The Symphony, The Key, Two Teens, And Me!

[tinkr2]

Great review. I am very sad about the key system. We bought this mainly for the flowrider. I might be willing to cut the line but I know for a fact that my husband will hate that. On the plus side,youre correct that its kind of fun to stand in line and chat. I guess I was just hoping it would be a key line of people. I am glad that your son is having fun.

[Grenouille21]

1 hour ago, seanjulz said:

Those hours are terrible the orginal hours they were giving people were much better and skipping the line is not the answer, just open the stuff up earlier or later for key members to use it simple no one gets upset with people jumping the queue, the only reason i have purchased the key is for "extra sessions of the flow rider for my family" i really dont want it to be at someone else's expense , i spent alot to get it but if it is going to be like this i will probably cancel it.

 

Yep.  it was disappointing.  We ended up not even doing most of the activities anyway, so I'm not sure we would have used the extra hours.  But seeing that schedule was kind of a shock after seeing the others from previous sailings.

 

1 hour ago, Ralphinsc said:

Thank you so much for the Teen club compasses! I know mine will enjoy the gaming setups and the activities. Awesome review thus far, loving every post!

 

Thanks for reading!  DS did love the gaming in the club.  I think that's how he was able to make friends so quickly.  Gaming brings the kids together.

[Grenouille21]

Day 1 continued:

 

So, we are still on Deck 15, but I'm going to jump up to Deck 16 so I can confess that I never once ate at the Windjammer buffet.  That's right.  We walked through once, and never returned.  Not because of anything we saw, just because we never went there.  DD has food allergies (tree nuts and coconut) so generally we tend to avoid buffets where you have no idea what people have been doing to the food.  On HAL we did go to the buffet because we didn't have all of these other options, but also because you couldn't serve yourself.  You had to ask the guys behind the buffet to serve your food.  So you didn't have people touching the food, using utensils to take one of everything, slopping food across the counter, etc.  I've watched so many cruise videos on You tube and I have seen more than one kid in the background of a video taking something from the buffet, licking it, and putting it back.  No thanks, I do not want a Licked Muffin.

 

DS ate at the Jammer once.  He went on the day they had the GIANT chocolate cake, and he said they handed out huge pieces.  How did he know that it was cake day?  I have no idea.  But I'm glad he got to see it, even if I didn't.  

 

The Windjammer has Freestyle machines, and this really cool wall.

 

 

And that is all I can say about The Jammer.  Maybe next time.  

 

So back to Deck 15.  

 

This is where the pools are.  I'm going to share photos of the pools from throughout the week, because it just seems to make sense to do so.  There is the Main Pool, the Sports Pool, the Beach Pool, and Splashaway Bay.  The pool area forms sort of an H shape, with the pools on the parallel lines and a walkway across the perpendicular line.  The negative space in the H overlooks Central Park.

 

I have no idea which this is, but I do know it is not the Beach Pool.

 

 

This one IS the Beach Pool:

 

 

 

 

Several hot tubs all over the place on Deck 15:

 

 

 

The band plays in the middle of all of the pools, on the perpendicular line of the H.  They don't play all day, but when they play you can hear them at all of the pools and above on Deck 16.  That's not a bad thing, I'm just saying you can hear them.

 

 

And then there are the waterslides.  DS went down the two twisty ones but not the one we refer to as The Toilet Bowl.  He refuses to try those.  I didn't do any of them because we went to a water park in January and I just got SO motion sick on the one stupid slide I went on.  It was dark, and I got disoriented, and it made me feel super seasick.  So I kept saying "Maybe later in the week" and that never happened.  Maybe next time.  

 

 

 

DS said he liked the yellow one better because it wasn't as dark.

 

 

Splashaway Bay looks super fun, and I wish we had been able to experience it when the kids were younger.  I think they would have really enjoyed it, and it is fairly contained so you don't have to helicopter.  

 

 

 

There is a smaller area for the younger kids, too.

 

 

This whole area is amazing at night.  

 

 

 

Also on Deck 15 you have 2 hot tubs, with TVs, so you can watch sports and marinate at the same time.  Ok that's gross, sorry.  The hot tubs were always quite full.  But they were pretty at night.  And not nearly as full. 

