TravelBluebird

We are at Jack’s Shack right now! Very overcast day so no sun and I can’t see those beautiful blue water hues I do love here. It’s drizzled a bit but we are under umbrellas. we got off the ship at 8:15 to get loungers and umbrellas right by the water. Almost 10–lots of loungers still available (second row). Might be the overcast weather, or all the families are at Margaritaville. Two ships I port We are here with a HAL ship. We watched the dive and tour boats leave and now it’s peace and quiet. About to have a Mojito—heck it’s 5 o’clock somewhere! 😂 For those who have come here for years—Janet and Jack sold the shack to employees and retired to Canada! Topher passed and they took the other dogs with them. So no dogs today. Shack was damaged in hurricane and it’s been rebuilt—quite nice, improved bar area. But not the same—it’s like Jack’s 2.0. Still a great spot and worth the walk down the beach, and running the gauntlet of locals wanting to sell you a beach chair or braid your hair. Two umbrellas and loungers. $23. Out of mint so drinking a rum punch. Russ having the jerk chicken for breakfast—$17. Gone up! Still good

Another fun evening on the Mardi Gras! It’s late and we have an early morning tomorrow because we want to make sure we get loungers and umbrellas at Jack’s Shack. So brief summary for now, and tomorrow I’ll also report back on the changes for Jack’s Shack with the new ownership there. Buffet dinner was fine (should have been a better desert selection, otherwise they had selected dishes from the MDR menu tonight. Tonight was supposed to have been our Chef’s Table. Since I didn’t like the desert, I had a Choclate Martini at Center Stage after. After dinner we did Deal or No Deal. We won a $25 Bingo card for last day, and a $30 casino credit. Top audience prizes were $300 and $200; lots of smaller prizes. Went to Punchliner after for the R rated Russell Nagle show. Three comics aboard right now, and 2 earlier in the week. 5 for one cruise is incredible. Then hit the casino. Lady luck was not with me tonight, but I’m down less than $100 for the week so far, so I won’t complain. Stopped by the Motown Party for a little while. Gosh that Kyndall Fire is one ball of energy! She had the place, well, on Fire! The entire 6th floor of Center Stage was made into a dance area; much better for lots of people dancing than Lido so much room. So lots of dancing and singing and lots of people watching//singing along on 7 and 8. I’ll post a clip tomorrow; this party is new to me since it wasn’t yet on Mardi Gras last year. Then a quick bite of pizza; would have been just as fast for me as earlier in the week (couple minutes) but I wanted just a cheese//sauce plain and they didn’t have one so I had to wait about 10 minutes. They had 7 pizza chefs working tonight! See you on Grand Turk!

We had a perfect day in port at Amber Cove today. We hired the Private Van through Carnival. As mentioned, it worked out to $75 per person, plus tips (can have up to 6 passengers, so would have been less per person if we had 2 more). We had a wonderful guide, Eddie, and Alex was our driver. We were most interested in history, a few views and stops for photography, and shopping for larimar (the national stone of the Dominican Republic; only place it is found). If you do the Private Van, you can do anything you want—beach, lunch in town, waterfalls. All of that was done; went to Puerto Plata, the port, a place where they make the Larimar jewelry by hand including th silver, down to the drive along the beach, the main square, the church, etc. etc. I’ll do a full write up of all we saw when I return. The private van tour was 4 hours, and the ship is in port till so we got back in plenty of time to explore Amber Cove. Carnival has really done a beautiful job with this port—there’s a big shopping center to the right, with nice shops for tourist items, jewelry, Dominican specialties (chocolate, coffee), a coffee shop with wifi, places to get food (including a restaurant with a lovely view of the water, and of course the giant pool complex to the right with on water cabanas, water sports, big pool with swim up bar, and ziplining. There was a small beach visible from the complex; does anyone know if that is open to all or if it is a resort beach? in any event, after the van tour, we changed into swim wear and covers, had lunch at the buffet, and took back off before 2 to explore the port. It was my first time in the pool complex part, and it is extremely nice..we got in the pool, and loved the tropical resort atmosphere. Shopping after that, and now we are back. It’s 5:24…a few people still straggling in for a 5:30 departure. No pier runners yet. Tonight we are going to eat dinner at the buffet and stay casual. Then for the first time we are going to play Deal or No Deal, go see some of the comics, and then go to the new (well, new since last time I was on Mardi Gras)n Motown Showdown. Did I mention how much we enjoyed the Silent Party at the Limelight last night? It was great, although I think Celebrity’s Silent Disco was the best one of those I’ve ever been to. If you don’t know what that is, everyone gets headphones and gets to dance to whichever DJ they feel like, usually 2 (Carnival) or 3 (Celebrity) channels. You switch channels as you like. Fun to dance to and fun to watch! Rudi’s Seagrill last night was fantastic and did not disappoint; full review to follow. Sue went to see the Love and Marriage Show (she loves game shows!) and we all love Kyndall Fire, the cruise director. We also saw the Vegas show at Center Stage; good floor seats. I’m not a fan of magicians (part of the show) and song selection was just OK, but we were wowed by the aerialists and loved the live musicians including 3 brass, and always love the graphics on the big screen. At the Amber Cove 3D sign; line to take photos! We met people in line who lived 5 miles from us back home! Amber Cove Port Me on the Umbrella Street, Puerto Plata. Worth the $1 tip for the umbrella prop! Main square, Puetto Plata, from the balcony of ice ccream shop Our van from above at the sqauare Russ and our driver Eddie The little bar at the port that has live music, food, and tables right on the water Photo stop with Puerto Plata behind us Cabanas on the water, Amber Cove Pool aqua area, Amber Cove

