Vangrizz

Morning sunrise and Coffees
Today we are going to social distance outside.... apparently the golf courses are open? We are golfing Osoyoos Desert Golf Course so will put some pics up.
Will try food porn but it will be nothing like on the ships....

Day 2 – Sea Day
This was a very busy day.  Usually on a cruise we hang out on our balcony, read, go to the casino and just take the time to relax.  This cruise we found ourselves trying new things.
Although I have been on Anthem I have never done the bumper cars as the line is so long.  Yen met us at bumper cars at 10 and we got to cut to the front of the line.  It was so much fun!

After bumper cars some of the girls went to the Cupcake decorating class.  It was a little over an hour long and we got to make a flower cupcake and “burgers and fries”.  Once done, we were able to eat our cupcakes or take them back with us (although the safety waiver we signed said we couldn’t take them but we were allowed). 

 
I have already done iFly but my husband’s cousin wanted to try it and she did amazing!!!  There were only 3 people in her group so they let the group try it twice.  The instructor (whose name was “B”) was amazing and we ended up with some great photos.  He was pretty easy on the eyes too! And yes, this is a picture of him balancing her on his head!!

 

J’s cousin had mentioned that we liked snacks so everyday we received fruit, cheese and crackers, soft pretzels with mustard and canapes.  We asked for snacks to be delivered around 3 and like clockwork, they were there everyday.  In addition, yen also had late night pizza, wings, chips and salsa which was a nice surprise.  There was definitely no shortage of food.
 

Some random photos from the day:


We ate dinner at Chops and definitely had food coma after!  Yen met us there and every drink that we ordered on the first night at dinner was waiting for us at our table which was a very nice touch.  A lot of the group had Spectra’s Cabaret at 7:15 so dinner was quick (which I like better).  I didn’t go to Spectra’s but Yen had reserved great seats and also had everyone’s drinks waiting for them which they loved.
My husband and I went to the casino (which we do most nights) and I met my two favorite bartenders on the ship – Junior and Mark.  They got to know most of our group and remembered each of our drink orders.  Now that they knew our orders, anytime we walked near the bar they had our drinks out…whether we needed one or not. …this resulted in too many drinks, not a clear memory of the night and some very blurry photos on my phone of four of us dancing at Boleros!  From what I do remember – so much fun!  If anyone gets to meet Junior at the casino bar, ask him to make you something special and he will put together a great drink. I recommend the Sexy Ocean.

It was very late when we got back so the pizza and wings were cold but who doesn’t like cold pizza!

Day 3 – Port Canaveral
Before docking, some brave souls did boogie boarding (The one time I tried it my top came off and I nearly lost my bottoms so I learned my lesson…don’t do it again).  The two who did it did great and had a lot of fun.  Yen met us all there and again, put those doing it, to the front of the line.  I didn’t want to post pictures of it because they may not appreciate it but if you are brave enough, it is a lot of fun.  They were both able to get up on the board on their knees and neither fell off which was a miracle in and of itself.
One person did the rock climbing and she made it to the top which I would never be able to do!

We docked in Port Canaveral around 12 and loved having the aft balcony.  We saw tons of dolphins and two sea turtles who stayed right by the back of our ship most of the day.
Everyone had different plans for the day and for those that got off the ship, Yen met on Deck 4 and escorted them off the ship.  Some took an Uber to Ron Jon’s and others did the excursion to Ron Jon’s through Royal Caribbean. We decided to stay on and walk around taking pictures, reading and napping.
Because no other Royal ships were leaving from Port Canaveral that day we were lucky enough to Dock at Pier 1 which meant we could have gotten off and walked to one of the restaurants but with all of the amazing food and service on board we decided not to.


 
 
Several families had hidden ducks on the ship and my husband managed to find 3 during the cruise (this was one).  It was really fun looking for them throughout the ship and re hiding the ones we found.

We didn’t have any dinner plans so we asked Yen around 3:30 if we could open the divider between 10324 and 10724 so we could have dinner on our balconies all together.  She met us in our room at 4:45 and we gave her a list of items from Chops and Jaime’s we would like to order and she scheduled delivery for 6:30.  Yen moved the table from my SIL’s balcony to our balcony so we could eat together. 
This is the balconies with the divers opened (Yen is the itty bitty one in the background).

