"VALENTINES DAY AT SEA" a cruisin USA "LONG and LENGTHY" review

[KrystalWaters]

Love your review. I love your story telling very fun and unique. I'm eagerly waiting for more.

 

YOU'VE MET THE STEVEN TYLER!:eek::D:eek: KISS:eek: Oh boy!:D:p

[cruisin USA]

.....continuing....

 

 

 

 

"Catalina Island"

 

 

 

 

This was the 2nd time we'd been to Catalina Island. Of course the last time, we were on the Paradise off the coast of California, This is a DIFFERENT Catalina Island. I woke up, and as usual joined Mary Ann on the balcony. It was a partly cloudy day(as most of the days were), with big fluffly clouds in the sky. We were parked at what I assumed(I know the rule) was Catalina Island. We could see what I'll also assume as the Dominican Republic as the BIG island across the way. There was a party going on at the beach. We saw lot's of people there, and we could hear party music being played. Unfortunately, we realized it wasn't our party when we heard a foreign language being spoken over the microphone. Tenders were passing beneath us, but they weren't heading that way. I could see where ropes from the ship lead to a concrete structure in the middle of the harbor. On beach days like these,We especially like taking ourtime on "beach day" ports. "No Hurries Mon....No Worries Mon". Got ready, and headed to lido for breakfast. Just like yesterday, the lido was practically empty, cept for the few who enjoy sunning on a quiet ship. I had my standard lido breakfast. Scrambled, Potatoes, melon, 2 chocolate milks and,to my UTTER SUPRISE, there were tongs in the Ham, Sausage(which varied daily), and bacon. Any other cruise we've been on, the breakfast meats have been"doled" out to you, instead of being self serve. I thought to myself that someone behind the counter would tap my hand if I reached out and grabbed the tongs.(But they didn't).......(I'll say it again....Whatever they're doing to that bacon should be illegal). Enjoyed a slow breakfast, out in the open. We started to work our way to the tenders, and it started raining. Not a really hard rain, but enough to make the deck wet.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We waited about 15 minutes for it to subside. What if it started raining again, and all those wet peeps would be fighting for spots on a tender coming back? Luckily, we never saw another drop the rest of the day! We made our way down to the gangway. Unfortunately, the gangway is not the same place to go as where you have to board the tenders. There are signs though, and soon enough we're in the hallway leading to the tenders. The hallway is lined with Blue curtains.

 

 

 

Obviously, we're in one of the crew "only" areas of the ship, where "out of sight, out of mind" applys because of these blue curtains. That rule doesn't apply to smell though...hehe. Took a few show with my LONG arms though....

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There were 2 types of tenders. One from the island, that had 2 tiers, and could also carry all the equiptment need to take the party ashore(we know, cause we saw it all coming back). The ship also deployed it's 2 advance lifeboats(more later) for tendering. We've never been on a lifeboat before, so it was something I did want to experience.(especially in just a "tendering" capacity). It was a short distance to the pier. We could look up and see our balcony as we passed the ship. Passed the HUGE concrete "anchor" that holds the ship.

 

 

 

 

 

 

....to be continued....

[cruisin USA]

....continuing....

 

 

 

We arrived at the pier within minutes. The party was in full swing. People all over the beach in the lounges. There was a tent set up for first aid, as well as a pavillion similar to that on Half Moon Key, that served as the food court. There was a wooden walkway that served as a sidewalk that parelleled the shoreline.

 

 

 

 

Big Yellow and Blue striped umbrellas lined the beach. Lounges were abound!!

 

 

 

We walked down the sidewalk to the tiki style bar they had set up. Not what you'd call a full stocked bar, but they had 16 oz metal bud and bud lights. Fine with me. I did see a blender being used. There was a small drink menu on display. Just had to use our sail and sign card. Then off for a spot right by the volleyball nets. There was also a pavillion where the dj was playing music to the crowd. We just sat for awhile and soaked it all in... OUR ship in the harbor.

 

 

 

 

OUR palm tree laden beach!!!

 

 

 

It did get a little hot. Mary Ann and I headed out to the water. The water was cool, and felt great!! The tide was strong!!! Pushed us along as we stood there. The ships photographer was out on the beach, up to his ankles in his long pants.

