Indy B2B ~ Sept. 20th & 27th ~ My Diary

[maxs mom]

I always love your reviews and this is no exception, thank you so much for sharing.

 

Thank you, Christine!

[maxs mom]

Monday ~ September 28, 2015 ~ At Sea

 

Another welcomed sea day!! Love them! Not a whole lot going on today. I met up with Eddie and Carol in the CL for coffee early. They live in the Solarium, but were getting filled up with coffee to start their day.

 

 

The Meet and Mingle was at 10:30. There was a big crowd there, but again....not much mixing and mingling. Frankie raffled off the same prizes. We didn't win anything this time. Someone organized a slot pull to have on the last sea day. Not sure how that went.

 

 

We were invited to the Suite Guest Brunch again, so we headed to Chops for that. Eddie and Carol joined us. We had a great time. It was just as nice as before.....Bloody Mary's and Screwdrivers in abundance and wonderful food! We thoroughly enjoyed it.

 

 

 

 

After a couple of Bloody Mary's.....nap time came on pretty quickly! I also read off and on all afternoon.

[maxs mom]

Beautiful sunset tonight!

 

 

It was formal night. We went on to the CL a bit early as we would all week, so that we could visit with Eddie and Carol.

 

 

We also visited with Beth, another cruise buddy that was on this week. (BoyntonBeth on Cruise Critic).

 

 

 

 

Some other ladies from Cruise Critic stopped by to say hello. That's always nice when that happens!

[maxs mom]

When we went down to the MDR tonight....they did not have a table ready for us with Marlon as requested. So we had to sit somewhere else and that did not make us happy. Marlon and Torrington both came over to see us though. Our waiter for the evening, Randy, was very nice and we were fine. I ordered the salmon and they brought me every vegetable in the kitchen to go with it! That made me happy!

 

 

We strolled along the Promenade after dinner and ended up in the casino again.

 

 

This guy was waiting on us in the cabin. There was an awful lot of noise coming from the balconies of our neighbors and also in the hallways......even at 4 in the morning! Fortunately this did not continue throughout the week.....too much! Like I said...there was a different demographic on this sailing.

 

Edited October 19, 2015 by max'smom

[rogicoco]

Girl!!! I was just thinking of you the other day!! I think I was getting my hair colored!! LOL! Hate to have missed you. Would love to cruise with you guys again!!

 

How funny we were sailing so close in time. I always think when we are on a cruise if we will run into you guys.

We would love to sail with you one day. What's your next cruise?

[prekteacher]

I'm really enjoying another one of your diaries! So excited I will have another one to read before my cruise on Oasis for Thanksgiving. At that time we have a difficult decision to make. DH and I want to try a southern carib. cruise but I have to admit we love the big ships and are a little nervous to try out the smaller ones. You make them look so nice though so we will have to see what happens. Thanks again!

 

Barb

[maxs mom]

How funny we were sailing so close in time. I always think when we are on a cruise if we will run into you guys.

We would love to sail with you one day. What's your next cruise?

 

Leaving this Friday for San Juan and the Jewel! Can you come??!! :D

 

Check out my signature and book one of those!! Would love to see you guys!!

[maxs mom]

I'm really enjoying another one of your diaries! So excited I will have another one to read before my cruise on Oasis for Thanksgiving. At that time we have a difficult decision to make. DH and I want to try a southern carib. cruise but I have to admit we love the big ships and are a little nervous to try out the smaller ones. You make them look so nice though so we will have to see what happens. Thanks again!

 

Barb

 

Barb......You can have the big ships!! That's easy for me to say......we don't care about going to shows or doing any of the activities. We just go to relax and visit with friends and special crew members. Everybody knows everybody on the small ships.....it's like a big family. The southern Caribbean is the way to go, though! We learned that very early in our cruising career!! Give it a try!! The Adventure is in San Juan......you would like it.

Edited October 20, 2015 by max'smom

[kandj05]

Barb......You can have the big ships!! That's easy for me to say......we don't care about going to shows or doing any of the activities. We just go to relax and visit with friends and special crew members. Everybody knows everybody on the small ships.....it's like a big family. The southern Caribbean is the way to go' date=' though! We learned that very early in our cruising career!! Give it a try!! The Adventure is in San Juan......you would like it.[/size']

 

I agree! I enjoy the smaller ships and seeing my cruise friends.

