Maybe sometimes live from the Summit - Miami to New York

[DaKahuna]

On 5/3/2023 at 9:30 PM, abbydancer said:

 

Thanks, but I used to teach Unix, so this class is for fun (and review in case I want to ever take Red Hat up on their offer to teach for them if I get the certifications on my own.)

 

 

You could probably teach me a thing or two then 🙂 

 

On 5/3/2023 at 9:30 PM, abbydancer said:

 

We are too.  Glen can teather either his phone or Ipad, so will use Ipad if he's leaving it in the room.

 

I don't know why the concierge on the Infinity said what she did.

 

I always carry a travel router.  We use my wife’s account on the travel router.  Connect it up to the ship’s WiFi and then we connect my iPad, android table, her iPad and her iPhone all to the travel router when in the room. 

 

I connect my iPhone to the ship’s WiFi using my account and that’s what we use to stay in touch when moving around the ship. 

 

 

[ecslady]

I have a question about Pickleball on the sports court.  Are paddles provided by Celebrity?  If you can check up there, I'd appreciate it. I'm not sure I will play when I'm onboard in later this month so I'd rather not have to bring my paddle.  Thanks in advance.

[Sailing12Away]

First Celebrity Retreat trip coming up in November, so I'm trying to read up a bit and get familiar with how things work with them compared the what I'm used to with NCL. I see a few times you mentioned that you got food from multiple places at the same time during dinner. Is that the norm in the Retreat where you can get nearly anything you want from anywhere on the ship?

[SPacificbound]

7 hours ago, DaKahuna said:

 

I always carry a travel router.  We use my wife’s account on the travel router.  Connect it up to the ship’s WiFi and then we connect my iPad, android table, her iPad and her iPhone all to the travel router when in the room. 

 

I connect my iPhone to the ship’s WiFi using my account and that’s what we use to stay in touch when moving around the ship. 

 

I have not heard of this before. Is there a brand you would recommend? TIA

 

 

 

[jelayne]

15 hours ago, Sailing12Away said:

First Celebrity Retreat trip coming up in November, so I'm trying to read up a bit and get familiar with how things work with them compared the what I'm used to with NCL. I see a few times you mentioned that you got food from multiple places at the same time during dinner. Is that the norm in the Retreat where you can get nearly anything you want from anywhere on the ship?

It varies by class of ship.  On the M class (Millennium, Infinity, Constellation & Summit) the kitchens for the MDR, Blu, and Luminae are in the same area so ordering from any of those menus has been possible. 
On the S class ships, our experience is that when in Luminae we could order from the MDR menu but not the Blu menu as the kitchens are in separate areas.
On E class Luminae is far forward and on Deck 12 or 16 where the MDRs and Blu are aft on decks 3 & 4 so the distance makes it impractical for Luminae guests to order from those menus. 

[Sailing12Away]

1 hour ago, jelayne said:

It varies by class of ship.  On the M class (Millennium, Infinity, Constellation & Summit) the kitchens for the MDR, Blu, and Luminae are in the same area so ordering from any of those menus has been possible. 
On the S class ships, our experience is that when in Luminae we could order from the MDR menu but not the Blu menu as the kitchens are in separate areas.
On E class Luminae is far forward and on Deck 12 or 16 where the MDRs and Blu are aft on decks 3 & 4 so the distance makes it impractical for Luminae guests to order from those menus. 

Thank you, good to know. I have a more lowbrow palette, so knowing there will be options beyond the standard Luminae menu is a plus. With NCL Haven they were begrudgingly willing to get food from the MDR and didn't make it an easy process so I often reverted to the kids menu instead for a more simple meal at times.

[George C]

On 5/3/2023 at 1:18 AM, DaKahuna said:

 

It is definitely not.  One device per person in a Sky Suite on Millennium.  I believe Royal Suites and above may receive two devices per person but cannot confirm as we’ve never been in a Royal Suite. 

 

I am using my Travel Router in the room to connect multiple devices but have to drop that when we take more than one device outside the room. 

 

Pretty sure we had 3 devices in royal suite in March on summit , wife had phone and computer, I had iPad. Two for sure.

[abbydancer2003]

On 5/5/2023 at 2:25 AM, bespin said:

If you don’t mind, could you please share a photo of the locket and the charms? Do they have a list of the available charms, and what they cost? Thanks in advance!

Hi.  Sorry for the late reply.  Real life has interferred in a big way, but I've got an hour til I leave for the airport, so here goes.

 

 

The picture shows the locket, plus one of the charms.  The pen is there to give you a sense of size.