 

 

 

 

 

We didn't have him take our photo, but I remember the seeing the peeps in the beautiful blue water with the ship behind them(made me wish we would have had him take one...sigh). It was a FUN party atmosphere. Much better than the "don't bother to get off the ship" reviews on CC that were given on the La Romana port. One thing I will remark on. The crew was enjoying this party just as much as the guests(except without alcohol). When we first came up, the volley ball nets were empty. Soon, folks from the crew were playing in their cook's outfits, and various uniforms, enjoying a little break time, all smiles!!! I knew they had a sandcastle building contest, but we didn't see any. They did announce a "swim around the ship" contest.....(Er...better skip that one). Pretty soon, the announcement comes from the DJ pavillion. All crew report to the volleyball nets for the crew vs. guests tug of war. Lot's of peeps on each side. It was back and forth for a minute, but the crew won!!! Congrats Crew!!! By this time teams were forming for the volleyball tournament. We were there till the finals. It was hot, and we'd had plenty of sun. We headed back to the pier to be tendered back to the ship. A GREAT 3 hours spent relaxing on a beach!!!

 

 

(My favorite picture this trip!! I might make it my signature)

 

 

 

....to be continued....

[WeBeCruisin']

is Your Love” by the Bee Gees. We headed off, and stopped by the casino to have a drink at the casino. Tony Ray was playing.

 

 

 

Tony was great! He was very personable with a great sense of humor and didn't just "cover" the songs he did. At one point on the last night, a bunch of hillbillies (including me) requested "Rocky Top Tennessee" and Tony did a spot-on version which inspired one man to put his leg up on the counter...... his unattached prosthetic leg.:eek::eek::eek:

[silvercrikhix]

Great review, I am definitely enjoying it!

MaryAnn is a cutie! Love the blue dress, too.

You're o.k. too...especially when accompanied by a rock star........LOL

I'll have to go and read your other reviews now.

Especially, "You Missed The Boat" :eek: :confused:

Thanks for taking the time to post your review

 

Dreaming of Floating...............................

[New2Cruising24]

Great review so far Gary, thanks for sharing.

 

No plans for the Miracle this year...yet...LOL. I am really enjoying your review. As others have said, like a good book, I don't want to put down.

 

:)

[cruisin USA]

Hello to all,

 

Silly, Silly me......I thought I'd get this review out in 5 days!!! Here I am, coming into the busy part of my week, and we're not even half way through the cruise yet!!! I'm not kidding when I say "Long and "Lengthy"(At least I'm not the "money monkey" guy.....hehe). I should be poised to tell you about our Behind the Fun tour, and concluding this review(Not even close). Tonight, I have open mic night. We're really busy on Thurs because of it. Unfortunately, most of my time is getting the stage ready, and making sure we're stocked and ready.

 

Allen.......Thank you for your comments. Sorry to hear about your foot. Didn't even get off the ship????

 

keenestatemom.....ESPECIALLY glad you're enjoying the review!!!

 

mountainbreeze....Welcome Aboard(again). You keep readin, I'll keep writing.

 

KrystalWaters(LOVE that name).....Glad you like the review. We've still got a LONG way to go!!!

 

silvercrikhix........I don't know where "silver crik" is, but I do try to avoid "hix" whenever possible....hehe

 

New2Cruising24........Thank you!!! Glad you're enjoying the review...

 

Now, as far as the review.....I'll probably be able to finish off our 4th day late tonight...

 

In the meantime, here's some more pics I took on Catalina Island

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I'll be back to continue late tonight....

[cruisin USA]

ahem.......continuing....

 

 

 

As luck would have it we did get to go back to the ship in one of the lifeboats. If the ship ever went down, this would be the boat I'd want to be in.

 

 

 

 

Really STURDY with plenty of engine power. Back to the ship, and up to the cabin to change. We were a little hungry, but tonight was our dinner in the steakhouse, and we'd heard about the enormous portions, so we decided to hold off till dinner at 8:15. We hung out for a long time on the balcony. I had brought some "tweekers"(mini speakers) that we could connect up to our ipods. We listened to reggae out on our balcony, as the tenders went to and fro beneath us. Interestingly, the ships engines were churning water behind us an hour before we set sail.

 

 

 

Soon, we see what looks like ALL the equipment. along with ton of crew. on a double decker pulling up to us. It took them about 20 minutes to unload the tender.

