Carnival Splendor 6/10/13 ... a ramble

[EJPhilly]

YUM, love the mudslides!

And don't forget Caribbean Tea! :D It's made with Curacau, gin, rum and something else. Not only is it DELISH, but it's a beautiful teal color! I discovered it by change, when I asked the bartender once for something BLUE so that I could play around with my camera and take some cool pictures by isolating the color. It turned out yummy and STRONG! :eek::eek:

Ooohhh def have to try that one too!! :)

[Crusin Karen]

1 part Blue Curacao liqueur

1 part gin

1 part Bacardi® white rum

1 part Jose Cuervo® Especial gold tequila

1 part Absolut® vodka

1 part sweet and sour mix

 

 

 

 

Mix all of the ingredients together and serve over ice. Garnish with an orange.

:eek: :eek: :eek: :eek: :eek: :eek:

[EJPhilly]

1 part Blue Curacao liqueur

1 part gin

1 part Bacardi® white rum

1 part Jose Cuervo® Especial gold tequila

1 part Absolut® vodka

1 part sweet and sour mix

 

 

 

 

Mix all of the ingredients together and serve over ice. Garnish with an orange.

:eek: :eek: :eek: :eek: :eek: :eek:

OMG OMG OMG, yeah i'm soooo all over that one too! Don't they also make some kinda of frozen blue drink too?

Thanks

[Cyber Kat]

OMG OMG OMG, yeah i'm soooo all over that one too! Don't they also make some kinda of frozen blue drink too?

Thanks

 

I had some kind of blue Margarita. I only got it because the waiter had them in the hurricane glasses ;) It was quite tasty - I got another. It was the DOD on Day 2. I have to look at the Fun Times and I'll let you know what it was.

[EJPhilly]

I had some kind of blue Margarita. I only got it because the waiter had them in the hurricane glasses ;) It was quite tasty - I got another. It was the DOD on Day 2. I have to look at the Fun Times and I'll let you know what it was.

MMMM! Thanks Kathy, sorry Karen & I kinda hijacking your review :(

[EJPhilly]

I had some kind of blue Margarita. I only got it because the waiter had them in the hurricane glasses ;) It was quite tasty - I got another. It was the DOD on Day 2. I have to look at the Fun Times and I'll let you know what it was.

Just clicked on your link for photos (i think the drink is pic #17)... love the nail polish too!!!

[bangzoom6877]

I saw the Dirty Banana listed also, def gonna try that too. I forgot I want to try a Miami Vice! I also saw they have a Frozen Cappuccino!! ;)..

 

Oh the Miami vice is amazing too! I really have no idea what my sailaway drink is going to be. To me Carnival always made the best drinks of the cruise lines I've been on. Thank goodness I'll have 8 days to indulge! :)

[EJPhilly]

I think mine might be either the Mocha Chocolate Getaway or Miami Vice. Such stressful things to think about!! ;)

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

[Cyber Kat]

I think mine might be either the Mocha Chocolate Getaway or Miami Vice. Such stressful things to think about!! ;)

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

 

I so wanted to try the Mocha Chocolate Getaway, but I never got around to it! :(

[Cyber Kat]

Day Two - Fun Day at Sea

 

I don't sleep very well my first night in a bed other than my own, so I slept a bit, woke up, checked the time and went back to sleep. Much to my sister's annoyance, I left the curtain open a bit on the door. It was closest to me and I wanted to see the dawn. I also wanted to see if it was still raining. At 7am - it was still raining :(

 

I decided to be good and go up to the gym for a bit.

 

The Splendor gym seems smaller than the one on the Miracle and the Legend. I think it's because the Miracle and Legend have that great huge hot tub in the center. And also because the gym spans the bow.

 

The Splendor has that Thalassotherapy pool in a separate area and the gym sort of wraps around it. When you first walk in, there is a warm up area, some free weights and some weight machines just inside on the left. The desk is on the right with an exercise room for Yoga, Pilates, etc behind it.

 

Ahead are the treadmills and they face the port/left side of the ship. Around a bend - not so much a corner as just an angle, there are t kinds of bikes - recumbent and the upright ones - and some elliptical machines. These face more bow on.