 
Again, I forgot to take pictures of dinner.  We were all so hungry that it quickly disappeared!  It was really nice having the HUGE area to eat and not have to talk to one another over the railing.  Maintenance came by after dinner to close them (as when under way the door bangs against the divider).

At.Thomas was good today. Got off the ship and took a Taxi to Meghan’s Bay Beach. Taxi was $10 a person one way. There were five ships in port today. Two including Symphony on one side and three other on the other side. 
The beach today was PACKED! They ran out of chairs and we got there around 10:30 am. If you are going to that beach I suggest getting there real early to ensure chairs, etc. if you want to rent those. The beach is absolutely beautiful and deserves  the publicity it receives. It was $10 back to the port with a couple of picture stops and an hour stop shopping downtown. I was excited to find a bottle of Blanton’s bourbon today. For Bourbon drinkers it’s a very difficult find. Back at the ship ate wings at Playmakers and the kids zip-lined, Ultimate Abyss and the Arcade. 
Tonight, we eat Chops. Look forward to it. 

If royal shuts down for a couple weeks, imma need a camera crew to follow him around as he is forced to be on land for an extended amount of time

Wonderland!  We went to Wonderland for dinner with the kids last night. It was interesting. I should have done a little more research into Wonderland. Let me first say it’s beautiful inside and a very unique experience. Experience being the key term. If you are going to Wonderland to be full from the food you may want to go to Windjammer afterwards. Very pretty looking food and presentation but we didn’t think the food was that great. I had the short rib which was amazing but half of the 14 in my group went to Playmakers for wings afterwards. Also the kids “Burger and Fries” are not your normal burger and fries to say the least. Again, the experience was good and unique but don’t have to do it again. 
The Smoke Ring from the bar at Wonderland was maybe the best old fashioned I have ever had. It’s Smokey with Four Roses single barrel (my favorite bourbon outside of Blanton’s).  The kicker being the Happy Hour from 5-u they have 2 for $15 on drinks that are normally $13 a piece (wifey and I didn’t get the drink package). 
Afterwards we went to Playmakers to hang out. Wifey and I went to deck 15 and had a cigar together for that quality one on one time away from the group 20 minutes at the Casino playing Blackjack and turned in early for us around 11:30. 
I included a few pics from our balcony at night on our way to Saint Thomas. 
We docked there this am next to a Viking cruise ship and ate breakfast in the Solarium Bistro. Most in my group think the Bistro is the best for breakfast. Plan on going to Meaghan’s Bay this am.  

It has been a crazy few days. Lots of back and forth between go and don’t go. Ultimately, a few things sealed the deal for us.
Never were we worried about the virus on the ship. I am still of the mindset that the ship is likely one of the cleanest places at the moment. Quarantine on the ship was also an afterthought, because how bad could it be in the ATS?  
What really made us re-think over the last few days was the possibility of being further quarantined in Trenton (military base). That is where they are taking all the Canadians on the Princess ships. That does not sound like a great time.
Yesterday, Delta also waived change fees for all travel this month, and Royal revised their “Cruise with Confidence” policy in that we would get back our FCC that we redeemed for this sailing. So really, we would lose nothing by not going. It was beginning to get harder to justify going.
The ultimate deal breaker is that Plan B, was better than Plan A. This blog is officially, “To be continued...” in 166 days.  
We are sad, but at the same, for the hockey people out there, we feel like we just won the Stanley Cup of cruising!  

When one door closes, another one opens. ?

Today was a pretty fun day. After trying to shower and discovering our shower was broken and no one came to fix it. We went out to try and meet up with the cruise critic meet and greet if it wasn't too late. Got to meet some nice people that were still there when we got there. After that we for some lunch in the MDR (mainly because of my allergies but also because its sooo good). I got the Caeser Salad with grilled chicken to start, the beef strip loin for my main and the berry crapes with custard for my desert (it was amazing). Sandra got the roasted burundi over rice for her starter, enchiladas for her main and she also got the crapes for desert. 
  
