Reflection Nov 29 Sailing

[C 2 C]

Back to Back Instructions:

 

[C 2 C]

Beverage Package:

 

 

[C 2 C]

The program is a bit different tonight:

 

 

 

[schlimazel_traveler]

Oh, I didn't realize you were staying on board! I was just regretting out loud to my husband that your posting of the daily schedules would likely end today! I'm glad to see you'll continue so we'll get a chance to see which things are more or less the same week-to-week and which change. I learned from the activities staff on a recent Royal Caribbean cruise that they don't make up the schedule for each day until the prior evening, and that they base it on what seems to be going over well with the guests.

Edited December 6, 2014 by schlimazel_traveler

[C 2 C]

Announcements at the muster drill today were made in English Spanish and French. I always wonder what will happen to all the other linguistic groups if something were to happen. :cool:

[wallie5446]

Just watched the Sail Away on the Port of Miami web cam! Have a wonderful 7 more days!

[C 2 C]

Just watched the Sail Away on the Port of Miami web cam! Have a wonderful 7 more days!

 

Thank you. Weather for sail away is perfect.

[Gran2five]

Arno, thank you for posting the set of menus. Will this week be different given the same itinerary or will it follow day 8 - 14? We embark mid January and can't wait.

 

Thank you again.

[Qtypie617]

Any feedback on Indulgence? I apologize if I missed it. Were you docked or tendered in St Thomas? If docked, which pier? Enjoying your updates as we sail next Saturday!

[RL1180]

Any feedback on Indulgence? I apologize if I missed it. Were you docked or tendered in St Thomas? If docked, which pier? Enjoying your updates as we sail next Saturday!

 

Docked in St. Thomas on Dec. 2nd. Reflection was in the middle of the West Indian Company/Havensight pier (with Disney Fantasy in front, and a Carnival ship behind).

[RL1180]

Hi Arno!

 

How was Indulgence?

 

Also, have you had any evening shows on the lawn this sailing? I've heard sometimes there is like a jazz show or such. Trying to see if we will have an alcove on a night where something like that will be going on.

 

Thanks!

Nikki

 

There were no shows at all on the lawn for the Nov. 29th sailing. In fact, rather disappointingly, the whole center lawn area was completely roped off for the entire cruise. Some people were stepping over the ropes to take pictures, but there were ropes around the whole area keeping people off the lawn. The large chairs also had their own set of ropes guarding them, and the crew was quick to shoo anyone away if they were seen near them. The two side grass areas just forward of the Sunset Bar were open, however, and we spent a few evenings laying on the grass there enjoying the stars.

[mitttocs]

I was also on this cruise, just having arrived home this afternoon. While I may get the opportunity to write a full review in the coming days, the original posting seemed to have a lot of interest, so I am going to give my opinion on some of the good and not so good aspects of this trip -- fortunately, the good far outweigh the not so good! I will touch on only a few topics, but would be very happy to respond further to any questions you might have! Keep in mind that some of my observations are completely subjective, and others on this same cruise may view these things differently than me. This may end up being lengthy, but

 

When I cruise, I like sunshine and I like it warm. This past week was cloudy about 50% of the time(though plenty warm), so I would have liked it a little sunnier, but obviously there is nothing any of us can do about that! This was my 5th cruise with Celebrity and 2nd time on Reflection --- we were a group of 8 people (including a 7 and an 8 yr old) celebrating a 50th anniversary.

 

Embarkation has never been easier. We arrived at the port around 11:10, and we were eating lunch at the buffet by 11:30. No lines anywhere, no wait to get aboard the ship. Rooms available shortly after 1:00, luggage arrived to all of our rooms by 4:00.

 

For those travelling with children, I cannot say enough about the "Kid's Club" program. The kids in our group were completely engrossed every single day of the week and couldn't wait to get back there the next day. The staff could not have been more helpful, and the programs change from day to day keeping the kids fully involved.

 

Though we had the opportunity to have the classic drink package when booking the trip, several of us had upgraded to the premium drink package, and none of us have any complaints. As always, the bartenders and servers were attentive and congenial, and never did we feel that we were "waiting" for drinks. Martini Bar (level 4) continues to be the "hot spot" on the ship, though on several occasions, Molecular Bar (level 5) and Sunset Bar (level 15) were also very busy.

 

For me, dinner in the main dining room was the biggest disappointment on this particular trip. We ate in there on 5 nights, and I can honestly say that I only had 2 good experiences. I am not a complainer, as I can truly say in my previous 4 cruises that it was rare to have any complaint in the dining room. I had roast pork one night which was the best meal I had the entire week in the dining room. The night that prime rib was offered was also petty good. On the flip side, one night I ordered salmon that looked absolutely miserable on the plate -- an ugly shade of gray -- and tasted equally miserable. Another night I had a NY Sirloin ordered medium rare --- the steak came to the table very rare and looked like either side of the steak had only been over heat for a few seconds. Another night, I went to order the beef special for the evening, and the waiter flat out said "I don't recommend the beef special, get the NY Sirloin". I explained to him why I was reluctant to order the steak based on my previous experience, but he said he would take care of it. The steak came out exactly like the previous time I ordered it. I called the waiter over, and he took it away to get me a properly cooked steak. The next one came out the exact same way again. I realize that I have the option to order something else if the steak or any other meal doesn't meet my liking, but given that there are several courses served, by the time I leave the table, I am not hungry. My overall feeling from the dining room is that this is one area where costs are being reduced, and I would be interested to hear from others if they disagree with my assessment.