 

It's a giveaway to get you into the Effy store.  Usually, the locket is in your room and there's a flyer (for lack of a better term), with a list of the charms and when you can get them.  Each is available for an hour a day, usually 10-11 am or 7- 8 pm,  depending on schedule.  I often ignore and leave the locket, but sometimes I do it for fun.

[abbydancer2003]

Summit Day 4, Aruba.

 

Today is the first of our boom boom boom port days.  Three in a row, then on to New Jersey.

 

Our arrival was listed as 9 am, and we had a wine and tapas tasting with Arie & Cheryl at 10:30.  The instructions said it was a 5 minute cab ride.  So I checked and it was a 15 minute walk.

 

We decided to go to breakfast and then meet them.  We called Pratip for coffee and we also gave him my dress for dry cleaning before the second evening chic night.  

 

We ate breakfast and met Arie & Cheryl at Al Baccio at 9:45.  We left the ship and walked about a kilometer to a strip mall along the main boulevard or Aruba.  We found the place, the Wine Room and it said it opened at 6pm, but of course the door was unlocked for us.

 

 

We passed this along the way.

 

Inside, we found a table with snacks set for 4.

 

 

You can see the snack spread (or tapas) and two glasses per person.

 

It was hosted by Monrick, the proprietor.  It’s not quite a wine store, but they do sell their wines.  They cater to their members, but walk ins are welcome, and they have dinners, etc.

 

We tried 5 wines, 2 white, 2 red, and one from Chile that’s bottled just for them.  We did learn some new things about drinking  wine.  Apparently, I’ve never swirl mine enough.  Go figure.  The fifth wine was a chilean wine that’s bottled for him.

 

The whole thing took about an hour and a half.  I think it was billed as 3 hours, but our suspicion was that it would have taken a lot longer if there had been more than four of us. 

 

After we got back to the ship we invited Arie and Cheryl to see our room, the good and the bad. We chatted for a bit and eventually went to the buffet for lunch.  I wasn’t very hungry so I had a salad, some papadam and a piece of carved roast beef.

 

Following lunch, and a brief rest, I went back out to the shops in the terminal and bought a small change purse to use with my travel bag.  We’ll see how long it lasts.

 

Once I got back, we met Arie & Cheryl for a quick game of Splendor.  

 

Next was a visit to the lounge to work on my assignment due tomorrow.  It was tea time, so I had a scone, but it was cold and not great.  However, the tea was nice.

 

When I was done there and back in our room, I noticed that the laundry we sent out on Day 2 was not back yet.  I know they apparently aren’t doing next day any more, but I thought it was two days, so I called Pratip.  He delivered the laundry from day 2 and my dress that I sent for dry cleaning this morning. (Much appreciated)

 

We went to the balcony and saw it was cooling off, so we decided to take a walk outside.  

 

We walked to the Renaissance mall, and saw some fun stuff along the way.

 

First was one of the blue horse statues.  Each tells the story of a specific horse.

 

 

This cow on a bench was advertising a steakhouse.

 

 

We also passed the Aruba parliament building

 

 

It was getting dark as we walked back, so saw a view of the ship that we don’t often see.

 

 

It was around 7 when returned, so did more on my assignment.  

 

At about 8:40, we headed to Luminae, and it was packed.  It’s also very loud because of a group of 8 is there and they all talk loudly and over each other.  Usually we sit far away and it’s bearable, but tonight the only place was right near them.  

 

At that point, we gave up and decided to try Blu.  I think the Manager, Raphael felt bad, so he walked us up to make sure the Blu staff did a good job.  He also told us we could order from the Luminae menu, 

 

We did have a nice dinner.  The restaurant was pretty empty (Manager later said that it was unusual for that time -I guess the people in Aqua were eating in town, the people in suites were not.  I started with an iceberg lettuce salad (says warm bacon dressing, but apparently no one in the Celebrity kitchens know what warm bacon dressing means - I think they think that it means it was cooked prior to being put in the dressing - since it was the same as on the Infinity), 

 

 

Glen had burrata salad, we think.

 

 

For my main, I had the turkey from the main

 

While we were eating our dinner, our server Monick came up to see how we were doing.  We appreciated that.

 

For dessert they offered us the luminae menu. I ended up ordering the Hibiscus parfait from Luminae.

 

 

Would we do it (move up to Blue) again?  Probably not unless it got as loud as it did.  The service was good, but the bread service and overall experience is better in Luminae.

 

After dinner, we went back to the room, and watched part of the Two Towers again, since we’d started it at Arie’s house.

 

Tomorrow we do the snorkeling excusing in Bonaire, and it’s a fairly early day.