After the BOLT disappointment, Russ and I hung out on the Lido Deck listening to the steel drummer. We were so relaxed; this is the PERFECT day on a cruise—still 3 days to go, first day we really have that totally relaxed vacation feel. Great people watching up there and at 4pm no trouble getting a lounger in the shade. We did not attend BINGO today, or the King and Queen of Mardi Gras show (where they select them) early this afternoon, nor attend the morning WAVE show, nor do any of the dance classes today. What, me not dance on a sea day? Yup; felt some inflammation in my right leg yesterday so decided I’d better have a day of rest. Feeling fine now so Silent party (headphones, various music tracks to dance to; a hoot to watch!) here we come! And I mention all the rest of the stuff because there is always so much going on for the Mardi Gras! Did I mention I took a photo with a giant Towel Animal today? Gosh the poor guy or gal in that suit; it looks so hot! Giant Towel Animal Character The Lido at 4pm. New comics arrived today! 2 or 3; we are not sure. We also have Jimmy Della Valle

Want to add for those looking for information on Vegan cuisine that my friend LOVED the salad bar up on Serenity. Lots of good variety, including olives, chia seeds, onions, greens, much more, and a nice balsamic vinaigrette available. So just got back from 18, and the BOLT was a no-go. They sent a huge line of cruisers away, all who had to have their times changed from all the rain. But the BOLT was still having issues. I’d rather have it be safe than not, so no problem. Not sure if the guys will have a chance to ride it this trip or not. Resting; sunned a bit earlier on my little sun deck; put the two chairs together with one of the backs down to make a “sun lounger.” Wish Carnival had those little foot rests that fit under the chairs for lounging, but this worked. Wasn’t exactly peaceful since there was a bean bag game going on on 8 right under my balcony, but it was sort of fun to listen in. Tonight we are going to listen to Washboard Joe at the Brass Magnolia and have drinks then Rudi’s Seagrill for dinner! Sue (our vegan) has decided to not join us tonight so she is going to eat and explore on her own. Then probably the Silent dance party and some comedy, but we are keeping it loose. Our private van picks us up at 9:30 in Amber Cove tomorrow. Arranged it through Carnival; cost was $75 per person so with 4, pretty much the same cost as an excursion might be. I’ll let you know how that goes (and forgive me if I already mentioned that). Empty Serenity Deck in this morning’s light rain Serenity Bar (was open) View from my balcony while sunning this afternoon. My set up for sun lounging on my balcony (I’m short so I fit; your results may vary). Chicken Satay at Street Eats. Never a line! Very good too. As close as my husband may get to the Bolt Roller Coaster this week.

