Carnival Imagination Detailed Review - 7/29/18 !!!! Pictures to Follow!

[watermelonqueen99]

She definitely shoulders the responsibility for all of the "cute" in the couple. I simply bring a solid bug killing and jar opening skill set to the union.

 

2 More Days!!!!!

 

Lol! My hubby has a solid bug killing and jar opening game too! Not all superheroes wear capes! :D

[MzShae]

Like your review. Following

[TrqoisWtrs]

I always have to get gummy funnels! They make great a great garnishment to an adult beverage. :p:p

[SonoranDevil]

Day 3 - Ensenada, Mexico

 

Today we woke up, docked in Ensenada. Our excursion today was a trip to wine country, 45 minutes Northeast of the city, another Carnival arranged tour. Check in time was 11:15, so we had another morning of sleeping in and not being rushed. This morning, the alarm was set for 8:30 and coffee was requested between 8:30 and 9:00. Of course, the knock on the door came at 8:15. Hey, at least it was a consistent strike zone (My obligatory baseball reference).

 

Today, we would grab breakfast burritos from Blue Iguana. There was no line and we settled in at a nice, shady table on the Lido Deck with a view of Ensenada. It had been 23 years since I had seen Ensenada and I have to say the city has definitely grown! Ensenada is an industrial port and at first glance, maybe not the most scenic of stops. But, the surface is often misleading.

 

After our burritos, which were certainly worthy of a positive review, we headed back to the cabin to freshen up prior to heading off the ship to check in for the excursion. Once off the ship, we quickly located our guide for the day, Irma. Irma instructed us to wait in some nearby shade until the other cruisers checked in. Irma informed us that we would be small group of six today, as most people chose the earlier excursion time to beat the heat. We're from Phoenix, so heat be damned!

 

Soon Irma led us to a full sized tour bus for the trek to Valle de Guadalupe, the heart of Ensenada's wine country. We were introduced to our driver, Felix, and we were off. Heading through the city, I was definitely impressed with how thriving the community appeared compared to my last visit. Irma kept us engaged the entire trip and was a real delight. Again, it was abundantly clear how proud Irma was of her home. Irma made us feel like we belonged there in that moment, and that's a good sign of great host.

 

On the bus and ready for some wine!

 

Our gracious host, Irma

[SonoranDevil]

Day 3 - Ensenada, Mexico Continued ...

 

Before we knew it, we were in Guadalupe. The drive was pleasant, with vineyards everywhere, mixed in with groves of olive trees. The scenery reminded me a lot of drives through central Arizona.

 

Our first stop was Vinos L.A. Cetta, Mexico's second largest wine producer. The winery was thoroughly modern yet small enough to be charming and inviting. Irma introduced us our guide for the winery tour (I believe her name was Arieli). She soon led us to the fermentation facility and barrel room, where the wine is aged. She gave a thorough explanation of the wine making process, the winery's different brands and how each brand and variety were made. The smell in the barrel room was absolutely decadent with the combination of the vino and oak barrels. My DW was in heaven and was literally hugging the large oak barrels.

 

After the tour, we were brought into the tasting room. Officially, we were to taste six wines, 3 whites and 3 reds. The reality is we sampled a lot more. Arieli, with Irma's help, soon got to know each of our preferences and was bringing us each what she believed we would enjoy. Both were very knowledable and were really able to hone in on our tastes. I could go on and on with the whole experience, but it's unlikely anyone wants to read that much detail. It was a thoroughly enjoyable experience and we left buying 4 bottles of premium wine, on top of the free bottle we each received. We also bought a couple of bottles of the locally produced olive oil, which we enjoyed during our tasting.

 

Our awesome guide at L.A. Cetto

 

L.A. Cetta fermentation room

 

L.A. Cetta

 

True love

 

Premium French Oak

 

Preparing for the first pour

[Beach_gal]

Wonderful review!

