MuttMutt

Covid is the new flu at this point. We will be doing yearly boosters for the rest of our life and in a few years the media will drop the circus parade amd move on to something else. Even if we had 100% worldwide vaccination this would still stick around unless extreme measures were put into place like a multi month quarantine on top of vaccination and a few other things. 
 
Could I be wrong. Sure. If so I have an old shoe to eat. But at this point these topics are beating a horse that had been dead for 6 months. Let's just bury it here and now...
 
 

Covid is the new flu at this point. We will be doing yearly boosters for the rest of our life and in a few years the media will drop the circus parade amd move on to something else. Even if we had 100% worldwide vaccination this would still stick around unless extreme measures were put into place like a multi month quarantine on top of vaccination and a few other things. 
 
Could I be wrong. Sure. If so I have an old shoe to eat. But at this point these topics are beating a horse that had been dead for 6 months. Let's just bury it here and now...
 
 

Covid is the new flu at this point. We will be doing yearly boosters for the rest of our life and in a few years the media will drop the circus parade amd move on to something else. Even if we had 100% worldwide vaccination this would still stick around unless extreme measures were put into place like a multi month quarantine on top of vaccination and a few other things. 
 
Could I be wrong. Sure. If so I have an old shoe to eat. But at this point these topics are beating a horse that had been dead for 6 months. Let's just bury it here and now...
 
 

Covid is the new flu at this point. We will be doing yearly boosters for the rest of our life and in a few years the media will drop the circus parade amd move on to something else. Even if we had 100% worldwide vaccination this would still stick around unless extreme measures were put into place like a multi month quarantine on top of vaccination and a few other things. 
 
Could I be wrong. Sure. If so I have an old shoe to eat. But at this point these topics are beating a horse that had been dead for 6 months. Let's just bury it here and now...
 
 

Covid is the new flu at this point. We will be doing yearly boosters for the rest of our life and in a few years the media will drop the circus parade amd move on to something else. Even if we had 100% worldwide vaccination this would still stick around unless extreme measures were put into place like a multi month quarantine on top of vaccination and a few other things. 
 
Could I be wrong. Sure. If so I have an old shoe to eat. But at this point these topics are beating a horse that had been dead for 6 months. Let's just bury it here and now...
 
 

Covid is the new flu at this point. We will be doing yearly boosters for the rest of our life and in a few years the media will drop the circus parade amd move on to something else. Even if we had 100% worldwide vaccination this would still stick around unless extreme measures were put into place like a multi month quarantine on top of vaccination and a few other things. 
 
Could I be wrong. Sure. If so I have an old shoe to eat. But at this point these topics are beating a horse that had been dead for 6 months. Let's just bury it here and now...
 
 

Covid is the new flu at this point. We will be doing yearly boosters for the rest of our life and in a few years the media will drop the circus parade amd move on to something else. Even if we had 100% worldwide vaccination this would still stick around unless extreme measures were put into place like a multi month quarantine on top of vaccination and a few other things. 
 
Could I be wrong. Sure. If so I have an old shoe to eat. But at this point these topics are beating a horse that had been dead for 6 months. Let's just bury it here and now...
 
 

Covid is the new flu at this point. We will be doing yearly boosters for the rest of our life and in a few years the media will drop the circus parade amd move on to something else. Even if we had 100% worldwide vaccination this would still stick around unless extreme measures were put into place like a multi month quarantine on top of vaccination and a few other things. 
 
Could I be wrong. Sure. If so I have an old shoe to eat. But at this point these topics are beating a horse that had been dead for 6 months. Let's just bury it here and now...
 
 

Sadly I have seen better prices over the last year than I have in the last couple months Black Friday included.  It sucks they can't get the changes made sooner but I actually ended up doing an excursion booked through my travel agency vs through RCCL because it was cheaper when I was on my cruise earlier this month.  And I bought internet for 3 devices at around 15.00 per day and now the cheapest is around 35 per day for the same plan on my next two cruises.  For that I will do without.  

I believe the state over ruled the city and basically ended the law before it could even truly go into effect.  So basically the city was told to kick rocks and there will be cruise ships per usual.  https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2021/06/30/florida-governor-signs-bill-overrule-key-west-cruise-ship-ban

Adventure of the Seas February 23rd 2022
 
Vision of the Seas November 25th 2022

Right now it shouldn't.  Haven't heard a lot in the news but it was all happening on the French side of the island and you will be going into the Dutch side.  After that it's a matter of taking stuff with the cruise line or just avoiding the French side right now, if your tour stays on the Dutch side then it's a non-issue.  The only thing I would worry about is regular traffic for delays though.  My best guess is the tour operator will be avoiding any major problem areas either way.
As best as I can tell it was mainly just some roadblocks and demonstrations so unless something changes between now and then I wouldn't have too many worry's about it.

