Ampurp85

Robin the loud vintage from the Allure sailing and my mother's former best friend. My brother is a little anxious. We have never even been to dinner alone with them.

That porch menu looks great and you have sold me on a lunch.

Yes she is, she went down for two weeks and I was still doing stuff and guess who booked her one way ticket......me.

Yes.

@WAAAYTOOO she has moved to that 55+ community in Arcadia. So she isn't far from the Tampa port.

The library is gorgeous but very artsy. Has your husband been complaining about the lack of activities? I bet you are glad you only did a 3-night to see if you like it.

It's icon cruise day!

Yes. This was the cyber boyfriend. I have been out of sorts . Her retirement party was yesterday, 42 years at her job. I had to field so many questions about a man I met once. After the 24th of Aug she will officially be a Floridan. My grandmother is shattered and I have been dealing with that and my own feelings. I am happy she is happy but still...... I will be spending a lot of time helping her pack up and sell her stuff. So this cruise will be a godsend, despite all the shenanigans.

I take my cups. As a prime and D+ member I stopped buying any drinks packages. But I need my drinks to be cold, so I get them and transfer them to my cups.

Dr. Pepper is very much a Texas thing. I believe it is available in the Freestyle machines and only those ships without them, that sail from Texas will have it. @RCIfan1912 Liberty and Voyager are some of the few ships without Freestyle, so it is safe to say (they are the same class) they will have similar offerings.......unless sailing from Texas.

Is there someone in the club to serve you or do you serve yourselves?

Day 45 I checked in for the cruise. Since it was currently sailing, check-in opened a 3am my time. I was up because of personal shenanigans. My mother eloped and is moving to Florida at the end of the month. But I was able to get a 10:30am check in and I put in all the info except for a photo. Itinerary Alaska Airline Flight departure 6am, arrival 8:34am Pier 91, Quantum of the Seas Day 1: Embarkation lunch at Jamie’s, all going. MTD dinner at 7:45 but might try to D+ BOGO because I hate welcome aboard menu. Day 2: Sea Day, mostly a casino day since port heavy cruise. MTD Day 3: Sitka. The excursion is the Best of Sitka at 10:30, all going. Lunch at port. MTD Day 4: Skagway. Excursion for my brother is Klondike Rock climbing adventure at 8:45, Excursion for me is Klondike Summit and Historic city tour at 10:45. Vintages are getting off at port to shop. We will have lunch in port and then MTD Day 5: Juneau: We all booked the Goldbelt tram. My brother has Alpine Zipline Adventure. I read they have maps of hiking trails when you get downtown, and I plan to do that while the vintages shop. We will have lunch in port and the MTD Day 6: Sea Day. Another casino day for me. MTD Day 7: Victoria BC: Excursion is Canadian Ale trail and City highlights, all going. We will eat snacks and possibly dinner. MTD scheduled but unsure Day 8: Seattle sightseeing and flights. Our flights are overnight, so we get to our destinations around 6am. Day 9: The Adler Hotel, Nola Day 10: Nola Day 11: Nola and flights home. Originally a 6pm flight but has been changed to 2pm, we plan to do brunch So, we are now 45 days from cruising, and I am ready for it.

