Poll: Would you have wanted to sail on Carnival Splendor?

[AZ Karaoke Girl]

First, it was a blessing that no one died or was seriously injured or that the ship had to be abandoned. For those that were unable to navigate the ship without the use of the elevators, this might give forethought to cruising in the future. With the advent of new ships arriving monthly, the odds are that there will be other adverse events at sea, which can hamper vertical movement of several decks. However, had the need arisen, I believe that the able-bodied would have assisted those needing to travel to other decks.

 

Secondly, fittingly the day after Veterans' Day, it should be paralled that there are servicemen and women who eat cold rations daily, shower from a bottle of bottled water if it is available, sleep in tents, vehicles, or the open air, and improvise a toilet with a shovel. I would like to think that the passengers of the Splendor might reflect on this and appreciate our military a little more than before. The men and women of the Navy and Coast Guard who supplied food and water did so without expecting ceremony or accolades for their effort. Wouldn't it be nice if each passenger would adopt a sailor or soldier's family to say "Thank You for your assistance and service"?

 

Lastly, such an event (it was not a disaster), allows one to display their true character and moral fiber to themselves and those around them. It sounds as though most of the passengers and crew came through with flying colors.

 

Well, my two cents worth. Hope no one was offended. If so, so be it.

 

Captain Ronn

 

AMEN Captain Ronn. Great post!

[AZ Karaoke Girl]

Hmmm this looks like it's an official CC thread so I have to ask why one of the options refers to "Poptarts and Spam" when you have already shared another official post that "Debunks the Myth"???

 

I personally would not have signed up to go on this cruise nor do most of us have the luxury of hindsight knowing how things would progress during. Had I been on this cruise I would have spent a great deal of time trying to assist anyone that might have needed it. If what I've read about elderly people being stuck in the dark without any help or those with mobility issues being unable to go get food I know that I'd have been doing everything I could for them. I really hope that those stories have been sensationalized otherwise they are heartbreaking.

 

Good post. If I am ever in a situation like this, I will step up to the plate if I'm able bodied and assist the handicapped/elderly in getting what they need. Although I would hope the crew was taking that into consideration and bringing them food and water at least.

[dixiediva761]

I grew up on it also.. before it became polictically incorrect.. sliced thin and fried, hmm, hmm

:D:D me too I still buy it sometimes by choice and fried is the only way!

[D4]

No way would we have wanted to be on this cruise. DH has mobility problems and cannot use stairs. He also cannot stand for very long. That's why cruising is still a great vacation for us; cruise ships are very accessible. I am able-bodied, but cannot eat gluten which is in most processed food, so I have no idea what I would have done.

 

We get a balcony so at least we would have had fresh air. And we each have the new Kindles whose batteries last about a month, so we would have been fine with entertainment on our balcony. (Once the ship got into 3G range, we could have used the Kindles to email, etc without worrying about battery life. Yes, using the 3G uses more battery life, but this was a short trip.)

 

This doesn't mean we won't stop cruising. We've been on 17 cruises and love them. We know the odds of this occurring are low.

[halos]

Probably the better question for me would be would you cruise again? I'd have to really think long and hard about it;)

 

I imagine you would....

I was just taling to my 74 year old MIL on the phone...she cruises A LOT.

She mentioned the Spendor...and how all of her non-cruise-mentally-older friends practically assaulted her, saying, "See, you should never cruise! Look what could happen!"

Her response was, "Well, I certainly could experience a disaster any place at any time. I don't intend to spend my remaining years holed-up in my house!"

 

So...there's the dilema for people with special situations such as yourself. You have a child with special needs and this could have been a nightmare (or maybe not as bad as you imagine...)

Do you take the totally 'safe' road from here on out, or do you make the decision to take the risk??

 

I guess every individual will respond differently. It's not an easy decision, I imagine. I still don't think anyone on here (with the exception of possibly a few) would trivialize someone in your situation, coming off that ship if it had horribly affected your child. No one has come forward with a story like that yet, so hopefully there was no one on the ship who had that kind of situation.

I would like to believe that CCL would have handled it. They seem to have handled everything else pretty well...which may be why we haven't heard any nightmare stories yet.

 

But then again, it's still early......