 

 

 

 

It was about cast off time. We thought we had seen the last of the tenders....(FUNTIMES reported last tender at 4:15). That tender had come and gone. Then we see this little boat coming out. It comes up and drops someone off(glad it wasn't me). Then goes over to where the ropes are tied to that concrete anchor. He's the guy who unties us. We do this slight drift. I know, because now I can see back where we've to our beach, where we'd hadn't been able to see it before. We start follow the shore line of Catalina Island over to the Dominican Republic/Haiti Island. There's a pretty tall mountain that we have to go by on the way out. It's kind of in a fog. A "Misty Mountain" so to speak. Then we turn seaward. After we got going, we decided to head down and check out our photos. That's when I saw the embarkation photos, as well as a Valentine's day backdrop that I never saw, and a couple of others. We found our Elegant night photos. Mary Ann looked STUNNING!!! There were lot's to chose from. We decided on 5 "for sures" There were others that we might come back for. We had $60.00 worth of coupons. The 8 x 10 photos were 21.98 apiece. Total damage to sail and sign.....$49.90 for 5 photos. They had lots of scrapbooking type stuff, as well as photo albums out on tables for sale. "Funship Freddy" plush toys were available for $4.95.(Almost bought one).I saw a rack with both disposable and underwater disposable cameras hanging from it.

 

 

 

Note to Miracle camera staff. I think that you should put the photo theft detectors at the bottom of the stairway, instead of at the top.

 

 

. This reporter saw that should someone wish, they could just drop photos down to someone standing on the stairs thereby passing the detection equipment without setting any alarms....Just me thinking aloud.

 

 

 

 

In my last review I spoke of how now that all photos taken are digital, and that actually printing every one of them is unnecessary. The space that the photo lab, and the actual deck holding said photos(even the space that holds said photos while they're not on display) could be used for LOTS of other things where space on a ship is at a premium. I said eventually, I could see a day when you could actually swipe your card when you got your photo taken and then review ALL your pictures at either the internet cafe, (or maybe eventually in your room on closed circuit) instead of searching through all the pictures to find your 20-30 photos. I'll admit though,... It is kinda charming and funny to see everyone elses photos too, In the business model I'm proposing. The price of the photos comes down because Carnival wouldn't be wasting resources processing 2000(passengers) x 20-30(photos, modest average per passenger) = 40,000 -60,000 photos that you don't have to process or move around the ship each and every day. That's a LOT of labor, not to mention the money saved on photo paper and ink. Definitely leave in the option of people being able to have their picture(or those cool painted portraits you advertise) processed right on board. Carnival could also have a photo section at it's website that holds ALL the photos from your cruise. People who are on vacation have already spent a lot of money. They need to budget, so they only get x amount of photos. But if those pictures were available for let's say a year, you'd be getting a LOT of "after" business where you're getting exactly 0 now(cause all the photos get thrown away). 6 months later, I might want to suprise Mary Ann with another photo or two to remind her of our next cruise. Right now as I'm sitting here, I can't help but think that there were a LOT of photos that we were on the fence about. I'd sure like to get another look, but that aint going to happen. Another advantage is that people who ordered their photos would get them e mailed to them. That way, we can make as many copies of them in all shapes and sizes for Facebook profiles, Christmas Cards, postcards.....etc.....Instead of having to get our precious photos home 1300 miles in our luggage/carry on., there they are waiting for us in our e mail when we get home....(Getting off my soapbox now).....

 

 

 

After buying our photos, we made our way forward on Atlantic Deck(3) to check out the stores. A lot nicer than on the Fantasy/Destiny class ships.

 

 

 

We didn't buy anything. Took the cool stairs down to Deck 2 and worked ouir way back. We stopped by the atrium bar on the way to the cabin. The DOD was a Yellowbird. The bartender didn't give us the fancy glass, but he did call it even on our drink coupons...BONUS. We headed back to the cabin Yellowbirds in hand. We had our Steakhouse night to get ready for. Mary Ann layed down for awhile. I relaxed, and watched some tv.(Still Whitney Houston). until it was time to get ready.

 

 

 

.....to be continued.....

[cruisin USA]

.....continuing.....

 

 

"The Thin Man? I Think Not!!"

 

 

 

We got back to the room. As luck would have it we were heading south, and we saw a perfect sunset over the water!! Soon enough it was time to get ready. We were out the door right on schedule. We made our way once again, up to lido. A short walk through Horatio's, and we're at the glass elevators that lead up to Nick and Nora's steakhouse. We could have taken the stairs up from here, but it seemed more "sophisticated" to take the elevators to the top.

