sjb317

1 hour ago, ONECRUISER said:

My Daughter and her Families Favorite Class. Me, will stick with the smaller Ships til they are gone

I, too, was always a fan of the smaller ships but since we resumed cruising after the pandemic, the smaller ships just seem old and not very well maintained.  I was on Grandeur for a week this summer and it was the first time I have ever felt bored on a ship. Not much to do after 5pm.  I ended up spending more time than usual in the casino which is something I typically don’t do.
 

Sherri🙂

PC is only about 25 minutes away from us so that is our first choice.  Tampa is closer than the other two but traffic to Tampa is usually a nightmare. I would rather drive to FL or Miami if we are going on the weekend.

Sherri🙂

On 11/12/2023 at 9:41 AM, cruisemom42 said:

Welcome back @sjb317 !!!  So glad to hear you enjoyed your trip and cruise. I haven't been to Valencia for a very long time. Need to go back. 😊. Isn't it fun to visit new places and wonder about what it would be like to live there?

 

My husband says I say that about every city we visit in Europe😂.  Not true, but there have been many I feel that way about!

Sherri🙂

We were also on the Odyssey TA and we loved it!  This was our first cruise on a Quantum class ship, wasn’t sure I was going to like it but I was totally impressed.  I think it may be my favorite Royal ship now.  Very clean, I liked the design a did not find it to be a long walk to most of the places I wanted to go. 
 

I wish I had lost 10 lbs on this cruise.😂  This was our 6th cruise for 2023 and we thought  the food was the best we have had since the new menu.  Chops, Giovanni’s, and the MDR were all very good in our opinion.  Prior to this cruise, I had found myself becoming more and more negative regarding the decline in Royal’s food.
 

I agree with you the theater was not very comfortable, also, balcony seating had very obstructed viewing, especially on the sides.  I thought seating in 270 was pretty comfy.

We are planning to book another cruise on this ship.

Sherri🙂

There were also lots of loungers in shaded areas outside, the Solarium can get quite warm if the sun is shining so I kind of liked outside better.

Sherri🙂

2 hours ago, OCSC Mike said:

 

I remember being asked about it post-startup but pretty sure it wasn't there anymore last month unless I'm misremembering.

We have not had that question on our cruises since September, so you are not misremembering.😂

Sherri🙂

7 minutes ago, OCSC Mike said:

Only 2 questions as of 10/24...

 

1. Pregnancy.

2. Usual question about cold/flu/illness symptoms.

Yup, that’s what we had for our 10/27/2023 cruise.

Sherri🙂

1 hour ago, cruiseguy1016 said:

 

Personal experience? Which port(s)? 

My personal experience at Port Canaveral, Ft Lauderdale, Tampa and Civittavechia (all since the pandemic) is no one cared.  I usually carry at least 3 bottles, all 1.5 liter, in my carryon. Has not been a problem. 
 

My flat iron for my hair has been a different story😂.  For some reason, security has to occaisionally check it out.

Sherri🙂

We made it home from our TA yesterday afternoon, had a great trip!  Florence was very nice but I fell in love with Valencia, could easily see me living there😂.

Now home to laundry and cooking after 20 days with neither.  Melody, your shrimp looks very good, that is a dish I make at least twice a month so could be on our menu this week if shrimp is a decent price at the grocery. 
 

Next trip is driving up to SC and VA to spend Christmas holiday with the grandkids.  It may turn into quite a lengthy stay if it works out for our daughter in law to go to Hawaii  with our son when he goes for his job. I am really hoping she gets to go!

Sherri🙂

3 hours ago, Ocean Boy said:

Pretty much my experience with Odyssey. I like this ship much more than I expected to.

I really liked this ship, I think it may be my new favorite!

Sherri🙂

We just got off of the Odyssey TA and I was pleasantly surprised by how good the food was.  This was our 6th cruise since the menu change, we’ve been on several ships where the food was mediocre so I was not expecting much!😂.  Only 3 dishes did I not consider to be good: lobster & cheese macaroni (definitely not Mac & cheese)  the lobster tail my husband had (very tough and dried out looking) and what was supposed to be pecan pie but was more of a pecan flavored pie as I never found anything resembling a pecan.  Otherwise, everything was great!

Sherri🙂

3 hours ago, spacetraveler said:

With many high tier passengers on board, our voice is heard. Royal's interactive app just added the lobster tail on tonight's menu even tonight is not a formal night.

 

Lobster has been on the app’s menu for tonight since the beginning of the cruise.  It is Dress to Impress night.

Sherri🙂

1 hour ago, jerseyjjs said:

Did they give you the partially full Kraft Mac & Cheese box?

There might have been 1/4 of the box😂.

The people sitting next to us were not impressed with it either.

Sherri🙂

I had this last night on Odessey TA.   It had a good lobster flavor and a few small pieces of lobster, but very little cheese flavor.  In fact it was kind of oily and looked it was made from a kraft Mac & cheese.   Although to be fair, the Kraft Mac & cheese is way cheesier!

Sherri🙂

On 10/29/2023 at 2:28 PM, cruisegirl1 said:

 

 

The above is reality and standard practice. OP - if you are changed, it would  be rare and noteworthily to post to let others know. 

