My Long Mardi Gras Story (with pictures and Funtimes) 01/29 to 02/05

[mlshum]

On 2/16/2022 at 7:08 PM, Posesmom said:

Princeton! How about that?!

No way!  Maybe we’ll run into each other some time!

[mlshum]

I had a little technical difficulty tonight so I’ll get the next installment posted tomorrow.

[mlshum]

February 2, 2022 – Amber Cove

 

Groundhog Day!

 

Remember the movie “Groundhog Day” with Bill Murray?  In the movie, the lead character (Murray) continues to live the same day over and over again.  We got ready for our day AGAIN and headed up to Lido for our normal breakfast AGAIN.  I’m sensing a pattern…..almost the same breakfast every day just like in the movie. 😊  This wasn’t due to lack of options but more due to lack of time and the fact we’re not big breakfast fans.

 

Our excursion was a little later on this day.  We were supposed to meet our guide at 10:30.   We had booked the “Waterfalls of Damajagua” excursion.  We were looking forward to this one!  We were fully docked and cleared to leave the ship a little after 9 so off we went.  We hadn’t visited Amber Cove since 2016 and that was our only trip to that port, so we wanted to explore the port area a little before we met our excursion. 

 

Amber Cove is a beautiful port area.  There are a lot of small shops selling various “touristy” items.  There were a couple of places to grab something to eat or drink including a place that offered smoothies.  There is a huge freestanding “Amber Cove” sign with the ships in the background that is a perfect photo op.  One of the most popular attractions at Amber Cove is the huge water park area.  I have not been there but I have read about and seen photos of a massive pool, zip line, water park, places to eat, cabanas, etc.  There is an observatory on the hill.  We had hoped to go up and check it out but we ran out of time before and we came back during a torrential downpour so we put it off until the next time.  You can do a LOT of things and never leave the port area.  As our last visit to the Dominican Republic, we elected to take an excursion into town to see some sights and do some activities.

The entrance to Amber Cove

 

I think you can rent these cabanas

 

Photo op!

 

A word to the wise….Amber Cove is one of those places where it might be a good idea to have an excursion or at least some sort of specific plan and destination in mind if you choose to leave the port area.  Outside of those gates, it is a different world.  It doesn’t seem to be a place where you’d want to just wander aimlessly without a clear direction in mind.  (There is a YouTube video from a bunch of guys who call themselves “The Boat Breakers” and they tell their story about a harrowing experience in the Dominican Republic when they DIDN’T have a plan.)

 

As you’ve probably noticed by now, we mostly book our excursions through the ship.  We have, occasionally, just went off on our own to explore and we have booked excursions through outside companies quite successfully BUT we do appreciate the peace of mind that we have when we book excursions through the cruise line.  We know that we will receive a refund if the port is changed for some reason or if, like in Nassau, there is some extenuating circumstance where WE need or want to make a change, that we will get our money back.  In these times where ports are changing frequently due to COVID, I personally wouldn’t consider booking outside the cruise line simply for fear of loosing the money.  It also has the added benefit that we know the ship will not leave us behind if our excursion is held up for some reason beyond our control.  There have been a few times where that has happened, and I truly appreciated knowing that we wouldn’t be stranded.

 

So, back to our excursion.  The weather was beautiful that morning.  The sun was shining.  It was warm.  It was exactly what I expected to find in the Caribbean during my cruise.  After wandering around the port area, getting our magnet, visiting a few shops, taking a picture with the Amber Cove sign, etc. we went to the excursion area to meet our guide.  There were several people who were doing the same excursion.  Granted, we were some of the oldest people doing this activity, but we were ready.

Port area shops

 

Port area shops

 

 

 

 

 

We took advantage of the photo op!

 

 

The description for this excursion was very clear.  It said there would be a long, uphill hike to get to the waterfalls.  It said you would be jumping off or sliding down waterfalls.  It said the excursion was not appropriate for people with health or mobility issues.  All of that was well documented.  It was mentioned in the description of the activity, you were told when you got on the bus.  They played videos of the adventure while you were on the bus, and they told you again after you arrived.  Full disclosure was in effect!