 

 

[Grenouille21]

Day 1 continued:

 

Back to the daytime, after you pass the pool area, heading toward the aft end of the ship, you'll pass the soft serve station on your way to El Loco Fresh.  

 

 

They have chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry.  You can do a chocolate/vanilla twist, and a strawberry/vanilla twist.  There are identical machines on the other side of the ship and NO ONE uses them.  This side?  Always a line.

 

El Loco is included in your cruise fare.  We ate here a few times and it was good.  I recommend the quesadillas.  The nachos were fine, nothing special.  I didn't try the burritos or the tacos.  They have these hand washing stations nearby, and outside of several of the dining locations.  Most people just walk on past them.  

 

 

 

It is really funny to me that there is only one bowl of chips here.  I must have taken this when they were closing.  Usually the counter was full of bowls of chips.  

 

 

 

There is also a condiment bar, which has everything you would expect to see on a condiment bar for this type of food: salsa (different varieties), shredded cheese, sour cream, and the most important: guacamole.  

 

Oh and dessert.  There is a chocolate dessert that is usually out that is much better than the other two, IMO.  

 

 

Deck 15 has the zipline over the Boardwalk (the aft end of the ship), and you can see the Sport Court behind it.  

 

 

Keep going aft and you'll reach the 2 Flowriders.  

 

 

Go even further aft and you'll reach The Abyss.

 

 

So, DS did go down The Abyss.  There was no line whatsoever, so we did not use our priority status to jump the line.  They show you how to sit in the mat thingy (kind of like those potato sack things for slides at carnivals).  You really do need to sit and hold your arms the way they show you, because DS said (and others have said) there is one part with a kind of sharp turn and you can bang your shoulder or elbow.  

 

As you walk up the stairs, if you look down you are on a glass (?) platform overlooking the Aqua Theater 10 floors down, and the ocean.  It is kind of terrifying.  They let me go up and take photos.  

 

 

On the opposite side from the sport court is the mini golf.  DS played a few times with his friends.  

 

 

Deck 15 has the Solarium, but I'm going to wait and do that one later.  

 

-- 

[LuCruise]

Loving your review.  I am writing a parallel report on Symphony and just had same comments about El Loco Fresh; really good quesidillas and chocolate dessert.  Looks like you're having a great time.

[MrFunInTheSun]

Great report. Thanks for sharing. 

[ShillyShally]

10 hours ago, Grenouille21 said:

 

Thanks!  It takes a lot more than an unexpected bed arrangement to ruin my vacation :).

LOl Me too 🙂  

 

Ugh on the Key hours - I really think they need to make Key more like Carnival's FTTF and sell an activity jump the line pass or something similar to what amusement parks do - though I don't think they ever have issue selling the Flowrider private hours and advanced lessons either.

[RazorbackIslandGirl]

LOVE LOVE LOVING all the photos! Thank you so much for taking the time to do this review. I'm really enjoying it so far. You are totally cracking me up! It's making for a super fun read.

[ShillyShally]

Also loving your photos!  It's making me want to go back on this size ship and I didn't think I'd ever want to - I just prefer the other classes but I'm starting to feel I should give this class a try again!

[Grenouille21]

4 hours ago, ShillyShally said:

LOl Me too 🙂  

 

Ugh on the Key hours - I really think they need to make Key more like Carnival's FTTF and sell an activity jump the line pass or something similar to what amusement parks do - though I don't think they ever have issue selling the Flowrider private hours and advanced lessons either.

 

I feel like they need to figure this out.  The hours are so inconsistent across ships, and from one week to the next.  if someone sees the hours posted by others in the Key thread, and then they get on board and get the hours we had?  Well, they would have every right to complain.  

 

2 hours ago, RazorbackIslandGirl said:

LOVE LOVE LOVING all the photos! Thank you so much for taking the time to do this review. I'm really enjoying it so far. You are totally cracking me up! It's making for a super fun read.

 

Thank you!  The photos are still showing up HUGE to me, so hopefully they are normal size to others.  

 

1 hour ago, ShillyShally said:

Also loving your photos!  It's making me want to go back on this size ship and I didn't think I'd ever want to - I just prefer the other classes but I'm starting to feel I should give this class a try again!

