sjb317

Thanks Kat!  I’m sure the owners appreciate everything you do for them!

We are in LA, just waiting for time to go to the port.  This is my last day to have internet for awhile but will catch up when I have the opportunity.  I hope you all have a wonderful  6 weeks😂

Sherri🙂

1 hour ago, MrToblerone said:

Enjoy your cruise Sherri

The weather in Melbourne is very changeable ,it can get very hot if the wind is blowing from the outback .I think your are cruising to New Zealand as well ,its very warm here at the moment but can also change fast especially in the lower South Island.

Thanks Melissa!  We were in New Zealand in 2014, such a beautiful country!  We did a wine tour when we ported in Picton and it was a gorgeous sunny day.  We had a port day in Wellington and it was cold/rainy.  I am prepared for anything😂

Sherri🙂

1 hour ago, Lois R said:

Hi Sherri, hope you have a wonderful trip😃I sailed on that ship once back around 2018 maybe........I know it was before Covid.  From memory, it is actually not such a big ship (compared to the GIANT Royal ships).  I remember that cruise because I shared a cabin with my sister.  As much as I love her, I realized after that, I am never sharing a cabin with anyone again LOL 

Thanks, Lois!  We have been on Serenade several times, in fact, we sailed from Australia to Hawaii on this ship in 2014.  That was a fun cruise!  
 

I know what you mean about sharing a cabin, I can’t imagine sharing with my sister.  There are times  when I wish I did not have to share with the husband😂😂

Sherri🙂

5 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

 

Sherri, have a great time -- it sounds like an AWESOME trip!!

 

What ship are you on?

 

Thanks, Cynthia.  We are on Serenade of the Seas, it is a mini segment of the World Cruise they are doing.

Sherri🙂

14 hours ago, Lois R said:

Hi girls, hope everyone is having a good week.  Thinking of Melody and Les and hoping they are having a good cruise😃

I was thinking of them this morning as well!

We are leaving in the morning to fly to LA, will board ship on Sunday.  This has been a challenging packing experience as we had to pack for 28 night cruise plus 10 days in Australia.  I’ve been monitoring daily temps in Melbourne, it seems to vary widely as it will be in the high 90s for a few days then drop to highs in the mid 60s. 
 

I’ll be back March 23😂

Sherri🙂

12 hours ago, Reina del Mar said:

Thanks, ladies.. I was hoping to read that some carry double figures of pairs of shoes….

Then this should make your day😂.  We are leaving on a 28 day cruise Saturday to Australia with an extra 10 days to visit to visit our son.  At this point, I have reduced the number of shoes I am packing to 11😂😂

Sherri🙂

Have a great cruise Melody!

Sherri🙂

1 hour ago, SUgwoz said:

I would be curious where the embarkation process has been strict. Port Miami and Port Canaveral the last two months wasn't strict and took all of 10 minutes to get on between 11-1130. 

 

At Port Canaveral you could see people queue up outside thinking they are too early at 11am and the workers would be directing them to go check in and get on the ship. 

We’ve done over 20 cruises since cruising resumed post pandemic and only one port was strict in our experience, Tampa.  That was in November of 2022.   However, when we cruised out of Tampa in September, 2023, no one cared.

Sherri🙂

https://pe.usembassy.gov/demonstration-alert-u-s-embassy-lima-peru-january-26-2024/#:~:text=On%20January%2025%2C%20local%20organizations,been%20suspended%20until%20further%20notice

1 hour ago, island lady said:

 

No.  Tomorrow is Pisco...where the large group going to Machu Picchu is leaving the ship early.  Then we are in Lima the next day, doing an overnight, with the group rejoining us just before we leave on Tuesday around noon.  

I read on another site that Machu Pichu is closed due to riots so tours may be cancelled.

Sherri🙂

4 hours ago, Mum2Mercury said:

This board wouldn't exist if it weren't for stupid questions! 