 

Waiting area for excursions

 

Excursion buses

 

On the bus

 

 

 

With a full understanding of what we were about to do, we boarded our bus and headed out through the Dominican countryside.  The bus ride was about 30 minutes.  After a while, the bus went off on a narrow gravel road and we arrived at the beginning point of this excursion.  We got off the bus and were offered the opportunity to rent lockers to keep your belongings.  We opted to do that.  Our locker was $18 and there was enough room for our backpack and bag, phones, lanyards and glasses.  After we closed everything up in our lockers, one of the staff used a zip tie to attach the key to Ron’s life vest.  The description had said you needed closed toe water shoes and that you would be walking uphill for about 40 minutes.  They were not kidding!  If you didn’t have appropriate water shoes, you could also rent them.   The rental fee was $18 and was billed through Carnival.  They provided us with a bottle of water, a life jacket and a helmet.  Wearing these items was mandatory.  We were told we would drink the water at the top of the mountain and dispose of the bottles before we started downstream.

 

After a quick bathroom break, we were on our way.  The group from our bus was split into two.  There were about 10 – 15 people in our group.  Our guides were Willie and Jordan.  There was a photographer with us, but I can’t remember his name.  He stopped the various pairs and groups several times for pictures.  Ron WAS allowed to take his Go Pro as long as he was using the wrist mount.  We started the hike up the mountain.  The first part of the walk was very level and easy.  We crossed a foot bridge.  Below us and upstream were some cattle in the river.  We walked a little further past the bridge and the path started up the mountain.  There were stairs to make it easier but, as advertised, it was steep and rocky.  It was a long climb and was uphill all the way.  We stopped a couple of times for a rest and for some of the slower climbers to catch up but, overall, kept a pretty steady pace up the mountain.  True to their word, about 40 minutes or so later, we were at the top.  We drank our water.  Willie collected the bottles and threw them away and we proceeded to the first waterfall.  We could hear water splashing and people yelling in the distance.

 

Entrance to the "base camp"

 

Setting out for our adventure

 

Crossing the foot bridge

 

Our photographer took multiple photos going up the mountain.

 

Bridge

 

 

 

At the very first waterfall, the guide said it was about four meters.  A meter is approximately 3.28 feet so the waterfall was just a little over 13 feet high.  As we came to the waterfall, there were three options.  You could jump off a small platform, slide down a natural water slide beside the waterfall or climb down a “chicken out”  ladder.  As far as I could tell, everyone in our group opted to jump the first one.  I’m not going to lie, I was terrified!  Ron went before me.  He sailed over the edge with no problem.  Then it was my turn.  As I looked down, Jordan pointed to the area where I should jump.  It looked tiny from my perch.  I’m guessing it was about 8 – 10 feet wide but it seemed a very small from a very high platform.  The canyon was narrow with steep rocky sides.  There was basically nowhere else to go but down.   With my heart in my throat, I stepped up to the edge and jumped.  On my first jump, I didn’t hold my nose.  That was a mistake.  I got a good deal of water in my nose.  Going forward, I would hold my nose every time I jumped or went down a slide.  It looks kind of silly but it was the only way I was able to keep the water out of my nose.  Although it was terrifying, it was also exhilarating!  I turned around and looked back up at the platform.  I couldn’t believe I had just done that!  I swam over to join Ron and we started making our way with our group down through the canyon. 

 

The climb down to the first jump

 

The view from the second jump looking up

 

 

One of the water slides

 

Slide

 

 

Our group at the end of the canyoneering are getting ready to walk back to the bus area

 

The whole trip down the canyon was a lot of fun.  It was a combination of jumping, wading, swimming, climbing over boulders and sliding down natural waterslides.  I will confess that I managed to get a few bruises in the activity.  The last jump was the highest.  The guide said it was about 6 meters which translates to about 19.68 feet.  Again, with my heart in my throat and holding my nose, I jumped.  Our kids sometimes think we’re crazy.  We may be.  We are both in our 50’s and we’re going to live as much and do as much as we physically can absolutely as long as possible!  The kids call it “old people doing stuff”.  I’ll wear that badge with honor!