 

Thanks!  I was worried about the size of the ship, since we really did enjoy the smaller ship (HAL) but I would do it again.  We are on Adventure next and now I'm worried about the size, but mostly because of the seasickness factor!  

[ShillyShally]

13 minutes ago, Grenouille21 said:

 

I feel like they need to figure this out.  The hours are so inconsistent across ships, and from one week to the next.  if someone sees the hours posted by others in the Key thread, and then they get on board and get the hours we had?  Well, they would have every right to complain.  

 

Thanks!  I was worried about the size of the ship, since we really did enjoy the smaller ship (HAL) but I would do it again.  We are on Adventure next and now I'm worried about the size, but mostly because of the seasickness factor!  

Agree 100% on Key!  And yeah I find as I get older I am much more prone to motion sickness, and I always have been very prone, so I think it's likely safer for me to stick to larger ships though I was fine on the Carnival Sunshine a couple years ago!

[Grenouille21]

Day 1 continued:

 

This is feeling like the longest day ever, LOL!  The rest of the days on this report won't go on as long, I'm sure.  I guess this beginning has turned into more of an introduction to the ship, but I am trying to be chronological here.  

 

So we've covered most of Deck 15 from aft to midship.  At the front of Deck 15 you will find the Solarium.  The Solarium is an area for those 16 and up (I did often see younger kids in there in the evening, on the lower deck).  There are deck chairs, sun beds, a bar, 2 hot tubs, and a small pool.  The pool is not for swimming, just sitting and drinking, basically.  I don't have a photo of the pool and I can't find one that belongs to RCI.  So I will show you lots of other photos and let the pool be a surprise.  Unless you google it.  

 

The Solarium has a restaurant called the Solarium Bistro.  We never ate there, but it has healthier options than your normal cruise food.  Breakfast and lunch are a buffet, and they have an omelet station and other offerings.  Dinner is a sit down meal with Greek inspired food.  This is included with your cruise fare, and despite the fact that the Solarium is restricted to ages 16+ I believe anyone can dine in the bistro.  

 

 

There are a lot of chairs, but good luck getting one.  I am convinced that people slept on the sun beds in order to reserve them.  

 

 

The bar is in the middle of the Solarium, and they have this really cool art installment there.  

 

 

 

It was mesmerizing at night.  

 

 

 

 

The Solarium is actually 2 levels.  The bar etc. are on Deck 15, and the lower deck mostly has chairs.  

 

 

 

However, the lower deck has 2 outdoor areas that extend over the ocean.  They are referred to as the "King of the World" deck, or something. 

 

I did go out on it, and so did DD, but between the wind and the glass, we didn't go very far.  I was going to post a photo of my feet but I HATE feet photos (you know the photos people post from their lounge chair showing their feet and the pool or beach in the background, and you're like I KNOW you're there, you don't have to show me your feet to prove it) so I will spare you and just show the view down, from almost out on the glass part.

 

 

 

You could see the helipad from there.  One night there were a bunch of people out there.  It was some sort of invitation only thing, either for suite guests or top tier guests.  but other nights there would be one random person out there, or no one out there.  

 

 

It was VERY windy out there when I went there, but it was a great spot for sunset photos.  You could look at the Solarium, or at the side of the ship.

 

 

 

 

I'm skimming over sail away, because we really didn't do much.  The "Good" side of the ship was packed with people.  We were on the "Bad" side where all we could see were shipping containers and cranes.  I mean, maybe that is the good side, depending on your interests.  So, looking at the photo below, *everyone* was looking at the right side of the photo (which was the port side, oh geez I just realized we could have watched from our balcony, d'oh!).  We were on the other side.  Wah wah.  

 

 

So let's move on from the ship tour in the next post.  Assuming I can even remember what we did next.  No, just kidding, I am sure we went to dinner and I have photos of almost everything we ate, and some stories about the great service in the MDR.  

[gatour]

17 hours ago, Grenouille21 said:

After we quickly unpacked, we headed up to Deck 15 to check out the pool and the Teen Club.  On Deck 15 just outside our elevator bank we found the musical staircase.  You have to try this out, both alone and with other people.  It was funny to watch people use the staircase when they didn't know how it worked.  They would just go up or down as usual, then suddenly realize there was music playing, and that it was coming from their movements.  

