Beyond LIVE Semi-Solo AQ Class 11/8/22

[Gardener5b]

4 hours ago, GenerationX said:

READY FOR AN EVENING CHIC GATSBY PARTY!!!

 

Fabulous dress, and you look amazing.

[TPCRUISER2]

Just stunning in that dress. Perfect all the way around!

[GenerationX]

A quick update from chic night:

 

We had a great little Gatsby party in Eden and everyone looked FABULOUS and were so much fun!!!

 

Once the pre-7pm dinner/show rush cleared out, the Eden bartenders were able to catch their breaths and really interact with us and were so entertaining and accommodating!

 

Wouldn’t you know it, I could drink anything I want in Eden EXCEPT for the Forbidden fruit, but I just couldn’t resist the temptation.

 

After Eden I went to check out the new (and in my opinion, improved) World Class bar space and had a cocktail with my next door neighbors till it was time for my dinner reservation at Raw on 5.

 

Full dinner report to come!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[dlh015]

Absolutely fantastic! Your dress is divine!  

[GenerationX]

Good morning from Costa Maya!  I managed to pull it together following last night’s festivities and meet Red for breakfast in Blu. Once again when we arrived at 8:15, it was relatively quite and service was extremely prompt.  By the time we left a little before 9, the place was packed with a line out the door to be seated.

 

The meat and cheese plate and asparagus frittata were both as good as they look.

 

After breakfast I was supposed to head to the spa for a facial, exfoliating body scrub and hot stone massage.  However the spa called and said the crew would be conducting safety drills this morning so there would be lots of loud alarms/announcements going on and recommended rescheduling so that my service would be peaceful.  The hostess at the spa was extremely apologetic about the situation and was able to help me move the appointments around my schedule for the next couple of days.

 

Instead, I went to have some English Breakfast and put out a few work fires at Al Bacio where once again service was quick and with smiles and there was no issue finding a seat.  For those like me who often have to do some work while on vacation (hey, the cruises don’t pay for themselves), a cool new addition at Al Bacio that I don’t recall Edge having is this long work station table with compartments in the center with different types of outlets (US and European) to plug in your laptop.

 

Once the drill completes at 10:30, I’ll head to the spa for my facial (massage and scrub are moved till tomorrow) then I managed to snag a reservation in the Celebrity app for lunch at the bistro today.

 

This afternoon I think I’ll do some reading on the quieter port day pool deck then tonight is Red and I’s dinner in Le Voyage followed by the full moon deck party!

 

Also a quick but very sincere apology to my Gatsby party friends following that I didn’t make it to silent disco after the late show last night.  When I checked my phone after the show, I got some sad news from home that a friend of mine lost her long battle with  cancer yesterday morning.  She stopped treatment last month and we all knew the day was coming soon, but after hearing the news, I felt like I just needed to spend a little time solo getting a little sea air on the magic carpet and then head to bed.

 

This is the second woman friend my age that I’ve lost to cancer and it keeps me ever mindful to never take my health for granted.   Red and I were saying at breakfast this morning that we will continue to unapologetically cruise as much as our bodies, wallets and work schedules will allow, because life is short and “someday” is never guaranteed.

 

The last text my friend sent me was on Sunday night and said “Have a fun cruise! Post lots of food, oceans and sunshine for me and eat and drink all the good things!”  In her memory I plan to continue to do just that, nonstop, for the next 2.5 days.

 

Ok, sorry for waxing philosophical there for a moment.

 

Back to lighter topics:  I know I still owe a report on last night’s dinner and show and on my stateroom (including how my relationship with this whole infinite veranda thing is going).  I promise I’ll catch up on those this afternoon while I’m sipping my poolside cocktails on this beautiful day to be alive.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[NBliving]

I just read your post about losing your friend to cancer.  I'm so sorry for your loss, but glad that she was able to wish you a Bon Voyage before your trip.

 

We love the World Class Bar and I really like the seats shown in your picture!  Can't wait to try it out on the Beyond!  

Everyone looks great in their Great Gatsby attire! 

Edited November 10, 2022 by NBliving
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[go.without.you]

Gorgeous dress! Everyone looked so pretty!

[dani negreanu]

14 hours ago, Gardener5b said:

Fabulous dress, and you look amazing.

 

14 hours ago, TPCRUISER2 said:

Just stunning in that dress. Perfect all the way around!

 

13 hours ago, dlh015 said:

Absolutely fantastic! Your dress is divine!  

 

21 minutes ago, go.without.you said:

Gorgeous dress! Everyone looked so pretty!

 

+ 5 👍

 

2 hours ago, NBliving said:

I just read your post about losing your friend to cancer.  I'm so sorry for your loss, but glad that she was able to wish you a Bon Voyage before your trip.

