(Not) Live from the Explorer of the Seas, March 2014

[EmpressofPurple]

Denise, count me in as yet another fan of your reviews. What's really funny is, I was reading your review and thinking, hey, we had a similar itinerary on the Breakaway, and the weather was about the same. Then, when I started paying attention to the dates of your cruise, it occurred to me that I was on the Breakaway the same time you were on the Explorer.

 

We skipped Great Stirrup Cay, and except for a brief few moments under the sun, it was windy and cool-ish in Port Canaveral. Nassau was nice but not hot.

 

If you are interested, the Breakaway has fantastic last-minute deals out of NYC and is an amazing ship. My review is in my signature (I'm still working on Day 7) to give an idea.

 

Thanks again for your review!

 

Thanks, Windjamming, I'll definitely check out your review... I have avoided NCL up to now, but I'm keeping an open mind (especially now that I don't have any RCI NC/Open Bookings burning a hole in my pocket anymore)... I'd love to jump on a cheapie last-minute no-fly cruise!!

 

Glad you enjoyed mine, funny that we were at sea at the same time:):)

[jerseygirlinsi]

As I posted earlier, this review is full of all of the things I wonder about during a cruise. I'm officially sad at the close of this review. I appreciate all of the Explorer information, anything I can know ahead of time is so valuable. I know this is not the normal inquiry, but do you know if/what hot sauce is available in the dining locations? Im a Cholula type of girl, normally travel with my own bottle :eek:(I know, I know…hey, its one of my only vices). Just wondering what is offered. Thanks for any info you may have.

[CruiseAddict1982]

As I posted earlier, this review is full of all of the things I wonder about during a cruise. I'm officially sad at the close of this review. I appreciate all of the Explorer information, anything I can know ahead of time is so valuable. I know this is not the normal inquiry, but do you know if/what hot sauce is available in the dining locations? Im a Cholula type of girl, normally travel with my own bottle :eek:(I know, I know…hey, its one of my only vices). Just wondering what is offered. Thanks for any info you may have.

 

 

From what I remember it's cholula and Tabasco

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

[F27TW]

 

 

 

AGAIN !! (I'm just sayin!) :D:p

[thebooth]

Do you happen to have a photo of the menu at Portofinos?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

[EmpressofPurple]

AGAIN !! (I'm just sayin!) :D:p

 

And again... nice to know where your eyes are focused! :p

[EmpressofPurple]

As I posted earlier, this review is full of all of the things I wonder about during a cruise. I'm officially sad at the close of this review. I appreciate all of the Explorer information, anything I can know ahead of time is so valuable. I know this is not the normal inquiry, but do you know if/what hot sauce is available in the dining locations? Im a Cholula type of girl, normally travel with my own bottle :eek:(I know, I know…hey, its one of my only vices). Just wondering what is offered. Thanks for any info you may have.

 

I see someone else said cholula and tabasco... I just remember the tabasco, but I could be wrong... if you love it, bring it with you!! why not?

 

Glad you enjoy the details... I'm sad to end the review, too... it means the cruise is well and truly over... time to start looking forward to the next one!

[EmpressofPurple]

Do you happen to have a photo of the menu at Portofinos?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

 

Alas, no... but google is your friend!

 

http://www.beyondships.com/files/RCI_Portofino_menu.PDF

 

check out that link for a Portofino menu from Explorer... and enjoy!

[jerseygirlinsi]

From what I remember it's cholula and Tabasco

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

 

Thanks

[jerseygirlinsi]

I see someone else said cholula and tabasco... I just remember the tabasco, but I could be wrong... if you love it, bring it with you!! why not?

 

Glad you enjoy the details... I'm sad to end the review, too... it means the cruise is well and truly over... time to start looking forward to the next one!

 

Hey, if I can carry it in my purse on a daily basis..why not for the cruise? :D

Thanks again

[F27TW]

And again... nice to know where your eyes are focused! :p

 

Well yea.

But please know I absolutely loved your report ! We leave on Explorer next month (can't wait!). Love your writing style and pics .. you are one of the very best on here!