 

 

We arrived right at 8:15., The steakhouse looked pretty empty from our vantage point. No one in the middle dining area whatsoever. No one at the bar. Only a few scattered tables along the window(at least on the 1st floor). Soooooo, We arrive on time. Made these reservations MONTHS ago. The hostess says they have a table by the window they can get ready, and she asked if we want to sit at the bar while we waited? Hmmmm....Okay. We go over to the bar. I've still got what's left of Mary Ann's yellowbird. We waited for awhile. I looked down at my watch. 8:25, The hostess must have seen me look, cause here she comes to bring us to our "table by the window". Funny thing is that, "the window" is overlooking the Sun deck, with peeps passing by throughout our dinner looking at us, waving,,,,etc. Some view. I will tell you this before we talk about dinner. When I first read about the steakhouse. I thought I had heard that you couldn't even tell you were on a ship. Let me tell you this. You can sure feel the rumble of the engines in this restaurant, and at no time did I get lost in thinking we weren't on a ship. We sit there at our table for 2 staring out the window at the deck....sigh. The only other people we see are sitted alongside the window also. They're in the middle of dinner as we sit down. We're handed our menus. Lots of choices, that's for sure. We're brought over a bread tray. I pick the rosemary roll.

 

 

 

They also brought over a "present from the Chef.....Mary Ann got a small ramekin of stuff that tasted like potato soup. I got.......Beef Carpaccio......(sigh, I guess it was just meant to be).

 

 

 

Our waiter brought over a sample platter of all the cuts of meat we could choose from. All the meats were huge. I opted on the Shrimp Cocktail,(served over lettuce in a martini glass),

 

(The Shrimp were HUGE!)

 

and the 9 oz filet mignon(OMG!! HUGE but FABULOUS!!) with puree'd potatoes on the side.

 

 

 

 

Mary Ann, the smarter of us two, had a lobster bisque and surf and turf. As we were getting our entrees, another couple was sat across the aisle from us. I couldn't finish the filet, and it made me mad, that it was going to be ground up, and served to the fishies. The head chef was at the table with the 1st couple. The man was telling the chef how GREAT the food was. "Incredible quality" was what I overheard. The chef made his way over to us. He asked us about our dinner. I told him that his portions were too big. He mentioned that this dinner should be enjoyed slowly........???? We did tell him the food was very good though. Dessert menus were passed to us. I decided on the Chocolate Sampler. 4 small tubs of chocolate heaven!!! (Which I did my best to get through)I tried the one to the far right first. MMmmm.....Chocolate and what tasted like Frozen Banana Yogurt.(This ended up being the only one I finished). I just tried a little to start. I knew I had to work my way across and try them all. Worked my way over to the next one. A slightly bittersweet chocolate cake.(my least fav) Next dish over..Tiramisu(this ran a close second)..,..Yummy, but I was about to BUST at this point. I could barely look at the last dish. Chocolate Marquise..a dark "double" chocolate that I could just muster a couple of spoonfuls of. Mary had Strawberry Cheesecake. It was the size of a brick!!! ....and after ALL that food we just ate. Everything was really good, except that I felt I was on an episode of Man vs. Food. (and Food won!). I definitely would reccomend smaller portions. I can usually hold my own, but literally, this was TOO MUCH!! Although Dinner was excellent. I really thought that the huge portions hindered the experience.

 

 

 

To the beards......Not all Americans are from Texas!! I really hated the thought of that food going to waste. I know you want to give people lots for their money. My take? You need to offer lesser (still high quality)portions.(mainly for the ladies, or the less hungry). Keep the large ones if you must, but offer maybe a 5oz filet, or 6 oz ribeye, or even an 8 oz NY strip?(or a 4 oz kobe beef steak?)for those who want a quality "small portion" meal. Remember, not too many people are going to ask for doggy bags. Would we do this again?????....I'd give you a definite maybe there. Mary Ann "rolled" me back to the room...Soooo much food. We could have went and seen "Singing with the Big Band" in the Phantom lounge. "Carnival Legends" Auditions(Basically,...singing Karaoke to try out for the "Legends" show on the last night. They said they were looking for Gloria Estefan, Elton John and Ricky Martin. No comedy shows. but there were musical choice abound. Brendan was singing "love" songs at the piano bar. And it was "Bet on a Good Time with Tony" in the casino. Music Boardwalk was at Frankie and Johnny's; It had been another long day. I fell into a food coma, and didn't wake till morning

 

 

 

 

 

....to be continued....

