wrahn2002

On ‎8‎/‎19‎/‎2017 at 1:54 PM, esanders64 said:

We just finished up a cruise to Havana on the Carnival Paradise, and found the procedures for getting of the ship to be pretty straightforward. If your ship has a similar situation as ours, you should be fine with an evening tour followed by a day tour. Our ship pulled into Havana at about 6:30 am, and they started letting passengers off on schedule at 8 am. We were let off about 8:15 after we showed evidence of a private tour we booked, and it only took another 10-15 minutes to go through passport control, leaving us plenty of time before our 10 am tour. Getting back on the ship was also straightforward, with only a few minutes to go through security and passport control. Have fun!

 

 

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If you don't mind, what tour company did you use?

Thanks,

Wes

Rich,

Super job explaining the ship's internet. We are still following your adventure and enjoying the photos, some of which bring back good memories. Say HI to Roger.

Wes and Peggy

Rich,

Peggy and I hope the "crud" doesn't mess up your trip tomorrow. We finally started to get your blog back so we could enjoy Roger's and your adventure along with the photos.

Be safe,

Wes

13 minutes ago, 0bnxshs said:

 

Day 19 (10/11)

 

Sea Day

 

Yep, I've got a case of cruise crud.  Or in this case, Amy's Cold.  She'll know.  Achy sinuses dripping in the back of my throat, a swollen and sore soft palate and the beginnings of a barking cough.  Sometimes it'll feel like I'm swallowing razor blades.  An overall feeling of malaise and wishing the ship would stop moving around so much (whether or not it really is...)

 

This is our day before our Machu Picchu trip and we need to prep for it today.  It's an early morning tomorrow and we don't want to wait until the last minute.  The thought gives start to that feeling of anticipation and excitement I always get before a great adventure starts.  And some anxiousness.  What if there's nothing I like to eat (that could be a lot of stuff)?  What if I get the middle seat on the airplane?  What if I have to use the restroom and I have no small money?  What if I get altitude sickness or just can't climb all those stairs at Machu Picchu?  Those sorts of concerns.  But I put them aside and try to start organizing my subset of stuff that I want to bring with me.

 

We were notified that the ship's radar had detected an anomalous contact heading towards us and that at its present rate and heading should be at the same place we will be at by 10 AM.  Sure enough, Neptune, King of the Sea, had arrived with his court to pass judgement on all the "pollywogs" and "tadpoles" in Zaandam's crew to determine their fitness to become "Shellbacks".  The ship's senior officers were sworn as the "jury" and Cruise Director Bruce was appointed the "prosecutor", the jail was filled with the "wogs" and the fun commenced on the Seaview pool deck with a full gallery of passengers in attendance.  I won't give away any more of the ceremony, but if you should become a "Shellback" on a cruise do go see the festivities.  They are a hoot!  See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Line-crossing_ceremony

 

I'm feeling like crap this afternoon and medicating myself as much as safely practicable, not that I figure it will do much good by tomorrow and our trip.  We both finish packing except for the few things we'll need overnight and in the morning, enjoy a light dinner of salads and desert in the Lido Market, say our goodbyes to our friends there.  Looking out the windows on the Lido, we notice a thick fog has developed that obscures the horizon to the point of not being able to distinguish sea from sky and that the ocean is disturbed and uneasy.  It's early, but off to bed we go and, oddly, I fall into an easy sleep, probably thanks to the nighttime medication I've taken.

 

Just some nice photos:

 

There still are a few of the old cones along with the new WAPs (this in the Lido):

 

That water scale thing again..... 

 

Day 11 (10/3)

 

Unbelieveably, it was 7:47 AM before Roger was out the cabin door this morning. For those who know Roger, this is considerably later than usual. He normally is up before 5 AM and has regularly been waking me doing so. I just roll over and return to sleep, occasionally telling him not to fall off the ship while walking his laps. He blamed it on being up all night with agita from the heavy birthday meal he enjoyed but I think it was the wine and the bird that kept him asleep so late. I'm trained by our puppies (they're 2 years old this month but still look like puppies) to be up by 7:30 AM at the latest and have been rising anywhere from 6:30 and 7 AM since we've been aboard.

