Royal Caribbean Cruisers -- How Are Things Where You Are? (was "Routine" ​ 😁 ​day in lockdown... how was yours?)

[HBE4]

32 minutes ago, bobmacliberty said:

After SUMMIT OV, we decided to check out Grand Central Terminal and have lunch in the lower level food court.  The food was surprisingly good, and we witnessed some of the mental health issues in NYC first hand.  Sad.

 

While mental health issue @ GCT was always there, it's gotten so much worse since the pandemic.

 

Did you try the whispering gallery/echo chamber?

 

Edited January 16 by HBE4

[maggieq]

7 hours ago, bobmacliberty said:

We got back from our NYC trip Sunday night.  Played golf and watched the Bills game yesterday, and am sitting at home now while it rains here.  Finally caught up on this thread.

 

We had a great trip.  The Billy Joel concert was incredible.  His energy and his voice at 74...just amazing.  The Book of Mormon was hilarious.  Definitely a lot of adult content.  We did a few other fun things while there and of course had some great food.  Weather was pretty good...mostly in the 40s and even peaking up in the 50s, with some wind.  Temps dropped on Sunday and the wind picked up, delaying our flight out of LGA for an hour.  I watched 4 straight planes trying to land on runway 22 before having to do a go around right before touching down.  They ended up closing that runway and had everything both landing and taking off on runway 31.  I think there were 12 planes waiting in front of us to take off and we spent an extra 30 minutes taxiing. 

 

I'll separately post some pics and videos of the weekend.

@bobmacliberty we agree about the concert.  Voice still amazingly great but did see that he moved with a little challenge.  
 

first trip into nyc prior to Covid. No real traffic on drive in or out. Parked in dock parking and good experience. Had apps and drinks at Fridays.  Not our first choice but they had room immediately and it was warm inside 😊 

 

 

we lucked out with the weather as this week, well that’s another story ❄️ 🧊 🥶 

 

 

Edited January 17 by maggieq

[bobmacliberty]

3 minutes ago, maggieq said:

@bobmacliberty we agree about the concert.  Voice still amazingly great but did see that he moved with a little challenge.  

 

 

 

We noticed that also...he had to shuffle a bit walking around.  He also messed up the lyrics once starting the wrong verse and we wondered if he was reading lyrics and/or music from the tablet/prompter that he had sitting on his piano.  I just assumed that he could play any of his hundreds of songs without even thinking, but that might not be true (anymore).  None of that detracted in any way from our enjoyment.  And we're happy that we got the MSG experience.

[#55worktoplay]

@bobmacliberty  wow, thanks for sharing your tour. Pictures are amazing. I don’t think I would be able to walk in the mirror glass area, I am sure I would walk into a wall or something and not only that I would look like an idiot trying to walk around. 

[George C]

1 hour ago, akcruz said:

 

Neat pictures, we did the Edge last fall and while it was nice definitely not worth a second try, this looks so much better, will have to remember if back in NY any time soon.  Looks like you had a beautiful day.

 

 

As for TKTS, there used to be a window by South Street Seaport, DH worked a few blocks away, he would go at lunch time and if anything good was there I would drop the kids off at grandma's and take the train in.  Saw many good shows that way.

Originally there was one in lobby of the World Trade Center, I bought tickets there a couple of months before 9/11, great thing about those and Lincoln center tkts was less crowded plus you can buy tickets for following day matinee. So I went to Lincoln tkts bought matinee for both Saturday and Sunday plus Saturday evening. Broadway location just sell’s current day.

[lenquixote66]

1 hour ago, HBE4 said:

 

From what I understand, many of those rules were from the company founder. He wanted to set the company apart from its competitors by making sure all the employees from top to bottom were  clean-cut and professional looking, whether or not they were customer facing.  I guess the no eating in the work place fell in line with the clean, organized & efficient look,

 

I wonder in today's relaxed work environment with casual dress code, tattoo's, etc, what the rules were.

 

And I've cut back to 2 cups of coffee in the morning. One to get the heart beating and one to get the brain working. 😁

 

In the years that I worked every job but one required that men wear suits .You could not remove your jacket at any time .Employees were only allowed to drink coffee on breaks unless you were part of Management and had an office.

[Sunshine3601]

23 hours ago, Ozark_Kid said:

Kenzie enjoyed the snow today!

 

 So did her brother and sister. 

