Jamman54

I asked her if she remembered you and she did. You must have made a good impression! 😁

Of course they do. That's my size. Made by Life is Good. I have several different ones.😁

They usually start decorating for Christmas right after Thanksgiving. John Heald usually puts out a list each year with the dates that each ship will be decorated. Haven't seen that yet.

It's the truth!!!

Here are tonight’s menus…. Here are Patti and I at dinner tonight….. For starters we both had shrimp cocktail and a Caesar salad….. Patti also had the Erbazzone….. For our mains we both had the fried chicken….. I also had the short rib….. Service was extremely slow tonight, but even slower for others. We were done eating our main dishes, and the couple a few tables over from us, that were seated minutes after us, were just getting their appetizers. We waited a half hour for our desserts and then gave up. We were there almost two hours. Most of what was on the menu was available up in the Lido Marketplace, so we could have eaten in a half hour. We didn’t return to the MDR for the remainder of our time on the Venezia. This was basically the only negative of the whole trip. After we left the dining room, Patti went back to the cabin to begin her packing for our move tomorrow. I went over to the Amari Bar for a couple of Pain Reliefs before heading back to the cabin to begin my own packing. We had a great warm up cruise, but the fun is just getting started! Coming up next: Turnaround Day. Let the Journeys Cruise begin!!

The $5000 Jackpot Bingo is next, hosted by Sinclair. This is the last bingo for Sinclair on this contract, as she is leaving the ship tomorrow….. A lot of the crew on board now have been here since the end of April. Valentina at the Lobby Bar goes home the end of November, and our friend Zora gets off December 10th. The VIFP is at 3pm today but we decide to blow it off. We’ll get there net cruise….. We decide to venture to the MDR tonight. We have Your Time Dining (YTD), so at 5:30 we request a table on the Hub App. We were given a table almost immediately. We were seated at Table # 723 on Deck 4 of the Canal Grande Restaurant….. This is our waitstaff….. We had a nice view from our table. The nice thing was that they didn’t sit other couples right next to us, leaving a space between tables….. To be continued……

Patti continues with Piano Bar 88…… Pixels Gallery is a little busy…. Patti stops back at the cabin where she finds today’s towel animal, and that our laundry she sent out yesterday has been returned…. Meanwhile, I’m sitting at the Burano Pool Bar when I decided to have a little lunch. I started with a grilled cheese and fries from the Deli, then a couple slices of pizza, and then topped it off with some Asian food that they were serving over at the Seafood Shack. Not surprisingly, I went back to the cabin for a little nap! Patti heads down to the Teatro Rosso for the Q & A with Cruise Director Joey…. He is joined on stage by Kyndall Fire, who is on this cruise with some of her family. In case you didn’t know, Joey and Kyndall are engaged to be married, with the wedding in the fall of 2025. Congratulations to them! In a few short weeks Kyndall will be heading over to join the Carnival Jubilee as her first Cruise Director…… To be continued…..

Here is the Carnival Adventures Desk which will be closed until the next cruise tomorrow….. Surprisingly, Guest Services isn’t busy at all….. Patti gives us a peek of the Ladies Room….. Patti and I head up to the Casino Cashier to pick up our Fun Play chips. We’re going to hold on to them until the next cruise. At this point I am going bar hopping for the next couple of hours. I’m going to start at Serenity, have a few at the Pergola Bar, and then make my way all the way aft to the Burano Pool Bar. Patti was going to browse the shops and get some pictures of some empty venues. She starts with Fahrenheit 555….. Here is Bonsai Teppanyaki….. To be continued……

After she finishes eating, Patti heads down to the Marco Polo Restaurant to check out the Green Eggs & Ham Breakfast….. Patti catches me at the Lobby Bar having a few double screwdrivers with Valentina….. To be continued…..