 

The two nights not in the dining room were both spent at Tuscan Grille. My partner and I went alone on Tuesday night, had Zaza for a waiter, and the entire experience was awesome! Fantastic food, great service, great atmosphere -- everything was great, I would give it an A+ if I were scoring it! So good, in fact, that we decided that all of us (minus the 7 and 8 yr olds) would go back on Thursday night to celebrate the 50th anniversary. We asked for Zaza, but unfortunately he was not in our section. The experience that evening was probably around a C or a D. The attentiveness that you would expect in a specialty restaurant was completely missing. Some of the meals served were not what had been ordered, some of the meals came out overcooked resulting in a wait for the a new meal. Once we gave our room key in order to process the payment, the waiter completely disappeared for at least 20 minutes. Just a completely different experience than the first one for sure.

 

On a brighter note, I felt that most of the entertainment on the ship was at least a B+. While I did miss a couple of the main shows, the ones that I did see were very, very good. The large musical production was very well done, though several older folks in the audience mentioned that they feel the music was just too loud -- they may have a point, but I did enjoy it despite the fact that I had actually seen it a year ago. The Illusionist show mid-week was outstanding --- do NOT miss it if it is offered while you are there. You will be shaking your head in disbelief when you leave the theater! There was a woman pianist show that I unfortunately missed, but everyone I spoke with afterwards was raving about her. Another show not to be missed is entitled "Unique Musical Madman David Meyer" -- another MUST SEE show. This guy was unbelievably creative and good. The house bands that play here and there around the ship were pretty good overall. You can read from various threads on these boards and music is very, VERY subjective, but overall, it was pretty good. My major complaint with the music is poolside, where the music is just too loud! Some people want to sit by the pool, have a couple of drinks, and be able to speak with people sitting next to them --- when the music starts at the pool early in the afternoon, forget about talking to anyone sitting near you. You end up having to move to one of the sun decks away from the pools in order to just chill out.

 

We had a fairly early flight today (10:30), so we opted to carry our own bags off the ship at 7:30. That whole process of disembarkation and customs could not have been easier.

 

Hopefully my review doesn't make me come across as overly negative, as I am just being honest with my observations. I have another Celebrity cruise coming up with family in January (the Summit) and cannot wait! Overall, some of the things that I pointed out in my negative comments can be easily and readily corrected. There is a lot of competition out there in the cruise industry, so it is important that Celebrity straighten out the few problems that crop up. I still say that the worse day on a cruise is still way better than the best day in the office!!!!

Edited December 7, 2014 by mitttocs

[el820]

My family of four were on the Nov. 29 sailing as well. This was our 2nd sailing with Celebrity. My personal overall experience of this cruise was okay--not too great and not overly disappointing. To keep things short, I'm only going to mention some of the negatives I've experienced on this cruise. We had a few issues on this sailing and things never got off on the right foot.

 

When we got to our cabin, I noticed the door on the safe was left opened with the lock extended. It took 2-3 calls and one personal visit to the front desk to finally get someone to our room to fix the lock at about 9:30pm. On each of the failed attempts I waited about 20-25 minutes before giving up and leaving the cabin. So for the first day on the ship, I had ti carry all my personal belongings with me.

 

On the second day, my wife ordered burger at the Mast Grill. She took a bite and pulls a long string of hair...yuk. I assure you it wasn't a long string of mozzarella cheese.

 

During lobster night at the MDR, my son got a bad lobster tail. Typically a fresh lobster should have a firm and almost rubery like texture. The piece of lobster tail my son received was soft and flaky, just like a piece of cooked fish. I can easily break it into smaller pieces with my fork. Another night, I ordered the poached pear with vanilla ice cream, but the ice cream was missing from my plate--no biggie.

 

During my 7-day cruise, I had to ask housekeeping 3 times for bar soap. After the first time, you figure they would catch on and just leave you some soap when they clean the room--nope!!

[upwarduk]

For those travelling with children, I cannot say enough about the "Kid's Club" program. ----The staff could not have been more helpful, and the programs change from day to day keeping the kids fully involved.[/Quote]

 

Shouldn't these kids have been at school???

If you lived in UK you would have been fined for taking them out of school.

[Lois R]

Shouldn't these kids have been at school???

If you lived in UK you would have been fined for taking them out of school.

 

I am not the person you are asking but here in the states, we have

more than 1 version of school. Many parents "home school" their kids

and some parents do take their kids out of regular school for vacation.

They probably let the teachers know about it ahead of time.

