A review from the Aft of the Jewel - January 17, 2015

[jmele999]

I will try to solve the problem with the video later on.

 

We spent the morning relaxing in the balcony and walking around the ship, followed by lunch.

 

At 1:00 pm we attended the Latitudes reception for Silver, Gold and Platinum members. There were only about 100 members in attendance so we had to consume a few drinks for those who were not able to attend to make sure that the drinks did not go to waste.

 

 

By 3:00 pm that afternoon, we had already sailed past Cozumel and were on our way back to Houston.

 

 

I stopped by DP's secret courtyard and noticed that even on a sea day it was not crowded.

 

 

As it has become tradition for us, we attended the 4:00 pm martini tasting. It was not as well attended as the one from the first sea day, but there was a nice crowd.

 

 

I really enjoyed this trick by one of the bartenders.

 

 

After the martini tasting we went back to the room to get ready for dinner. For some reason I don't have any pictures of the sunset so it was probably cloudy that afternoon.

Edited February 5, 2015 by jmele999

[jmele999]

For dinner that night we went to Teppanyaki ($25 per person), and were joined by a couple that we had met on our roll call.

 

 

The chef did a great job entertaining us. He said that the meal was cooked with love and made a heart out of fried rice.

 

 

I ordered the seafood combo (calamari, scallops, and lobster)

 

Here is the calamari while cooking.

 

 

 

But the lobster was the best part of the meal. It was tender and juicy.

 

 

My seafood combo. It was great, but too much food.

 

 

DP ordered the land and sea (steak and jumbo shrimp). He said that it was very good, but could only finish half of this meal.

[jmele999]

After dinner we returned to the room and found that our laundry had been delivered. The laundry voucher indicated that it was going to be delivered on Friday, but it was delivered early on Thursday night.

 

I was very surprised that the shirts were in hangers and that our shorts had been pressed.

 

 

Undergarments were folded, wrapped in tissue paper and placed in a basket.

 

 

Overall, I was very impressed with the free laundry service. Kudos to NCL!

[jmele999]

To end Day 6, we attended the Le Cirque Bijou show in the Stardust theatre. It is a great show, and if you can only attend one show during the entire week make sure that you go to this one. But make sure to get there early to get a seat. There were people standing during both shows.

 

After the show, we stopped by the white hot party in the Spinnaker lounge. The white hot party was fun, but after one drink we decided to go to bed around 11:30 pm.

 

 

Edited February 5, 2015 by jmele999

[Linda the Book Lover]

Thanks for taking one for the team and drinking for those not in attendance at the party...LOL

[LAKECLIFF]

Thanks for taking one for the team and drinking for those not in attendance at the party...LOL

Love seeing all your pictures and also "taking it for the team"! :eek: If anyone is interested in more photos and comments about the Jewel, ask Johan to post a link to his review from the Jewel in 2014 when he was in the Owners Suite...His review and pics were just as amazing as this thread.

[jmele999]

Love seeing all your pictures and also "taking it for the team"! :eek: If anyone is interested in more photos and comments about the Jewel, ask Johan to post a link to his review from the Jewel in 2014 when he was in the Owners Suite...His review and pics were just as amazing as this thread.

 

Thanks so much. I am going to send you a picture this weekend after the review is completed.

[jmele999]

Our last full day onboard.

 

 

 

[AF-1]

What deck is the jogging track on? Thanks

[jmele999]

The jogging track is on deck 13.

[Freespir8]

Johan this has been such an amazing review. Thank you so much for all of the time and effort! Have you booked your cruise to Cabo in March yet?

[moniker111]

Amazingly detailed review. Thanks for all your time and effort. We leave next week and this review has helped emesly. Any other tips or secrets that will help? ? ?

[Marion B]

Johan,

I hate to see your cruise end. I have been entertained and enlightened, with great pics and helpful dailies and menus.

Smooth sailings to you and DP.

Marion

[jmele999]

Hello all,

 

Sorry if I gave the impression that my review was done. I still need to cover Day 7 including the behind the scenes tour and a second visit to Le Bistro. I also want to talk about the disembarkation process and overall thoughts on the cruise. Lastly, if people are interested, briefly cover our trip to San Antonio, and the trip back home.

[Tricialy]

I'd love to hear more!