[Celandine]

I am loving your review.

 

It is also getting me even more excited for my summer cruise on the Miracle (different Itinerary)

 

Thank you for taking the time to write this!! :)

 

you and Mary Ann are a lovely couple by the way :)

[agc291]

I am loving your review.

 

It is also getting me even more excited for my summer cruise on the Miracle (different Itinerary)

 

Thank you for taking the time to write this!! :)

 

you and Mary Ann are a lovely couple by the way :)

 

 

I am goin to read your "first review" Your background is awesome! I would love to live in a foreign country! We are planning to move to Miami from DC in August, and I thought that was a big move!

 

Back to this review... MORE MORE MORE

[cruisin USA]

....continuing....

 

 

 

"One Happy Island"

 

 

 

 

 

 

Woke up the next morning. We still were heading towards Aruba. By 11:30 we were docked at the port of Aruba. Again we were on the side opposite of town. We got ready, and got up to lido for food before we headed out to explore. the island. Once again, the ship had already emptied out. Today, I opted for a grilled Ham and Cheese sandwich from the deli station, and got a salad from the EXCELLENT salad bar at the aft of the room. Mary Ann was in a mood for breakfast. Something for everyone!!! We ate, and looked over the port town of Orangestad.

 

 

 

 

We'd stayed here before, a number of years back for a week. Actually, we were on the west side of the island on Palm Beach.(VERY nice!!!), but we did take a day to come into town. Aruba motto is "One Happy Island" which I'll agree with. The people here ARE happy. For being only 19 miles north of South America. This is a VERY Americanized island. Everyone speaks English, and although the national currency is the Dutch "Floren", U.S, currency is taken everywhere. After brunch, we headed down to the gangway again. It was a short walk underneath a colorful awning that led us to the security gate heading out into town. 2 other things I will tell you about Aruba. #1... It's HOT!!The sun beats down on that island. The only thing that makes it bearable is that #2,,,,It's WINDY!! Aruba would be a dessert island if not for the trade winds. It took us about 8 minutes from leaving the boat to hit the main street. The first change I noticed was that Carlos and Charlies wasn't there anymore. We worked are way through the straw market.

 

 

 

 

Didn't want to buy anything just yet, but we wanted to see what they had, should we want to come back before going back to the ship. We crossed the street, and worked our way through the small town. We stopped in to cool off at the Crystal Palace casino. 1 of eight casinos on the island(might be more now). At the hotels, the casinos don't open till 8pm. We knew that the 2 casinos downtown were open early. We just did a walk through to cool down though. The casino has a archway, which leads into an indoor mall, and the Renaissance hotel. We went into the mall a little ways . Last time we were here, we saw the water taxi pickup spot. Really cool. Boat comes from the (under the bridge) bay, right into the mall to pick people.

 

 

 

 

Back out into the heat. We worked our way to the edge of town, taking advantage of photo ops along the way. Crossed back at the edge of town, and worked our way back. Pretty town. Lot's of nice colors.

 

 

 

 

A few bars, and LOTS of places to shop. We stopped at the other casino. Saw a Starbucks in the mall next door. Mostly a machine casino, with a few tables. Not much bigger than the casino on the ship. Today, EVERYONE was playing bingo. All the tables were covered, and people were playing everywhere. There was a lady there passing out 1 meatball to a customer, if they were playing BINGO. Just another quick walk through and we were on our way back. This time we stopped at the straw market. Just had to have one of the "One Happy Island" license plates.

 

 

 

 

I did note that the last time we were here, they were selling real license plates. This time, along with the real license plates they were selling "new" fakes. 1 for $3. 2 for $5. I did buy a fake, but also picked up a real one(you can tell) with the Aruba.com at the bottom.

 

 

 

 

....to be continued....

[cruisin USA]

....continuing....

 

 

 

We had pretty much circled town.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Took a photo of the "cruise ship" next to ours. (I know which one I'd rather be on!!)

 

 

 

We came full circle, and ended up at the stairs to Iguana Joes.

