Ken23

^^^ Truer words could not be spoken. We all share this love for cruising that goes beyond “normal” that most people just can’t understand. That’s the common thread right there. I only “virtually” knew everyone prior to this sailing but when meeting some of them, I felt like we were old friends ?

Great live blog @Lovetocruise2002.  It was fun to read all 18 pages of this live blog post being on this cruise.
Not meaning to hijack, but a few of my random thoughts.
It was fantastic meeting everyone on the Group Cruise.  One of my favorite cruises so far...by far having 80+ other groupies to hang with was fun.
As has been mentioned about eating in the Two70 Cafe is a hidden gem...the Solarium Bistro is another great place to avoid big crowds.
One funny moment was on day 2 or 3 I was eating dinner up there, and I get a notification on my phone of @Matt doing a live periscope, and I look around the small room, and two other tables were listening in.
Where ever I would go, I would usually see a friendly face, or a red MEI lanyard (thanks @AnnetteJackson .)
As mentioned, the flow of people is not very good, especially around the Royal Theater.  What made it worse, there were major shows/events scheduled when a major show ended, and another event started in 10 or 15 minutes afterwards.  People trying to get in (and blocking the hallways) while the theater was letting out.
Also noticed a few shows/events that started 10-15 (one was 20 or 25) late.  I don't remember this happening so often on my previous cruises.
Being on three Voyager class ships in the past, Anthem my new largest ship...I did miss the openness of a promenade.  
Looking forward to joining more group cruises in the future.

I really like the battery operated tea lights so you don't take up any electrical outlets and can put them wherever you need some more light.  You can get a package of them pretty cheap at Walmart or on Amazon and put them in various places around your cabin.  Even the paintings on the wall stick out about 1" so they make a good spot to put a couple on the top edge, and it casts a soft glow on the wall and ceiling.  We had about four of them lit up each night, and switched them off in the morning.

Great memory!  This is all the group cruises - so far.
How does the GC get decided - Matt and myself work together to find a cruise that works with his schedule, my schedule, but more importantly has interesting ports of call - something different.  Sometimes there are several cruises that are held while we decide or wait to see what else is released by Royal.
If can look at times that the boards, insiders, and comments to him will help make his decision, but in all the years we have worked on these group cruises - that really hasn't swayed him.  Ultimately, he will do two GC a year, and he decides when he has all the factors that he is waiting on from Royal on ships and where they will be sailing.

It's a complex algorithm that factors in a lot of data points that exceeds the capacity of many of us to fathom.
It's called the Marisa methodology.    

Maybe if it's raining, I'll get lucky enough to get a deck chair by the pool! Unless somebody is saving them with rain ponchos.

Probably the same guy telling people they shouldn't wear shorts in the MDR!

This.
It never ends well, never mind the fact no guest is in a position to tell other guests what to do.

Great live blog @Lovetocruise2002.  It was fun to read all 18 pages of this live blog post being on this cruise.
Not meaning to hijack, but a few of my random thoughts.
It was fantastic meeting everyone on the Group Cruise.  One of my favorite cruises so far...by far having 80+ other groupies to hang with was fun.
As has been mentioned about eating in the Two70 Cafe is a hidden gem...the Solarium Bistro is another great place to avoid big crowds.
One funny moment was on day 2 or 3 I was eating dinner up there, and I get a notification on my phone of @Matt doing a live periscope, and I look around the small room, and two other tables were listening in.
Where ever I would go, I would usually see a friendly face, or a red MEI lanyard (thanks @AnnetteJackson .)
As mentioned, the flow of people is not very good, especially around the Royal Theater.  What made it worse, there were major shows/events scheduled when a major show ended, and another event started in 10 or 15 minutes afterwards.  People trying to get in (and blocking the hallways) while the theater was letting out.
Also noticed a few shows/events that started 10-15 (one was 20 or 25) late.  I don't remember this happening so often on my previous cruises.
Being on three Voyager class ships in the past, Anthem my new largest ship...I did miss the openness of a promenade.  
Looking forward to joining more group cruises in the future.

I'm less worried about seeing someone in sandals than I am about seeing someone in "Nope, I don't own a mirror" skimpy pajamas. The only cruise that we have been on was another cruise line(Carni---) and there was a verrry large and confident woman rocking her extra small Winnie the pooh shorts and crop top jammies walking through the buffet.

I know but I was trying to be considerate and give Hubby some other options.  ?

@Lovetocruise2002 thinking of eating somewhere other than CK?  I'm shocked.  Not very on brand for the President of #TeamCK! ?

Going through some pics this morning and realized that some never made it in. 

