LogicallyLazy

It’s not completely out of the question lol. You think Eli can help?

It’s a bittersweet morning today. We’re back in Singapore, which means that the cruise is soon over. Please, can I stay?

Which could be a very real possibility. Uh oh...I may not have thought this through lol. Oh well, if I go, at least I’ll go happy.

After dinner, we came back to our stateroom to discover this lovely creature. It was only now that I realised we didn’t get towel animals every night. But it’s a little thing so it’s not a big deal. We lazed around a little, recovering from food coma before heading for the production of Starwater at Two70. At 10.15pm, this was the last big show to take place on the ship. The show did not disappoint and it was definitely my fav of all the 4 shows. It definitely showcased all the technology that makes Two70 and the Quantum class of ships a technological marvel. Heading back to our room, one would think there was nothing more that would surprise us. We were wrong. Eli had left us an amazing package of gifts. While I know it has been done before, I really wasn’t expecting it on a 3 night cruise. We were so touched we decided we needed to up the tip we were going to give her. I didn’t have anymore spare USD on me, so I went down to the ATM to get some. It’s worth it though, with everything she has helped us with. And with that, day 3, our last day at sea, comes to a close. Le sigh ?

Cue ‘Eye of the Tiger’ in the background. In one corner, TeamCK with their speciality dining standard food that’s actually complimentary dining. Going out of their way to prepare the famous filet mignon at lunch on special request. In the other corner, TeamChops with their signature steaks cooked to perfection. They know steaks and will do what it takes to prove it to you. Jokes aside, for dinner we of course went to...Wonderland!!! *crickets* No, of course we went to Chops Grille. A few posts back, I spoke how I loved their bone-in ribeye more so than CK’s Filet. I was speaking how I was contemplating simply getting the ribeye again. Turns out, the choice was taken out of my hands as the ribeye was sold out. But if I’m going to put these 2 against each other? I have to make sure the fight is fair. So, without further ado. So, which do I prefer? Taste wise, I would say that both Chops and CK are almost on par. Chops filet was slightly heavier seasoned, so it had a stronger flavor on the crust. The flavor of the meat inside was about the same. Cook of the meat. I would have to give this one to Chops. I eat my steak medium rare and I think Chops did a better job there. The CK filet was slightly over cooked, not enough to be bad but could tell it lost some of that moisture and tenderness of the filet. I also think that the sear was better at Chops. So overall verdict. I think I’m firmly...TeamChops. Sorry @Lovetocruise2002. Please don’t hurt me. Now that that’s done, here are some of the supporting actors. NY strip, Rack of lamb, apple pie and Key lime meringue. With a little cameo from Schooner, Peach Lava Flow End Scene

Aww Matt, don’t worry. She’ll be back, I know it. But seriously, thank you and I’m glad you’re enjoying the blog

After sweating out some of the UDP calories at the Seaplex, we headed back to our room to freshen up, not before dropping by the Bionic Bar. It was pretty packed so we didn’t grab a drink, though we did watch the dancing bots for a while. We went ahead to our next show, headliner act John Taylor, a magic act. The show itself was good, with more participation compared to Steve Rawlings as it was in the Royal Theatre. While we know it’s all illusions and sleight of hand, it was fun to try figuring out how it was done, not successfully of course. We had some time before dinner so we decided to have one more walk around the top deck to grab a refreshing drink at the pool bar as well. It has just sunk in that the cruise is over in less than a day. I’m gonna miss this view. ? Oh well, good things must come to an end. At least dinner can brighten the mood. Not to mention, I’m on a mission. #TeamCK or #TeamChops Coming up next

Here is the menu I took on board. It’s the same as on the app, other than the app splitting the noodle soups lol

Before lunch, we headed over to the music hall for a little Harry Potter Trivia. After which, we went over to CK for our lunch. I think personally, this was the least impressive meal so far. Almost all the dishes were just passable, the salmon and chicken were pretty dry. After lunch, we headed over to the Seaplex for foosball and Table Tennis.

Good morning everybody. Taking it slow this morning with breakfast from CK in suite.

Speaking of the chat. It is a paid feature for our sailing. Since we already have wifi and we all use WhatsApp we didn’t need this.

Oh? I did not know this. I asked Eli before boarding while we were planning and she didn’t bat an eye. They probably would. Especially if your cruise has many people who frequent the spa. I will say that the need to plan ahead what time to go to the spa makes it a smidge more inconvenient than simply popping in whenever possible Hmm, this is my first cruise so I don’t have anything to base it off of. Lol. But I will say that while researching, the method for contacting the genie was wildly inconsistent. That sounds way too familiar. Lol

Final post before heading to bed. In the past, some cruisers contacted their Genie through the loop app. For our sailing, that wasn’t mentioned at all. I heard some using Facebook messenger before. Once on board, Eli informed us to contact her through WhatsApp. I think this changes based on what’s most convenient where they’re sailing from. Almost everyone uses WhatsApp in Singapore which makes sense for them to use it too. Sorry, just a random thought before bed.

On the cruise I’m currently on, though embarkation starts at 2, there is still lunch provided. Star class guests were allowed the earliest check in of 2 regardless of what slot they got and CK was open till 3pm. Windjammer was also open till 6pm on boarding day. After which dinner in the MDR/CK/speciality restaurants took over. Apparently there wasn’t speciality dining open for embarkation lunch due to limited staff

To end the day, we headed over to the Music hall to catch some after dinner music. We checked with Eli beforehand and she confirmed she wasn’t able to assist in reserving a space for us. Also, recuperating from our massive feast, we were a little late, which meant many of the seats were already taken. We still managed to get in and listen to the music, though we didn’t have a good view of the stage, so unfortunately no photos. And that’s day 2 wrapped up. Finally caught up to the present. Now hopefully I can keep it like that till tomorrow ?