      
Once we finished lunch we went to the casino to see how much credit we had waiting for us on our cards for the slot machine. Spoiler it wasn't much lol. I ended up with $4 and Sandra had $2 lol. We were done within minutes lol. After that we headed to the newly added laser tag in Studio B (side note the stage that was here was removed and the photo center moved into its place).



After I killed it in laser tag (I was KUMA in our game) we went to watch a presentation on Alaska (We are planning Alaska for our next cruise but still trying to make a game plan) and hoped to win some free stuff (we didn't). We came back to our cabin to do some work and get ready for formal night (bad news shower was still broken, thankfully our room attendant who was frustrated with the plumbers found a temporary solution). Formal night was saved. For dinner I had ordered last night to ensure I got some good desert. I had the pumpkin soup to start, for my main I actually ordered 2, lemon-butter baked cod and roast beef tenderloin. For desert I had the Royal Cheesecake. Sandra also had the pumpkin soup to start, she had the roast beef tenderloin for her main and the grand marnier soufflé for desert.
         
   
To end the night we went to see Freedoms new show called Marquee (although someone said they had seen this before but not when we were on last). It is a fun musical with a wide range of styles. After that I went to the adult comedy show by Louis Johnson. He was a blast for sure.


   
   

IMG_4844.MOV Yesterday was great other than the weather. Just yours the ship with our friends who were on their first cruise. Went to the ice skating show after MDR and then stopped by the Schooner Bar, Boleros,  Studio B and the Pub. Didn’t stay in any more than 15 minutes, just wanted a feel. Had to get up early for today but that’s only after I won $50 playing blackjack. I know small stakes but that’s big for me. ?  The folks with My time dining were very accommodating with our party of 14. 
i have cruised before but my major takeaway if this cruise, and forgive the All CAPS but it’s “ASK FOR WHAT YOU WANT”. The worse they can say is no or offer an alternative but they will bend over backwards to accommodate most requests. 
Today in St.Kitts and went to the Marriott resort for the day on the beach and this hotel pool.  The weather is beautiful, 83 and sunny. We have been starving for good weather. We have reservations at Wonderland tonight with the kids. Look forward to it. 
Sidebar:  The Starbucks on board is like being at home other than they don’t have the warmer for breakfast sandwiches or lunch sandwiches. They have the vast bay majority of the drinks you want from home with the sweetness that Starbucks offers, they don’t use the Royal Caribbean sweetness. They are truly an independently owned type of operation who happen to be on a cruise ship. Yes you can use your Starbucks apps to purchase but NOT redeem. You can also use your Seapass or being a Starbucks gift card. No, your drink package DOES NOT WORK. I see this question gets asked a lot and I did myself prior to the cruise. 
As with most who travel on the larger boats when you pull into a port you feel as you are the big dog, the big man ok campus and compared to the other ships most folks are truly in awe. Once you get off the ship and compare to the other ships it makes you appreciate how huge this ship is. Thank you for taking the time to read my  Rambling  ? 
 
The drones at the ice show are GREAT!

UPDATE: Still planning to go!
Pinged our TA yesterday to ask about keeping an eye on canceling folks to see if we could wrangle a free or cheap upgrade as they were out of balconies by the time we booked.
One of the men with the group sent an email out asking if we should go ahead and cancel as a group and I think every wife in the group shut that down immediately.
At this point in time he appears to the be the only one worried about going. The rest of us are still planning and now that my big event I had to put on is over, I can start thinking about packing!
Luggage tags are printed out.
We have booked our excursion through the TA. As we are in Bermuda for three days, the excursion is on day 2 in the middle so no worries about missing the ship.
Our excursion is being put together by the TA who also happens to be a member of our group and is going to be a LONG all day one and includes:
History of Dock Yard and Attractions
17th Century home and evolution of the unique Bermuda Home construction
Somerset Bridge - the smallest drawbridge in the world
The Gibbs Hill Lighthouse Vista
Tour along the beautiful South Shore (beach and ocean views)
Horseshoe Bay Vista
Botanical Gardens and the official home of the Premier of Bermuda
Tuckers Town and Glimpse of the home of New York’s Mayor Bloomberg
The Crystal Caves
The town of St. George - a UNESCO World Heritage site & Bermuda’s Capital for 200 yrs
While in St George Collect a few pieces of colored, weather worn glass at GLASS BEACH
17th century reenactment (Mon through Thurs) - participants in period costumes
Lunch Bermuda Style
Tour along the North Shore
View the Governor’s mansion
Driving tour of the City of Hamilton - current capital since 1815
Driving tour of Harbour Road - view of Hamilton from across the Harbour
Scenic route back to Dock Yard
 