 

When I arrived a little after 7, the treadmills were all taken, so I chose a recumbent bike. Mind you this was the first day - it got easier to get the equipment you wanted as the cruise went along :D

 

I didn't take any pictures in the gym - sorry. I didn't want to carry anything extra. I had my S&S card and DUH - my iPod. NEVER thought to take pics with the iPod!

 

I had made a play list of some Caribbean kind of music and some steel drum pieces (since they don't do that anymore!) to play on the balcony for sailaway. Needless to say that didn't happen! But it was a nice accompaniment for the gym. If anyone wants the play list, let me know and I'll post it.

 

I also got this great little X-mini speaker that greatly enhances the sound quality - and you can only hear it from about a foot away so don't start any arguments about music on balconies (or take them elsewhere :rolleyes: ). Remember I had that huge wrap balcony and we rarely ever heard neighbors on either side.

 

As I was doing my little workout, the SUN started breaking through the clouds! YAY!

 

Getting brighter out there, but the water was still a bit rough. There were sea sick bags along the halls and by the elevators. I hope no one needed them.

 

 

I'll leave you with this ... more to come on our room service lunch, eating on the balcony and the first Elegant Night!

[bangzoom6877]

I think mine might be either the Mocha Chocolate Getaway or Miami Vice. Such stressful things to think about!! ;)

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

 

I know, everyone should have such problems! :)

 

Miami Vice sounds nice for a sailaway drink. But so does that blue margarita. Nothing like a good glass of wine too...decisions, decisions, decisions!

[bangzoom6877]

Day Two - Fun Day at Sea

 

I don't sleep very well my first night in a bed other than my own, so I slept a bit, woke up, checked the time and went back to sleep. Much to my sister's annoyance, I left the curtain open a bit on the door. It was closest to me and I wanted to see the dawn. I also wanted to see if it was still raining. At 7am - it was still raining :(

 

I decided to be good and go up to the gym for a bit.

 

The Splendor gym seems smaller than the one on the Miracle and the Legend. I think it's because the Miracle and Legend have that great huge hot tub in the center. And also because the gym spans the bow.

 

The Splendor has that Thalassotherapy pool in a separate area and the gym sort of wraps around it. When you first walk in, there is a warm up area, some free weights and some weight machines just inside on the left. The desk is on the right with an exercise room for Yoga, Pilates, etc behind it.

 

Ahead are the treadmills and they face the port/left side of the ship. Around a bend - not so much a corner as just an angle, there are t kinds of bikes - recumbent and the upright ones - and some elliptical machines. These face more bow on.

 

When I arrived a little after 7, the treadmills were all taken, so I chose a recumbent bike. Mind you this was the first day - it got easier to get the equipment you wanted as the cruise went along :D

 

I didn't take any pictures in the gym - sorry. I didn't want to carry anything extra. I had my S&S card and DUH - my iPod. NEVER thought to take pics with the iPod!

 

I had made a play list of some Caribbean kind of music and some steel drum pieces (since they don't do that anymore!) to play on the balcony for sailaway. Needless to say that didn't happen! But it was a nice accompaniment for the gym. If anyone wants the play list, let me know and I'll post it.

 

I also got this great little X-mini speaker that greatly enhances the sound quality - and you can only hear it from about a foot away so don't start any arguments about music on balconies (or take them elsewhere :rolleyes: ). Remember I had that huge wrap balcony and we rarely ever heard neighbors on either side.

 

As I was doing my little workout, the SUN started breaking through the clouds! YAY!

 

Getting brighter out there, but the water was still a bit rough. There were sea sick bags along the halls and by the elevators. I hope no one needed them.

 

 

I'll leave you with this ... more to come on our room service lunch, eating on the balcony and the first Elegant Night!

 

I have been in rough seas out of NY...not that much fun at times but none of us has ever gotten sick yet. I'm a little concerned about my 6-year-old son. 2 years ago on our cruise, he was fine the whole time. We didn't hit rough water but at times the ship of course was a bit rocky. Back then I didn't give my kids anything to prevent seasickness. No one had a problem. Last summer however, my son was very ill on the car trip home from Florida. I was in touch with the pediatrician and we cut our trip short because he could only keep liquids down. I brought him in to the pediatrician the morning after we got back but he was much better by then. The doctor said it was definitely a nasty stomach virus. Then on Christmas, we were on the way out to Long Island and he was playing his DS in the car. Within 20 minutes he got sick. No more DS in the car. No movies either. He was fine after getting sick one time, so it was definitely not a virus. The doctor concurred that he gets car sickness.

