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Rockin' & Rollin' on the Dawn!!

Welove2cruise2

By Welove2cruise2,
in Norwegian Cruise Line

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Welove2cruise2

Welove2cruise2

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We had a wonderful time in St. Maarten yesterday -- did the NCL-sponsored excursion to Orient Beach (included nice padded loungers, two drinks, lunch, and transportation back and forth -- we did this on the Spirit and loved it so much we did it again!). The weather couldn't have been better!

 

Dinner last night was in Blue Lagoon (gotta love the fish & chips!) and off to the Caribbean deck party until midnight -- wayy to late for us, as we had to get up at 6 to go thru customs & immigration before going in to St. Thomas. With all the French Canadians on board, C & I was a piece of cake! We got on the third tender and were in the downtown area by 8:30. I actually kind of liked tendering -- because you get down town really quickly, instead of Havensight and a $3 or $4 taxi fee to the downtown area.

 

Note to self: DO NOT go to the beach when there are six ships in port!!! Ugh, what a waste of time -- Magen's bay was so crowded, not only could we not find a place to SIT, but you couldn't even make your way to the water! Should have gone to St. John with Captain Eddie again! Oh, well, live and learn.

 

We met friends sailing on the Marriner of the Seas at Cafe Amici's -- it's in the alley next to the A.J. Riise shopping mall -- they have the BEST pizza -- very thin crust, and wonderful toppings. It was great to sit and chat and compare notes before heading back to the ship.

 

Salsa's tonight -- wonderful food, as usual. I really love that restaurant - and the sangria is the best.

 

Off to find out what kind of trouble we can get in to! Samana tomorrow -- should be interesting -- another tender day...

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angeljt

angeljt

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Thanks for the update and the tip about the beaches when there are so many ships in port. ;)

 

Sherrie!

I see you couldn't wait until May!!! Good for you. Have a great time.

 

Peggy,

Glad to hear you're still having so much fun.... Enjoy

 

Jackie

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Welove2cruise2

Welove2cruise2

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Two words you don't want to hear as you're crawling into bed after a very long day -- Code Bravo. There was an electrical short in Cagney's about 11:00 Wednesday night. Nothing major at all, but they must have had a little smoke to set off the alarm. Probably a ballast in one of the light fixtures.

 

Yesterday we went to Cayo Levantado -- WOW! What a beautiful place! It's a tiny little island off the coast of DR. Beautiful beach, nice white sand, great lounge chairs, beach bar, buffet lunch if you want ($15 for the buffet, $20 if you want lobster, $5 hamburger, $4 hot dog), beer prices were from $3 for draft, $4 for Presidente (small bottle), $5 for corona, and $6 for the Presidente Grande! We had a great day there. One other ship in port -- MSC Opera.

 

We were getting ready to depart when we had a medical emergency on board. We had to wait for a boat to come to evacuate the passenger, then wait for our medical staff to return, so we were delayed about two hours. Right now we're just south of the Bahamas, having travelled a little less than 400 NM since we left Samana.

 

Dinner last night was in La Trattoria -- I love the menu on this ship, it's so much more broad than the menu on the Spirit. The food was excellent -- try the Land and Sea! And they make the absolute best calimari! We went to this very strange show last night (I think it was Romano Frediani -- supposed to be a comedy show), we ended up sneaking out about half way through, as DH was falling asleep.

 

Today will be a very relaxing day, and out of the sun -- I got quite a burn yesterday, even with sunscreen (SPF 30!!). There's a 3rd martini clinic today at 4:00 (I thought Jose said it would be a margarita clinic, so maybe it's a typo), then dinner tonight in Bamboo.

 

We were moving along at a pretty good clip last night -- 21.8 knots -- so I don't know if the engine problems have been solved? Of course we've heard nothing on board about it.

 

Off to find a spot on the pool deck (that should be fun :rolleyes: )!

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snorklinbarb

snorklinbarb

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Hi Peggy,

 

Boy, it sounds like you're having a ball! I had totally written off Samana from what I had read but now both you & Dolphins have recommended Cayo Levantado, so now I won't ignore Samana itineraries.

 

You made me recall the Code Bravo we had on the Spirit last May. 3 am.:eek: Made you sit straight up in bed. Anyway, the next day we talked to the Captain and asked what had happened. "Human mistake," he said. "Wrong button."

 

Agree with you completely that the Trattoria menus (throughout the fleet) are so much better. I really don't mind giving up the chicken parm. The snapper is really good. At both of our CC dinners in the Italian on the Pearl, the Land & Sea was highly recommended and they had substituted a small filet for the veal medallions.

 

Let us know how Bamboo was this time. We thought the menu was substantially cut down and the choices were pretty mundane compared to some of the spicier dishes they used to offer like vindaloo. The choices which were left were pretty average any Chinese restaurant types of things. That said, we haven't actually tried the new menu so I'll be curious what your read is.

