devinelaw

Here are the dailies for Day 3……

Monday, Amber Cove, DR, Day Three Miscellaneous: Got up at 7am this morning and we walked the Waterfront area on Deck 8 a few laps around the ship then went to Guest Services to inquire again about the wine that was charged Saturday evening that still hadn’t been corrected. Guest Services said they’d inquire again and it should be resolved by this evening. Breakfast: We had breakfast in Taste this morning while we were sailing into AC. I had the bagel and smoked salmon, my wife had scrambled eggs, bacon and oatmeal. It was very good and the service was fantastic. Amber Cove: AC is a nice cruise ship docking location. We arrived at 9am and we were off the ship in no time very easily and toured the port area, did a little shopping. Back on Board: We were back onboard by 10:30am and up to the Vibe Beach Club for some sun. There were probably 6-7 other couples there. The waitstaff brought around water, sandwiches and fresh fruit. In addition they come around from time to time and ask what drinks you want. The sun is shining and is very warm today. It was nice enjoying the VBC. After several hours in the sun we decided to head down to the Thermal Spa and spent some time in the therapy pool, sauna and snow room then relaxed in the loungers watching the Caribbean Sea. We then had a late lunch in the Garden Café and headed back to the cabin to sit on the balcony and get ready for the evening and dinner at Cagney’s Steakhouse. We also had a surprise when we got back to our cabin, tapas and a few treats to enjoy, courtesy of the ships General Manager. We also started hiding our cruising ducks that we started doing several cruises back after stumbling on the cruising duck FB page. Cabin Steward Services: Our cabin steward is Erwin he is a rockstar. He keeps the room refreshed and the number of towels and wash rags we’ve requested, also keeps our ice filled and brought us our extra pillows the first evening. Every time he sees us he addresses us by name and asks how our day is going! Will post later about dinner and the comedy show we have scheduled later this evening……

It’s in Supper Club which you sign up for at the Super Club location

They are showing it in Atrium, Headliners, O’Sheehans, Spice H2O and stateroom tvs

No typo, they were ready after Muster Drill at 4:45pn

Sunday, Sea Day, Day Two: Miscellaneous: Finally fell asleep at 2am only to wake up at 4am and couldn’t go back to sleep 🤷🏻‍♂️ So checked email and posts at 5am, went to Guest Services at 5:30am (No Line😂) as there was a $119 charge for the wine at Savor the night before on our account and shouldn’t have been as we have FAS Plus. Tip, the waiter said the wine listed on a menu that are by bottle and glass are included in FAS Premium drink package, those that are only listed by bottle, not by glass, are not, but you get 40% discount. Anyway, the Guest Services Rep couldn’t get anyone from the Beverage Department night shift so said she’d take care of it when day shift came in at 7:30am and would get our account corrected. Then went to the Fitness area of the Spa and walked a few miles on the treadmill. At 10am went down to the Theater and picked up Port information and at 12:30pm back to the Theater to pick up Port Shopping information. Vibe Beach Club: ***A bit of an issue first thing this morning with the VBC. First they had the upper deck roped off with a sign stating closed due to inclement weather. We went to Guest Services to see if the VBC was closed but they had no information and said it should be open for access. Once in it was windy but no more so than Deck 18 or most of Deck 17. Bar staff started showing up so thinking maybe Deck 19 was roped off overnight and they merely hadn’t reopened it yet. The ship is moving at a healthy clip too so that affects wind too, so as it was 8:30am maybe the Captain would slow down later so it is not so windy. The hot tub was also dirty, filled with what looked like black ash and also the button to turn on the jets didn’t work. Nevertheless, VBC beats not having a crowded area, but starting out to not be like our prior two experiences. They did come and clean the hot tub but at 11am they closed the deck including the VBC because of wind, so we and the other three couples had to leave. We walked Deck 18 and 17 just below and they were just as windy but didn’t close them. Wondering if it has more to do with the low numbers in VBC this morning and deploying staff elsewhere on a full ship. Frustrating to pay for this area to avoid crowds then they shut it down. This resulted in our Sun day being cut short because the other decks were packed. We will see how they handle VBC rest of week, but each of the three NCL cruises we’ve gotten VBC passes and each time the ship has been packed so glad we did. We’ve said each time if we didn’t have the VBC, NCL wouldn’t be worth sailing due to the crowd. If we have another day with VBC closed we will likely not sail NCL again anytime soon.*** Thermal Suite: Once we were told to vacate the VBC we headed over to the thermal suite. It was interesting. The show room was nice and cold, tried the sauna and sanarium. The heated stone loungers were nice as was the therapy pool and whirlpool. We’re glad we tried it this cruise and we’ll use it throughout the week, but both agreed it’s not something we’d do again for $600. Nice but not quite worth that in our opinion. Breakfast: After my workout, went back to the cabin at 6:45am and woke my sweetheart up and convinced her to go get breakfast with me. We headed up to the Garden Café one floor up had breakfast with a back of ship view then went back to the cabin and got ready for a day at the VBC. Lunch: Stopped by the Garden Café and had a quick bite. Then headed to the American Diner and had a milkshake. Very milky, in that it was almost regular milk, not really frozen and definitely not worth the $7 each. Dinner: As it’s Super Bowl Sunday we decided to forgo the dining room and ate dinner at O’Sheehans. Had wings (very good), nachos (average), chili (good), cheeseburger (good) and Rueben (no sauerkraut and American cheese, not really a Rueben). This was a location playing the game, waitstaff seemed off kilter that people were talking their time and not turning over tables as normal. They don’t seem to comprehend the the hype over the Super Bowl. Starbucks: Stopped by to grab our SB and headed back to cabin to finish the game. Go Chiefs!! VIP Reception in Haven: Were invited to a cocktail party in the Haven Courtyard with the Captain and Ship General Manager but it’s at 7pm and there’s a Super Bowl, so as much as it would be interesting to see the Haven area not going to miss the game for it. TOMORROW’S PREVIEW: Amber Cove and Anniversary Day (35 years ago tomorrow, at the ages of 20 & 21, proposed to my sweetheart (we will celebrate 34 years of marriage in June)