 

+ 1 😢

 

[Redking]

Such sad news @GenerationX. My father died when we were on our last cruise. I also found comfort in sitting quietly at night taking in the vastness of the ocean. Be well. Eat the desert, drink the wine, buy the shoes and take the cruise. Life is indeed short. Xx.

[Smmessineo]

@GenerationX sorry for your loss and thank you for sharing your thoughts with us here. It's a good reminder for all of us to enjoy all in life that should be enjoyed, without fretting over the little stuff. 

 

 

[swigso]

Hi 

be positive as you always are and be thankful that you can do the things you do we alway# raise a glass to absent friends because one day😇  but until then I will continue to enjoy everything that  I can. As my wife’s mum said, use it or lose it and do it while you can. I know you will be sad but just be glad your friend was here. God bless.

Edited November 10, 2022 by swigso

[GenerationX]

Last night’s Raw on 5 dinner:

 

For comparison, I was overall underwhelmed by Raw on 5 on Edge.  While the sushi roll I tried was decent, I found the Japanese hot food options extremely limited and nowhere near as well executed as the dishes at Sushi on 5 on S and M class.

 

This time, the hot food was much improved from Edge!  There are a number of items on Beyond’s menu that Edge didn’t offer so that’s what I decided to try. 

 

I started with the miso soup, which was unlike any miso soup I’ve ever had. No seaweed to be found and I’m not accustomed to it having carrot and zucchini in it.  It did turn out to be a very good soup though with a rich broth with a nice hint of ginger.

 

Then I had the Beyond roll and the shrimp and scallop kakiage.

 

The Beyond roll was meh.  The spicy tuna on top somehow managed to be mushy and chewy at the same time.

 

The kakiage though was really good! I almost wished I hadn’t wasted the stomach space on the beyond roll so I could’ve finished the whole thing.

 

After dinner, I headed back to Eden for the ship production cast’s Eden show.  As the app requested, I showed up and was seated at least 15 minutes before show time and got a nice seat at the bar.  Unfortunately, I ended up not getting to see a good half of the show, because about 5 minutes AFTER the show started, a group of tall 20 somethings came in and decided that they deserved this front row view just standing for the whole show and directly blocking all of us sitting at the bar.  When I tapped his shoulder and politely pointed out for one of the guys that they were blocking the view for all of the people behind them, who were actually on time, his response was “well there’s nowhere left to sit, soooo it is what it is” and then turned his back on us.  Their parents must be so proud. 🙄

 

Anyway, what I could see of the show was great and the music was nice.  After the show I took my little sea air break on the magic carpet which was on Deck 5.  I remember the magic carpet on Edge being so windy it was impossible to enjoy while the ship was sailing. I don’t know if it’s because it was on a lower deck or design improvements have been made, but last night the wind wasn’t an issue at all.

 

I’m currently relaxing on the pool deck with a French Caribbean after a delicious lunch in the Bistro.  If you like mussels, be sure to try these! The broth they come in is outstanding and those truffle frites on the side are le chef’s kiss.  After lunch I decided to spend a little more time in the AC and went for a quick cocktail in a quiet Eden and did a little reading in the Georgia O’Keefe chairs.

 

I’ve only seen 2 or 3 servers working for the entire pool deck, but I have a chair close enough to the pool bar that I’m fine to burn a couple of calories getting my own drink.  The wait when I go up hasn’t been more than a couple of minutes.  Soon I’ll head up to sunset bar for sail away then head back to the room for a little late afternoon nap before dinner at Le Voyage.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[KKB]

8 hours ago, GenerationX said:

When I checked my phone after the show, I got some sad news from home that a friend of mine lost her long battle with  cancer yesterday morning.  She stopped treatment last month and we all knew the day was coming soon, but after hearing the news, I felt like I just needed to spend a little time solo getting a little sea air on the magic carpet and then head to bed.

 

This is the second woman friend my age that I’ve lost to cancer and it keeps me ever mindful to never take my health for granted.   Red and I were saying at breakfast this morning that we will continue to unapologetically cruise as much as our bodies, wallets and work schedules will allow, because life is short and “someday” is never guaranteed.

Oh, my, I know how very very hard this is.

DM & I had planned to travel extensively when I retired. 

That devil cancer had other plans.

 

YES--cruise as often as you can!

 

Thinking of you at this time. 

Enjoy this cruise to the fullest--she wouldn't have wanted it any other way.

 

 

 

 

[GenerationX]

1 hour ago, KKB said:

Oh, my, I know how very very hard this is.

DM & I had planned to travel extensively when I retired. 

That devil cancer had other plans.

 

YES--cruise as often as you can!

 

Thinking of you at this time. 

