Jewel Day by Day Photo Review 11/16/2013 (Southern Caribbean)

[Familygoboston]

Pace yourself, now!

 

Look at that...unlike Cinderella, we actually made it past midnight:eek:

 

We stayed up for Quest...in the Safari Lounge

 

 

(my lousy iphone photo of Quest)

 

We didn't play, just went to observe and report;)

 

Carly is very funny and the crew playing seemed to have a great time...and I know others will beg to differ, but while Quest may be more fun to play in the old style lounges, its much more fun to watch in Studio B (on the larger ships) with the elevated seats and video replay.

 

In the lounge, its very funny for Carly, but really no one else can see what people are showing her. If you aren't sitting at the tables right next to her all you see are people's backs. I know I will need a flack jacket for saying this; but I prefer Quest with the video replay and seats being "above the action", so most people can see whats happening.

 

Also, for those very competitive Quest players; the lounge set up is inherently unfair...if your team is located outside the inner ring, you have no shot to win because you can't get to the CD in time. At least in Studio B all the teams are arrayed equidistantly around the rink.

 

Ok, I know, I know, that is entirely too much analysis of a silly game show..but that's what I do:o The bottom line is, go, have fun, see people's bottom lines:eek::p

[Familygoboston]

Cruise Compasses Day 6

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(also on our bed tonight...a special invitation!)

 

 

 

 

Tomorrow: a actual sea day! Still lots more fun to come and Houston: we have a little wine problem!

[Familygoboston]

A turtle! That is just the sweetest thing ever (next to your wonderful cabin steward :)).

I know Deirdre, it made my day!! We gave Sean a WOW card for being playful like that; every day he had a little reply for our message, but this was the first time he allowed a turtle to swim in our bed! ;)

 

Thanks for the oK on the pictures of turtles. It will take me time to make a quilt from them. I will probably have to send you an e-mail with a picture attached.

 

Norine

I would love to see it one day...you should just post it as it's own thread...a quilt made with CC turtle pictures. There's a thread with model ships right?! We like creative on CC:D

[Familygoboston]

The Radiance class ships have beautiful Windjammers. I think they are the nicest in the RCI fleet.

I totally agree! I really wanted this one last sail on Jewel before she gets re made. The Asst hotel director assured me that the "aft" section of the WJ would be unchanged, but I can't imagine how that could be with the addition of the specialty restaurants. He was very excited about the new venues (and Izumi for sure) I really like that "solarium" area at the front right before you enter (where the ping pong tables are) I would imagine that's going, and maybe one (or both:() of the side solarium (on the way to the open aft section) No doubt it will be more crowded at lunch.

 

I haven't ben to Barbados since we sailed on Serenade quite some time ago. Thanks for bringing me back!

 

We had a rainbow at one of our sail-a-ways from Curacao. It is kind of special.

Isn't it lovely...seems like every cruise, near the end, we see one (Galapagos, FP) Maybe that just means we get rainy weather:p, but I like to think it's a special farewell!:D

[ckrobyn]

What a wonderful review!!! I was in San Juan on November 17th on the Explorer :D. I'm heading back in 74 more sleeps to the Adventure. So glad I was able to help you in your planning!!

[BobInPa]

Woody's Off the Beaten Path Tour

 

Rosalie river lunch and swim

 

 

(Once at the Rosalie river, we were able to wade across it to this little black sand peninsula on the Atlantic ocean. As you can see the water was very rough, here, not for swimming! We swam in the shallow river which was warm and freshwater)

 

Hi,

 

We will be on the Jewel with the same itinerary in late January. We were on Dominica in January of 2012 and took a Celebrity tour to Trafalgar Falls, Emerald Pool etc. I think Dominica is really special and reminded me of the ambience of St. Vincent when we were there in 1969. I would like to see the places that were included on Woody's tour but I have no depth perception due to a really troubled right eye. You mentioned slippery steps and rocks near the falls. What about getting to the river and beach or anything else? In addition to the lack of depth perception I am top heavy, tall and old.

 

Thanks,

Bob

[Familygoboston]

What a wonderful review!!! I was in San Juan on November 17th on the Explorer :D. I'm heading back in 74 more sleeps to the Adventure. So glad I was able to help you in your planning!!