 

Can't wait to see which wineries are next!

[RaiderDuck]

Great review!

 

I hope your second winery wasn't Donna Lupe's. She's a very nice woman and the jams and jellies they serve are wonderful, but the wine is awful. I've literally bought better stuff from a gas station.

[ShaniBell]

Great review!

 

I hope your second winery wasn't Donna Lupe's. She's a very nice woman and the jams and jellies they serve are wonderful, but the wine is awful. I've literally bought better stuff from a gas station.

 

It was and I was sorely disappointed in the wine. I think I had a punch ticket to try 4 - 6 and I tried 2 before giving up. The wine was terrible. I'm glad I bought at the L.A. Cetto because we would have gone home empty handed otherwise.

 

I will say the ambiance at Donna Lupe's was fun and I did end up buying some jam and some vanilla from their shop but no wine from them.

[mlipreston]

We did that Wine Tour last October. I would love to have been on the tour with 6 people. LOL. Ours was full. We purchased from L.A. Cetto also.:)

[tt_moore]

Thanks! Just booked Feb 3rd. Great review.

[sakura3]

Great review!

 

I hope your second winery wasn't Donna Lupe's. She's a very nice woman and the jams and jellies they serve are wonderful, but the wine is awful. I've literally bought better stuff from a gas station.

 

haha we also did this tour a few years ago and agree. We ended up buying a pitcher of sangria instead!

[SonoranDevil]

Day 3 - Ensenada, Mexico Continued...

 

The next winery on our stop, as alluded to by prior posters, was Casa Dona Lupe. This is a much smaller, boutique winery just down the road from L.A. Cetto. The initial reaction was very positive. The property is less industrial, perfectly rustic and completely charming. The property includes an outside tasting area, an Aztec cultural demonstration and a retail space inside. In addition to wine, Casa Dona Lupe produces a variety of jams and marmalades, tequila liqueurs, salsas and such. We received cards to taste 6 different wines and provided with homemade chips and a variety of salsas, as well as a flatbread pizza with a Mexican twist.

 

As others have noted, there was a significant decrease in the quality of wine tasted from L.A. Cetto. Dona Lupe is a small winery and is attempting to make the jump to a larger commercial producer. Let's hope that they continue to hone their craft as they prepare for their next steps! I sampled four different red wines prior to resigning to the delicious edible options provided for us. The one highlight from the wines that I tried was their honey wine. It pretty much tasted like liquid honey and was of equal quality as good apple and ice wines that I've experienced. It is certainly a dessert wine and wouldn't be enjoyable as a traditional 4 or 6 oz pour. It is intended to be sipped from a 1 to 2 oz serving after a meal. Don't try a traditional, full mouth taste of this stuff as it is super sweet. Given the sweetness, the alcohol content couldn't not have been very high either.

 

The highlight of this stop was definitely the atmosphere and the food element. We tried a pineapple/coconut marmalade that was absolutely delicious and we ended up buying a jar of that. We also picked up a couple bottles of Mexican vanilla for my DW's baking exploits. Before leaving, Irma arranged for us to also sample two tequila liqueurs. The first was a macadamia nut tequila liqueur and the second was a tequila creme liqueur. Both were absolutely delicious. We were tempted to buy a bottle, but we just couldn't nail down a practical use for it in our house. It was certainly purchase quality though if you appreciate liqueurs.

 

Soon we were back on the bus with Felix and Irma, headed back to the city. The trip back involved less interaction with Irma, but that was just right. Everyone had sampled a good bit of wine, been out in the heat of the day and probably stayed up a bit too late the night before. We sat back and enjoyed the ride through the Baja California countryside on the way back to Ensenada. As we got back to town, we had the option of being dropped off at a local marketplace or be returned to the ship. One couple decided to be dropped of in town. By this point, we had a near full box of wine along with bottles of olive oil and vanilla. Irma assured us that we could check our box in at the Marketplace where they would hold it while we shopped, but ultimately we decided to head back to the ship to drop the loot off. We could then walk back down to town and search for my main objective of the Ensenada stop...a carne asada street taco. Well, we got on the ship, in the air conditioning, and that was all she wrote. It was back to the cabin for a nap before tonight's festivities.