Thanks for the info about the musical staircase.  I haven't seen any references of this on other trip reports.   I will need to check this out.

 

Plus I appreciate you posting the Cruise Compasses.  Gives me an idea on our entertainment options may be.

[ShillyShally]

1 hour ago, Grenouille21 said:

Day 1 continued:

 

This is feeling like the longest day ever, LOL!  The rest of the days on this report won't go on as long, I'm sure.  I guess this beginning has turned into more of an introduction to the ship, but I am trying to be chronological here.  

 

So we've covered most of Deck 15 from aft to midship.  At the front of Deck 15 you will find the Solarium.  The Solarium is an area for those 16 and up (I did often see younger kids in there in the evening, on the lower deck).  There are deck chairs, sun beds, a bar, 2 hot tubs, and a small pool.  The pool is not for swimming, just sitting and drinking, basically.  I don't have a photo of the pool and I can't find one that belongs to RCI.  So I will show you lots of other photos and let the pool be a surprise.  Unless you google it.  

 

The Solarium has a restaurant called the Solarium Bistro.  We never ate there, but it has healthier options than your normal cruise food.  Breakfast and lunch are a buffet, and they have an omelet station and other offerings.  Dinner is a sit down meal with Greek inspired food.  This is included with your cruise fare, and despite the fact that the Solarium is restricted to ages 16+ I believe anyone can dine in the bistro.  

 

Thank you for pics of the Solarium - we've come to love that area and spend all day there most days!

[Grenouille21]

32 minutes ago, ShillyShally said:

Thank you for pics of the Solarium - we've come to love that area and spend all day there most days!

 

It became my favorite place, but I only went there around sunset, when most of the other people had left :p.

 

1 hour ago, gatour said:

Thanks for the info about the musical staircase.  I haven't seen any references of this on other trip reports.   I will need to check this out.

 

Plus I appreciate you posting the Cruise Compasses.  Gives me an idea on our entertainment options may be.

 

My pleasure!  I saw it in someone else's trip report and as soon as we saw it, I made DS try it out without telling him what would happen.  

[Grenouille21]

Day 1... will it ever end?  (Yes)

 

So, in looking at my photos, it appears that I only have one photo from dinner the first night.  So to make up for that, here is another sunset photo from night 1. 

 

 

On Royal you have 3 dining options: Early, Late, or My Time.  Early and Late are similar to other cruise lines.  My Time means you can either make reservations in advance, or you can show up any time.  I can see advantages and disadvantages to both.  We chose Late, because I can't see myself ever eating at 5:30.  I almost switched it to My Time, because late dining interfered with a lot of evening activities and shows.  But due to DD's allergies and this being our first time on Royal, I wanted to do a traditional dining so we could have the same serving team each night.  

 

I have heard multiple times that you can request the same serving team with My Time, but there is no guarantee.  People respond with "Well it has never been a problem for me and I ALWAYS get the same serving team" well that's great.  But I didn't want to take chances on our first go with RCI.  

 

The Main Dining room is 3 stories tall.  Traditional Dining people will be assigned either to Deck 3 or Deck 5, and MTD will go to Deck 4.  My understanding is that they will also send MTD people to 3 or 5.  

 

I had read a lot about the MDR, and had heard horror stories.  "They are constantly pushing the specialty restaurants!" "They are constantly making announcements and interrupting my meal!" "The food is so bad!"  "Who has 2 hours to spend at dinner?"  We had none of that happen.  Well, the announcements happened twice in a week.  That's pretty standard, as it was the typical parade thingy.  I'll get to that later.  But no one tried to sell us specialty dining and the food was fine!  

 

Our table happened to be the same number as our stateroom, which was odd, but it helped us remember where we were sitting.  We were also right next to the serving station which was not ideal but really who cares?

 

We spoke with our Head Server (or was he the manager?) Vinko, about DD's allergies.  He was SO nice, and gave me his card and said to contact him any time with questions.  Every night he stopped by our table to see how we were doing, and if DD wanted anything, or if we had any questions.  Our server was Shadiek, and he was great too!  He and Vinko had both worked in Wonderland on Harmony, so they had a good relationship, which is great.  Our assistant server was I Putu and we loved him.  He was always high fiving the kids, and bringing them mocktail after mocktail.  He even got them hooked on a few new mocktails!  

