GeorgiaPeach Sails the Oceania Marina

[GeorgiaPeach51]

Hello from an Oceania ship this time.  I promised that I would do a comparison between this O cruise on Marina and our Regent experience. This is not my usual blog, but will be a few entries and updates as we travel and experience the ship.
 

This was a long awaited cruise to see Israel and the pyramids.  So you already know how that turned out.  The final cruise retained only two of the original eight ports and is, of course, not what we paid for, but what we are stuck with.  I did post a protest on the Oceania board as the changes came one after another, but with no offer on an FCC, at that time, and was roundly criticized for even suggesting such a thing.  I have to say I did not find many of those folks to be cordial.  They apparently pretty much feel it is well within the cruise line’s rights to do anything they want and the passengers just need to “shut up and color”, as my husband says.  Pay for a Mercedes and get a Kia?  Fine with me!  That mindset mystifies me.  Please know that as I discuss these mundane and ultimately trivial issues, it is a totally separate issue from the pain I’m sure we all feel for what is happening in our fractured world.  I pointed out that is is perfectly possible for a human being to be heartsick for fellow humans AND simultaneously have concerns about the $27,000 they spent on a vacation.  But some people cannot resist the urge to be sanctimonious and preachy and no amount of protest deters the sermon they must deliver.  Anyway, moving on…

 

I have no issues with the need to change ports, but it took a lot of time and big stress, working through our TA to wrangle ANY information from O.  It was weeks of stress, one answer, then a different one, then a third answer, then another port change, etc., then another maybe.  Were we going?  Not going?  You know how that kind of thing goes.

 

At one point it was “a hard no” on any FCC.  Then it was FCC but all airfare lost ($11,000) in our case.  My husband declared he was not willing to lose that kind of money.  My sister and her husband said they were willing to lose it if they had to do so. The final answer came at 5:00 p.m. the day before we were to fly out.  My sister and her husband got all but $1,100 back.  It was too late for us, and we were stuck.  UGH!  We didn’t want to do O to start with but they could not be talked into Regent, so we went along so we could be with them.  Life is full of irony….

 

So, we are on this cruise to revisit the places we have been before, and making the best of it.  Being with my husband is always my favorite place, so it is not torture, just disappointing.  I feel for the people we have met, some on a 33 day, who were even more stuck, and given no chance to do anything but sail on.  They were already here and captive.  I would have thought O might give a small OBC, like $100, but there is no offer of any kind.  Certainly, lots of cruise lines dealing with this.  And passengers.  My problem with O is their total lack of communication and stonewalling until literally the last possible moment. The passenger count is down 500 people, so there are about 250 empty cabins.  No way to know if people bailed and lost it all, or were able to wrangle an FCC.  

 

There are pluses to having fewer people, for sure.  It is certainly easier to get specialty reservations.  Dining venues are uncrowded.  Elevators are quick.

 

My purpose is not to bash O so I will move on to what I see and feel about the differences between O and R.  If you don’t know me, we have been on the Explorer, Splendor, and Navigator. Prior Celebrity “Elites”, for what that is worth.  This trip was originally going from Istanbul to Haifa and Ashdod, Alexandria, Cairo, Limassol, and now has ended up as a Greece cruise with stops in Mykonos, Santorini, Athens, Gythion, and Dubrovnik, Croatia.

 

I’ll start with boarding.  Our time was 11:30.  We showed up a few minutes after and basically walked right on the ship with just a few pauses to hand over paperwork.  Very efficient…this was in Istanbul.  One thing to be noted is that the final walk up and onto the ship was outside and uncovered.  It was starting to drizzle, so we only got a little damp but full-on rain would find you drenched if you had no umbrella.

 

We are in a PH, which is very similar to the veranda on R, Explorer and Splendor.  Walk in closet.  I would say it is deeper, so you have a little more maneuverable space.  And I would say it has a few more drawers than on R.  The bed does not face the veranda. The bed is Queen, and we find it comfortable.  There is a dearth of outlets.  Aggravating. And there are none in the bathroom.  There is an additional chair near the little couch, which is like sitting on stadium bleacher seats.  Rock hard and I don’t mean maybe.  An orchid.  Separate desk and vanity.  One thing we love on R is that the drapes that divide the room are full drapes that divide the room if someone is sleeping and the other one is working or up early.  On O the drapes are faux and for decor only.  For that reason, I would give the cabin nod to R.  Depends on what you value.  I would say that because the O cabin has more seating it feels just a bit larger.

