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LIVE #queensonthehighseas Rhapsody of the Seas 12/29: A New Years Cruise Extravaganza


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I can only  imagine how much you need this vacation after traveling with students over Christmas. I’m glad you’re getting several naps in.  It sounds like you had great timing seeing those band parents from the ship. That’s kind of funny how it all worked out. Also, it sounds like you haven’t seen any students on the ship. That’s great. As a fellow educator, I would definitely not be thrilled if any of my students  where on my ship.  I get a little bit greedy about the time I have a way from school. 

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We’re back! Overall, we had a wonderful trip. Definitely some bumps in the road, but can’t conplain in the end. I’m going to take today and tomorrow to continue and finish my review, now that I have a consistent internet connection. Thanks for following along so far!

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I promised you sparkle, and I aim to not disappoint. Our footwear was definitely on point for the evening. 

 

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We had planned on wearing shirts with sequined collars that matched beautifully with the shoes, but they, ahem, didn’t quite fit....so we had to wear something else. #theweightstruggleisreal

 

Balloon drop ready for midnight. 

 

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It was a little crowded in the centrum...

 

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Happy New Year!

 

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Day 4: Belize

 

We woke up in 2019 to a great view off our balcony. Our first port day was off to a good start, and my hat made its first appearance. 

 

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We were booked on a snorkel excursion through the ship. The boat picked us up at the ship, and took us to Rendezvous Caye, which was a roughly 45 minute ride. 

 

Cant hate the sights on the way!

 

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The island was a cute spattering of palm trees mixed with cabanas, and a small snack bar/grill in the middle. 

 

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They divided the group in to beginners and advanced. There were 7 of us snorkeling from my family, and we split 2 beginners/5 advanced. The 2 in the beginners group absolutely loved it. Those of us in the advanced group thought it was just ok. The beginner group was less people, which made a huge difference. Our group was almost 30, with one “guide”. It was crowded, and nothing said it was a guided tour. We just didn’t really have an opportunity to explore on our own and look around. Very constrained with what we were told we were allowed to do. Honestly, I’d be willing to do it again, but I’d go in the beginner group. My aunt who is scuba certified thought it was fabulous. 

 

After we got out of the water, we had roughly 90 minutes to either continue snorkeling or relax on the beach.  It was a very releasing afternoon, even considering  the disappointing snorkel. 

 

Dinner tonight was at Giovanni’s Table. Menu and dishes below. While we were changing to eat, I caught a BEAUTIFUL sunset. It was a nice way to end the day. 

 

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Up next: Roatan 

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Menu:

 

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Prosciutto wrapped Mozzarella. 

 

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Mushroom Risotto

 

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Ricotta and Spinach Crepes (yum!)

 

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Penne with Seafood

 

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Pappardelle with Pancetta (delicious)

 

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Gorgonzola Gnocchi (my favorite)

 

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Lamb Chops

 

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Filet (Did they change it? Not what I remember...)

 

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Sole

 

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Ossobuco (fall off the bone tender...chewed like rubber)

 

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Shrimp 

 

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49 minutes ago, pstone1 said:

Wow, there's certainly nothing special about that dinner menu!  At least we had a filet and lobster combo offered in the MDR when we sailed on NYE on EN a couple of years ago.  

 

Yes and no. The lamb was fantastic, and the Wellington was good. We had Tenderloin and lobster on other nights, so we didn’t do without. We enjoyed it overall. 

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21 hours ago, Nemomof3 said:

How was the water temperature in Belize? We will be there in a few weeks we are trying to decide if it will be too cold for cave tubing.

 

The water was a little cool at first, but fine once in. We discussed doing the cave tubing, but many of the reviews we read said the water was

unbearably cold. 

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Day 5: Roatan

 

Woke up to a beautiful sunrise off the back of the ship, and a beautiful view of the island as we docked. 

 

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We were booked on a zip lining excursion for the morning, both traditional and “Superman” style. It was amazing!!! I believe it was a total of 16 lines, 14 traditional and 2 on your stomach. The views and scenery during were magnificent! Would totally take it again. 

 

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After the excursion, we were hurting, so we took the afternoon easy and napped until dinner. Overall it was a fantastic day. Dinner menu and compass below. 

 

Coming soon: Day 6, Cozumel

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On 12/31/2018 at 9:36 AM, cruisinfromtampa said:

 

Sidebar...Our head waiter Maria...in all of the cruises we’ve been on, we have NEVER seen one work the way she does. She is canstantly bouncing from table to table refilling glassss, clearing dishes, and making sure we have everything we need. Our waiter and assistant waiter are doing a great job, but Maria is beyond anything we’ve experienced. I’ve never even considered tipping a head waiter. She’ll get just as much as the waiter. 

