Blue Collar Diamond's return to cruising - Enchantment 5/19/22

[BillOh]

[kfnesq]

2 hours ago, BillOh said:

We were in 8044 just under one one of the extra WJ seating areas where the grab and go stuff was.  I only heard one noise all week.  The location was great for us.

That's great to hear, thank you!  We are going to be in 8034, so two away from where you were.  

[BillOh]

For night 3 we did return to the Main dining room and was very happy our  table mate invited her friend over to our table and we had pleasant conversations all week with our great wait staff.   I’m sure we all had a good time.  The headwaiter asked us why we didn’t come the night before and I told her, we didn’t bring any formal clothes. She said, “We don’t care what you wear, and we miss you.” She was a charming lady and did us some update on the mele on night 1.

Sunday was our 2nd sea day on the way to Nassau.  We spent most of the day at the pool and we occupied our chairs for about 4 hours – Took advantage of the Grab and go stuff from outside the WJ and had plenty to drink.  When we sat in the same place a couple of days, the pool bar staff got used to us and had plenty of drinks for us.  We took our Freestyle cups that had ice and some coke in them and ordered Captain and Diet Cokes. We would poor them into our freestyle cups to keep them cold and the waiters would see our empty glassed and bring us more.  Before long I had about 3 Captain and Diet’s in there and had a great time!

 

I mentioned the WV family on our ferry ride back to the ship in Bermuda. They were there.  We did a lot of people watching at the pool, which was for the most part a pleasant experience.  One time I did get in the pool to cool off. We were at the pool near the kids splash area. I would guess maybe 5% of the passengers were under 15 or so, not a big number, but we were happily sitting in an area where a lot of them were. 

 

  I was hanging on to the side of the pool  when the 5 year old boy from that family swam up and latched on to my arm.    It made me a little uncomfortable and I held my arm out the way a person might when a falcon lands on it.    I was looking around and his parents while attentive, didn’t see this yet. I’m guessing the kid remembered me and felt comfortable. I am a grandfather of a 6 and 8 year old so maybe I look more appealing that I think.    Finally the kid asked me, “Why aren’t you dunking me?”  Maybe he mistook me for  his own grandfather?   I told him that I didn’t think his parents would like that and he swam off.  But before he got too far, he turned around and said, “This is the kids pool, you need to get out!”  I wasn’t offended, more amused and then  I was ready to get out anyway, so I told him, “Ok, sorry”

 

The rest of day 3 was more of the same, Trivia, drinking, and another trip to the MDR where I had a really good Roasted Turkey with the French Onion soup and my first crème brule in 2 years!

 

Oh, the weather was so good on this cruise, we never went into the solarium pool or hottubs.

[BillOh]

At this point I will casually mention that I had been pretty much off caffeine for most of the two years of the pandemic and it does cause a lot of muscle fatigue in my legs.   Since I wasn't allowed to bring my normal pain killer/muscle relaxer medication the cruise, I decided to cut back on the caffeine and the drink of the day was a DARK AND STORMY.  This was some sort of dark rum and Ginger beer. It was good! I drank those for a few days and less Captain and Cokes. 

[BillOh]

Our 2nd port stop was Nassau and we didn't arrive until noon!  This was our 11th visit to Nassau in our 20 cruises. Watching the port webcam helped me get through much of the last year.  I am a cruise ship junkie, even through I have only cruises Royal, I look at all the other ships.    Now for a few port entry pics.

 

First outside the port saw 2 Bahamian Navy ships that I frequently see in this port, but today out on patrol.

 

 

Soon after our pilot boat came along side under our balcony.

We ended up pulling in along side Carnival Mardi Gras.  I believe this is one of their newer ships. My nephew and family were on it about 2 weeks prior to this. Very interesting ship!  In front of her was Fascination and on our other side  MSC Divina.

 

By about 1:15 we were on the ground in Nassau again after 900+ days.

[BillOh]

For our return to Nassau, we revisited the Blue Lagoon island that has been a regular Royal excursion for years.   Our results there have been mixed in the past. In 2018 we did their Segway Island tour and found it lacking in many ways. The beach day there before was ok.  On the segway tour they showed us an adults only beach area that was being developed. For our cruise it was ready and that is what we picked. The only bad part was after all the milling around we didn't get there till about 2:30 and had to be back off the island by 5:30 and they close the island and all the workers go home. That was my only complaint, not enough time there!

 

The excursion was billed as a VIP adults only excursion and our ferry to the island also took people who were going for a regular beach day, the segway tour, and Dolphin encounters.  On the ride there they crew said for people to remain seated and let the VIPs get off first.  That didn't go so well, nobody listened.  Most people took it well except for one very entitled woman who b1tched up a storm about having to wait.   The lady in charge of our tour did her best to keep us organized and get us where we needed to go, but the lady in our group kept up the tantrum.    The tour guide was a credit to her business and the Bahamian people. She did her best to disarm this complainer and keep everyone happy.  She was charming and funny! Very good at her job!

 

This was our arrival at Blue Lagoon island and the public beach.