 

The bathroom has one big sink rather than two.  Plenty of space, and both tub and shower.  However, the shower is smaller and has no shave bar for ladies.  Because it has one sink, no outlets, a smaller shower and no shave bar I would give the nod to R for the bathroom.

 

Luggage fits under the bed.  Plenty of hooks for purses, cameras, jackets.  The cabin is fine, and comes with a nice butler.  I don’t think anyone familiar with R cabins would have any issues with O.  
 

The ship, at first glance, is attractive and certainly well-tended.  The upkeep is excellent. It is in some of the decor where I feel Marina shows her age.  She was due, I think, for the upgrade received by her sister ship, Riviera, but it was postponed.  I will attempt to post a photo of the window coverings in the Terrace, their casual lunch, breakfast and dinner venue.  The curtains are a gauzy orange floral and I find that fabric choice to be odd and old-fashioned, perhaps last seen in your grandmother’s living room or even bathroom!   Will try to post a photo….but keep in mind that perhaps this decor will be gone with the dry dock…. Will be back soon.

 

 

 

[mj_holiday]

Yes, it must have been stressful not knowing from one day to the next what the trip will look like.

 

Thanks for taking the time to do some comparison between Oceania and Regent.  I always look at Oceania but still end up with Regent since that is a known entity.

[GeorgiaPeach51]

I found the speciality Polo Grill to be the same.  For me, visually, that dining room had colors that just clanged together.  Goldish drapes and taupe carpet.  Pale grey tablecloth and cerulean blue charger.  Blue accents in the rug that fought with the blue in the chairs.  It’s a good thing the steak was good!  I’ll go take some photos and post them later, along with some photos where Marina is lovely to my eye.

 

Decor, like food, is as subjective as it gets.  Oceania throws out their motto of having the best food at sea, and I think R could easily challenge them to an arm wrestle on that one.  R is at least AS good.  To me.  

 

The food in the Terrace Grill is much like that on R.  It has variety, is not displayed in huge quantities, varies in type of cuisine.  It is like most buffets….keep trying and you will find something you like.  The outdoor grill is the same, though for my husband, (for those of you who might remember that he loves lobster), they have a surf and turf sandwich with steak and lobster that makes him look forward to lunch every day now that he has coerced them into not overcooking the lobster.  I think my main quibble with the buffet is that the hot foods are not hot.  Even the moment you take your plate with fish or eggs or vegetables, almost everything is lukewarm.  I don’t remember this issue on R, but perhaps it is there.  
 

The other issue I’ve had more often then is customary is the amount of salt in some of the food.  That is normally not an issue to me, so it is startling.  In Polo the other night I got French onion soup and it had the ocean in it.  Those of us who love this soup know that there is a fine line between the real caramelized onion flavor and the salt flavor from too much bouillon.  That soup was so salty I had to send it back and it was replaced with clam chowder which would have had cooks from the Northeast clutching their hair AND their pearls.   It was clam chowder’s first cousin twice removed…not sure anyone knows what that means, including me, but you get the gist.  To round out the Polo meal, the steak was wonderful, the baked potato was lukewarm, the dessert was fabulous.  
 

We are not having any trouble finding good things to eat, but you might have to throw back the first catch and cast your line again to find what you want.  Last night in the main dining room, which, BTW, I think is prettier than the MDR on Regent, we both ordered a tuna dish for our entree.  No.  So I got a soba noodle vegetarian dish that I enjoyed.  You just gotta stick to the mission at hand and not accept food that is substandard.  They will gladly replace it and hope to make you happy.  I will say, that they are circumspect and seem PERHAPS more accustomed to food being returned than I perceive on R.  On R there is genuine consternation if you don’t like something.  You don’t see that same level of concern here but there is genuine effort to make you happy.

 

I definitely give the ice cream win to O, with their Harry Slocumb ice cream.  Really outstanding and some fun flavors like Toast and Jelly, black sesame, Elvis After School Special (vanilla with chocolate covered potato chips)….crazy good!  The extent to which my husband loves lobster is equaled by my love of ice cream….

 

more to come…

[asnaleah]

So happy to see your review comparing O to R! We haven’t sailed O yet but have 2 scheduled. Very sorry about your thoroughly changed cruise. Lucky for us, we were scheduled for a similar itinerary in May on R, but were able to transfer the booking to an Iceland cruise in July. We had not made final payment. 

