Live Ovation of the Seas Alaska May 17-24, 2024 with Kmom

[Coralc]

6 minutes ago, Badatz2 said:

Enjoying your review. We will be on the Ovation after the summer.

Just a side note the food is called Shakshuka not Shatshuka.  It can be made with unlimited types of additions, but the base is usually eggs and tomato sauce.  I don't like spicy food and can always get the restaurant to make it to my request.

LOL. Whatever it is called. I wouldn't be eating it anyway. 😁 But thank you.

[KmomChicago]

5 hours ago, Badatz2 said:

Enjoying your review. We will be on the Ovation after the summer.

Just a side note the food is called Shakshuka not Shatshuka.  It can be made with unlimited types of additions, but the base is usually eggs and tomato sauce.  I don't like spicy food and can always get the restaurant to make it to my request.

Yeah thanks. I just went by the spelling from the sign in the buffet which was what I originally posted. They are also spelling dhal, dal in the buffet so I am deferring to these ship spellings. ‘Cause I ain’t no chef and they got real international chefs running the kitchen around here. They win. If they spell baklava black lava, that’s how it’s going in the report. 

 

 

[KmomChicago]

5 hours ago, Coralc said:

LOL. Whatever it is called. I wouldn't be eating it anyway. 😁 But thank you.

Yeah I was grateful to sample it but wouldn’t get it again. 
 

Good to know all the correct and incorrect spellings though so I can skip it.

[KmomChicago]

Yesterday was a sea day but I didn’t play much trivia like I usually do. Only played twice so far and won once. Say yee-hah! 

[KmomChicago]

The trivia hosts on RCI ships constantly and jokingly mention their stupid, cheapo, crappy trivia prizes. They don’t say who they’re compared to, trivia prize-wise, but we all know:

[KmomChicago]

Royal is tighter with morning coffee than Carnival who has it in the Lido buffet 24 hours and never closes the space with a door. 
 

RN you have instant in your room, free at Cafe Promenade, or paid at Patisserie, both of which have long lines.

 

Also no full fat cream with the free coffee which Carnival has.

[KmomChicago]

Stairwell art.

[KmomChicago]

Getting a caffeine withdrawal headache waiting in this line to see if I can use my coffee card!

[KmomChicago]

Okay coffee card is accepted at La Patisserie, even though it’s Starbucks coffee. Two tall latte macchiatos cost me 4 of my remaining 7 punches.

[KmomChicago]

21 hours ago, TravelGirlinDallas said:

My favorite stairwell art on Ovation was the melting teapots. 

Found it, really fascinating piece. Haven’t ever seen anything quite like it. 
 

The pandas I posted earlier are actual photo portraits of two real pandas. They look so perfect and beautiful I could hardly believe they weren’t manipulated. 
 

I like animals and of course I love pandas, who doesn’t? I hope they continue to recover their populations in protected areas of China.

 

Was also so glad to see more are coming over to US zoos. I miss the Washington DC pair already. Mei Xiang was an awesome mom, amazingly bearing a final surviving cub shortly after her 22nd birthday! She’s my favorite panda. I wish her the best in retirement.
 

I realize “panda diplomacy” alone isn’t going to solve the world’s problems or correct a lot of evil that has happened and continues. Still it gives me a spark of hope in a world that sometimes feels too bleak.

 

I mentioned earlier how much I despise waste. And we waste so many resources hating each other. It just can’t be the best way for a species to live. 

To recap:
 

Hatred = No!

Anger = No!

Panda Diplomacy = Oh yeah, baby!

[KmomChicago]

What does Kmom like? Have you figured it out yet?

 

Logic

Trivia

Winning trivia contests 

My teenager and the “foster” adult (18) we welcomed into our family last year.

Pandas / Panda Diplomacy 

Kindness

Gratitude

Baklava

Coffee

[BecciBoo]

27 minutes ago, KmomChicago said:

What does Kmom like? Have you figured it out yet?

 

Logic

Trivia

Winning trivia contests 

My teenager and the “foster” adult (18) we welcomed into our family last year.

Pandas / Panda Diplomacy 

Kindness

Gratitude

Baklava

Coffee

Don't forget cruising and the Ocean!

[KmomChicago]

I’m not on my usual with-it game on this cruise. I will come out of a lounge or off a stairway to some huge queue and think, what’s going in? What did I miss? 
 

I just left Bolero’s after sucking down my 2 big lattes and discussing pizza at length on another CC thread and this huge line is backing up into the Esplanade. I’m like what’s the line for? 
 

MDR breakfast.

[ninjacat123]

35 minutes ago, KmomChicago said:

What does Kmom like? Have you figured it out yet?