I DID IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

 

Through the canyon

 

Floating through the canyon

 

 

After everyone in our group had jumped, slid and basically reached the end of our canyoneering experience, we walked about fifteen minutes down a fairly level path back to the base.  We collected our belongings and tipped our guides.  They did a great job!  We did decide to buy the pictures on this one just to prove that we did it!  LOL  As we boarded our bus to go back to the port, it was beginning to rain.

 

The closer we got back to the port, the harder it rained.  When we got back into town, it was evident that it had been raining for a while there.  The side roads were flooded.  Water was standing around houses and businesses.  The ditches and drains were overflowing.  The downpour was torrential.

 

As we came back into the port area, the rain eased a bit.  For the next 30 minutes or so it would sort of alternate between the hard downpour and a steady soaking rain.  We were already drenched so we didn’t mind too much.  The shops were still open and didn’t seem to mind that we were wet so we bought a couple of t-shirts and headed back to the ship.  On the way through the Dufry shop (you must pass through it to get back to the ship) they were making an effort to keep the floors dry but to no avail.  It was just raining too hard and the passengers were just too drippy.  I was wearing my water shoes which have very little tread.  I slipped and fell on the wet floor.  I wasn’t injured at all but added a couple more bruises to my collection.  There was a long line of people in the Dufry shop waiting for the pedicabs to take them back to the ship.  We were already wet and we were hungry so we opted to just walk through the rain.  It was already after three by that time.  We stopped by the pizza place on our way up to the room to grab a piece of pizza.  We hadn’t had anything to eat since breakfast and were very hungry.  We took our pizza out on the deck just outside the pizza place so we wouldn’t drip inside.    After our snack, we headed up to our room to get dried off and cleaned up. 

 

After a while, it was time to go down for dinner.  Since we hadn’t eaten much that day, we were definitely hungry and ready to eat.  We went to the dining room and were greeted by Severo, Haryana and Rizsky.  Each night they made us feel so welcome and seemed genuinely happy to see us and chat with us.  After the first night, Haryana had our Diet Pepsi ready as soon as we arrived.  We truly enjoyed them!  I tried to catch “Showtime” but again, I missed! 

 

After dinner, we didn’t have a solid “plan” so we decided to go catch some comedy.  We went to the Punchliner and watched Spike Davis.  There were multiple comedians on this cruise.  We saw three of them.  Of the comedy shows we attended Spike Davis was my favorite. 

 

After the comedy show, we stopped at Java Blue where Ron ordered a strawberry milkshake.  I had intended to get the Lemon Icebox Pie at Emeril’s for my late-night indulgence but there were two ladies in front of me who apparently were ordering for multiple people and had a very complicated order.  After waiting for about 10 minutes, I decided to go to Java Blue and get a lemon meringue cupcake instead.  I joined Ron in the Fortune Teller Bar area and we listened to a guitar player named Judah for a while.  He was very good.  All the performers on this cruise were top notch.  I think they must have put the “best of the best” on Mardi Gras.

 

Java Blue makes a mean milkshake!

 

 

We finished our snacks and headed to the Piano Bar 88 to hear Mike Mac play.  We always enjoy the piano bar and the sing-alongs.  Again, this is one of the venues where you want to be there early.  We got there about 20 minutes before Mike’s show started.  By the time he started it was standing room only.

