Stvr California

After embarking and taking a stroll around the ship, my daughter was getting a bit cranky so I took her to Playmakers for some food.  We decided to go chicken heavy.  Wings and tenders, the wings were spot on but I’m not sure they get the concept of tenders - hardly any breading.   Our server Maria was a gem on the other hand. 
 
Our muster station was about 100 yards from the spot we jumped onboard so that was taken care of in about two minutes.  The Captain shamed a few hundred folks around 3:00pm to get the job done.  Honestly it’s so easy to do  not sure why people wait so long. 
 
Our luggage came around 4pm. Not a hardship but when you are sitting in your  cabin trying to reach for your favorite pair of flip flops or change of dungarees it isn’t the best. 
 
But after everything arrived, the wife and kids had a blast on the water slides, which are pretty good (read: thrilling) for slides on a boat! It turned out that 5-6 pm was the perfect time to be on deck, while a lot of people are eating dinner. 
 
We’re starving now! Izumi sushi tonight! 

This morning we woke up to banging drums and bull horns announcing a worker strike starting around 7am.  The chant went “We don’t get a contract, you don’t get no peace”.  It was actually a catchy little tune that is now stuck in my head.  The protest lasted about an hour and then they packed up and left. Apparently they had gone home for the night when we arrived last night?
My impression of the Doubletree has not improved. 

If you look closely you can see some picket signs.

Cruise day has arrived and we are currently sitting in our room watching the Minions movie to kill time. My daughter asked, “Have we murdered an hour yet?” No, hon, we still have 45 minutes to murder …

The Navigator of the Seas sails out of San Pedro which is about 23 miles south of downtown LA.   
 
We chose to fly Southwest into Long Beach instead of LAX.  It’s a much smaller airport with a lot less taxi-ing around and waiting for baggage.  A quick walk out of baggage claim to the ride share area and it was about a 24 minute ride to the San Pedro Double Tree.  
 
This is our first time at the Double Tree. It is fine for one night, it’s a little dingy. The staff is adequate if not particularly enthusiastic.  

Off to find some dinner.
 

Well my friends, the time has come to raise the roof and have some fun.  
 
No, I’m not cruising with Lionel Richie - but with my beloved wife, son (14), and daughter (11). 
 
We are currently sitting in the Sacramento Intersectional Airport waiting for our flight into Long Beach. We stay in San Pedro tonight and board tomorrow.

Last night was Jamie’s Italian.  It was good but if we are doing teams I’m on team Giovanni’s.
I just heard an alpha call for deck six.  It’s the first I have heard.  Hopeful everyone is Ok. 
 
We are currently docked in Mazetlan.  Today we are taking a taxi tour. Updates to follow. 
 

 
View from Chops breakfast 

What can I say about our excursion with Shipmate.com without being too negative? It was with Esperanza tours. Our host was super friendly and kind. I wanted to love it. 
It was a snorkel trip with snacks? “Snacks” - I pack more appetizing lunches for my kids at school. 

It was quite short and the destination (Pelican Beach) was very crowded.  Beautiful clear water with lots of gorgeous tropical fish. There wasn’t any instruction, however, and I was anxiously watching my kids as they bobbed in the strong currents. My wife said she struggled with the strong currents. 
So you better be a darn good swimmer for this excursion. There was a tense moment when the boat (collectively) realized that someone was left behind. The whole ship called her name. She was discovered bobbing along quite happily, and we got her aboard. All was well. 

My family were good sports and it was an absolutely beautiful day and location. I would have to be the Grinch to not have fun. But I wouldn’t necessarily recommend this particular excursion. 
 
 

What can I say about our excursion with Shipmate.com without being too negative? It was with Esperanza tours. Our host was super friendly and kind. I wanted to love it. 
It was a snorkel trip with snacks? “Snacks” - I pack more appetizing lunches for my kids at school. 

It was quite short and the destination (Pelican Beach) was very crowded.  Beautiful clear water with lots of gorgeous tropical fish. There wasn’t any instruction, however, and I was anxiously watching my kids as they bobbed in the strong currents. My wife said she struggled with the strong currents. 
So you better be a darn good swimmer for this excursion. There was a tense moment when the boat (collectively) realized that someone was left behind. The whole ship called her name. She was discovered bobbing along quite happily, and we got her aboard. All was well. 

My family were good sports and it was an absolutely beautiful day and location. I would have to be the Grinch to not have fun. But I wouldn’t necessarily recommend this particular excursion. 
 
 

What can I say about our excursion with Shipmate.com without being too negative? It was with Esperanza tours. Our host was super friendly and kind. I wanted to love it. 
It was a snorkel trip with snacks? “Snacks” - I pack more appetizing lunches for my kids at school. 

It was quite short and the destination (Pelican Beach) was very crowded.  Beautiful clear water with lots of gorgeous tropical fish. There wasn’t any instruction, however, and I was anxiously watching my kids as they bobbed in the strong currents. My wife said she struggled with the strong currents. 
So you better be a darn good swimmer for this excursion. There was a tense moment when the boat (collectively) realized that someone was left behind. The whole ship called her name. She was discovered bobbing along quite happily, and we got her aboard. All was well. 