Enjoy this cruise to the fullest--she wouldn't have wanted it any other way.

 

 

 

 

Thank you! I’m so sorry, cancer is such a cruel monster.  You’re so right about my friend though.  Even before she got sick she was all about living life to the fullest.  
 

I considered postponing this cruise when she decided to stop treatment but she flat out threatened me that “if you stop living to stick around and watch me die, I swear I will come back and haunt you for the rest of your days”.

[helen haywood]

Charla, I’m so sorry about your friend’s passing.  When my mother died of cancer at 60 I went to the beach later that year…and I don’t know why, but there was something comforting about watching the waves for hours continuing to wash ashore…life still went on…and so I needed to do so as well.

 

Enjoying your review!  We’re sailing Beyond soon ourselves. 

[julia]

Dearest...  our condolences to you on the loss of your friend. I hope your spirit was lifted by tonight's beautiful sunset (and that moon!).

So lovely chatting with you, and I hope our paths cross again.

Juli & Chuck

[momofmab]

I am enjoying your review - thank you for taking the time to do it!

 

I was wondering if you knew how late Blu serves breakfast.  

 

Also, I'm not seeing the Bistro as an option to reserve for my January cruise (your food pics from there look delicious!).  Do you know if it's only reservable once onboard or is it only in the app?  Do they serve lunch & dinner there?

 

Thank you!

[GenerationX]

Good Morning from Cozumel!

 

Today in the US we observe our Veterans Day. I want to say a big thank you to all those following who have served our country and/or are members of military families and to those no longer with us who made the ultimate sacrifice.

 

Today I’m especially thinking of my favorite veteran back home:  My stepfather, a proud retired US Marine who has spent most of his life in service to our country in one way or another.  After the  Marine Corps, he spent almost 2 decades working for Boeing on the F-15 fighter project.

 

For those onboard, FYI there will be a Veterans Day observance ceremony at 11am in the Grand Plaza.  
 

I’ve dressed accordingly. 🇺🇸

 

Coming later today: a report on last night’s food and fun!
 

 

 

 

[MamaChach]

@GenerationX I would love to know your thoughts on your AQ stateroom and the IV! 

Also, have you used the thermal spa?  Is it pretty much the same as on the S class ships?

Enjoy and have fun!  

[GenerationX]

1 hour ago, momofmab said:

I am enjoying your review - thank you for taking the time to do it!

 

I was wondering if you knew how late Blu serves breakfast.  

 

Also, I'm not seeing the Bistro as an option to reserve for my January cruise (your food pics from there look delicious!).  Do you know if it's only reservable once onboard or is it only in the app?  Do they serve lunch & dinner there?

 

Thank you!

Thank you!  Blu has been closing at 9am on port days and 9:30am on sea days.  
 

I don’t think you can reserve lunch at the Bistro before boarding.  Once onboard you can either reserve in person at the restaurant while it’s open or book it in the app when you’re connected to ship wifi.

 

The bistro menu is only available for lunch. At dinner the restaurant space becomes the Le Petit Chef dinner show which has its own separate, much different menu.  The Le Petit Chef dinner you actually can book in advance in the cruise planner.

[Ferry_Watcher]

@julia, it was wonderful to see you in the photo along side @GenerationX.  Enjoying reading about her cruise, and hoping that you are having as good of time.  The Edge Class ships and all that they have to offer look so amazing, and I look forward to eventually sailing on that class of ship.  

 

Thanks @GenerationXfor taking the time to bring us along on your cruise adventure.

@julia, happy to see that you are busy enjoying life to the fullest.  Hope our paths cross again!

[boxkite]

Charla, my condolences on the lost of your dear friend. Enjoy the rest of your cruise in her honor!

 

Your cabana stay has inspired us to look into booking a cabana for our upcoming cruise.

 

Thanks for sharing your cruise and cruise pictures with us once again!

[Robkat]

5 hours ago, GenerationX said:

Good Morning from Cozumel!

 

Today in the US we observe our Veterans Day. I want to say a big thank you to all those following who have served our country and/or are members of military families and to those no longer with us who made the ultimate sacrifice.

 

Today I’m especially thinking of my favorite veteran back home:  My stepfather, a proud retired US Marine who has spent most of his life in service to our country in one way or another.  After the  Marine Corps, he spent almost 2 decades working for Boeing on the F-15 fighter project.

 

For those onboard, FYI there will be a Veterans Day observance ceremony at 11am in the Grand Plaza.  
 

I’ve dressed accordingly. 🇺🇸

 

Coming later today: a report on last night’s food and fun!
 

 

 

 

 

This!!!

All day long ... and more!

Love the outfit, love the sentiment, and love the respect and patriotism!