 

 

 

We worked our way up the stairs. It was definitely time for a cool drink. We'd been here before. It was CROWDED. Couldn't even get a spot at the bar. We didn't stay. Just walked along the upstairs sidewalk between the building. We stopped in a shop. Mary Ann bought a sun dress and a cool Ed Hardy lighter(she had left her's aboard ship). I saw a "All Who Enter Must Surrender the Booty" sign that intrigued me.(It would go great with our towel) I didn't buy it(but ended up buying one later).We ended up at "Mojitos" bar to rest our weary(hot) bones. Saw a couple of the ships personel there enjoying themselves. It's cool that Carnival encourages it's staff to co-mingle.(Watch out for those Italian officers though...hehe). After our rest, we headed back to the ship for to refresh, and drop our souveniers off.

 

 

....to be continued....

[re-re]

This is a great review, It's like a book that i can't put down.:D

[meatloafsfan]

Loving your review.

 

I completely agree about Tony Ray - he was on our Miracle cruise last August and he was really great. It was a real pleasure to listen to him. One of the better entertainers for certain.

[agc291]

Aruba looks beautiful!!! My friend honeymooned at an AI there in September, as I said earlier definitely on my bucket list!

[sjn911]

What a fabulous Saturday morning fun time I am having..your review, pictures and humor are wonderful..I am really getting so much more of the feel of things in Carribean and the Class of shp I want to do alot...

 

Loved all you know about music and just appreciating whatever the shows and music have to offer on the ships...I love that too..thanks sooo much..just take your time we are darn lucky to be enjoying this..thanks sooo much...and my baby sister did go on this ship when new....Sarah

[cruisin USA]

ahem.......continuing......(I guess "resuming" would be more accurate)

 

 

 

We were back off in about an hour. Found the cabstand. The driver said it'd be $15 to take us to Palm Beach. $15 apiece I ask? Nope, just $15. I asked if it would be easy to get a cab back. He said "No Problem" just come back to where I'm dropping you off, and talk to the man in front behind the podium. We entered the cab. The island was much more developed since we'd been here last. On the way, we spotted a Dominos Pizza, a Quiznos. McDonalds, and a Wendys. This island even has it's own Harley Davidson dealership(talk about Americanized). The strip across from the Palm Beach hotels had grown ENORMOUSLY. Bars and Restaurants lined the whole stretch. Most notable was the addition of the Hard Rock....The driver dropped us off at the Radisson. We just walked right out to the beach. Heck with a day pass. We brought our towel. It was a little walk to the beach. We just followed the sand trail out through the pool area, and out onto the beach.

 

 

 

 

 

We'd stayed next door last trip, so we were fairly familiar with the territory. As we hit the sidewalk that parellels the beach, I see that "Gilligans Island"(an outside bar/grill) is still there.

 

 

 

 

We walk out onto the beach and decide to head for our pier bar. The last time we were here. The first day, we walked out to the pier bar. There was a sign that said "Free Sunsets, Everyday". We kind of laughed it off, but headed there to check it out. It was Amazing!!!(and we ended up here every night at sunset during out trip). This was our plan.(and one of the reasons we really wanted to go back to Aruba). To once again go back to our pier bar, and enjoy that sunset 1 more time.....We still had a couple hours to kill before sunset, but stopped there for a couple of Pina Coladas(our daytime drink of choice that trip). DELICIOUS. The pier had changed though. There used to be a volleyball net there. Now there's a couple beach shops under grass awnings.

 

 

 

 

 

 

There's a carpet that leads from the sidewalk right onto the pier. Later, we did notice someone being pushed on a wheelchair across it. Now, the bar is called "the Bugalo"(not Bungalow). Now there was asmall shop there selling Cuban cigars. More suprising was the "Dunkin Donuts" now there. Complete with peeps in plain brown Dunkin Uniforms(completely unbelievable on this Tropical Paradise type pier). Sure didn't see anyone buying doughnuts.

 

 

 

 

 

But LOTS of drinks were being served. After our Pina Coladas, we headed down to the Occidental. When we stayed there, it was the Allegro. The pool area was the same as I remember. They had done TONS of work to the hotel portion since we'd been there. We walked through vaguely remembering this and that. The casino had been completely redone in "Modern Casino" theme.(last time, it was kinda dingy). After our tour, we headed to the beach to lay on some lounges as get a little sun.

 

 

 

 

 

As it was, the sun was going down, and wasn't half as intense at this time of day. The sun was getting pretty low in the sky. It was hard walking through the sand. We made our way down to the water, and followed the "hardened" sand right to the pier. Got there in time to order our drinks and head to the edge of the pier for our sunset. Had to take a couple pictures. The sun finally set.