In suite dining Dinner Now this was the absolute motherload of dinner spreads. In a way, it was our own little version of the Taste of Royal meal. Firstly, an assortment of sushi sashimi and Japanese spread from Izumi. Supplemented by some familiar items from Chops. And to top it off, I saw they served the beef Wellington in the MDR on their Christmas and New Years sailing. I requested if they could have it prepared and they could. For such a thick slab of meat, it was surprisingly tender. We didn’t have steak knives, only the blunt table knifes and we had no trouble cutting through. To close off the meal, we wanted desert from Wonderland. This is where Eli and the kitchen staff really went above and beyond. Due to our dietary restriction of pork, we are unable to take gelatin. Consulting with Eli prior to boarding, she checked with the Wonderland staff and confirmed that it did contain gelatin, to which they mentioned they would prepare something specially for us. Come today, and I receive a message from Eli, asking if I was able to take beef gelatin instead. (Yes, by the way). So, not only were they able to accommodate my needs, but managed to give me the authentic wonderland experience as well.

You should. I think I am always looking for good filets, I sometimes overlook the ribeyes which can be just as good

I was honestly really surprised. Not only was it massive, but it tasted so good. Maybe the bone-in gave it that extra kick of flavor I think it set in after dinner yesterday lol. With so little days, I think we’re trying to cram too many dishes into every meal and then realizing we were too ambitious. Haha. But well, we are on vacation. We’ll worry about our weight after. Haha.

It was a little pricy at $40. Before the pandemic, the North Star cost around $10. They increased the price to $20 to make up for lost revenue due to a maximum capacity of 5 per ride. So in essence it cost double to bring us over the side. Which was why I was the only one in my group to do it. Lol. Only 1 person needed for photos

I walked through once and it was really crowded. Felt a little out of place to be taking pictures so I walked through with my 360 camera. The photos are screenshots from that. Sorry, it was the best I could do. For the slots, there are machines not in used for social distancing, but I see people in the same groups next to them with no issue. Tables seem full and it looks like on lookers have to stand some distance away from the table.

Fast forward to day 2. After our visit to the spa, we went for a quick (read: too filling) breakfast at CK. Here are some but not all our choices. After a quick break back at our stateroom, it seemed like too soon before we were already off to Jamie’s for lunch. You ever regret eating a good meal. Yeah that’s us in regards to breakfast. Jamie’s appetisers were definitely the stars of the meal. The pasta we ate was kinda meh but the baked mushrooms...hmm so good We were originally gonna head to the seaplex for some pickleball, but changed our plans on account of our full stomach. Headed up to the suite sun deck for some sun and to take some timelapse videos of the North Star. temp_video_1614693127511.mp4 Next up, we headed to the Royal Theatre to catch the production “Sequin and Feathers” a show with lots of music, dancing and show girls. Lol Speaking of North Star, I decided to go for the extended experience today. Since we saved on a few things here and there due to star class privileges, thought I’d experience this. Gave me good shots from the exterior of the ship too.

Dinner We headed to chops for dinner and of course, we had to do the customary star class seafood tower. Eli did mentioned that all up charges where waived for star class. While I was already aware of this thanks to the lovely people on this forum, she noted that many star guest don’t know and end up not taking things they may have wanted. On top of that we also took the mushroom soup, crab cake and beef carpaccio. As for the entrees, I took the bone-in ribeye, thinking that I’ll go for the filet on our second trip to chops. And I can say I was not disappointed at all. Dare I say, I prefer the ribeye to the CK filet at lunch. We also got the lobster because my dad’s a seafood fanatic. Now, I’m on the fence about ordering the ribeye again instead of the filet for the last night, but in the interest of science, I need to see this through. To give my take on the Chops vs CK debate Headliner Show After dinner, we headed over to Two70 to watch headliner act Steve Rawling, who is a comedy juggler. While the show wasn’t bad, I think circumstances might have led to a less than stellar atmosphere. As a comedian, I think a lot of it depends on how the audience reacts. His show required a lot of audience participation and with it being a mainly Asian audience, who are a little more reserved, it left a lot of awkward silences. But still entertaining nonetheless. The show also started with the dancing robot screens And that concludes day 1

Unfortunately, it’s a paid activity for Singapore sailings so no unlimited rides. But we do have the 1 complimentary ride for star class

Okay time to catch up on our first day while I have some time. Activities First off, we went for the bumper cars. As Star class guest, Eli brought us to the front of the line in a designated area for star guests. Before that, we also helped reserve the slots we wanted to seaplex activities like foosball, Table Tennis and pickleball. According to Eli, there is no basketball due to physical distancing. After that, we decided to explore the top deck a little since we were already there. Walking around the outside to snap some shots before taking a break at the Solarium. Pina Colada anyone? Finally, we headed for our flight on the North Star. Let me just preface that I’m absolutely terrified of heights, but figured that I won’t be able to pass this up, so I put on a brave face and ascended to the skies. I’ll be covering dinner in a following post

It was painless, the app was kind of buggy so when watching the safety video on my phone, I couldn’t mark myself that I was done. In the end we watched it on our stateroom TV. Reporting to your muster station was also hassle free. It overall took maybe 15 minutes from watching the video in the stateroom to finishing up at the station. They will put a sticker on your seapass once you’re done to indicate that you’ve completed the muster drill