[Speasda]

Hello all,

 

Sorry if I gave the impression that my review was done. I still need to cover Day 7 including the behind the scenes tour and a second visit to Le Bistro. I also want to talk about the disembarkation process and overall thoughts on the cruise. Lastly, if people are interested, briefly cover our trip to San Antonio, and the trip back home.

 

Johan,

 

We are ready for more when you are ready to share. I am curious about your last night. Did you get back early and spend it in port like others have?

[jmele999]

Friday morning I did not bother getting up early because I knew that it was going to be cloudy and cold. We got up around 7:30 am and followed our usual routine of making a cappuccino, spending time in the balcony, followed by breakfast.

 

On our way to breakfast, it became clear that the end of our cruise was getting near as we were slowly, but surely approaching Houston.

 

 

But even though it was our last full day onboard and it was cloudy and cold, we decided to make the most of our day.

 

On our way to the behind the scenes tour we started noticing some of the oil rigs. I did not know that they were some far from coast.

 

You can also see how cloudy it was - but a day at sea is better than a day at home!

[jmele999]

The behind-the-scenes tour is complementary for Latitudes platinum members. However, several cruise critic members have previously reported that the behind-the-scenes tours for platinum members was an abbreviated version of the regular behind-the-scenes tour, which costs $79 per person.

 

Based on the reports from other cruisers, I did not want to get too excited about the tour, but was I wrong. The behind-the-scenes tour lasted over one hour and 20 minutes, and the tour guide, Nemo from the shore excursions team, was great. He was very knowledgeable and answered a lot of our questions regarding life onboard a cruise ship as a crew/staff member. He told us that he was going to get in trouble with his boss because the tour was too long.

 

Here is Nemo showing of us why the front of the ship right behind the stage of the Stardust theater is the rockiest part of the ship.

 

 

Here are some pictures of dressing room in the Stardust theater.

 

 

 

 

We continued the tour by going to deck 5 and visiting the famous I-95 corridor. For those of you who are not familiar with I-95, it is a long corridor that runs the length of the ship, and it is used by crew and staff members to get from the front to the back of the ship.

 

Edited February 6, 2015 by jmele999

[jmele999]

From the I-95 corridor, we went down to the laundry facilities on Deck 4.

 

 

 

 

Doing the laundry is a huge operation, but don't worry as the crew members don't have to fold the sheets. Here is the machine which dries and folds the sheets.

 

 

[jmele999]

The towels are folded by another machine.

 

 

 

 

After the laundry facilites, we visited the kitchen.

 

 

 

Did anyone notice how clean everything is in the kitchen?

Edited February 6, 2015 by jmele999

[Linda the Book Lover]

We continued the tour by going to deck 5 and visiting the famous I-95 corridor. For those of you who are not familiar with I-95, it is a long corridor that runs the length of the ship, and it is used by crew and staff members to get from the front to the back of the ship.

 

What I-95 is not the route to go back and forth from cruise port to cruise port on the eastern seaboard for CC passengers :D

[jmele999]

What I-95 is not the route to go back and forth from cruise port to cruise port on the eastern seaboard for CC passengers :D

 

Linda - that was funny, but you are not allowed to use that corridor unless you sign a contract and agree to work for nine months straight.:D

Edited February 6, 2015 by jmele999

[Linda the Book Lover]

Linda - that was funny, but you are not allowed to use that corridor unless you sign a contract and agree to work for nine months straight.:D

 

LOL-- I will pass on that wonderful offer since I retired 2 years ago and pray I never have to work again.:)

[Seatbelt_Bag_LOVE]

I really am enjoying your review. I have binged and read the whole thing over the last two days. We will be sailing NCL for the first time next January 23rd on the Escape. I can't wait to read the rest of your review! Thanks :)

[jmele999]

The behind-the-scenes tour was excellent and we learnt a lot about crew life onboard including that those staff/crew members who have daily interaction with guests (shore excursions team members, guest services desk staff members) tend to have shorter contracts.

 

We also learnt that everything onboard is either recycled or burnt. Even the used oil is sold.

 

 

After the behind-the-scenes tour, we had lunch and spent the afternoon relaxing - DP took a long nap on the balcony and enjoyed the hot tubs, which were great on a cold day.

 

 

And by now, you should all know what happens at 4:00 pm on sea days.

 

But I decided to have a dry martini this time while DP enjoyed his last martini tasting of the cruise.

Edited February 6, 2015 by jmele999