Review of the Norwegian Star NYC to Bermuda - June 24 to July 1, 2012

[Tilly84]

Starry Night Update

[Arzeena]

I LOVE reading your reviews! But the wait is killing me!:D Keep it coming fast!

[TerpGirl77]

Bermuda Day Three: Hanging in the Shadow of the Ships

 

I didn’t wake up until 11am today. At 8am Amazing Aramando knocked on my door and I’m sure I scared him with my just out of bed look. He said: “You stay out late last night?” I just smiled and said “Yup, I’ll be out in a few hours.” I quickly showered and got dressed since I didn’t want to lose any more time since we were leaving for New York at 5pm.

 

It’s starting to happen. That sinking sad feeling that the cruise is almost over. I’m starting to get what I call the “pings,” those random thoughts that constantly fly through my head. “I should get a new iron.” “Don’t forget to tell so and so about this.” “Am I prepared for that meeting next week?” “I should check on my 401K.” Up until today there were no “pings”. To ward off my early onset post cruise depression I just kept telling myself I still have all of today and tomorrow! And I quickly got off the ship to go exploring.

 

The Dockyard is one of the nicest cruise ports I’ve visited. It has a large shopping area with a good mix of shops, restaurants, an arts center and the marine center where you can swim with the dolphins. I bought a few more gifts for people back home and then headed over to the Frog & Onion Pub for lunch. This was definitely one of the more “touristy” dining experiences and in some ways I wished I’d just stayed on the ship for lunch.

 

After lunch, I headed over to the Snorkel Beach Park. This beach is smaller and if you own water socks bring them because there is a big swath of rocks and shells that you have to walk over to get into the water. I rented a chair and some snorkel gear and spent my last few hours out on the beach. Even though there is not very much to this beach (in comparison to Horseshoe and Elbow) I had fun snorkeling. The water is calm, I saw a bunch of colorful fish and coral too.

 

Last Day in Bermuda

 

At 3pm I went back to the Dockyard, got an ice cream cone and sat down on a bench. A few years ago I had a yoga instructor who was really new age-y. One day at the end of class she told us how she takes photographs in her minds eye (stick with me here, I know). She said when you want to capture a special memory, remember all of your senses in the moment and then open your eyes for 10 seconds, close for five. Repeat three times. She said whenever you’re stressed to close your eyes and pull up that image and memory in your mind and it will bring you peace. I remember thinking it is much quicker to just take a picture and look at it when you want, but today I decided to try it looking out at the water from the dockyard.

 

The color of the water in Bermuda is amazing. It’s hard to describe with words but it is a pretty-pastel-crystal-aqua-blue and I just couldn’t stop staring at it whenever I was there. So I tried the yoga instructor method and maybe mind is playing tricks on me, but I was having a stressful time the other day and closed my eyes, brought up my “picture” of the water and had a few seconds of calm. I sat there for a long time just watching the world go by and then at 4pm went back on the ship for the last time.

 

Mind photo

 

Tonight I was having dinner with a couple I met at the Chef’s Table and we had reservations at Le Bistro. I picked the Quiet Zone as my spot for sail a way, grabbed a cocktail and got a chair and read until we left. More of the sad-sinking feeling, so I kept telling myself I have all day tomorrow!

 

Goodbye Beautiful Bermuda

 

Once we were on our way, I sat out on deck 13 for a bit more and read. I was a little hungry since I’d kind of picked over my lunch, but didn’t want to spoil my dinner. I went to the Market Café and fixed myself a little fruit and cheese plate and went out by the pool and grabbed a table. I’m sitting there trying to figure out what I thought of the antics of Christian and Anastasia in the 50 Shades book and there is the familiar greeting of two hands on each of my shoulders. Oh hi, Mr. Handsome. We’re travelling the same route again I see.

 

He sits down and says “I haven’t see you in a whole day, where have you been hiding?” I tell him all about my day and staying up all night and he tells me he was just hanging out on the ship. Then for the third time he asks if I want to go for a walk. It’s still light out, there are plenty of people around so I say let’s go.