[Scout16]

Please let us know how formal is the ship, requested dress and procedures.

[irishwitchy]

Always love your reviews.  I hear you on the issue - we want to go on this cruise line.  We did that years ago with friends and they bailed anyway.  Luckily,  we could also! 
 

 

[GeorgiaPeach51]

53 minutes ago, Scout16 said:

Please let us know how formal is the ship, requested dress and procedures.

@Scout16  the ship is very informal.  They request that there be no swim attire in the Terrace Cafe and we have seen none.  That is the breakfast, lunch, dinner casual venue.  For the evenings the majority of people are dressed as you would to go to a nice restaurant anywhere.  Men wear slacks, a dress shirt, a polo type shirt or a Hawaiian-style shirt.  Probably 1/4 of the men wear a jacket or blazer in the evening, my husband often does this just because he likes to wear his blazer, and it is sometimes cold in a few venues.  
 

Women wear mostly pants of some kind, and dresses or skirts.  Once in a while you see a little glitter but not very often.  Once in a while you see a man in a full suit.  Honestly, no one cares what you wear as long as it is not ragged or something less than what you might wear to go out with friends to a nice establishment.  I have seen a few jeans in the evening, but in the halls and bars, not in the dining venues.  You can be more casual if you want to go to The Terrace.

 

on the other hand, though I have not seen it on this cruise yet, if I had a special personal event I wanted to celebrate i would not hesitate to get dressed up.  My husband and I have done this to the point of tux and sparkly evening and heels for me, and we had a great time, enjoyed celebrating ourselves and got nothing but positive comments from others.  I personally LOVE seeing a dressed up couple.  I remember with fondness a wonderful couple on Regent who dressed up EVERY night and he matched his tie to her gown.  They were fabulous and I looked forward to seeing them every night.

 

I hope this answers your question.  I am not sure what you mean by procedures?  If you can elaborate I will answer specifically. 
 

Joanie

[Georgia_Peaches]

From one Georgia Peach to another, I will be following along with great interest!  Wishing you a fabulous cruise on what sounds like a wonderful itinerary!

[Anchorbuoy]

2 hours ago, GeorgiaPeach51 said:

I promised that I would do a comparison between this O cruise on Marina and our Regent experience.

 

Thanks for the comparisons.  We have been reluctant to give Oceania a try, but I think we just might.  But the poor treatment from headquarters is shocking !

[bebop bonnie]

Love your review, comments, humor and writing style, Georgia Peach!!!  Thank you for once again taking us along with you!  Bonnie

[GeorgiaPeach51]

A few quick observations that are differences:

 

There is no bar service in the theater.  That is startling to me.  One reason might be that they have some foldable little triangular shelves that can be lifted to use for drinks.  However, each one we have tried is so slanted as to guarantee that your drink will end up in your lap sooner or later.  
 

The bar drinks are remarkably the same wherever you order.  I had some liquid adventures last cruise on the Navigator where drinks were made with apparently a TLAR (That Looks About Right) mindset.  Some were Meh!  Some were WHEW!  😜. These are just right.  So the nod goes to O on bar drinks.

 

But not the bar snacks.  Definitely not.  I was so very charmed by the butlers and waiters on R with their white gloves and the wide variety of pre dinner snacks.  So far, every night for 6 nights it has been essentially the same thing.  Squares of cheese with toothpicks.  Olives.  A puff pastry, dry crackers thing. Every.  Single.  Night.  They try to be clever and sometimes present the puff pastry with a twist, sometimes it is round, last night it had, guess what in the middle?  Olives.  But they can’t fool me.  It is still dry and crusty and tasteless puff pastry!  Come on, O, you can do better than this!  Regent wins with her eyes closed.  

will upload photos later.

 

[mnocket]

3 hours ago, GeorgiaPeach51 said:

was roundly criticized for even suggesting such a thing.  I have to say I did not find many of those folks to be cordial.  They apparently pretty much feel it is well within the cruise line’s rights to do anything they want

I've found this attitude to be prevalent throughout CC.  Every board has its cheerleaders whose knee-jerk reaction to most any complaint is to defend the cruise line. In cases like yours, they are quick to point out that, by the letter of the cruise contract, they are allowed to make almost any change they want to the itinerary. In my opinion, these people miss the distinction between what the cruise line can legally do per the contract, and what is the right thing to do for their customers. Whenever I reply that there is often a difference between what is legal and what is right, they seem unable to fathom the concept.