Slept in this morning; it was great! Also a great day to do it because it rained all morning. We didn’t really see the sun peak out until 1pm-ish. Rest of group had already got their coffee and juice; I grabbed mine and had some alone time after while husband walked the track (he loved it in the rain; it wasn’t raining too hard by then and he could walk fast!) Went up to Serenity deck in between rain showers an stayed awhile in the clamshells by the pool. But then it started raining again. Decided an indoor activity would be smarter so did a group slot pull. 57 people participated; we ended up each person just losing a dollar after the whole thing was said and done. Those who wanted grabbed a quick bite (husband got gelato; I got Street Eats; really nice Chicken Satay today) hung out in room a bit and it was SUNNY! Friends had stayed out in the rain so got primo sun loungers when the sun came out. We met them on Serenity Deck for awhile and chatted, then all headed to deck 18 because the boys had BOLT tix. Turns out the 3pm BOLT tix were a no go because the electrical system on the BOLT needs major drying out time after rain; so we are trying again shortly at 4:30pm. Instead we played mini golf (that is a fun course!) and the boys played some pool. I think they are playing corn hole; I’m heading upstairs in a few to watch them (hopefully) take the BOLT roller coaster! Internet is MUCH better when it is not raining. This has been the rainiest Caribbean Cruise I’ve ever been on! Looks like sun the rest of the day and in Amber Cove tomorrow.

I was wondering is Emeril’s coffee included in the Cheers package? I am not on Cheers but I think all specialty coffee is included. Here is my Cappuccino with extra shot (order it strong) from Emeril’s this morning. I guess you must like the taste of European espresso to love it like we do (we make N’espresso at home)

Ok just a couple more photos till tomorrow; these are various views of the 5 ships in port today in Nassau, plus one of the nearly completed Nassau Cruise Terminal (so much progress since last year!) and one of Captain Ron, guide for our Bahamian food tasting tour. If the internet cooperates tomorrow I’ll catch up on info and I have more photos to share!

OK; its after midnight but the rain has stopped and the wifi is working a bit better: Here are some photos to catch up before bed, with more to follow tomorrow which is a sea day: Line Dance Class out on the Crowded Lido Playin’ the Slots Adorable Elephant Towel Animal first day Me enjoying that clamshell seat after my walking workout; proud of that broken ankle cankle! Chef’s Choice Vegan Sea Day Brunch Huevos Rancheros Seaday Brunch Emeril’s waiting for coffe Russ enjoying the final part of our Peking Duck at Chibang ($20 up charge; info to follow) Closer look at the duck stir fry and noodles side dish, ChiBang. Movie below is of the Line Dancing Dance Class on Lido, first sea day. Last photo of me in that clamshell again! IMG_7986.MOV

We’ve had one snafu this trip I want to tell you about. All 4 of us were booked at the Chef’s Table for Wednesday night (2 reservations, 1 for each couple), paid an with confirmations. Sometime between when I left my house on Friday and getting on the ship Saturday, “shore” cancelled my reservation (the one for me and Russ). When we got on the ship, in the app under notifications, I had a notification that my Chef’s Table was cancelled, which is how I found out. We went to Guest Services immediately (before it got crowded, 1st day), and they assured me that was a mistake, they could see I had a reservation, and that I paid for it. Later that day, I got a call from the Chef’s Table manager, who said she didn’t know what happened or how the reservation got cancelled, but could we move to another night? We said no (wanted the experience with our friends) and so she said OK, she’d fix it. Our friends got a message from same person, but were not there to answer it. Still feeling nervous, after 1st night’s dinner, we asked about it in the MDR, and they told us to speak with the manager of Rudi’s Seagrill, who managed the Chef’s Table also. So we did, all 4 together. She again assured us that we could all dine on Wednesday together So imagine our surprise when Alwyn (I did not have my glasses on so I hope I have the name right), a dining officer, came to find us at ChiBang tonight during our dinner. He explained that they could only comfortably take 16, not 18, and apologized but we could not get accommodated. We were going to not go (we’ve done it but our friends had not) and let our friends go, but they decided to cancel their reservation as well (there was not another night that would work for all 4 of us). We’ve been told we’ll all get our cost for the reservations refunded (I hope before we disembark because ours was made with ship credit). I was upset that we were not told a firm no: our mistake, can’t be done on the first day because we wasted time and ended up in the same place. I hope the Carnival technology for reservations doesn’t do that often. Alwyn came back to our table after briefly leaving and offered us a free bottle of wine as an apology. We told him thank you, but no one really was drinking wine on this cruise. We briefly conferred and asked instead could we get some vouchers for 4 drinks at the Alchemy Bar, including the Lyre’s Spirits drinks that we’d been drinking? He said yes, and said he’d actually bring them to our dinner! So he and a server came back with our drinks ; the Spicy Chipotle Pineapple Martini for me, 2 Cucumber Sunrises, and a regular alcoholic drink as well (name escaping me at the moment). We appreciated those drinks from Carnival very much! Nevertheless, we were disappointed, and I am sad I won’t have the chance to review the Chef’s Table for everyone. Perhaps if it’s offered on the Venezia TransAtlantic, I’ll get a chance to attend and report on it then.