Great live blog @Lovetocruise2002.  It was fun to read all 18 pages of this live blog post being on this cruise.
Not meaning to hijack, but a few of my random thoughts.
It was fantastic meeting everyone on the Group Cruise.  One of my favorite cruises so far...by far having 80+ other groupies to hang with was fun.
As has been mentioned about eating in the Two70 Cafe is a hidden gem...the Solarium Bistro is another great place to avoid big crowds.
One funny moment was on day 2 or 3 I was eating dinner up there, and I get a notification on my phone of @Matt doing a live periscope, and I look around the small room, and two other tables were listening in.
Where ever I would go, I would usually see a friendly face, or a red MEI lanyard (thanks @AnnetteJackson .)
As mentioned, the flow of people is not very good, especially around the Royal Theater.  What made it worse, there were major shows/events scheduled when a major show ended, and another event started in 10 or 15 minutes afterwards.  People trying to get in (and blocking the hallways) while the theater was letting out.
Also noticed a few shows/events that started 10-15 (one was 20 or 25) late.  I don't remember this happening so often on my previous cruises.
Being on three Voyager class ships in the past, Anthem my new largest ship...I did miss the openness of a promenade.  
Looking forward to joining more group cruises in the future.

Man am I old and not tech savvy! 
When I first read this thread title,  I thought it was a new term for a travel agent!
I'm serious! ?

Great live blog @Lovetocruise2002.  It was fun to read all 18 pages of this live blog post being on this cruise.
Not meaning to hijack, but a few of my random thoughts.
It was fantastic meeting everyone on the Group Cruise.  One of my favorite cruises so far...by far having 80+ other groupies to hang with was fun.
As has been mentioned about eating in the Two70 Cafe is a hidden gem...the Solarium Bistro is another great place to avoid big crowds.
One funny moment was on day 2 or 3 I was eating dinner up there, and I get a notification on my phone of @Matt doing a live periscope, and I look around the small room, and two other tables were listening in.
Where ever I would go, I would usually see a friendly face, or a red MEI lanyard (thanks @AnnetteJackson .)
As mentioned, the flow of people is not very good, especially around the Royal Theater.  What made it worse, there were major shows/events scheduled when a major show ended, and another event started in 10 or 15 minutes afterwards.  People trying to get in (and blocking the hallways) while the theater was letting out.
Also noticed a few shows/events that started 10-15 (one was 20 or 25) late.  I don't remember this happening so often on my previous cruises.
Being on three Voyager class ships in the past, Anthem my new largest ship...I did miss the openness of a promenade.  
Looking forward to joining more group cruises in the future.

Great live blog @Lovetocruise2002.  It was fun to read all 18 pages of this live blog post being on this cruise.
Not meaning to hijack, but a few of my random thoughts.
It was fantastic meeting everyone on the Group Cruise.  One of my favorite cruises so far...by far having 80+ other groupies to hang with was fun.
As has been mentioned about eating in the Two70 Cafe is a hidden gem...the Solarium Bistro is another great place to avoid big crowds.
One funny moment was on day 2 or 3 I was eating dinner up there, and I get a notification on my phone of @Matt doing a live periscope, and I look around the small room, and two other tables were listening in.
Where ever I would go, I would usually see a friendly face, or a red MEI lanyard (thanks @AnnetteJackson .)
As mentioned, the flow of people is not very good, especially around the Royal Theater.  What made it worse, there were major shows/events scheduled when a major show ended, and another event started in 10 or 15 minutes afterwards.  People trying to get in (and blocking the hallways) while the theater was letting out.
Also noticed a few shows/events that started 10-15 (one was 20 or 25) late.  I don't remember this happening so often on my previous cruises.
Being on three Voyager class ships in the past, Anthem my new largest ship...I did miss the openness of a promenade.  
Looking forward to joining more group cruises in the future.

Great live blog @Lovetocruise2002.  It was fun to read all 18 pages of this live blog post being on this cruise.
Not meaning to hijack, but a few of my random thoughts.
It was fantastic meeting everyone on the Group Cruise.  One of my favorite cruises so far...by far having 80+ other groupies to hang with was fun.
As has been mentioned about eating in the Two70 Cafe is a hidden gem...the Solarium Bistro is another great place to avoid big crowds.
One funny moment was on day 2 or 3 I was eating dinner up there, and I get a notification on my phone of @Matt doing a live periscope, and I look around the small room, and two other tables were listening in.
Where ever I would go, I would usually see a friendly face, or a red MEI lanyard (thanks @AnnetteJackson .)
As mentioned, the flow of people is not very good, especially around the Royal Theater.  What made it worse, there were major shows/events scheduled when a major show ended, and another event started in 10 or 15 minutes afterwards.  People trying to get in (and blocking the hallways) while the theater was letting out.
Also noticed a few shows/events that started 10-15 (one was 20 or 25) late.  I don't remember this happening so often on my previous cruises.
Being on three Voyager class ships in the past, Anthem my new largest ship...I did miss the openness of a promenade.  
Looking forward to joining more group cruises in the future.

Great live blog @Lovetocruise2002.  It was fun to read all 18 pages of this live blog post being on this cruise.
Not meaning to hijack, but a few of my random thoughts.
It was fantastic meeting everyone on the Group Cruise.  One of my favorite cruises so far...by far having 80+ other groupies to hang with was fun.
As has been mentioned about eating in the Two70 Cafe is a hidden gem...the Solarium Bistro is another great place to avoid big crowds.
One funny moment was on day 2 or 3 I was eating dinner up there, and I get a notification on my phone of @Matt doing a live periscope, and I look around the small room, and two other tables were listening in.
Where ever I would go, I would usually see a friendly face, or a red MEI lanyard (thanks @AnnetteJackson .)
As mentioned, the flow of people is not very good, especially around the Royal Theater.  What made it worse, there were major shows/events scheduled when a major show ended, and another event started in 10 or 15 minutes afterwards.  People trying to get in (and blocking the hallways) while the theater was letting out.
Also noticed a few shows/events that started 10-15 (one was 20 or 25) late.  I don't remember this happening so often on my previous cruises.
Being on three Voyager class ships in the past, Anthem my new largest ship...I did miss the openness of a promenade.  
Looking forward to joining more group cruises in the future.