For sure read the boards and watch the video's available.  If you want a quick walk around with a few flaws since there were a few things I couldn't remember I posted a video while I was on a B2B on Liberty.  
I did notice that the average age on the ship was a little older.  That doesn't mean much for the most part but while on the ship you would often see people trying to figure out the reservations for shows and such.  It's also a little more laid back and less of a party atmosphere, this is partly due to the average age being older but also due to distancing protocols so the belly flop competition isn't running among other things.
The biggest thing I always try to do is explore and look for interesting things.  I am a geek of all trades and understand a lot about the electrical, mechanical, and other systems on the ship but love to look around and find other things. (Big geek thing here so skip if you don't understand or want to know) I was knocking around and found one of the electrical substations on the ship that allows the power to be distributed to the floors.  But it was interesting to me they had the door listed at 11KV as that would mean they generate power at a high voltage for transmission to the "substations" and then drop it down to the required voltage.  I would have expected something like that but at a range closer to around 2KV.  And it was interesting to explain it to my girlfriend as well.  Other things you may notice is the way the lifeboats steer without a true rudder which means they can only steer effectively while moving under power, or the cooling system for the lifeboat engines which is just a copper loop that sits in the water.  If this is your kind of thing and stay on the ship during a port day you will see crew doing multiple tests around the ship, I saw the flood/fire doors on the promenade being opened and closed, lifeboats being started and checked, and they even had a backup power test done at one point so the elevators were shut down.
But enough of that, like I said I am a geek.  But you are sure to find a ton of stuff to do and the food is great.  The only thing I can say is if you picked my time dining make your reservations the first chance you get as later on it will be tough to get anything before 8:00pm.  We ended up just having pizza at Sorento's most nights and then going to watch a show, don't try and drop in after a show though as everyone else at the show has that idea...
 
And I am sure many others will also say that if you have a question about something specific all you have to do is ask.  There is a ton of knowledge out there but sometimes it helps to have someone break it down a bit.

For sure read the boards and watch the video's available.  If you want a quick walk around with a few flaws since there were a few things I couldn't remember I posted a video while I was on a B2B on Liberty.  
I did notice that the average age on the ship was a little older.  That doesn't mean much for the most part but while on the ship you would often see people trying to figure out the reservations for shows and such.  It's also a little more laid back and less of a party atmosphere, this is partly due to the average age being older but also due to distancing protocols so the belly flop competition isn't running among other things.
The biggest thing I always try to do is explore and look for interesting things.  I am a geek of all trades and understand a lot about the electrical, mechanical, and other systems on the ship but love to look around and find other things. (Big geek thing here so skip if you don't understand or want to know) I was knocking around and found one of the electrical substations on the ship that allows the power to be distributed to the floors.  But it was interesting to me they had the door listed at 11KV as that would mean they generate power at a high voltage for transmission to the "substations" and then drop it down to the required voltage.  I would have expected something like that but at a range closer to around 2KV.  And it was interesting to explain it to my girlfriend as well.  Other things you may notice is the way the lifeboats steer without a true rudder which means they can only steer effectively while moving under power, or the cooling system for the lifeboat engines which is just a copper loop that sits in the water.  If this is your kind of thing and stay on the ship during a port day you will see crew doing multiple tests around the ship, I saw the flood/fire doors on the promenade being opened and closed, lifeboats being started and checked, and they even had a backup power test done at one point so the elevators were shut down.
But enough of that, like I said I am a geek.  But you are sure to find a ton of stuff to do and the food is great.  The only thing I can say is if you picked my time dining make your reservations the first chance you get as later on it will be tough to get anything before 8:00pm.  We ended up just having pizza at Sorento's most nights and then going to watch a show, don't try and drop in after a show though as everyone else at the show has that idea...
 
And I am sure many others will also say that if you have a question about something specific all you have to do is ask.  There is a ton of knowledge out there but sometimes it helps to have someone break it down a bit.

For sure read the boards and watch the video's available.  If you want a quick walk around with a few flaws since there were a few things I couldn't remember I posted a video while I was on a B2B on Liberty.  
I did notice that the average age on the ship was a little older.  That doesn't mean much for the most part but while on the ship you would often see people trying to figure out the reservations for shows and such.  It's also a little more laid back and less of a party atmosphere, this is partly due to the average age being older but also due to distancing protocols so the belly flop competition isn't running among other things.
The biggest thing I always try to do is explore and look for interesting things.  I am a geek of all trades and understand a lot about the electrical, mechanical, and other systems on the ship but love to look around and find other things. (Big geek thing here so skip if you don't understand or want to know) I was knocking around and found one of the electrical substations on the ship that allows the power to be distributed to the floors.  But it was interesting to me they had the door listed at 11KV as that would mean they generate power at a high voltage for transmission to the "substations" and then drop it down to the required voltage.  I would have expected something like that but at a range closer to around 2KV.  And it was interesting to explain it to my girlfriend as well.  Other things you may notice is the way the lifeboats steer without a true rudder which means they can only steer effectively while moving under power, or the cooling system for the lifeboat engines which is just a copper loop that sits in the water.  If this is your kind of thing and stay on the ship during a port day you will see crew doing multiple tests around the ship, I saw the flood/fire doors on the promenade being opened and closed, lifeboats being started and checked, and they even had a backup power test done at one point so the elevators were shut down.
But enough of that, like I said I am a geek.  But you are sure to find a ton of stuff to do and the food is great.  The only thing I can say is if you picked my time dining make your reservations the first chance you get as later on it will be tough to get anything before 8:00pm.  We ended up just having pizza at Sorento's most nights and then going to watch a show, don't try and drop in after a show though as everyone else at the show has that idea...
 