Piano bar

 

Mike Mac

 

Piano Bar

 

Mike is incredible.  There’s just no other way to describe it.  He plays piano so well it appears effortless. I play a little bit myself but nothing even close to that level.  I do play well enough to understand how talented he is and how hard it would be to attempt to copy what he plays!   He was very engaging and interacted with the audience throughout the whole show.  He changed the words of songs to fit the venue and the people there.  He used his own name in the song “Piano Man”.   He took requests.   It was a LOT of fun!  Near the end of his show a lady who was obviously very drunk staggered in with her friends.  Her friends were trying to help her and keep her seated, but it just wasn’t working.  She went around the room, sat in the laps of a few men, hugged up to a few others, sang very loudly and made it generally sort of uncomfortable.  One of the ladies who was accompanying one of the men on whose lap she sat got mad and stormed out.  I can’t say I blame her!    The whole thing was kind of disruptive.  Mike played for a little while longer, but it was near the end of his show anyway, so he wrapped it up a bit early and we headed out.   All in all, it was a memorable evening for sure.

 

We were still full from dinner, milkshakes and cupcakes so we passed on the ice cream.  We wandered out on deck for a few minutes to check the weather.  It had stopped raining and was nice and warm, but the ship was rocking again.  Since our shore excursion met at 7:30 the next morning, we decided to head back to our room, fill out a room service card for breakfast and call it a night.  Grand Turk was just one “sleep” away and we would see the whales!

 

[mlshum]

Here are the Fun Times for Amber Cove

 

amber 1.pdf

amber 2.pdf

[TNcruising02]

What an amazing day!  The waterfall excursion sounds like a lot of fun.  i definitely would have been nervous making those jumps.  You both are brave!  The rain sounds like a bit of a pain.

It sounds like they have some good comedians on the ship.  It also sounds like there was a lot of drama at the piano bar.  LOL. Never a dull moment.  Thank you so much for sharing so many details of your trip.  I really enjoy reading everything.

[mlshum]

51 minutes ago, TNcruising02 said:

What an amazing day!  The waterfall excursion sounds like a lot of fun.  i definitely would have been nervous making those jumps.  You both are brave!  The rain sounds like a bit of a pain.

It sounds like they have some good comedians on the ship.  It also sounds like there was a lot of drama at the piano bar.  LOL. Never a dull moment.  Thank you so much for sharing so many details of your trip.  I really enjoy reading everything.

Thanks so much!  The jumping was terrifying but fun.  Lol

[Theo1429]

We are 62 plus and that is the only way to live "LIVE LONG AND PROSPER "

[mlshum]

9 hours ago, Theo1429 said:

We are 62 plus and that is the only way to live "LIVE LONG AND PROSPER "

I couldn’t agree more!  We keep telling each other that we can do the things we do because we keep doing the things we do.  

[rdh rules]

Thanks for sharing Ron and Michelle! We are heading on the Mardi Gras in 42 days and am excited to get prepared with your review.  Great pictures and thanks soooo much for the fun times. I'm a nerd and read fun times, all the menus and drink choices and deck plans before I go on a ship! We are from Buckhannon, WV and now live in NC. We travel home and pass by Princeton every time on the way up and down. Glad to meet you!

Joanne and Don

[TrqoisWtrs]

On 2/14/2022 at 6:59 PM, mlshum said:

My "duck of the day" Mardi Gras edition

 

oh my gosh...so cute!

[vacruizer]

On 2/15/2022 at 9:19 PM, mlshum said:

Hey, neighbor!  We are in Princeton, how about you?  I know you will love Mardi Gras!

Thank you so much for the review! Mardi Gras and Celebration are on my short list for possible cruises next January and this is helping me decide! 
 

I’m not quite a neighbor but am an hour or so down the road from you in  the New River valley in VA. Love our mountains but also love to escape to the ocean especially in the winter!  Like your husband, I also work for a regional bank!

 

Looking forward to reading more!

[mlshum]

February 3, 2022 – Grand Turk

 

Like Amber Cove, we had only visited Grand Turk one other time.  We were pretty excited to visit again!  Like I mentioned earlier, before the cruise I had browsed through the shore excursion offerings and really, really wanted to go see the humpback whales.  It had been kind of a “back and forth” on making that excursion a reality.  We didn’t book prior to boarding Mardi Gras because we wanted to use our on board credit.  That proved to be a mistake because the excursion was completely sold out and no longer available.  We had booked a two-person Hummer tour of the island in place of the whale watching.  As you know, we received our tickets for whale watching a couple of days later and were very happy about that.

