Aboard Serenity Jan 5-18: Renewing the Adventure

[ryndam]

Today’s menus and Reflections.

 

90EB5394-2F29-4E92-BC16-E4A185818AFA.pdf 7E004A84-74A9-464B-940D-4A41600A4D5B.pdf F7D5070D-F654-4971-B5F3-F80A31B16C84.pdf

[gmarsh]

This is gonna be a great sunrise…some of y’all missin’ it😆. 
 

 

[FlyerTalker]

14 hours ago, gmarsh said:

A bit bummed that we didn’t get ANY stamps…I know it’s a pain but just one would be nice

 

You may not feel the same way if you travel a lot and find that you need to renew your passport before its expiration because you're running out of pages.

 

I'd MUCH rather not get stamps for every little Caribbean stop.  Especially the places where they put a stamp right in the middle of a blank page.

 

 

[gmarsh]

19 minutes ago, FlyerTalker said:

 

You may not feel the same way if you travel a lot and find that you need to renew your passport before its expiration because you're running out of pages.

 

I'd MUCH rather not get stamps for every little Caribbean stop.  Especially the places where they put a stamp right in the middle of a blank page.

 

 

 

When I was traveling for work, my company reimbursed me for my passports.  My late parents kept all their documents from their travels and now my daughter has them all.  It was wonderful seeing where they went.

If I can afford Crystal, a new passport is a treat.

 

Hugs, see ya in the lunch line😘.

 

G

 

[FlyerTalker]

1 hour ago, gmarsh said:

If I can afford Crystal, a new passport is a treat.

 

Hugs, see ya in the lunch line

 

Except for the time when your current passport is off being processed.  From the State Dept:

 

Current Processing Times (applied on or after December 18, 2023)

Routine  6 to 8 weeks

Expedited  2 to 3 weeks

 

It may take up to 2 weeks for applications to arrive by mail at a passport agency or center, and up to 2 weeks for you to receive a completed passport in the mail after we print it.

 

 

Plus - all of your airlines have your old passport data, so that needs to be redone.  Your Global Entry needs to be reset to your new number.  Visas may become worthless.

 

I'll buy you postcards for your memories.  Hugs.

 

 

[bayonejoe]

Currently in Miami awaiting Serenity’s arrival tomorrow . Does anyone know if  embarkation on the 18th will be at terminal F or E ?

thanks

[ryndam]

6 minutes ago, bayonejoe said:

Currently in Miami awaiting Serenity’s arrival tomorrow . Does anyone know if  embarkation on the 18th will be at terminal F or E ?

thanks

Current guidance onboard states our arrival at Terminal E tomorrow. But it’s Miami and subject to change.

 

Rob

[bayonejoe]

What is the best way to check

[Texas Tillie]

31 minutes ago, bayonejoe said:

What is the best way to check

 

There's a sign with the info as you enter the port area. I've always been able to see the ship as you get close to the port. Just tell your taxi/Uber "that one" and they know how to get around in the port area.

 

Patty

[bayonejoe]

Sounds good, thanks 

[gmarsh]

51 minutes ago, bayonejoe said:

What is the best way to check

I went to ask Natalya at the front desk.

 

We are docking at Terminal E.

There will be a shuttle to Terminal J if anyone parked over there on departure.

 

G

[LoveBora]

This has been such a great thread to follow, as we will board Serenity in just a little over two weeks. Does the ship have Press Reader? Not that the news is anything I want to be subjected to on my cruise, but my husband does like his sports pages. 

[gmarsh]

1 minute ago, LoveBora said:

This has been such a great thread to follow, as we will board Serenity in just a little over two weeks. Does the ship have Press Reader? Not that the news is anything I want to be subjected to on my cruise, but my husband does like his sports pages. 

Each stateroom has a Lenovo tablet.

It has a News tab on it.

Ship internet has been quite reliable and I have had no problems reading up on spring training on my own iPad.

 

I have also seen some folks reading newspaper things.

 

G

 

 

[travelberlin]

I went to the gym for the first time this morning trying to find a scale to weight my hand luggage. I couldn’t resist to weight myself. I have put on 2 kilograms in 2 weeks 😮

 

But no regrets here 😎

 

Ivi

[ryndam]

1 hour ago, LoveBora said:

This has been such a great thread to follow, as we will board Serenity in just a little over two weeks. Does the ship have Press Reader? Not that the news is anything I want to be subjected to on my cruise, but my husband does like his sports pages. 

