Pirate’s LIVE Mardi Gras Review…11/12/22-11/19/22

[pirate4me2]

Pig & Anchor Smokehouse is popular tonight! Just got sat. They have a few different sauces to try, the girl that poured our water said the chipotle one is best. I plan to try it and the burning tomato 

[pirate4me2]

Oh man y’all….the smokehouse is awesome!! I got the Pig & Anchor Melt, with Funderstruck tots, Mac & cheese, and onions. Not very healthy, I know, but I consoled myself with it because of what happened a week ago. I needed comfort food y’all. 
So….the tots were freaking AH-MAZE-ING. Hot, with fresh jalapeños, guac, sour cream, bbq, and sauce. Delish! The Mac and cheese was piping hot and cheesy, like it needs to be. Onion things were ok, they just weren’t on par with the other delicious stuff. And that sammich….yes! Absolutely yummy. I was so full by the end I could only eat I think it was 3 bites of my Mississippi mud pie. 
I would honestly rank tonight’s dinner as one of the best so far onboard! Steakhouse would be #1, last night in Chibang #2, the one night in the MDR #3, this #4. 

[vster5]

On 11/12/2022 at 10:05 AM, pirate4me2 said:

Just made it thru security, waiting to board!

Parking at the port is $17/day, $145.52 total for a 7 day cruise. The garage opens at 8:30 am.

Parked on level 3 and walked right to the terminal area…easy peasy! 

Did you drop your bags before parking on level 3?

[pirate4me2]

22 minutes ago, vster5 said:

Did you drop your bags before parking on level 3?

No, we packed into carry on luggage and took it on ourselves. 

[pirate4me2]

We wanted to go to the Vodoo show at 7:30, but when we showed up at 7:15 it was PACKED. So guess where we ended up? 😂

Jakub made me a berry mojito that was 10 times better then the one the lady made me last night. It was GOOD! He also made me a drink with absinthe (not the quick fix) and a Chocomint, which was better then Cornelius’s. I truly think he and Zoltan are the stars of Alchemy, with Evan following close on their heels. 
Cornelius did suprise me tonight tho, by showing a sense of humor! When we arrived I had a hard seltzer with me, and he walked up, grabbed it and goes, “This belongs in the trash!” and proceeded to throw it away…so I thought. Then a few more times he has said/done things that  suprised me. He’s coming outta his shell! 

[pirate4me2]

There’s a Mardi Gras parade on the promenade deck now…I love it! How cool! 

[pirate4me2]

My beloved towel animal farm this week 

[pirate4me2]

Headed to find go go juice and then sea day brunch. 
Not too much on the menu today…we are doing the Mixologist class at noon, then DH has to do school work while I enjoy my balcony, and of course we gotta pack. 😭 Vacation is coming to an end, back to reality tomorrow. 

Edited November 18, 2022 by pirate4me2

[Jamman54]

1 minute ago, pirate4me2 said:

Headed to find go go juice and then sea day brunch. 
Not too much on the menu today…we are doing the Mixologist class at noon, then DH has to do school work while I enjoy my balcony, and of course we gotta pack. 😭 Vacation is coming to an end, back to reality tomorrow. 

Patti and I can't do cruises of "just" 7 days anymore. 

[pirate4me2]

15 minutes ago, Jamman54 said:

Patti and I can't do cruises of "just" 7 days anymore. 

It’s hard! They go by quick sometimes. I will be glad to get home to my KatieKat and camper tho, just not the cold weather. 

[pirate4me2]

17 minutes ago, Jamman54 said:

Patti and I can't do cruises of "just" 7 days anymore. 

Ha and I just saw in your signature, we will just miss each other on the Vista in 2024…I’ll be getting off when you get on! 

[Jamman54]

37 minutes ago, pirate4me2 said:

Ha and I just saw in your signature, we will just miss each other on the Vista in 2024…I’ll be getting off when you get on! 

We always seem to just miss each other! One of these days...... 

[pirate4me2]

On 11/15/2022 at 11:32 PM, allinwonderland said:

Can you ask what's in that coconut martini?? I want to ask an Alchemist to recreate it for me after you've been raving about it like this.