My family were good sports and it was an absolutely beautiful day and location. I would have to be the Grinch to not have fun. But I wouldn’t necessarily recommend this particular excursion. 
 
 

Yesterday we went to the Windjammer for breakfast but it was so crowded we had to stalk diners for a table (my second least favorite thing to do after stalking people returning to their cars in a crowded parking lot). Not the most pleasant for this crowd-phobic family, especially my wife who doesn’t like to interact with people until she’s had at least 3 cups of coffee. 

So today we decided to take advantage of breakfast served at Chops, which is available to suites passengers. What a revelation! Quiet, intimate, you can sit and be served by friendly staff, and they make your item to order. This is the way. 


In other news, we’ve had our first towel animal sighting. 

Later today we are doing a non Royal snorkel excursion through shipmate.com.  The ship tenders out of Cabo San Lucas our first port.  We arrive in port at noon.  More details will be forthcoming after the trip

The Suites breakfast is my favorite suite perk on the non-O/Q ships.  I can’t wait until we are Pinn so that we can take advantage of it ALL the time.

Yesterday we went to the Windjammer for breakfast but it was so crowded we had to stalk diners for a table (my second least favorite thing to do after stalking people returning to their cars in a crowded parking lot). Not the most pleasant for this crowd-phobic family, especially my wife who doesn’t like to interact with people until she’s had at least 3 cups of coffee. 

So today we decided to take advantage of breakfast served at Chops, which is available to suites passengers. What a revelation! Quiet, intimate, you can sit and be served by friendly staff, and they make your item to order. This is the way. 


In other news, we’ve had our first towel animal sighting. 

Later today we are doing a non Royal snorkel excursion through shipmate.com.  The ship tenders out of Cabo San Lucas our first port.  We arrive in port at noon.  More details will be forthcoming after the trip

The crew on Navigator of the Seas is fantastic.  If there is a grumpy employee they must be working below deck because I have not met one. Maybe in the waste water treatment plant?  
 
Just really impressed, especially with Maria a server at Playmakers.  She remembered my name after the first visit yesterday.  Doesn’t need to see my sea pass anymore.  She really made my kids feel welcomed and taken care of.  
 
Wife and daughter are headed to the cup cake decorating class, while my son and I consider the flow rider. It is surprisingly chilly.  It is currently around 68 degrees Fahrenheit.  It’s getting warmer as we head south but slowly.  

Izumi was quite good. My shrimp-loving son and my sushi-loving wife were thrilled with their meals and ate their heats out. My daughter dared my wife to eat wasabi straight and she did it! Everyone giggled as she sniffed and coughed, but she loves wasabi so much she said it was rather refreshing. She highly recommends the spicy tuna and shrimp rolls.
 
I’m not a fan of sushi and I don’t think I ordered well.  I kept looking at other people’s plates with envy.  I basically choked and went with the teriyaki beef. People make mistakes.  If you go to Izumi, go for the more interesting dishes! 
 

Yesterday we went to the Windjammer for breakfast but it was so crowded we had to stalk diners for a table (my second least favorite thing to do after stalking people returning to their cars in a crowded parking lot). Not the most pleasant for this crowd-phobic family, especially my wife who doesn’t like to interact with people until she’s had at least 3 cups of coffee. 

So today we decided to take advantage of breakfast served at Chops, which is available to suites passengers. What a revelation! Quiet, intimate, you can sit and be served by friendly staff, and they make your item to order. This is the way. 


In other news, we’ve had our first towel animal sighting. 

Later today we are doing a non Royal snorkel excursion through shipmate.com.  The ship tenders out of Cabo San Lucas our first port.  We arrive in port at noon.  More details will be forthcoming after the trip

The crew on Navigator of the Seas is fantastic.  If there is a grumpy employee they must be working below deck because I have not met one. Maybe in the waste water treatment plant?  
 
Just really impressed, especially with Maria a server at Playmakers.  She remembered my name after the first visit yesterday.  Doesn’t need to see my sea pass anymore.  She really made my kids feel welcomed and taken care of.  
 
Wife and daughter are headed to the cup cake decorating class, while my son and I consider the flow rider. It is surprisingly chilly.  It is currently around 68 degrees Fahrenheit.  It’s getting warmer as we head south but slowly.  

Izumi was quite good. My shrimp-loving son and my sushi-loving wife were thrilled with their meals and ate their heats out. My daughter dared my wife to eat wasabi straight and she did it! Everyone giggled as she sniffed and coughed, but she loves wasabi so much she said it was rather refreshing. She highly recommends the spicy tuna and shrimp rolls.
 
I’m not a fan of sushi and I don’t think I ordered well.  I kept looking at other people’s plates with envy.  I basically choked and went with the teriyaki beef. People make mistakes.  If you go to Izumi, go for the more interesting dishes! 
 

After embarking and taking a stroll around the ship, my daughter was getting a bit cranky so I took her to Playmakers for some food.  We decided to go chicken heavy.  Wings and tenders, the wings were spot on but I’m not sure they get the concept of tenders - hardly any breading.   Our server Maria was a gem on the other hand. 
 