Thanks for that thread! It is really helpful! I hadn't need to SJ in almost 20 years, so I had a lot to catch up on. The biggest thing I think and ill review this is a day or two when I get to SJ; is that OSJ was a little scary after dark hen, but this year we returned from our tour at 10 PM and had to walk back to our hotel. The streets were full of people- most of them young families celebrating the beautiful Christmas lights. There was a heavy police presence and nothing felt unsafe (though we took usual precautions as we do in any city including our own!)

 

Have fun on Adventure! I might like to try that next!

Hi,

 

We will be on the Jewel with the same itinerary in late January. We were on Dominica in January of 2012 and took a Celebrity tour to Trafalgar Falls, Emerald Pool etc. I think Dominica is really special and reminded me of the ambience of St. Vincent when we were there in 1969. I would like to see the places that were included on Woody's tour but I have no depth perception due to a really troubled right eye. You mentioned slippery steps and rocks near the falls. What about getting to the river and beach or anything else? In addition to the lack of depth perception I am top heavy, tall and old.

 

Thanks,

Bob

It is like a place time forgot! ( in a good way!)

I think you can see in my photos what the terrain looks like. It's not smooth waking paths and paved thoroughfares, but on the other hand you aren't going more than a dozen to 100 feet. There are some things that I felt unsteady doing; like crossing the Rosalie river and wading into the Jaco falls. But there's no requirement to do that. You can enjoy the view from the shore. Much of the tour is getting from one place to another while sitting in the 4x4. You might want to request that Woody bring a little fold up chair for you so when you get to stops you can sit in it rather than stand or have to sit on the ground. If you engage him, it's your tour...and you can request it to be paced to meet your needs!

 

Another thought is to use a telescoping walking stick, LLbean has an excellent selection. Our very young and fit guide in the Ecuadorian Andes says she uses one all the time when mountain climbing to save her knees NOW before they are bad. I plan on getting one for myself before I go to Antarctica. It's not a "cane" ; it's a really cool tool like crampons or a headlamp that marks you as rugged and outdoorsy!;) Seriously, my mom resisted in the Galapagos and finally borrowed a walking stick from the ship and it worked out so well for her, she was much more confident and less tired walking around the uneven terrain. I was sold so that the next trip like that I do, I will have a walking stick!

 

Good luck and enjoy your visit!

Edited December 11, 2013 by Familygoboston

[BobInPa]

It is like a place time forgot! ( in a good way!)

I think you can see in my photos what the terrain looks like. It's not smooth waking paths and paved thoroughfares, but on the other hand you aren't going more than a dozen to 100 feet. There are some things that I felt unsteady doing; like crossing the Rosalie river and wading into the Jaco falls. But there's no requirement to do that. You can enjoy the view from the shore. Much of the tour is getting from one place to another while sitting in the 4x4. You might want to request that Woody bring a little fold up chair for you so when you get to stops you can sit in it rather than stand or have to sit on the ground. If you engage him, it's your tour...and you can request it to be paced to meet your needs!

 

Another thought is to use a telescoping walking stick, LLbean has an excellent selection. Our very young and fit guide in the Ecuadorian Andes says she uses one all the time when mountain climbing to save her knees NOW before they are bad. I plan on getting one for myself before I go to Antarctica. It's not a "cane" ; it's a really cool tool like crampons or a headlamp that marks you as rugged and outdoorsy!;) Seriously, my mom resisted in the Galapagos and finally borrowed a walking stick from the ship and it worked out so well for her, she was much more confident and less tired walking around the uneven terrain. I was sold so that the next trip like that I do, I will have a walking stick!

 

Good luck and enjoy your visit!

 

Yes, the terrain getting to Trafalgar Falls and Emerald Pool was not that flat either, but we did have our Trekking Poles, which make things a lot easier. Plus if you are attacked by a large constrictor you've got a weapon.

[boaterette]

I love your reviews but do you have any idea why the posts sizes keep changing? Seems like I have to scroll forever just to read it especially page 10.

[Sunny AZ Girl]

I love your reviews but do you have any idea why the posts sizes keep changing? Seems like I have to scroll forever just to read it especially page 10.