I asked Zoltan last night what the recipe is…he said it’s a secret, if you want one you have to find him on a ship. 😭 I will try again today to find out, and keep an eye on what he uses as he mixes one up. 

[pirate4me2]

1 minute ago, Jamman54 said:

We always seem to just miss each other! One of these days...... 

yes, one of them! And I’ll try to behave and leave some fun onboard for y’all, although it is a girls’ cruise, so there ain’t no telling what could happen! 

[allinwonderland]

2 hours ago, pirate4me2 said:

I asked Zoltan last night what the recipe is…he said it’s a secret, if you want one you have to find him on a ship. 😭 I will try again today to find out, and keep an eye on what he uses as he mixes one up. 

Oh no! Thanks for asking. I'm not taking any Mardi Gras cruises anytime soon so I doubt I'll end up on a ship with him. Maybe I can just ask any Alchemist for a "creamy coconut martini" and they'll be able to make me something decent, if not the absolute treasure of a magic potion he created for you 😂

 

Also, have fun at the mixology class! I did that last time and it was such a riot!

Edited November 18, 2022 by allinwonderland

[pirate4me2]

Y’all…if you get a chance, do the mixologist class! This has been a 2 hour blast, and with the Cheers package it was only $15. We got to sample 3 drinks Jakub made, then make our own. A blast! I learned how garnishes matter, the CORRECT way to drink absinthe, and that I love mixing cocktails. 😂
 

[pirate4me2]

35 minutes ago, allinwonderland said:

Oh no! Thanks for asking. I'm not taking any Mardi Gras cruises anytime soon so I doubt I'll end up on a ship with him. Maybe I can just ask any Alchemist for a "creamy coconut martini" and they'll be able to make me something decent, if not the absolute treasure of a magic potion he created for you 😂

 

Also, have fun at the mixology class! I did that last time and it was such a riot!

I will say, while not quite as good as Zoltan’s, Jakub made a pretty dang good chocolate coconut martini one night, so I think any alchemist can probably get a close replica made. 🙂

[ZoeyVictoria]

On 11/15/2022 at 6:37 PM, pirate4me2 said:

A previous poster, I think @ZoeyVictoria, asked about Bolt and if we could see/hear it running. I have paid more attention to see if we do, and the answer is yes. I thought it was the ship as we were sailing honestly, making noises, but nope…In port today it still happened, and I put 2 and 2 together. 

That is exactly what happened to us!  We thought the ship just had a lot of vibration, then one afternoon we realized it was vibrating while we were in port.  It was so bad where we were that it was comical, but didn’t  really bother us.  We did book a cove balcony far away from 14 aft on the Celebration, though. 

[bornin49]

On 11/9/2022 at 9:49 AM, pirate4me2 said:

Pre-Cruise Hotel Info:

 

On one of our land vacations to the Keys last year, we stopped in Cape Canaveral as a quick overnight to visit our favorite port to sail away from. We were itching for some yummy food from Fishlips, and we wanted to see our beloved ships in port...including the shiny new Mardi Gras! As is our tradition when in PC, we booked to stay at Raddisson Resort at the Port….we love that awesome pool, and every time we have stayed there it has been nice.

 

WOW……have things changed! The room we were put in was NOT up to standards. It looked like a cheap hotel you’d rent by the hour, if you know what I mean. I really didn’t want to lay down in that bed, for fear of bedbugs (which I checked for by the way!) and when I did it was squeaky, and the linens were scratchy. I refused to bring my suitcase in the room, for fear of creepy crawlies getting in it. The carpet was frayed and had stains in it, and the bathroom had stains in the toilet and tub.  I heard a few others complaining about the condition of the hotel as well, and even DH, who can sleep in a hammock between a tree for all he cares, said it was run-down and nothing like it used to be. The pool was still beautifully kept up, but they really need to invest some money into the rooms.

 

So, with that said, when I booked this cruise I did not even consider staying at Raddisson pre-cruise like in the past. I looked around online, and settled on trying out Home2 Suites by Hilton, which I THINK is kinda close to Raddisson. The address says it is at 9004 Astronaut Blvd, so it shouldn’t be hard to find. We shall see! I didn’t see a Park & Cruise package like Raddisson has (but then again, I was not sober when I booked….I discovered Absinthe and drank ½ a bottle of it as I was researching….word to the wise, absinthe is NOT your friend if you drink that much of it) so I very well may have overlooked it on their site. Oh well, I am not heartbroken about parking at the port….I actually like parking at Port Canaveral, it is easy peasy lemon squeezy, and when I hop off the ship I can just get in the truck and start zooming home!

