edspec

Firenze Havana area is called Terrezzo and doesn't have the pool and hot tubs.  Also open to all from 7 pm, like Havana area was at the beginning.

Firenze does 7 day itineraries, I've been looking at one over Labor Day.

@Stowaway LFC No self service laundry on the NCL ships I've been on.

@TxTeach79 looks like a great itinerary. It'll be hot so you'll be wearing lighter clothes, you may be able to manage with a carry-on.  

@figmentfreak Your WDW food pics have me envious. I love the small plates and different options.

Great review, I love your suite rationalization 🙂 My cruise math works just about the same. 

Back from DCL cruise and we will be sailing with them again, DS had a wonderful time and his euphoria resulted in pointing and using new vocabulary to share things he saw.  He doesn't share so that was a big deal.  If it takes DCL to push him along than I'm game.  I just wish they had something from the west coast in the near future.  The only possibility is Vancouver to Honolulu which we're doing the reverse of in April. 

BTW no drink package worked out as we always buy the package but since DH doesn't drink much we probably lose money on him.  He doesn't drink coffee or bottled water either.  Anyway, his two drinks or so per day and my cruise norm of 5-6 a day worked out to cheaper than two drink packages on Carnival.  I coped with room service coffee and ice water from the ice bucket and tap. 

We went to a brunch at one of the specialty restaurants, Palo, and can I just say I'm done w/ huge meals like that or Chef's Table.  I HATE to waste food but I do not have the appetite I once had so while I eat everything offered I'm absolutely miserable after.  Also, I really don't need to hear the providence of each dish...put a concise description on the menu and that will do as far as I'm concerned. 

@dmet0225 So sorry to hear of your family's health troubles.  That is an awful lot all at once.  Hearing  things like this reinforces the thought that none of us are guarenteed anything and we need to cherish each day.

I know I am behind, but the only thing I'm certain about for us is a 4/19-4/29 Quantum cruise, Honolulu to Vancouver.  I booked it at a low price, I had $1300 OBC from credit card points, I applied for and used the SW card for miles from Sacramento to Honolulu, and there is a very high non-refundable deposit.  DH will make diamond on this cruise as well, so all in all not something  I could pass up.  Cruise math.

Continuing on the DCL front...heard  a parent refuse her daughter when the child requested  club time. Daughter than threw herself on the floor and kicked her heels and mom relented.  Very different cruise than in the past in that regard.  Also, DH and I not happy with our wait staff.  I  don't think it  is actually their fault, all the waiters look like they have two too many tables.  I've given up ordering wine at dinner since I invariably get the wrong wine or it is so late I'm done w/ that course.

We use a fake tree which is going to have to go up no later than Monday.  I use scented pine cones for Christmas aroma.

Hello Tribe,

On the DCL Fantasy and feel as if it is still 2003.  Pens, postcards, and notepaper in the desk drawer. Cabin servicing with towel, (blanket), animals twice per day.  Very good chocolates at turndown...so good I asked in one of the shops where I could buy some and unfortunately they're only available on board:(  Great promenade deck with padded loungers.

Back in 2023 blanket, not towel animals that use the extra throw on the bed.  Make-up remover clothes...I'd never used these but have seen the advertisements.  Ladies, these are great!!! I forgot my make-up wipes at home and am so glad I did, otherwise I wouldn't have tried the cloth.  Does a great job removing make-up and exfoliates better than the wipes.  And environmentally friendly which is a DCL thing now.

The Princess board people would die at what is worn in the MDRs at dinner.  Lots of flip flops, shorts, back wards baseball caps, jersey sleeveless shirts with knit shorts, (what I packed for DS's pjs), and what I swear was a workout ensemble.  Since this is a Merrytime cruise lots of families running around in their holiday pjs at dinner and around the ship at night.  I told DH I felt as if I hadn't planned well and he said it wasn't lack of planning, it was discretion.