[bespin]

34 minutes ago, abbydancer said:

Hi.  Sorry for the late reply.  Real life has interferred in a big way, but I've got an hour til I leave for the airport, so here goes.

 

 

The picture shows the locket, plus one of the charms.  The pen is there to give you a sense of size.

 

It's a giveaway to get you into the Effy store.  Usually, the locket is in your room and there's a flyer (for lack of a better term), with a list of the charms and when you can get them.  Each is available for an hour a day, usually 10-11 am or 7- 8 pm,  depending on schedule.  I often ignore and leave the locket, but sometimes I do it for fun.

I figured, based on similar offers on other ships. Thanks so much!

[dcbiker97]

We were on the cruise and had Pratik and Moniek.  We also brought along Catan and Splendor to play with our friends. Too bad we didn’t connect for a tournament. And yes, that group was quite loud (we were the ones always sitting at the far end of the banquette where they were). 

Edited May 8, 2023 by dcbiker97

[Barwick Cruiser]

Are you snorkeling with Woodwind in Bonaire? We had such a great time with them and I’m sure you will too if that’s who you’re with. Enjoying your review. Thank you! 

[abbydancer2003]

Hi

 

I'm back.  It's been, and continues to be crazy, but I'm halfway done, so I'll finish this week.  I should have a post a day, so should finish next weekend.

 

We last left us been Aruba and Bonaire.  

 

Summit Day 5 - Bonaire 

 

Today is our only early day (compared to several on our last cruise), so we ordered a continental breakfast, to be delivered between 8-8:30, with a note to deliver right at 8.  

 

Pratip did show up at 8am with our breakfast.  We probably couldn’t have ordered a full breakfast, because there isn’t enough table space for it.  Apparently, Kelly Hoppen doesn’t do rooms service in her life.

 

After we ate and dressed, we met Arie & Cheryl for our tour.  I did wear my bathing suit under my clothes, but I didn’t bring my hat or wear sunscreen.  Oops.

 

We left the ship and walked to the office/dock of Epic tours, our provider.  We’d booked their snorkel and bbq lunch tour.  The manager came out and told us that it would be a little while as they were preparing the boat.  There seemed to be a lot of people there.  Last time in Bonaire we had 4 of us on a small boat, I think this one, a catamaran sailboat (is that redundant?) and there were about 17 people total.  Most were from the ship but there a few people vacationing from Holland.

 

There was wine, water and soda available. Cheryl and I did sit up with the captain of the boat, and enjoyed some conversation while we said to our location.  I did use some of Cheryl’s sunscreen.

 

 

After about 25 minutes or so, we arrived at the snorkling spot.  I decided not to go into the water, as it seemed like too big a deal with so many people, and I was enjoying sitting by the wheel and chatting with Cheryl, who also didn’t go into the water. (Arie and Glen both snorkeled)

 

After about 45 minutes of snorkeling, every one came back and we were given our lunch.  Everyone had a beef skewer, and a chicken skewer.  Most also had a shrimp skewer and a foil wrapped fish filet.  Because I said I didn’t like fish, I got two beef and one chicken.  There was a sauce for the chicken and the beef had a chimichurri like sauce that was quite good.  We also got pasta salad and a piece of garlic bread.  Over all, a pretty good lunch.

 

After lunch, people could swim for a little bit longer, and then we headed back.  We said past the dock and the ship because the wind was fast, and we had a bit of extra time.  Here’s the ship as we went by.

 

 

We finished the tour around 2pm, and headed back to the ship.  The captain of the boat suggested an ice cream place along the way, but apparently they were closed.  He also told us that tomorrow is a big holiday in the Netherland Antilles, and a lot of stuff was likely to be closed tomorrow.  So we went straight back to the ship.

 

We headed to the room.  I’d decided that we should send my sister a gift from Amazon, and so we selected a “spa box” for her of things you’d do in a spa.  I picked one with a delivery tomorrow.

 

Next was a visit to the lounge and a latte.  I did take a walk around the dining room and discovered that, as I thought, Blu is a lot bigger than Luminae.

 

At about 5pm we got ready for dinner.  We’d been invited to watch the sail away from the retreat sundeck, so we eventually headed up there.  It was windy, so that made it a bit difficult to have a drink, etc, but Jay, the solo guitarist was playing, so we were able to dance a few songs.  He even did a request for us.

 

At about 7 pm we got a text from Arie & Cheryl about the show, so we met them there.  The show was a group called December 63, and they were a Frankie Valli. tribute band.  They were pretty good, but you do have to like Frankie Valli and/or the Four Tops.

