LIVE from the Pacific Princess; 28 days R/T Ft Lauderdale/Manaus/Ft Lauderdale

[envy4u]

Hi Pia......enjoy your cruise and thanks for the "Live". I will be reading it on the Emerald Princess starting Monday. Will also post on that "Live" which has already been started. Sorry I missed seeing you in Florida this time :(

[DonahCBrown]

:) Hi Pia, will be waiting to here how the beds are as well, will be going on the Pacific Princess in Sept/09. This will be are first cruise on a small ship, we did do the old Crown back in I think about 1985 it is the smallest out of all that we have done. I will be watching for all the interesting things you have to say on this ship. We will be on the 8th deck, cabin 8064, I sure hope we made a good choice. We got confirmed dining as soon as we booked, way back in March 2008. Have a great day.

 

Beds are fine, although our obstructed balcony is way in the back and we're getting some vibrations - or maybe I'm just too jet lagged to sleep very well. It is a little bit bumpy, as well.

 

We had a very nice CC gathering today, most of our regulars from the roll call were in attendance, as well as a number of the crew members who were kind enough to drop by and chat - including our very charming Captain!

 

First formal tonight, good port lecture by Hutch on St. Barths and Dominica, came in second in trivia, which was a pretty tough one. Food has been good - lots of seafood choices on the buffet today - and the first of the production show is tonight - Shake, rattle & roll, which seems appropriate as we've been doing a bit of that since last night!

 

I'm sure Pia will be updating this as well, but that's my two cents so far...:)

[Pia1913]

Hi Folks......

 

Checking in just after lunch.

 

We had our first cruise critic meeting this morning and everyone showed up. 100% participation. The Chief Purser, PSD and Captain also attended. The Captain stayed almost the entire time; very personable gentleman. The PSD, Adam from Wales, is also extremely friendly and outgoing. No comment on the Purser because I never got to meet her. I know her name is Terry and she's from Canada.

 

Hutch, the on board lecturer, did his thing this morning on St. Barths. Interesting. I have seen Hutch before and wasn't impressed, but this area seems to be his forte' and he did an outstanding job.

 

We raced to morning trivia which was conflicting with the port talk, and lost by one. Deja vu? (Bill and Meredith will appreciate this)

 

Answers to your questions:

 

1. Yes, the itineraries will be identical coming and going. Sorry......but I don't do photos. I don't even own a camera. My husband videos everything and then edits/transcribes when we get home.

 

2. We have early seating; table for 8. We booked this cruise 2 years ago, so we had instant confirmation. Our other friends booked a bit later, but since our reservations were linked they too were confirmed for early seating. There was quite a line outside the diningroom last night with people who wanted to change. Can't tell you what happened, but I do know there is only one empty cabin on the ship.

 

3. THE BEDS - The report you are waiting for. Yes, the beds are like rocks. Toto..........ultra ultra firm. And this is what I like. Not for everyone, but I did sleep well last night. Of course the ship rocked me to sleep too. :D

 

4. Paul answered your queries regarding the singers, dancers, Luke and Ruth, so I won't duplicate his responses.

 

That's about it for now. Formal night tonight; first captain's cocktail party at 5:30

 

See ya.............

[coo359a2]

Hi Pia,

 

I am glad to hear that you made it safely to the ship. I am looking forward to hearing from you.

 

Send our best to Mike, Tina and Ken, Donna and Dennis, and Vicky and Bill. Wish we were there having dinner with all of you again.

 

Fran

 

Hi Fran and Len

 

Can't believe we made it. ship is a little rock - at least to me it is. So far eveyrhing is aok. Was really great getting to see Vicky and Bill again.

[coo359a2]

Good to see there will be a Live From.

 

Hope you enjoy this great cruise. Rgards to Tina.

 

Bill

 

 

hi Bill

 

We made it and so far everything is great. No complaints from us. Ship rocking a little and put my patch on. Captain said it might settle down later on.

[Toto2Kansas]

3. THE BEDS - The report you are waiting for. Yes, the beds are like rocks. Toto..........ultra ultra firm. And this is what I like. Not for everyone, but I did sleep well last night. Of course the ship rocked me to sleep too. :D

 

.............

 

Thanks Pia, guess I didn't buy that extra memory foam topper for nothing. :) It is definitely going with us next cruise on the Pacific! Thanks to the true answer from you ;).

[GottoCruise]

Hey girlfriend -

Sorry I didn't get a chance to say Bon Voyage!

I had a crazy couple of weeks - Visitors, the freezer 'froze', the showerhead fell off, the oven needed a new door.....(still waiting - the parts are in).

Thanks for your usual fab daily posts!

I'll follow along with you all the way! :)

Renee

[regnig]

Pia many thanks for taking time out from "your" cruise to make it "our" cruise. Between you and Bill (CaptJot) I might as well hire someone to do my housework for me as I haven't a spare minute of time! ;)

 

Enjoy, Barb

[kruisey]

Find out what they do with the surplus dinners that they have no room for in early or late dining????? Thanks Very much Pia........kruisey:)

[paul929207]

Hi Fran and Len

 

Can't believe we made it. ship is a little rock - at least to me it is. So far eveyrhing is aok. Was really great getting to see Vicky and Bill again.

We got off yesterday. It was rocky some the forst two days and as we sailed into Devil's Island.

[coo359a2]

Thanks Pia, guess I didn't buy that extra memory foam topper for nothing. :) It is definitely going with us next cruise on the Pacific! Thanks to the true answer from you ;).

 

Our bed is firm too. Asked for an egg crate. Bed is fine for me as I like it firm.

[Pia1913]

Good morning; sunny and very windy. I think winds are 25 knots. Since there are no real questions, I'll just start yakking away.