 

The private adult beach was about a 400 yard walk.  Here are a couple of pictures of the beach any my lovely wife of 41 years.

 

Beyond my wife in this picture was another area to swim, with lifeguard that was a bit deeper.  This was a great day. Unlimited Bahama Mama's to drink and a nice buffet that included fish, chicken, and steak.   A few other things as well All was good! I didn't get any pictures of the food.  We had a wonderful time but it ended much to quick. But we were there long enough to feel like we got our money's worth.

[loug1601]

More, please! 😃 

[BillOh]

We got back to the ship to enjoy the Suite/lounge once again, the service there improved after day 2 and stayed excellent.  Dinner that night for me was the Lasagna, which I love Royals Lasagna. By this day were were very must enjoying our serving team and our dinner mates.  In the past I have had poor bar service in the MDR even when the food service was good. This time we had both! I was very happy with these two guys and they made us feel comfortable and entertained.

 

I don't like taking my camera into the main dining room, so I just realized I have no pictures here.  So I'll just throw in a pic of my wife and her favorite Souvenir  from a previous cruise and visit to St Croix. 

Next up a close to perfect day in Coco Cay. 

 

[BillOh]

Speaking about the dining room staff,  We had several very nice conversations with both our waiter and the Head waiter on what their last 2 years were like.  I imagine this may get old for them, but I thought they genuinely were happy to talk to us about it.  We didn't have to wear masks anywhere on the ship, but the crew does and I would say they are 99% compliant.  I am hearing impaired and the masks make it more difficult to hear and understand people at times.  Having the crew wear makes 100% of the time while around passengers may have some value to it and it may help keep cruising operating, but I felt bad for a few people like the Life guards. Standing in that hot sun wearing a KN95 mask has to be difficult!

[BillOh]

On 5/31/2022 at 11:47 PM, sandy toes said:

They will fit right in with the regulars at the B-more jail. 

So unfortunate that they can't yet behave and still have to act like minors and drink to excess. 

Those are some of the things that kids never seem to forget, adults acting like complete fools and being threatening to those around them. Kids expect adults to be the ones that are the examples of proper behavior. So sad. 

I guess I am fortunate enough to be a happy drunk. I'm everyone's friend and love everyone else! I was still able to walk and get around and to the best of my knowledge, didn't offend anyone.  FYI, I haven't had a drink since I got back home. 🙂

[BillOh]

Hard to believe it was day 6 already!  Our 7th visit to CocoCay and 2nd one to the Perfect Day Coco Cay.  Turns out Freedom got there just a little before us.

My only disappointment of the cruise occurred when we backed into the pier and Freedom was on the other side. I was kind of looking forward to looking over my favorite ship.    It wasn't long till I was once again walking about Royal Carribean Canyon!

 

After just a couple of years, I consider this to be an iconic welcoming sign. (didn't get a pic of the PERFECT DAY SIGN for some reason.

 

In 2 years and 2 visits, I still haven't seen anyone use this thing. (Not that I would) 

 

 

On the cruises that were canceled I had the Coco Cay Beach Club for $38 and $48 per person, but had to pay $68 on this cruise.  I'll skip ahead and say it was worth it. Is it worth the $168 that it is currently for my Sept cruise?  Probably not.

 

 

I was happy we were here by 10:30am and the people on Freedom weren't that far ahead of us. Between the two ships this beach was not overcrowded by any means.  The sun hadn't yet come over the top of the Palm trees as we checked out the pool.  IT was still cold, I stepped into it and then we settled on the beach. (Later the pool would seem warm.)

 

 

 

[BillOh]

We were given two very nice plush towels to take to the Club and we quicky found our spot for the day after making a reservation for lunch. (1pm) 

These chairs were very comfortable and had a flag on the back for drink service.  

It took a while to get my first Coco Loco, but they came quickly afternoon! 

Time to head off to my 2nd graduation party this season after none for 2 years.  More later. Also off attending a medical marijuana trade show. Good to be back out with people again!

BACK LATER TONIGHT

 

 

[Yorkvillain]

11 minutes ago, BillOh said:

Also off attending a medical marijuana trade show. 

I wouldn’t mind reading a Blue Collar review of that. 

[loug1601]

I’m really enjoying your review Bill. Your wife is lovely, and your pictures are great! Coco Beach Club also looks like a special day. 
 

We leave Friday June 10th on Oasis of the Seas, and I also splurged for a Grand Suite. We are sailing from Bayonne NJ and will also be visiting Coco Cay.  I also love when two ships are docked and we walk between two behemoths. 
 

Keep your review coming 😁!

[perfect match]

On 6/4/2022 at 8:56 AM, BillOh said:

On the cruises that were canceled I had the Coco Cay Beach Club for $38 and $48 per person, but had to pay $68 on this cruise.  I'll skip ahead and say it was worth it. Is it worth the $168 that it is currently for my Sept cruise?  Probably not.

 

Bill, when I saw that you’re cruising again in September, I thought it might be possible that our paths would cross again. Barry and I enjoyed meeting you and Gina back in 2019 on Symphony. I did a little searching and found that, unfortunately we will just miss each other in September. We’re cruising on Harmony the week before you’re cruising on Mariner. IIRC, it’s not going to be the first time that has happened. 