I'm just about to head over to your other ones and start again !!

(PS .. any chance u have Tom in those shorts in ur other report too?! :p) LOL

[EmpressofPurple]

Well yea.

But please know I absolutely loved your report ! We leave on Explorer next month (can't wait!). Love your writing style and pics .. you are one of the very best on here!

I'm just about to head over to your other ones and start again !!

(PS .. any chance u have Tom in those shorts in ur other report too?! :p) LOL

 

You are cracking me up!!:D I'll tell my DD you think she's a lucky gal... as I have repeatedly stated, I simply did NOT notice. Really. Until you pointed it out, that is. Repeatedly. (Is that a pistol in your pocket or are you happy to see me?)

 

Anyway, I'm glad you like the report... and are dipping into some of the older ones. Have fun! I happen to think the writing is even better in the reviews WITHOUT pictures. Let me know what you think.

 

I'm thinking about trying something different next time: A word-only review, with pictures posted at the very end. I'm not sure whether that would be cool, because you could really focus on the written descriptions without having to worry if you have too many or too few pictures for that post... or whether it would be annoying as a reader to have all these photos at the end and no text attached to them. Decisions, decisions...

 

I also read a great review by someone on this thread about an NCL cruise with a stylistic trick I appreciate: a brief point-by-point summation at the end of each day highlighting the main points of the text. Useful! I might try that in the future, too... I can get very wordy, and that's a way to sum up the key issues for people who like to browse quickly. We'll see...

 

Anyway, have a GREAT time on the Explorer... and keep your eyes to yourself!!:eek::rolleyes::)

[Firetrk]

Thank you for the review. I will be going on the Explorer for the first time in September (on a different itinerary) so it was great to see all of your pictures. I'm glad you had a wonderful time!

[cage keeper]

What an awesome review. We were also on this cruise so really enjoying reading this. Just skimmed through but hope to read the rest tonight. Strange seeing photos of us at the M&M and Quest. Yea, we were one of the old couples down there with all the young people.

 

We were the ones that brought the gift you got. Pez is made locally.

 

Joni

[cruiserdudebobby8]

love your review

[F27TW]

You are cracking me up!!:D I'll tell my DD you think she's a lucky gal... as I have repeatedly stated, I simply did NOT notice. Really. Until you pointed it out, that is. Repeatedly. (Is that a pistol in your pocket or are you happy to see me?)

 

Anyway, I'm glad you like the report... and are dipping into some of the older ones. Have fun! I happen to think the writing is even better in the reviews WITHOUT pictures. Let me know what you think.

 

I'm thinking about trying something different next time: A word-only review, with pictures posted at the very end. I'm not sure whether that would be cool, because you could really focus on the written descriptions without having to worry if you have too many or too few pictures for that post... or whether it would be annoying as a reader to have all these photos at the end and no text attached to them. Decisions, decisions...

 

I also read a great review by someone on this thread about an NCL cruise with a stylistic trick I appreciate: a brief point-by-point summation at the end of each day highlighting the main points of the text. Useful! I might try that in the future, too... I can get very wordy, and that's a way to sum up the key issues for people who like to browse quickly. We'll see...

 

Anyway, have a GREAT time on the Explorer... and keep your eyes to yourself!!:eek::rolleyes::)

 

 

Well I'll bet next time he wears those shorts you will have a little giggle thinking about that fresh gay man on Cruise Critic! LOL

And to be honest ... I love how you formatted your review .. its great to see the pics right in there along with the text as youre reading about it. I think to have all the pics at the end would make it a little disjointed .. though from the one Cruise Report I did .. I remember what a pain in the neck it is to embed them in the text as you go along!

Your current method is a winner ... and for what its worth, I wouldn't change a thing. I'm definitely a big fan of yours!

I'll definitely raise my glass to you next month while on the ship!