[IrishKathy]

Joanie,

It is so good to have you back on the boards.   Tony and I leave tonight for Rome for five days, then board the Splendor on the 20th for the 21-day transatlantic.   I want to thank you again for all your comments and observations during your 2022 transatlantic.  It made so many things easier for us during the planning cycle.   Is spite of your changed itinerary -- such an understatement -- we hope you and Rolf have a wonderful time.

And thanks so much for the comparisons you are doing between R and O.   We originally had reservations on O and I got fed up with all the decision-making that R doesn't bother you with.  And especially not including business class air.  We found that when all is said and done, there is not THAT much difference.  We look forward to your continued posts.   Kathy  

[GeorgiaPeach51]

Here are the appetizers you can dream about till you board someday.  🙄. It’s like a food version of Groundhog Day.  Every day I try to be a better passenger but every day these reappear.  By the end of the cruise I may be reduced to shrieking and running away when they show up.  
 

Edited November 7, 2023 by GeorgiaPeach51

[GeorgiaPeach51]

@IrishKathy  thanks for the sweet post.  I hope you have a wonderful time.  Someday, if I am lucky, we will get to meet!

 

Joanie

[GeorgiaPeach51]

Here is another big difference…the specialties are only open in the evening.  6:30-9:00.  No lunch service at all.  Big win for R, being able to eat lunch on sea days in the specialties.  We are spoiled.

 

You can have breakfast in the Grand Dining Room 7-8:30, or in the Terrace Cafe 7-10.  There is also the Waves Grill which is outside the Terrace Cafe, 6:30-11.  But I think they serve the same stuff, just outside.  We have not tried the GDR yet but will let you know if we get there.

 

For lunch you only have the Terrace Cafe, so the nod goes to R for the greater variety of venues available, though not every day.  
 

I would also give my vote to the Coffee Connection rather than O’s Barista.  First, it is located way up on deck 14 kind of by itself, and is not a central stopping off and hanging out place like on R.  Second, their snacks and breakfast items seem miserly in comparison with R.  Just not as convenient, and therefore, not nearly as used by passengers, at least on this cruise.  I will get a photo for you tomorrow if I can.

 

Another vote for R is not having to show your room card for drinks.  It is just like on Celebrity. Away they go with your card.  It is not egregious and they try to be low key about it but it’s a hassle if you are spoiled, as we are.  It turned into a greater hassle when my husband tried to get a glass of wine for both of us to take to the room before dinner but didn’t have my card…and ran into opposition from a server, who was just doing her job.  But he was as determined to get the two glasses as she was to not give him two glasses, so he finally asked her if she couldn’t just look in the computer to see what my drink package was, and she did that and that solved the problem.  But it was a bit of a bridge too far for him cause it was more hassle than it needed to be.  So far that is the only real aggravation with the drink card other than waiting for it to return to your pocket.  The drinks experience on R is just seamless and smooth and effortless, so it is infinitely better, IMO.  The drinks card would not stop me from doing an O cruise.  It’s just a necessary little annoyance. 
 

More tomorrow…we are in Dubrovnik.

 

Joanie

[GOARMY]

Georgia:  

 

Enjoying your "blow-by-blow" account.  Have never been on Oceana.  Probably never will, given management's philosophy which is:  My (our) way or the highway.  

 

Believe we were with you aboard Explorer a bit ago on the Vancouver-Tokyo segment.  

 

GOARMY!

 

[lprp]

@GeorgiaPeach51 so glad you decided to blog your O cruise.

We’ve only cruised once on O. It was on Riviera, Christmas 2012.

We decided to try it as we had been on our very first Regent cruise the previous Christmas on Mariner.

The fact that we are 5 weeks away from what will be our 12th cruise on R probably helps understand our preference! 
We quite enjoyed the speciality restaurants on O; particularly Red Ginger, but were completely underwhelmed with the MDR. My only other highlight memory was the rather good Wagyu burgers at the pool grill.

I agree completely about the joy of not having to sign for drinks on R.

Looking forward to reading your updates.

LP

[PaulMCO]

We have 15 cruises on O and only a few on Regent (though more are planned).

Try the wings or the Samosa's for the Canapes.  And yes same issue is the sameness every day.

 

Our biggest dislike of Marina and O in general is that the menus repeat too many times. OK for a short cruise -- bad for a 35 day cruise.  We preferred Jacques over Charteuse, but Jacques is never more on their new ships. 