 

We set alarm clocks for 6am and room service arrived with breakfast at 6:30am.  We showered, got dressed, ate breakfast and were downstairs ready to debark by 7:15.  We were going to see the whales!

 

 

We walked into the port area and looked around for the sign that said “whale watching”.  No sign.  Nothing.  Anywhere.   We asked someone who seemed to be in charge of directing people to the various excursion meeting places and were told that the water was too rough for the excursion, and it had been cancelled.  Phooey!  That was disappointing!  He suggested we sign up for one of the other excursions that were still available.  We noticed one of the signs was for the Hummer tour, so we walked over and asked.  Sure enough, it was still available and was leaving in just a few minutes.  We filled out our paperwork and were on our way.   It wasn’t whale watching but it was was something fun and we didn’t get to see much of the island at all the last time.  It was a good alternative.

 

We walked to a parking lot behind the port area.  There were about 10 cute little two person mini-Hummers.  The tops were down, and they looked fun and adorable.  They were electric so they made very little noise at all.  The guides gave us a brief run through of the operation of the vehicle and checked each driver’s license.  Ron elected to drive.  He asked if I wanted to drive but I was perfectly content to ride along, look at the scenery, take pictures and generally not worry about having to drive on the wrong side of the road.

 

Checking out our ride for the day

 

OK, I think this will be fun after all!

 

 

Everyone chose a Hummer.  You could have any color you wanted as long as it was red.  They started us off with a few laps around the parking lot so the drivers would get the feel of the vehicle.  Ron said it was more like driving a golf cart than a car.  After a little practice, we followed our guide out of the parking lot and set off.  It was a challenge to drive on the left side of the road.   They were equipped with Bluetooth so we were able to hear the guide speaking in the car.  It made the trip so much more enjoyable to understand what we were seeing!

 

Follow the leader

 

 

Passing the ship

 

 

 

There were guides both in front of and behind us.  Each of them were on ATV’s.  There was a third person driving a blue truck.  Every time we would come to an intersection, the guy in the blue truck would pull into the road and stop traffic.  He darted up and down side streets and always was exactly where he needed to be at the right time.  It was very well organized!   I thought it was surprising that horses and donkeys were just randomly wandering beside the road, between the houses and throughout the whole island.

 

 

 

We drove for a little while along the road bordering the water.  The island is very small and most of the roads seem to be near the water.  We drove past a “Grand Turk” photo op sign, past churches, houses and a few businesses and into Cockburn Town, which is the capital.  It was tiny and cute but certainly not busy!  Some of the buildings needed repair and some still had hurricane damage from a previous storm but overall, it reminded me a little of Grand Cayman.  The city area is much larger and busier in Grand Cayman but still....somehow it still feels similar.

 

Photo op.....randomly beside the road in town

 

Pretty church building

 

Sea wall

 

Stopping in Cockburn Town

 

Only one land through town and some buildings are still boarded from hurricane damage

 

 

 

 

We stopped beside the road where a concrete wall separated the water from the town.  There were a few small touristy shops in the vicinity.  We wandered through the shops but didn’t see anything we really wanted.  The guides explained that Grand Turk was about 7 square miles total.  It’s approximately a mile wide and 7 miles long.  Definitely tiny!  Out in the water you could see the abrupt change of color from the clear blue to a very deep and darker blue.  What we were seeing was “The Wall”.  It is a sharp drop off of more than 7000 ft.  It’s quite close to land and it certainly would have been possible to swim out there if we were dressed for the occasion and had time.  Ron and I had snorkeled at the wall the last time we visited there.