 

If pictures are posted too large it not only keeps you from seeing the entire picture on one screen but you will have to scroll back and forth in order to read the rest of the page. I had to make the print much smaller in order to read the page a couple of pages back because the football pictures were so big.

 

However, the review is wonderful and the small inconvenience makes it well worth the little extra trouble! I know from experience it is sometimes very hard to make the picture sizes just right.

[Familygoboston]

Yes, the terrain getting to Trafalgar Falls and Emerald Pool was not that flat either, but we did have our Trekking Poles, which make things a lot easier. Plus if you are attacked by a large constrictor you've got a weapon.

 

LOL! I never thought of this...but that's a great idea...maybe use them in the WJ too; that's where it really gets dangerous! Sounds like you will be all set then!!;)

[Familygoboston]

I love your reviews but do you have any idea why the posts sizes keep changing? Seems like I have to scroll forever just to read it especially page 10.

 

If pictures are posted too large it not only keeps you from seeing the entire picture on one screen but you will have to scroll back and forth in order to read the rest of the page. I had to make the print much smaller in order to read the page a couple of pages back because the football pictures were so big.

 

However, the review is wonderful and the small inconvenience makes it well worth the little extra trouble! I know from experience it is sometimes very hard to make the picture sizes just right.

 

Sorry about that! That's exactly what it is:o one or two of my photos comes from Face Book and they are just too big; most of the pics DH puts on his photo sharing website and they are optimized...but those weren't. Theres no way to edit on CC after 15 minutes or so, but since they are not germain to the review, I'm can remove the photos from FB, so that they don't interfere! Hope that helps!:D

[Ocean Boy]

Why can't I see your pictures this morning?:confused:

[Familygoboston]

I'm getting a message when I try to go to the photo hosting site that is is down for maintenance. I've got to check with DH to see what to expect (is there a big problem or just a temporary one?:confused:)

 

 

Temporarily Unavailable

 

11-Dec-2013 8:00 AM EST

PBase is temporarily unavailable while we fix a server problem. We are working to get everything back up and running as soon as possible. Your patience is greatly appreciated.

 

Thank you.

The PBase Team

[Familygoboston]

More bad news, I can't get rid of the "big" photos...I tried deleting them from FB, but the link remains, so I can't remove them (think about THAT before you drunk post any nude selfies on fb:eek:) I can try asking the admins here to to do it, but dont know what the response would be:confused:

[Sunny AZ Girl]

Sorry about that! That's exactly what it is:o one or two of my photos comes from Face Book and they are just too big; most of the pics DH puts on his photo sharing website and they are optimized...but those weren't. Theres no way to edit on CC after 15 minutes or so, but since they are not germain to the review, I'm can remove the photos from FB, so that they don't interfere! Hope that helps!:D

 

Yes, I have found that using my photo hosting site the picture size is never a problem (I use SmugMug now). It makes it really easy to post optimal size pictures. I have never posted a picture from FB here on CC. Guess I won't if they come about so big!:eek: When I post pictures on FB they usually come straight from my phone, not my regular camera so they probably are big.

[Familygoboston]

[Familygoboston]

Day 7 Sea Day; it's time to deal with the "wine problem"

 

(Pano of sea day from our balcony)

 

 

 

 

 

We were up early and it's always a little a little melancholy to come to the end of the vacation. But I'm also always anxious to get home and see my family. We also had an action packed day in San Juan planned, so we had that to look forward to also!

 

Now today was the day where we really had to deal with the "wine problem".

 

 

Remember way back at the beginning of this review...

...we went here:

 

and bought 2 nice bottles of wine? Then DH packed them in his camera bag along with 20 pounds of gear and dragged them all around the ship until we could get into our cabin? I'm sure you remember all that!

Do you have any recall of me telling you that we actually drank that wine? Well, no you wouldn't recall that (and it's not because you had more wine than us) Its because of our wine problem. And our wine problem was that ...we...never...drank...the wine:rolleyes:

 

So now, we have two lovely bottles of wine and 24 hours left to drink it. Somehow, we liked the idea that we could bring two bottles on board, (we even had Sean bring us two wine glasses that sat on the counter...all...week...long:rolleyes: )but we didn't like the idea enough to actually drink them!