 

Logic

Trivia

Winning trivia contests 

My teenager and the “foster” adult (18) we welcomed into our family last year.

Pandas / Panda Diplomacy 

Kindness

Gratitude

Baklava (aka Black Lava😉)

Coffee

🤣

[KmomChicago]

9 minutes ago, BecciBoo said:

Don't forget cruising and the Ocean!

I mean, it’s okay.

[Biker19]

1 hour ago, KmomChicago said:

RN you have instant in your room, free at Cafe Promenade, or paid at Patisserie, both of which have long lines.

The line in Cafe at 270 might be shorter.

[KmomChicago]

5 minutes ago, Biker19 said:

The line in Cafe at 270 might be shorter.

Thanks, ‘twasn’t open yet. I did schlep all the way over there to confirm. Actually moved fast enough at the pastry shop, no worries.

[Biker19]

2 minutes ago, KmomChicago said:

Thanks, ‘twasn’t open yet.

A quick glance at the app (or the guide screens around the ship) may save you some steps.😉

Edited May 19 by Biker19

[KmomChicago]

Just now, Biker19 said:

A quick glance at the app may save you some steps.😉

Did that as well and it was closed. However I needed to stubbornly confirm they meant door down closed as opposed to unstaffed but help yourself closed. 
 

I’m looking for reasons to add steps anyway this journey. As an old chubby almost 58 year old, it’s the only exercise I actually like. I can feel a little something going on in my calves this morning thanks to my aversion to standing around in elevator lobbies with 24 of my closest friends. According to my watch, all my trends are up this week. 

[LATTELOVE]

Have you noticed very many kids on this cruise??

 

How about the Starlink (internet)  any problems ??

 

Thank you!

[KmomChicago]

27 minutes ago, LATTELOVE said:

Have you noticed very many kids on this cruise??

 

How about the Starlink (internet)  any problems ??

 

Thank you!

Internet seems fine, no problems so far. I have to do a Teams meeting at 4am on Tuesday if I want to stay employed so I’m banking on it staying strong through then. 
 

Quite a few kids but not as many as a Christmas or Spring Break cruise. More college age (they usually finish by May 15) and teenies, i.e. the Pre-K crowd. 
 

Really just a handful in the K-12 grade range which I expected. I would also expect that to change next week as it’s Memorial Day and a fair amount of folks are gonna be okay bailing on report card day. After that of course all bets are off until August 15. 

[ninjacat123]

1 minute ago, KmomChicago said:

Internet seems fine, no problems so far. I have to do a Teams meeting at 4am on Tuesday if I want to stay employed so I’m banking on it staying strong through then. 
 

Does that mean they have the Team meeting scheduled at 7am CST?😲

[KmomChicago]

8 minutes ago, ninjacat123 said:

Does that mean they have the Team meeting scheduled at 7am CST?😲

Yes. I have a global role and the boss is actually Eastern time so 8am for them. 
 

It’s not a team meeting but a job interview over Teams the application for live video meetings.
 

HR offered to try to change it when I explained but I said honestly let’s just do it. I know they have a panel that’s practically impossible to coordinate. I’m a morning person. Theoretically there will be little competition for bandwidth onboard at that time (though that’s not been an issue). It won’t conflict with our glacier viewing or our Mendenhall excursion in Juneau later that day.
 

And it shows how selfless and good natured and flexible I am in accommodating their schedules. Who wouldn’t hire / retain a treasure like Kmom?

Edited May 19 by KmomChicago

[ninjacat123]

4 minutes ago, KmomChicago said:

Yes. I have a global role and the boss is actually Eastern time so 8am for them. 
 

It’s not a team meeting but a job interview over Teams the application for live video meetings.
 

HR offered to try to change it when I explained but I said honestly let’s just do it. I know they have a panel that’s practically impossible to coordinate. I’m a morning person. Theoretically there will be little competition for bandwidth onboard at that time (though that’s not been an issue). It won’t conflict with our glacier viewing or our Mendenhall excursion in Juneau later that day.
 

And it shows how selfless and good natured and flexible I am in accommodating their schedules. Who wouldn’t hire / retain a treasure like Kmom?

Makes sense now that the meeting is scheduled for EST.  You are a treasure Kmom and I'm glad you know this!! 💃👍😸

[KmomChicago]

We’re in Sitka and cleared to go ashore. I can already see this is the kind of place that photos will never really do justice.

 

The mountains explode straight up out of the sea, covered with stunning evergreens. The scenery beckons like a siren, luring the sailors from their luxury vessel to its soaring shore.
 

We’re partly cloudy, mid 50’s F. Not bad at all, if not exactly bikini weather.