No drink package but they have $5.50 Screwdrivers, Mimosas, and Bloody Marys till noon each day.  Heard a women order a Mimosa, no OJ and have since followed her excellent lead.  They have Happy Hours each night but I haven't been up that late.  Captain's reception had free cocktails as well.  Some good wines under $10/glass.  There is a wine package which I used to buy but I decided against it this trip, will just assess the damage at the end. 

Food good, fast food not as good as Carnival's though and they could learn a thing or two from MSC and Princess about pizza.  Free room service which we haven't utilized yet, other than breakfast coffee and juice. 

Rooms spotless, and one thing I really like about DCL is that even the cheapest rooms have a full length couch and the desk chair is actually comfortable enough to sit in for lengthy periods.

Other cruisers on this trip...lots of tackiness.  Not everyone of course but DH remarked on it as well.  Saw a family meltdown at dinner last night with three of the four women yelling and leaving the table, then coming back...not all at once, but singly, or in groups and it happened throughout the meal. One would leave and come back, then two would leave, etc... Another thing...in old days you didn't see the kids from dinner the first night until late in the day the last day.  On this trip I can only assume that no one is utilizing the clubs or no one is concerned about school attendance, OR they're homeschoolers. Also, the kids seem to be hanging out with their siblings or family members, not in groups of new found friends.  I'm thinking this is a consequence of the pandemic. 

DS having a wonderful time, which was the whole point.  He was so anticipating this that he didn't sleep much in the nights leading up to the cruise or even the first night on board.  Last night he slept till noon so more like himself.  I'm toying with the idea of booking another Merrytime cruise for next year. 

29 minutes ago, Hogladyrider said:

@edspec...that stinks about the pet sitter hope they come thru!

She just texted, we're good 🙂 Thank-you. 

Happy Thanksgiving Tribe!

Sent the stuffing and sweet potato casserole to my sister's and fixed Dude's 19 meals to take to the dog sitter.  I made him a corned beef yesterday and then cooked a bag of frozen peas...he adores peas and has them with his dinner each night. The kitchen was a disaster, like my goal was to make the biggest mess I could.  That has been corrected. 

Stressed about the dog sitter.  We made the arrangements several months ago and she confirmed drop off time last month but she hasn't answered my confirming text today.  

I still haven't packed for our cruise but sort of know what I'm taking.  Luckily DCL is very casual so that makes it easier.  DS is now saying "take a nap" and "go inside" anytime I bring up the trip.  He always does that and then he's thrilled to leave and enjoys himself.  It does take away some of the anticipation though.  It would be nice if he expressed some buy in for a trip that was his idea.  

9 hours ago, CallistaSkye said:

 

"Burn N Serve" rolls. Ideally wonderbread brand, but those have been hard to find around here.

My sister said the same thing yesterday, I don't know what she bought as a replacement. 

I just wanted to say @TravelGirlinDallas that your family looked lovely in your enroute pic. Have fun!

@sid_9169 Did you use a stainless steel pan to sear the scallops? That helps. Also, if they’ve been treated you can forget a good sear. However scallops are scallops and always good.

Well I'm bummed.  My NCL cruise for 3/25 has been cancelled.  I was really looking forward to this one, it had a great itinerary which you can see on the attached file.  Back to cruise shopping then 🙂

My Vacation Summary.PDF

Princess treated me well on a charge that they were legitimately entitled to.  I had to leave the ship early and so was charged the fee, something like $900.  I get it, I know there are rules and it was a situation where there wasn't another solution.  Lo and behold a year later Princess sent me a refund check, said that they weren't charged the fine therefore wouldn't be keeping my money.  Classy. 

I have a voucher as well, was booked on the 3/28/25 cruise.  I'm really hoping it is just a ship substitution and not a complete cancellation.

1 hour ago, swanhaven said:

 

Have never had any of those things (except for the Kraft Dinner version of mac and cheese - cringeworthy I'm sure)

 

That's just sad.  Here is Ina Garten's Overnight Macaroni and Cheese, https://barefootcontessa.com/recipes/overnight-mac-cheese

Super easy.  Totally fine to go with regular macaroni, whatever cheddar cheese you have in the house, and I usually sub half evaporated milk for half the cream.  You could skip the bread crumb topping too. 