[Ander026]

Great review so far on your B2B on Indy. I will be on Indy on Sunday doing the Eastern Route. I did notice that I will be joining you for the cruise in December on the Serenade. After this Indy Cruise I will be D+ for the Serenade Cruise. Looking forward to the CL on the Serenade as it has its own bar, as it was an bar location before the rehab.

[maxs mom]

Great review so far on your B2B on Indy. I will be on Indy on Sunday doing the Eastern Route. I did notice that I will be joining you for the cruise in December on the Serenade. After this Indy Cruise I will be D+ for the Serenade Cruise. Looking forward to the CL on the Serenade as it has its own bar, as it was an bar location before the rehab.

 

Robert.....Looking forward to seeing you on Serenade! Have fun on Indy!

[maxs mom]

Tuesday ~ September 29, 2015 ~ San Juan

 

This would be another sea day for us because we got in to SJ at 4 and we just didn't want to get off that late.

 

After breakfast I went up to the Solarium where Eddie and Carol hang out every day! They had some nice chairs in the shade

 

 

Carol and her two friends were playing a game called RummyKub, so I sat down and observed. Looked complicated, but I joined in and got the hang of it. Really neat game. Several people came over to ask what game we were playing. I got the Drink of the Day and it was just OK.

 

 

 

 

Many people were enjoying the Solarium today. Great place to just be totally lazy.....which is right up my alley!!

 

[maxs mom]

After lunch we went to the Top Tier Event that was held in the Ice Rink. We usually don't go to these things, but this one was really good.....so be sure and attend if you can.

 

As we walked in we were served drinks. I opted for the Yellow Bird and I liked it. Some kind of pineapple something. The Ice Show cast all introduced themselves and they did some tricks on the ice for us. They also showed us how they changed costumes so fast. Then they opened it up for questions. It was very nice. Much better than the usual Top Tier thing. Be sure and wear a sweater......it's cold in there!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Don't miss this event! The two Ice Shows on this ship are also excellent.

[maxs mom]

We rested a bit, but soon we were sailing into San Juan. We were on the Starboard side, so there wasn't much to see.

 

 

 

There were two ambulances there waiting for us. I think at least two people were taken off at that time and I believe two more were taken off later. I also saw a wedding party get off first and head down the pier to their destination....wherever that was!

 

 

[maxs mom]

We enjoyed some very relaxed and quiet time in the CL this evening. Lots of fun visiting with Raj and friends. The HR guys from my lunch came in and sat with us for a while.

 

 

 

 

 

 

While we were there, the Captain made an announcement about a "security issue" and the gangways and pier would be closed until they could get a handle on the situation. That meant that hundreds and hundreds of guests were sort of stuck out on the streets of San Juan and couldn't get back on the ship! I was just glad I was not one of them. I understand they DID bring water out to them. There was a rumor of a bomb threat. Actually.....some disgruntled pier employee was drunk and making all kinds of threats out by the gate. But they had to check it out seriously. Eventually they opened up the pier again. I think they extended the dining room hours to accommodate people for dinner.

[maxs mom]

Good friends!

 

 

Took the obligatory bridge picture after dinner, then strolled the length of the Promenade. Since we didn't leave SJ until 11 pm......nothing was open.....no casino either. Eddie and Carol came strolling across the bridge, so we visited with them for a while. Then it was back to the cabin for some reading before bed.

 

 

 

[maxs mom]

Wednesday ~ September 30, 2015 ~ St. Maarten

 

Up a little earlier this morning. We didn't dock until 10, so that was a little disappointing, but we were able to have a leisurely breakfast and take our time getting ready for the beach.

 

Nice sail in.

 

 

Our usual beach (Palm Beach) was closed the month of September. Wouldn't you know we would miss it by one day! So we fell back on Plan B and went to another old favorite on Orient Beach called Kakao.