I know I will get judged for this, but we are flying in day of. It wasn’t always the case; we had a pre-cruise hotel stay at the Paramount in Seattle until Jan of this year booked. My brother is not a fan of pre-cruise hotel stays, he says it makes his vacation less relaxing and more costly…...as in food for him. He is correct. Every instance of a pre-cruise stays with the vintages and bff has been draining. In Galveston it took them almost 2hrs to decide on food and they wasted our time and money. I always insure my vacations and cruises and never do anything but first flight out. We were always flying Alaska Air but the vintages wanted SWA because they planned on bringing four bags and didn’t want to pay. I told them I had no issue booking them on SWA but they would have to coordinate travel and such on their own. They change their tune quick. So, we are all flying on a 6am flight to Seattle that lands at 8am, there are two more flights after that will get us there before 1pm should anything happen. I already signed up for port valet because Alaska airlines participates. We had always planned to do a little sightseeing in Seattle so we opted for night flights, after 10pm. I read if you book HOHO on the cruise through port valet they give you a deal. That is the plan. Now something the vintages don’t know but you get to, is that instead of flying home we are flying to New Orleans. Ever since we ate at Mason jar on Wonder in Jan my brother has been talking about the food we ate in NOLA. He was like I really wish I could go back just to eat. Everything has been booked up for the summer, so I gave up trying to book for June-Aug. I decided to surprise him and book a little 3night getaway in Oct. Then I got an email offering discounts for September. I did some checking and for exactly what I paid to go home from Seattle I could book Alaska Air SEA to MSY and then Spirit MSY to ORD. I haven’t flown Spirit since we did Disney/Allure restart in 2021 but it was the only nonstop flight available. So we will spend one day post cruise in Seattle and 3 days, 2 nights post cruise eating at our favorite spots……...so lots of food porn. Extras: Quantum doesn’t have enough specialty restaurants to warrant the UDP. I will only do Chop’s as a lunch and find Wonderland to be meh. So I opted out of any dining packages. I figured we would have the Jamie’s lunch and use our BOGO if warranted. Plus, I am looking forward to whatever night has baked Alaska I had booked the 4-device package and was planning to book another 3 devices to cover everyone else, glad I didn’t as now it’s only 3 of us going. This cruise was originally going to be a B2B, with us using my brother’s prime cert on the second leg but that was before they excluded Icon from the list. Originally, we had got the 24pk of Evian. Thankfully MB had gotten a 12pk, so I was able to cancel her’s and give her half of mine. Just for refence the 24pk was less than the current sales for the 12pk for BF. We were booked on deck 7 in interior VB. On July 4th I got the email notice that my room(s) qualified for RUBs. Considering that the rooms, minus JS, were all sold out since May I was like there is no reason to bid. I did check for research purposes and noticed the balconies were 70% off and the minimum bid was only $40pp. I couldn’t pass that up, so I put in a bid. On July 12th I was awarded a balcony on the 7th floor midship for $80 total. I am now 3/3 on RUBs. I didn’t bother bidding on the vintages room because they are on a fixed income and happy with their lot in life right now. I did purchase quite a few items for this cruise. Binoculars and a Columbia waterproof jacket were a must. Other than my cruise ship slippers, all shoes are waterproof and close-toed. Quick drying pants and shirts that I normally wear in the fall/winter Chicago weather will be making an appearance. I got a reusable hot/cold container to bring hot chocolate or tea off in the mornings before excursions. I have a foldable, packable backpack that I use for mostly land-based vacations that will be making an appearance on this cruise. I don’t normally buy souvenirs when I cruise because I have been to the same ports a lot, but I have never been to Alaska, so I plan to pick up t-shirts and stuff like that. My budget for this cruise is different. Normally my budget is tips and casino because that is my entertainment. But for this cruise I have halved my casino budget to account for shopping and lunches in port. It was time to renew my passport, and I sent it off right after I returned from the Freedom Cruise in May. This was before the online portal opened but it took less than 3wks to receive the new and old passport. If you have not renewed recently be warned that it looks different. It is now a hard plastic page in the front with all your info and the regular pages are paper.