 

 

 

 

We finish off our drinks. The waitress asks us if we want another round. The truth is we did, but we felt like we should be heading back to the ship. We headed back to where we came in at. A taxi was right there, and he brought us right back to the security gate of the ship(for $11). As we crossed past the colored awning, to my suprise I saw the Kukukunuku Bus that the VD@C people had booked. They weren't supposed to be back till sailing. I thought to myself that somebody must have wanted/needed to end the tour early. As the bus passed us. I saw this brunette hanging out the window, drink in hand. She looked straight at me. "TOASTY" I thought to myself. I know the look....I own a bar.......All I could say as they passed by was "Kukukunuku"!!The bus faded into a blur down the road.

 

 

....to be continued.....

[cruisin USA]

....continuing....

 

 

 

We headed back onboard. Back to the cabin, to relax and get ready for dinner. We arrived at the dining room. There were more people that I expected. Last time we were in port during dinner(Cozumel) you could practically hear a pin drop. Tonight's meal? Cream of Yukon Gold potatoes with garlic croutons,

 

 

 

 

and Farfalle of Turkey and green peas with bow tie pasta(served as an appetizer).

 

 

 

 

 

 

Last nights steak did me in. Tonight I picked "heartsmart" pork chops served in a sweet sauce that was delicious.

 

 

 

 

Tonights didja?.....Shark Fritters(no thanks) For dessert, I picked tiramisu!!!

 

 

 

 

Our usual coffee/cappucino topped off a much lighter meal than last night. No show for the waiters tonight. After dinner we headed down to the casino. We walked through "slot machine country" until we were inspired..

 

 

 

 

There were LOTS of machines to chose from!!!

 

 

 

 

We found a version of a machine that my mother used to play. "Pinball" We invested 20 and didn't hit even a pair of cherries until we hit the bonus "Pinball" round, and doubled our money. We played until we were down to 31.00, and stopped. That ended up being the only time we played a slot machine the whole trip. Tonights show was "The Marraige(Newlywed) Game". We didn't go. We've seen it before, and although it can be funny, when we saw it on the tv later, they were still asking the some of the same questions they were asking 3 years ago. It'd been another long day. We headed back to the cabin and just hung out on the balcony till Aruba's lights were far behind us. We headed for bed knowing that tomorrow would be our last "island" of this trip.

 

 

....to be continued....

[Sunmist]

Loving the review...can't wait to hear more!!

[LynnAnne]

Great review, Husband and I were on the same cruise. I think I saw you and thought you were on the roll calls, I'm a roll call stawker!! LOL We love the Miracle we were on her Feb 2011 and booked this one while still on board. We are from Michigan also Saginaw area. Love your reviews!!!

[Cruzin' Daddy]

 

 

I was SOOOOOO looking forward to that cool looking black backpack. Hey....PINS!!!! Miracle Pins?......Nope......."Platinum" Pins.

 

 

 

Haven't taken a cruise yet where we weren't given something with a misspelled word on it. LOL!!!! Carnival typed "out" instead of "our".

[cruisin USA]

Thank you ALL for your kind words,....

 

Cruisin Daddy....Too Funny!!!

 

LynnAnne,..... sure wish you would have come up and introduced yourself....

 

If you would have told me that it would take longer to publish the review that the cruise acturally was, I wouldn't have believed you. But here we are, plodding on......Before I continue I'd like to show you a few more Aruba shots.

 

....more miscellaneous Aruba photos.....

 

 

 

 

 

 

We could see our "room" from here.

 

 

The Bugaloe

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Got a cool "series" features of shots with the Sailboat in the foreground

 

LOVED ARUBA, and we will go back eventually!!

 

 

Getting prepared to continue into our Curacao day....

 

 

Gary

[cruisin USA]

....continuing....

 

 

 

Curacao(pronounced Koo Re Sow)

 

 

 

When we woke up we docked in Curacao. Wilhemsted to be specific. Another, pretty town, covered by pastel colored buildings. The bridge was pretty interesting, although it was the foot bridge we heard about.

 

 

 

 

A closer look revealed indeed, the footbridge. There was a small inland "man made" beach. Pretty cool, considering the ROCKY shoreline.

 

 

 

 

 

We weren't heading that way though. Todays adventure we decided to attend the Grand Carnival. After our standard lido breakfast. We got off the ship. There were some outdoor trinket areas underneath awnings and a taxiccab stand inside the security gate.