 

Would like to hear your comparison of the GDR versus Compass Rose.  Our criticism of last Marina cruise in Jan 2023 was the slowness of service and food temperature of the entrees of being warm to cold.   We had just completed a Splendor TA and jumped on Marina so the difference in the two were stark.

 

 

[JerryAM]

As to the cabins in O vs. R, my vote goes to Regent.  When planning my first cruise as an "upgrade"  from Celebrity, I compared costs for a Regent Explorer Concierge D vs. an Oceana Riviera (sister ship of Marina) Penthouse.  The cost was close, so we opted for the Concierge D on Explorer (and I am glad we did).  Our next cruise was on Riviera, in a PH.  Although the size of the cabins seems similar, the layout of the concierge suite on Explorer, including the much nicer/larger bathroom, was much better than on the Riviera PH.  Another major difference was the balcony, which was larger and deeper on Explorer.  As to food, we really enjoyed Oceania, especially the French and Italian restaurants, which were better than on Explorer.  We were disappointed with the main dining room on O, as none of our meals there were anything of note -- just mediocre as to quality and taste.  For lunch on O, the Waves Grill (pool grill) was open, although the burgers and other items on Regent's Pool Grill are better.  After the O cruise, we went on a Splendor cruise (which was better than our first Explorer cruise) and decided that we would stick with Regent thereafter. We just disembarked from a Mariner cruise last week, which was our best Regent cruise so far.  Although impossible to describe, and it being an individual choice, we enjoy the "vibe" on Regent over Oceania.   A major bonus, as you mentioned, is that there is no need to show your card when getting drinks on Regent.

 

Jerry

[Steve Q]

Joanie, So glad you are sailing again. We met on Navigator this past May. It was wonderful meeting you and your husband.
We sailed on Marina a few years ago. While we enjoyed the ship, it would not be our first choice. While we enjoyed the specialty restaurants, especially Red Ginger, we thought the MDR was very disappointing. It is a significant step down from Compass Rose. There is really no comparison.

We also have found the entertainment to be far superior on Regent. Again, there was no comparison. 
We will be interested in hearing your review of both the MDR and the entertainment.

Joanie, our next cruise will be aboard Voyager in March from Rio to Lisbon.

 

Enjoy your cruise.

 

 

[Gpilon]

3 hours ago, GeorgiaPeach51 said:

Here are the appetizers you can dream about till you board someday.  🙄. It’s like a food version of Groundhog Day.  Every day I try to be a better passenger but every day these reappear.  By the end of the cruise I may be reduced to shrieking and running away when they show up.  
 

Gourmet!

[PhD-iva]

O has been my favorite cruiseline (until recently?). I’ve been on 3 O cruises and have several more booked. My only Regent cruise so far (Mariner) was OVER THE TOP fabulous in every way, but you pay for that. On my budget, I’d rather arrange private tours which until recently was not bundled into the price of Oceania fares. Also, I can save some money on O by bringing onboard wine and spirits to consume in my stateroom or pay a corkage fee to drink wine with a meal. Along w a cocktail at HH and I’m all set.
I was booked on your ill-fated itinerary but canceled early to instead vacation in August with friends. Lucky me. I’m not happy how O handled things, to say the least. Those same friends were booked on Regent for a Holylands cruise, and they were shafted by Regent as well. They canceled and were not happy they were only offered 25% FCC.
So, am searching for a new home - just not sure I can afford to cruise solo on Regent. Am hoping to find a companionable female to share costs since hubby no longer wishes to travel.
I’m looking forward to my next Regent cruise on Voyager in February!

Enjoy your cruise!

 

[GeorgiaPeach51]

11 hours ago, Steve Q said:

Joanie, So glad you are sailing again. We met on Navigator this past May. It was wonderful meeting you and your husband.
We sailed on Marina a few years ago. While we enjoyed the ship, it would not be our first choice. While we enjoyed the specialty restaurants, especially Red Ginger, we thought the MDR was very disappointing. It is a significant step down from Compass Rose. There is really no comparison.

We also have found the entertainment to be far superior on Regent. Again, there was no comparison. 
We will be interested in hearing your review of both the MDR and the entertainment.

Joanie, our next cruise will be aboard Voyager in March from Rio to Lisbon.

 

Enjoy your cruise.

 

 

Steve, I remember you well and enjoyed our conversations!  We have eaten twice in the MDR, twice in Red Ginger, once in Tuscan, once in Polo and once in the Terrace for dinner.  Tonight we will attempt to get into Jacques.  Last night they said to show up at 6:30 and perhaps we will get lucky.