 

Apparently, Mr. H gets more inquisitive when walking and talking because we’ve taken about 10 steps and he says “So, I can’t figure you out, I mean why are you single, are you even looking to date?” For some reason I’m annoyed that I’m suddenly having a heavy conversation. Yes, I’m in vacation mode and he does seem like a great (and good looking) guy, but in all reality I’ve only spent the sum total of a few hours with him and now he’s asking kind of personal questions. I just answer that I’m not proactively looking but if the right situation came along I would definitely welcome it. Then the situation takes a turn when he says “well you didn’t seem interested the other night, so I was just confused.” I respond by saying I’m not exactly sure what the offer was, but I think I could guess and I’m too much of a goody two shoes to take him up on it.” I try to keep it light and funny and say “but I still love you, we’re cool…” He responds by saying he truly does want get to know me and I better answer his e-mails when I get home. Great, we are back on a lighter note and it’s a great way to leave things.

 

I tell him I have to go and get changed for dinner but I’d probably see him in the casino later.

 

Le Bistro was a fantastic meal and a great value for the money. My friends got a table in the little “outdoor” area outside the restaurant so we had Stan Sykes as our dinner entertainment. I had escargot, salad, salmon and we shared the chocolate fondue for dessert. Then we met up with some other people from the Chef’s Table in the Star Bar and suddenly it was 2:00 am and another evening of side-splitting laughter and good times had come to a close.

 

Next up: The Final Sea Day

[Tilly84]

Tilly84,

Oh my goodness! Thank you so much for doing this, it is very sweet and I appreciate it so much. I'm going to print it out and put it in my scrapbook. And if I ever decide to quit the rat race and just cruise forever will you be my editor?

 

Haha, glad that it made you smile :) I'll keep an eye on your updates and put it together when it's all said and done for you :)

 

I love writing as well, and would sincerely hope that I could write half as well for my cruise. Did you hand write your journal or did you bring a laptop etc. to keep it updated? I write so much faster on the laptop, but it's not nearly as convenient as a hand journal. Unfortunately I won't have my netbook yet for the cruise, so I'll be bringing my Mac (which I adore) and writing my notes "hopefully" each night and then publishing to my cruise blog etc. when I get home (doubt I'd use their wi-fi except for quick things...although $50ish for 100 minutes isn't bad).

[TerpGirl77]

In all of the reviews and posts about Bermuda that I've read, you are the first I've found that went to the Stick. It's across the street from the bank where I work and I agree the food is great and the portions are huge. The place has no sign on the outside, so you have to know where it is and that is why only locals go there. I just hope you haven't let the cat out of the bag now :D.

 

Glad to hear you had a great time when you were here. Keep the posts coming.

 

Mystic,

You are so lucky to live in Bermuda! I had to ask three people if I was heading in the right direction and the last person I asked for directions, he just pointed to the door. I standing right in front of the place! I'm a big fan, but hope it doesn't get too over run by lost tourists like me!

[Birdnutty]

Am thoroughly enjoying your review. We'll be going in a few months (just made final payment) and am greatly anticipating being back in Bermuda. Sounds like it has changed a bit since we've been there. Transportation passes were only $11. Yikes!

 

Your experiences really do read like an engaging novel, hard to put down, full of suspense and imagery, and a little spice never hurt!

 

Hope the next chapter comes soon!

 

Who are the hotel director and Cruise director at the moment? Any indication as to how much longer they'll be on board?

 

It takes alot of time to write well, so I appreciate the time you are putting into it. I wish your vacation were longer so I could continue reading! :)

[TerpGirl77]

Haha, glad that it made you smile :) I'll keep an eye on your updates and put it together when it's all said and done for you :)

 

I love writing as well, and would sincerely hope that I could write half as well for my cruise. Did you hand write your journal or did you bring a laptop etc. to keep it updated? I write so much faster on the laptop, but it's not nearly as convenient as a hand journal. Unfortunately I won't have my netbook yet for the cruise, so I'll be bringing my Mac (which I adore) and writing my notes "hopefully" each night and then publishing to my cruise blog etc. when I get home (doubt I'd use their wi-fi except for quick things...although $50ish for 100 minutes isn't bad).

