Reflection review with photos - Day 3 - New Year's Eve & San Juan

Pre-cruise Day

Reflection review with photos - Day 1 - Miami

Reflection review with photos - Day 2 - At Sea

Day 3 – Dec. 31 – San Juan

Today’s Random Notes

• Our cabin, #9190 was extremely quiet. We heard no noise at all from outside the room. And the location was great, right by the stairs and the elevator.

• Treats at Café al Bacio were delicious (and free – you only have to pay for the coffee/tea if you don’t have a beverage package). I loved the little lemon tarts.

• If you’re in the Ensemble Lounge, you can also get any drink or beer that they may have in the nearby Michael’s Club. The bar staff will be happy to go there for you. We often had a terrific waiter from Indonesia in the Ensemble Lounge– I think his name was Luis?

I'm about halfway through loading all my cruise photos on to Flickr. I'll be finished today, and I will post the link to the entire set (about 300 photos) for anyone who may be interested.

Well, by now I probably don’t need to tell you where we had breakfast. (This picture is not from breakfast that day - but is the best I have showing the outdoor area, looking down from the Sunset Bar).

After breakfast I stopped by the ‘sidewalk sale’ to pick up what has become a cruise tradition for me – the purchase of yet another (probably not actually needed) $10 evening purse (this time a dove grey silky clutch). As the casino was in very close proximity to the stores, my son and I threw away $20 on the slot machines and video poker. We didn't win anything, but we had a few laughs.

The previous evening, at the Reflection Show and Captain's toast, the Captain Nicholas Pagonis had told us that while the original itinerary had us scheduled to arrive in San Juan at 3, and the Celebrity Today had indicated our arrival would actually be 5 pm, he thought we would be early, and would probably be there before 3 pm. So we went to lunch at Bistro on 5 around 12:30, and before we our food had arrived we were sailing by the Fort San Felipe del Morro. We had a great view from our window table! We were docked before 2. It was a cloudy day, and our plan was to walk up to Castillo de San Cristóbal as soon as we were off the ship. It was starting to drizzle before we got there, but we walked quickly up the hill, and were able to tour the fort and enjoy the terrific views from there before any real rain hit. If you go to the fort, you might want to start by watching the 15 minute video that is shown in the Visitors Center (at the bottom of the fort and hill). We didn't know much about the history of San Juan, or the fort, and the video provided some helpful background.

When we were last in San Juan, when on the Solstice, we had really enjoyed a snack and a drink at the Parrot Club. We were also able to use their free WiFi to call home with Skype. That day, in February of 2009, the bar had not been very busy, and we had no trouble finding bar stools. This visit we hoped to do the same.

But this time the Parrot Club was full of people - locals and cruisers. There were no tables, and no bar stools, but we were told we were welcome to stand at the bar to get a drink. We were happy to do that, but we stood, and stood, and stood….. At least 20 minutes later, and after repeated apologies from the bartender because she had not served us or even given us a menu, we were offered a table. The bartender took our drink orders and told us they were ‘on the house’ because of the long wait. Service was slow at the table too, but we eventually ordered chicken nuggets, French fries, and a quesadilla. The food, when it arrived, was cold, and the French fries never arrived. When we asked for the bill, the waiter volunteered that he had ‘tried to get the fries out of the kitchen, but couldn't’. We still repeat that line and laugh – they must have been very heavy French fries! Anyway, the prices are quite high at the Parrot Club, and this certainly wasn't a duplicate of the first great visit we had enjoyed in 2009, so we wouldn't go again. But we were able to use the WiFi, and got three free drinks, and missed the rain, so it wasn't all bad!

After leaving the Parrot Club we wandered around the Old Town for a bit, then headed to the CVS drug store, along with hundreds of other cruisers. That place really is a gold mine – so many of us cruisers seemed to need various toiletries or other items just one day after leaving Miami.. ha ha. But the selection is quite good and the prices reasonable. After CVS we popped into the Ralph Lauren outlet next door, but didn't find the prices that discounted, and so we left empty handed.

There wasn't really anything more we wanted to do in San Juan, so we headed back to the ship, and directly to the Sunset Bar, before going to our room to get ready for dinner. We watched the small planes land at the nearby airport, and seaplanes land, and other cruise ships sail away as the sun set. It was lovely.

New Year’s Eve was an “optional” formal night. Many people, women especially, were VERY dressed up and very blingy. I love high heels and wore them on most nights, but I have never seen so many really, really high heels as I saw on this cruise. Many women were toppling around on heels that were at least five inches. Four inch heels are about my limit, and I wore those on the last formal night and walked very carefully! On the other hand, many men didn't dress up at all on New Year’s Eve, including my husband. All he had to do was read was those two words in Celebrity Today - ‘formal optional’, and his wardrobe decision was made!