[nrdsb4]

I have a great life & I echo Mamaparrotheads post. I wouldn't go as far as to say I would WANT to go through that, but if I had been on that ship, I would have survived it and had great stories to tell.

 

Yes, but the OP poll is worded in such a way as to say would you "WANT" to go through that, and several have stated that they hate their jobs so much that they would have preferred to be on that cruise, even knowing the outcome, rather than be at work. And they are entitled to that opinion, but personally, I would not sign up for something like that. I'd survive and make the best of it, but I have a little bit higher expectations than mere survival and low grade toleration of circumstances for my vacation time, given that we don't get to cruise that often. I like my job, though, so maybe if I hated going to work every day, I'd trade it for darkness, crappy food and odors, and no hot water just for the opportunity to be off work and getting free drinks.

 

I think the compensation package is pretty good.

[AZ Karaoke Girl]

I used to love my job but lately I think a few days on a stranded vessel would be a better option.:D I keep reading about spam and walking up 9 decks to get food. Even my local newspaper mentioned this. But what I've read is spam was delivered as a substitute of something CCL ordered and they never served it, not even to crew members. I personally like spam but I would not eat it cold without being fried. Plus what I read was that food was available every 3 decks. Nobody had to walk up 9 flights of stairs to get food.

[kerrytens]

I imagine you would....

I was just taling to my 74 year old MIL on the phone...she cruises A LOT.

She mentioned the Spendor...and how all of her non-cruise-mentally-older friends practically assaulted her, saying, "See, you should never cruise! Look what could happen!"

Her response was, "Well, I certainly could experience a disaster any place at any time. I don't intend to spend my remaining years holed-up in my house!"

 

So...there's the dilema for people with special situations such as yourself. You have a child with special needs and this could have been a nightmare (or maybe not as bad as you imagine...)

Do you take the totally 'safe' road from here on out, or do you make the decision to take the risk??

 

I guess every individual will respond differently. It's not an easy decision, I imagine. I still don't think anyone on here (with the exception of possibly a few) would trivialize someone in your situation, coming off that ship if it had horribly affected your child. No one has come forward with a story like that yet, so hopefully there was no one on the ship who had that kind of situation.

I would like to believe that CCL would have handled it. They seem to have handled everything else pretty well...which may be why we haven't heard any nightmare stories yet.

 

But then again, it's still early......

Halos, you need to be a motivational speaker:D

 

If ever I'm in a Splendor type situation, I want you onboard to talk me through everything!

[Hedobound1202]

First, it was a blessing that no one died or was seriously injured or that the ship had to be abandoned. For those that were unable to navigate the ship without the use of the elevators, this might give forethought to cruising in the future. With the advent of new ships arriving monthly, the odds are that there will be other adverse events at sea, which can hamper vertical movement of several decks. However, had the need arisen, I believe that the able-bodied would have assisted those needing to travel to other decks.

 

Secondly, fittingly the day after Veterans' Day, it should be paralled that there are servicemen and women who eat cold rations daily, shower from a bottle of bottled water if it is available, sleep in tents, vehicles, or the open air, and improvise a toilet with a shovel. I would like to think that the passengers of the Splendor might reflect on this and appreciate our military a little more than before. The men and women of the Navy and Coast Guard who supplied food and water did so without expecting ceremony or accolades for their effort. Wouldn't it be nice if each passenger would adopt a sailor or soldier's family to say "Thank You for your assistance and service"?

 

Lastly, such an event (it was not a disaster), allows one to display their true character and moral fiber to themselves and those around them. It sounds as though most of the passengers and crew came through with flying colors.

 

Well, my two cents worth. Hope no one was offended. If so, so be it.

 

Captain Ronn

 

 

Nicely said Captain.

 

While I don't think anyone would intentionally book a trip on a ship that was going to break down, I would have made the best of the situation. I bet that alot of friendships were formed on that trip - just because everyone had a common experience to talk about.