 

Glen wanted a drink before dinner, so we headed to the lounge.  There’s a group of six and some of them were there, so we talked to them about visiting the synagogue in Curacao.  Because of the holiday, they weren’t sure it would be open, so they asked the concierges to check.  They found out it’s normally open Monday, but might be closed for the holiday (it was).

 

About 8:40 we headed off to dinner.  Glen suggested we check Blu, but I wanted to just use Blu as a back up, so we went to Luminae.  The front window table was available, so we stayed.  Gary and Susan were at the next table, so we chatted with them until they left.  I started with the smoked potato soup, but without the chorizo.  Glen had the same and laughed at because the bits of chorizo were small, and tasted like bacon.  I followed with a roasted chicken breast, which was good, but the gravy was a little spicy for me.  I had the Macaroon for dessert, always pretty and tasting pretty good.

 

 

After dinner, we took a small walk, as we’re up early tomorrow for our last port stop.  We have a free walking tour.

 

 

 

 

 

.

 

 

 

 

 

[abbydancer2003]

Summit Day 6 - Curacao Monday 2

 

This is the last of our three boom boom boom ports and Arie had found a free walking tour site.  We signed up too, as all we’ve ever done is walk around and visit the synagogue.

 

The tour is at 9:30 so we agreed to meet a 9.  We were up in time for breakfast, but we got some coffee and ice from Pratip before we left for breakfast.

 

Luminae was pretty empty, so I had one pancake and some bacon.  

 

From there, we headed to Al Baccio to meet Arie and Cheryl, and headed out.  The instructions were to meet at the entrance to Fort Rif, just by the port and part of the Renaissance Mall.  We got to the entrance, and nobody was there, so I went through the fort to the other side and found our guide.  He followed me back, calling for people who were on the tour.  Turns out there are two entrances to the fort, and the meeting place was the town side, not the port side.

 

After everyone gathered, our guide Rayry introduced himself, and asked each of us to do the same.  It turns out there were about 14 of us, and a mix of cruisers, and tourists from Holland.

 

Our first stop was a flagpole with a metal ring/sculpture around it.

 

A little blurry, but you get the idea.

 

The ring had plaques that you can see in the picture, describing Curacao in the local language.  Our guide had us guess what the words meant, based on what was below.

 

I don’t really remember what each was.

 

Next we stopped at a statue of one of the founders of Curacao, where Rayry gave us a brief history of the island.    Following that we headed up a hill into the neighborhoods in Otrobanda, which is the port side of the Queen Emma bridge that separates it from Punda, which is considered the Dutch part and where most tourists go.  

 

One of our first stops was a hotel with a slave museum, where I will probably visit with my sister the next time we are here.  

 

 

Following that, we wandered around neighborhoods looking at street art.  I loved the way addresses were on buildings.

 

 

We saw lots of street art, most  of it quite good.  Our guide talked about it.

 

There’s a wall of painted women. (Doing the panarama with the phone makes it curved.  it's not so much)

 

 

And a wall with a sculpture.

 

The items in the sculpture on the right are what you are supposed to free yourself from.

 

We also visited a street where there’s a festival every year and the buildings have images from the festival over the years.  The festival is called Kaya Kaya, and it celebrates the neighborhood.  It loosely translates to street street festival.

 

 

And one last street image before we head over the bridge to the more commercial or Dutch side.

 

 

Once we crossed the bridge, it became all about visiting art galleries and talking to the staff, sometimes the artists.  One of the more interesting was a store where the proprietor makes cat sculptures.  I did like them, but have no use for them.

 

This is outside the door.

 

After about the third or fourth visit, we decided we’d had enough, so we tipped the guide and left.  I don’t think I’d do this tour again, as once we crossed the bridge, it seemed more sales oriented.

 

We first headed to the synagogue, but it was indeed closed for the holiday.

 

Next stop was a grocery store.  On the way I saw these pretty planters.

 

 

We went there to find aged gouda, but this was more of a local market, so no cheese properly packed.  We then walked back to the ship.  On the way, we passed this interesting building.

 

 

We also passed the Parliament building.

 

 

On the approach to the ship, we’d noticed a shop that had a refrigerated case with cheese.  They did have some aged gouda, so Arie got some for his family and I bought a small sized one for us.

 

From there it was back to the ship.  I stopped in the room for a glass of water, and soon got a text from Arie that they were at the pool bar, with one of their favorite bartenders.  I went over while Glen got a pre lunch ice cream.  

 

I joined Arie and Cheryl and had a daiquiri and then we joined Glen for lunch. Today’s theme was Taste of Britain, so I had some beef pie and some chicken pie.  Arie had the fish and chips, but said the fish wasn’t great.  

