Shy Girl Goes To Sea. An Ecstasy Review 11/17/11

[Cruising-Solo]

And as far as boyfriends go...alot of men are only good for one thing. Come to think of it, alot of them aren't even good for that!:mad:

 

I really tried to resist replying to this, but I guess I just don't have the will power any longer in my middle years.

 

Could you imagine if a man made this comment about women? Wow, this thread would have an additional 100 messages or so on this alone, and would only take away from the beautiful writings by Patricia;)

[KrystalWaters]

dah-dah-tadah....go Tricia go!!:p

[chuckwagon52]

BRAVO, a great review. I have also sailed solo, but I imagine its a different experience from a male perceptive. Do the set dinner next time. I was lucky that I was placed at a table with other single cruisers. Luckier that it was just me and 4 single ladies lol. Thanks again. Chuckwagon

[TriciaEMTB]

Thanks! I'm so ticked my bandwidth is still down. I'm not a great photographer or anything but I feel like its kind of lacking without pictures.

[MyDogRudy]

Great review! We stopped at Nassau on my first cruise and just thought it was so-so, but your adventure sounds fun and intrigues me if I ever end up there again. Hard to believe you are shy with how 'outgoing' your activities were and how open you were about your trip. It was a joy to read and I haven't even gone to the link to see the rest of your pictures yet. Great point of view and very engaging writing style. Looking forward to your next cruise to read the review. Thank you for taking the time and hope you meet someone great some day - you deserve it.

[atinys]

i wanted to add to everyone else and say that was a grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrreaaaaaaaaaaaaat review...even without seeing the pics...now that i have seen the pics.... i love it even more.

 

you have inspired me to go solo.... and ive added the ecstasy to my growing list of ships i just gotta go on :)

 

thank you so much for sharing your experiences.

[TriciaEMTB]

The pictures are back :D

[cuyahoga11]

The pictures are back :D

 

They are gone again.

[TriciaEMTB]

What the heck :(

[All4fun&fun4all]

What the heck :(

 

This happened to me in the middle of my review as well. You are going to have to upgrade to Pro in Photobucket. It's $2.99 a month but in my opinion worth it. I can upload all my pics that I want to be public there.

[nat_mychelle]

I absolutely loved your review!!!!!!!! I will be going on my first cruise in Feb with my best friend who is married and I am single. I have bought some dresses for the cruise and have not worn a dress in YEARS!!! Like at least 10 but even though I am heavy set I really wanna look nice and wear the cute sleeveless beach clothes and dresses too! So I decided to go outside of my comfort zone and get them for the cruise! Now I just hope i have the courage to go through with wearing them! Thanks so much for help me feel better about cruising!

 

Great pics too!!!

[PaulMedik]

Tricia,

 

Great review! I always cruise with my family, but your review proves that going alone is just as enjoyable.

 

Cruises should be mandatory for all EMS folks; in fact we should be required to submit a S&S card along with our ACLS, PALS, BTLS cards each renewal period. ;) Our S&S would be proof that we are taking care of ourselves since we have to submit proof that we can take care of others.

 

Bon Voyage on your next cruise adventure!

[Mist_ynight]

I had no trouble seeing the pictures. Great review Patricia! I'm not even going on this ship and I couldn't stop reading it! I agree with other posters that you should do traditional dining, I don't think I would cruise without doing traditional dining. I love meeting new people. I'm not shy by any means and I don't know if I would cruise alone.

[mumofsons]

Great Job Tricia! My very first cruise was in the early 80's and I cruised Solo - it was a windjammer cruise and they put you in a room with another solo cruiser - not sure I would do it like that now :)

Sounds like you had a nice time and your pictures were great - one of my personal favs is the one in the Bahamas where all the ships are lined up. Loved it!

[vetgirl]

This was great! I was hoping to find Ecstacy reviews today(this ship is in one of two choices for our next booking) and yours was the first to pop up! Gave me confidence that this sounds like a winner! I love cozy, smaller ships!

[MyMoses]

I just wanted to tell you how much I enjoyed your review. Good for you for going solo and not letting a recent break up ruin your trip. I agree that you don't sound shy at all. You really put yourself out there with talking to people and dancing. You're going to find someone new and worthwhile in no time. I think you looked fantastic in your formal dress. $36 seriously? Girl, I need to take you shopping with me.

 

Maybe I'll solo cruise one day, but my husband and daughter might not be up for that!

[Pauser]

Tricia:

 

Just wanted to say I loved reading your review! Thanks for taking the time to post it. It sounds like you're not so shy after all! :D

 

Next time definitely do the traditional dining and join a roll call. It makes it much easier to meet people.