We stayed there last FEB and found it to be really sketchy, This Feb we are staying at the Hampton Inn,We had always stayed at the Raddison its a shame they let it get like that.

[ctlyf]

4 hours ago, pirate4me2 said:

Y’all…if you get a chance, do the mixologist class! This has been a 2 hour blast, and with the Cheers package it was only $15. We got to sample 3 drinks Jakub made, then make our own. A blast! I learned how garnishes matter, the CORRECT way to drink absinthe, and that I love mixing cocktails. 😂
 

I loved reading all your posts... we sail on Mardi Gras in Jan and now I have to find Zoltan to get an Almond Joy... I mean a Creamy Coconut Martini with chocolate 😂

 

How do you sign up for the mixology class? I wouldn't have thought of it but it sounds like fun. 

[purpleally]

What was the purple drink?  It looked good but did it taste good?
 

[pirate4me2]

1 hour ago, bornin49 said:

We stayed there last FEB and found it to be really sketchy, This Feb we are staying at the Hampton Inn,We had always stayed at the Raddison its a shame they let it get like that.

It really is, it used to be a great place. 

1 hour ago, ctlyf said:

I loved reading all your posts... we sail on Mardi Gras in Jan and now I have to find Zoltan to get an Almond Joy... I mean a Creamy Coconut Martini with chocolate 😂

 

How do you sign up for the mixology class? I wouldn't have thought of it but it sounds like fun. 

Thanks for following along! 
We were asked by Jakub if we wanted to attend, it was never advertised/put in FunTimes, so if you’re interested, ask an alchemist about it. It was a great way to pass a few hours on a sea day!

[pirate4me2]

46 minutes ago, purpleally said:

What was the purple drink?  It looked good but did it taste good?
 

It was one of Jakub’s creations, and it was SO GOOD! He used it as an example of how drinks have “layers”….you have to have your base (in this case it was vodka), then the things that balance out…if you have something sweet (in this case butterfly something) you have to have something sour (I can’t remember what it was in this case). Then you have to have garnishes….in this case, the mint leaf added an extra layer to the flavor. 

[pirate4me2]

This afternoon consisted of packing, then sitting on the balcony reading and reflecting on life and the cruise. I feel like I didn’t use my balcony enough this time around to really justify it. I go thru phases, where I use the heck outta my balcony, then don’t. I think this cruise, with MG being so big, and with hanging at Alchemy, it was underutilized. 
We went to the MDR for our last dinner onboard. The Caesar salad was delish, the Indian Vegetarian spicy and good, just not as good as some of the past vegetarian dishes, and WCMC was over cooked (no melting) but good. 
Im now sitting, you guessed it, at Alchemy to enjoy a few last drinks and reflect on this week and type out my last thoughts for y’all. Stay tuned for my overall thoughts of the ship. 

[pirate4me2]

Ok, a few random thoughts I’ve come up with so far:
 

*Overall, I like MG, but after we sail Celebration in February I think we will be sticking to Vista class and smaller. MG is just SO big.

 

*I really see what people mean when they say you can’t see/do it all in 7 days!

 

*The size has allowed them to put so

many dining/bars/music/entertainment spaces onboard, that after day 1 the crowds were not really an issue except for bingo/shows/peak time dining. Getting off in port was never an issue, we just walked off. Getting back on was a small line, but nothing like I feared. 
 

*I HATE having to use my phone for menus at the dining venues. HATE IT. Please bring back the old menus. 
 

*On the flip side of this…I love the app for reserving our dining! No more standing around twiddling our thumbs outside a venue, check in and they’ll tell ya when your table is ready! 
 

*I know it’s trivial, but I don’t like the doorbell sound for announcements lol. I miss the old sound they had before the CD made announcements. Trivial, I know. 
 

*The shower is SO MUCH better than the old ships! No clingy curtain, and just feel bigger altogether. Love it!