cusecruise

No issues with jeans on “elegant” night on Radiance, in fact, I did not even realize there were a don’t until I saw it here!

Perhaps you should rethink your calculations. :rolleyes:

 

http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2014/10/exponential_ebola.html

I stand by my original statement - as compared to the overall population of the 3 West African countries, very few people have contracted Ebola.

Next time you want to refute something, make sure you post the link correctly so someone can actually see it. Since you saw the need to roll your eyes at me, the link was broken.

I look at it this way - about 4,000 people have died worldwide from Ebola. Per Wikipedia the population of Liberia alone is 4.4million, I did not bother to look up the other two countries. If all 4,000 were in Liberia, that would mean a .01% chance, 1-100th of a percent chance of contracting Ebola. In a country with sub-standard healthcare (Wikipedia says 1 doctor for every 100,000 people!), where the general population does not understand how Ebola spreads, .01% chance!

Don't get me wrong, I feel terrible for those that have died and I think everyone needs to be vigilant but the chance of any one of us getting Ebola are very low! Look at Mr. Duncan's family - they are nearing 21 days from exposure and none of them are sick! They had direct contact with him and no one is ill. The two nurses did not have "normal" contact with the man, they were performing medical procedures - that is not the contact any of us would ever have!

Kudos to the person who self-quarantined on the ship! She is a smart woman who was looking out for her fellow passengers despite the fact that she is NOT sick, NO symptoms!

If you are afraid to cruise because of Ebola, send me your ticket - I'll gladly get on a ship in your place!

I get a chuckle out of this - everyone is so worried about what they might pick up on the ship but think nothing of eating and drinking in port! In Mexico, all fresh veggies (yes, that includes your salsa and guac), the ice in your drinks and that bottle of water you just bought from a street vendor are far more likely to make you sick then pushing a button on an elevator!

The question here is not so much whether the OP is being difficult or not but rather what level of service can one expect from an online agent.

My husband and I travel frequently for business and do most of our booking with online agents but when we have something that needs a bit more "care and feeding", we use a local agent. Why? Because we understand that the online agents likely have the best prices but in exchange, the level of service you receive is pretty low. If we think we will need someone to make frequent changes, have a complicated booking etc, then we will pay a bit more to get the more personal touch.

Although the things the OP asked for are not uncommon, they did require significant time on the part of the agent. I don't blame him for getting upset, he isn't getting paid for that level of effort but at the same time, he handled it badly. The agent's suggestion that they part ways is a good one - this will never be a happy business relationship as the OP wants a higher level of service than this agent is getting paid to provide.

You didn't say where you were going - we were in the Western Caribbean last year and had no trouble finding free WiFi in the ports.

For answers to your Verizon questions, call them, the rep can give you the rundown on the costs beyond the $25. Also, remember, depending on where you are, you may not have service anyway.

Bottled water, no ice, avoid all veggies and don't eat fish in the summer were the rules that everyone at my company's Mexico based factories told anyone travelling from the US.

You may be safe drinking the water, having ice in your drinks and eating the pico de gallo or fresh guacamole when in port but you need to be aware you are taking a risk in doing so. If you stick to the "chains" like Carlos and Charlie's you are probably going to be ok but if you go to a local joint and eat veggies or have a drink with ice, you probably won't be so lucky.

I've gotten sick in Mexico a couple times and it has ALWAYS been the veggies at fault, once at a major resort in Acapulco where they claimed they disinfected their veggies and once in Toluca where my company was based when I had guacamole with fresh tomatoes and cilantro in it.

We ate both guac and pico in Cozumel last year with no issues but my husband and I knew we were rolling the dice when we did so as we were at a local place.

If you want to be safe, drink bottled water, no ice, no veggies. Anything else is a risk, it is up to you to determine if you want to take it.

Definitely use U.S. dollars - you'll find you get much better deals bargaining when you are paying with dollars. Just make sure you understand the current exchange rates!

:eek:

 

Just about to board the Dawn today! Help! Seen some really bad reviews.:confused:

At least there will be no turkey to cook, or washing up to do!!:D

I will post my impressions once we return...that is, if Im not still being seasick, or traumatised from all the other awful things that folk think happen on the Dawn. Should have booked with Crystal or Silversea, but they get bad press too.

We cruised on the Dawn over Christmas last year and had a blast! I wish I were boarding with you today! Have a fantastic cruise!