 

Roger, being the sort of person who has to find something to worry about, has found a leak under our sink in the bathroom. Not sure what he was doing under the sink as we have nothing on the shelf below it. Apparently he's been tracking it for a couple of days now and has even placed a washcloth on the shelf to keep it contained. He showed me the lightly dampened washcloth and where he thinks it's leaking from this afternoon. Knowing there is a crack in the sink that runs from the overflow drain down to the drain in the bottom of the sink, we suspect this is the culprit. Not sure this is fixable until they refresh the entire bathroom like others were during the last dry dock so it's probably not even worth reporting unless it gets much worse than it is already.

 

Today is a sea day again. We did have some thunder and lightning during the early hours of the morning and it was very lightly raining around lunchtime but nothing seemed to dampen the spirit of the Mexican Ambassadors who were still about as they again performed folkloric dances at the Lido pool and had afternoon craft lessons later. The group of young latin singers called "Bailemos" is still on board as well and did another set of performances in the Mainstage tonight. We also had lectures in the afternoon on Monarch butterflies by Jim the stargazing geo-chemist, Ancient American Civilizations: The Mayans by Charles and one about William Walker, one-time President of Nicaragua by Tom, so we are becoming quite knowledgeable too. We didn't go to the Watch and Jewelry auction or the digital camera introductory class (although both of us could benefit here but we already own cameras....) There is no lack of things to do on a sea day on this voyage.

 

Dinner found Roger going by himself to the Lido at a bit past 5 PM (he hates being late to meals) while I stayed in the cabin and cursed a blue streak first at the internet in general and then at Cruise Critic in particular, which seemed determined that I was NOT going to post to my blog yesterday. I gave up finally and went upstairs to find Roger eating.... you guessed it, chicken, but this was the oven roasted variety again that I'd found good and this time, so did he. He couldn't pass by the pasta station either where he gets whatever kind of pasta is available (bowtie, rotini, macaroni, etc.) and has red sauce poured over it. If it's got meat in the sauce he's really happy. He has found that he needs to ask for a "pinch" of red peppers as chef's interpretation of a "little" is way too much for Roger. The same holds true for garlic. Sometimes the garlic odor in the Lido is almost too much. We talked with newly made friends for a bit and then I came down and finally got my post finished.

 

Cloudy all day but the sunset was beautiful in its own way.

 

Clouds still resting on the hills in the morning:

 

The cracked sink in our bathroom:

 

A cloudy sunset:

Rich,

Must have been the cholate cake the Ellen didn't make that messed up hisNORMAL routine.

I can see him being worried about the electric stuff, but not the plumbing.

We hope you’re having a great time.

Wes

:)

Rich,

We are enjoying your posts and photos. I'm sure you and Roger are having quite an adventure.

Peggy and Wes

Rich,

I'm so glad you have a blog and invited Peggy and I to join the South American Adventure with you and Roger, even if it's only by-way of your blog and photos.

Love ya both,

Peggy and Wes

From a previous thread:

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2362029

Thank you for the information. I usually trade-in the ELITE free set-up for coffee cards, but never really knew what I was trading.

Thanks again,

Wes

What is included in the one time cabin bar set-up?

Thanks,

Wes

I may ask this on other threads, but it looks like this is as good as any.

 

My wife has GE, so, if she puts me on the customs form, I suspect that I can go through the GE line at the CRUISE terminal with her? True?

 

FWIW, we both also have mobile passport, so it may not have that much of an advantage to use GE anyway, but thought I'd see what options we might have.

 

TIA

My understanding is that the GE is ONLY for one person not family.

mystic51,

Thanks for the quick response.

Wes

No car rentals at POM. :(

 

Avis, Hertz and a few others have locations in downtown Miami, close to the port; but they are sometimes overwhelmed by cruisers resulting in long delays. :mad:

 

National, Alamo & Thrifty (and maybe Enterprise) offer a free shuttle from POM to their MIA airport location. ;) Show the driver your reservation papers. If you get a good deal from someone else at MIA a taxi from the port will cost $27+tip.