 

We were on the NYE cruise with you.  Sat in Maria's MDR section the first night - she will also answer to Sexy Maria - maybe she prefers that?!  She is amazing.....didn't realize at first that she was the Head Waiter.....I had to hold on to my water glass so she would stop refilling it after each sip. :classic_biggrin: 

 

We hit a small snag in the MDR - somehow 1 cabin out of 4 was unlinked so we were assigned a table for 6 rather than a table for 8 and I didn't catch it before dinner.  Got the ok to have 7 at the 6 top for night 1 and we were assigned a different table in a different section for the rest of the cruise.

 

Saw Maria again during breakfast in MDR and she was tickled that we basically shouted "Good morning Sexy Maria" in unison to her as she worked the tables.  She is an asset to RC and will be mentioned in the survey even for our limited encounters with her.

 

Looking forward to the rest of your thoughts on the cruise.

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Ok...I’m back to finish. Sorry for taking a week off. Getting back into the routine took it out of me. 

 

We are at Day 6, Cozumel. 

 

Here’s the thing...we don’t particularly care for it. Every cruise from Tampa goes there, and we’re over it. It’s overly commercial, and just not a great port, in our opinion. 

 

We decided to do the excursion to Chichen Itza. My dad and I wanted to see it, and the likelihood of us taking a land vacation there is virtually zero. I read a little about it beforehand, and knew it was a lot of bus ride compared to time spent there, but we decided to go ahead and book it. 

 

The ferry over to Playa del Carmen was better this time than last...I’ve never taken a picture of myself and been able to see green like I did then. We sat upstairs near a window, and it was a much better experience than downstairs in the middle. Once there, we boarded a bus for the site. 

 

All in all, it was pretty terrible. The toilet on the bus was out of order when we got on, and as I was the last in line, I got the seat at the very back next to the bathroom. You were unable to flush it, and the bowl just continued to fill up and slosh around, spilling on the floor. I could hear and smell it the entire way there. The tour guide told everyone to use it, even though he knew it was broken, because there was no time once we got there. It was a mess. 

 

During his talk on the way there, he talked about some jewelry that was traditional Mayan design, and he just so happened to have order forms for it and would make sure they were ready when we got back on the bus. We spent a total of 40 minutes off the bus in the site, after 2.5 hours driving in, only to get back on the bus and head for the port...except we had to stop so the guy with the jewelry could get on and people would pay. It was 30 minutes before the bus actually pulled away to leave. We were extremely frustrated, because that time could have been spent in the site. 

 

From there, it was 2.5 hours back. We arrived “late” for the ferry, and had to hurry. So late in fact, that the guide took off before all of us were off the bus. Several of us were literally left at the bus, including a gentleman with a cane who needed extra time. It was completely unacceptable. Thankfully, DH and I knew where to go, and made our way there, with him staying behind to watch for the others, and me running ahead to tell the guide what he’d done. It was a pitiful way to end a pitiful excursion. I got a great photo of the pyramid though. 

 

We did go to the excursion desk desk after we got back, and they took care of us and made a report of the guide. No telling what comes of it. 

 

Subrise off our balcony. 

 

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Ships at the other pier. 

 

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My one good photo from the tour. 

 

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Dinner Menu: Lobster Night!

 

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Day 7: At Sea

 

As a part of Christmas, DH and I gifted our group the All Access Tour. He and I did it on Adventure a few years ago, and enjoyed it. This tour was SO much better. Our guide was very knowledgeable, which made everything much more interesting. Additionally, the Captain popped up when we were touring the bridge, and jokingly locked us out on the wing. He then spent 30 minutes with us talking about his history, and answering questions. It was a lovely tour. Pictures are below. 

 

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The irony. 

 

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Oops. 

 

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An entire tray of Coconut Ranger Cookies. 

 

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Booze Storage

 

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Just a suggestion...

 

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Not a bad view from the bridge. 

 

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For lunch, we ate at Izumi. It was a great meal! You can’t beat the view from up there! 

 

Menu 

 

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Shrimp Firecracker Spring Rolls

 

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Pork Gyoza

 

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Shrimp & Vegetable Tempura

 

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Baked Snowcrab & Salmon Dynamite 

 

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Izumi Ryu Futomaki

 

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Truffle Creamy Lobster Tempura

 

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Yaki Udon

 

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