 

Again, thank you so much! On my iPad I have an app called Day One that I use as my journal. I've just been cutting and pasting from those entries, cleaning them up, adding photos and removing some of the irrelevant or stuff that's too personal. For some of the ship details I just wrote down a little note and I've filled in the details here. Can't wait to read your review of the Gem!

[elbodans]

LOL Yes, Tracy - I've even had him reading some of your blogs... he "thinks" he may be okay with this...'someday' .LOL)

 

aww i hope my posts are helping! i probably should have done a dedicated 'solo but not single' blog. it's the best of both worlds, really. i hope your husband approves of a solo trip sometime SOON!

 

 

Not that I'm a stalker, or creepy, I just have too much time on my hands and work with MS Office constantly...so...I present "Starry Nights" by TerpGirl77, all the reviews and story put together so far into a readable book with a table of contents (are all hyperlinked to the appropriate chapter).

 

Really look forward to reading the next installment!

 

Sorry I couldn't attach the PDF to this posting, it's too big by like 4 KB or something, so it goes to my blog where it's stored for now.

 

that is kind of awesome.

[elbodans]

ok sorry for the back to back comments but i commented before reading your last two updates so...

 

first--thank you for your chef's table review! my husband and i have been debating whether we want to do this or not, less because of money (whatever, we're on vacation) and more because of time. the whole having to be back by 5:00ish (to get ready) thing is a bit of an issue, especially because we (ok HE) also want(s) to do the sunset swizzle cruise (he did it with his family when he was, like, 19 and loved it so much he needs to take me on it this time). which would mean that we'd have to be back on the ship at a reasonable time BOTH overnight nights. but i think your chef's table review just pushed me over the edge of being ok with that. so thanks! particularly for the bolded portion.

 

second--i love how much everyone loves this report for literary and entertainment value. i absolutely agree. i like how you occasionally reference 50 shades of gray--it sort of continues the whole romance motif. as an english major slash writer nerd, i love it. well done!

 

third (can i stop counting now?) i love, love, love this:

 

"This is what I think sets cruising apart from any other type of vacation. It’s 3:30 in the morning and I’m sitting in Bermuda in a nice looking restaurant eating chicken wings with a couple in their late 50s, a couple in their 40s another 35 year old woman all who I just met a few hours ago and we are laughing and carrying on like we’ve know each other forever. At 4:30 am I arrived back at my stateroom my face hurting from smiling and laughing so hard."

 

YES. yes yes yes. that is what is awesome about cruising. and that is what is awesome about cruising SOLO. love it.

 

so you didn't like the frog and onion? personally, on my last/first bermuda cruise, i was sad i didn't discover it earlier. i wandered in about two hours before we sailed way and had a blast. it seemed more...friendly? than the cruise ship bars and it was right there.

 

i also agree that the dockyard is a great port area. it has everything you need and want and nothing you don't. i did a caribbean cruise in february--after my bermuda cruise in october--and didn't find one single port that i loved as much as the dockyard. or, for that matter, one single island i loved as much as bermuda. i guess that's why i'm going back! well, that and the fact that NYC is an hour bus ride from my house.

 

again, thanks for this report. love it!

 

EDIT: you seem like my kind of travel friend. to learn more about me, click the link in my signature.

[Aarontalks]

I thought I would be lucky and the end would be here. Alas now I need to come back another night to read the end. You weren't kidding when you said you worked 80 hour weeks

[Another ship trip]

Darn, now I have hit the end of the line for now.

 

Your review is engaging. and I have stayed up wayyy too late. Shame on you for enticing me to read this with your romantic subplot and your wonderful descriptions!

 

I too will be on this ship in November so I am hanging on your every word.

 

And for what it's worth, I feel the same way you do about being cautious around the handsome single men-folk. A girl doesn't have to be in a hurry for a romance to bloom. Slow burning fires last longer.