Copies of Freestyle Dailies…..

CAPTAINS LOG, STAR DATE 2/11/2023 😂. It’s late. NCL ESCAPE LIVE REVIEW….. Saturday Evening, Day One: Dinner: Dinner was in Savor’s at 8:45pm. It was very good!! See pics! Guest Services: Had to stop by, had $410 in onboard credit’s but only info on $270 dropped by room but got it resolved. Also didn’t have our Thermal Spa passes dropped in room but learned you get those taken care of in Spa, checked that box off. We’re supposed to have 12 bottled waters with FAS Plus, still working on that. Shows: We attended the Dazzling Deceptions Magic Show with Brian Ledbetter from Seattle in the Theater at 9pm. Great show!! He starts in Branson Missouri in March through December. At 11pm we watched the Comedy Night with Vince Acevedo at Headliners. Very very funny, was an equal opportunity offender. Vibe Beach Club: We have sailed NCL three times and got passes for the Vibe BC each time. It’s one of our favorite places. One piece of advice for NCL. In the past we had to purchase passes online and got the entrance card or band once you purchased allowing access on the day we boarded. This time they we purchased online and were put in our cabins which were not ready until late so this kept us from going to the Vibe BC to hangout on Saturday. We found other things to do but would’ve been nice to have access since we paid a premium for it. Starbucks: Stopped by SB and got my Hot Venti White Chocolate Mocha with whipped cream & 5x shots ☕️, maybe that’ll keep me awake. Wife got same but iced w/o shots and whipped cream. Luggage & Misc.: Some had asked specifically about usb fan we packed being confiscated, it made it to room and case of mini cokes and sprites we packed they made it to room too as well as all our room snacks! Actually everything we packed was there. Did use TSA approved locks, not sure if that made a difference or not. Also with cokes, they have Coke Zero and just about every time we order a Coke they give us a can. Editors Note 😂: Excuse any typos in the posts, spell correct and fast typing may happen from time to time. My sweetheart 🥰 is monitoring my posts and lovingly pointed them out. She’s an accountant, very particular, I’m an attorney and go for accuracy but also move fast, I’ve usually got people for catching things in review, but she wouldn’t volunteer for that on the cruise 😜😂 It’s midnight and we’re tired and going to bed 😴😴😴😴

