is not vegan... Tom is not even vegetarian. His lunch choice was questionable  🤔 at best, but he did live with his decision,  accompanied by a lovely Sauvignon blanc. For my fellow vinophiles, either the wine didn't compliment the burger or vice versa. 

On with the day!

Quite a few years ago we thought we would try the dining room for lunch on embarkation day.  Our normal embarkation day routine is to get hamburgers at the Lido deck grill, grab a nearby table and watch the excited cruisers scurrying about.  For whatever reason, we decided to change things up.  Mrs. XBGuy ordered a veggie burger, and I ordered a plain old regular cheeseburger.  She took one bite of hers, decided it was absolutely the worst thing she’d ever tasted in all her life, and pushed her plate away.  My cheeseburger was fine—almost as good as the ones they offer on the Lido deck.  Eventually, the waiter realized something was wrong and asked if she would like something else, but she declined.  I do have a memory of her having a white wine with that lunch.  It may very well have been a Sauvignon Blanc,

Since that experience I have read numerous reports here on the Cruise Critic Princess Board about how bad the veggie burgers are in the dining rooms.  I have to say, Tom, there were plenty of warnings out there.  Cruise Critic is your friend.

🤣

Mrs. XBGuy’s attitude improved considerably when we reverted to another of our embarkation day routines—sparkling wine on our balcony during sailaway.

1 hour ago, TxTeach79 said:

They’ve untied us, but the jetways still appear to be connected. Slow progress to get underway 

Jetways???

9 hours ago, c-boy said:

Guess what  Tom is doing .....

 

Strictly for research purposes 😏 

This looks like one of those Silverado blending events.  I had not heard of anybody participating in one of those for several years.  

A good way to meet fellow wine buffs.

Very cool.

Thank you.

52 minutes ago, sonomaphil said:

My wife always orders the seafood in Crown Grill as she is not a steak lover!  

My wife’s regular Crown Grill entree order is the Mussel Pot.  
 

Continuing with Mrs. XBGuy’s Crown Grill habits, for her appetizer she always orders the Garlic Fries.  Invariably, the server will give her a double take, but then bustles off and she gets her fries when I get my Shrimp Bisque.  The very cool thing is that I get to reach across the table and snag all the fries I want.

I confess to being a red meat lover, but over the years I have tasted most of the Crown Grill entrees.  I have found the Sea Bass to be outstanding.  On the other hand, I am “one and done” with the Lobster Tails.

Boy multiple “Live from . . . “ posters are receiving Chef’s Table invitations this week.  Very cool.

It is not surprising that suite cabins are not available for an April 2024 cruise are currently not available.  However, the impending final payment date may cause that to change.  I would suggest that starting today you, or your friend, check daily—preferably, multiple times per day.  If final payment date passes with no joy, do not give up.  Continue for at least a couple more weeks.

Due to a domestic situation i personally have cancelled a suite on a Princess cruise a couple days before final payment.  I intentionally postponed my decision as long as I could.  So, it does happen.

In addition to the above action I would certainly encourage your friends to try to enlist their travel agent for possible assistance.

You're in the Chef's Table event.

No reason to wait by the phone.  Chef’s Table invitees are notified in writing.  A letter is delivered to the cabin.