WAYNO

..

Yep a JS. This one is probably no different than the others, but it seems extra nice.

In our cabin!

We were the first customers. 20 minutes later there would have been nowhere to sit.

Didn't take long.

We are here!

I really wish folks would do some homework before they book a cruise. It is what it is and none of it is a secret. Then folks are so disappointed, even before they actually cruise, and they profess how awful the experience will be. And that could be a fulfilled prophesy. Cruising is not for everybody, and some folks should know that even before they book. On the other hand, give it a good chance, as I did, and you might just discover it is as wonderful as so many of us proclaim it to be.

You betcha I am! We board January 17th. Woo-hoo!

Moving along...

I've done many excursions in many places. Most have been no more physically taxing to me than the flights of stairs on the ship. But, many have involved tank-traps on surfaces as innocuous as a sidewalk. Codes are un-enforced to non-existent in many of the port stops. Stairs are uneven. Potholes are common on a sidewalk. Sometimes access to an area requires stepping off or up a curb, and could be a 2+ foot step. There are broken bolts sticking out of sidewalks. Thresholds into businesses can be extreme while simultaneously invisible. My point is, although an excursion may not be terribly physically difficult, the surfaces themselves can be very difficult for folks like me that don't have great vision or balance. On a recent excursion, my Wife stepped off a tour bus, and was expected to step up a curb to the sidewalk. The step was high enough, and unnoticeable enough, she did a face plant.

Because of seasonal duties and life's chores, I kind've diverted my attention from this cruise a little bit. Only a week and a half to go! That is a surprise.

We've used the local Taxi, always waiting at the pier. Minimum price was 25-bucks for three of us. So depending how far you need to go, ask for a little tour from them to get your 25-bucks worth. Last time there, we had a tour purchased from Royal.. It was pathetic. So we stopped at the Taxi stand when our tour was done, negotiated a 3-hour taxi-tour for 75 bucks, and had a truly great time. .

We have seen kids dig thru the plants looking for ducks. And I've read and heard from Royal, please don't hide the ducks in our plants, as folks do damage them while digging for ducks. We have also witnessed many of the ships crew grabbing these ducks as fast as they can when they see us placing the ducks. Seems the crew likes to collect ducks too, without any clandestine or inteligence-gathering purpose.

Gotta back off. Folks have rights.

This looks so fun! Have a great cruise! Merry Christmas!

I really can't wait. Up here in the Pacific Northwest, we haven't had a terrible fall and winter so far, but 42-degrees with a constant rain gets a person down. 80+ degrees and sunshine in the Mexican Riviera for a week is so uplifting.

Many folks look forward to a formal dinner. I try to respect that. Other folks however, scream nobody is going to tell them how to dress. Royal must pick their battles. The formal dining experience is going away. The Main Dining Room is becoming a casual restaurant. And this also could cause folks to switch to premium cruise lines.

Depending on the waiter, the bartender, the bar, and even different ships, and speaking only of soft drinks... Getting an unopened soda pop has been difficult. Most just will not allow it, regardless of our drink package. The one difference is using our diamond drink vouchers, the casino bar will give me unopened cans of pop for our room.

https://www.portlandspirit.com/cruise/cinnamonbear/?hsa_acc=1612419009&hsa_cam=521681347&hsa_grp=1317217346920628&hsa_ad=&hsa_src=s&hsa_tgt=kwd-2334125747511968:loc-71265&hsa_kw=portlandspirit.com&hsa_mt=b&hsa_net=adwords&hsa_ver=3&msclkid=3078b06e4fc41f43baa8d735afa97848

Well, not exactly a cruise to the tropics, but it will keep us in practice until the real thing, next month. The Portland Spirit is a 500 passenger boat that cruises the Columbia and Willamette Rivers for lunches, dinners and sight seeing. This time of year, they offer dinner cruises while watching the local yachters parade their "Christmas Ships". We've watched these Christmas Ships many times, but usually from the river bank in the comfort of our car. Once in a while we splurge for the dinner cruise.