[DKNYC]

I've been to Aruba and Curacao and loved them... ooh, lucky you, Anthem!! Nice job. Sounds like you will appreciate dynamic dining. I'm willing to try anything once; I've done mytime twice (once with my dd on a port-heavy itinerary, once on the Oasis with a big group... but even there, we ended up booking a regular seating with the same waiter to recapture that "traditional" feel). I'm sure I'd enjoy it, too, at least once... but:

 

I live in NYC, so I can do "dynamic dining" any (or every) d*mn day of the week!!! What I CAN'T do is sit and chat with perfect strangers at any of those restaurants (well, I do, but my daughter is appalled, and goes "Mommmm," and the strangers tend to look at me as if I'm off my meds...) -- nor do I frequent a single locale enough (nor am I rich and/or famous enough) that the waiter and headwaiter know who I am, greet me warmly by name, walk me to my fixed table, know my preferences, etc., etc.

 

I LOVE that cruising provides a NEW AND DIFFERENT way to interact with others in a fine dining establishment... meet new people... receive a high level of personal service... this is NOT something I can experience every day... whereas deciding to go to a Mexican, Greek, Italian, French, Japanese, Indian, Jewish deli, Chinese, Moroccan, Asian-Fusion, Barbecue, etc., etc. restaurant I can do ANY TIME I WANT TO RIGHT HERE AT HOME!!! (And frankly, I would undoubtedly have a wider array of choices, and those choices would probably be more authentic, affordable and better prepared than those on any ship.)

 

Sorry, didn't mean to go off topic here... as I said, I'm happy to try it once or even twice... those "My Time" experiences certainly didn't "ruin my cruise" (as the saying goes)... but having tried it, I definitely prefer traditional, and I miss it when I don't do it onboard... I'm sad at the prospect of not even having that as an option on the newest class of ships...

 

Hi again Denise

Sorry to take you of course again, but I agree with your My Time/ Dynamic Dining assessment 100%. I am booked on both Quantum and Anthem within the next 2 years and I am a little worried. I usually travel solo and I have been having nightmares (not really) about having to go to the "No dining partner naughty room" to find tablemates. I really enjoy the traditional dining, much less angst for this sorta shy gal. As luck would have it I booked the same Anthem cruise as 2 of my tablemates from this past Explorer cruise so I will get to Navigate the dynamics with them. Whew! The Quantum I don't know about. Hopefully I will bond with some folks from the roll call (thank goodness for Cruise Critics) otherwise I will be going from restaurant to restaurant alone. Don't understand why Mr. Adam Goldstein didn't quite get it when Emmy asked him about the solo problem with Dynamic Dining on the recent Google Hangout. You should watch the video on the Royal Caribbean site if you haven't already.

Denise

[EmpressofPurple]

Thank you for the review. I will be going on the Explorer for the first time in September (on a different itinerary) so it was great to see all of your pictures. I'm glad you had a wonderful time!

 

Thanks firetrk, you will have a great time! Explorer is a wonderful ship -- and I'm sure you will enjoy your itinerary. Glad you enjoyed the pix, you can see the ship is in great shape. Yeah, it was fun -- I can't wait till November!

[EmpressofPurple]

What an awesome review. We were also on this cruise so really enjoying reading this. Just skimmed through but hope to read the rest tonight. Strange seeing photos of us at the M&M and Quest. Yea, we were one of the old couples down there with all the young people.

 

We were the ones that brought the gift you got. Pez is made locally.

 

Joni

 

Thanks Joni. We LOVED the Pez prize... last summer we spent an impromptu family weekend at a random Hilton garden inn in Connecticut (easy drive) and enjoyed the beaches and whatnot... we checked out early on Sunday and drove home leisurely, deciding to stop at whatever caught our eye... we stopped in New Haven (home of my alma mammy) and had some amazing pizza at Pepes... and when we got back on the highway we saw... what?!? The PEZ Factory!!! You bet we got off and did the tour. Awesome!

 

Yeah, it's fun to catch pictures and stories about yourself in someone else's review -- I love how our vacations intersect on a cruise. Think of all the people I write about that I met at the theatre, in the gym, at lunch in the Windjammer, on a shore excursion... they could easily be reading about themselves in one of my blog-style reviews!