 

I know I have a photo of the MDR somewhere but I can't find it right now.  I'm stealing one from another website, hope that is ok.  

 

 

 

So that first night, the Teen Club was having their Meet and Greet at 8:00pm, which is exactly when our dinner time was.  I asked my kids what they wanted to do, because I knew it was important for them to go to the M&G to make friends.  I said they could skip dinner and it would be fine, I just wanted to meet our serving team and introduce DD and talk about the allergies.  

 

DS decided to skip dinner entirely.  I said it was fine, but I did not want it to become a habit.  DD decided to dine with me, and perhaps that is why she had a hard time with the club later.  But I was glad for the company, and glad that we got to discuss allergies with the servers.  The bread basket had a type of bread with nuts in it, so from the second night on they brought DD a plate of her favorite kind of rolls, leaving the rest of the bread for me and DS.  Which was perfect, and just what had been done on other cruise lines.  

 

I asked our servers how long dinner would be, because DD was going to the club after, and they said it could be as fast or as slow as we wanted, all we had to do was ask.  So ask we did, and we were in and out in an hour or less each night.  

 

I do not recall what I ordered, maybe prime rib?  But I know I had a Caesar salad.  It is available every night, and I often ordered that as my starter.  

 

 

I think I was feeling awkward about taking pics at dinner that night.  I took pics most other nights, though.  

 

So after dinner DD went off to the Teen club, and I went down to the Promenade and walked around.  Took this photo of another elevator bank.

 

 

I stopped off at Guest Services and bought all of us WOW Bands.  What is a WOW Band?  Well, it is pretty much the same as a Magic Band at Disney.  It works as your room key, you can charge things to your room with it, and it does everything the Sea Pass card does but you can wear it on your wrist.  I am not a fan of lanyards.  I don't like things around my neck.  I don't care how "cute" it is, I don't like it on my neck.  I'm not a huge fan of things on my wrist, but this is made of silicone? or something, so it is really comfy, and waterproof.  DS had to take his off for the Flowrider but I think that was more about not wanting it to fall off in the machine vs not being waterproof.  I had already lost my Sea Pass once so this was a no brainer purchase for me.  

 

BTW if you lose your SeaPass just go to Guest Services ASAP and get a new one.  DS had to do that once too.  Kids need their cards for the club, I guess.  Otherwise we left our cards in the room (unless we were leaving the ship).

 

WOW Bands cost $5 each and come in Black, White, Blue, and Yellow.  By the end of the week most people were wearing these instead of lanyards.  WOW Bands are not available on all ships, but if you have it on yours, I highly recommend it.  

 

You do still need your Sea Pass card to get on and off the ship in port.  

 

I looked down at Rising Tide for a few minutes.

 

 

Anyway, I ended up at Schooner's, on a comfy sofa in the back.  I had my Kindle, I ordered a glass of wine, and all was well.  

 

 

I was enjoying myself, but DD had been texting me almost nonstop. DS was doing it too, a little bit.

 

"Mom"

 

"The kids are all older than me."

 

"They all know each other already."

 

"No one will talk to me."

 

"I want to leave."

 

"Mom"

 

"Really I want to leave."

 

"Mom"

 

"Can I leave?"

 

On the one hand, who wants their kid to be unhappy on vacation?  On the other hand, you can't just give it one try.  Also I had really wanted to have MY vacation, too, and have some adult time!  

 

DS stuck with it and ended up making friends (though maybe not until the next day?) but DD refused to stay and refused to go back.  I did force her to go back later, but it was more of the same.  

 

Finally I let her join me at Schooner's and I had to abandon my lovely evening of sitting and reading.  So we walked around and eventually it was time for the Balloon Drop.  This happens at midnight on the first night in the Promenade.  The band was playing for a while, and we found a good spot to watch them on Deck 6.  

 

 

I enjoy people watching, and this was a great place for it.  We saw someone who reminded us of someone we know here, and watched her for a while.  The Promenade was really filling up by now, and I was glad we had a good spot on Deck 6.  