 

I hope you enjoy your next cruise and come back here to tell us about it!

 

Best wishes.

[tattoos]

Tricia, your words pulled me into your adventure, thanks for sharing. Your dress was beautiful and you look so happy. The Valor is a fabulous ship and just the right size for a follow-up to the Ecstasy. The Dream was a little too big for my taste....I much prefer the Conquest or Fantasy class ships. Some solo cruisers don't even bother eating in the MDR, they just eat all their meals at the buffet venues. If they're serving prime rib in the MDR, they'll be serving it at the buffet also. If you have an assigned dining time, Carnival will seat you with other solo cruisers. I met a woman on my last cruise who was traveling with her husband but he hated going to the MDR to eat so he went to the buffet and she went to the MDR. Even when you cruise with other people, they go in one direction and you go in another. Not everyone likes to do the same things. There are days on a cruise when I don't see my traveling companions all day until we meet up for dinner and get caught up so don't feel like everyone is feeling sorry for you because you are alone. One event I would recommend you attend on your next cruise is Tea Time (even if you hate tea), usually held on sea days in one of the lounges. The desserts are fabulous, no chocolate melting cake but delicious cream filled scones, little sandwiches (cucumber and also smoked salmon, blech!!!), three layer yellow cake with lemon curd filling, an awesome three layer chocolate cake with chocolate ganache frosting, strawberry cake, fresh, huge, strawberries with bowls of fresh whipped cream, fruit tarts, etc. It is a nice respite from the hustle and bustle of the ship and I never miss Tea Time (I go alone).

 

Thanks again for making me smile.

 

Rose

[NeuroQueen]

What a refreshing and wonderful review. You are now hooked on cruising and I loved watching it happen paragraph by paragraph. I, too work in the healthcare field and a cruise is perfect for leaving it all behind. Lucky you live in Florida and can cruise so easily. People hate us, you know.

 

My mom and I did the Inagural voyage on the Esctasy in 1991 and she holds a very special place in my heart. I swear I'm going to do a solo one day. You are so brave and you looked beautiful on elegant night. Can't wait for another review. I think you have found several people to cruise with just from this review alone. Have a wonderful new year and happy cruising!!!

[twinmommy08]

I loved your review and honest comments. Its so nice to read smart comments from a charming young lady.

[PittsburghGirlee]

Have you decided when your next cruise iis going to be? I think I read that your next will not be solo?? Either way, make sure you do a review as I so enjoyed reading this one:D

 

 

Cheers

[mesjr2112]

What a great review of Ecstasy. My wife and I are taking our first cruise on 3-3-12 and I have been very uptight about going on this cruise. I have had my share of Ocean Life (Navy) and wasn't crazy about going with her. After reading your review I have done a complete 360 and am getting more excited about this TY so much for your review.:)

[h_blond2]

Let me start by saying that you are so much braver than I am! I don't think I could ever cruise solo! Fabulous review...I loved all the pictures!

[TriciaEMTB]

Have you decided when your next cruise iis going to be? I think I read that your next will not be solo?? Either way, make sure you do a review as I so enjoyed reading this one:D

 

 

Cheers

 

You're correct! After much back and forth on which cruise, which embarkation port, and who'se going... We FINALLY decided to take the Carnival Glory out of Miami 11/25/12.

 

I'm going with my younger cousin who will be 21 in March. He has had a rough time lately and is really looking forward to cruising, but it might as well be solo as I'm doing all the planning and he refuses to help and is very noncommittal "Whatever you want to do, Trish. I don't care" :rolleyes:

 

Ooooookay. But don't complain to me when you're standing on the platform of the tallest zipline in Roatan :D

 

I'm doing a lot of planning for this cruise, and it's going to be just a fantastic adventure for us both, I'm really going for the "WOW!" factor.

 

My cousin doesn't share my adventurous spirit, though. I mentioned to him that we could split up and do our own thing in ports and meet up later in the day. His eyes got big and he told me "You're NOT going to leave me alone in another country."

 

When I mentioned possibly doing stingray city, he told me "Trish, I have two words for you... Steve Irwin."

 

I will get him out of his comfort zone a little bit, though. :)

 

Thank you all for reading my review and taking the time to comment! I am so glad you enjoyed it. I'm looking at taking some photography classes or something so hopefully next year my pics are even better!

[TriciaEMTB]

And for those who are interested, there is a officially cruise critic solo group cruise in the works over on the solo board. Very early stages, but we'll get it off the ground! We will be sailing Nov 2013!