 

Now, those who follow my reviews might know we are kind of light weights when it comes to alcohol (we regularly take a pass on free flowing drinks from 5-8 PM every night, and our Seapass balance was only $130 (and $75 of that for Philippine relief and Walk for Wishes!, another $30 was an overpriced photograph) So it's clear that we are not big drinkers and you get an idea where it ranks in our priorities!

 

So now our big problem is what to do with 2 bottles of wine that we can't bring back to Boston with us (where we would probably also NOT drink them, but maybe we could have regifted them?) and no one really wants to see what would happen if I drank them all in one day. We could have brought them to the dining room to share with our new best friends (the other people at the private, but too close two tops in MTD) But that would require investing in another $50 bucks in corkage fees (that's more than our weekly bar bill!!:eek:) So in the end we decided the most humane thing to do was to leave it with Sean with a note to add them to the crew bar; they are young, and I hear they drink like fish!

 

And I think no matter how appealing the image of us romantically, sipping wine at sunset on our balcony is, I will resist bringing wine on board again, because that image is always followed by the image of me napping through dinner after having 3 glasses of wine on the balcony!

 

But enough about alcohol...it's only 9 AM for heaven's sake!

 

We had breakfast at 9 in WJ and we started noticing that supplies were running low. I wasn't able to find any yogurt on the buffet. Rosendo, our asst waiter in the MTD, came by and I mentioned it to him. He arranged to get the last two yogurts for me in the kitchen so I could have some at breakfast the next day too. I put them in our cabin fridge, right next to the wine we didn't drink.:rolleyes:

[Familygoboston]

Day 7 Sea Day: Walk around to take some photos

 

We always like to use a sea day to walk around and see some of the things we might have missed earlier in the week. We might take a few photos too:p

 

So we headed out and we found a few new things; even after 2 cruises for me!

 

 

 

 

 

 

(We always use the stairs, but I needed DH to see the view from this spectacular exterior elevator on Jewel)

 

 

 

 

 

(and of course, had to show DH these from the elevator on deck 13!!)

 

 

And we came across this...I had never seen it before! Its on deck 12. There was nothing and no one here , and I have to wonder if this space won't be slated for something else during dry dock...anyone have any ideas? Maybe you've been on the recently refurbished Radiance ships and have seen what they did with this space? Right now its the "sports" area with shuffle board rentals and a few chairs, but it's clearly not getting any use!

 

(country club)

 

 

 

 

 

[Familygoboston]

Yes, I have found that using my photo hosting site the picture size is never a problem (I use SmugMug now). It makes it really easy to post optimal size pictures. I have never posted a picture from FB here on CC. Guess I won't if they come about so big!:eek: When I post pictures on FB they usually come straight from my phone, not my regular camera so they probably are big.

 

Thanks Ginny for all your support with my photo woes!:D

[Familygoboston]

Day 7 Sea Day Helipad

 

DH and I decided to go out to the bow for a little while...on Jewel you can get to helipad and its fun to go out there and see the view and feel the wind in your hair!! We were also treated to lots of flying fish leaping out of the water. It was amazing to see how far they can "fly" once they leap out of the water. I think they are about the length of my forearm, but they look far tinier from way up on a huge cruise ship!

 

To reach the helipad, you walk along the Promenade outside on deck 5...when you get to the bow, there is a short ladder (stairs) up to the helipad. Sometimes at night, this area is closed to passengers. It might be weather, or it might be that one of the few outdoor crew only social (read: smoking) areas is located there, and sometimes they like to have a party outside the prying eyes of passengers!;)

 

(helipad- the "covered area" just below the last row of port holes is the out door crew area)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(a flying fish)

[Ocean Boy]

At least all of your pictures are viewable now.

[Sunny AZ Girl]

I love the flying fish photo! :D

[Familygoboston]

Day 7 Sea Day: where you can eat on this ship?

 

There a lot of things I loooove about Jewel, but one of the things I don't love is that there are not enough free places to get a little something to eat. And the places that ARE on Jewel really don't have things that I find either look or taste very good.