@BohJang Have a great cruise, I'm glad it worked out with the dog boarding.  

@AmyJA We have turkey, ham, (none of the now over 30 boys like turkey), stuffing, mashed potatoes, sweet potato casserole, gravy, roasted brussel sprouts, scalloped corn, rolls, and cranberry sauce.  Usually no apps since we don't want to spoil our dinner.  Pumpkin and pecan pie, and occasionally a butterscotch banana cream that I buy from a bakery.  Oh, and some type of relish tray.

I do the stuffing in a crockpot since it always comes out perfectly and PW mashed potatoes so that I can do them ahead.  We do everything from scratch although I do buy stuffing croutons.

I would probably enjoy cooking more but I'm constantly on a diet and DH is somewhat picky and DS very picky.  I can't cook fish, lamb, most vegetables, potatoes for the most part, soups, stew only rarely, Indian food, etc...  Well, I could cook them but then I'd have to eat the whole batch and that takes us back to the diet issue 🙂

For those that cruise over the holidays that would be my perfect holiday.  Not possible right now w/ my mom, dementia, and DS enjoys family get togethers so much it wouldn't be much of a holiday for him.

@mkcurran 25 days of gifts?  Someone has way more energy and creativity than me.  I don't think I can think of 25 things I want for myself, and I'm good at finding things to buy 🙂

I could do without the extra work of holidays but DS dearly loves them so we stick to tradition.  My sister and I switch off on the meals, this year she is doing Thanksgiving and I'll do Christmas Day.  I enjoy both meals but then I pretty much like all food.  My sister and I are good cooks and we're sticklers for getting dinner on the table on time, none of this nonsense of being invited for dinner at 4 and it isn't actually served till 7 because the cook couldn't get their act together. It is a different scenario if you're invited for 4 and told that dinner will be at 7, I get that. 

Our normal timeline is the tree goes up the Saturday after Christmas and we take the tree down the day after Christmas.  Once the tree is up the Spode Christmas china is used for every meal; I adore setting a nice table so this is one part of the season that I like. DS looks forward to that as well.   This year we'll put the tree up on Monday since we're leaving Friday for our DCL cruise. Try as I might I cannot get enthusiastic about this one.   DS specifically asked for it though so there's that.  He'll be happy and that will make me happy.  We just need to get there. 

I'm not much on gift giving because no one I buy for needs/wants anything.  I do enjoy giving extra tips to my hairdresser, the gardner, and my nail lady.  

I'm going to have to work during this week's break and the cruise.  I offered to help one of our schools on their accredidation report thinking it would consist of me doing a close read and ensuring the prompts are actally answered and not just a jumble of educational jargon.   Jokes on me, the first two portions of the report have to be completely re-done.  My fellow Tribe educators will understand how completely unfun this will be.  

That cruise pushed me firmly into the Princess camp.  The cruise itself, the activities, and I liked being able order drink package items to my room...well, there were 3 am cheeseburgers as well.

@TxTeach79 We did the Sky Midnight Sun cruise in June, absolutely our best cruise ever.  I don't know if you've been to Norway but the best way I can describe it is the little villages at Epcot except they're real and there's fabulous scenery surrounding them.  

1 hour ago, carohs said:

I was looking forward to seeing the Rancheros...but is that a flour tortilla? and Black beans? Where's the salsa? Not the tomato-ey stuff but the real salsa. One thing Carnival gets right is the salsa bar at Blue Iguanas. 

I thought the same thing. I don’t want Huevos Rancheros made with a dry flour tortilla…looked more like a deconstructed breakfast burrito. 

@mopedmom1 Hoping your father has a speedy recovery.

@Stratford1950I'm sorry for your loss.

Too bad everyone can’t go home early, hazardous environment and all that.