Now on to cruise/CP/vacation shenanigans. Let’s begin with the CP. A lot of you experienced the BF fiasco. If you didn’t, lucky you. I booked originally during the C&A member’s early access. But when the actual black Friday sale went live my lunch and excursion dropped dramatically. I had booked Jamie’ s as an embarkation day lunch during the “national pasta/Italian day” sale. It went $2 cheaper doing BF and so that first day of the sale I refunded a lot of things. I booked mostly everything under my brother because I had a lot of moving parts and may have needed to use my C&A benefits onboard. So I only cancelled one thing under my name resulting in an $18 refund. Under my brother’s reservation it was almost $400. All the refunds went through but then it said I owed those balances. I paid and it was refunded. I did it once more because I thought it was a glitch. It didn’t show up under owing a balance. Fast forward to me checking if in fact bff was making payments and I see those two balances again. Hearing that people had their bookings cancelled for balances I call Club Royale. They say it shows I owe nothing and send me a new invoice with a zero balance. But if I click on the “make a payment” for another cruise it still shows up when I click on that reservation. So close to FP I pay them again…...and again……and again times four…….and once more after FP. I did this because I hadn’t known bff was awarded the extension and assumed since it was still showing they were going to cancel all the cruises. The unpaid cruise fell off after the 5 days of nonpayment and both cruises still show that I owe a balance. I talked to several reps and they assured me that the cruise is active and paid off. I won’t have to worry about anything. So for about 40 days I am feeling in the clear. I am always checking CP for deals and such and low and behold for the first time it shows that a balance is owed on my cruise list. I pay it and a few days later I get refunds again. Then a few days later the cruise list doesn’t show that I owe a balance but behind the scenes it still does. In all honesty I will not feel secure until I actually board the ship.

Now bff was living a transient lifestyle, so I was shocked by this. I mean he had a place, but he was out there selling things he shouldn't be and turning down job because he was worth more than $20hr . I was petty and checked since the cruise was linked with mine and nothing had been paid. I discussed with my brother should I tell bff’s mom and he said it wasn’t our place……. but I could drop hints in the emails. So, I did. MB was true to her word and paid me her excursion money in Jan and consistently every time I booked something for her. Robin was moving and promised me all my funds by FP, which she was good for, so I wasn’t worried. A week before final payment I sent out one last email. I want to point out I hadn’t spoken to my bff since Feb, when according to him I “read him for filth” about not working and mooching off his sick mom. Anyway, he calls me and gives me all the “tea” and eventually was like we won’t be making it on this cruise. My mother hasn’t spoken to me for almost a week because she thought I was making payments, and I didn’t . So, she called and asked for an extension, they gave her 5 days, but I don’t have good enough credit or a job to get any loans. I was shocked but not shocked. My mother was also keeping up tomfoolery. She said yes in October and in Nov she didn’t want to go. Around Christmas there was the wavering and then the dream. When we cruised in Jan I asked again if she wanted to go and that I could earn her an instant cert. She said no. So then she finds out we are cruising Freedom in May and she wants to go on that cruise and to Alaska. If you read the Freedom blog you know she wasted my time and money. You also know she doesn’t listen, so every time prior she was under the impression she would have to stay in the room with MB and Robin. On the Allure cruise they told her about herself, and she stopped liking them. She refuses to share a room with them, in fact she doesn’t want to go on any vacation when they are coming unless bff’s mom is there as a buffer. So, every time I asked her, she said no because despite me saying she would be solo in a room, she thought she would be sleeping with her enemies. When she actually listened, it was too late and the cruise was sold out. But of course, there is more. My mother found out from bff’s mom that he hadn’t made payments and she suggested that maybe they drop him from the booking and add her. But neither of them have any money, so guess who was supposed to cover this???? So that is people shenanigans and what started out as 8 has turned into 4. It is two vintages and my brother and me. I have never cruised with a vintage who wasn’t my mom, this will probably be a time.