 

There is the Solarium Cafe in the Solarium. This has nothing whatsoever in common with the Solarium cafes of the oasis class. It is one lady standing behind a counter with microwaved pizza, sometimes a few pre made sandwiches, brownies and cookies, it's open late, but really offers nothing I'd want to eat at that hour.

 

I have no pictures of the food because it wasn't open while I was there to take photos.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Cafe Latte-tudes in the Centrum is more popular because, umm oops!, it's a Starbucks. I probably should have noticed that before the last day of the cruise...because DH is a huge Starbucks guy and he would have doubled our seapass bill getting coffee there every day. I think this addition happened after my last cruise so I didn't know. Poor fella! And if I had known, I might not have told him;)

 

The coffees are charged to your Sea Pass, but the pastries are free and they look better than the things offered at the Solarium "cafe". This place was quite popular and was open almost all the time.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There is also the Sea View Cafe, which is very good! It offers burgers, rubens, soups, fish and chips, onion rings and a couple of salads, as well as a full bar. On my last Jewel cruise we had to stand and order "Johnny Rockets style" and get a number, and then the order was brought to your table. This time there was a host who seated you and you placed an order which they delivered to your table.

 

There are 2 fee added specialty restaurants; Chops and Portofino. These are open for dinner and usually one was open for Gold card (suites and D+ and Pinnacle level guests) dining during the day for breakfast and lunch. Someone who has used those rooms at those times can correct me if it's different, but that's what the sign said!

 

(Chops Menu)

 

 

 

 

Outside of the Tides Dining Room and the Windjammer; that is the sum total of places to get a bite. The WJ advertises afternoon snacks from 2:30 to 5:30 when most people get back from port and would like to get a little something more than a cookie from the Cafe Latte-tude. And after 9 PM the WJ is closed, so you have no option to get a little something sweet after "resting" after dinner, and other than Cafe latte-tudes and room service; the pickings are slim!

 

I understand that when Jewel has her refurb, she will be Oasis-ized, and there may be a more "complete" Solarium cafe and a Park Cafe- both of which would be nice options! I hear the Seaview is going away as is some of the WJ seating to make way for fee added specialty restaurants. It will be interesting to sail her after the refurb and see if my concerns about "getting a snack or late sweet treat" can be resolved without paying an extra fee!

[Familygoboston]

Day 7 Sea Day : Galley Tour

At 11:30 we headed down to the Tides DR to take our tour of the Galley. One of the Chefs, John Morris, led the tour and we were able to walk through the prep areas and kitchens and learn a little about what goes on back there!! We were offered a Mimosa on the way in; there were maybe 30-40 people on the tour, which was probably a few too many for the space! It was sometimes difficult to all get into an area and hear John's commentary. At the end of the tour we were offered some chocolate covered strawberries.

 

One thing we learned was the hierarchy of the kitchen staff:

 

Red Scarf: manages the food staff

 

Blue Scarf: is experienced food staff

 

Yellow Scarf: is a new hire; first contract; they get lots of extra training and assistance.

 

Since all the food staff works 6-8 months for 10-11 hours per day with no days off; they especially watch the new guys and gals to make sure they are adjusting to sea life ok. The chef told us there is lots of checking in and making sure they are managing the schedule in a mentally healthy way.

 

We learned that all the food comes in one shipment from San Juan or Miami...they get no food from the other port of call because they must have everything USDA approved and inspected.

Jewels most recent USDA inspection scored a 97; which is considered excellent for an older ship that doesn't yet have the most cutting edge technology in the kitchen

 

 

(they decorated the kitchen for our visit with some of the items they use in the galley)

 

 

 

 

 

 

(Some of the instructions for servers in the galley)

 

 

 

 

 

 

(There is going to be lamb shank on the menu tonight!! The butcher gets most of the animal and will use all of it! The best cuts will be served for dinner; other parts will be made as soups or other dishes on the buffet.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(There are 5 bakers on board and the only breads not made on site are the hamburger buns, pizza dough and donuts.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

(there is a machine that takes a dough ball and creates these perfect rolls just like this; ready to go in the oven in seconds!!)

 

 

 

 

 

(nothing is left to chance...even the way the bread goes in the basket!)

 

After all that time in the galley...we were ready for lunch...we headed back up to the Windjammer, even though the buffet in the dining room looked very tempting!