Smitheroo

This works for you. Me personally, a server would have to be really bad for me to even notice. I choose from whatever is on the menu (thankful there are choices), rarely make requests on how it is prepared, eat it and the server takes it away. One thing I do if I am with another travel partner we sit at the table for awhile. In a regular restaurant this is not appreciated by the server but on a ship I dont think many people tip by meal. And its hard to tip the waiter at the end if you've gone to several of the dining rooms plus a specialty. I dont think I ever had the same waiter twice.

The Manhattan is another one of the MDR on the Joy. It seemed to be quite popular when I was on the cruise to Mexico last February. We tried to have dinner there one night and were told there was a 30 minute wait so went back to either the Taste or Savory which were both fine.

I didnt know that!

I sailed on the Cunard line in 1966. Lunch and dinner always included a fish course.

I didnt realize the Cunard line had a ship by that name. They usually had names ending in "ia" like Sylvania, Carpathia, Mauritania and the Queens.

Which Cunard ship were you on? I was on the RMS Sylvania and the original Queen Mary in 1966

Ok, I apologize. But really, is it necessary to exclaim how uniformed I am? I was wrong and I accept your explanation. The conversation went off on a tangent because I was provoked by someone questioning my motives. I shouldnt have mentioned things I wasnt 100% sure of and wouldnt have if I didnt feel I needed to defend myself to this other person. Reading over my comment about the military I notice I did say that I was not really sure.

Ok, I understand better now about federal employees. I know Im right about some government, i.e. states because that was my husband's situation. He gets very little in social security payments, most of his retirement is from the program run by the state of Maine even though he was not a state employee, but an employee of the city of Portland. There's is also a difference with health insurance for the federal govt. I dont believe they take part in the Medicare system.

****** I see where my original question seemed like I intended to access health care. That is not true*****

Its not really. I asked an initial question if there was anyone who had dual citizenship with the EU and if it had been helpful to them (paraphrased) And then it morphed into something bigger. If you are not interested, all you have to do is scroll past. Unless you are a moderator. I dont think the discussion was unhelpful even if it didnt apply to cruising as it morphed. If you jumped in the middle of it you might get the impression it was not ever related to crusing.

Of course I will buy travel insurance. I think I stated that, or I might have said I wasnt going to rely on my EU citizenship which is basically saying the same thing. I have some coverage through my medicare supplement plan but it has a lifetime limit s and I'm not sure how comprehensive it is so I do plan to buy travel insurance and have been researching the various companies. I really am curious and did not mean to come across as "entitled" (I realize you didnt write that)

Did a quick internet search. Endless webites on the advantages of having EU citizenship. I didnt read them all. I looked at one "13 Must-Know Benefits of Becoming an EU Citizen". I am going to briefly summarize the points. I made a few comments in ( ) 1. It allows you to travel through out the EU countries without a visa and without time restrictions. Ditto for living and working. *Some countries have limitations regarding your ability to be financially self sustaining ( I would expect that they/some would not want you to be a burden on the society) 2. Free or reduced education, no student visa required. (I'm sure you would still need to meet the\ entrance requirements) 3. Universa Health Care across the EU. This applies whether you need medical services traveling, studying, etc. * You do need the health information card mentioned by some and I'm guessing to get that you need a residence. 4. There are "no double taxation" agreements between many countries to prevent double taxation. Dual citizens who live in the US will not need to pay taxes to the EU *unless they earn the money tthere. (makes sense) 5. Work in any EU country (assuming you meet the employer's requirements of course) This allows employers to avoid dealing with the complex permit/ work visa process 6. Consular protection outside the EU (you can access embassies using your EU passport or US passport (or your native passport) 7. Own property 8. You can vote in the country you reside in ( meeting other requirements i I'm sure but birth nationality isnt a factor, there are considerations to be aware of when voting in another country.) You can run for elected positions and work in a public service position (again, meeting the other requirements of the position) I dont intend to do any of the above except travel and even that is unlikely. I'm not looking for free benefits. I was curious. I Apologize that my post came out jumbled.

How many times did I say that I was only interested in this topic, that I didnt intend to rely upon it for healthcare? Actually my initial question was about benefits I wasnt aware of (listed over and over again on the internet) Someone else on here thinks it is wrong to ask about benefits if you are not a tax paying citizen. My initial question was better suited for someone who has dual citizenship, with one of the citizenships being from outside the EU. I dont believe my EU Passport has any advantage in the UK as they are longer part of the EU. And many were shocked when they found out that they no longer had the same priveleges to travel throughout the EU ( A woman residing in England right now told me that, she said they were told a bunch of lies but I'm going to leave it at that because its getting into politics) As I said to the person who attacked my motives I am geniuinely interested in how the world works. (not just the US, we cerrtainly dont have all the answers) That wasnt the intent of my original question but it morphed into that discussion. I checked earlier online and I dd see mention of the "health card" referred to by you and others. I had not noticed that before, mainly because I didnt intent to try to access health care in Europe. Just curious.

I dont think the military has social security. I dont know that for sure. You made it sound like you dont pay into Social Security so you dont get it. Perhaps I misconstrued that to mean that you dont have any pension plan So I said that every US legal worker must have Social Security or a *substitute plan*. I was discussing Europe not the U.S. And I was discussing health care, not pensions. Other countries have different ways of operating. And it is a fact that my father was treated for cancer in England,AT NO COST TO HIM, never worked there so never paid taxes. How do you explain that? It's true he was a resident but your argument is that citizens of those countries pay taxes for health care and therefore are entitled to that benefit. and apparently no one else is. Wrong. (in my father's case, I still dont know about what I was asking about EU citizenship)

Can someone tell me how the following is a "Second Passenger Flies Free" deal? 1 person in a single cabin- the air fare is $490 and ground transportation is $112.50 2 people in a single cabin- the air fare is $980 and ground transportation $225 Are they saying that the air fare is normally $980 each and the promo really means a 50 % reduction for each passenger? Can you choose NCL Air Fare only in one direction?