 

You all probably know that you get one reservation in each specialty.  But because 500 people went AWOL it is relatively easy to get additional reservations in the specialties if you are a little flexible.  So this is a great benefit that has allowed us to dodge the GDR for the most part.  One huge difference between O and R is the enormous available every day menu on R.  It is just such an embarrassment of choices that some evenings it is just way too hard to decide.  You will not have that problem on O.  Their always available is very small.  I will take a photo for you and post it.  On our first R cruise I did a trip report and went on and on about how much we loved the specialties and I remember someone posting that we were doing ourselves a disservice by not giving the MDR a try.  They were so right!  That first cruise for us on R was one of the first after COVID restrictions were lifted, and the Explorer was like this one, far from full.  So we had the same ability to enjoy the specialties and avoid the MDR.  Turns out, you don’t want to do that!

 

I have to say, based on our two GDR attempts so far, trying for the specialties is a better plan on this O ship.  On Explorer, we missed out on a lot of great meals in the MDR.  
 

We met a couple on the tour we did in Athens who are on for 33 days.  She said they were in one of the specialties and waited 45 minutes for their entrees.  At that point they stood up and left.  She said “no one cared that we left” and staff just stood and watched them go with no comment, interest or apology.  I find that pretty shocking.  We are relatively new to R but I honestly can’t imagine that happening on an R ship, based on our experience, which is that they would be full of consternation and fully stressed to have their guests walk out.  And if it did occur, I am positive that you would receive a call of apology.  This couple did not.
 

so, the specialties. Twice in Red Ginger.  Both great experiences. Very much the same as Pacific Rim.  The same miso sea bass.  I am tied to that spectacular dish and cannot order anything other than that.  But my husband ordered that and lobster pad Thai, and he enjoyed both.  I liked the udon noodles.  Did not like the stir fried rice…very dry and tasteless.  The sampler platter for 2, 4 or 6 was yummy.  Service was excellent.  Any R person will be a happy camper in Red Ginger, if you like Pacific Rim.

 

Tuscan—mixed bag.  I am a fan of risotto, and if any of you get it on R, you know it is just a small bowl of perfection every time, not matter what kind.  It was a special in Tuscan so I gave it a try, which I regretted the moment I saw it.  It was on a flat plate, kind of pressed down to the shape of the plate and drizzled with balsamic.  Dry and no whisper of creaminess, which is mandatory if you’re calling it risotto.  So that was a big NO.  They have a balsamic vinegar cart and do a little spiel on the different kinds.  The breads are good, and they have roasted garlic which was dried out and impossible to squeeze out or spread.  I had the Dover Sole…another bad choice.  It was meh, and served only warm, which didn’t help things.  Rolf got the filet steak with Gorgonzola and that was a big hit.  Very much like the beautiful steaks you get in Sette Mari.  I had order envy.

so I would give Tuscan a C- overall.  Service was good.  I just ordered poorly and didn’t love anything I ordered.  By that point I didn’t want to bother ordering something else, so that is on me.

 

Polo— can I just say how much I miss the gorgeous chargers on R?  I already wrote about the onion soup and clam chowder debacle.  We both had excellent steaks and the service was excellent.  Barely warm baked potato.  So this is where we, as the consumer have to weigh how much we want to push to get what we want.  I could have sent the potato back and asked for a hot one (radical idea) but it wasn’t worth it to me since I was only going to eat about 1/4 of it.  But if my steak had come out under or overcooked I would have to pursue that to try to get what I wanted.  Trying to get a hot meal on this ship is much more of a challenge than it should be.  But one thing that comes out hot, and not just hot but forevermore hot, is soup.  Yow!  
 

Terrace Cafe at night.  I miss the tablecloths all day.  There are none at breakfast or lunch,  but they do appear in the evening,  on the nights when you are tired or don’t feel like the long meal in the GDR, it is a good option.  They have grilled meats and fish and all the usual suspects.  It is a nice way to unwind and pace the meal as you wish.  The only thing is that you will have eaten every meal in there the whole day, since there is only the GDR for breakfast if you want to risk that.  We have not done so yet.  But, the Terrace is a good low key meal, and you can eat outside if the weather works.  
 

Will post photos today, but later.

 

Joanie

[cruisevirgin24]

Joanie, are you missing R's cronuts?