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twangster

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  1. Haha
    twangster got a reaction from IslandBoundMama in ​​​​​​​Empress 8 Night Eastern Caribbean ?​​​​​​​ Oops, I Booked it Again ?​​​​​​​   
    Here you go...


    I was going to call these Cloud Porn but that didn't sound very good so we'll just call them cloud pictures
    I didn't ride anything this time.  I talked to the Thrill Water Park Manager and obtained special permission to take some pictures.  I've got a Water Park pass for my next visit on Navigator already purchased so now I can just go on that and enjoy the rides without the need to take pictures.
  2. Love
    twangster got a reaction from Ala_Paul in ​​​​​​​Empress 8 Night Eastern Caribbean ?​​​​​​​ Oops, I Booked it Again ?​​​​​​​   
    All aboard for Empress was 2:30pm so we could make San Juan by 3pm after a sea day. 
    Around 2:45pm as I wandered up to deck 11 to take in sail away I heard the announcement -   "Would the following guest make their way to guest services...".  Not one, or two or five or eight but ten guests were about to become Mariner passengers.  Then came the ship's whistle several times.
    Looking down from deck 11 I could see Julie our Hotel Director and Jorge our Guest Services Manager on the pier.


    Pier runners!  At 2:47pm five guests came running up the pier.  

    At 2:53pm a golf cart delivered the remaining guests.  Finally we could leave.  With a brief horn exchange with Mariner we were off.

    A last look back at Mariner and Perfect Day at CocoCay.


    I needed to ensure they still had ample Guinness on board so I headed to the Schooner Bar. 

    They have the Heineken draught beer machine out for this sailing.  It's a self contained countertop beer cooler and dispenser since Empress doesn't have permanent taps.

  3. Love
    twangster got a reaction from Ala_Paul in ​​​​​​​Empress 8 Night Eastern Caribbean ?​​​​​​​ Oops, I Booked it Again ?​​​​​​​   
    Snorkelling was fun but it was for some Snack Shack.

    Juice choices today.

    A Shack Crispy Chicken Sandwich, Mozzarella Sticks with Marinara sauce and a Funnel Cake for dessert.  Yum.

    Over to Oasis Lagoon for a Margarita.



    It's so nice having a pool to jump into.

  4. Like
    twangster got a reaction from spiralqueen in ​​​​​​​Empress 8 Night Eastern Caribbean ?​​​​​​​ Oops, I Booked it Again ?​​​​​​​   
    I went back to the ship to drop off my camera stuff and grab my snorkel gear.  It's so nice having a pier now at CocoCay.

    They were handing out cards to remind people of our 2:30pm all aboard time.

    While going up the stairs to my cabin I found the wireless link that ties the ship network to CocoCay.


    It wasn't hard to find a 2nd row lounger for my stuff while I snorkelled.







    The Sergeant Majors were pretty friendly today.



    This part of CocoCay still resembles the CocoCay of old for folks who just want a chill beach day.


  5. Like
    twangster got a reaction from spiralqueen in ​​​​​​​Empress 8 Night Eastern Caribbean ?​​​​​​​ Oops, I Booked it Again ?​​​​​​​   
    From my last stop I posted a bunch of CocoCay pictures in that thread so I'm not going to repeat those here, but I did pop into the Thrill Water Park to check it out.  If you want to see my other CocoCay pictures check out the thread URL I posted in the first post.



    Royal has done a really nice job with this area as well as the rest of CocoCay.  Plenty of loungers, picnic tables and space to spread out.

    Lots of complimentary lockers are available.


    Even the restrooms are done up nice.


    The wave pool has lots of loungers available




    Thrill Water Park Cabanas are found in a couple of areas.  Here are some on the sides of the wave pool.

    Thrill Water Park has its own Snack Shack.



    Some of these slides require you carry a mat or tube up with you.  The Sling Shot uses a conveyor system to lift the raft to the top for you.


    More Cabanas near the slide pool.



    The Adventure pool has these floating rope courses.  Based on what I saw they are harder than they look, but fun.




    Daredevil's Tower is amazing.








    Just Wow!
    I can't wait to check these out on my next visit on Navigator in a few weeks.  I've already bought a zip line and Thrill Water Park combo pass.

  6. Like
    twangster got a reaction from Ala_Paul in ​​​​​​​Empress 8 Night Eastern Caribbean ?​​​​​​​ Oops, I Booked it Again ?​​​​​​​   
    Day 2 - CocoCay
    I woke and discovered we were already here and tied up to the pier early.