It used to be that a driver's license was all you need to cross into Canada and back into the U.S. But that was many years ago. Once we were crossing on a family vacation and my mother, born in Scotland, forgot her papers (she didnt drive) We were nervous thinking they would not allow her in, or she'd have trouble getting back into the U.S. but no. They took her word that she was a US citzen. Different times for sure

I get that if I walk too much in hot weather. My doctor said that capillaries in the lower leg can be a little "leaky" in the lower legs of some individuals. If your leg swells for any reason (walking around in hot weather) this can cause the capillaries to leak more producing the rash. Socks also cause pressure on the legs so you see a sock line. its a form of vasculitis but not necesarily a health concern (after ruling out the serious causes of vascultis)

It sounds to me that her marzipan business is more important to her for many reasons than cruising is. I guess you just have to accept that. When I married my husband he loved to camp and go on roadtrips. He no longer enjoys it. I still do so I do it alone.

I was just quoting what I've seen available to the public.. I will find it and post it. If you are no longer working and have retirement income from the U.S. and move to an EU country (perhaps your son or daughter lives there) with EU citizenship are you saying that person would not be entitled to health care coverage? Never worked in the EU country so never contributed. Either you are wrong or the information given to the public interested in dual citizenship is wrong. I was asking for clarification, did not believe one way or another as I said I had no intention of using it. (EU Citizenship) except maybe to allow myself to visit EU countries without going through all the visa requirements if I should become a world traveler. And at my age, I doubt that is going to happen. I just thought it was a cool thing to do because I could. (It wasnt cheap either) You must be an American (as I am) and not realize there are different health care systems around the world. Yes, social security is paid into. If you are exempt from paying into it then you must have an alternative. i.e. my husband worked in a position covered by the Maine Retirement system so he didnt pay social security. HIs retirement income is from the MSRS (Maine State Retirement System) and a small amount of Social Security when he worked in the private sector when he was young. Federal govt employees are exempt from Social Security (they have an alternative plan) as are railroad employees I believe. If you are employed (and not being paid "under the table") no one in the US is exempt from some kind of forced deductions for retirement from their income. In order to be covered by Medicare you have to work a certain amount of quarters (and by doing so you paid into it because these deductions are not voluntary) Fed govt employees are exempt also. People who work for an exempt employer has to then work the required number of quarters after they retire from the exempt job if they want to be covered by Medicare (I think its 10 yrs I once worked with a woman doing that) Even self employed people are supposed to pay social security. My father, US Born, moved to England with cancer (a pre-existing condition) and received free treatment in England. He never paid anything into the system.

Is it mandatory that government employees do 50/50 or is it optional to get better coverage? It sounds like regular employees who earn a certain income can choose to change to 50/50 or all private. Why would they want to do that. Sorry for all the questions but I am very interested in how this works.

So you could move from EU country to EU country assuming you didnt need to earn a living.

Yes, I realize what you are saying. My passport is issued by Ireland, as a member of the EU. I dont have the actual passport *yet* as they are being real pains in the *** about a certain requirement but I think it will be approved soon. I didnt know about the health card, but it makes sense. I dont expect to use this feature of EU citizenship, mainly because I am unsure of how it works (which is obvious from this thread lol) Are you an Irish resident? Because the US citizen with dual citizenship would not necessarily have a residency in an EU country and therefore would not have a Health Card. I'm wondering if its something that can be prioritized if needed. For example, in the US if someone ends up in a hospital in an acute care situation if they dont have health insurance the social workers in that hospital would get the process for determining eligibility for public healthcare (income dependent, i.e. known as MediCAID, or something similar depending on which state you live in) going immediately. Since its income dependent, not everyone qualifies.

That is something I didnt know! Nor do many others in the US who dont have personal knowledge of Germany. I know in some countries you can "go private" but its seems from what you wrote that in Germany if you make a certain amount of income ( income dependent) or if you work for the government you pay 50%., the government pays 50%. Is this mandatory or is it a privelege, in order to get exceptional coverage? In the US those against a single payer, universal coverage system say it wouldnt work here. What you are describing sounds like a modified version

You have made good points. He certainly has US health insurance, he admitted that. A person in his position definitely would. It is not unusual for US health insurance to cover foreign travel. I know because in 2013 when I planned a TA to England I called my insurance and asked them. (because my TA insisted my insurance would not cover me in Europe) The person said yes, you have the same coverage as you do in the US , just try to get the bill in English. (I may not have told her exactly where I was going for her to say that) But that ends at age 65 for the majority of people. "Original" Medicare does not cover outside of the US (there are different types of Medicare and some offer some foreign coverage) One problem (there are many) with US health insurance is its inequality. Some people have great health insurance either through planning or luck (just happened to find a job with great benefits and when you are young, benefits arent something you give much thought to) while others have lousy insurance or none at all. There are many scenarios that would lead to the last two categories. He does have an "agenda", he is a politician trying to bring about a single payer health insurance system in the US because he has first hand knowledge of the effect of not having that has on the people he represents (Latinos in Texas) Maybe I am making too much of the "free coverage" he said he received and missed the over all message but I also specifically remember him saying that he never received a bill or asked to pay. So, there could be more to this story.