 

M

We have never been charged a corkage fee and in fact, it was only mentioned once to us and that was when they first announced this policy.   We took a bottle to the MDR and our waiter asked if we knew about the fee.  I said yes, he never charged it.  Never been mentioned since.

Sherri🙂

Welcome home, Cynthia, glad you had a wonderful trip!

We are leaving tomorrow at 630pm for our flight to for our TA leaving from Civitavvechia.  I am all packed and ready, husband just started packing this afternoon😂😂.

Sherti🙂

Melody, so sorry that your family is going through such a difficult time.  My thoughts are with you and Les.😔

Sherri

I am certainly not an expert on style  but  I would not wear  any of the shoes with your dress. I would look for something sparkly, probably silver.  I really like the shoes pictured with the dress so I would go for something similar.

 
I love your dress!

Sherri🙂

2 hours ago, Lois R said:

Hi Cynthia, sounds like you are having an excellent time😃

 

Well, the A/C guy was here and my unit needs a new motor. Fortunately for me PARTS AND LABOR are under the warranty! They have to order the part on Monday and hope to have it installed sometime late next week. I am very happy it is not the middle of summer, that is for sure😃

Good week to have no a/c, cold front coming into Florida Monday.  Predicted highs for Jacksonville are high 60s to low 70s.   You should probably get some lottery tickets😂

Sherri🙂

 I love a good beach, we live on a beach in Florida so I am down on the beach almost everyday.  Not a fan of Labadee but I always loved Coco Cay before it was redone and was prepared to hate it the first time we stopped after the renovations.  Much to my surprise, I still love it, maybe even more so.  We spend our time either at one of the free beaches or Oasis Lagoon.   My husband sits under an umbrella with a book and I go for walks.  Snorkeling is fun, too.
 

The food is much better than Labadee, good but not sure I would describe it as wonderful.  I like the taco bar and the sandwiches at the buffet.  The chicken sandwich is pretty good at the Snack Shak  but the funnel cake was very greasy with little flavor, hard to believe people rave about it. 😂 

I received a survey yesterday asking about Coco Cay, questions like what improvements would I like to see added and what kind of foods I like to have.  Very interesting.

Sherri🙂

3 hours ago, Lois R said:

And what happened Saturday was more than just sad........pure evil. All the information coming out about what was done to the families, grandparents, parents and the children...........just horrific☹️

I would say unbelievable but it is true and I have shed my share of tears this week.

You are absolutely right, Lois.  😔

Sherri
 

I probably have more than nine swimsuits and I have at least 6 coverups.😂. We live on the beach in Fl and I am in the pool or down on the beach at least 5 days each week.  
 

We spend a good amount of our sea days in the pool/hot tub  so I typically take 3-4 swimsuits and coverups.  If we are not driving very far to a port, I will wear my suit & coverup for boarding, nice to be able to use the pool or hot tub before the crowds start moving in!

Sherri🙂

Good morning to all!  I’m still having issues with CC but it is working this morning so feel like I need to get a quick post in before I get kicked out again!

Love all the pictures people have posted!  This is the time of year I do miss Indiana so Melody, your hiking pictures made me a little homesick.😂  And Venice is one of my favorite places, it’s been almost 10 years since we were there so Cynthia, your pictures have made me want to go back!

Melissa, I hope you enjoy your new job!  I would love to work part time in a home goods store but we are gone so much to see grandkids, cruise, etc. that I don’t think any employer would hire someone who wants so much time off.

We did the same thing , Kat, when we bought our vacation home in Florida, we went to IKEA for most of our furniture.  We knew our sons and grandkids would be using it too, so I did not want anything expensive as I knew it would get abused.   Twelve years later, we still have most of it, it has surprisingly held up well!

Lois, it’s very interesting you spent a year in Israel!  Very, very sad what has happened and unfortunately, I think there is more to come.  😔

Bad weather here today, tornados  during the night on the west coast and now tornado warnings up in Flagler county which is getting close to Jacksonville.  I hope Jacksonville doesn’t’ get any of this, Lois!  Stay safe!

Sherri

Your dinner looks very good, Melody, especially the pie!😂  We had a gray, stormy day here on the beach, very dreary looking.  I had planned to grill some fish but while at the gym, I suddenly felt like it was a good day for chili.  Came home and threw ingredients into my crockpot, improvising on a few.  Turned out pretty good and, as our youngest grandson would say, really “hit the spot”😂

Sherri🙂

Not sure what was going on but I have been having a lot of trouble getting on to CC.  I think I have caught up with everyone and it sounds like everyone is doing well and busy with travel plans, families, etc. 

We got the new covid boosters yesterday and I woke up this morning feeling feverish and achy so I have spent the day napping and just being generally lazy😂.   OOTD: Jammie’s!

We are leaving October 24 to fly to Rome for a TA cruise back to Ft Lauderdale.  Then in February, we are flying to LA to catch a cruise to Hawaii, then down to New Zealand and Australia.  We will disembark in Brisbane and catch a plane to Melbourne to spend a few weeks with our son and his family,  This works out great as we will only have to do the long, long flight once!  I am really excited about it!

Very sad to see the news of Diane Feinstein’s passing! 
 

Sherri🙂