And I am sure many others will also say that if you have a question about something specific all you have to do is ask.  There is a ton of knowledge out there but sometimes it helps to have someone break it down a bit.

Interesting. The thing is it could be used for access to the ship, the big deal is that someone who is a medical professional has to administer the test and provide the results from my understanding. So if you have a doctor who will handle it and provide a letter with the results information as a part of a regular office visit this could be a cheap way to get test results and may be needed if the current tests expire without an extension or replacement available. 
 
I have 2 tests that expire before February 23rd that I hope will have another extension on the expiration date but if that doesn't happen I will be looking for alternatives that won't run 100 bucks plus per test. 

My phones have always had wifi calling on when I picked them up. The issue with wifi calling is that if you step out of wifi range while on a phone call the call will usually drop. VoLTE was supposed to help fix that but it still seems to happen. So most of the time I turn wifi calling off and only turn it on for certain reasons. 
 
The reason why phones don't send sms and mms messages or calls with wifi calling of is those systems designs predate cell phones having internet access. There are a few proposed replacements like rcs available but most providers have no real incentive to implement them in an open way. Right now the only other option is to use a different application that runs over data, that is the reason why I recommend Signal. 

Thanks. Maximum depth was 82 feet and was my first Nitrox dive and normally my butt is dragging at the end but I felt great so any chance I get Nitrox weil be my go to gas. But I understand about your shoulder,  I broke the end of my clavicle and tie up the ligaments in my right shoulder. Walked around for 15 years with a broken piece in there complaining about it all the time. It's a little better now but still have pain but I know eventually I will be unable to dive. 
 
 
Very cool. I Open Water certified around July 2019. January of 2020 I did Advanced Open Water in Jamaica and by July of 2020 I did the Rescue Diver certification. I actually do a lot of trash cleanup dives at some local lakes when I can and have about 60 dives since my original certification. 
 
And for anyone wondering: 
 
 

I will be trying to edit and add more over the next few months in between replacing the roof on the house among other things. 

I will be trying to edit and add more over the next few months in between replacing the roof on the house among other things. 

I was there not long ago and where I was heading out for my dives (Bluekay) there was a good amount of seaweed on the shore and let's just say it didn't smell good. The water was pretty cloudy and I was surprised how much trash I saw on the reef. Couple that with the long walk to get through the port and let's just say it will be a place I will happily skip unless I'm going to do an on land excursion. 

Just got my reprice done on my October 31st Liberty sailing. Interior room dropped by 234.00. Actually pretty close to a 20 percent discount. 

Adventure of the Seas February 23rd 2022
 
Vision of the Seas November 25th 2022

Local cellular connection cuts of when you are out of range of a land based tower. Then you will switch to the ships cell tower if your carrier has an agreement with the ship to provide services but they are not cheap from my understanding. You could end up using the ships connection at any point though so if you don't have a plan that includes coverage i would hit airplane mode in the terminal. 
 
The Royal App is supposed to work fine without an internet plan while onboard the ship. Just connect to the wifi and you will get a page where you can then just use the app. The app also does most of the booking but the main dining room didn't seem to work very well on Liberty so if you are doing my time dining book the whole week ahead as soon as you hit the ship or talk to the staff for the dining room. 
 
Personally for traveling I love my Google Fi service. The only extra cost is phone calls while abroad, data and texting is included for free and while on the ship we used wifi calling and Signal for texting. 

Exactly. Just because you can go faster doesn't mean you have to. The ships move at their chosen speed for days on end is not like being in a car where you have to stop every few hours for fuel, food, bathroom breaks, stretching, sleep, etc.  A cruise is a marathon not a race. Plus if something comes up they can pick up speed if needed. For instance we recently had a medical emergency onboard while heading to Cozumel from Galveston on Liberty. They chose to run full speed to get there a few hours sooner which I'm sure cost Royal a pretty penny. 
 
Plus running at full speed all the time not only costs more in fuel but it also increases wear and tear on the mechanical systems involved. If you had to move all drydock work up two years on every ship because you constantly run them at full speed fares would have to be increased while also factoring in fuel increases that could mean twice the cost to go on a cruise cutting out a portion of your markets ability to pay. I suspect that if that were to happen less people would even want to go and we wouldn't have anything like the Oasis class in the water.