!!! Carnival Victory !!! ^_^ The Ultimate Review and Complete Pictorial Guide!!!

[gambee]

We started feeding the seagulls with the matt. They were everywhere.

 

 

I think we placed some chips on it, either that or bread, can't remember.

 

 

 

 

 

It is pretty neat to watch their control flight. I have seen them walk on water back here at home. We usually bring a bunch of seeds and spread them around us in the ocean. The next thing you know, they are walking on the surface of the ocean. It is a really cool sight.

 

[gambee]

By the way I wanted to share a video of my PowerKite. The video was shot at home with winds around 20mph.

 

There is an incredible amount of power!

 

She will drag you all over the beach, soooo much fun.

 

This is a must see video! Sorry about the quality though.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited August 20, 2015 by gambee

[gambee]

Look at that beauty! Animals are truly magnificent.

 

 

At some point my uncle left to head back to the ship, I am not entirely sure why he left. But I had no plans on leaving just yet. He also took one of the umbrellas with him.

 

 

Before he left my mom asked him for $5 to give to one of the assistants that was cleaning the island. I think she had spent all her money shopping, and I did not bring one cent of mine.

 

My mom struck a conversation with him, and he told her that he lives on an island nearby. Mom wanted to make sure he got something extra for his hard work. He said they leave the island around 6pm to head back home.

 

Then the beach really started clearing out.

 

 

Now this is paradise! It is beyond me why everyone went back to the ship so early. We still had 30 minutes left. But hey, much better for me, so no one is complaining.

 

 

It was just us and a handful of other people.

 

 

[gambee]

 

 

 

Here is one of my favorite pictures, it was taken with my phone. Unfortunately, I had to download it from FB, because I lost the original file. So it lost some of its quality in the process. My phone actually takes some of the best pictures that I have seen from a phone, and yes they destroy the iPhone 6 ones. That is one of the reasons why I bought this phone. But again, Android... You can't have it all I guess.

 

Look at those colors!

 

 

One more thing about HMC vs Castaway. The water is actually also more clear in HMC than it is in Castaway. I am still at odds, on which I like best. They are both solid islands with tons to offer. Both are highly recommended.

 

Eventually we saw one person walking from the far end of the island. He was warning everyone to get out of the water because the last tenders were leaving the island. I think that was good enough. It was maybe 4 people plus mom and I in the water by then, my mission had been accomplished. Well, I actually did not have a mission in the first place, lol. But I really wanted to make the most out of that Island. Especially considering the lack of activities of the prior day due to my unpleasantries.

 

 

[gambee]

High tide was moving in.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I am just glad that Carnival is taking good care of one of my favorite private islands.

 

 

[gambee]

 

Mom and I packed our stuff, and started heading to the tender area.

 

I think that was the fellow mom gave the money to, although I could be wrong.

 

 

""Line Land"" :D, I will never get tired of saying that. But I am sure some of you are ;)... sorryyyyyyyy :p

 

 

[gambee]

Gosh, I forget how hot it was that day. I think I do so, mainly because I spent most of my time in the water. Otherwise..... :eek:, I'd be like this :mad:. Nah, there is no way anyone can be mad on Half Moon Cay :p

 

[gambee]

These are very convenient.

 

 

Mom cleaning her feet.

 

 

Gambee's turn!

 

 

Some people enjoying the bar for a few more minutes. I attempted to get a drink, but it was a no go, they had cleared everything.

 

 

I just noticed the guy looking at me. Actually, there are so many stories in this picture, Love it! :D

 

Gorgeous eyes by way.

 

 

Edited August 20, 2015 by gambee

[gambee]

 

The staff goes on one line, and the passengers go on the other line.

 

 

 

They have some nice misters.

 

 

We made it into that tender.

 

 

[gambee]

 

 

 

 

 

Mom and I got the best seat in the house! Underneath the A/C! Life does not get any better than this :D. Well, unless I had a few more hours in this paradise.

 

 

[gambee]

Anyone for contraband booze?

 

 

Bye bye Half Moon Cay, until next time.

 

 

And hello Carnival Victory!

 

 

I can see my balcony! I actually think my uncle was there when I took this picture.

 

 

The process was quick and organized.

 

 

Edited August 20, 2015 by gambee

[gambee]

 

 

 

Mom went to her room to get changed, and I headed to mine.

 

I ate some of the left over popcorn that my uncle had from movie night before.

 

 

 

[gambee]

After a quick change of clothes, mom and went out looking for the others. It was a quick trip to the aft pool to our assigned table :D. They were there waiting for us.

 

 

Why more people did not enjoy that area of the ship is beyond me, but hey the more space for Gambee!

 

 

They had eaten some food from the buffet, but it was closed when I got there. I was quite hungry if may add. But I was not hungry enough to get in line for the pizza.

 

 

I got myself some ice cream to cool down a little. As always, it was yummy.

 

 

 

[gambee]

The ship started moving soon after we got there. For some odd reason I had left my sandals in the room, so I asked my aunt if I could wear her purple ones to go up one deck and take some pictures. The deck above the Lido is always exposed to the sun, and the floor is hot beyond my tolerance.

 

Trust me, I can tolerate an immense amount of abuse on my feet. I guess this comes from we were young and spent most of the time barefoot on an island that my uncle used to own in Colombia. We went there most of our vacations, and rarely used any kind of shoes. They were just a burden to wear. Plus, we were kids back then, so we could care less if we got injured. In the end it represented more time off from school, LoL. But you name it, and it most likely happened to us. We stepped on glass, rocks, animals, etc. Lots of damage done to out soles.