Tip- thanks for the warning! ;)

 

I do wish they weren't real!! What the heck do we do with all these $2s??! The tooth fairy can only go so far!!! LOL

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

It's easy - take them to the bank and exchange for a different denomination bill or deposit in your checking account.

First of all, get out of Mahogany Bay as fast as your feet will take you. Go see Roatan.

 

OK then. Hot sauce. Get it in Belize. You want Marie Sharp's products. There is a variety. They will satisfy your need for hot. For a better price, go into town to a store.

Belizw will also have Lissette's Special Sauce. It isn't so hot but it isn't for use as a hot sauce. More of cooking additive/glaze.

 

Enjoy.

Marie Sharp's is the best!

Full review when we get home. Had a great time!!

 

All those bad reviews......you must have been on a different ship because we had a blast!!! Only a minor gripe that I have but it wouldn't make me choose a different ship.

 

And whoever couldn't find chilled fruit soup..... I saw it almost every time that I went to the buffet.

 

Much more and photos when I get home. Bottom line.....the Dawn is great and so is NCL.

Glad to see that I am not the only one who thought I was on a different ship - we had a great time as well!

Ohhh. If it was Eric, then that would Eric Lilly. Our favorite piano player. Hopefuly he'll be on board still in February. He played every night in the Star bar.

Eric Lilly is correct - we saw him in the Star Bar and he did one night in the Atrium and I think one in Gatsby's while Margie and Duo Luna had the night off.

Margie Hobbs was in Gatsby's most nights last week. There were two men that we saw as well. One was Eric I think. I do not recasll the other.

I'll write a full review soon but wanted to share that I was on the Dawn in Cozumel last week (Dec 28) and we did NOT tender. I've read several other reviews here that were the same so not sure where the idea that the Dawn always tenders came from, it is definitely not the case.

The standards of behavior have never changed, tolerance for bad behavior has! Being angry is a result of bad behavior that is not fixed. There is never an excuse for someone, adult or child, to be boorish, loud, acting out or belligerent. Again, your standards might have changed, but others belief that they have a right to peace and quiet have not. There is a time and place for acting out. Excitement at being at Disney World is different than loud obnoxious behavior in the dining room of a cruise ship. Hold everyone accountable for bad behavior and the world will be a better place for the majority.

Well said!

I certainly wouldn't let him wander around the ship unsupervised at age 7, but small forays at age 10 or 11 wouldn't seem inappropriate to me.

 

Wow - sorry to sound harsh, I have to say I am absolutely shocked by this statement. There is no way I would let my 10 year old niece wander about a ship by herself. I would not worry about predators but rather her simply no being old enough to know what she should and should not do. Expecting a child to be able to make good decisions at this age in a non-familar environment is just asking for trouble no matter how well behaved she is. Walking to school is completely different than wandering around a cruise ship.

Children are children and need to be supervised when in a public place no matter how "safe" it might be.

Interesting topic and even more interesting reactions. I don't have kids so perhaps my perspective is skewed but I go to Disney and I see the parents with the toddlers, schleping onto the bus to go to the park with diaper bags and pacifiers and the like and the even more tired kids and parents back on the bus at the end of the day, everyone cranky, tired and more often than not crying because the kids were just simply too young for an all day adventure. To me, that does not seem like fun. If I were to pick, I would wait until the kids were a little older so that we all could have a good time experiencing the magic of Disney.

I see cruises as the same - if the kids are old enough, and well behaved enough (yes, this does matter) then by all means go on the cruise. What is old enough - for some kids that could be a baby, a toddler or an teenager. It all depends on whether or not the child is going to enjoy where they are and what they are doing. If they love the onboard activities for kids and they can handle the sitimulation of a cruise, bring them along! But if they cannot and the whole trip is a cry-fest and a chore for mom and dad then the parents need to be the parents and either forgo the trip until the kids are ready or make the decision to leave the kids at home.

I don't take my nieces and nephews to a fine dining restaurant as I don't think they can handle being there and behaving properly. When they are old enough to act as they should and have fun being there, we'll go, in the meantime we'll go to the local family restaurant that is geared toward their being there and where they can have fun.

Bottom line, it depends on the kids, the parents and the ship. But to be fair to your fellow cruisers, think before you make the decision as a parent, don't just bring the kids along because you can, bring them along because everyone is going to enjoy being there.