[BillOh]

When we finally settled on the beach, it was still only around 65-70 degrees and the water a little chilly. But it was low tide and you could go out 400 yards and not be deeper than you knees in many places. By 11am it was hot day and the sun and ocean felt great! We had a few drinks before our 1pm lunch.

 

This was my first time seeing the overwater cabanas here as they were under construction in our 2019 visit.  Later in the day we did get a little weed smell coming from there. It did make me miss it just a little, but my 8 day tolerance break motivated by federal law and cruise rules was almost over 😉 

 

A couple more beach shots from the day.

 

[BillOh]

It was really just as billed, a very nice beach club.  At 1pm we put on coverups and went to eat lunch on their patio.

 

 

Seating only took a minute or two, they did a veryh good job of spacing people out.

 

Menus came and several really good choices. My wife chose a salad with Filet Mignon added. knowing she wouldn't eat it all I ordered the Wagu Burger. I think that is what it was called, but it was very good.

 

Oh! for appetizers, nothing looked good to me, sorry, didn't get the description from the menu. Wouldn't you know it, the waiter said we didn't have to choose he would bring a sampler of them all.  Oh, yea, I didn't have to choose between toxic waste, trash can drippings, or  sewer plate scapings.

 

I'm mainly kidding, I'm sure most of you would like this stuff, but its above my blue collar pallet.  They did have a drink menu and when we ordered 2 lava flows that wasn't on that menu, $5 was added to our folio.  No big deal, I didn't go hungry, and everything was good. Also very clean nice bathrooms were also nearby.

 

We stayed till 4:30 and started the tram ride back and were on the ship before all aboard time. This day was definitely worth the $68 per person I think we paid!   Nearly perfect day!

Now to throw in one picture of me.

 

 

 

[BillOh]

The rest of day 6 was uneventful, but enjoyable. I didn't make any note of what we had in the MDR, but it was good and service continued to be excellent.  We did a little walking around and went to look at the pictures in the photo gallery of which we each just got our one free one.   We did make note of a guy, well dressed, wearing a Royal name tag taking photos of an empty display case at the jewelry store.  We didn't really take note of that till we heard the story the next day.

 

The first of two sea days that ended our cruise featured the calmest seas I have ever seen on a cruise.

 

 

This was another pool day for us.    Near us were about 4 girls who might have been anywhere from 19-25 by my guess.  They seemed to be hitting it off with a couple of guys about the same age.  It was pleasant seeing everyone having a good time.    One of them started talking about the glass and broken display case in the shops so my wife spoke up and asked what happened.  One of the girls reported some guy, about 40 was following them around and being creepy.  They ducked into a shop and told the crew member there that they were being followed by someone they didn't know. The guy , whom they said was very drunk retreated and then they heard the crash of glass and looked out and saw the guy reach in and pull out a "Rolex watch".    Security asked them what happened and reviewed security footage with them.  The figured out who the guy was and he was confined to his cabin with security outside the remainder of the cruise.  He was escorted off the ship and directly to the Port police when we returned. (I didn't see any  of this myself)

 

[BillOh]

PS - headed out to a doctor appointment will continue later, but just got an email say I had a package delivery coming from SHIPWIRE/ENDICIA.  Could that be my crystal block (my first) I was told it would take 6 weeks!  I'm probably just being hopeful, I have other packages due, but this does say SHIPWIRE!

[BND]

Just an FYI for anyone who will be in a suite.  There is no suite lounge on EN, but there is a Concierge lounge that is open to suites, D+ and Pinns.

[BND]

1 minute ago, BillOh said:

PS - headed out to a doctor appointment will continue later, but just got an email say I had a package delivery coming from SHIPWIRE/ENDICIA.  Could that be my crystal block (my first) I was told it would take 6 weeks!  I'm probably just being hopeful, I have other packages due, but this does say SHIPWIRE!

We still haven't received ours from our April 2 EN cruise.

[Big_G]

Welcome back Bill. Great review.

[Another_Critic]

3 hours ago, BND said:

We still haven't received ours from our April 2 EN cruise.

Haven't received mine from March 25 EN cruise.  Nor have I received mine from Dec 5 Anthem cruise.

 

EN loyalty ambassador "ordered" them while we were on board.

[BillOh]

Just like pre-covid, I take a week off and come back to a lot of work!   The last two days on board were nice.  Met nice people, had a great time, enjoyed our suite. We carried off our own bags in Baltimore and were on the road home before 8am.  We stopped at the flight 93 memorial on the way. It was a great stop. Last pictures are from there!

 

Pictures are not allowed in the Visitor Center- Very worth stopping at.

[erinsmom03]

Thank you for your review of Enchantment! This was our honeymoon cruise in 1999. Since, we have sailed on Disney, and most recently Ovation, Adventure, and Allure. We will be on Serenade next month. I have been wondering if we should consider another cruise on Enchantment, but was worried that we wouldn't enjoy it. Your review reminded me that I shouldn't rule out a ship because it is older... I think I would enjoy Enchantment again!