 

 

As midnight approached, RCI people started moving in toward the balloon nets to release them.  The Promenade was packed at this point.  

 

There was a guy right next to me, getting ready to release the balloons.  I asked him if I could do it, and he said No.  So I included him in the video of the balloon drop 😛

 

[MEDIA=vimeo]326485765[/MEDIA]

 

It was chaotic, as you can see.  The balloons were constantly popping.  I have no idea how they were popping so quickly.  It was crazy, and I was very glad to be up on Deck 6.  

 

 

DD and I were tired, so I summoned DS via text to return to the room.  Down the long, endless hallway...

 

 

The stateroom TV had only a few channels, and somehow every night there was a BBC standup comedy show on, so we watched that.  It was hilarious!  The TV also had the normal things like the weather, activities, etc.  

 

It had been a long day, and Day 2 was a Day At Sea so we knew we would be sleeping in, at least a bit.

[ShillyShally]

1 hour ago, Grenouille21 said:

My pleasure!  I saw it in someone else's trip report and as soon as we saw it, I made DS try it out without telling him what would happen.  

I had to scroll back and find where you talked about it, I don't think I realized it played music - very cool!

[perfect match]

Thanks for doing this review. I’m really enjoying following along. I have been hoping someone would do a review of the same itinerary we will be sailing at the end of next month, and here it is! 

[VPIcruiser]

On 3/26/2019 at 1:32 AM, Grenouille21 said:

the middle of the back seat so DS and DD didn't kill each other.  Tell me I'm not the only one whose kids still can't sit next to each other because they will fight?  

I am enjoying your review!  And no, you aren’t the only one!  Last summer, I sat in the middle of my 11 and 8 yo and let my 13 yo sit int the front while we were in Kauai to keep all 3 of them from fighting in the back seat of the Jeep.  We should have rented the minivan! I keep saying we should get a 15 passenger van so each kid has their own row.  They can keep it together driving around home but the excite of vacation makes them crazy!  

[Grenouille21]

1 hour ago, ShillyShally said:

I had to scroll back and find where you talked about it, I don't think I realized it played music - very cool!

 

I think I also mentioned, but in case I didn't, it is really fun to watch people going up and down when they aren't expecting the music.  At first they notice the lights, then they realize the music is going along with their movements, then they start laughing.  Its really funny and cool!

 

1 hour ago, perfect match said:

Thanks for doing this review. I’m really enjoying following along. I have been hoping someone would do a review of the same itinerary we will be sailing at the end of next month, and here it is! 

 

(Hey, another Nancy here!)

 

I kept searching for reviews of this itinerary, and couldn't find any.  What excursions do you have planned?  

[Grenouille21]

Just now, VPIcruiser said:

I am enjoying your review!  And no, you aren’t the only one!  Last summer, I sat in the middle of my 11 and 8 yo and let my 13 yo sit int the front while we were in Kauai to keep all 3 of them from fighting in the back seat of the Jeep.  We should have rented the minivan! I keep saying we should get a 15 passenger van so each kid has their own row.  They can keep it together driving around home but the excite of vacation makes them crazy!  

 

Truly what IS it about the car that makes kids insane???  And yet they could be back there with 10 friends, squished as can be* and not fight once.  Put them in the back seat with one sibling?  World War 3.  

 

*I am not condoning cramming 11 kids in the back seat of any moving vehicle.  This is hyperbole.  

[Grenouille21]

Day 2!  Finally!

 

We slept in, because we could.  When we woke up, I checked the Cruise Compass to see what was still open for breakfast.

 

 

 

 

 

by the time we were all awake, dressed, and ready to go, our only options were Park Cafe or The Windjammer buffet.  We were still trying to avoid the buffet so we went to Park Cafe.  I did not take any photos.  Park Cafe is located in Central Park, next to the Trellis Bar.  Park Cafe is home of the famous Kummelweck sandwich, which is a famous roast beef sandwich that I did not try once on the cruise.  I fully intended to, but I was ordering steak or prime rib almost every night at dinner, and I did not want more red meat for lunch.  Park Cafe had a few options for breakfast, including grab and go fruit, and pastries.  We got some pastries and they were eh.  Not great.  DD was mad because she couldn't have one, because of her allergies, but I truthfully told her she wasn't missing anything.  I mean, we have some AMAZING donuts here in Chicago (if you are ever visiting, you must try either Stan's or Do-Rite Donuts).  These were worse than Dunkin Donuts (and I won't turn down a Dunkin Donut).  