 

Yeah, old folks at the Quest!!!:D

[EmpressofPurple]

Well I'll bet next time he wears those shorts you will have a little giggle thinking about that fresh gay man on Cruise Critic! LOL

And to be honest ... I love how you formatted your review .. its great to see the pics right in there along with the text as youre reading about it. I think to have all the pics at the end would make it a little disjointed .. though from the one Cruise Report I did .. I remember what a pain in the neck it is to embed them in the text as you go along!

Your current method is a winner ... and for what its worth, I wouldn't change a thing. I'm definitely a big fan of yours!

I'll definitely raise my glass to you next month while on the ship!

 

Glad you like the review style... yeah, it's a challenge to embed photos as you go... I was more concerned that I wasn't including enough detail in the writing because I felt the pictures would "tell the story"...

 

... which apparently they did!! (Oh, according to Ariel, Tom always has his cell phone in his pocket... or he's happy to see her!!:D)

[EmpressofPurple]

Hi again Denise

Sorry to take you of course again, but I agree with your My Time/ Dynamic Dining assessment 100%. I am booked on both Quantum and Anthem within the next 2 years and I am a little worried. I usually travel solo and I have been having nightmares (not really) about having to go to the "No dining partner naughty room" to find tablemates. I really enjoy the traditional dining, much less angst for this sorta shy gal. As luck would have it I booked the same Anthem cruise as 2 of my tablemates from this past Explorer cruise so I will get to Navigate the dynamics with them. Whew! The Quantum I don't know about. Hopefully I will bond with some folks from the roll call (thank goodness for Cruise Critics) otherwise I will be going from restaurant to restaurant alone. Don't understand why Mr. Adam Goldstein didn't quite get it when Emmy asked him about the solo problem with Dynamic Dining on the recent Google Hangout. You should watch the video on the Royal Caribbean site if you haven't already.

Denise

 

I'm sure you'll make friends on CC or onboard to enjoy exploring the various dining establishments with -- look at the number of people I met on this cruise, at the cooking demonstration, at lunch, in the front row of the theatre, etc. -- easy enough to ask if you can join up for dinner.

 

To me it's not only about cruising solo, though... it's about the actual traditional cruising experience, whether solo or with friends, family, partners, etc. -- I love the traditional dining setup, and how unique it is compared to other ways of eating. I'll probably try dynamic dining at sea once... but as I said, I do it all the time, right here in NYC, with a wider range of choices. Anyway...

[EmpressofPurple]

love your review

 

Aw thanks:o

[DKNYC]

I like the whole idea of the traditional cruising experience as well. Guess I am a hopeless romantic. I have had great luck at making friends from cruise critic so I have a few likely victims on roll calls. Once I get on the ship everything usually works out. It's always worse in your head. :-)

You are so right about NYC having practically invented dynamic dining. And made it an art form.

Denise

 

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk

Edited May 1, 2014 by DKNYC

[F27TW]

Glad you like the review style... yeah, it's a challenge to embed photos as you go... I was more concerned that I wasn't including enough detail in the writing because I felt the pictures would "tell the story"...

 

... which apparently they did!! (Oh, according to Ariel, Tom always has his cell phone in his pocket... or he's happy to see her!!:D)

 

 

I think you told the story perfectly .. as u do in all your reports. It took me forever to figure it out the first time I tried it too ... but its so worth it for the people enjoying ur report to see the great pics as ure going along.

I'm gonna try and do one again when we get back from Explorer in a few weeks !

OH, OH ... and .. tell Ariel uh, a cell phone?! Girl .. you know that ain't no cell phone in those shorts!!! :eek: :D Good try tho!! LOL

[EmpressofPurple]

I'd love to see a report from you... although I am a little afraid of what you might focus on!! Be afraid, men, be very afraid!!::D:D

 

 

Thanks btw, and if you're dipping into my old reviews, I just added photos at the end of the one from the explorer in 2012. Next I'll try to dig up the photos from the brilliance cruise and add those. That's the only time I'll do it at the end, though, unless I'm doing a true "live from" without an unlimited internet package and can't post photos while aboard.

 

Sent from my SPH-L710 using Forums mobile app