I should have clarified that we get the Emeril’s Cappucinos with an extra shot of espresso. We don’t get the regular coffee there. And I agree with @audcc77 that the regular buffet and MDR coffee is better this year!

The biggest problem so far is getting the wait staff in the MDR, Chibang, Sea Day Brunch etc. to understand that there is a difference between vegetarian and vegan. Several times, wait staff has guided my friend to items on the allergens-noted menu that are not vegan, for instance, items with dairy sauces, or tofu with fish sauce (that isn’t even vegetarian!). She has enjoyed the Guy’s vegetarian burgers. There is always a good vegan Indian selection for MDR dinner ,but you need to be able to eat spicy food for that. The chef did make a nice “Chef’s Choice” menu for Formal night. THere are delicious vegan juices at Sea Day brunch ($5 charge). Fruit for desert. Salad bars in buffet and Serenity deck. All MDR food that is vegan must be ordered the night before in the MDR, whether it is for dinner or sea day brunch. My friend is going to help me put together a more complete review of her eating experience on the Mardi Gras when I return and I’ll be sure to post it.

Its a little buried in another post, so I’ll repeat here: SO far we’ve tried the Martini Seduction, the Restoritive Basil Drop, the Cucumber Sunrise and the Perfect Storm. Full review and full info to follow; we are pulling away from port now!

@audcc77 Are you having a good cruise? If you see me on board, please say hello!

Last night waas Formal Night! Unlike last time I was on Mardi Gras and put in for dinner at a later hour and waited forever for a table the first formal night, this time we put in for a table at 5:30. The app said 10 minutes and the wait was not bad; I’d say about 20 minutes. Food was very nice; I had the Crab Cake, Caesar Salad, Filet Mignon and Grand Marnier Soufflé (worth the diet cheat!) and my vegan friend Sue had a nice Chef’s Choice that she enjoyed. Rick had the Salmon. We finished dinner just in time to find some scarce seats for Celestial Strings. Everyone loved it! And we are talking major theater people here; All of us have been involved with theater either onstage or back stage; RIck even directs local theater, The cast was great in this; strong singers and good dancers. They were so much better in this than in the Rock Revolution we saw the previous night, i’m going to assume this was the show out of all of the ones on the ship they were most closely cast for. And of course the string trio was great. Last time I saw the show i saw it from high up on Level 7; this time down on the floor, but a bit towards the back; so a very different experience. Upstairs, you feel the spectacle; downstairs, the emotion. The performers use much of the lower floor for the performance; we were right by a tree in the set and could practically reach out and touch the performers, they were so close at times! They we went to the Alchemy bar and tried some more of the Lyre’s Spirits drinks. I had a Martini Seduction and my husband The Perfect Storm. We enjoyed both; The Restorative Basil Drop and Cucumber Sunrise still our favorites since they are less sweet. Only ones we have left to try are The Remedy, The Spicy Chipotle Pineapple Martini, and the Hearts of Fire. When I have more internet, I have photos, a more in-depth review, and menu images. It was fully my intent last night to go to the Mega Deck Party after some gambling. Well..if you gamble, you know what its like when you find a slots machine that lets you gamble for a LONG time without investing a ton of money. I found one of those last night, and instead gambled until 12:30! I actually walked away only slightly up, BUT I got over 1500 points, so drinks on us in the Casino for the rest of the trip! Which is a little funny because the only thing I drank last night while in the casino was a water…but now that I’ve taken my meds, I DO intend to drink some the rest of the trip (already had a Bahama Mama on the food tour). OK that is it for now! Don’t want to waste phone data with a ton of photo uploads; I’ll just do several posts of just photos when I have better Mardi Gras internet (keep your fingers crossed!). Keep the questions coming; i may have time to answer a few more before we leave Nassau, but its almost 4pm so I’ll lose my phone connection.