Yes, my sweetheart of 33 years has reminded of that 😜🫣

Terminal Wait: We were cleared to start boarding at 10:30 am, Group 2 was called at 10:55 am and we were on board within 5 minutes. Boarding Ship: Dinner Reservations/Ship embarkation: We immediately went to Headliners to make a dinner reservation change for Valentines Day and were successful. We had booked all specialty dining (4 meals) online but wanted to make a change due to an excursion in St. Thomas. We’ve also booked all MDR times except tomorrow’s which we will play by ear. We will eat in La Cucina, Cagney’s Steakhouse and Moderno (2x). Changed Le Bistro for a second Moderno (which we enjoy) because we want outdoor dining option with the view which Le Bistro doesn’t offer. Show Reservations/Ship embarkation: After the dining change which took all of 10 minutes we headed to the Box Office where we scheduled two comedy shows. We also plan on attending the comedy show in the theater as well as the magic show. We’ve seen the Choir of Man and decided to forgo this trip. Lunch: We went to the Garden Café and had lunch. It wasn’t too crowded and the food was decent. Spice H2O: After lunch we went to Spice H2O and found some comfy chairs by the hot tub. Right behind the grotto is a large all access restroom where we were able to change into our bathing suits and spent an hour or so in the hot tub, lounging in the sun and having the bar tender make frozen concoctions. Onboard Wi-Fi: We purchased the upgraded Wi-Fi for our two iPhones. We ultimately had to get the assistance of the Internet café to get connected. It’s a little cumbersome to figure out. My wife was set up by the Internet café and by the time she made it back to me on the Waterfront I had set it up by trail and error somehow. Speed so far seems ok, I’m able to post anyway. We can also iMessage with family back home. We are with T-Mobile and four $50 I purchased an International Pass that allows 15 go of data and unlimited calling to the states on the islands we are visiting so we can check in on family and pets. Muster Drill: Our muster station is F7. After asking a NCL employee who didn’t know wheee F was I finally was headed to the guest service area and saw on the big screen mystery stations. Ours was The Manhattan Room. Note to future sailors, look closely at the daily….it’s in there 🤦🏻‍♂️. The muster drill is in the daily for 3:30pm. The NCL employees didn’t come out with muster signs until exactly 3:30pm. Once it started, you get your card scanned, they go through the process then your done. One complaint the Cruise Director came over the intercom at 3:45pm and said we’d do a muster drill in exactly 30 minutes. Muster Drill instructions began at 4:15pm, it was finished by 4:23pm, then began the mad rush to disperse everyone back into the ship. Aft Cabin Deck 15: Cabins were not officially ready until X pm. Some were going behind the signed doors starting staff was working on cabins to see if their cabin was finished. There obviously are staffing issues as this is the first cruise, in twelve, our cabin hasn’t been ready by at least before the muster drill. After our hot tub time we made our way to the Waterfront, found a seating area and sat there with a drink waiting for the muster drill. It was relaxing and made a few new friends while sitting and talking in the view and ocean breeze. Sail Away from Aft Balcony: Sail out was to be at 4pm, but at 4:15pm we were still sitting in The Manhattan waiting for the muster drill to be completed. Cabins has still not been announced as ready. 4:45 CABINS ARE READY AND WE’RE SAILING OUT!!!!!

Current view, cabins not ready, time for the hot tub, will post embarkation thoughts later…..

Hot off the Press:

Launch got moved to Saturday night or Sunday night due to possibility of high winds, so much for a seeing one up close. At least we live in Florida so can always drive up sometime.

It’s quickly become standing room only. Seeing people with boarding cards in the teens. If all these people are at the pool, I’m so glad we got our Vibe Beach passes again this cruise!! Betting this ship is going to be packed.

Embarkation Day: Arriving at the Port: After breakfast at Grills Seafood and Tiki Hut at 7am, we left for the Port at 8:15am arriving to drop off our luggage and parking in the Parking Garage. Very easy process, found a parking spot on first level. From there we walked over to the NCL terminal entrance to stand in line, we were 8th from the front at 8:30am. The line started getting very long shortly thereafter. We put AirTags in our luggage for the first time and were able to track it. It is actually pretty cool seeing it traverse the port and ship. The doors opened to go through Security at 9:50am. There was a delay due to an emergency health issue they said. Once the line through security opened it was very hectic at the security check point. Have your passport and your boarding pass ready. Also have your pockets empty because they will have you empty them then you are rushing to zip things back up in your backpack. I speak from experience here as I quickly threw my passport card and credit card into one of the pockets then had to totally unpack the backpack once seated to find them. Once in we moved straight to check in which was expedited because we checked in online, got our key cards and went to seats waiting for our boarding number to be called. We are boarding number 2. NCL Check-In Inside Terminal: The terminal is nice. It gets really crowded quickly once open and within 20 minutes has become packed. It’s 10:23 and boarding has not yet started. Tip: We arrived at 8:15 and drove up to drop our luggage with the porters. Right by the drop off is the Terminal Entrance. Had I known this my wife could’ve taken the backpack and got into line while I went to park the car. It was a short walk from the garage, but could’ve saved her the walk.

It’s 2:07 a.m.

I don’t believe they are, but not totally sure. I’ll try and post about that tomorrow.

UPDATE 2/10/23….. Pre-Cruise Report: Mid-morning Friday we drove up to Cocoa Beach from our home in South Florida. We are staying the night at the Cocoa Beach Hilton Garden Inn Oceanfront. Plans are to do a little shopping, walk on the beach, enjoy a nice dinner and later in the evening watch the SpaceX rocket launch, breakfast Saturday morning prior to getting to the port and arriving at the Port at 8:30am for our 9-9:30am check in time. Hotel: We are staying at the Cocoa Beach Hilton Garden Inn Oceanside. We are Hilton Honors members and were able to use some of our points towards the reservation. We arrived at 1:30pm and sat by the pool area with ocean view and did a little last minute work. Check in is at 4pm, but we were able to get into our room at 2:30pm. We have a King/Partial Ocean View. Nice room, looks recently remodeled. Nice desk area for my wife to finish up some of her last minute work before it’s computers off. The balcony and view facing north up the coast provides a perfect vantage point for the SpaceX launch tonight 🚀 Shopping: We visited RonJon Surf Shop, souvenir spending is off to a healthy start after that visit 🫣 Dinner: We had dinner at Squid Lips in Cocoa Beach. Nice riverside view of the Indian River. We’ll post more in the morning….