[SonoranDevil]

Casa Dona Lupe

[SonoranDevil]

Day 3 - Ensenada, Mexico Continued...Dinner/Evening

 

After a good, uninterrupted nap, we got ready for dinner and headed back to the Pride Dining Room. As we had become accustomed, we were eagerly greeted by Camilo and seated in his section. Tonight's appetizer for my DW was the beef and barley soup while I chose the smoked chicken quesadilla. We decided to forgo wine tonight in favor of lighter cocktails as consecutive days of red wine consumption at our age can get a little heavy on the digestive system. Here, I discovered, that you cannot order a double cocktail with the Cheers program. You have to wait 5 minutes after your last drink order to be served an additional shot. I thought it may not be possible, but I gave it a shot anyway. DW is infinitely smarter than I am and suggested I sip a little off the top of my cocktail and wait 5 minutes before ordering an additional shot of liquor. Brilliant I tell you. I definitely married up.

 

Appetizers were delivered. My wife's soup was set before her and Camilo set a bowl of the soup in front of me as well. As he did, I could see the acknowledgement in his eyes...I didn't order the soup. Quick witted and without skipping a beat he said, "Your appetizer will be right up, please enjoy this soup to warm up your stomach." Smooth. I didn't even know I needed to have my stomach warmed up. All these years of what I thought was successful eating and I've been doing it wrong! The soup was decent, though DW noted that she suspected the beef was last night's prime rib. Hey, we can appreciate frugality. My quesadilla arrived. It was more chicken and black beans between the grilled tortilla and not much queso...but it was still pretty tasty.

 

DW ordered the roasted loin dish for dinner while I went with the veal parmesan. The entrees arrived and we dug in. This is when we hit our first and only real food snafu. The beef loin was just not good. It had an unrecognizable taste and texture. I tasted it and concurred. She decided to ask Camilo for something different. Nothing else on the menu jumped out at her, but the port of call selection that night were street tacos. Well, who doesn't love a taco. Camilo was awesome and made DW feel good about her decision. In no time, she had tacos in front of her. I even gave a thumbs up for the carne asada in the taco, as it was better than I expected it to be. Again, the service from Camilo and his team made dinner one of the highlights of the day, even with the food challenge.

 

After dinner, we decided to catch the PG version of the other comedian on the ship, Lowell Sanders. We didn't specifically choose the PG version, but that's what was scheduled for the 8:30 time slot. Lowell's show was more traditional stand up than Stanely Ullman's and we both enjoyed his material. It was relevant and not as PG as I anticipated it was going to be, though it certainly wasn't obscene.

 

The piano bar wasn't open tonight for some reason, so our go to spot for the later night wasn't available. We walked the promenade after the comedy show, noticed the Karaoke lounge was full and roaring, but it didn't really catch our fancy this night. We hit the fun shops, caught a couple minutes of the Hasbro show and decided to act our age and get an earlier jump on sleep. Tomorrow was our sea day and we planned on sleeping in, without an alarm. More to come!

[SonoranDevil]

Roasted loin which was sent back

 

The chocolate melting cake was a constant dessert companion, including tonight

 

Apple pie was also on the dessert menu. It was good, but not the best we've ever had. We ate it all though!

 

Xanadu Lounge, home to Punchliner's Comedy Club

[heffy2]

Great review!! Next time I go to Catalina, I'm definitely trying that food tour, thank you!

[trex-de]

We are on the Imagination just now. Were looking for Camilo to show him he is an internet star.

 

We tracked him to the Red Frog Rum bar and talked to Yosep- another really nice guy. Camilo never showed up.