 

And for Mr. H to let his 14 year old kiddo go out alone, well, he doesn't have any estrogen, but he also doesn't seem to have been blessed with a lot of common sense. 50 lashes with a wet noodle!

I still worry about my senior in college and wouldn't have left him wandering in a foreign country as a kid-no way, no how. That mommy gene kicks in before they are born!

 

Can't wait to hear more!!!

[black forest]

Love your review! Thank you so much for taking the time to write it. :-)

[Ramrac]

Hope we get updates on what happens with Mr. H post cruise. Is he is the crazy nut ball type or your prince charming???

[Tilly84]

Again, thank you so much! On my iPad I have an app called Day One that I use as my journal. I've just been cutting and pasting from those entries, cleaning them up, adding photos and removing some of the irrelevant or stuff that's too personal. For some of the ship details I just wrote down a little note and I've filled in the details here. Can't wait to read your review of the Gem! Pearl on Sept 16-23

 

I'm a super nerd, this is the stuff I do...I'm making a recipe book out of a diet forum I'm a member of as well, it's seriously like 1,000+ recipes that are HORRIBLY organized just random through the forums, so I'm digging and putting them into an actual legible format. I downloaded Day One for my iphone so I can play with it. Unfortunately we are trading in my husband's iPad this weekend towards a Nexus 7 for him (assuming Google, Asus and Nokia can untie their panties which are all in a bunch about wi-fi or some nonsense patent thing), however I'll just have to use my phone and my macbook when i'm on the ship for this endeavor i think.

 

Here's the PDF Of where we are so far in your tale!

 

Starry Nights - Days 0-5

[Mystic cruisers]

Mystic,

You are so lucky to live in Bermuda! I had to ask three people if I was heading in the right direction and the last person I asked for directions, he just pointed to the door. I standing right in front of the place! I'm a big fan, but hope it doesn't get too over run by lost tourists like me!

 

No problem. Your directions are very vague so I suspect the Stick will remain a local secret.

 

It was interesting to read your account of the rescue-at-sea on your way here. I remember reading about it at the time. Here's a link to the local story. I was looking for a follow-up but couldn't find anything more.

 

http://www.royalgazette.com/article/20120627/NEWS/706279926

[black forest]

Tilly84 - great. Thank you!

[TerpGirl77]

I wake up sad today. This is the last time for a while that I’ll have a ship rocking me to sleep, where I can stroll down the hall and have a great breakfast or go up a flight of stairs and grab a cocktail, go outside and stare at the beautiful ocean. I know that tomorrow night I’ll be back home and back to the same old. But I’m going to squeeze every moment out of today and stay in my relaxed state.

 

I sleep in until 8am and do one last workout in the gym. I go to The Grille this morning get a waffle, eggs and fruit and sit by the pool for breakfast. Go back, shower and go plunk down in a chair on deck 13 and read. It is VERY windy and a little over cast which is too bad because I planned to spend all day in my chair, taking breaks for the galley tour and cocktail and snack runs. I brave the wind for a few more moments and head inside and change out of my pool gear.

 

I need to make another plan for the day since the crew is closing decks due to high wind. I decide to go to the shops, do the galley tour, lunch in the main dining room, wine and cheese tasting, packing, dinner at Cagney’s, final show and Casino. Voila! Just like that, it’s so easy to fill your schedule for the day!

 

They are having the sales at the shops so I buy two bottles of Gosling’s rum for friends, a tee-shirt for my dad, and a splurge on a right hand ring for me at the jewelry sale. I drop my latest purchases in my room and head to Gatsby’s where we are meeting for the galley tour. Not everyone from the dinner joins us – it’s just the “Star Bar Crew” (we named ourselves - ha!). Before we leave, we exchanges e-mail and contact information since everyone has plans with family tonight. (my friends are still trying to figure out our inside jokes that we're posting on each others Facebook pages).

 

Our concierge and Chef Jerome walk us through La Cucina and we slip through a secret door and all of the sudden we’re in the galley! This was a really good “behind-the-scenes” tour of how all that food is made. We ran into another tour along the way, but they weren’t going into all of the kitchen areas like we were. It sounded like they were on a behind-the-scenes tour of the entire ship. This tour raised my interest in how the ships are structured and what it takes to make us all happy on vacation. If you are into this kind of thing this is the tour for you.