[kennaree]

I was on the Splendor and no thank you, I would never have chosen to be put in that situation again. The only bad part was the first 13 hours due to the overflowing, nonfunctioning toilets... plus the uncertainty of what was really going on... no fire, flameless smoke?? I was midship on Empress deck 7 and when we first came out of our room.. regardless of what John wrote about passangers only smelling smoke in his blog... as we looked aft we could SEE the smoke. After that we were fine, slept a lot and took a ton of pictures of the air show. Lived off of fresh fruit and cereal, no complaints just found what I knew I could eat. I'm not looking for sympathy or anyone to feel bad because for my situation things were not bad after 13 hours. However, I really needed a real vacation and was just disappointed because it is extremely difficult for me to coordinate time off between two jobs... so my next vacation will not be for a very long time, back to 60 hour work weeks *sigh*

[SMSACE6]

Other. I would not have set out to choose to be on this cruise knowing what was about to occur, and I doubt anyone would. However, if I had been on that cruise, I hope that I would have handled it as well as most of the people on the ship seemed to do. I applaud the people on that ship, who took it in stride and kept their senses of humor, and even when maybe even a little or a lot frightened, they kept their cool. And I know that I would have had an even heightened appreciation of the crew, all levels of crew who were pressed into an unusual level of service to keep me and all the passengers safe and looked after.

[halos]

O However, if I had been on that cruise, I hope that I would have handled it as well as most of the people on the ship seemed to do. .

 

 

For able minded people, handling something well is a decision you make. :) You don't have to hope. :)

[SMSACE6]

sorry if my wording offended you, but yes, I do hope that I would have handled it as well. I think I would have, but I dont know....I was not there!

[halos]

sorry if my wording offended you, but yes, I do hope that I would have handled it as well. I think I would have, but I dont know....I was not there!

I wasn't offended...just pointing something out, that's all. An emotionally/mentally stable person has control over how they handle a situation is all I'm saying.

[nrdsb4]

Nicely said Captain.

 

While I don't think anyone would intentionally book a trip on a ship that was going to break down, I would have made the best of the situation. I bet that alot of friendships were formed on that trip - just because everyone had a common experience to talk about.

 

Actually, numerous people have come to the board and said they definitely would book that trip if they could, some for the "adventure," others because it beats going to work, and still others for all of the above plus they would get another free cruise on top of this one.

[SMSACE6]

I wasn't offended...just pointing something out, that's all. An emotionally/mentally stable person has control over how they handle a situation is all I'm saying.

 

I am emotionally and mentally stable! This is my last comment to you!

[cathyoo]

I wasn't offended...just pointing something out, that's all. An emotionally/mentally stable person has control over how they handle a situation is all I'm saying.

 

Funny, usually the people who claim they can handle every situation are the ones who fall apart first. I'm just saying, if all emotionally/mentally stable people have control over all situations than I guess those who fight with mates, lose their temper, get annoyed, tell someone off, are mentally or emotionally challenged?

 

I truly believe you don't know how you will handle a situation until you are in that specific situation and can only hope your positive attitude wins over your fears and discomforts.

 

 

 

 

I am emotionally and mentally stable! This is my last comment to you!

[SMSACE6]

Funny, usually the people who claim they can handle every situation are the ones who fall apart first. I'm just saying, if all emotionally/mentally stable people have control over all situations than I guess those who fight with mates, lose their temper, get annoyed, tell someone off, are mentally or emotionally challenged?

 

I truly believe you don't know how you will handle a situation until you are in that specific situation and can only hope your positive attitude wins over your fears and discomforts.

 

Thankyou that was my point!

[cathyoo]

Thankyou that was my point!

 

I was agreeing with your point. I also HOPE I could find the sunny side of things. That is generally my nature but I'll know enough to know that sometimes even a sunny nature can go cloudy.

[SMSACE6]

I was agreeing with your point. I also HOPE I could find the sunny side of things. That is generally my nature but I'll know enough to know that sometimes even a sunny nature can go cloudy.

 

Yes I understand that you were agreeing with me, and I am just saying thankyou for that, especially since someone else was insinuating that my thinking was "unstable, or emotionally challenged"! Yes I too am usually very positive, but as you say; even a sunny a nature can go cloudy! especially when faced with the challenges the folks on this cruise did :)

[halos]

I am emotionally and mentally stable! This is my last comment to you!

 

 

OMG...I was NOT implying that you or anyone else isn't stable for goodness sake!

Jeeze!

 

I assure you your comprehension of my statement is totally off.