 

So, yeah, I have learned to endure a lot of pain in my feet. But 90+ degree weather will heat floors beyond my tolerance level.

 

Anyway, don't I look pretty? It matches my personality :D

 

 

 

Holly Crap! Those sandals are so dangerous! They have no grip, and they flip over so easily. I am not sure how she walked all day with them.

 

 

 

Yes, you got it! That is a perfect table for your mojito! I am sure the person in the deck below will enjoy it, Muahahaha, LoL.

 

 

 

Hasta luego Half Moon Cay, nos vemos pronto =)

 

[gambee]

 

 

The stairs heading back down to the Lido deck.

 

 

 

When I got back down, my aunt had gotten in line and gotten us some pizza. How long for the pizza? 25 minutes, I kid you not. I guess it was because everyone had just boarded and the buffet was closed. That made the pizza taste even better! Not that it needed that, because it was already delish by itself :D

 

 

I think I like the aft on the Breakaway class better. The view seems to be obstructed here. But hey, actually all Aft balconies are fabulous!

 

 

[gambee]

Awwwww the memories will last a lifetime!

 

 

 

 

 

Some Jacuzzi and pool time was in order =)

 

 

[gambee]

I am not sure what is going on with that stance, LoL. Great photo though =)

 

 

We must have stayed there for some extended period of time. It was a really nice place to relax, and the music was stable for the time being. During my time there I kept eyeing the Pizza line the entire time. I really wanted more pizza, but the was no way I was getting in a long line. At one point in time the line decreased significantly, down to 5 people or so. So I took off running, and got in line. The wait was about 10 minutes, not horrible. But I made the mistake of getting the white pizza, while it was good. It had way too much cheese, I recommend the regular pizza, over this one.

 

 

At some point I went upstairs and got a couple of pictures.

 

 

The pool was emptying out.

 

 

 

[joand452]

HMC was our introduction to "island life." We never went back on HAL, but we'd sure like to go back there!

 

Wonderful photos!

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[gambee]

 

We went to the room to shower, change and relax for a little while.

 

 

I guess it is a good time to talk about the beds. Mom had told me that they were quite hard (with the exception of the Rollaway beds, which are horrendous!). I can confirm that they are on the stiff side, but I got great sleep on all the nights. Maybe I was just too tired, who knows. I imagine if it is too hard for you, you can ask for an egg crate mattress topper to make it a little softer.

 

That night I really wanted to sleep outside on the balcony. Has anyone ever done this? I was thinking about pulling the mattress out there and just sleeping there. It was so serene and peaceful that night. What made me not do it? A few reasons. The first one was that our neighbors to the left always left the balcony light on no matter what. The light from their balcony really leaked into ours. The other reason was our other neighbors to the right, they had a tendency to come at all times of the night to talk. They were not loud or anything, but I could see them waking me up in the middle of the night. The last one was that the sunrise was from that side, and it would wake me up way too early.

 

But I have plans of doing this one day, mark my words! It might happen on my next cruise ;-), LoL. I might just bring a sleeping bag one day to do so. Nevertheless, I think that putting the mattress out there should be fine. Any suggestions are greatly appreciated.

 

I also wanted to sleep with the door open to listen to the waves smoothly hitting the hull of the ship, as I have done before. But Carnival has the feature that most ships have now, the A/C turns off. And while it was fairly cool on those nights, I did not want to impose that on my uncle. My bed was the one near to the door and I had more wind flow than his bed did.

 

What was my solution?

 

Well, I downloaded one of those apps that simulate noises to go to sleep. And I chose one that actually mimicked the sound of the waves so well, that I completely forgot it was an app on the first night. I thought I had left the door ajar by accident and woke up to close it :D. I suggest this option for those who still want A/C, but wish to have the feeling that you’re on a ship. I was quite elated with this solution :-)

 

The ship was sailing at a fairly fast speed, but the ocean was still as can be. We had minimal movement.

 

 

A funny note. The toilet in our room appeared to be having issues, I say this because mom reports that the issues did not reproduce on hers. When you would flush it would do it with great power, but the water flow was minimal, and only in one direction. So, hmmmmmmm, let's just say you needed to flush like 6 times each time. Keep in mind that you’re flushing 6 times and everyone is outside hearing all those loud flushes :D. It happened to mom on a couple of accessions, and we would bother her about her ummmmmmmm, well you figure it out :D. It was quite funny.

 

 

[gambee]

We all got ready and went out for a walk. Like I said the temperature was quite comfortable, and there was a nice sunset coming our way.

 

 

 

Have I spoken about the elevators? I think I did, but I am not sure. Anyway, they are great. You will rarely wait for one. Carnival seems to have this down to a T. The only time you will struggle to get one is during the drill, or unloading on a port that you arrive at a later time.

 

 

 

The carpets were really nice.

 

 

Someone had left the emergency phone door open. Maybe a kid?

 

 

[gambee]

 

 

The area had emptied out. I highly suggest you go to the pool after 5:30pm, it is really nice and quiet around that time.

 

 

 

 

 

[bonvoyagebites]

Did you have any run-ins with the "biting" seahorses at the stairwells?

[gambee]

I will let the pictures do the talking on this set.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[gambee]

 

 

 

We decided to go to play a game of mini golf.

 

 

We stopped by and played a game =)

 

I will never understand why he wears the bag like that. One thing is for sure, no one will steal anything from him, LoL :D

 

[gambee]

 

Here he is posing for a picture, and no, he did not actually play that hard :D

 

 

 

Smooth colors in this photograph.