    Mariner is with us today.  The NCL Sky was sailing past on her way to anchor at GSC next door.


    Live music to greet us this morning.


    I think it's going to be a Perfect Day.

  7. Like
    twangster got a reaction from Deedeelynn in ​​​​​​​Empress 8 Night Eastern Caribbean ?​​​​​​​ Oops, I Booked it Again ?​​​​​​​   
    Dinner at Chops
    I was offered a window table but they were pretty busy so I chose one row back so someone else can enjoy the windows this time.  Still a great view.

    Bread of course.

    Wedge Salad.

    Beef Carpaccio. 

    The 16 oz. bone in.  Yum.

    The sundae again.

  8. Like
    twangster got a reaction from Ala_Paul in ​​​​​​​Empress 8 Night Eastern Caribbean ?​​​​​​​ Oops, I Booked it Again ?​​​​​​​   
    Crown and Anchor sail away party deck 6 aft, Diamond and higher.

    I ran into the IT Manager and asked him if his O3b upgrade came through.  Nope.  The contractors I saw working are doing some routine maintenance replacing some components with a goal to improve reception when one set of antennas is blocked.  That's an issue at CocoCay with other larger ships beside us - they block one set of satellite antennas.  
    We talked about Voom and I learned a few new things.  Empress shares transponders with a few other ships.  Navigator and Mariner use the same transponder.  Other groups of ships share different transponders.  For this legacy satellite system a different satellite covers the Western Caribbean compared to the Eastern Caribbean.  We'll use the same satellite for the entirety of this cruise.  On the last cruise in the Western Caribbean we switched satellites during the cruise.  
    In terms of rain fade he pointed out something I should have thought of.  What goes up must come down.  Speedcast and O3b have their primary earth station in Miami.  Our data traffic comes down in Miami as a gateway to reach the internet.  If Miami is encountering bad weather like a line of strong thunderstorms that can impact every ships Voom even if the ships are in sunny skies a thousand miles away.  It was obvious when he said it but I had never thought about it.
    The bridge has some data feeds that use a different satellite platform but if the Captain wants to stream Netflix in his cabin that uses the same Voom the rest of us use.
    With the darkening skies over Miami as we pulled out I wonder if some ship somewhere is experiencing a Voom slow down.



    Rain moving in.  Time to move to the Schooner Bar.

  9. Haha
    twangster got a reaction from Ala_Paul in ​​​​​​​Empress 8 Night Eastern Caribbean ?​​​​​​​ Oops, I Booked it Again ?​​​​​​​   
    Another hidden discovery is that Wow! bands can be used to access your cabin.

    Unfortunately when used in this fashion anyone on the ship can use your Wow! band to access your cabin.

    Okay, that's a lame joke but I was enjoying drinks at the Schooner Bar up to this point...
  10. Like
    twangster got a reaction from Ala_Paul in ​​​​​​​Empress 8 Night Eastern Caribbean ?​​​​​​​ Oops, I Booked it Again ?​​​​​​​   
    Cabin Tour!
    As we waited for cabins to become available at 1:30pm I was waiting in the elevator lobby near my cabin.  As the hall door was opened by crew moving luggage, James my new cabin attendant spotted me.  He was servicing the block of cabins right beside my last cabin so he recognized me.  He waved me through telling me my cabin was ready.  Nice touch.
    Junior Suite 9600 Starboard.

    This JS is the reverse layout from my last JS.

    Pretty much identical with the same "efficient" bathroom and shower.


    Walk in closet.

    I waited until we had left the port to take balcony pictures.  This cabin is the most forward JS on deck 9 so the balcony doesn't have a divider on the forward side.  You do lose a small corner and the elevator lobby can see this balcony but the forward view is better.
    The better sea views can also be enjoyed when sitting on the sofa inside the cabin.



    The pool deck above narrows so the overhang is slightly smaller.  The view aft.

    The view down.

    Something I forgot to mention in my last Empress thread are the USB outlets.  They are found on the bottom of the lights on each side of the bed.  It's a great hidden feature.


    It's really nice having USB outlets on both sides of the bed.

  11. Like
    twangster got a reaction from Ala_Paul in ​​​​​​​Empress 8 Night Eastern Caribbean ?​​​​​​​ Oops, I Booked it Again ?​​​​​​​   
    Guilford the Inventory Manager came through for me.  On my last cruise he promised there would be Guinness and it was there waiting for me.