 

So we decided to get lunch instead.  Well, DS went to the Teen Club and DD and I went to get lunch. 

 

It was St. Patrick's Day, so naturally we went to El Loco Fresh and got nachos.  

 

 

Isn't that what you are supposed to eat on St. Patrick's Day?  No?  Oh well.  

 

They were good.  The beef was OK, but I am guessing the chicken would have been better.  The chicken in the quesadillas was pretty good, so if that's what they had out for the tacos, then I think it would be great on nachos.  BTW, as I posted earlier the nacho section has the chips, then they have a vat of chili beef (basically chili, which I got another time on the chips and it was better than the steak/beef you see in the photo) and a vat of cheese.  But next to that is the taco bar, so you can pile stuff on from there, too.  Don't feel limited by the setup.  

 

After lunch, DD and I went on a search for chairs near the pool.  Or anywhere on Deck 15 or 16.  It was tough. It was REALLY windy up on both decks, and all of the chairs were taken.  We eventually found some, but I wasn't happy with the location so DD held those chairs and I went searching for better chairs.  My persistence and refusal to accept the first chairs we found paid off, and we ended up near the Toilet Bowl slide.  Somehow this became our spot, and we sat there again another day.  It was a pretty fun place to be, because you could hear people screaming as they went down the slide.  Sometimes there was just an initial shriek as they went down the tube.  "AAAAAAAh"  We tuned those out because they were too boring and predictable.  Sometimes they didn't shriek until they got into the Toilet Bowl, and that was more entertaining because you could hear them going around and around, and if they weren't keeping their body together they slid around and it was all "WhhHHHhhhOOOooooOOOooAAaaaAAAA" as they swirled around.  Those were funnier.  Sometimes they just screamed the entire time "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH" which was kind of funny, because most people didn't scream at all.  And it was both men and women screaming equally.  

 

We had show reservations today, for 2 shows.  The first show was 1977, which is one of the skating shows.  FYI there are 2 skating shows.  1977 is the "main" show, and you need to make reservations in Cruise Planner.  iSkate 2.0 is the other show, and you do not need reservations but I HIGHLY recommend this show.  I highly recommend both shows.  HIGHLY recommend.  

 

I forced DS to go to the show.  He didn't resist much, but it was a skating show and I could tell he was a bit reluctant.  I promised him Flow Rider time if he went, and said it would be worthwhile.  And afterward he said he really enjoyed it.  

 

The Key:  We had reservations for the show, and I am glad we did.  As we entered they were scanning Sea Passes and WOW Bands and turning away people without reservations.  They had to go stand to the side and wait.  AS we entered I asked where the Key seating was, and I was directed to the giant sign that said "SUITES, PINNACLES, DIAMOND +" but said nothing about The Key.  I asked if this was our section, and showed our wristbands, and I was told yes, and there were 5 seats left.  Luckily 3 of them were together.  Our section was one of the sides, in the first several rows.  2 minutes after we sat down they removed the sign and opened up the section to anyone.  Our seats were OK, but I would have preferred center seats.  We were in the 2nd row and had heads in our way. It was my fault for being late (this would become a recurring theme) but I still wish the seats had been in the center, not off to the side.  This was a semi-benefit to us, as without The Key we would have ended up much farther back, but I sort of wonder if we would have been able to see better from farther up?  

 

Meanwhile... we were there for the show, and it was AMAZING.  That is actually an understatement.  I recorded a lot of the show, and I don't want to spoil the whole thing so I will only post one video of the beginning.  If you want to scroll past to avoid spoilers, go ahead.  But this is by far the coolest way to open ANY show, ice skating or not.  

 

https://vimeo.com/327188084

 

After the show, the CD made a comment about the opening and how it was a great way to spend a million dollars, or something.  It was pretty bold of him, IMO, but also really funny.  