UPDATE: If your in Port Canaveral the night before embarkation, a rocket launch was just announced for early on the 11th. We saw last nights launch from our home in South Florida. Excited to see one so close up!!

Interesting, I’ll let you know!

UPDATE 2/5/2023: All packed & ready to go…… Packing List: Clothing: t-shirts, shorts, long pants, jeans, long sleeve shirts, swimsuits, swim shirts, underwear and bras, light sweater, belt, pajamas, workout clothes, boat shoes, tennis shoes, water shoes, poncho, socks. Cabin/Deck items: small usb fan, plug adapters, multi plug strip, magnetic hooks, towel bands, iPads (movies downloaded), iPod, Bluetooth speaker, kindle, travel games, post it notes, pens, plug and cords in organizer, quick charger for cell phones, first aid kit (Covid based items included (tests, thermometer & masks)), suntan lotions, after sun lotion, Clorox wipes, Lysol spray, pop up clothes hamper, in room snacks, flavor packets for water bottles. Travel and Excursion items: AirTags, backpack, waterproof bag, lanyards, plastic cruise luggage tag holders, go pro and accessories, waterproof phone case Personal items: boarding documents, passports, cash, credit cards, Covid-19 vaccination cards, prescription medications, Tylenol, Advil, contacts, glasses, glass cleaning wipes, hand wipes, toothbrush, toothpaste, floss, mouthwash, deodorant, q-tips, makeup, volumizer hair dryer brush, shampoo and conditioner, hand sanitizer, hand lotion, body lotion, eye drops, razor, shaving cream, after shave balm, fingernail clippers, tide stick, wrinkle release spray, eucalyptus shower beads, silicone wedding bands, apple watch, cellphones, AirPods, sunglasses, reading glasses.

7 DAY COUNTDOWN…..Going to attempt to do a live or at least semi-live review of our first cruise since the Covid-19 pandemic. My DW and I went on our first cruise in 1999 for our 10 year anniversary. This will be our 12th cruise. We have been on the Carnival Pride, Paradise, Glory and Breeze, Royal Caribbean Navigator, Disney Magic (x2), Caribbean Princess, Holland America Westerdam, Norwegian Escape and Getaway, and this cruise will be our second on the Escape. During this cruise we will have the Super Bowl LVII (Go CHIEFS!!), Valentine’s Day and celebrate the 35th Anniversary of my proposal (married 33 years) to my DW. We were last on the Escape February 2020 as Covid-19 was just spreading from Asia to other parts of the world and was tracking the news of outbreaks in places other than the United States while onboard in the Western Caribbean. Once back in the U.S. the first cases were hitting the news from Washington State. We are originally from the Midwest (Indiana) and moved to Florida seven years ago. We will be driving up to Port Canaveral from our home in South Florida the day before we embark and sail out. Our itinerary will be Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic, St. Thomas, USVI, Tortola, BVI and GSC in the Bahamas. We have booked an Aft Balcony Cabin on Deck 15. We upgraded to FAS Plus giving us two extra specialty dining meals, unlimited Wi-Fi, $50 excursion credits per port per person and premium plus beverage package. We have scheduled Cagney’s Steakhouse, Moderno Churrascaria, Le Bistro and La Cucina for our specialty dining choices. We have Savor and the Manhattan Room scheduled for MDR meals and plan on going to O’Sheehans, the American Diner and Food Republic. We have booked passes for the week for the Vibe Beach Club (have done this on all NCL cruises) and the Thermal Suite (first time). This cruise we were able to book the Vibe Beach Club online which was really nice!! Previously we got to the port early to get on the ship and snag the passes before they sold out. We have two shore excursions scheduled, the Champagne Harbor Cruise in St. Thomas and Escape to Jost Van Dyke in the BVI. Our plans are to experience the Taino Bay cruise port and visit Paseo De Dona Blanca and Umbrella Street and the sights of Downtown Puerto Plata in the Dominican Republic, shop at Havensight Mall and the Harbor Cruise in St.Thomas, visit Jost Van Dyke and the Soggy Dollar in BVI and enjoy staying on the ship at GSC. Have fun following along, we will post our thoughts, opinions, the dailies and lots of pictures while I have fun seeing what the camera on my new iPhone 14 Pro Max can do. We will post pre-cruise packing and travel suggestions this week, embarkation day details and cruise week activities and photos as we can.