asquared17

on my way to our final dinner at — you guessed it — hola tacos. 

i’ve never gone to dinner before without being packed beforehand.

i’ve also never re-worn multiple dinner outfits before because we’re repeating.

but then again i’ve never eaten like i have this week.

my dad: you should go somewhere 

me: where would i even go??

dad: somewhere. anywhere. you’ve been sitting there for four hours. 

me: i’m a sun sloth.

i don’t know that we’ve ever had such nice weather on the final day at sea before. what a treat

12 minutes ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

In the end, Hubby and I chalked it up to the difference between a European cruise line vs. North American cruise lines (what we are used to).

well said.

14 minutes ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

The best food we all week was the gelatos and lunches on YC sun deck.

we all said this morning how nice it was to eat breakfast and lunch at One Pool aka the YC sundeck. the crew has been excellent, extremely kind and helpful — it’s not them at all. there’s just a disconnect between the food and what we are used to, i suppose. 

there are people on board doing multiple YC cruises and B2Bs and i’m like…. how on EARTH. i would simply STARVE. 

i began the morning with my usual cheese omelette and two hash brown silver dollars, and…. a mimosa

i will miss that after tomorrow i guess this is what people do when they kick off their days with mimosas though it’s not a bad way to live. 

yesterday and today we continue to discover things that could happen, culinary wise. apparently they can make avocado toast and GF pancakes by request. 

because my mom did not request in advance, the crew member went down to deck 5 to make her pancakes and came back afterwards. he was so kind and so happy to do it; we definitely tipped him extra which he did not want to take and we made him do it. he also got me grapefruit the past two days  

there are also sweet potato fries by request at lunch!!!!

we are now on the sundeck; i continue to sun sloth and work my way through many books. 

a siren has been going off endlessly for at least a minute — i believe this is the noise it makes when they open their solarium. a bit jarring although… can anyone put a price on safety?

SPEAKING of safety — the PA went off at 2:39 this morning, asking a guest to immediately show up to guest services. 

pineapple gone wrong? 

unsure. 

33 minutes ago, Ampurp85 said:

A full ice cream cone melting on the floor is heathen behavior.

you said it, my friend. 

and leaving the suites area is a a free for all  

exhibit a, last night:

abandoned. 

i’ve seen a lot of sketch food items along my cruising travels, but this may just take the cake. 

what a fine time to be curled up with a good book back in your cabin with a brand new cozy sweatshirt.

dessert was excellent, by the way — the flan wins again. the dulce de leche was not my favorite, but i’m not a big dessert person. 

bonus sparkle stairs as they are my favorite scattered about the ship

i would pit this against sabor AND say that it’s better than sabor tbh. 

while i do miss the churros, the rest of it is outstanding and the queso fundido is excellent. 

the chicken tacos were excellent. i could have eaten six of them

so stack this firmly in the WIN category for MSC. 

FEAST!!!!

nachos 

 tostada salad

QUESO!!!!! fundido!!!!

so good chicken tacos - subbed pico out for the red pickled onions

quesadilla and chicken enchiladas 

as you may have guessed…. i did the all you can eat option again

next up, flan!

25 minutes ago, OCSC Mike said:

but a lot easier to do at home where I have a nice little grid of all the showtimes.

this is why i now travel with a numbers grid for all cruise fares that i can access on my phone because i need to keep track of the price drops

omg. the bartender just came over from the cantina bar with a tray of drinks for us

that we did not even order

he said, “i did not know what you are drinking but thought you could start with this.”

BY GOD THERE IS SOME DECENCY LEFT ON THIS SHIP

1 hour ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

Too bad you aren't on the the August sailing a few months later. We are doing Silhouette too next year, but Iceland.

that sounds beautiful and… cold. i am a hot weather cruiser although would love to sail with you guys!!!

5 hours ago, OCSC Mike said:

That looks plain enough for my wife, lol. Anything in those eggs?

i put some cheddar in there but they will make plain and also scrambled if preferred. 

4 hours ago, lovetheplaya said:

I LOOKED but I can't be away for 8 nights with kids in school... 

RUDE. those dang freeloaders. 

1 hour ago, SMOKEY0202 said:

Should we ask what the dinner menu tonight was that is horrible.

interestingly enough, we are not the only YC family here this evening… so what does that tell you

1 hour ago, SMOKEY0202 said:

I do like other options that aren't pricey and are good.  People rave about the tacos.

 so far everything has been good here (thank god) and i will get some tacos tonight to try as well. my dad loved his steak taco but it was quite small so you really can stock up if need be.

it should go without saying, but… i’m starving.

i need a margarita, STAT

the verdict is in — we are doing hola tacos again tonite. 

i spy some biscuits on that plate… hope they were good 

1 hour ago, OCSC Mike said:

The gelato shop just kept giving us samples without us asking. I’m not an aficionado like @asquared17 but it all tasted pretty darn good to me.