 

The dark blue on the horizon is "The Wall"

 

No blues on earth are as gorgeous as the Caribbean blues

 

Sitting on the sea wall in town

 

 

After the stop in town, we drove to a nature preserve.  This was a really interesting stop.  They brought over a live conch, sea urchin, sea anemone, sea cucumber and jelly fish.  All of the creatures they showed us were alive.  We were able to hold and touch them, except for the sea anemone, which does sting.  They were very knowledgeable and answered questions readily.  I had never seen a conch hanging out of its shell before.  I don’t like conch and, to be honest, actually seeing one did not inspire me to want to eat it!

 

Conch

 

Conch

 

Sea urchin

 

Jellyfish

 

Sea cucumber

 

Sea anemone - these things will sting!

 

 

After the nature preserve, we stopped at a salt pond.  There were multiple salt ponds on the island that we passed during the tour.  This one had a flock of flamingos hanging out in the center.  The guide proceeded to tell us that the inhabitants of Grand Turk boast the longest average lifespans of any place on earth.  He told us about a study that was done a few years ago to try to learn why.  The study concluded that the amount of salt in the air was exactly the right amount to keep their lungs clean and to purify the air. 

 

We left the salt ponds and drive by a replica of John Glenn’s space capsule.  There is another replica in the port area.  I cannot imagine how frightening it would be to be closed in that capsule and splash down somewhere in the ocean only to have to wait for rescue.  I couldn’t do it.  I would be terrified.  It was impressive and they seemed very proud of the part the island had played in United States space history.

 

Salt pond

 

John Glenn's space capsule replica

 

Almost back to the port

 

 

Afterwards, we headed back to port.  While it wasn’t whale watching, it WAS a lot of fun, and we really enjoyed the Hummer tour.  We got to see a lot of the island.  It was a good choice!  We stopped in a couple of stores in the port area to get our magnet, shirts, and an ornament.  It was still pretty early in the day, so we boarded the ship, changed into our bathing suits and grabbed snorkel gear, then headed back out.  We had not yet been swimming on this trip and the time was NOW!

 

We were docked beside Elation.  Look how much smaller Elation is than Mardi Gras!

 

 

When you get off the ship and walk down the pier in Grand Turk, there are public beaches on either side.  The left side is sandy and more accessible.  There are more beach chairs and umbrellas.  My understanding is that some of them are free and some of them incur a charge, but I do not remember how to tell the difference.  We had our own snorkel gear, so we went to the beach on the right side where it was rockier and there were fewer people.  We put towels and such on a chair and headed into the water.

 

 

On this side of the pier, it is definitely very rocky, and the sand does not slope gently into the water.  There is a drop off that you must go down to enter the water.  Because of the rocks, water shoes are absolutely necessary.  The current was fairly strong, so it was necessary to actively swim instead of just floating around if you wanted to remain in one place.  We put on our masks and headed out to see what we could see.

Watch out....these things hid AND sting!

 

 

 

 

The water was still very clear and while there were not a large number of fish, there were several….the regular assortment of fish varieties that you see in most places in the Caribbean.  We saw the smallest sergeant majors that I’ve ever seen.  Ron took some photos with his Go Pro.  One thing I did notice is that there were a LOT of the sea anemones!  As I had learned earlier today on our tour, those things will sting you!  Some of them were huge!  If you do decide to check out that side of the pier, be very careful!

 

They're EVERYWHERE!  Wear water shoes!

 

I have had my snorkel mask almost since we started cruising.  On this trip, I was having a lot of trouble with water coming in around my mask.  I HATE having water in my eyes and my mask!  Ron decided to get out of the water and read so I borrowed his mask and realized why mine was leaking so badly.  It had finally gotten brittle.  I really hadn’t noticed it until I used Ron’s and made the comparison.  Guess what I got for Valentine’s Day?!?!

 

We snorkeled and swam for an hour or two.  It seemed like a good time to go back on board and check out the water slides since we were already wet and messy.  We gathered our gear, went back on board, and proceeded up to the water slides.