 

Have fun! Finally had a chance to meet RichNY this week, so your names came up - all in a good way! e.durban was there, too!:D

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VKNJDevs4

VKNJDevs4

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How are you?? Pat and I booked a trip on the Dawn last week...we leave on 4/23. My first time on the Dawn - Pat's 2nd.

 

How was the Groundhog trip on the Pearl? Was she beautiful?? Pat and I are already planning our next trip on the Gem for next year...

 

It's been an eventful year healthwise for both of us. Too much to write on a board... We are celebrating our health on this cruise...

 

Have a TERRIFIC group of CC'ers for this Dawn cruise...59 strong - 29 of which I think are interested in the Martini Clinic!! We are going to see if we can get the F&B manager to maybe arrange a special clinic for our group. (Remember how unsuccessful I was getting a CC get-together on the Crown??? Pat and I had a great time on the cruise regardless and I do appreciate all your help trying to get the gathering off the ground).

 

Anyhow, just thought I would say hey!! Hope all is well with you and Bob. What's your next cruise???

 

Best regards, Virginia (from New Jersey).

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palmtre2

palmtre2

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Thanks for the updates - it's encouraging to hear that the ship was moving at a good clip. I'm hoping the problems have been fixed, I'd like to do our whole itinerary. Relax on those sea days - and take a nap for me today!!!!

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JoeCanadian

JoeCanadian

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Thanks for the updates - it's encouraging to hear that the ship was moving at a good clip. I'm hoping the problems have been fixed, I'd like to do our whole itinerary. Relax on those sea days - and take a nap for me today!!!!

 

I wouldn't count on that... our March 11th itinerary was revised today. Ocho Rios and GSC were dropped, and Key West and a sea day were added.

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peggyg

peggyg

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sorry to hear about your itinery change - I hope they will compensate you in some way - they really should fix the pod I am going on the Dawn April 23rd and will hope they have it fixed by then.

 

Peggy

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JoeCanadian

JoeCanadian

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They have offered a $50 per person on board credit... We're actually quite happy with the change and the compensation offered. Everyone on our roll call seems to not feel too bad about it.

 

I'm sure there will be plenty of others screaming about this at the reception desk though.... ship happens! Deal with it.

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Welove2cruise2

Welove2cruise2

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Dinner last night in Bamboo was very good, though I didn't think the food was spiced as well as the last time we dined there. DH had the sweet and sour shrimp, which was delicious. We both had the shrimp and veggie tempura (YUM), I had the teriyaki steak -- what a surprise that was -- a whole sirloin steak, cut into strips, but not a lot of teriyaki flavor. Also had the chow fun noodles -- they were the wide rice noodles, not the thin ones that are served on the Spirit. The meal was very good though.

 

Last night we went to the Quest -- it was hilarious, as usual. We joined a team, but didn't have three things, so were eliminated after the first round. We had a good time.

 

We're on our way home :( . We hit rain early yesterday afternoon, so didn't have a full day to spend in the fresh air. Of course today it is cold. We are maintaining a speed of at least 21 knots, and I see no reason we should not arrive in NYC at 10 a.m.

 

We already have our packing done, so we don't have to deal with that tonight. Dinner tonight is in Le Bistro, then probably the farewell show, and it will most likely be an early night for us. Though we won't be in any hurry to get off the ship -- we have to wait for that bus from Providence, which will not be here until at least noon. We'll be the last ones off, for sure!

 

We had a great trip, and are looking forward to the Dawn sailing the Bermuda runs from Boston in 08. We booked our Majesty cruise for July yesterday -- something to look forward to!!

 

The Chocolate buffet was held today; it was mobbed, so we didn't go -- been there, done that!

 

I had heard that the next itinerary had already been changed. Gotta just go with the flow until the engine is fixed. Rumor has it there will be a dry dock in September, not January. BTW, we were offered NO on board credit or any other compensation for our changed itinerary...:cool:

 

Off to get into some trouble before they drag us off the ship!:D

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Welove2cruise2

Welove2cruise2

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The horrible show we went to was NOT Romano Frediani -- he was incredible! He also hosted The Quest. If he's still on board, DO go to see him!

 

We did not receive an on-board credit, presumably because our delay was due to the weather, but we did receive $33.62 +/- off our bill for what I believe was the port charges in San Juan. That was fair, as far as I was concerned!

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thewolffs

thewolffs

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I am presuming it will be the same itinerary as the Majesty (Sunday to Sunday). Yes, she will dock at the dockyards.

 

You don't know how happy that will make me. I've been dying to do the Boston to Bermuda run, but really didn't want to do the Majesty. I really like the bigger, newer ships. Where did you hear this info.?

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