 

The remainder of yesterday was uneventful; lost again by one at afternoon trivia. Portent of things to come? :rolleyes:

 

Went to the cocktail party, then to dinner; don't ask me what I ate, but my entire main course was broccoli and asparagus. We all went to the show; Shake Rattle and Roll. Totally different perspective seeing this show on a small ship cabaret style. They did a wonderful job even when the lights went askew and the mics challenged them a bit. Those kids never missed a beat. This show is very intense and I don't know how they manage to do another one only 45 minutes later. I guess the magic word is YOUTH!

 

 

There's a port talk on St. Lucia and Tobago happening now, while I happen to be otherwise occupied. Between my husband and all our friends attending, I'm sure to miss nothing.

 

A few interesting bits:

 

1. They are doing the Captain's Table on this ship and evidentally cannot fill it. They advertised it yesterday and again today.

 

2. There will be a Pub luncheon today and since there's no Wheelhouse here, they'll be using Sabatini's. Much better venue in my estimation. In any event, if all my friends go, I'll go, though there's nothing on that menu of any interest. Except the mashed potatoes. They are good.

 

Our entire group are Elite and thus have received free invites to the wine tasting this afternoon. We usually don't attend. but will today en masse. Should be interesting for this coffee/Pepsi drinker. :)

 

Show tonight will be comedy; Don Ware. Don't know if I've seen him previously; will find out.

 

To Kruisey: You wanted to know what they do with the surplus diners. I guess they feed them to the sharks. Seriously, though, there's enough space for everyone. You will get your table, though maybe not your preferred seating.

 

Captain is speaking now; says temp is 75 degrees.

 

Bye for now.

[paul929207]

Pia,

 

If Nathan is doing the trivia, be sure to know the name of that night's and prev night's show. Names and ages of dancers will likey be asked atsome point. Lauren also used the ages.

 

We saw Don Ware the last night & he was very good.

[Toto2Kansas]

Our bed is firm too. Asked for an egg crate. Bed is fine for me as I like it firm.

 

Thank you for also responding. That makes two that feel the beds are on the firm side. I know, I am a bed nut :), but did you notice if the egg crates are the old thick ones or the new 'almost non-existant' thin ones? That last cruise we sailed on in January about did us in with the beds, and I really am going to plan for the next voyage, if we can make the bed comfy, it will greatly improve the quality of the cruise for us. ;)

 

 

Pia, Thank you also for the reports!

[Sandytoes]

Our entire group are Elite and thus have received free invites to the wine tasting this afternoon. We usually don't attend. but will today en masse.

 

Should be interesting for this coffee/Pepsi drinker.

.

 

Here all along I thought you were a Dos XX beer drinker..... ;)

 

:D

 

Enjoy you cruise Pia!!!! :)

[Mary Ellen]

I do have a question -

 

There were conflicting reports about the attendance at the CC M&G (most were in attendance vs. 100% participation). Did my FIL (Casey) make it? I know he was interested in meeting people, but we've been concerned that he'd forgotten (since I was the one posting for him on the roll call). His friend was the one who had in the Peace Corps in Brazil and speaks Portuguese.

[Francine]

Hi Pia, Tina and Donna,

It is good to hear from all of you.

What is the Pub luncheon? It is a while since we have sailed with Princess - November, 2007 (Holy Land on Royal). I don't remember hearing about a Pub Luncheon.

Sorry about the trivia losses. Are you all playing as a team?

Fran

[kathe]

We were on the Royal last year for this cruise and it was my favorite.We stayed an extra 5 days at the Hotel Tropical and loved it.DO NOT miss the tour to the Flooded Forrest we did a private tour which was great.Kathe

[Lynda90]

Hi Pia, thank you so much for your "live" thread. Will look forward to travel with you as you share your cruise with us. You always do such a great job with the "live" threads and I will look forward to all your posts!

 

Hi to Donna and Tina, too! :p:p

[ShibaInuMom]

Pia, happy cruising. I will read your thread everyday since we are sailing on the Pacific Princess in June, want to find out as much as I can. You mentioned a Captain's table - did you mean Chef's table? I had heard that the Pacific did not offer this. Do you know what the additional cost is? Tell me about the coffee in the dining room, is it drinkable? Also, do you prefer the breakfast buffet or the dining room? As you can see...food is important to me. Have fun!!!:)

[caribill]

What is the Pub luncheon? It is a while since we have sailed with Princess - November, 2007 (Holy Land on Royal). I don't remember hearing about a Pub Luncheon.

 

 

 

From an October, 2008 press release:

Wheelhouse Bar Pub Lunch -- On sea days, the Wheelhouse Bar will be transformed into an authentic English-style pub, serving a selection of traditional fare. A menu of British favorites, including bangers & mash, fish & chips, ploughman's lunch and cottage pie, will complement a selection of traditional pub brews such as Stella Artois, Bass Ale or Guinness. Pub lunch meal service is free of charge and will run from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

 

 

(The brews are not free.)

[Eaglecw]

PIA,

I hope your having a wonderful time!!

 

How are the rooms on the 4th deck mis ship around the Medical center? Can you check them out and report back?

[paul929207]

Pia, happy cruising. I will read your thread everyday since we are sailing on the Pacific Princess in June, want to find out as much as I can. You mentioned a Captain's table - did you mean Chef's table? I had heard that the Pacific did not offer this. Do you know what the additional cost is? Tell me about the coffee in the dining room, is it drinkable? Also, do you prefer the breakfast buffet or the dining room? As you can see...food is important to me. Have fun!!!:)

We go off the Pacific last week and they did have the Chef's Table dinner. It was $75/person.

[SkiCruiser44]

Which cabin are you in? How bad are the vibrations?

[paul929207]

Which cabin are you in? How bad are the vibrations?

We were in 7041 and had no problem with vibrations.