 

We had the numero uno spot at the pier because we were the only ship in port. So less stressful when that happens. It was an easy walk up to the taxi stand and we got a taxi right away. They had no problem dropping us off at Kakao. We haven't been here in a number of years, so we were surprised to see how the beach had changed here. There has been lots of erosion and a lot of the beach was gone. There was also a huge problem with the sea grass today. Actually ...it was horrendous! They had cleaned it up earlier, but one big wave came in a dumped an enormous amount of it back on the beach. We've learned to put up with it and still enjoy the beach anyway. I just bellied up to the bar (which is great here) and it didn't seem so bad after that.

 

It was a beautiful day! Normally....we would be down at Palm Beach.....which, in this picture is all the way at the end. So much nicer and non crowded down there!

 

 

 

This is the view toward Club Orient. So you can see that Kakao is about mid-way on Orient Beach.

 

 

Because of the sea grass, we could not sit in the front row of seats.....as you can see.

 

 

But we still managed to get a good spot and enjoy the day. We sat right in front of the beach bar and we could get the wifi there right at our chars all day. Good deal.

 

 

 

!

Edited October 20, 2015 by max'smom

[maxs mom]

This is the beach bar. The bartender, GP (Guy Pierre) has been here forever and makes the best drinks!!

 

 

More shots from the beach.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited October 20, 2015 by max'smom

[jakenashleysmom]

I could sit at that beach bar all day...

 

Hi Jane! We are heading to Orient Beach in March on Navigator and usually head to Mexicali. I was told it burned down and is still not rebuilt, and to go to Bikini for a similar vibe/proximity. Is Kakao similar and or close? Did the taxi know where to bring you?

 

Loving your review as always!

 

Sent from my KFTHWI using Forums mobile app

[John F]

Hi Jane, I have a question for you about checking in on the Indy for Diamond Plus members.

Did you see a special line for D+ at Pier 18?? I have been reading that there was only a special check in for Pinnacle and Suite guest. Hope you remember about you check in. Many thanks!! John & Priscilla

[maxs mom]

I could sit at that beach bar all day...

 

Hi Jane! We are heading to Orient Beach in March on Navigator and usually head to Mexicali. I was told it burned down and is still not rebuilt, and to go to Bikini for a similar vibe/proximity. Is Kakao similar and or close? Did the taxi know where to bring you?

 

Loving your review as always!

 

Sent from my KFTHWI using Forums mobile app

 

Hey Bonnie!

 

Yes....Bikini Beach is very near Kakao. And the taxi drivers know where it is. You need to tell the taxi drivers and dispatcher that you want to go there or else they will drop you off at the far end near Club Orient. It's a good place to go, too. You can't go wrong anywhere on Orient. I just don't like crowds, so that's why I prefer to go all the way down to the end. Not many cruise ship passengers down there at all.

[maxs mom]

Hi Jane, I have a question for you about checking in on the Indy for Diamond Plus members.

Did you see a special line for D+ at Pier 18?? I have been reading that there was only a special check in for Pinnacle and Suite guest. Hope you remember about you check in. Many thanks!! John & Priscilla

 

Hey!! At first you will be directed to go either left or right depending on deck number. Then when you get over to the side you should be on.....look for a D+ line. Yes, there was a special line. We just walked right up to the counter in our line. Great check in.

[maxs mom]

I forgot to post our getting off the ship picture in St. Maarten:

 

 

So.....when we first got out to Kakao that morning I made reservations for lunch. We had lunch at 12:30 and it was wonderful. They bring French Bread to the table.....the real deal.

 

 

 

I had Le Salad de Poulet and it was wonderful. I ate every bit of it! John, of course......got a hamburger.

 

 

 

Cheers!

 

[maxs mom]

I love the little dining areas that they have here.

 

 

 

After lunch I stopped by the beach bar and got GP to make a Bushwhacker for me for dessert. Yummy!!

 

 

After a few drinks.....this was the best toe shot I could manage!!

 

 

 

Great beach day today!

 

[maxs mom]

We got a taxi back to the ship around 2:45-3:00. Taxis are plentiful here, so that was no problem. We went straight back to the ship and headed for nap land!!! Doing nothing on the beach is hard work!!

 

 

 

 

Very nice evening in St. Maarten.

 

 

 

Edited October 20, 2015 by max'smom