 

I may not be remember this as precisely as it was presented, but there are three HUGE kitchens where prep work is done for each of the main dining rooms and the buffet areas. I figured out this is why they sometimes alternate dining rooms for breakfast and lunch. For example, the Aqua kitchen will be cleaning up for breakfast while the Versailles kitchen was hoping with lunch orders.

 

There is a much smaller kitchen that is dedicated to room service and pizza delivery only. The meat area and huge freezer is an entirely separate area and we got to see two of the butchers making the steak filets for Cagney’s kitchen that evening! Then we took a peek into the dishwashing room which was the size of a car wash and finally onto the separate bakery where we met up with the executive pastry chef again and saw all of the desserts being prepared.

 

Right before we left the bakery one of the chefs pulled out a huge tray of chocolate chip cookies out of the oven another chef handed us a napkin and we each got a warm gooey just baked cookie. It was delicious!

 

We also visited the recycling and the big trash compactor. NCL seems very serious about their environmental program and I’ll admit I wasn’t really interested in looking at trash, but Monica’s talk about how they do it was actually interesting.

 

Again, I know there is a lot of talk of opinion out there about food on NCL and as you can tell I’m a bit Type-A and also a germaphobe. I was surprised by how clean and sterile everything was AND how much stuff I saw being made by hand. For example, we met the sous chefs whose only job is to make and mix up all the dressings. We stopped and watch him make a Ceasar dressing and he had a huge stainless steel bowl with all of the ingredients, I was expecting him to dump them into some large industrial machine, instead, he whipped out a huge wisk and finished the job right there! I saw another example in the bakery. My guess would have been these desserts are brought in frozen and just reheated or thawed, but I saw chef’s in the bakery preparing things from scratch and got a great tip for melting chocolate using a double broiler from another sous chef in the bakery who was stirring his batch for some chocolate mousse cake he was preparing.

 

One last thing about the galley tour – as we were waiting for the elevator there, we three huge bulletin boards that list the employee progress, etc. The first board had a listing of service ranking for each of the food staff: “excellent/above average” “on track” or “needs improvement.” Crew members can look up their name and see what category they are in.

 

The next board was a magnetic board that ranks the overall performance of all of the ships on the fleet. I looked to see who was number one in service, cleanliness and the something called the “NCL Way” and lo and behold the Star was #1, followed by Gem with the Epic in the #3 spot! Of course our rowdy group starts chanting "We're number one! We're number one!, but it brought out smiles from the crew who were also standing near the elevator.

 

The concierge kind of rushed us away from this area, because we were all starting to study this closely (or maybe it was our mature behavior!) but I did see one last thing. Do you fill out the comment cards and wonder what happens to them? Well on the last board there were tons of these cards pinned over every surface. I was pleased to see that they aren’t just thrown away and that prompted me to grab a stack and fill them out when I was back in my room packing.

 

After seeing all that food and since I’d had an idea of what was one the menu, I headed to the main dining room for a delicious lunch. I started with the spring rolls (good), and indulged and had the Philly Cheese Steak and fries and had a banana bread pudding with a scoop of ice-cream for dessert. I'm no cheesesteak expert, but there were a lot of New Yorkers and Philadelphians on this trip and I saw a lot of these being brought out so I assume they fit the bill and I thought it was very good.

 

After lunch I walked around a bit, went to the Internet Café to check e-mail and check my Amtrak departure time, went to guest services to check my bill and get luggage tags and watched the art auction for a while.

 

The wine and cheese tasting was as wonderful as the martini tasting. Again, if you don’t drink beware because these are close to full servings and they leave the open bottles for you at the end to go back and try your favorite one for a second time. They also give you multiple servings of cheese if you want it. It was led by the executive sommelier who recognized me from the Chef’s table and I picked up a few more tips that I hadn't learned from other wine excursions.

