NCL Prima 5-day NYC to Bermuda Semi-Live! (10/10/22)

[PistolPete13]

And drum roll please....the final damage.

 

Yikes!

[PistolPete13]

After all this, I still needed to goto the buffet and load up on some garlic shrimp as a night cap.

[PistolPete13]

The sculptures on deck 8 take on a different look at night due to the integrated LED lighting in them.

Be careful about touching this pinwheel swirl sculpture.  The reflective surface let's you see all the greasy palm prints and stains from the people taking photos to flex on their social media accounts.

[AstoriaPreppy]

22 hours ago, PistolPete13 said:

The treadmills had some online apps but those were not enabled because WiFi was disabled for all the machines.

 

🙄 peak NCL

[PistolPete13]

51 minutes ago, AstoriaPreppy said:

 

🙄 peak NCL

I know right?  I was so happy when I saw those apps thought I could catch up on the news on YouTube but nope...LOL.

[PistolPete13]

OK, where was I on the trip?  Right, it's Wednesday.  We'll be arriving in Bermuda late in the afternoon after an RCL ship vacates a parking spot for us.

By this point the initial boarding excitement has worn off a bit and the lack of Internet has caused me to truly disconnect for the first time in years.  How did we every get by without smartphones?  I should know, when they first came out my thought was who wants to be online all day?  Damn, should've loaded up on that Apple stock...

So pro tip.  If you want the variety of breakfast choices offered by the buffet, just become a morning person and get there early.

Here is the view of the place at 6:50AM

 

I was able to load up on another plate and was in and out of there in 20 mins or so.

 

[PistolPete13]

I spent the rest of the morning relaxing and processing my sail away photos on the 8th floor Ocean walk deck.  NCL got smart and didn't have any pillows on these long couches to discourage long term nappers from camping out on them.

One strange thing I noted with all the furniture in the common areas is that there are zero USB power ports anywhere.  I would assume that with any new build, these power ports on furniture would be ubiquitous but I guess we should be thankful there are more ports inside the cabins now.

There are good quality binoculars spread out along the deck.  I was shocked at how clear and sharp the views from them were.  Normally these public view stations provide a best at smeared blur of what you want to zoom in on.

 

Edited October 19, 2022 by PistolPete13

[PistolPete13]

Lunch today was in the Indulge Food court and this is when the fun with the ordering iPads began.  A few orders will bounce back with an SQL error after being placed so I wasn't sure if it went in or not.  It was getting crowded and I would lose my seat instantly if I tried to get up to the serving station and ask.

So, I just ordered again.  Turns out I ended up with multiples of everything.  Good thing the portion sizes were small!

Let's see:

 

Singapore Noodles (x2)
Some sort of soup with fish
Pai Thai
all chased with a few scoops of ice cream

 

All very good and SPICY.  The ice cream was definitely needed at the end.
 

Edited October 19, 2022 by PistolPete13

[PistolPete13]

One of the downsides of cruising this late in the season from NY is that it can been cool.  We're less than half a day from Bermuda and it was too chilly for me outside if I wasn't in the direct sunlight.

I found a nook of plush chairs on deck 7 right behind the Starbucks with a great view of the ocean going by.  Now the practical side of my looked at the comfy deep chairs and thought, this is not going to be good.  Deep comfy plush chairs in a public setting means trapping food, odors, and worse.

Did I mention my day job has made me into an eternal pessimist always looking for the downside of things?  That's something no one told me about in college.

My fears were confirmed later in the cruise when I returned to this spot on Friday, sat down, and was assaulted with a smell that I would characterize as "old-man smell".  I can say that cause I'm old, OK?  Ugh, won't be going back to that spot and I hope the Prima crew has a steam cleaner in their cleaning toolbox...

 

[JGmf]

 

21 hours ago, PistolPete13 said:

I kept looking at those two giant balls of radiation and was wondering if I would end up glowing in the dark if I sat there too long.  Then I remembered how bad the WiFi was and decided there was probably no satellite communications happening anyway so I was safe.

 

Ha! That's priceless! 

 

Keep your review going Pete. It's a pleasure to read!

[Sand and Seas]

DH is super happy that you showed us ice cream by the scoop in the Food Hall!

 

Question, how do you get a diet coke in the Food Hall?   