Although I wasn’t planning for everyone, I was willing to be a team player and coordinate. I sent out the link that allows you to view excursions and cruise planner without being booked. I did this so we could get the best deal when the black Friday sale rolled around. I knew Alaska was going to be expensive. Side bar, maybe because this is the first cruise with 4 ports, but the port taxes for Alaska cruises are some of the highest I ever paid. Considering my room was comped, the taxes and port fees were almost $300. On a regular 7N casino comp I don’t pay that even with gratuities included. Which is why I suggested not spending much on the rooms. I mean 4 port days, when you plan to get off at every port means the room will be occupied a lot less. Also, none of us have been on Quantum and we will spend a nice amount of time exploring the ship. I am looking forward to seeing what differences Odyssey had as the last build of this class. My brother picked out his excursions and I picked out mine. I sent out what we were doing, plus suggested options, and said people could choose whatever they liked. Robin and MB liked what I had chosen and opted to do most of the same excursions as me. They said since it was so close to Christmas, could they send me what they could afford, as two retired vintages, now, and they would pay me the rest in Jan. I said sure and booked for them. I did kick myself a little bit because I did exactly what I said I wasn’t going to do. Around this time my mother was wavering, she sorts of wanted to go but then she said an angel told her in her sleep that bff and his mom wasn’t coming so she changed her mind again. The angel told her MB and Robin would keep up tomfoolery and embarrass her, so she shouldn’t be without a guard . My brother and I were shocked by this. Then I got a cuckoo bananas email. Robin’s niece and mom thought we were going to a hot place. They assumed the cruise was to the Caribbean despite the title of the email saying Alaska and them putting a deposit down on an Alaskan cruise………yes I was dead in the ground buried. After I helped them cancel, they did book refundable and told them I would keep them in the loop when we did a Caribbean eastern or western. So, we were now six. However, I told my brother after the black Friday sale ended that I was convinced bff and his mom wouldn’t go. I was convinced because they didn’t book any excursions. Bff said the website kept glitching on him and that the call wait time was too long for him to book through the phone. I called straight tomfoolery because he also made a comment about how planning the previous cruises were much easier…....dead again. Then he said his mom reminded him that I had booked and paid for everything. He dry begged me into paying for some excursions but with the strength of sweet baby Jesus, I held my ground. Then my mother mentioned her dream and I was convinced. Fast forward to right after Christmas....... In the most dramatic of fashions my bff quit his job on Jan 2 because another supervisor, not his direct one, said he wanted this year to be productive. That nobody should be having personal conversations at work and that there are known lazy individuals who need to get it together. He was talking about bff who is known for posting thirst traps on Twitter instead of working. I told bff he was too grown to be like that and proved his point by quitting. So I knew, without a shadow of a doubt that bff wasn’t going but I thought his mom would go without him. So I continued to keep her in the loop. She had been sick and then had two surgeries in Jan. When I checked on her, she told me she was looking forward to the cruise and bff was handling everything. It was almost paid off .