Day # 6 - 9/28/23 - Fun Day at Sea #2. We were up at 7am to a sunny but cool 60 degree day. The seas are calm. Despite what the screen says, we aren’t going anywhere….. Here are today’s Fun Times…… The map channel is showing us where we’ve been, and where we’re going…. I made my way up to the Java Blue Café for my morning coffee. Patti catches me on the aft cam….. I come back to the cabin to work on pictures for a while. Around 8:30am Patti heads up to the Lido Marketplace for breakfast. She passes the Luggage Tag Pickup on Deck 10….. Looking out at the sunny skies and calm seas….. To be continued….

I can understand. We have spent 21 days on Excel Ships and have eaten in the MDR one time, and it wasn't that bad. After so many cruises we can skip the MDR and not bat an eye. When we cruise our focus is not on the MDR, so it's not a big deal if we don't go. I completely understand that for some that is the focus, and understand the disappointment many feel. You have to do what's best for you.

Second Level.

The Venezia looks GREAT on the PTZ Cam all bathed in Sunshine! You guys are going to have an awesome sail away today. Wish we were back on with you!

Have a great cruise! 😎

Thanks for reading and for sharing your opinions with us. We agree that the MDR experience left a lot to be desired, and we'll touch on that in the next segment. As a result, we only ate in the dining room once during our twenty one days on the ship. Not a big deal to us as we don't need to eat big, long meals every night. We're fine with the pay venues and the Lido Marketplace. Since the start up after Covid, we feel that the MDR experience hasn't been very good fleetwide, certainly not on the twelve ships we've been on since then, so we hardly eat there anymore. That's our choice, and we're okay with it.

Thanks Rich! You guys have a wonderful cruise. I think you will finally get a beautiful sail away day. 😀

The second contestant was Donald….. Donald had a strong board all the way to the end where only two cases remained. One was $50, and the other was $1000. The banker offered him $472….. Donald said no deal, and when asked if he wanted to swap cases he also said no….. When Case # 9 was opened and it contained $50, that made Donald a $1000 winner. It does happen! After the show we decided to go up to the Lido Marketplace and grab some dinner. Passing by the mid ship pool, we could see that the Fest Italiana was getting ready to begin. We’ll catch this next cruise….. We both made ourselves a salad, and got a plate from the buffet. Here are Patti’s plates….. Here are my plates….. Afterwards, we were both tired from our walk today, especially Patti who climbed the hill, that we decided to head back to the cabin to relax. Coming up next: Our 2nd sea day as we head back to a soggy New York City.

At 6:45 we made our way to the Teatro Rosso for Deal or No Deal. We have our cards, drinks, and favorite seats….. Al from the Fun Squad is the host tonight and he did a great job….. Tonight’s first contestant is Seth….. He hung in there for a while, but once the thousand came off the board he wound up taking the offer….. Here is the audience prize board. We didn’t win anything….. To be continued….

Patti makes her way back down the hill and meets me at Los Toros, where we have one last drink before we leave….. Here are some Los Toros views. They did a pretty good job as a Husband Daycare, but I don’t think they will survive. The place was dead the whole time I was there…. Here are some random views as we walked back to the ship….. Once back at Terminal 21, the line to get back on the ship was insanely long. I was back on board at 6pm. Patti, who wanted to browse the terminal shops for a bit, was back on at 6:30pm. To be continued…..

Looking through the buildings you can see the Venezia’s funnel….. Here are some more Citadel views and information….. To be continued…..

Patti looks down to where she came from….. This is the home of the Halifax Mooseheads….. This is the Old Town Clock….. Patti heads up to the top where you can see some great views of the city…… To be continued……

Patti stumbles onto a set where they are shooting a Christmas movie, show, or commercial, complete with snow! Patti decides to take a hike up to The Citadel….. To be continued…..

We conclude our walk on the Harbourwalk. Here is the Ferry Terminal….. This is the Dockyard Clock….. This used to be Stayner’s Wharf Pub & Grill but Covid killed it. It is now Los Toros Autentico Espanol. Insert another sad face here. I will try it out today as a Husband Daycare….. Patti leaves me with my beer and goes out exploring. There is a small shopping mall right next door….. To be continued……

Thanks for reading! So close. We'll be on the Celebration in January, and the Vista in April. One of these days! 😁

We have not done an Alaskan cruise yet. One of these years. 😁