 

The show has a story, but it would be totally fine with me if it didn't.  These skaters were incredible.  The ice is so small, the ship is rocking, and they are doing jumps and spins and backflips... it was amazing.  Have I said that yet?

 

 

The costumes were amazing.  This particular woman did like 25 quick changes in 2 minutes, or so.  It was crazy!  

 

 

 

 

It was amazing.  Go see the ice show.  Don't be all "Really?  An ICE show???"  Go see it.  I command you. Ok not really, but go see it.  

[RazorbackIslandGirl]

8 hours ago, Grenouille21 said:

 

Thank you!  The photos are still showing up HUGE to me, so hopefully they are normal size to others.   

They are normal size on my end.

[Grenouille21]

50 minutes ago, RazorbackIslandGirl said:

They are normal size on my end.

 

Good to know!  Whew!

[Grenouille21]

Day 2 continued

 

Tonight was formal night, so we were dressed fairly nice.  I had decided DS had to come to dinner with us every night, so we all went together.  I am sure I ordered the Caesar salad again, and this appears to be the beef tenderloin.  

 

 

For dessert, DS ordered the carrot cake

 

 

DD had something, and I had the souffle.  It was good, kind of eggy but that's how souffle usually is.  The sauce was really good.  

 

 

Then DS ran off to the Teen Club, and DD and I were left to wander until our next show.  We had reservations for Hairspray, but much later in the evening.  

 

Now, I had heard about the restaurant called Wonderland, and I went back and forth and back and forth on whether to reserve it.  In the end I realized I really just wanted the dessert, not the main courses.  We don't really eat seafood and that seriously limits what we can have at Wonderland, and at pretty much all of the other specialty restaurants.  

 

I had asked online if we would be able to go to Wonderland for dessert, and I was assured that wouldn't be a problem.  We would pay out of pocket per dessert, but it should be fine.  

 

Well that is not how it works any more.  

 

I had mentioned to our servers, who used to work in Wonderland on the Harmony, that we wanted to have dessert there one night.  He said "Well, that might not be possible.  Let me see what I can do, I will talk to my boss and see what we can do."  He said they used to let people go there for dessert but they stopped allowing it because they are too busy now.  I decided to stop by, and walk through the place, and ask there if we might be able to stop in for dessert.  

 

It is definitely a cool space.

 

 

To enter, you go down the rabbit hole.

 

 

And through (or around) the magical door.

 

 

There is this cool seat here.

 

 

Now, you may not want to eat here, but maybe you just want to stop by and experience the place for yourself.  You CAN go to the bar, and I believe they have a 2 for 1 Happy Hour.  

 

 

 

And here, below, is the restaurant.  If you look carefully, you will see the whimsy: mismatched chairs, chairs with rabbit ears, some random woman with a St. Patrick's Day fascinator looking at me, etc.  

 

 

So I walked up to the host stand, and asked if we could have dessert.  When I was looking over at the restaurant, I saw a couple that was just being seated and given menus.  The place closes officially at 9:30, but they were just being seated, and there were empty tables, so I figured no problem, squeeze us in for a quick round of desserts.  

 

Nope.  

 

I asked if we could just go ahead and make a reservation for later in the week for dessert.  

 

"Oh let me check, no, sorry, we are fully booked.  And with such a full booking we can't really let people in for dessert.  We used to allow it, but not any more, not for a year or so."  (Um the ship is not a year old but ok sure.)

 

So we left, and were thinking about going back to the room, because I thought we had some time.  I looked at the time for the show, maybe on the app, and realized I had the time wrong.  I had been thinking about another show that started at 10:45 later in the week.  Hairspray started at 10:30, and it was currently 10:35.  Oh great.  

 

We rushed to the theater and of course if had already started.  So no Key benefit here, but it was 100% my fault.  

 

We grabbed seats off to the side, so we weren't disrupting anyone.  It wasn't the best location, but the show was still amazing.

 

 

 

 

Seriously, another winner. Go see the show.  And check the time, and double check the time.  This wouldn't be the last time this happened to us.

 

After the show I summoned DS to the room, where we found this guy waiting:

 

 

And that's the end of Day 2!  Day 3 would be another day at sea, so more sleeping in!  Yay!