Today was our Nassau day. It rained. And not one of those tropical rains where it rains for 10 minutes and the sun comes out. It started raining about 15 minutes after we got off the ship, and then it kept raining, and got harder and harder. At one point (we were on a walking tour) crossing the streets was like fjording rivers. We were prepared with light rain jackets, but we still got soaked. WOW was it busy in port today! 5 ships; Carnival Mardi Gras, Carnival Sunshine, Celebrity Reflection, MSC Merviglia and the Norwegian Encore. Someone said that there were 22,000 cruisers in port today, and that seemed about right. Although I’d already been on it, I did the Tru Bahamian Food Tour with Captain Ron. First of all, last time I did it, I didn’t have Captain Ron as my guide, and he is truly amazing. Second, my foodie husband wasn’t with me and really wanted to do it; and third, well, it rained last time I did it. So I thought, great, I can also get some video for my channel that I couldn’t get last time. HA. Lets just say last time it rained much LESS than this time. Anyway, I’ll do a full review with photos when I return, and you can also look at my review of the tour in my first Mardi Gras LIVE! We did some shopping after, and then gave up the ghost and came back to the ship to dry off.

We have an Ocean Suite on 9; right by the aft elevators, and just past the big white awning on 8. We LOVE the location; so convenient to Summer Landing, Emeril’s and so many of our favorite spots.. I also really love the Mardi Gras Ocean Suites. Unlike on other ships where the Ocean Suites are square in shape, these suites are long. Close to 300sq ft, they have a nice desk//dressing area with a huge closet (not a walk in), and a great little sitting area with its own TV that separates from the bed area by a curtain. Husband is happily snoring right now after our day in Nassau (daily napper that one) and I am happily in the sitting area writing with the lights on, and looking out my balcony window. Balcony is also bigger than a regular balcony room (although no lounge chairs) but as my husband says, at least you can stretch out your legs. Ours is in the location that does not have a cover over the balcony—not great for the rain, but it lets in tons of light and nice for enjoying the sun when its out, and you can see the night sky! But others can look down at you. Bathroom is bigger than a regular balcony room but not huge or incredibly fancy; its just OK, but shower is great and it is bigger than the very tiny bathrooms in the Mardi Gras regular balconies

Yep! I was out gambling last night and when I got back to my room late (with my traditional after-gambling pizza snack—(by the way LIGHTNING fast on the pizza last night—I got mine with literal zero wait—they had additional servers grabbing the pizza and giving it the people in line by the hot peppers and oregano; fastest I’ve ever got pizza on a ship). I wanted to upload photos and catch up on my LIVE!. Zero internet. I was told the same thing; weather. There was one gnarly thunder clap and a few lightning streaks, but still. Today in Nassau its been pouring all day and can’t bring up Cruise Critic at all on Carnival WiFi and everything else molasses slow. I’m linked to my ATT $10 day pass on my phone just so I can post this! So if I’m not keeping up with my LIVE!, now you all know why. I have SO much content to share; I’m going to post a bit about last night and today, and then hopefully tonight and/or tomorrow we’ll have better weather and some internet service! If we don’t, I’ll do all the photos//rest of info and answer questions as soon as it improves, or when I get home. Internet is so expensive; I feel we should get a partial refund when it is like this.