Our muster station was about 100 yards from the spot we jumped onboard so that was taken care of in about two minutes.  The Captain shamed a few hundred folks around 3:00pm to get the job done.  Honestly it’s so easy to do  not sure why people wait so long. 
 
Our luggage came around 4pm. Not a hardship but when you are sitting in your  cabin trying to reach for your favorite pair of flip flops or change of dungarees it isn’t the best. 
 
But after everything arrived, the wife and kids had a blast on the water slides, which are pretty good (read: thrilling) for slides on a boat! It turned out that 5-6 pm was the perfect time to be on deck, while a lot of people are eating dinner. 
 
We’re starving now! Izumi sushi tonight! 

Izumi was quite good. My shrimp-loving son and my sushi-loving wife were thrilled with their meals and ate their heats out. My daughter dared my wife to eat wasabi straight and she did it! Everyone giggled as she sniffed and coughed, but she loves wasabi so much she said it was rather refreshing. She highly recommends the spicy tuna and shrimp rolls.
 
I’m not a fan of sushi and I don’t think I ordered well.  I kept looking at other people’s plates with envy.  I basically choked and went with the teriyaki beef. People make mistakes.  If you go to Izumi, go for the more interesting dishes! 
 

The crew on Navigator of the Seas is fantastic.  If there is a grumpy employee they must be working below deck because I have not met one. Maybe in the waste water treatment plant?  
 
Just really impressed, especially with Maria a server at Playmakers.  She remembered my name after the first visit yesterday.  Doesn’t need to see my sea pass anymore.  She really made my kids feel welcomed and taken care of.  
 
Wife and daughter are headed to the cup cake decorating class, while my son and I consider the flow rider. It is surprisingly chilly.  It is currently around 68 degrees Fahrenheit.  It’s getting warmer as we head south but slowly.  

This morning we woke up to banging drums and bull horns announcing a worker strike starting around 7am.  The chant went “We don’t get a contract, you don’t get no peace”.  It was actually a catchy little tune that is now stuck in my head.  The protest lasted about an hour and then they packed up and left. Apparently they had gone home for the night when we arrived last night?
My impression of the Doubletree has not improved. 

If you look closely you can see some picket signs.

Cruise day has arrived and we are currently sitting in our room watching the Minions movie to kill time. My daughter asked, “Have we murdered an hour yet?” No, hon, we still have 45 minutes to murder …

When we got to our hotel last night everyone was starving, so we decided to go to Maria’s Mexican Restaurant, about a half mile from Doubletree. Coincidentally, a delivery driver from Maria’s was parked outside the hotel and agreed to give us a ride. We all piled into the back seat (don’t try this at home, kids) and she drove us rather aggressively to the restaurant. 
 
Maria’s could -charitably- be characterized as a “dive.” It is a hole in the wall in a strikingly ugly strip mall. But we were so hungry we didn’t even get upset when they told us they don’t serve cerveza! The ambiance was pretty gritty, but the service was friendly and the food was excellent. I had a big bowl of albondigas (beef meatball soup), the wife had enchiladas, and the kids ate burritos and churros hot from the fryer. 

When we were done, the same kind woman drove us back, again very quickly. It was a fun adventure! My daughter stated that the churro was the highlight of our first day of travel.

Following.  We just got off Navigator a couple weeks ago and had a great time.  Interested in hearing others experiences.
Hope you are having a wonderful cruise.  (Sounds like you are so far)

This morning we woke up to banging drums and bull horns announcing a worker strike starting around 7am.  The chant went “We don’t get a contract, you don’t get no peace”.  It was actually a catchy little tune that is now stuck in my head.  The protest lasted about an hour and then they packed up and left. Apparently they had gone home for the night when we arrived last night?
My impression of the Doubletree has not improved. 

If you look closely you can see some picket signs.

Cruise day has arrived and we are currently sitting in our room watching the Minions movie to kill time. My daughter asked, “Have we murdered an hour yet?” No, hon, we still have 45 minutes to murder …

Thanks!  We are going to do our best.

After embarking and taking a stroll around the ship, my daughter was getting a bit cranky so I took her to Playmakers for some food.  We decided to go chicken heavy.  Wings and tenders, the wings were spot on but I’m not sure they get the concept of tenders - hardly any breading.   Our server Maria was a gem on the other hand. 
 
Our muster station was about 100 yards from the spot we jumped onboard so that was taken care of in about two minutes.  The Captain shamed a few hundred folks around 3:00pm to get the job done.  Honestly it’s so easy to do  not sure why people wait so long. 
 
Our luggage came around 4pm. Not a hardship but when you are sitting in your  cabin trying to reach for your favorite pair of flip flops or change of dungarees it isn’t the best. 
 
But after everything arrived, the wife and kids had a blast on the water slides, which are pretty good (read: thrilling) for slides on a boat! It turned out that 5-6 pm was the perfect time to be on deck, while a lot of people are eating dinner. 
 
We’re starving now! Izumi sushi tonight!