Yesterday ended up AMAZING!  After Playmakers had a 6PM at Park 150 for 10. Our server Ben went above and beyond. I had the short rib AND Caesar Salad for starters, both really good. Wifey had the beet salad that she really enjoyed. Their bread is the BEST EVER!  Hit, warm and buttery. For my entree I chose the Tenderloin AND Lobster. Everyone was trying to decide which “one” for their entree and a very nice lady behind said “ Get both” and everyone had the lobster and another. The lobster was fine I just didn’t like all that cream and cheese just lobster. Tenderloin was very good. 
For Desert most ordered from the menu, me and another person decided to be those folks. I had the warm chocolate cake from Chops and she had the brownie from Jamie’s as we dined at 150. Yes they can do that, as with everything cruise “you just have to ask”. Again, Ben was great and everyone tipped him accordingly. 
afterwards in that “ what do we do now”. Used the app and digital touch boards that help you determine “what to do now”.  We went tonBoleros for the Dj for about thirty minutes, then we landed on Vintages for the Karaoke show and Stevie Wonder review. The band was GREAT and a young girl killed it at the karaoke as the last performer singing John Legend’s “All of Me”.   The place was packed as the Karaoke was ending and Stevie Wonder Review began. 
On the way to the midnight “silent party” stopped by the jazz club, appeared very nice and a little bit of blackjack in the Casino. Then to the attic for the “silent party”. The line was LONG. For those who haven’t done it they hand out earphones to everyone and either you are on the blue or green station. Music isn’t playing out loud on the club speakers just on the earphones.  Two stations, green and blue. The 40+ crew I was with had the best time ever dancing we’ve had in years. It was fantastic. Haven’t danced that much since my late twenties. No need for workout today as that was 90 minutes straight of dancing and Enjoying ourselves. All ten adults in my party loves the concept and most importantly the music/Dj’s played everything we loved. Afterwards we went to Sorrento’s and to the room at 2:30am. Look forward to what day three has to bring. 

Very lazy afternoon. Tried Loco Fresh for lunch. The line wrapped around the deck and just went to Windjammer. As predicted ended up at Playmakers watching the Lakers game. Great crowd at Playmakers and love the venue. 
Winds continue to be high and Deck 16 has been closed the majority of the day. As a side bar bar there definitely it key appears to be lower traffic at Johnny Rockets than what I remembered in the past. Just an observation since Playmakers is right across from Johnny R.
 
My kids loved The Abyss. I’ll check it out later in the week. 

End of the first day. Checked out everything basically. Went to the 2nd floor and cross crossed. 20,000 steps in today ?. Main Dining Room Was pretty good. Wifey loved the Creme Bulee. Starbucks was great. I asked the manager if they run out of the pastries as the week goes and she said they do not. Checked out the sail away party, went to the Solarium during sail away and watched sail away from the area that has the glass floor. Extremely windy today. 
 Went to HIRO and the whole family thoroughiy enjoyed  wifey had a hot dog from the hot dog spot and the kids enjoyed Sugar and bought some candy and had ice cream additionally went to Playmakers for a beer and 24 wings with friends  I am a huge Wing Stop fan and they are not that, however, for the price and being on a cruise ship the wings were very good with good heat and flavor  definitely worth it  playmakers will get a lot of visits from me this week  walked through Central Park and set up my Wine Tasting for night 6.  No music out there tonight but love the sounds of the crickets and they were handing out free champagne at the Cartier store.  There were a lot of people around the Trelis Bar   
 
After HIRO hung around the Promenade, people watched, kids had Sorrentos and had another Starbucks.  Glad I loaded my card before the trip.  Baleros had a lot of energy this evening and the welcome party is currently happening.  A key takeaway is with 6,000 on board it never feels crowded.  Before we sailed and prior to the muester drill it felt packed but afterwards not at all and able to get an elevator.
We will be at sea tomorrow and will hit up JOHNNY Rockets for Breakfast.  A key dynamic is I use the app onboard ALL THE TIme!  To schedule events, set reminders, set up shows, etc.  
HIRO had a good crowd but not overly packed and people were able to just walk in. 
I am including pics of the Starbucks menu since I haven’t seen the menu with prices often.
 