 

As for being fined?.....I guess that is between your school system

and the parents of the children in the UK......:eek:

Edited December 7, 2014 by Lois R

[cynbar]

We used to take our grade school aged children out of school occasionally for a vacation, teachers gave them some work and it was never a problem. We wouldn't have done it once they reached high school, but it wasn't unusual or frowned upon in the younger grades. Other countries of course may handle this differently.

[Islander500]

I am not the person you are asking but here in the states, we have

more than 1 version of school. Many parents "home school" their kids

and some parents do take their kids out of regular school for vacation.

They probably let the teachers know about it ahead of time.

 

As for being fined?.....I guess that is between your school system

and the parents of the children in the UK......:eek:

 

Hi Lois--

 

Changing the subject here but saw your post and wanted to tell you I finally tried the Aspen Coffee at Murano on this cruise. It was so good! They also have it on the menu at Cafe al Bacio now. Maybe always did but I'd never seen it there before.

 

Had a great relaxing cruise. And discovered a new favorite at the Molecular Bar - White Cloud. ;)

 

Maria

[C 2 C]

Arno, thank you for posting the set of menus. Will this week be different given the same itinerary or will it follow day 8 - 14? We embark mid January and can't wait.

 

Menus begin with day 1 each sailing. Menus 8 to 14 only show up on longer sailings.

 

Sorry I could not answer the indulgence question. We were still recovering from our flight home from Singapore earlier in the week and did not have enough energy left to take part.

 

Somewhere along the line we will be tendered into St Thomas. I will ask which cruises will be affected.

[C 2 C]

Sunday at Sea under partially cloudy skies...

 

 

 

[C 2 C]

For our dining last night:

 

We enjoyed the Shrimp Louis,

I had the mushroom soup,

Joanne had a perfect near-rare Prime Rib

while I ordered the Pasta Bolognese.

 

Chilled Shrimp Louis

with Creamy Cocktail Sauce and Chunky Avocado Guacamole

 

Organic Roasted Red Beets

Topped with Feta Cheese and Sherry Vinaigrette; Served with Teardrop

 

Tomatoes and Arugula

 

Crispy Thai Beef Spring roll

with Sweet & Sour Chili Sauce and Ginger-Noodle Salad

 

Cream of Wild Forest Mushroom Soup

Mushroom Truffle Fricassée

 

White Gazpacho "Ajo Blanco"

with Grapes, Cucumbers, Toasted Almonds and Sourdough Croutons

 

Belgian Endive-Arugula Salad

with Apples, White Balsamic and Candied Pecans

Roasted Carrot Cumin Salad

with Avocado, Sunflower Seeds, Arugula and Lemon Yogurt Vinaigrette

Our homemade dressings tonight are: Sesame-Soy, White Balsamic, Blue Cheese

 

Beef and Veal Spaghetti Bolognese

with Herbs and Shaved Parmesan Cheese

 

Seared Salmon*

with Crushed Potatoes, Grilled Squashes and Sauce Vierge

 

Oven Roasted Jerk Spiced Chicken

with Black Bean-Pineapple Rice, Buttered Green Beans and Chicken Jus

 

Home-style Pork Chop

with Marshmallow Sweet Potatoes, Sautéed String Beans and Zesty Cider-Raisin Sauce

 

Aged Prime Rib of Beef*

with Mashed Potatoes, Baby Carrots, Green Beans and Pan Gravy

 

Spinach and Ricotta Ravioli

with Marinara and Parmesan Cream Sauce

 

We seldom eat dessert but the first night offers Rum Raisin Ice Cream which I drown in Baileys... :D

[Gran2five]

For our dining last night:

 

We enjoyed the Shrimp Louis,

I had the mushroom soup,

Joanne had a perfect near-rare Prime Rib

while I ordered the Pasta Bolognese.

 

 

 

We seldom eat dessert but the first night offers Rum Raisin Ice Cream which I drown in Baileys... :D

 

My husband loves Rum Raisin and with the beverage package Bailey's sounds perfect. Thank you for your response to the 7 day menu.

 

Pat

[akowilm]

Hi Lois--

 

Changing the subject here but saw your post and wanted to tell you I finally tried the Aspen Coffee at Murano on this cruise. It was so good! They also have it on the menu at Cafe al Bacio now. Maybe always did but I'd never seen it there before.

 

Had a great relaxing cruise. And discovered a new favorite at the Molecular Bar - White Cloud. ;)

 

Maria

Do tell! What is this White Cloud???

[C 2 C]

Smooth seas, warm/not hot... perfect balcony conditions:

 

 

[Islander500]

Do tell! What is this White Cloud???

 

Vodka, elderflower liquor, aloe vera juice, lemongrass essence & lychee. Liquid nitrogen on top for effect! It's not as sweet as some of the other Molecular Bar drinks, so for me it was perfect...

 

It's one of the new drinks available on the menu, and was quite popular looking around the bar. Another popular one was the Kentucky Derby.

[akowilm]

Thanks! I love the Molecular Bar, but many of the drinks are too sweet for me as well. Looking forward to trying these new ones!