 

After lunch I went back to the room for a bit and then got a latte and a dessert.  While there, I did work on the blog a bit.

 

We’d been invited to the helipad as part of the retreat, so we headed to the lounge to wait for time to go.  We chatted with some people also waiting, and eventually headed to the helipad.  

 

 

While there, we spent some time talking to Pratip.  It turns out that he was a butler on the Silhouette when we were there, he just wasn’t ours.  

 

Following that, we met Arie and Cheryl at the show.  Tonight it was a magician, who was pretty good.

 

We then all headed to Rondezvous where we danced to the dance band for a set, and then went to dinner.

 

We were seated far from the large group, so that was good.  I started with the corn fritters from Blu, which had a chutney and aoli.  The fritters were good, but the green stuff wasn’t a chutney and the orange wasn’t exactly an aoli.  

 

 

Glen had the grilled baby veggies to start and he said it was pretty good.

 

 

For my entree, I thought about the veal cheeks, since I liked the sides, but Blue had Prime rib, so I got that.  Glen had the cheeks and said they were stringy, so I guess I did well.

 

For dessert, I was trying to decide between the creme brûlée dome and the crepe suzettes from Blu, but Monick said the crepes weren’t great, so I opted for the dome.  She brought both and she was right.

 

 

You can see the crepes in the background.  The dome is pretty, but barely bruleed.  I was I had a brûlée torch with me.

 

And here are the crepes by themselves.

 

 

As dinner was starting, Beth called, so after dinner I went back to the room and tried to FaceTime.  Apparently the nurses were with my mom, but I did say hello before I asked her to call back when they were done.

 

She didn’t call back, but did text to say that mom had a fever and low blood pressure.  Her blood oxygen was not great but also not terrible.

 

After that, it was bedtime.  Tomorrow is the first of the four sea days to New Jersey.

 

[abbydancer2003]

Summit Day 7, Sea Day 3 - Tuesday 2

 

Well, today started out with a bang.  I woke up at 8:15 when my phone chirped that my mom had just passed away (5:15 in CA).  It wasn’t unexpected, and I confirmed she was sleeping, rather than choking, so that at least was good.  I texted back that I’d call later.

 

We headed to breakfast.  Instead of my usual bacon I decided to have chicken apple sausage.  Not what I expected.

This was more like a ground chicken patty.  Not ordering  this ever again. 

 

Yesterday, we’d been invited to a bridge tour today, and were asked to call the lounge.  I did, and spoke to Conner, who first put us on the 10am tour.  I asked if there’d be an afternoon tour and he said probably, so I asked for that as my first choice and morning as my second.  That was the last I’d heard of it.  However, another couple told us that they’d received an invitation, so at the end of breakfast I headed to the lounge to see what was going on.  

 

Apparently, my request had been lost in the shuffle, so no tour for us.  I was a bit emotional about it, so I explained what was going on, Both Connie and Conner offered to help in any way they could.  The also told me we’d be on a tour later.  So back to the restaurant I went.  I collected Glen and then headed towards Al Baccio, where I found Arie & Cheryl, so I talked with them until it was time for our Cruise Critic slot pull, the first one I’d ever organized.

 

I arrived at the casino at 10:30 and headed to the machine we’d selected previously.  I found Jenny there, and she said Charlie was looking for the casino guy (they’re my helpers).  One of the casino staff came over and gave us 25.00 slot play certifications, plus a whole bunch of dice keychains. 

 

We had a total of 23 people, and while we were feeding the machine, it jammed, but one of the casino guys fixed it, and we started with 6 pulls each at about 11:10.  Some people did really well, and we ended up with 20.00 each.  Not bad at all.  Everyone seemed to have a good time, and some asked if we could do a second one, but I said no, but they were welcome to organize on.

 

After the pull I did my free match play with Arie’s guidance  and won 15.00.  Most I’ve won anytime on this ship.  I also did a little slot play, but lost as usual.  (Hmmm, I just realized that lost is an anagram of slot - coincidence?  I think not).

 

I then walked Arie & Cheryl to the buffet, and we agreed to meet at 2:45 for Catan.

 

After that, I headed towards the lounge, and met Glen.  I had my favorite bartender get me a latte (she gets them from Al Baccio) and I called Beth.  We talked about our plan for the next couple of weeks (we’ll fly home from the cruise, then go back to New York and on to Massachusetts to deal with my mom’s ashes and then home a week later).  I also asked what tasks I could do, most of which was calling some people.