 

I think she enjoyed warming up too!

 

Precious....I love the rosy cheeks and that big warm smile❤️❤️❤️

[Sunshine3601]

8 hours ago, lenquixote66 said:

One day I went with my wife shopping to a store and waited for her outside.A group of guys saw me ,did not like my look ,picked up a garbage can and attempted to pour the contents on my head.

Nasty jerks....karma always catches up with people like that.

[grapau27]

Good morning.

I hope everyone is safe and well and y'all have a wonderful day.

[sgmn]

On 1/16/2024 at 12:11 AM, MJSailors said:

Just a question for the gentlemen on this board who have beards. Do you trim your beard at home with a beard trimmer or go to a barber for regular trims?

Asking for a friend.- my DH.

He had it trimmed once so far and is thinking about getting a trimmer to take care of his beard by himself.

Thanks for any advice.

MJ🙎🏻‍♀️

 

DH trims his beard and since lockdown I have cut his hair

[sgmn]

15 hours ago, HBE4 said:

 

Definitely no suits worn by men or dresses by ladies. Or vice-versa. Probably the TV writers wanted to give the show look more glamours look.  Kind of like commercials for casino's where everyone is dressed like it's NYE...or cruise ship MDR circa 1980's. 😄 Never seems to be that way in Atlantic City or Foxwoods.

 

Travelling 'staff travel' on the airlines there was always a dress code, especially if you wanted to be considered for an upgrade. 

It's a bit more relaxed now but still asks for smart (no holes) jeans as a minimum 

[sgmn]

11 hours ago, HBE4 said:

 

Next time, I'll have to try Lincoln Center booth.  

 

Thanks for the tip about moving seats, it never occurred for me to ask.  At 6'2", I have trouble fitting into some seats. I love the beauty and old fashion grandeur of some of the old theaters but man, are the seats cramped! And not very well laid out with restrooms and bars in the most inconvenient locations. Of course, $40+ for 2 drinks, I'm not hitting the bar too often,

 

Some of the London theatre's which are hundreds of years old are very cramped with small seats and not much legroom. 

[Momof3gurlz]

18 hours ago, Sea Dog said:

 

Congratulations that’s great news.

 

 

Hey @Momof3gurlz what’s Andy’s and your tree doing in NYC???????

 

*Inside joke*****

Hahaha, this made me laugh out loud Greg!  
 

@Ozark_Kid beautiful family photos!  
 

@bobmacliberty  loved all the NYC photos and videos.  It looks like the trip was a great success.  

[Sea Dog]

@bobmacliberty Love your pics from NYC. Looks like you had a great time. You going to game on Sunday?

[h20skibum]

Windchill of-9° this morning, but a cloudless, sunny sky.   Hope everyone is doing well.  @dani negreanu Dani, good to see a few reactions to posts, so I assume you are doing ok, under the circumstances.  I am always thinking of you and your family. 

 

Plans for Summer of Fun 4.0 are underway.  Just booked our week in Myrtle Beach this summer, and got our flights booked.  Flight booking was not without a glitch.  After entering names, birthdates, etc. for Susan and me, our California grandson, our daughter and her two kids, it tells me I can’t have multiple bookings for the same person.  For some reason, it would change her kids names to hers, so I had to go back and enter the kids names again. 

 

Next, I start entering gift cards.  By the time I entered 4 of those, it logged me out before I hit the purchase button.  Dang, I have to log back in and start everything over again.  At least I knew the name glitch this time, and watched as it changed the grandkids names to my daughter’s name so I could correct it this time. Fortunately, it didn’t say my gift cards had been used, which was my fear.  So, flights booked, and an oceanfront suite booked for all of us.  

 

A couple weeks after that, and we will all be heading out on Utopia, so I need to look at Florida flights soon. 

 

Now I have to see if Daryl plans to come along on these trips. 

Edited January 17 by h20skibum

[bobmacliberty]

1 hour ago, Sea Dog said:

@bobmacliberty Love your pics from NYC. Looks like you had a great time. You going to game on Sunday?

 

Nah.  I had enough "cold" weather last week.  I'll watch with the local Bills Mafia at our regular spot.  If Houston somehow beats the Ravens though, and the Bills host the AFC Championship game, I'll definitely look into how much tickets would cost.  I don't want to look past Mahomes though...that's dangerous.