    Some of the other beers available.

    Some of the wines available.

    Empress has a Coffee Shop near the entrance within Boleros.

  12. Like
    twangster got a reaction from Guy Gadwa in ​​​​​​​Empress 8 Night Eastern Caribbean ?​​​​​​​ Oops, I Booked it Again ?​​​​​​​   
    Welcome aboard cake.

    Up on deck 11 I noted they were working on the satellite antennas.

    The nature of the internet interruptions I experienced on the last cruise had the feeling of maybe an amplifier or LNB overheating and failing before coming back into service.  I'm hoping this new component might help.

    Who knew two full grown men could fit into the dome?  They were contractors on the ship for the day.

    In this Miami heat it's got to be hot in there.
  13. Like
    twangster got a reaction from Skigoofy in ​​​​​​​Empress 8 Night Eastern Caribbean ?​​​​​​​ Oops, I Booked it Again ?​​​​​​​   
    Day 1 Embarkation
    A first glimpse of Empress at Terminal G from my Uber.

    Terminal G


    The entrance to the building normally has some signage but in this early hour you had to know where to go.

    Terminal G check in area.

    Suites and Pinnacles have a small waiting lounge.

    Boarding started at 10:45am.  

    Woohoo!  I am officially on a cruise!

  14. Like
    twangster got a reaction from Guy Gadwa in ​​​​​​​Empress 8 Night Eastern Caribbean ?​​​​​​​ Oops, I Booked it Again ?​​​​​​​   
    Here you go...


    I was going to call these Cloud Porn but that didn't sound very good so we'll just call them cloud pictures
    I didn't ride anything this time.  I talked to the Thrill Water Park Manager and obtained special permission to take some pictures.  I've got a Water Park pass for my next visit on Navigator already purchased so now I can just go on that and enjoy the rides without the need to take pictures.
  15. Like
    twangster got a reaction from Guy Gadwa in ​​​​​​​Empress 8 Night Eastern Caribbean ?​​​​​​​ Oops, I Booked it Again ?​​​​​​​   
    Snorkelling was fun but it was for some Snack Shack.

    Juice choices today.

    A Shack Crispy Chicken Sandwich, Mozzarella Sticks with Marinara sauce and a Funnel Cake for dessert.  Yum.

    Over to Oasis Lagoon for a Margarita.



    It's so nice having a pool to jump into.

  16. Like
    twangster got a reaction from Deedeelynn in ​​​​​​​Empress 8 Night Eastern Caribbean ?​​​​​​​ Oops, I Booked it Again ?​​​​​​​   
    The end of day 2 finds us at sea on our way towards San Juan.
    I was sitting in Boleros enjoying some latin music with a glass of wine when I noticed a sunset happening behind us.


    Our progress so far...

  17. Like
    twangster got a reaction from JohnK6404 in ​​​​​​​Empress 8 Night Eastern Caribbean ?​​​​​​​ Oops, I Booked it Again ?​​​​​​​   
    Here you go...


    I was going to call these Cloud Porn but that didn't sound very good so we'll just call them cloud pictures
    I didn't ride anything this time.  I talked to the Thrill Water Park Manager and obtained special permission to take some pictures.  I've got a Water Park pass for my next visit on Navigator already purchased so now I can just go on that and enjoy the rides without the need to take pictures.
  18. Like
    twangster got a reaction from Guy Gadwa in ​​​​​​​Empress 8 Night Eastern Caribbean ?​​​​​​​ Oops, I Booked it Again ?​​​​​​​   
    All aboard for Empress was 2:30pm so we could make San Juan by 3pm after a sea day. 
    Around 2:45pm as I wandered up to deck 11 to take in sail away I heard the announcement -   "Would the following guest make their way to guest services...".  Not one, or two or five or eight but ten guests were about to become Mariner passengers.  Then came the ship's whistle several times.
    Looking down from deck 11 I could see Julie our Hotel Director and Jorge our Guest Services Manager on the pier.


    Pier runners!  At 2:47pm five guests came running up the pier.  

    At 2:53pm a golf cart delivered the remaining guests.  Finally we could leave.  With a brief horn exchange with Mariner we were off.

    A last look back at Mariner and Perfect Day at CocoCay.


    I needed to ensure they still had ample Guinness on board so I headed to the Schooner Bar. 