I’ve been having such a good time, I need to play catch up! First off, I’m going to go LIVE with today’s happenings, then catch up with yesterday after, since yesterday was so busy. Russ (husband) and I totally slept in; our room steward woke us up knocking on the door to see if we were still inside! It wasn’t really that late; 9:15. I had a minor RA flare up, so I didn’t sleep well. I often get them at the beginning of a trip after flying and dragging luggage around; it irritates my carpel tunnel and then my hands go numb and I get shooting nerve pains. Not fun. I only tell you this because it influenced my decision to take my dose of a medication called methotrexate today. When I was younger, I’d skip the dose when on a cruise ship, since I wanted to have a few drinks and not be fuzzy-headed for a day. Seems I can no longer do this, so I took my medication after breakfast. Absolutely no drinks for me today (the medication is hard on your liver) so THANKS to Carnival again for creating those Lyre’s Spirits drinks! I’m looking forward to one after dinner while watching our Center Stage show tonight. OK, back to the fun. So our friends were already awake and enjoying the cloudy and cool (not cold, just pleasant) weather out at the Summer Landing pool. More kids than last time there due to Spring Break, but all well behaved and a lovely morning spot. Russ and I went to Emeril’s to get some coffee to go (no line!) our favorite coffee on the ship, and joined our friends out at Summer’s Landing where we planned the day. We had a nice sea day brunch; wait time when we checked in (I think around 10) said 10 minutes, it was about 15. My vegan friend loved the freshly squeezed vegan juices, but had a bit of trouble finding something to eat at the brunch. Much more about vegan dining after the trip is over, but if you are vegan and want to go to the Sea Day brunch, be sure to arrange what you want at the MDR the night before. She wanted avocado toast (no longer on the menu) and there is a crab and avocado sandwich on the menu, but you can’t get avocado toast if you are vegan without an order the night before. I had huevos rancheros, it was good; the crab and avocado sandwich ($ from Emeril’s; 25 minute wait) and omelette all good. Afterwards, my husband won a reduced-price massage treatment later today, so he decided to do that; was able to get a 1pm booking. Three of us decided to go walk the walking track for exercise. Russ and Sue (my friend) are fast walkers; me not so much, so we all decided to walk at our own pace. Wow. I mean, its Spring Break so not unexpected, but the walking track area is a happening spot on this ship right now! Water park, mini golf, basketball, BOLT roller coaster, ropes course all up on that level. Last trip, the areas were in use but walking on track for exercise was no problem. This trip? People going in all directions (there is an arrow for one direction…) people pushing baby strollers really slowly, you name it. I decided to just shoot some video, and got maybe 5 laps in. My companions did manage several miles. My last lap around, a clam chair became available; I scooped that up and then Sue joined me and then Rick; so we hung out and watched the ocean and people watched awhile. Here, we all split up. This is a good thing. One of the best type of cruising companions to have are ones that are OK with everyone marching to the beat of their own drum. My drum was the 1:15 line dancing at the Lido then the Thriller dance class at 2:00. Russ was the massage (and then the cerviche at Emeril’s; he loved it); Rick and Sue wanted to relax and explore. The Lido line dancing class was great! Michela (from Australia) from the fun squad was a good leader; we had about 25 people dancing, and we learned some NEW line dances, plus did some old favorites (YMCA, Cupid Shuffle, Fireball…). Rick and Sue came by and got some photos//videos for me. We ended slightly early due to a rain squall that came on quite quickly; I was about to quit because I was afraid I’d slip on the wet deck; they cut the class off at the exact right time. Then off to the Thriller dance class in the Havana Bar. Also fun; had. great group; when the group was split up into 2 sides and we danced at each other, I had a fun Zombie stare down with another woman. So fun. All my traveling companions ended up in a quiet corner of the Havana Bar where we just hung out and talked. Quick shower (a must do after dancing; still love the Mardi Gras shower; great water pressure and temperature, plus that glass door!! And here I am staring at the beautiful ocean out my balcony window and writingl Not sure if I’ll be able to put this up right now or if it will end up online later tonight; having terrible problem with Internet being super slow. Clearly no Starlink on this ship yet. OK, I’m in! But almost off to an early Formal dinner. Here is the write up for today; photos to follow later tonight as well as some answered questions!

OK long day! Tons of fun and our friends already want to plan our next cruise together! This is their first time not only with Carnival, but their first ocean cruise! Just got in from gambling; Ultra cruise but at least we could find machines this time; last year’s Ultra Mardi Gras cruise was insane! Tomorrow on my sea day I’ll fill you all a full report with pictures—if you follow my LIVE! threads, you know I don’t let any moss grow under my feet, and today was no exception; I expected some time to post, but just didn’t have any! I will say that two things made me SO happy today regarding my broken ankle recovery—dancing at the sail away party (with our amazing cruise Director Kyndall Fire) AND walking 17,000 steps. And my ankle is only a little swollen tonight; no pain! In very abbreviated form, we did the following today: Room was (almost) ready when we boarded (10:45). Luggage arrived around 3ish. Street Eats, Guys Burgers, Pig & Anchor and Pizza (not all 4 of us ate at all of that); explored entire ship, Watched part of the Tennessee basketball game (we won!) in Pig and Anchor. Tried 2 of the Lyre’s Spirits drinks at the Alchemy Bar. Did the sail away party; others in group watched sail away from Summer’s Landing. Had MDR dinner, then sat at Grand Central and had some yummy Choclitinis and NA beer for our non-drinker (Coors NA; earlier had the Sam Adam’s Haze) while we watched the Steel Drum performer, Trop Rockin Band, and the welcome show with Kyndall and various of the musical acts. We ran over to the 9pm comedy show, and then made most of the Playlist Rock Revolution show (Woodstock edition). Then gambling and here I am. Phew. Had a great first day! More restful day tomorrow. I’m off to bed so I don’t get over tired! Let me know if you have any questions for me tomorrow!