 

So this time, the doctor recommended that I give him Children's Dramamine throughout the cruise, beginning one hour before we sail. I'm still a little nervous for him. The doctor also recommended giving the same thing to my 8-year-old son, even though he hasn't had any motion issues, just to prevent it just in case. And DH and I always take Bonine once a day starting an hour before sailaway.

 

The gym on the ship sounds awesome! Sounds like they have everything I will need to work out. Treadmills always are taken up very quickly in any gym I have ever been to. I prefer the elliptical or the recumbent bike so hopefully I won't have a problem early in the morning. I will also be using the free weights.

 

Looking forward to more! :)

[EJPhilly]

I know, everyone should have such problems! :)

 

Miami Vice sounds nice for a sailaway drink. But so does that blue margarita. Nothing like a good glass of wine too...decisions, decisions, decisions!

Just might have to have 1 of each then, if we can't make up our minds!!! :)

[Crusin Karen]

Just clicked on your link for photos (i think the drink is pic #17)... love the nail polish too!!!

Pictures? :confused: When I click on Splendor pictures in your signature, Victory/Canada pictures come up. :mad::eek::confused:

[EJPhilly]

Pictures? :confused: When I click on Splendor pictures in your signature, Victory/Canada pictures come up. :mad::eek::confused:

oopsie... my bad, it was supposed to be a reply on Cyber Kat's post (that's what happens when I reply from my Iphone and not from a pc)..

 

Sorry ;(

[ch27088]

We decided it would be a good time to go get something to eat beofe we did the unpacking. I had heard that the best time to hit the Mongolian Wok was the first day! That advice was correct!

 

The Mongolian Wok had it's own section of the buffet. It's closest to the Lido pool. There is a regular buffet section opposite. I rather liked the way the Splendor's buffets are set up. With few exceptions - the Mongolian Wok, the Deli (at the aft pool), the Pizza Pirate and the Grill - the lines were short and moved quickly. When I found the Wok, there were maybe 4 or 5 people ahead of me.

 

 

There are 2 approaches - right and left and the cooks are at the center - same food on both sides. You pick your noodles and veggies as you work your way up to the cooks. You pick your protein - they usually had chicken and shrimp, one time beef and another time pork - and your sauce - Black Bean (mild), Thai Barbeque (medium) and Szechuan (hot). I chose the cellophane noodles (love them). I think, onions, mushrooms, zucchini and Chinese cabbage. And at the cook station, I got chicken and shrimp with the Thai Barbeque sauce. It was hot enough to give a bit of a tingle, but not burn your mouth. I'd say it took about 15 minutes.

 

I spotted some desserts across the way. There was no line, so you could just pop in and grab what you wanted. I got chocolate cake and some of the chocolate chip cookies, I've been hearing about, but never noticed before. I got a glass of ice water and headed up to the rotisserie, where I'd told DH and DSis I'd meet them.

 

The rotisserie area is great! It was NEVER crowded and you could always find a table. I don't know why I didn't take any pictures here, but I didn't - sorry. I also didn't sample the food there. My sister did and she said the chicken and the sides were good. DH had salami and cheese - don't ask ;)

 

The bowl of food from the Mongolian Wok was awesome - really, really good. I know they are phasing this out on some of the ships, but I think it's a mistake. It was worth standing in line for! The food was hot, the sauce scrumptious - veggies and protein done perfectly!

 

The cookies lived up to their reputation - YUMMO - cake was good too!

 

About halfway through lunch I hear, "Are you Kat?" in a most definite Scottish accent! This MUST be Happy Chappy! We all exchanged introductions of our various family members, chatted a bit, and then they set off to find some lunch too! Happy Chappy was NOT wearing his kilt - so disappointed :D

 

After lunch, we wandered around a bit, using my Deck Director app to find our way around. Either I did a really good job of research or the ship was not that difficult to get around.