Yes, you'll find a hair dryer in the top drawer of your desk /dresser.  It's hardwired /cannot be removed.

It depends on the ship, the hairdryer on Mariner was not hard wired and could be removed. 
 

Sherri🙂

Happy birthday, Melody!  Looks like you had a great celebration with family.  And good to know Les is doing better.

Sherri🙂

Condolences on the passing of your dog Christy, it’s always hard to lose a longtime pet.

Sherri😔

We had this event on our Odyssey TA last October.  It was very nice but extremely crowded and noisy.  Waiters were passing around with trays of drinks, wine, sparkling wine, rum punch, and margaritas were some of the drinks I saw.  Plus different finger foods.  It reminded me of what top tier parties used to be years ago.😂

But, even though we enjoyed it, I do agree with the OP as it does not seem fair to close down a popular area during sail away, especially on the first day. On our cruise, they actually closed the solarium at 2pm to start setting up, you were allowed to walk through but staff chased away anyone who tried to sit down.  The event was from 4 to 6, long time to have it closed.

Sherri🙂

Wow, Melody, sounds like Les (and you!) have had a really rough time.  I hope he is on the road to recovery soon!

We are still in SC with the grandkids but driving back to Satellite Beach on Wednesday.  It will be nice to get back to some warmer weather.  SC has had some big storms and cold temps, but we have enjoyed being with the grands!

Sherri🙂

We sailed on Mariner in August.  No tickets need.

Sherri🙂

30 minutes ago, Another_Critic said:

That his hit or miss.  Seemed to notify me when a non cabinmate texted, but not when my cabinmate did.

We found it did not notify whether it was a cabin mate or non cabin mate.  We used it quite a bit on Independence in July with family spread out over 5 cabins but no one received any notice.

Sherri🙂
 

Yes, you can use the app to message each other.  The only problem we have had with it is you have to check it frequently as it does not notify you when you get a new message.

Sherri🙂

The first thing I do after boarding is connect to app through ship’s WiFi as a guest and make my show reservations then.  I’ve always been able to get reservations for the comedy club.

Sherri🙂

We received this on our Oasis cruise out of Miami last month.  It was kind of exciting, when I finished answering the health questions, balloons floated across the page along with confetti and the page said congratulations, you have been selected for express boarding.  Instructions were to follow the signs.  There was no one in front of us at the express boarding sign, we were quickly scanned and directed to security which also had no line.  We went upstairs and were seated, I was expecting that was it as far as express but we boarded after pinnacle, suites and key.  We were on the ship at 1040. 
 

I was told they are testing this at the new terminal in Miami in preparation for Icon.

Sherri🙂

We stayed on deck 6 with an obstructed balcony on the recent TA.  We chose this cabin as it was a crazy low price, $1600.00 total for the two of us for a 15 night TA.  We could see over the lifeboat, we were ok with that as we really don’t use a balcony much and are hardly ever in our cabin.

Odyssey is a great ship, we loved it!

Sherri🙂

We’ve done 20 cruises since 8/2021 from Canaveral, Miami, Tampa, Ft. Lauderdale, Boston and  Civitavecchia.  Only once, in Tampa, has anyone checked our time.

Sherri🙂

10 minutes ago, not-enough-cruising said:

 

 

Just another reason to skip the MDR; I am already driven nuts by the traditional conga line, applaud your wait staff, give us good marks on the survey, towel waving pep rally on the second to last or last night. 

I agree with you and I always get the feeling most of the waiters would prefer to skip it.

Sherri🙂

3 hours ago, zebra36 said:

The show uses a few songs from Sweet Charity which I am sure most folks have never heard of or seen plus a few from Chicago. which is more recent(?)

Sweet  Charity was first staged in 1966, Chicago was 1975.d

Sherri🙂

1 hour ago, orville99 said:

My best guess is that they have these in their galley for roasting chickens and can pop a turkey or two on when the menu calls for it, since they aren’t prepping for hundreds of diners.

 

You are probably correct!

Sherri🙂