 

 

I think packing is the official sign that a cruise is over, but I knew I needed to spend some time doing it since I’d bought A LOT of stuff on this trip and needed to figure out how to get it all in. It took a while but I still had enough time to go down to Gatsby’s for a few drinks before my reservation at Cagney’s.

 

I really enjoyed dinner at Cagney’s and it was very filling! My filet was good and the waitress let me know that the side dishes are on the small side before I ordered, so I got the truffle fries AND the spinach AND potatoes (oh, I had dessert too!). I usually just graze on small meals throughout the day but I developed quite the appetite for big meals on this cruise. Thank goodness for the gym!

 

After dinner, I rushed to the shop to pick up my liquor and then rushed to get a seat at the show. If you only pick one show during your trip, “Elements” is not to be missed. It is a mix of magic, dancing, acrobatics and special effects and I really enjoyed it. They really pull out all the stops and I wished I'd arrived earlier to get a seat in the front rows. At the end the cruise director came out and introduced all the crew and the two captains who did the sea rescue got a standing ovation. The cruise director said the rescued passengers were recovering and doing fine.

 

After the show, I went to the casino and as soon as I walked in, Mr. Handsome spotted me from the Black Jack table. I sat down next to him and he walked me through how to play a round of black jack. I decide that this isn’t my game and headed on over to the roulette table where I had a BIG night courtesy of the numbers 12, 17, 19 and 22.

 

It’s late and I’m ready for my last sleep in my little cabin. Mr. H walks out with me and while we’re going up in the elevator, I learn he will be a half hour ahead of me to leave the ship. We’re walking back down the hall and before we’re getting close to the split to go to our rooms, there’s kind of an awkward silence so I decide to break it and just say: “it was really good to meet you. I hope you do keep in touch.” He asks for my number and I type it into his phone, quick hug and I head down the hall and get really sad as I see all of the luggage lining the way. I sit mine out too and climb into bed for the final time.

[TerpGirl77]

Sigh. I open my eyes right on time at 5:59 am. I get up, get dressed and decide to go for a walk on deck 13. There’s no one around.

 

I’m going to get all sappy on everyone for a minute and admit that I actually got really emotional while I was out there walking. This trip was extraordinarily special to me because I was so tired, so stressed, so weighed down and simply burned out when I left and this ship, the crew, Bermuda, the beaches, the sights, the sounds, the food, the wonderful people and even the promise of something with Mr. Handsome gave me the escape and rejuvenation and I needed. I knew I was about the head back into the fray and the craziness of the everyday and that got me worked up.

 

I have to admit that I spent so much writing this review because reliving all these moments has been therapeutic in a way; an escape among of sea of meetings, business travel, budgets, blah, blah, blah, and the routine of the everyday. I’m so tickled at the kind comments, since I usually only write business plans, strategies, emails and the like.

 

I stood there for a while and gave myself a little pep talk – I’m all rested up and ready for battle, it literally will be like Christmas in July with all of the stuff I bought and I still had all of the July 4 celebrations with family and my sweet new nephew to look forward to.

 

Most of all, I am about to enter into one of the most intense times in my career -- two political conventions, election night (get out there and vote people!), holiday season for our consumer clients and a slew of other things. I'm ready because I'm rested up and ready for battle. But the real thing that pulled me out of my funk? Leaving today means I will definitely need a vacation when it’s all said and done and our agency closes for the last two weeks in December so I’m home free. So where are we going next? (Epic, maybe?).

 

It’s close to my time, so I head back to my room and start to gather up my carry-on bags. Amazing Aramando knocks on my door, not to kick me out but to say goodbye. I ask him what’s next and he says it’s back to Bermuda this afternoon! I know a job is a job and they make the choice, but I think the crew who are on these contracts and are supporting families, saving for education or just trying to see the world are so are special; so even it might not make any difference I give Aramando $150 of my casino winnings for his extra gratuity and make him promise me he’ll get off the ship in Bermuda this time and do something fun! (earlier in the week, we’d had a conversation that he didn’t ever leave the ship when he had time off.)