 

I saw some people carrying DODs in HURRICANE GLASSES - YES! I want one! So we found a bar that had one and I got a Fun Ship Special (my second if you're keeping a tally!).

 

As I had hoped, we got the Gold Pearl dining room and we moseyed on down to see where our table was, but they hadn't put the numbers on the tables yet. I went to the casino to get a hole in my S&S card so I could put it on my spiffy spangly lanyard. I don't know how I managed to cruise so long without doing this! It was WONDERFUL! I love my lanyard!

 

We planned - or I should say Elationismyship - planner par excellance! - planned a M&G for 2:30 in the Rotisserie area. Which again was not crowded at all. I lost track of how many of us there were, but it was great fun putting faces and voices to all the screen names.

 

We hung around until it was almost time for Muster Drill ... coming up!

 

Thank you for sharing your review and photos with us, I am really enjoying the review. By the way, where did you find the app the deck director, would love to have that?

[sailorJo]

Day Two - Fun Day at Sea

 

 

 

 

I'll leave you with this ... more to come on our room service lunch, eating on the balcony and the first Elegant Night!

 

Wow, this picture looks like a painting!

 

Thank you for your very informative review, Kath. I'm hoping you will stretch it out for another 17 days at least, until it's my turn to board the Splendor :D

[bangzoom6877]

Wow, this picture looks like a painting!

 

Thank you for your very informative review, Kath. I'm hoping you will stretch it out for another 17 days at least, until it's my turn to board the Splendor :D

 

I'm right behind you...25 more days until my cruise on Splendor!

[MadOx75]

So what are your overall impressions of the Splendor, particularly as compared to the Miracle? I see from your signature that we were on the same sailing of the Miracle two years ago, and I recall seeing you in the roll call back then, and was just wondering how the two compared. We sail Sept. 14 out of NYC.

 

Also, do you recall who the CD is on the Splendor? If you noticed, how were the lounge entertainers? The guy that played the bars on the Miracle, JJ Paolino, was awesome. Hoping for just as great a performer on this cruise!

 

Thanks for your write up, I really enjoy hearing other folks experiences!

[MadOx75]

Nevermind, I found your other thread all about the Splendor. Glad to hear Woohoo is our CD!

[Cyber Kat]

The doctor concurred that he gets car sickness.

Looking forward to more! :)

 

Thanks!

 

 

I get car sick on long trips if I sit in the back seat - it's a visual thing. I can't look out the side window - only the front. mostly I just feel nauseous. But I don't get sea sick at all - the motion is not a problem. Stuff whipping past my vision, like telephone poles - that does me in every time. So perhaps your son won't have a problem on the ship. Take him on the ferry - if he's fine with the ferry, he should be fine with the ship!

[Cyber Kat]

Pictures? :confused: When I click on Splendor pictures in your signature, Victory/Canada pictures come up. :mad::eek::confused:

 

I'll check the link - but they are all in the same place. There are also pics from our Legend cruise and our Miracle cruise

[bangzoom6877]

Thanks!

 

 

I get car sick on long trips if I sit in the back seat - it's a visual thing. I can't look out the side window - only the front. mostly I just feel nauseous. But I don't get sea sick at all - the motion is not a problem. Stuff whipping past my vision, like telephone poles - that does me in every time. So perhaps your son won't have a problem on the ship. Take him on the ferry - if he's fine with the ferry, he should be fine with the ship!

 

I'm just going to give him the Children's Dramamine, and I think he will be fine. I just tend to be neurotic about these things. ;)

[Cyber Kat]

Thank you for sharing your review and photos with us, I am really enjoying the review. By the way, where did you find the app the deck director, would love to have that?

 

Thanks - it's a fantastic app! Just make sure you download the data for your ship BEFORE you cruise so you don't get any internet charges. It downloads the deck plans and the directions right to your iPod/iPhone. Not sure if they have an Android version. I just used it on my iPod

 

http://www.deckdirector.com/

[Cyber Kat]

Nevermind, I found your other thread all about the Splendor. Glad to hear Woohoo is our CD!

 

We were supposed to get him, but we had Marcelo Alvarado - who wasn't listed for the Splendor at all. I rather liked him. He was kind of low key and upbeat at the same time - if that makes any sense.