 

After that we went to lunch.  Today I had the Cobb salad, with lardons rather than regular bacon.  They taste similar.

 

 

For dessert I have the olive oil pudding.  Good, but I never do taste the olive oil.

 

Also kind of pretty.

 

After lunch we headed up to the buffet for our game time.  Today I brought Splendor Duels, which is a variant designed for 2 people, as it introduces some additional game play to keep it interesting.  We first played Catan, which Arie won (as usual).  Then I set up Duels and Glen and Arie played it.

 

Then it was back to the room and I tried calling a couple of my mom’s friends.  I did reach one person.  

 

I did get a text from Beth about getting a document to sign (e-sign) but no document, so at 7 went to the show, where Arie and Cheryl had saved seats for us.  The performer was a broadway singer, Emily Koch and she was pretty entertaining, and she had a great voice.

 

Following the show we went to the lounge with Arie and Cheryl.  My only complaint is that in the back area the seating areas have the couches too far apart for good conversation.  While we were there, I did get the document sign (from the funeral home I guess to authorize everything),   So I headed back to the room to sign it, and then we went to dinner.

 

I started with the grilled asparagus salad from Blu.  It was good, but no asparagus - just arugula.  They remade it and gave me extra asparagus.  That’s been an occasional problem throughout the cruise - missing ingredients.  

 

We both had the NY steak entree, and it was good.  For dessert I had strawberry shortcake from main, and Glen had the Caramel Granache.  

 

After dinner we took a short walk and then back to the room, where I talked to my sister one more time.

 

And then we called it a night.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[DaKahuna]

So sorry to read about your mother passing.  You and your family are in out thoughts and prayers.

 

 

[abbydancer2003]

Summit Day 8 Sea day 4 - Wednesday 2

 

Today is the second of our 4 remaining sea days.  We woke up too late for breakfast, so we ordered some coffee and juice while we dressed.  Then we headed to the lounge for a while, and worked on both this blog and my class.  While there I got a text from Arie about both lunch and Catan.  They were in the Sky lounge for the archery event, and Cheryl was doing really well.  Glen, in the meantime had an IT issue with his app and apparently an IT guy was going to meet him in the lounge to fix it.

 

So I headed up to the Sky Lounge, where Cheryl had just won second place, and won a phone popper (or whatever it’s called).  We decided to head to the pool bar, where I had a Daiquiri light (a little less alcohol).  Glen showed up a little while later, apparently he’d fixed the issue himself.

 

We then headed to lunch in the main dining room with them.  (We planned on that).  We were seated at a 4 top towards the back of the dining room.  I started with the chilled blueberry soup.  It was pretty good and had a consistency sort of like borsch.

 

 

I had the fried chicken for my main, and then finished with key lime pie.  Most of us had that, but I was the only one that liked it.

 

 

After lunch, we went back to the buffet and played our afternoon game of Catan.  

 

Following that, I went to the room for a while and worked on my class.  Mid afternoon I decided to head to the retreat lounge and see if they had any good eclairs.  (They did).  After that, walking through the I found Arie and Cheryl playing roulette (their game of choice), so I watched and then we went to the martini bar area and chatted for a bit.

 

Late afternoon today was the Captain’s Club Music and Mixology event.  We’ve never been, but we’re meeting Jenny and Charlie, so we headed up.  It was fun - the bar staff demonstrated making a drink and then it was served to all.  While drinking the band played, so we danced some.  At one point the bartender dropped a bottle of vodka, so we danced around that.

 

 

After that was over, we headed to the martini bar for for a while because it was too early for dinner.  We chatted for a while and then headed to Blu.

 

It was a bit more crowded than last time, and we were seated at a table by the wall.  I started with the short rib appetizer, which our server recommended.  It was good.

 

 

For my main, I had the beef kabob with bastion rice fro the main dining.  Kabab was pretty good and the rice was good as well.  For dessert I had the strawberry cake, and I’m not quite sure about it.

 

 

It looks a bit odd, but tasted good.

 

After dinner we went back to Rendezvous for the set of the SeaGulls (party band).  This cruise has been great in that we had two good bands to dance to.

 

When the set ended we headed up to the room and called it a night.  Another sea day tomorrow.

 

 

 

 

[Sailing12Away]

Just curious.... with your meals you tend to include photos of the apps and desserts, but not the main. Is there a reason or just an odd coincidence?

 

Is dining at Blu free for all retreat and aqua guests, or only free for aqua class and the retreat guests can order from there - but would have to pay?

[abbydancer2003]

3 hours ago, Sailing12Away said:

Just curious.... with your meals you tend to include photos of the apps and desserts, but not the main. Is there a reason or just an odd coincidence?