 

Generally, I am not a huge fan of water slides but I always like to do them at least once on every trip.  My favorite water slides have inner tubes.  Mardi Gras does not have an inner tube slide, but it does have three different types of slides.  The yellow slide is the traditional “sit down and lean back” type of slide.  I did it first.  I think Ron did, too.  The blue slide is a little different.  At the base of the stairs there are flat blue mats.  You must bring one of those to the entrance of the slide and lie down on it face first.  That was fun and I liked it better than the yellow slide.  I opted not to do the orange slide.  Ron DID do it and showed me a video later.  (He was allowed to use his Go Pro.)  At the top of the orange slide, you step into sort of a capsule area.  You are standing on a trap door.  (This sounds like a very bad idea to me!)  They close a clear plastic door over you.  An electronic voice counts down three…two…one and the floor disappears beneath you.  Eek!  Ron said it was fun and he would do it again.    I’m not so sure how I feel about that orange slide…...

 

 

 

 

As you saw above, we were docked beside Elation.  I didn't realize how much smaller the older fantasy class ships were in comparison to Mardi Gras.  I took this picture from the Lido on Mardi Gras.  We were almost level with the top of the whale tale on Elation! 

 

Looking down on Elation

 

 

After checking out the slides, we were both hungry.  It was a little later than when we normally like to eat, and our breakfast had been earlier than usual, so we were ready for food.  We decided to go back to Big Chicken again.  As before, it was very good, and we really enjoyed it.

 

We had completed the tour, snorkeling, and water slide, I was ready for a shower!  A trivia game was starting that afternoon, so we had just enough time to clean up and head down to Summer Landing.  We did manage to make it in time to play and had fun but, as before, no ship on a stick.  We decided to go back to our room for a while after trivia.  I laid down and intended to read for a while but instead, I fell fast asleep.  I woke up feeling much more rested, so it was probably a good thing.

 

Cleaned up and taking a break

 

 

This night would be the second elegant night.  I believe we had filet mignon.  I can’t remember the appetizer or dessert.  Severo sang “Achy Breaky Heart”.    Both he and everyone else there seemed to enjoy that very much.  I thought I was going to get “Shooowtime” on this night.  I had my phone out, ready to go.  Borris did wait a few minutes, so I was recording….or at least I THOUGHT I was.  Turns out, I hadn’t actually hit record.  ARRRRGGH!!!!

 

Dinner was finished.  There were several options for entertainment for the evening.  There were two new comedians for the evening.  We heard one of them.  He was OK but was not my favorite comedian of the cruise.  There was another comedian named Julie Scoggins.  We didn’t catch her show at all.  There was also a Playlist Production called Broadway Beats and a “New Orleans Celebration” at Center Stage.  Our plan for the evening was to catch Broadway Beats and then go to Center Stage for some of the New Orleans Celebration, especially Voodoo Moon.  Turns out, that probably wasn’t the greatest plan.

Broadway Beats

 

Broadway Beats

 

There was plenty of seating in the Mardi Gras Theatre so catching Broadway Beats went off without a hitch.  The wrinkle in the plan arose when we tried to find a seat at Center Stage.  There just weren’t any available!  The New Orleans Celebration consisted of four smaller shows.  The first one, “Jazz Fest” started at 7:05.  The second one “Mardi Gras Celebration” started at 7:45. The third one, “Street Magic” started at 8:20 and finally “Voodoo Moon” started at 8:30.  Needless to say, we didn’t catch any of Voodoo Moon because the people who came to watch got there early and stuck around to keep their seats.  Very smart!  Much better than my plan!

 

Earlier in the week as we had walked by Center Stage, we had seen aerialists practicing.  The Fun Times nor HUB app ever specifically said exactly which show would include the aerialists.  There was a small amount in the last show of the week, but I think it may have been during Voodoo Moon.  So…word to the wise….head to Center Stage early and stay there!

 

Since Center Stage appeared to be “out” for the evening, we decided to visit the piano bar instead.  Again…..too late.  It was standing room only.  Considering that the ship is sailing at reduced capacity, it doesn’t seem like there is nearly enough space at those two venues. 