 

So NCL check-in was amazingly slow but check out was lightning fast even with having to pay duty tax (the conveniently take credit card and luckily it was too much.) Or, it was simply the angels putting me in the right place at the right time. I breezed right off with hardly any lines, my luggage was there when I got off the ship and I walked right up in customs. I go out to look for the taxi line, its brutally hot and I’m getting re-acclimated to the noise and bustle of the city and that’s where I see him. And then see her. See her kissing her husband and hugging her son and getting into their SUV to head to wherever home is. So, it’s the end of Mr. Handsome and it all becomes clear on why you should always trust your instincts.

 

It all replays in my mind -- me feeling hesitant to walk on the deck, stiffening up when he was all touchy feely, the advice from the older high roller. Try to reconcile how I'd feel if as a 14-year-old was party to my dad introducing me to his "pretty friend." I felt really uncomfortable, sad, mad and grossed out.

 

You have to go downstairs and back through the terminal to get to the taxi line on the lower level. You can also drag your luggage across the street on the top level, but that was a no go with all the stuff I had. I board the elevator with some of my fellow passengers and just try to breathe. I will admit that there were times during the cruise where I was feeling good and though why not take him up on his offer? I’m so glad I stuck to my guns here. I dodged a bullet.

 

Getting home was tricky. The storms that had hit DC meant Amtrak had no power along the tracks and trains were cancelled until late in the evening. I wasn’t sure if I was going home to no electricity and did know how family or friends were faring either. Luckily I was able to get a ticket on the Bolt Bus to DC but it didn’t leave for a two and a half hours. I didn’t know where to stow all of my bags and it was so, so hot outside, so I just hunkered down in the Irish bar near the bus stop had a few beers, ordered a plate of nachos and starting catching up with my family and friends to make sure they were ok. Right around the time I was trying to navigate the chaotic scene at the bus stop, I got a text from him. “Are you ok? Heard about storms. Thinking about you.” I deleted and didn’t answer. Later that evening got another one “Get home ok? Miss you!” Ugh, so despicable and I was not going to let this be the lingering memory from my vacation. I just deleted again and haven’t received anything since.

 

So, I’ll end this review (as you can see brevity is not my thing) with a wish for all future all Norwegian Star passengers. May you have smooth sailing, spectacular sunsets and a jolly good time!

[TerpGirl77]

First of all, this is great...not just a review, but a thriller, too. Hurry up, what happens next?????

 

Now my question, You wrote about the pools in the Spa. What is the access to them? Is it only ladders or do they have an area with steps down into them?

 

Do you know if there are any shady outside areas to sit and read and is there shade in the Adults Only area?

 

Thanks, really looking forward to more and to finding out about Mr. H.

 

Hi Marcruiser,

Thanks for your note! I just posted my final two reviews so you can skip ahead and find out about him. To get into the pools in the spa treatment room you step up three steps and down a few steps into the water. Helps make for more graceful entry and exit! In the Quiet Zone there are little nooks that follow the design of the ship and I would say those were the shadiest spots. Deck 13 was one of my favorite areas to hang out. You can get away from the noise and constant people up and down the stairs on the pool deck but its still a short walk to the Biergarten and other areas if you need anything. Enjoy your cruise!

[TerpGirl77]

What a great tale. Can't wait for the next chapter. My bet Mr H ends up being married :eek:

 

Ding, ding, ding, ding -- winner, winner, chicken dinner!

[TerpGirl77]

Am thoroughly enjoying your review. We'll be going in a few months (just made final payment) and am greatly anticipating being back in Bermuda. Sounds like it has changed a bit since we've been there. Transportation passes were only $11. Yikes!

 

Your experiences really do read like an engaging novel, hard to put down, full of suspense and imagery, and a little spice never hurt!

 

Hope the next chapter comes soon!

 

Who are the hotel director and Cruise director at the moment? Any indication as to how much longer they'll be on board?