 

The temperature check was done as soon as you walk into the cruise terminal and go up the first escalators.  They don’t touch you or your kids foreheads. There were at least 10+people checking at 11am. Very quick. 
 
Before getting on board there were at three if not more times it was requested to apply hand sanitizer (For those not going Diamond+).   Check in easy. About 20-30 minutes from when we arrived at 11 with 9 people and three families. 
 
it’s 1pm so you know what that means. Go check into your room. 
 
FYI, wifey and I split up and she went to get WOW bands while I went to set up speciality dining (14 people) and MTD (9 people).  Kids went with other family to grab an area in Windjammer until rooms were ready.  Highly advise setting up dining times ASAP. There were at three separate lines to do so.  We have the three night package and chose Chops, Wonderland and Park 150. Kids will only do Chops and Wonderland. Don’t think they are interested in Park 150. They are 11 and 13.   
 
in Windjammer they had a person Requesting you wash your hands as soon as you go in  

We have arrived in Cozumel alongside Gargantua of the Seas


Snapchat-677696526.mp4

Good morning as we approach Cozumel 

When we went for our "my time dining" at around 8:00, we discovered we actually had assigned seating at 5:30, which we never requested. They did accommodate us and although MTD was full, they agreed to split the difference and seat us at 6:30. 
Today has been punctuated by between meals with a view, bars with a view, and spa treatments,  with a view. I'd love to go to the silent disco tonight, if only it started at 8 instead of 10.
Three old gals walk into a bar ...

After muster we grabbed a roast beef sammie at the Park Cafe and peeked in at the spa. We cleaned up and went to Boleros for a bit before catching the early show of the comedy headliner. Our front row seats courtesy of the key were very nice. Comedian was good, but the sign language interpreter was the best part, especially when he signed the music. 
After comedy, friend Beth got in line for her free charm bracelet. It's pretty cute! The bracelet is free, the charms are 5 for $10, and every day for the rest of the cruise, you can get the charm of the day for $5, with another freebie at the end of the trip if you collect them all. It's a marketing ploy, but an effective one and a win-win. 

No issues with parking at the rental place because they keep your driver's license, but here's pictureof the ride I didn't need. Kind of a wrestle pedaling alone but I got used to it in a couple of blocks. So windy the red flags were horizontal, but I saw lots of interesting places along seawall that I'll want to check out in the future. I had a lot of time to observe,  it took an hour to go 1.8 miles.
 

I left Dallas about 7:30 Sunday morning, which was later than I wanted, but I decided coffee with my honey was more important than getting my money's worth on the surrey rental. 
My playlist gets me to just north of Texas City, so might have to add a few more songs. I decided to go straight to the Gumbo Diner.
It was so good. Country fried steak, eggs and hashbrowns. I sat at the bar around a food prep area and chatted with the very friendly waitstaff and an islander who appeared to be looking for wife number 3. I wasn't able to help him with that.
By the time I'd finished my brunch, it was almost 2:00 and I figured I'd better get the surrey.
 

Day 8 - The last day!! ? 
What was unique in returning to Sydney was "Spectrum of the Seas" anchored in the harbour and we passed it on the way into the cruise port. First time these two ships have met. The view back into port is stunning with all the city lights, harbour bridge and opera house in view. We were quickly off the ship (as always) by around 8.30am with the last guests basically gone before 9! Then the return back home to New Zealand with the flight in the afternoon. 
Coming soon - Overall cruise review and observations. 
 

Thank-you for the info!  If it is going to be used multiple times and pop up all over the place, I am going to work on getting a nice one!  Ha! 

You can smile? but it does have to be on a neutral background and some other guidelines as well.