 

[PistolPete13]

16 minutes ago, Sand and Seas said:

DH is super happy that you showed us ice cream by the scoop in the Food Hall!

 

Question, how do you get a diet coke in the Food Hall?   

 

I think there was a free style soda machine in there but I'm not 100% sure.  The bar is just outside the food hall and they for sure will have sodas.

[PistolPete13]

Land ho!

We finally reach the outskirts of Bermuda around 3PM, pick up the harbor pilot, and do the slow waltz around the reefs into Heritage Wharf.  Both the Carnaval Legend and Royal Caribbean Mariner of the Seas were already in port as we pulled in.  We were parallel to the RCL ship and watch it pull out.

We then turn on the azipods I guess and pulled directly into the dock.

PTZTv was kind enough to record this first visit of the Prima and here is a link to the video:
 

 

[PistolPete13]

And here is my view of the arrival from deck 8

 

[PistolPete13]

It was a surprisingly quick process to for clearance to the granted and disembarkation to begin!  Since this was right smack in the middle of dinnertime and probably some hard fought reservations, getting off the ship for my excursion was a piece of cake.  No cattle lines snaking around the bowels of the ship.

Here she is in the good light of the sun setting!

 

[PistolPete13]

I made a mistake and didn't post the sunrise photos from earlier in the day so here they are:

 

[PistolPete13]

I was fortunate enough book a Bermuda Triangle sunset glass bottom boat excursion.    It was very interesting because the reef at night under the ship lights looks very different than what you can see during the day.  Tons of small fish would come up to the light followed by larger fish who would eat them!

I was also very happy to see a sky full of stars.  It's very hard for me to get a view like that living in NYC.

After returning from the excursion, it was time for dinner!

I made my way back to the Indulge Food court again.  I've been weaned from my dependency on the buffet.  The food court food was that interesting to me.

Let's see what I ordered tonight

- Crab tostada

- BBQ rib platter
- BBQ brisket platter
- deviled eggs (not on the lunch menu)
- random dessert

 

It all hit the spot.
 

Edited October 19, 2022 by PistolPete13

[BirdTravels]

1 hour ago, Sand and Seas said:

Question, how do you get a diet coke in the Food Hall?   

There is a mini freestyle machine at the drink station in the Food Hall. (last week, the card reader was not working so anyone could pour soda)

Edited October 19, 2022 by BirdTravels

[PistolPete13]

2 minutes ago, BirdTravels said:

There is a mini freestyle machine at the drink station in the Food Hall. (last week, the card reader was not working so anyone could pour soda)

Noooo!! Now you tell me!  🙂

[KmomChicago]

2 hours ago, PistolPete13 said:

And here is my view of the arrival from deck 8

 

 

The ships are all, always, so beautiful. In any port I really enjoy seeing all the other ships, sometimes from the line I am on, often not. I always wish there were excursions that let you tour the other ships in port. 

[Sand and Seas]

1 hour ago, BirdTravels said:

There is a mini freestyle machine at the drink station in the Food Hall. (last week, the card reader was not working so anyone could pour soda)

Good to know!    I'll be getting my Diet Coke or Zero either way😉

[PistolPete13]

Ah well, it's late and I have to head into the office tomorrow so no more detailed posting tonight.  If you'll indulge me, I'll post a few sunset photos from the sea day and photos of the Carnival ship that was in port at the same time we were.

 

 

[BirdTravels]

15 minutes ago, Sand and Seas said:

Good to know!    I'll be getting my Diet Coke or Zero either way😉

Coke Zero is available at bars only. Supposedly at every bar. 

[Sand and Seas]

33 minutes ago, BirdTravels said:

Coke Zero is available at bars only. Supposedly at every bar. 

Again, very good to know!   After years getting by with diet pepsi, really looking forward to coke products.  Happy enough with Diet Coke, but Zero is my preference.  The casino (Penrose?) bar should comp me a couple of cans.

[Red-Sol]

1 hour ago, KmomChicago said:

 

The ships are all, always, so beautiful. In any port I really enjoy seeing all the other ships, sometimes from the line I am on, often not. I always wish there were excursions that let you tour the other ships in port. 

 

That's a very novel idea! I really like it and hope some of the cruise lines are listening...could be a win win for everyone!