 

What I was implying is that you didn't need to HOPE you would handle the situation well. In all reality, just the idea that you would want to handle that particular situation well gets you a good part of the way to doing just that because it is a mental decision that you make.

 

I also wanted to imply that someone in a different situation ...with panic disorders, phobias or other emotional issues would not have that luxury...which is why I said 'able minded'.

 

*sigh*

 

 

I apologize that you were offended but I assure you that isn't what I meant.

 

Please go read my posts again...look at the :) I posted (not any :rolleyes:) and understand that I was NOT being snarky.

I swear sometimes folks on here are actively looking to be insulted or for an argument.

 

Thank you.

 

 

Funny, usually the people who claim they can handle every situation are the ones who fall apart first. I'm just saying, if all emotionally/mentally stable people have control over all situations than I guess those who fight with mates, lose their temper, get annoyed, tell someone off, are mentally or emotionally challenged?

 

 

 

I truly believe you don't know how you will handle a situation until you are in that specific situation and can only hope your positive attitude wins over your fears and discomforts.

 

 

 

In a dire or life threatening situation, I agree with you...but in this situation where it was more about major discomfort, I believe you make a choice in how you handle it.

 

 

 

JMO...but next time you're in an uncomfortable situation, pay attention to what goes on in your head. You'll be consciously making choices in how to deal with the situation......IF (like I said) you are healthy minded.

 

Obviosuly someone who is emotionally or mentally unstable or lacks coping skills (for lack of a better term) would have a more difficult time making a conscious decision in how to cope.

 

 

 

 

Am I making sense yet???

Everyone one of the people who made the best of that horrible cruise, made a conscious decision to handle it the way they did.

[kerrytens]

For able minded people, handling something well is a decision you make. :) You don't have to hope. :)

 

OMG...I was NOT implying that you or anyone else isn't stable for goodness sake!

Jeeze!

 

I assure you your comprehension of my statement is totally off.

 

What I was implying is that you didn't need to HOPE you would handle the situation well. In all reality, just the idea that you would want to handle that particular situation well gets you a good part of the way to doing just that because it is a mental decision that you make.

 

I also wanted to imply that someone in a different situation ...with panic disorders, phobias or other emotional issues would not have that luxury...which is why I said 'able minded'.

 

*sigh*

 

 

I apologize that you were offended but I assure you that isn't what I meant.

 

Please go read my posts again...look at the :) I posted (not any :rolleyes:) and understand that I was NOT being snarky.

I swear sometimes folks on here are actively looking to be insulted or for an argument.

 

Thank you.

 

 

 

 

 

 

In a dire or life threatening situation, I agree with you...but in this situation where it was more about major discomfort, I believe you make a choice in how you handle it.

 

 

 

JMO...but next time you're in an uncomfortable situation, pay attention to what goes on in your head. You'll be consciously making choices in how to deal with the situation......IF (like I said) you are healthy minded.

 

Obviosuly someone who is emotionally or mentally unstable or lacks coping skills (for lack of a better term) would have a more difficult time making a conscious decision in how to cope.

 

 

 

 

Am I making sense yet???

Everyone one of the people who made the best of that horrible cruise, made a conscious decision to handle it the way they did.

I totally understood where you were coming from with the first post. And I 100% agree with you too.

[nrdsb4]

I totally understood where you were coming from with the first post. And I 100% agree with you too.

 

I agree for the most part. HOWEVER, there can be times where someone who normally lets things roll off their shoulders does fall apart at the seams, depending on what else is going on in their lives. Sometimes if it seems you are getting hit from all fronts, it just takes that little "straw" to break the camel's back.

[halos]

I totally understood where you were coming from with the first post. And I 100% agree with you too.

 

Thank you.

[halos]

I agree for the most part. HOWEVER, there can be times where someone who normally lets things roll off their shoulders does fall apart at the seams, depending on what else is going on in their lives. Sometimes if it seems you are getting hit from all fronts, it just takes that little "straw" to break the camel's back.

I totally agree with that as well...but after some amount of time (minutes, hours, days even), you still make the decision whether to remain in that state or snap the heck out of it.

I also think that in a lot of cases, people with other 'crap' going on, might even actually forget about it in those circumstances.

In emergency situations, the best usually comes out in people....which to me is very cool. :)