This is probably as usual, a TLDR. First, I want to thank everyone who reads and puts up with my live blog. I love you all. I continue to be a shenanigans magnet and the whole planning of this cruise plays heavy on the concept of the first part of this title. The second part is an homage to Tyra Bank’s constant “look……but make it fashion!” I have no idea why it cracks me up. She would be like “look hungry…. but make it fashion,” “look angry…. but make it fashion.” Those poor girls . At the start of the last group cruise, I informed everyone I would no longer be planning them. We could coordinate but I was left holding the bag too many times. Of the first three group cruises I put up all the money, I am still owed money from some people, and it’s been years. My original plan was to sail Symphony out of Cape Liberty. But the new loud vintage Robin was telling everyone we should sail Alaska, since she had done Eastern and Western Caribbean so much on Carnival . Everyone was excited for Alaska, and I was like it is a bucket list cruise of mine, okay. They wanted to do NCL……...until they saw the price for NCL . Considering I have loyalty with RCG and the casino, I said if it is available as an instant reward I would play for it. It was on the 2000pt list, and I played under my name and my brother’s. The deal was I would book Robin and my mother’s bff (hereby known as MB) into the room with my brother and then he would stay with me. They had given me money to cover their deposit, so I agreed to book their room only. There were others involved but they were on their own. They said they would pay any upgrade fees plus what it cost me to earn the room or the actual cost, whichever was lesser. I think it cost me less than or a little more $1k to earn the room. They went back and forth and decided since all the interiors on Quantum have virtual balconies, they would just be okay with the room as is. This put them at under $900pp with taxes fees and gratuities. This was discussed as we waited for that super long and uncomfortable train ride to Galveston. Never again. By the time we made it to the hotel everyone was onboard for Alaska. There were 7 of us on that cruise, bff mom was sick, but 5 people originally committed. Halfway through the cruise and right after I had earned my brother's instant reward, two people from dry land joined and my mother dropped out. She said she wasn’t going to pay to be cold because she could be cold at home........ Two things were wrong with that statement because......one, we mostly pay for her cruises. She has never paid for the entirety of any of her vacations with us, we pay half or all. Second, "Chicago cold" is not "Alaska in September cold," so get it together lady . I explained this to her, and she said no. I figured she would have FOMO and would continue to ask if she wanted to come. I later found out the main reason was because she didn’t want to share a room with her former bff and Robin, but more on that later. Bff told his mom, and she was excited because she had missed the Allure cruise and always wanted to visit Alaska. Robin told her niece, and the niece and her mom wanted to go. So, they asked for dates and booked the cruise. By Halloween it was 8 of us booked and going on the cruise. I made sure bff secured a Next Cruise booking the morning of disembarkation so they could take advantage of the OBC and reduced deposit. Bff’s mom called the morning after we got home and booked a large OV balcony at almost $4k. Bff’s mom says that interiors make her claustrophobic, despite the fact that she hardly uses the balcony. If you recall from our Odyssey group cruise, they just kept the balcony door open and kept creating vacuums by opening their cabin door. Me being me, I was like y’all cannot afford no $4k balcony, just get a regular balcony. She said she usually just goes with what the rep suggests, and I reminded her they work off of commission, so of course they want to sell you a more expensive room. I called in with them and got an OV balcony GTY that was $2300, with gratuity and insurance. They had lost money on her not being able to go on the Allure cruise, so insurance was a must for them. It seemed like everyone was doing what they were supposed to do.

Room is gorgeous, I love the browns, especially the carpet leading to the bathroom and the tile. Is that an actual Disaronno velvet drink? I had one recently for the first time and I was shocked it was good.

I always travel with fans, I am also post menopausal, started at 23. I have several Amazon.com: JISULIFE Small Desk Fan, Portable USB Rechargeable Fan, 160° Tilt Folding Personal Mini Fan with 4500mAh Battery, Strong Wind, Ultra Quiet, 4 Speed Modes for Office, Home, Camping - White : Home & Kitchen Amazon.com: coldSky Portable Handheld Fan, 4000mAh Battery Operated 3 in 1 Multifunction Personal Travel Fan with Digital Display, 90° Foldable Desk Fan with Base, 5 Speed Lash Fan for Makeup/Commute/Office : Home & Kitchen And this one fits in my backpack but gives the best air in the room Amazon.com: RUNTOP Portable Fan Battery Operated Rechargeable Fan Foldable, Camping Fan with LED Light & Hanging Hook, USB Small Table Fans for Tents Travel, Home Office Bedroom,3 Speeds : Home & Kitchen

I think the check-in times varies based on the ports. I can see POM, PC and PE (all FL ports) being as busy as they are, requiring times after 11. While Galveston having only one or 2 Royal ships might start a bit earlier. It probably has to do with terminal space. FWIW I just checked in for my Alaska cruise and the earliest time was 10:30

Coke Zero should be available in the can and maybe, just maybe they will have orange Fanta. They will have ginger ale as well but mostly the standard Coke and stuff you mentioned out of the gun and bottles.

Check in has opened and I got 10:30

Yay its cruise day for you, I am excited to hear about Reflection. I hope the journey continues to be safe and uneventful.

Have a safe flight and a great cruise.

I have come into this post a few times. I am still trying to figure out what that is a picture of. I haven't sailed on Anthem so maybe the furniture is different but it looks doll hair from an old cabbage patch kid.