 

Looking forward to wine tasting as well in Mexico.

 

BTW - FTTF has been disappointing- they did not let us go to our room upon arrival on the ship and our luggage is still not here - though they have stated to deliver all luggage. We have FTTF printed on every document so we did everything correctly. We even polity challenged. Nope. Not worth it so far.

 

 

 

 

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[SonoranDevil]

Day 4 - At Sea Day

 

This morning, we awakened without an alarm. I really like those mornings. We got ready and headed to the Pride Dining Room for the Seaday Brunch. We didn't order room service coffee this morning, so we didn't waste any time. The brunch menu appeared to be the same as I have seen posted for other ships. I chose the Steak and Eggs, as I have heard it would be the best steak I would get without ordering from the Steakhouse selection at dinner. DW ordered pancakes along with sides of scrambled eggs and link sausage.

 

 

 

 

Steak and Eggs

 

Indeed, the breakfast filet was the best piece of beef I had on the cruise. It actually tasted like steak. I won't claim it was the best filet I've ever had, but it was pleasantly satisfying. My eggs were fried hard as requested and were tasty. I was a little disappointed in the home fries, not because they weren't tasty, but rather because they were merely a combination of three different types of french fries. Visually, it looked like leftover scraps. All in all, I enjoyed the meal.

 

DW was afraid that she had ordered too much food, but when the small serving of pancakes arrived, she realized the worry was misplaced. The meal was good, but don't expect a huge order of pancakes if you go down that route.

 

After breakfast, we changed into our swimsuits and headed to the Lido Deck to attempt to find a couple of loungers. By this time, it was around Noon. We did a full reconnaissance of the available loungers and were surprised to see many available, though the ones closest to the pool and shady spots were all spoken for. We settled in just behind the stage and we would stay there until late afternoon.

 

It was quite a pleasant and relaxing day. While there was too much activity to nap, Camilo soon found us and we sipped away at our Twilight Zones and Ting Mojitos as we watched various Lido activities take place. We missed the hairy chest contest (no big loss) but were present for the Thriller dance class (taught by one of the Playlist performers) and the ice carving demonstration. The DJ kept the tunes going and there were several line dancing opportunities for the more extroverted of cruisers.

[SonoranDevil]

We are on the Imagination just now. Were looking for Camilo to show him he is an internet star.

 

We tracked him to the Red Frog Rum bar and talked to Yosep- another really nice guy. Camilo never showed up.

 

Looking forward to wine tasting as well in Mexico.

 

BTW - FTTF has been disappointing- they did not let us go to our room upon arrival on the ship and our luggage is still not here - though they have stated to deliver all luggage. We have FTTF printed on every document so we did everything correctly. We even polity challenged. Nope. Not worth it so far.

 

 

 

 

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If you find Camilo, let him know that Rob and Shani from Phoenix who sailed a couple of weeks ago said hello!

 

Sorry to hear about the FTTF struggles!

[ShaniBell]

We are on the Imagination just now. Were looking for Camilo to show him he is an internet star.

 

We tracked him to the Red Frog Rum bar and talked to Yosep- another really nice guy. Camilo never showed up.

 

Looking forward to wine tasting as well in Mexico.

 

BTW - FTTF has been disappointing- they did not let us go to our room upon arrival on the ship and our luggage is still not here - though they have stated to deliver all luggage. We have FTTF printed on every document so we did everything correctly. We even polity challenged. Nope. Not worth it so far.

 

 

 

 

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If you hang on the Lido deck long enough watching other passengers embark, especially with a drink in hnd, he will find you soon enough. When you do see him, tell him Rob and Shani said "hello and that we missed him terribly while we were hanging by our pool with no one to bring us tasty drinks and tell us fun stories."

[trex-de]

There was a Camilo sighting- could not say hi but will. Stay tuned...

 

 

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[SonoranDevil]

Day 4 - Day at Sea Continued...