Hey Ken!  I did not even realize that you are on the message boards!  Thanks for reading the live blog ?
Totally agree!
One day @Michael Vitale, his wife, a few others, and I were in the Diamond Lounge watching @Matt do FB live.  Even when sailing with him, we tune in.  Totally devoted lol.
 

Great live blog @Lovetocruise2002.  It was fun to read all 18 pages of this live blog post being on this cruise.
Not meaning to hijack, but a few of my random thoughts.
It was fantastic meeting everyone on the Group Cruise.  One of my favorite cruises so far...by far having 80+ other groupies to hang with was fun.
As has been mentioned about eating in the Two70 Cafe is a hidden gem...the Solarium Bistro is another great place to avoid big crowds.
One funny moment was on day 2 or 3 I was eating dinner up there, and I get a notification on my phone of @Matt doing a live periscope, and I look around the small room, and two other tables were listening in.
Where ever I would go, I would usually see a friendly face, or a red MEI lanyard (thanks @AnnetteJackson .)
As mentioned, the flow of people is not very good, especially around the Royal Theater.  What made it worse, there were major shows/events scheduled when a major show ended, and another event started in 10 or 15 minutes afterwards.  People trying to get in (and blocking the hallways) while the theater was letting out.
Also noticed a few shows/events that started 10-15 (one was 20 or 25) late.  I don't remember this happening so often on my previous cruises.
Being on three Voyager class ships in the past, Anthem my new largest ship...I did miss the openness of a promenade.  
Looking forward to joining more group cruises in the future.

Final Thoughts:
Where do I begin...?
Let’s start with the ship itself. While the weather was a huge improvement from March, I still do not care for Quantum class. It’s not for me. @Matt mentioned yesterday while recording the podcast that it is a big ship with a small ship feel, but yet smaller ships (Voyager and Freedom Class) never feel as crowded as Anthem. My dislikes from my previous Anthem blog still remain. The WJ is a madhouse. The Esplanade does not move crowds.  And crowds do not disperse well throughout this ship.  While YMMV for motion, both times that I have sailed this ship, I have had to take meds for every sea day. I take zero meds on all OA class sailings. 
We Will Rock You remains my favourite broadway show that Royal does. Very talented cast both times. I like Spectra but this time it was not Terry LaVell, it was someone else who played Spectra so I felt that something was lacking there. The Gift still remains a mystery.
Bermuda is beautiful. We really hope to go back one day. 
This sailing we dined exclusively in CK for dinner. The menu is your regular 7 night menu across the fleet. They repeated the Night 1 & 2 menu to make up for the 9 night sailing. I have the menus on PDF on the “Dining” section of the message boards. It is the same as Harmony and the rest of the fleet. I will provide the link when I get home. I did learn that CK on Ovation runs a slightly different CK menu for now.  The service in CK on Anthem far exceeds OA class. Food the is the same excellent quality. Each night we received multiple check ins from the Maître D’ and the Chef. Stand out service. 
What really made this sailing was the people. Last night, I was saying to @Matt that what he’s been saying for years is true. On a GC, you can do as much or as little as you want together. It is so much fun to walk around the ship and constantly run into people that you know. Sailing with the group also provided us with the opportunity to do things that we normally would not do on a cruise, like sit in the Pub or play Jenga...well I did not play, but Hubby did.
The people on this sailing were fantastic. I cannot even put into words how much I enjoyed meeting everyone in person (finally) and sharing laughs, drinks, and time with them.  Even more proud to support and be a part of the Royal Caribbean Blog community now. 
To the regulars here on the message boards, @Matt, @tiny260, @betatke1480, @CGTLH, @Michael Vitale, @l9dance, @josepena12, meeting you all in person was nothing short of awesome! You are all amazing people!
And if you ever sail with @crzycatldy5 you want her on your team for the Crazy Quest! She rocks!
If there are any other questions, feel free to ask.  If not, thank you for following along. Sorry for not blogging as much this time.
And I barely scoped, I left that up to @josepena12 so make sure to check out his scopes for coverage of the GC. Obviously @Matt provided lots of coverage as well @theRCLblog on periscope.
Until next time...oh wait! That is in 14 days! ?
This must be how @twangster feels ?

Last night of the cruise... ?
4 rounds of farewell shots! What a great cruise! @Matt thank you again for this fantastic community that you have created! Cheers!

Recap tomorrow. That’s all ?

Another first, Jenga at the Casino bar

 

Photo evidence that @Matt will be trying CK for dinner ? 

And thank you to @betatke1480 for having us ?