We were seated this night in a back corner of the Opus Dining Room. It felt a bit ‘out of it’ (and we listened to one woman freak out the table she was given, while she yelled "But I'm Select!"...sigh), but really it was quiet and fine. I really enjoyed my dinner – a crab and avocado appetizer, AND also a blue cheese soufflé. My entrée was the rack of lamb, and dessert was the chocolate tombstone. I also had a glass of Merlot, a glass of Shiraz, and a cappuccino. All was delicious, and I was very full.

Our son went to the gym, and my husband and I went to catch the last 20 minutes of the comedian/magician Scott Alexander in the Reflection Theater. I thought his tricks were amazing, and he was very funny. He got a standing ovation, so I think most of the audience would have agreed.

After the show ended we stopped by for our first visit to the Molecular Bar. I LOVE the drinks at that bar – so fresh, and innovative and often not too sweet. I’m not a fan of sweet drinks. I had a Dragonfly and a Cazarita. I wanted a drink (that I can't remember the name of, but it features avocados) but the bartender said the avocados they had on board were OK for making guacamole (always available in the buffet), but not for making a cocktail. Both drinks were excellent, but I didn’t finish the second – it was quite large and quite strong, and I still had to walk around in those four inch heels!

As midnight got closer we headed up to the pool area, which was really hopping, but it was also really windy and my hair was flying around so much I couldn't see where I was walking in my four inch heels. Potential for disaster.

So we headed inside and down to the Grand Foyer area, and rang in the New Year there. In both areas (and I’m sure other areas of the ships) there were many trays of champagne available. In the first hour of 2013 we really enjoyed chatting with Rory The Musician and his girlfriend DeMara. Rory had been performing in that area immediately before the clock struck midnight. (We had met Rory and DeMara on the first day, just after boarding).

I've now posted all my Relection Cruise photos to Flickr. You can see them here.

There are a lot, but, hopefully, there might be a photo of some aspect or place you've not yet seen!

Thanks for the reviews!

Thanks for the review and pictures!

Thanks for reading :)

Thanks to your great work.

We are taking the same cruise itinery on Reflection this Easter and your work is really a treasure for us(this is our virgin sail!)

From the itinery, Reflection will arrive St Juan at 3pm and depart at 10pm. Do you think that it is quite hurry? We are considering the excursion of visiting the Fort on the segway(2 hours). Do you think its a good idea?

For the places you had visited, are they at walking distance from the dock or you need a taxi or anything?

You've mentioned the Opus Dining Room. Where is it on board? Or you just mean the Main Dining Room?

Sorry for popping up so many questions.

Once again, thank you so much.

Thanks to your great work.

We are taking the same cruise itinery on Reflection this Easter and your work is really a treasure for us(this is our virgin sail!)

From the itinery, Reflection will arrive St Juan at 3pm and depart at 10pm. Do you think that it is quite hurry? We are considering the excursion of visiting the Fort on the segway(2 hours). Do you think its a good idea?

For the places you had visited, are they at walking distance from the dock or you need a taxi or anything?

You've mentioned the Opus Dining Room. Where is it on board? Or you just mean the Main Dining Room?

Sorry for popping up so many questions.

Once again, thank you so much.

You will probably have time to do the excursion to the forts. They are a walkable distance from the port, unless you have any health problems. There are a lot of hills, and cobblestone streets, so I would recommend good walking shoes!

Opus Dining room is the Main dining room. It is on decks 3 and 4.

Hope you have a wonderful cruise!

Nice review.

I'm sure you will LOVE The Reflection - what a wonderful way to start your cruise career!

We have been to San Juan twice, and walked to everything we wanted to see. Old San Juan is quite compact. We have visited both forts in San Juan, and enjoyed both. If you are reasonably fit and have no mobility issues, you can easily walk to either fort (but it can be quite a HOT walk!). I think the Segway tour would be great. We've not done that in San Juan, but we did do a four or five hour Segway tour of Paris a few years ago, and loved it.

And yes - Opus is the main dining room.

Thanks to your great work.

We are taking the same cruise itinery on Reflection this Easter and your work is really a treasure for us(this is our virgin sail!)

From the itinery, Reflection will arrive St Juan at 3pm and depart at 10pm. Do you think that it is quite hurry? We are considering the excursion of visiting the Fort on the segway(2 hours). Do you think its a good idea?

For the places you had visited, are they at walking distance from the dock or you need a taxi or anything?

You've mentioned the Opus Dining Room. Where is it on board? Or you just mean the Main Dining Room?

Sorry for popping up so many questions.

Once again, thank you so much.