 

Use your favorite travel web site (Kayak, expedia, etc.) to compare rates across many agencies; I've had some luck with www dot carrentals dot com Stick to the major agencies to avoid hard sells on insurance that you probably do not need, etc.

 

Good luck! :)

Can I also get a transfer from the rental drop off at MIA to POM. I plan on driving from Venice, FL to MIA to cruise from POM. Then after the cruise reverse the trip and go from POM to MIA and pick up a rental car.

Thanks,

Wes

Which one has the most benefits?

Thanks,

Wes

royalcariblover,

Thanks for the information.

Wes

No, but if you purchase the package, you will be charged 18 % gratuities on the package value.

Thanks for the response, but now I guess I'll have to clarify my package situation. When I booked my up coming cruise, I elected to accept the "Special Offer" "Go Best" which included Premium Beverage for 2, $150 on board credit for 2, Prepaid Tips for 2, and Unlimited Internet for 2.

The cost of $465 was added to the stateroom price, and the packages are itemized on the confirmation, but not a breakdown of the itemized or total cost.

The way I looked at it was the cost of the on-board credit and paid tips was well worth the price, let alone the extra beverage and internet package. Hopefully I am correct.

Wes

So, if I have a Premium package, I'll be charged 18 percent of all the drinks I receive?

Wes

Pacific Princess has cancelled its stop at Safaga, Egypt on April 2, 2015. They indicated they were concerned for passenger safety. We're still on for Aqaba, Jordan.

Wes

Thanks for your response.

Wes

I don't have a British Passport, I have a U.S. Passport. What are the rules for the visa when I fly from the USA to Dubai?

Thanks,

Wes

We will on a Costa cruise to the Middle East in November. I was somewhat surprised that Costa has some competitive pricing on their shore excursions.

 

However, here is my thinking of why I'm choosing private tours over the ship's tours in the various ports.

 

Ashdod - Jerusaleum and Bethlehem Tour - we are trying to do a private group tour but if we don't get enough people we may have to do a shared private group tour or ship's tours. This tour is only a few dollars cheaper than the ship's tour.

 

Aqaba - Petra and Wadi Rum tour - we will be doing a private group tour as this tour is mostly walking and a ship's tour will be only going as fast as it's slowest passenger. Also, ship's tour will not be able to visit Wadi Rum. This tour will probably be more expensive than the ship's tour.

 

Safaga - Luxor Tour - same logic applies with the Petra tour. Found a much cheaper tour with a private tour company.

 

I'm not too worried about missing the ship as I will be using quite reputable tour operators. Please chime in with your opinion.

Would you please share the link to the tour companies you will used for Aqaba and Safaga?

Thanks,

Wes

Thanks for the information about taxis. Will they take other currencies, or just AED? Sorry for the double posting.

Thanks again,

Wes

Will they take other currencies, or just UAE currency?

Thanks,

Wes

If you are easily annoyed by noise, choose cabin 8002,4, or 6. They are under a restroom, internet cafe and card room. :)

I believe others have figured out what you suggested, because all those cabins are booked.

Thanks to all who have provided input. I think I might just stay were I am unless 8002, 4 or 6 become open.

Wes

paul929207,

Since you have so much time on the Ocean Princess, maybe you can help me with the mini-suites and any noise from the deck above. I'm currently booked on a balcony on deck 7 with cabins above and below, but the cruise will be 53 days and I'm thinking about upgrading to a mini-suite which are only on deck 8. I've been on the Pacific, but not on the Ocean.

Do you have any experience with minis on the Ocean deck 8?

Thanks,

Wes

If you're asking about same day service, I believe the answer is no unless you want to pay for it. When I have turned in laundry in the morning, the laundry slip indicates unless I paid for same day service there was no free same day service.

Not sure about dry cleaning, I've never used it and I never turned in laundry at night.

Wes