 

 

 

 

There were 3 taxis there. I asked one how much it would be to go to the Carnaval. He replied "Carnaval casino?" His friend talked to him. "Oh, I will take you there for $20.00." I then asked. "Will we be able to find a cab to come back?" he said "Sure"....so we got in his cab. It was about a 10 minute ride to get to the festival area. Cars parked EVERYWHERE!! LOTS of people walking around. The driver took us down an alleyway, and pointed that a little further was the parade. We got out. We could see the parade. We filed in behind some people watching. I was a hot day!!!! We ended up walking around. You could actually cross or join along with this parade if you wanted. All sorts of costumes. It seemed that there would be the rows of peeps in their costumes(parading around...hehe)

 

 

 

 

 

 

followed by a truck that was blasting music, so just as one group, and their music had passed by, here was another group with their music

 

 

 

Pretty cool..... But awfully hot. We walked around and watched for about an hour. We figured we'd seen enough. We started looking for where we could find a cab. None to be found. I asked a police(spelled Polis) officer. He pointed, and told us to cross the parade over to the other side, and find a blue building. We did cross, and headed to where he pointed. There was no blue building. We decided to ask some parade goers. The first one said "you looking for some ganji?" I replied no, We need to find a cab to go back to our ship. He says "You're not going to find any cabs here. The road is going to be blocked off soon." At this point we were kinda freaking out. The man did offer to drive us. He'd been drinking.,,We said we'd still try to find a cab. Same story from everyone. They ALL said we'd better start walking. I was pretty pissed that a driver INSIDE the security gate would lead us so astray!!! It was past 1 pm. We didn't even have a phone to call the ship to tell them of our plight. The ship was leaving at 4. We had no clue even what direction we should go......

 

 

.....to be continued.....

[SoundDawg]

....continuing....

 

 

 

Curacao(pronounced Koo Re Sow)

 

 

 

When we woke up we docked in Curacao. Wilhemsted to be specific. Another, pretty town, covered by pastel colored buildings. The bridge was pretty interesting, although it was the foot bridge we heard about.

 

 

 

 

A closer look revealed indeed, the footbridge. There was a small inland "man made" beach. Pretty cool, considering the ROCKY shoreline.

 

 

 

 

 

We weren't heading that way though. Todays adventure we decided to attend the Grand Carnival. After our standard lido breakfast. We got off the ship. There were some outdoor trinket areas underneath awnings and a taxiccab stand inside the security gate.

 

 

 

 

There were 3 taxis there. I asked one how much it would be to go to the Carnaval. He replied "Carnaval casino?" His friend talked to him. "Oh, I will take you there for $20.00." I then asked. "Will we be able to find a cab to come back?" he said "Sure"....so we got in his cab. It was about a 10 minute ride to get to the festival area. Cars parked EVERYWHERE!! LOTS of people walking around. The driver took us down an alleyway, and pointed that a little further was the parade. We got out. We could see the parade. We filed in behind some people watching. I was a hot day!!!! We ended up walking around. You could actually cross or join along with this parade if you wanted. All sorts of costumes. It seemed that there would be the rows of peeps in their costumes(parading around...hehe)

 

 

 

 

 

 

followed by a truck that was blasting music, so just as one group, and their music had passed by, here was another group with their music

 

 

 

 

Pretty cool..... But awfully hot. We walked around and watched for about an hour. We figured we'd seen enough. We started looking for where we could find a cab. None to be found. I asked a police(spelled Polis) officer. He pointed, and told us to cross the parade over to the other side, and find a blue building. We did cross, and headed to where he pointed. There was no blue building. We decided to ask some parade goers. The first one said "you looking for some ganji?" I replied no, We need to find a cab to go back to our ship. He says "You're not going to find any cabs here. The road is going to be blocked off soon." At this point we were kinda freaking out. The man did offer to drive us. He'd been drinking.,,We said we'd still try to find a cab. Same story from everyone. They ALL said we'd better start walking. I was pretty pissed that a driver INSIDE the security gate would lead us so astray!!! It was past 1 pm. We didn't even have a phone to call the ship to tell them of our plight. The ship was leaving at 4. We had no clue even what direction we should go......

 

 

.....to be continued.....

 

 

Ahhhhhhh......cliff hanger! Your killing me! :eek:

 

Great review!