Couldn't have been more impressed with this particular post!  It gives me the warm fuzzies ❤️🇺🇸🇺🇸

Edited November 11, 2022 by Robkat

[Arzeena]

On 11/7/2022 at 1:25 PM, KKB said:

Oh, heck yeah!

@JamieLogical & @graphicguy last week on NCL Breakaway & you this week??!

SO AWESOME.

You 3 inspire me as a a non-single but sometimes solo cruiser.

Let the party begin!

Thanks for posting this. I will also go over and read thier reviews too. Love both of them!

But I am VERY surprised Jamie went back to NCL. She was kind of a NEVER NEVER NEVER going back to NCL after Celebrity cruise. Never say never 🤣

 

GenX I am loving your reviews and really looking forward to your thoughts on the Beyond.

[GenerationX]

An ultra relaxed GenX checking in here after sail away from Cozumel. Full post on my day today and Beyond’s spa experience to come. 

 

Just as I settled in on the pool deck this afternoon to grab a quick swim and an hour of poolside sun reading before my spa appointment, the only rain cloud in the ENTIRE Yucatán peninsula decided to settle directly over the Beyond and stall there for 45 minutes.  

 

I grabbed a blue note punch at the almost deserted wet pool bar and took it down to sit under the cover of my “veranda” which I was pleasantly surprised to find was not locked shut even with the rainy weather.

 

Speaking of which, I think I’ve spent enough time with it now to talk about my feelings on this IV contraption.

 

As I said at the start, I came into this whole thing not particularly excited to try the IV.  I am surprised to be saying that I’m not as miserable with the thing as I thought I’d be.  

 

At the same time, I don’t think I’ll ever be rushing to Celebrity eagerly waving my credit card in the air to book one either.

 

Not a ringing endorsement, I know, but here is where I’m at with it…

 

On the down side:

 

-As others have noted, the captain can lock the veranda shut at any time, but usually for cleaning or weather.  This was the case on embarkation day, leading the IV to make a not great first impression on me.

 

-While I haven’t experienced the creaking and squeaks that some reported in previous reviews, this thing is still not quiet when it opens and closes.  Neither are the folding doors (which are not air tight BTW, see below for more details on the issues this presents) you can use to seal the veranda off from the room.  This is not a huge deal for me sailing solo, but my better half tends to sleep in while I’m a morning person and I can see it being a way bigger disruption going through the noise of the whole process of opening the IV and blinds and closing off the folding doors behind me than it is when I just take 2 seconds to quickly slip out the sliding glass veranda door to read outside till he wakes.

 

-If you’re in a port with flying insects, if you open the thing while in port, you’re probably gonna get bugs in your cabin.  Yesterday in Costa Maya the outdoor decks were swarmed with flies.  Many people I talked to said after having their IV open for a couple of hours yesterday they had quite a few flies in their room, even when they were out there with the folding doors closed (which makes sense as the gaps in the doors are plenty big enough for insects to get through).  The IV is essentially the equivalent of having the sliding door on a regular veranda wide open the whole time. 

 

-As others have mentioned, if you’re sailing anywhere hot/humid, spending time on the IV makes climate control a real struggle.  With the A/C locked because the veranda is open (and again, the folding doors not being airtight), the room gets hot and humid quickly on a sunny Caribbean day and at least in my room, it can take hours for the room to cool back down once you shut the veranda again.

 

As a result of all of the above, I’ve only opened my IV for maybe an hour at a time and a handful of times during the cruise.

 

On the flip side:

 

-The big picture window really does make you feel like you’re right on the ocean and it’s a beautiful view to wake up to.

 

-This may be a “con” for some, but I like that at night when the ship is going full steam, I can sit out there and hear the ocean without the wind blowing my hair all over the place.

 

-I like that I can’t see or hear the people around me’s voices or scraping deck chairs on their IV’s.  I know some have been open because again, it’s not a quiet opening process and I can hear other people’s windows going down.  

 

Ultimately, my catch 22 is, since all the non-suite true veranda staterooms are basic verandas, if I want to sail E class when I can’t afford a suite, the only way I can get aqua class/Blu is to have an IV.

 

I think my decision for now is:  

 

The IV isn’t so awful that I’d say I’d NEVER sail in one again.  BUT I would probably only do it for a cruise 7 days or less, in aqua, when I’m sailing solo, and only for a really good price like I got for this cruise.

 

If I’m investing more money than that on a cruise and there’s an S or M class option that also works for my date/itinerary plans, I’m probably not going to spend the money to be in an IV, when the same amount or less can get me a proper veranda aqua class room or better on S or M class.

 

Sharing some pics of my room below.

 

I’m going to take a little power nap now, then get ready for our late second Eden dinner!

 

Tomorrow is a sea day so I’ll have lots of time for catch up writing!