    They have the Heineken draught beer machine out for this sailing.  It's a self contained countertop beer cooler and dispenser since Empress doesn't have permanent taps.

  19. Like
    twangster got a reaction from Lovetocruise2002 in ​​​​​​​Empress 8 Night Eastern Caribbean ?​​​​​​​ Oops, I Booked it Again ?​​​​​​​   
    Snorkelling was fun but it was for some Snack Shack.

    Juice choices today.

    A Shack Crispy Chicken Sandwich, Mozzarella Sticks with Marinara sauce and a Funnel Cake for dessert.  Yum.

    Over to Oasis Lagoon for a Margarita.



    It's so nice having a pool to jump into.

  20. Like
    twangster got a reaction from JLMoran in ​​​​​​​Empress 8 Night Eastern Caribbean ?​​​​​​​ Oops, I Booked it Again ?​​​​​​​   
    Snorkelling was fun but it was for some Snack Shack.

    Juice choices today.

    A Shack Crispy Chicken Sandwich, Mozzarella Sticks with Marinara sauce and a Funnel Cake for dessert.  Yum.

    Over to Oasis Lagoon for a Margarita.



    It's so nice having a pool to jump into.

  21. Like
    twangster got a reaction from IslandBoundMama in ​​​​​​​Empress 8 Night Eastern Caribbean ?​​​​​​​ Oops, I Booked it Again ?​​​​​​​   
    I went back to the ship to drop off my camera stuff and grab my snorkel gear.  It's so nice having a pier now at CocoCay.

    They were handing out cards to remind people of our 2:30pm all aboard time.

    While going up the stairs to my cabin I found the wireless link that ties the ship network to CocoCay.


    It wasn't hard to find a 2nd row lounger for my stuff while I snorkelled.







    The Sergeant Majors were pretty friendly today.



    This part of CocoCay still resembles the CocoCay of old for folks who just want a chill beach day.


  22. Like
    twangster got a reaction from Cruzinfun in ​​​​​​​Empress 8 Night Eastern Caribbean ?​​​​​​​ Oops, I Booked it Again ?​​​​​​​   
    Day 2 - CocoCay
    I woke and discovered we were already here and tied up to the pier early.

    Mariner is with us today.  The NCL Sky was sailing past on her way to anchor at GSC next door.


    Live music to greet us this morning.


    I think it's going to be a Perfect Day.

  23. Haha
    twangster got a reaction from Guy Gadwa in ​​​​​​​Empress 8 Night Eastern Caribbean ?​​​​​​​ Oops, I Booked it Again ?​​​​​​​   
    Another hidden discovery is that Wow! bands can be used to access your cabin.

    Unfortunately when used in this fashion anyone on the ship can use your Wow! band to access your cabin.

    Okay, that's a lame joke but I was enjoying drinks at the Schooner Bar up to this point...
  24. Like
    twangster got a reaction from monctonguy in ​​​​​​​Empress 8 Night Eastern Caribbean ?​​​​​​​ Oops, I Booked it Again ?​​​​​​​   
    All aboard for Empress was 2:30pm so we could make San Juan by 3pm after a sea day. 
    Around 2:45pm as I wandered up to deck 11 to take in sail away I heard the announcement -   "Would the following guest make their way to guest services...".  Not one, or two or five or eight but ten guests were about to become Mariner passengers.  Then came the ship's whistle several times.
    Looking down from deck 11 I could see Julie our Hotel Director and Jorge our Guest Services Manager on the pier.


    Pier runners!  At 2:47pm five guests came running up the pier.  

    At 2:53pm a golf cart delivered the remaining guests.  Finally we could leave.  With a brief horn exchange with Mariner we were off.

    A last look back at Mariner and Perfect Day at CocoCay.


    I needed to ensure they still had ample Guinness on board so I headed to the Schooner Bar. 

    They have the Heineken draught beer machine out for this sailing.  It's a self contained countertop beer cooler and dispenser since Empress doesn't have permanent taps.

  25. Like
    twangster got a reaction from The Cruise Junkie in ​​​​​​​Empress 8 Night Eastern Caribbean ?​​​​​​​ Oops, I Booked it Again ?​​​​​​​   
    Snorkelling was fun but it was for some Snack Shack.

    Juice choices today.

    A Shack Crispy Chicken Sandwich, Mozzarella Sticks with Marinara sauce and a Funnel Cake for dessert.  Yum.

    Over to Oasis Lagoon for a Margarita.



    It's so nice having a pool to jump into.

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