 

After soaking up our share of the sun, we went back to the room to shower before dinner. We also started with requisite task of beginning to pack for tomorrow's return to reality. We debated the rest of the evening as to whether to self assist or have our luggage ready in the hall by 11PM.

 

We made our way to the Pride Dining Room once again prior to catching the Epic Rock Show at 8PM. Because of the early show and the fact that we didn't eat lunch due to a later brunch, we arrived at the dining room right at 6PM. Tonight, there was a slight line, though it was mainly due to several large groups ahead of us. The line moved quickly and again, we were waiting in line no more than five minutes. As we waited, we enjoyed the acoustic guitar/singer at the Atrium stage, one deck below. There were two of these acts on board, taking turns at the various small stages on the ship.

 

Again, Camilo was eagerly waiting for us. We were sat at what had become our standard two top table as the dining room was quickly filling up. It seemed like a lot of cruisers had the same idea we had this night for an early dinner. In fact, one of Camilo's other regular couples were a little later getting to the dining this evening and Camilo's section was already full. They were another similarly aged couple, free of their kids while with their grandparents, from Western Massachusetts. Their kids were actually on an Alaskan cruise with the grandparents and I couldn't help but wonder why they didn't go on that cruise as well. Alaska was just awesome. I digress, Camilo quickly swept in and informed the other head waiter that the other couple was his and that he would be taking over the table. There was no pushback!

 

Tonight, we both ordered the beef tenderloin for dinner. The filet I had that morning gave me an optimistic feeling for what was in essence, the same cut of meat. I wasn't wrong, as again it tasted like steak. As with the filet, there is no attempt to claim it was excellent, but it certainly was pleasant, especially considering the prior night's dinner experience.

 

Tonight was another wait staff show night. As dinner was concluding, all of the servers began their parade around the dining room, hoisting tonight's featured Baked Alaska around with them to the song Flying High (Theme song for the Rocky movies). After the parade, Camilo and the other servers performed a couple silly songs and dances. While in danger of being corny, everyone was smiling and laughing along at our new friends dance moves, or lack thereof.

 

Again, our interactions with Camilo and Margo were the highlight of the day. We spent some time earlier during dinner, before the huge rush, getting to know Camilo and eagerly soak up stories about his family. His wife was actually one of the two bartenders at the Atrium Bar. I can only imagine how this might take off the edge of being on a ship for months at a time. I also relish these human connections as it provides me with a healthy dose of perspective and provides me with the essential reminder that the world, in fact, does not revolve around my little slice of Earth.

 

Atrium Bar, from Deck 8. Little did we know that Camilo's wife was tending bar!

 

Camilo wishing us goodbye with a song

 

Camilo and Kadek grooving to Uptown Funk

 

DW and Camilo

 

DW and Margo. Margo wasn't quite the socializer that Camilo w as, but that uninhibited smile says everything I could think to describe him.

[ShaniBell]

Day 4 - Day at Sea Continued...

 

Again, our interactions with Camilo and Margo were the highlight of the day. We spent some time earlier during dinner, before the huge rush, getting to know Camilo and eagerly soak up stories about his family. His wife was actually one of the two bartenders at the Atrium Bar. I can only imagine how this might take off the edge of being on a ship for months at a time. I also relish these human connections as it provides me with a healthy dose of perspective and provides me with the essential reminder that the world, in fact, does not revolve around my little slice of Earth.

 

One thing my husband didn't mention is that while Camilo and his wife are on board for months at a time, his young boys are back in the Philipines with grandparents. I couldn't imagine being away from my daughter for such long periods of time like they are. It touched my heart in a way I hadn't anticipated and made me even happier to see our own daughter when she returned from her own adventures a few days after we completed ours.

[vacationlover16]

Great review!

 

 

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[trex-de]

We found Camilo! I will try to post some pix. He remembered you both!

 

 

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