The Uber was stupid expensive — $48. Surge pricing. But, with 4 people, I guess we could justify it!

Left hotel at 9:45 exactly with our Uber. Traffic at the light where you turn into the Terminal 3 parking lot//luggage drop off. Luggage dropped off, walked up the flight of stairs to the bridge to check in. 10am check in and we were checked in and in Suites waiting area by 10:03! waiting to board!

Off to the ship in 10! We are so excited! First time on a mega ship for all 3 of my traveling companions—I hope they love it!

Ok, we got to Fishlips very early about 5, which was a very good idea because the place quickly got packed —normal busy before a big port day, PLUS a big Facebook group from our cruise PLUS lots of people coming later for the Space X launch. Upstairs tables were all taken, too windy to eat outside, so we got a table downstairs. We enjoyed it! Cheaper than a few of the other seafood places on the water in this area (Rusty’s, Grill etc). Not super fine dining, but very enjoyable, and just a great location (we got to see the Disney Wish go out to sea!). We ordered the seared tuna appetizer to share (very nice), I got the Coconut Crusted Grouper (good!) husband the risotto and scallops (salty scallops), and our friends the Fish and Chips (good; very nice chips), and my vegan friend the butternut squash poke bowl. 3 of us tried the Heiniken 0.0 beer (big step up from O’Douls!) and 1 the Maker’s Mark bourbon. After dinner and the excitement of the Wish going by, we took a walk around the pier area. Saw some pelicans, sat by the small sandy area for awhile. We wanted to stay for the Space X launch, but we were tired and it was quite windy, so we headed back to the hotel, where we thought we could still see the launch, We did! It was great; we saw AND heard the rocket go over us; it was pretty loud even back at the hotel! Chatted after in the nice sitting area in the hotel, and now here we are! Photos of Fishlips, our walk, Disney Wish going by, and the Space X launch.

Our friends picked up their luggage exactly when we did; we met in the middle on the way to each other’s baggage claim! Got a taxi at the airport (larger taxis were just sitting there, and we didn’t want to fuss with Uber. It was expensive—$130, not including tip But considering a shared shuttle from MCO to hotels in the area would be around $25 per person or up, the extra $$ went to convenience. Our hotel the Towne Place Suites is very nice! Big sitting area downstairs, pool, fire pits, restaurant, free breakfast in the morning, very nice front desk people. We ended up with a lovely room; definitely a free upgrade for being Lifetime Gold in Marriott because we booked a much cheaper room with the kitchen right in with the beds, and no view. We ended up with a lovely view of the water (not the port side) and a separate little kitchen area in the entrance. We dropped off our bags, freshened up, and headed out to Fishlips for an early dinner. At first we thought of walking (25 minute walk) but when we realized we would have to walk on roads and grass, not good or safe walking all the way, we just took an Uber. Only $7.80 plus tip; showed right up (Uber X). A word about getting to the cruise ship tomorrow. The hotel DOES have a shuttle but it doesn’t start till 10:30am. We have a 10am check in time (all in suites). We considered just taking the shuttle, but all feel like heck, we are allowed to be on the boat early, we want to be on the boat early! Hotel via phone before we arrrived said that they had some drivers they worked with and would hook us up with one when we arrived. This was not true. SO, we pre-booked an Uber X for 9:45. We hope we all fit in one with our luggage. VERY expensive; clearly surge pricing…$48! Sigh. We decided we would just suck it up for $12 a person and take the Uber X. Clearly we are not making smart financial decisions so far this cruise! I’ll break here for some hotel//room photos, then I’ll post about our dinner and the Space X launch! Have 2 Queen beds because King rooms sold out; view is of the Springhill Suites and water beyond that. When I return home, I’ll also post some longer videos//reviews of port, hotel etc both here and on my Cruising With Dee YouTube channel.