 

STRATCH! my FAVORITE!!!!!!!! oh how i LOVE stracciatella

2 minutes ago, ScottD said:

But nothing on the app or anything like that. 

and they weirdly lock you out of the app until you’re on ship wifi - then your access in the app changes completely and you can see things. it’s bizarre. 

also they’ve been changing menus around which has caused general confusion all around. 

and no one is enthused for dinner tonite…

also!!! the fares dropped again for the may 2 2026 silhouette sailing for any takers

breakfast of champions + BYOC (not pictured.)

43 minutes ago, ScottD said:

Are you able to eat at the regular MDR if you choose? I assume they have different meals each night than the YC does

i’m sure you could although it would probably defeat the purpose of the YC.

it was recommended that it would be easier to ask the chef if they could make something else or give them a heads up earlier in the day so they can have it from the MDR to prepare it for YC dinner. 

which is not a bad idea, and now i am off to peruse the MDR menus

39 minutes ago, PPPJJ-GCVAB said:

So I have to ask…how has this week been for your parents?  Are they loving/liking the ship or more on your level with having both pros and cons?  What is their opinion on the food choices…and have they ventured off the ship with or without you during port stops?

peggi you are so good now i am extra jealous that you can’t come on our sailing next may

i think they have been careful not to voice too many cons to me because they can tell i am on the fence. 

my mom is most affected with food choices — she is gluten free (but not celiac) and needs to steer mostly clear of dairy. she tried fish two or three times this week in YC and it wasn’t…. good. so she has been struggling a bit more. 

we are all sort of at odds when it comes to that snacktime period between lunch and dinner.

she eats a salad for lunch at 12 on the nose and is ready to eat dinner again at 5 for that reason. 

i typically eat around 1pm during the week so that’s a hard push for me. we had hola last night around 6:30 which was perfect because after we walk around (ie for a short time and then back to the YC enclave) we’re in for the night. 

the crowds and noise are especially noticeable IF you spend most of the time in the YC. so it just seems kind of overwhelming, especially for my dad, who, as he is getting older,  struggles to hear/differentiate noise when there’s so much of it. 

the ship layout is also a challenge; so it’s not even like there’s one place where you can people watch like the promenade. we tried the lounge that @ScottD mentioned last night but the live music was quite bustling — which is GREAT!!! — we are just boring as heck

they went ashore at nassau and PR. not for any extended period of time, but my dad loves to get ship pictures and my mom loves walk and shop. 

fun fact, my dad was a professional photographer and got some nice shots yesterday in PR.

2 minutes ago, OCSC Mike said:

Gee thanks! My wife’s rechargeable bedside fan is going in the extra room I have in my suitcase this summer for sure!

mine stays plugged in the entire week just to keep the air moving around in the cabin. 15/10 recommend!!!!!

10 hours ago, Ampurp85 said:

How was the spice level? I see pico and jalapenos, but you never know. 

spice level was fine; you can get different levels of spicy salsa. we got a chipotle something or other which was smoky and good. nothing overly spicy. 

10 hours ago, Ampurp85 said:

Also, I LOVE THE PANTS!!!!

But I would have kept the pockets. I understand you wanting a slimmer silhouette, but they were great pants with the pockets. 

yay!!!! thank you!!!!

and the pockets are still in there!!!!! i guess i have to return to the tailor so weird!!

in our way to hola last night, i was pulling the waistband away from me to see if what i was feeling was the pockets and my mother was extremely alarmed like “HELLO WHAT ARE YOU DOING” and i was all indignant - “THERE ARE STILL POCKETS IN HERE!”

it was a scene and i hadn’t even had any margaritas yet

9 hours ago, PPPJJ-GCVAB said:

Love the color and style of your outfit!  You wear your clothes very well!  

Now a confession:
Ok…don’t mind me…it’s late and my eyes are tired BUT I had to zoom in on your pants because for just a brief moment…..I thought the pattern was….upside down pineapples !

OMG!!!!!!!

can you IMAGINE!!!!!!

1 hour ago, InmyElement said:

+1 I don't have my glasses on and thought the same thing..  you'd get some great looks and they'd be calling you "pineapple pants"

omg BETRAYAL YOU GUYS

1 hour ago, InmyElement said:

Thanks for the pics..the food looks so good!

hola tacos single-handedly saved my life this week. there’s a very good chance i will return this evening bc if the app is to be trusted, NONE of the dinner options appeal.