 

It takes alot of time to write well, so I appreciate the time you are putting into it. I wish your vacation were longer so I could continue reading! :)

 

Hi Birdnutty,

 

Thanks! I cannot remember the name of the hotel director but I do remember the cruise directors name was Yannis (sp?). On the first night, he mentioned that he'd just returned from his own vacation, so I assume it means he'll be around for a while. I hope you enjoy Bermuda as much as I did, even at $28 that ferry-bus pass was worth every penny!

[johnsak123]

Nice review. Very suspenseful

I think you could have avoided all of the mr handsome drama by asking him where his wife was

He did in fact ask you if you were single so it would have been appropriate

Glad you enjoyed yourself

[sbt518]

He was married!

 

Good for you for sticking with your instincts!

 

Great review and thanks for answering my spa question earlier.

 

I'm really looking forward to our trip on the Star in October now. AND thanks to you I'm going to talk to my husband about the Chef's table as well.

 

Now I'm looking forward to Elbodans' trip review so I have some more good reading before October. The first one from Bermuda practically set our itinerary for our trip so we'll see what she does this time....

[TerpGirl77]

ok sorry for the back to back comments but i commented before reading your last two updates so...

 

first--thank you for your chef's table review! my husband and i have been debating whether we want to do this or not, less because of money (whatever, we're on vacation) and more because of time. the whole having to be back by 5:00ish (to get ready) thing is a bit of an issue, especially because we (ok HE) also want(s) to do the sunset swizzle cruise (he did it with his family when he was, like, 19 and loved it so much he needs to take me on it this time). which would mean that we'd have to be back on the ship at a reasonable time BOTH overnight nights. but i think your chef's table review just pushed me over the edge of being ok with that. so thanks! particularly for the bolded portion.

 

second--i love how much everyone loves this report for literary and entertainment value. i absolutely agree. i like how you occasionally reference 50 shades of gray--it sort of continues the whole romance motif. as an english major slash writer nerd, i love it. well done!

 

third (can i stop counting now?) i love, love, love this:

 

"This is what I think sets cruising apart from any other type of vacation. It’s 3:30 in the morning and I’m sitting in Bermuda in a nice looking restaurant eating chicken wings with a couple in their late 50s, a couple in their 40s another 35 year old woman all who I just met a few hours ago and we are laughing and carrying on like we’ve know each other forever. At 4:30 am I arrived back at my stateroom my face hurting from smiling and laughing so hard."

 

YES. yes yes yes. that is what is awesome about cruising. and that is what is awesome about cruising SOLO. love it.

 

so you didn't like the frog and onion? personally, on my last/first bermuda cruise, i was sad i didn't discover it earlier. i wandered in about two hours before we sailed way and had a blast. it seemed more...friendly? than the cruise ship bars and it was right there.

 

i also agree that the dockyard is a great port area. it has everything you need and want and nothing you don't. i did a caribbean cruise in february--after my bermuda cruise in october--and didn't find one single port that i loved as much as the dockyard. or, for that matter, one single island i loved as much as bermuda. i guess that's why i'm going back! well, that and the fact that NYC is an hour bus ride from my house.

 

again, thanks for this report. love it!

 

EDIT: you seem like my kind of travel friend. to learn more about me, click the link in my signature.

 

Hi Elbodans,

 

You've got a hard choice there but whatever you chose either one will be great! I can't agree more on the Dockyard, it was so nice and I'm jealous you are going back. You know, I think I would have liked Frog and Onion more if I had gone to it one of the nights we were in port. At that point I think I was in a little funk and it was crowded. I wished I tried the beer sampler that was on the menu. I've got a long flight home this evening so I'll be checking out your blog! Thanks for your sweet comments!

[TerpGirl77]

Nice review. Very suspenseful

I think you could have avoided all of the mr handsome drama by asking him where his wife was

He did in fact ask you if you were single so it would have been appropriate

Glad you enjoyed yourself

 

Hi Johnsak,

 

You are completely right and in I'm kicking myself in retrospect for not asking As my friend said when I told her this story asking the that question really is the first rule of dating these days. What threw me off was his comment the first day when he said "I feel like I'm cruising solo..." I immediately cut to single day for some reason. Lesson learned.