 

Is dining at Blu free for all retreat and aqua guests, or only free for aqua class and the retreat guests can order from there - but would have to pay?

The pictures are probably because I put the phone down after the appetizers arrive and then I forget about it.  I'm trying to get better about doing all courses.

 

Retreat guests can eat in Blu on an availability basis for no charge.  On my first time in the Retreat on the Reflection, we couldn't get it because there apparently are a lot more Aqua cabins on that than previous ships, with no size increase in Blu.  Since then, I haven't tried for dinner there until this cruise, but I've had breakfast there a few times.

[abbydancer2003]

Summit Day 9 - Sea Day 5 - Thursday 2

 

We did get up in time for breakfast today.  At 10 today, we have a bridge tour, so we had to finish in a timely manner.  We did, but still ended up one minute late, although we weren’t the last people there.  

 

There were about 10 of us on the tour.  After a security wand down, we headed to the bridge.  We were placed at one of the side control panels and second officer Mohammed, with help from the captain, explained everything.  There was lots of interesting information about how the systems worked.

 

 

The view from our vantage point.

 

 

Our bridge tour group

 

 

 

Not actual size.

 

 

 

Following that, I went to the Effy store and got my charm of the day.  Apparently there are two pickup times, but it’s the same both times.  I think it’s because this is a 10 day cruise, rather than 7.  (And I didn’t pay attention during our 12 day one).

 

Next stop was Splendor in the buffet.  By the time we finished it was close to lunch time.  Glen decided to get a pre lunch ice cream and I hung with Arie and Cheryl.  Today they had carved turkey, which they both like.  I noticed they had beef stroganoff, so I made a small dish of it - plain pasta, the stroganoff and some sour cream.  It was good, but had been better on the Infinity (maybe it was because I actually had it for lunch that day, rather than a snack now).

 

After I finished my snack I met Glen in the room and we went to lunch.  By the time we went, it wasn’t too busy.  I started with the fried polenta sticks from main.  They looked like fried mozzarella sticks, but didn’t hold together as well.  What would be good would be an appetizer with one of each, but they’re not offered the same day.

 

For mains, we both had the filet mignons, which was recommended by our friend Gary.  It didn’t disappoint.

 

For dessert, I had one of my favorites - berry pavlova.  It’s one of a few I wish they had everyday (And maybe they would if I asked).

 

 

 

Following lunch it was back to the room for a bit to prepare for our unexpected meeting with a future cruise specialist.  We hadn’t planned to see one, since we have several open bookings still, but Arie had mentioned that there was a new sale on Galapagos and it included air.  (I think when we moved our 2023 booking to 2025, we paid for the air).  

 

The specialist was very helpful.  We determined that the 2024 price was closer to the 2023 price (by a lot) so we decided to move it up, since Peru has stabilized, I think.  He couldn’t touch the 2025 booking so we made a new one.  I can cancel the 2025 one, but I need to make sure it was on our cruise use credit card, as we just had to replace our basic one.  (It was, so I cancelled it when I figured it out.)

 

Next up was the, apparently, first ever (at least for this ship) Retreat wine tasting.  It was hosted by our Sommelier from Luminae.  We had four wines to try, and it was more interesting than the Elite wine tasting had been on the Infinity (we didn’t bother to go on this trip).  We spent our time talking with one of the people on our bridge tour.

 

 

Next up was the Captain’s Club senior officer party.  It wasn’t well attended, and kind of a bust, actually. We were there with Arie & Cheryl, who had let the dining room know they’d be about 30 minutes late for dinner.  At about 6:30, they headed to dinner and we headed to the theater.

 

The show tonight was called Soundtrack, and featured movie music.  It was Ok, but the band was too loud for the singing level.

 

After the show, I went back to the room to make some more calls and then we headed to the lounge for one of the bands.  We found Arie and Cheryl there, and sat with them until it was time for them to head to the 9pm show.  At that time we headed to dinner.

 

Tonight I had the tomato basil soup from Blu (with the tiny grilled cheese sandwich croutons), and the rack of lamb as usual.  For dessert, I had the Daniel Boulud Raspberry Vacherin.  

 

For the first time in a while, it actually had raspberries.

 

Since it was Evening Chic night, Monick brought the cookie plate, and for the first time there was almost no chocolate on it.

 

 

I went to the Casino after dinner, since there was a 5.00 free slot play.  I also asked about getting Glen’s free slot coupons for use later, but they said he had to play when he got them.  It was late for that, so we passed.