As G noted, Press Reader is loaded on the in room tablet. The app can also be loaded onto your personal device(s), but the content is only viewable onboard through the ship’s intranet. I could not download the link here, but I just took a screenshot of the first page of the News tab. There are many publications available.

 

Rob

 

[ryndam]

Cruising along at 15 knots on a flat flat sea. Nice way to spend the afternoon.

 

Rob

[Keith1010]

6 hours ago, bayonejoe said:

What is the best way to check

I checked again today and the official site shows terminal E. 
 

There are only three ships in port. I am sure it won’t change. 
 

But if it did you would spot Serenity very quickly.

 

Keith

 

 

[bayonejoe]

Sounds good, thanks 

[travelberlin]

Last evening for me onboard. I have decided to have dinner at Tastes. It is kind of a tapas concept, not really a restaurant. I have had good gambas al ajillo. The wines were very good, specially the desert wine from Austria. I have also enjoyed the desert. Welcome to all those who are coming for the next cruises. I wish you a wonderful stay onboard the Crystal Serenity. For me it was a nice cruise and I have enjoyed meeting new people on board. I have also enjoyed talking to the crew members, some,  I have recognized from the old Crystal and some were new. I will be back on Crystal ships this year, if God so wishes, in the Mediterranean onboard the Symphony and on the Serenity again in October. In between other cruise lines and our traditional hiking in Switzerland. 
 

Bye, bye 👋 

 

Ivi
 

[BEAV]

Thanks to all who contributed on this sailing. Some really great reporting. 👍

[ryndam]

Tomorrow’s Reflections for those leaving in Miami. I’ll start a new thread for our continuing voyage to San Diego. Stay tuned.

 

Did our farewells to Mark Farris and the great entertainers, lecturers and staff that are leaving the ship in Miami.

 

The 2024 World Cruise starts tomorrow!

 

Rob

4372E49E-051A-48FA-9973-F89EA4676FE8.pdf

[gmarsh]

Whooo Miami!

 

We have about 9hrs of travel time ahead of us.  Ugh.✈️

Much love to all who contributed to the thread.

I almost stood up at dinnerto offer a toast to the Crystal team…but then dessert 🧁 came and well…

 

Cheers to the hardest working friends.  You fed us, kept us “hydrated”🍹🍻🍷🥂🍷🍻 and made our room so comfy.❤️.

 

Those of you sailing on, please take care and continue the Crystal traditions.

 

hugs, see you in the lunch line.

 

G&J

 

 

 

Edited January 18 by gmarsh
👋

[gmarsh]

We made it home safely, MIA - DEN, a NEW 737…

 

The polar vortex has left and it will be 50DegF on Sat.

The low on my weather station was —27.4DegF on Jan 12.

We didn’t lose any alpacas to the elements.  Kudos to our Director of Farm Ops. Jean😘

More thoughts and analysis after a good sleep.

😴 

G

[Keith1010]

I've enjoyed the live reports on this thread including the sense of humor.

 

Keith

[gmarsh]

Today's sunrise from the farm.

 

17AAAA73-1B38-4821-8B97-B320212B7076.heic

 

Observations and Comments

Food was as good as ever.
We did not eat at Osteria because Waterside had many old favorites that we wanted.
Only one  Waterside meal was weird, the lobster had been way over cooked and had a very fishy smell.  Otherwise, choosing our faves was easy.

 

Beverages were made quite strong, but we adjusted.
Drink accuracy needs some work, coke and anisette is not the same as vodka/diet coke.
We saw some get red wine while they requested white.
No big deal.

 

Aquamarine classic staterooms need some carpet and couch replacements.  Just a little worn out.

While we didn’t watch TV much, we do enjoy the news and lectures.  Closed captions need to be enabled for Seniors with hearing deficit.

 

Excursions were just OK.  The ‘Rum Tasting” was really a drive around to various tourist traps and because of the negative feedback, we got a partial refund.  Good Job Crystal!
Whale watching was great, a bit long of a bumpy ride but we saw them!  Swimming with the rays was also a big winner!

 

We really missed the excitement of getting a folio in the mail with our luggage tags and additional documents.  I would PAY for the option of hard copy vs. email just to have another folio.

 

On board stores are the same.  They do not have any real golf shirts in Crystal color with logo.
Mens t-shirts are not golf shirts.  See Calloway or Nike for the real things.

 

Crew and Hotel staff were exceptional.  Answered all questions with a smile.

 

This sailing had 599 pax.  Probably the most elderly demographics I have ever seen.  I hope A&K can bring in more of the 40-60 year olds without growing into a mass market style just to get sailors.  It Is a delicate balance.