 

Since our options were becoming more limited, we went to catch Billy D. Washington’s show.  Like I said, he was my least favorite comedian of the cruise, but a lot of people really liked him.  Like most things, it was just personal preference.  The show was just “meh” to me.  After that, we went to Java Blue to get a milkshake and sat in the Brass Magnolia Bar to listen the jazz band.  It was empty.  I guess everyone was at Center Stage.  After about 20 minutes, we went back up to our room and watched a movie.  It was a good day, and it was good to rest!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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8 hours ago, rdh rules said:

Thanks for sharing Ron and Michelle! We are heading on the Mardi Gras in 42 days and am excited to get prepared with your review.  Great pictures and thanks soooo much for the fun times. I'm a nerd and read fun times, all the menus and drink choices and deck plans before I go on a ship! We are from Buckhannon, WV and now live in NC. We travel home and pass by Princeton every time on the way up and down. Glad to meet you!

Joanne and Don

So happy to meet you!  It truly is a small world.  Have a wonder trip on Mardi Gras and thanks so much for reading along!

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6 hours ago, cruisin*tigger said:

oh my gosh...so cute!

Thank you!

[WorkerBee74]

8 hours ago, rdh rules said:

We are heading on the Mardi Gras in 42 days

 

Nice!  We are on the same one - getting closer!

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4 hours ago, vacruizer said:

Thank you so much for the review! Mardi Gras and Celebration are on my short list for possible cruises next January and this is helping me decide! 
 

I’m not quite a neighbor but am an hour or so down the road from you in  the New River valley in VA. Love our mountains but also love to escape to the ocean especially in the winter!  Like your husband, I also work for a regional bank!

 

Looking forward to reading more!

So nice to “meet” you!  If you do any residential lending, it’s quite possible we have crossed paper trails.  Lol. We’re looking at Celebration, too.  If you decide on Mardi Gras, I know you will love it!

[TNcruising02]

What a fun day!  We did the "hummer" tour too several years ago.  It sounds like they stopped at the same places.  It sounds like some of the venues for the shows can get crowded.  I wonder how that will work out when the ship sails at full capacity.  Thanks again for such a detailed trip report!

[jimbri]

Great review

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9 hours ago, TNcruising02 said:

What a fun day!  We did the "hummer" tour too several years ago.  It sounds like they stopped at the same places.  It sounds like some of the venues for the shows can get crowded.  I wonder how that will work out when the ship sails at full capacity.  Thanks again for such a detailed trip report!

Thank you for reading along!  We did enjoy the tour although it wasn’t our first choice, of course.  I wondered about Center Stage being too crowded when the ship was at full capacity, too.  That’s really the only place I remember it being consistently crowded.

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1 hour ago, jimbri said:

Great review

Thank you and thanks for reading along!

[IntrepidFromDC]

Really nicely done and you did so much!  Your mix of photos and commentary was a lot of fun to read through.  We did Mardi Gras in January and I can't wait to sail her again.  To us, such a leap forward for Carnival.  Thank you for the great review.

[crusin4funtimes]

Loving your review! 🙂 Thank you for taking the time to write it.

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2 hours ago, IntrepidFromDC said:

Really nicely done and you did so much!  Your mix of photos and commentary was a lot of fun to read through.  We did Mardi Gras in January and I can't wait to sail her again.  To us, such a leap forward for Carnival.  Thank you for the great review.

Thank you so much!  I really enjoy writing these.   We are always “busy” everywhere we go.  Lol. We kind of drive our 30something kids a little crazy!  🤣.  I agree with you regarding the leap forward.  I like Carnival’s new direction very much!

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34 minutes ago, crusin4funtimes said:

Loving your review! 🙂 Thank you for taking the time to write it.

Thank you and I appreciate your reading along!

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Once again, I forgot to upload the Fun Times!  Here they are.....

 

gt1.pdf

gt2.pdf

 

Hopefully, I will be back later to upload load "the rest of the story."  (You had to read that in a Paul Harvey voice.)  🙂