 

Arie and Cheryl were there, so we went to Cellar Masters with them and chatted until about 11:15.  Then it was time to go back to the room.  Tomorrow is the last full day of the cruise.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[abbydancer2003]

Summit Day 10 Sea Day 6 Friday 2

 

We woke up a little too late for breakfast in Luminae, so instead we went to the Elite Continental in Tuscan.  It was a bit better than on the Infinity and I asked for, and got, an almond croissant.  

 

After that, I did my now usual morning thing - a bit of casino time followed by the brief stop at Effy for my charm.

 

I went to Al Baccio and met Arie & Cheryl there for a bit, and then grabbed my laptop and headed to the lounge.   Around noon I got a text from Arie that I should look at the buffet.  We headed up and it turns out it was the farewell (I guess) extravaganza.

 

 

The dessert area was quite impressive.

 

 

We sat with Arie & Cheryl for a while, and then headed to Luminae for our last lunch.   Today was a repeat of day one, and I had the pea soup and New York steak.  For dessert today, I had the cobbler from the main dining, which was not available on day one, since main dining isn’t open.

 

After lunch, we did our last Catan of the cruise.  Cheryl won, and we all had fun.  We agreed to meet in Rendezvous after the 7pm show, since Glen didn’t want to see December 63 again.

 

After that, it was time for the dreaded packing.  I took a break and went to the casino for my last visit, I played two machines and won a bit on both.  When I got back, we watched some of Return of the King, at least until I tripped over the cord, and pulled it out.  Because of the lack of power outlets, we’re running an extension cord across the room, so I’m surprised it took me this long.  Clearly a sign, so we packed up the DVD set up.  We were able to get the HDMI cord out without staff help.

 

At around 7:30, we decided to go head to the lounge.  We found seats, and Arie & Cheryl joined us just before 8.  Apparently the show was good, but not as good as the first show.  We danced a bit and chatted between dances.  At about 8:45, we said goodbye, because we like won’t see them tomorrow.

 

For our final dinner I had burrata cheese, and the short ribs from main dining.  The last time I had them from Luminae, they were too spicy, but I did like the steam buns so Monick added some for me.  For dessert, both Glen and I had the ricotta cheesecake.  I’ve had it before, but I just realized that it was very similar to the cheesecake pie at Marie Callendar’s, which I really like.

 

Following dinner, we went back to the room, put the bags out, talked to family and went to bed.  Tomorrow, we fly back to California for 2 days.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

[abbydancer2003]

Summit Day 11 Disembark.  Saturday 3

 

We were up at 7, since we had to be out of the room by 8.  Yesterday, Pratip said he would bring us coffee, and at 7:15 he arrived with a couple of to-go cups of coffee.  He really was a great butler.

 

We then went to Luminae for a quick breakfast and said goodbye to the staff.  After that, it was the Retreat lounge, until about 9:30, when Connie walked us to the gangway, as they’d cleared everyone to leave.

 

She led us to the forward of two gangways (there was one midship as well, as there was no line here.  We got through quickly, did facial recognition, got our bags, and then the fun started.

 

We got to the exit, and tried to call a Lyft.  It took about 15 minutes to find a driver, and the driver was over 30 minutes a\way.  I noticed other people have trouble with both Lyft and Uber.  Apparently they are very busy on Saturday AM.   About an hour after we arrived, our driver showed up (those of you who know New Jersey, apparently he started in Hoboken, and had a ride or two before us.  It didn’t really matter, as our flight wasn’t until 6:00 pm.  

 

Once we arrived at the airport, close to noon I think, we packed our off-the-ship bag into our suitcase, checked our bags, and headed to the United Club for a few hours.

 

A little after 5pm, we boarded.  On the trip we tried premium economy, which has better seats and dinner.  The flight was supposed to be about 30 minutes early, but ended up leaving an hour late, so was a few minutes.  Premium economy was Ok, the space was nice for 5 hours, but I didn’t discover that there was actually a foot rest until the end of the flight.  

 

We have a driver we work with and he was there promptly.  We were dropped at my mom’s house and with that, I’ll end.

 

Overall, this was a great cruise, other than, of course, the family stuff.   It was very nice having two sets of friends with us, even though we didn’t regularly eat with either one.  The staff was great.  The room could use better storage, but I think that’s a continuing problem with revolutionized ships, at least on the M class.

 

Thanks all who followed and didn’t give up on me.  May was quite a month and I hope June will be better.

 

I’ll be back, either on the Princess board for my first ever New England cruise in September or one of my December cruises.  In December we're doing 6 days on Royal (Symphony) followed immediately by 7 days on the Apex, my first time on that ship.

 

Thanks again!