[BonTexasNY]

@bobmacliberty I couldn't let another moment go by without telling you how amazing your photos/videos are. So enjoyable.  I actually saw where I grew up and the building in mid Manhattan where I worked for 4 years at an advertising company.  Looks like your visit to NYC was a resounding success.

Edited January 17 by BonTexasNY

[Ozark_Kid]

22 hours ago, doghog said:

I can remember those days of being judged by the length of my hair. The song "Signs" by Five Man Electrical Band comes to my mind. 

Some complimented without knowing.  During HS grad a lady sitting in front of my mom pointed down at me and said, her hair is beautiful!  Mom said she just smiled.  😆

I remember some of the girls at school asking how I take care of my hair.  they thought I was using some special shampoo.  Prell shampoo and then later I would drop my head, brush and blow-dry  it from underneath and then toss my head back!  

I remember this time of year I had a couple times when I washed my hair before school and didn't get it all the way dry.  It would start to freeze while walking to school.

[h20skibum]

13 minutes ago, Ozark_Kid said:

Some complimented without knowing.  During HS grad a lady sitting in front of my mom pointed down at me and said, her hair is beautiful!  Mom said she just smiled.  😆

I still get that.  Several times when my wife and I have been out to eat, a waiter has walked up behind me and asked what you ladies would like today.  
 

Then, they walk a little more and see my beard and go Oops. 
 

I have a few stories about traveling in the south with a couple fraternity brothers during my college days, and the “reception” we got in some places.  Different times!

 

[OnTheJourney]

Can't believe this thread is STILL going....amazing!

[George C]

3 hours ago, bobmacliberty said:

 

Nah.  I had enough "cold" weather last week.  I'll watch with the local Bills Mafia at our regular spot.  If Houston somehow beats the Ravens though, and the Bills host the AFC Championship game, I'll definitely look into how much tickets would cost.  I don't want to look past Mahomes though...that's dangerous.

Buffalo is expecting up to another 3 feet of snow this week , I will wait to June for our normal New York City then Buffalo vacation, you did cram in lots during your brief visit . The freedom tower has great views also and on the elevator going up they painted pictures of New York from the last few hundred of years so you can see how New York was built , it was very interesting.

[d9704011]

14 minutes ago, George C said:

Buffalo is expecting up to another 3 feet of snow this week ,

Are you watching the Armageddon Network?  More like less than 6 inches I think.

[George C]

7 minutes ago, d9704011 said:

Are you watching the Armageddon Network?  More like less than 6 inches I think.

ABC news and Fox both said they could get up to 3 feet of snow .

https://www.wgrz.com/article/weather/severe-weather/how-much-snow-wny-buffalo-weather/71-3c270bee-49b7-4b63-a624-dd40f36168d8

Edited January 17 by George C

[bobmacliberty]

A few more posts about our NYC trip and then I'll be quiet (at least about NYC that is).  On Friday, we visited the Intrepid Museum.  I wanted to do that the last time we were there, but I was overruled by my wife and 2 daughters.  Without our daughters this time, Micheline said that she also wanted to go.  For those who don't know, the Intrepid is an aircraft carrier commissioned during WWII.  It's permanently docked at Pier 86 on the Hudson River as a museum.  There are several aircraft on the flight deck and in the hangar deck, plus the Space Shuttle Enterprise, and the Growler Submarine (a cruise missile submarine from the early 60s).  You can walk through many of the working areas of the Intrepid. We both enjoyed it greatly.  

 

I won't bore you with pictures of planes, but I will include several pictures of lines for @harryfat1 and @Sea Dog

 

 

 

 

 

 

And some bonus pictures...anchor chain.  You can get an idea of the size of the chain links when compared to my size 10 sneaker.

 

 

 

OK...maybe just one plane picture.  Maverick's F-14 Tomcat.  How could I not show that?

 

 

And since this is Cruise Critic and not City Travel Critic, here's a shot of the Norwegian Getaway docked next door.

 

[bobmacliberty]

Micheline and I both realized that in all of our trips to NYC (which isn't a lot, but still...) neither of us had been inside Central Park.  The closest we had come was the Met, which I guess is in Central Park, but you get my point.  We decided to walk through the Mall to the Bethesda Fountain and the Lake.  Central Park must be beautiful in the spring.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Billionaire's Row, from a peasant's perspective.

 

 

We finished with a drink (OK...maybe 2) at the Tavern on the Green.