DunkelBierJay

End of the Last a Sea Day and Reflections on the cruise:
After killing a couple hours on deck 12 after the Sexiest Man competition, which had some alcohol induced cringe moments between one of the judges and Flavio, the Activities Manager, we did some much needed napping there and a little later in the Solarium. I was sad that I was still too full after Chops to have another Kummelwick. 


More napping was to be had, so that continued to happen into the evening.

We had intentions of going to the farewell show before dinner. That did not happen, so we opted for the drawing to guess the carat weight of a piece of tanzanite jewelry in order to win it. I missed it by a half carat, and someone else nailed it. Congrats to him!
We listened to some music by the Kronos Band, and I shared a couple of scopes. They moved from country to Jimmy Buffet, and are my favorite musical ensemble I have heard at sea. Their range goes from Sinatra to Otis Redding, and country to metal. They were extraordinary. 
Screenshot from the Periscope
When 8:30 pm came around, we headed to the MDR for dinner. 

When we arrived, we made sure that we expressed our gratitude to two amazing waiters, Arturo and Lyudmylla. One of my favorite parts of cruising is this connection that develops which I believe is sincere on their part. I have yet to experience a cruise where a short, temporary friendship develops at a minimum and some are Facebook friends to this day. 
So, we love giving some extra to these fantastic people! We also had a chance on disembarkation day to express the same gratitude to Bernardo, our stateroom attendant. I hope that everyone appreciates how hard they work to make guests’ experience wonderful. I will make sure they get our highest evaluation on the email request to do a survey.
Final Thoughts
Embarkation — A+
There’s something about Terminal 6 in Tampa that has it over on Terminal 3. I certainly don’t know all of the behind the scenes contributions to the experience for guests, but it was superior than my previous experience embarking on the Empress.
Stateroom 4014 — A+
access eas early layout was perfect size was perfect everything worked it was close to the forward elevators the Centrum was easily accessible This is by far my favorite stateroom in any of my cruises. I have stayed in a jr suite, Superior OV with balcony, Inside Promenade, Inside. I think it is easily the best value I have experienced, and while balconies are nice, I have rarely used them when I had them. Stateroom Attendant, Bernardo — A Main Dining Room — B
while beautiful, it is over-crowded and there were some organizational and procedural issues that affected others as well as us. I think it had to do with communication between the Head waiters at the two seatings   Waiter and Assistant Waiter, Arturo and Lyudmylla — A ++ I cant speak highly enough of them. They made what could have been a difficult circumstance into not a big deal. In my view, they should run the dining room. They were that good. If you are sailing on Brilliance within the next two months, ask for them.  Food — B++ I could be wrong, but I sensed that some of the organizational issues affected the food quality at times. It was never bad, it just wasn’t as good as I have experienced on other ships.  Windjammer — A
The Windjammer on Brilliance was my favorite I have experienced. It may be because the honey stung chicken was as good as billed, and I finally knocked it off my bucket list. They executed breakfast really well. The made to order omelets were the best I have had at sea. I love the open area at the back. Love. It. I consider Rita’s part of the Windjammer and would like to see Royal Caribbean commit to it or change it into something more appealing. It seems like they are just letting it sit there without any availability of their old menu except on certain days in the Windjammer. Specialty Dining (Chops) — A
i would rate it higher if the Chops on Empress didn’t edge it out by a smidgen. Solarium — B++
I would rate it higher if it was a little larger. I think the Solarium in Enchantment is larger, and remains my favorite. It is a very beautiful spot on the ship.  I really like the Park Cafe and the offerings there. They do Kummelwick roast beef sandwiches during lunch, which was a very nice surprise.  Gym — A
good staff, layout and assortment of exercise options Shopping — B-
they didn’t have a good selection of logo gear, and a limited size availability. I didn’t really look at anything else. Bars
Pub — A+ — favorite pub I have experienced in a ship R-Bar — A
Vintages — B+ — the liquor package seems to be a necessity because the a la carte pricing is quite high. The ambience and location on the ship is great.  Schooner — A — great spot for a cocktail. I really like the location on this ship Solarium Bar — A- — its a little small. The service is really good.  Entertainment — B+  
what we saw was nice, but not set apart from other experiences.  Music — A
The Kronos Band was just great. The options at Schooner are mixed. The Pub singer was pretty good, but we didn’t listen that much.  Movie Theater — A
we saw two movies here, and this is such a great amenity. When you want to chill out. I’d like to see more of these in the fleet. Special Events - A+
The effort and fun out into the College Football National Championship game experience on board was far over and above expectations. It was great, and I would have rated it the same had my team not won.  Dis-embarkation — A +
We self assisted with our luggage. Actually, we have never used the ship’s service. That’s what wheels are for. We were able to walk off with no lines at about 8:45. There was a five minute line at customs. This is the first cruise where we did not have to fill out a customs form. We were in our Lyft 10 minutes later, and having breakfast #2 by 10:30 am. Other — This is just an observation
I’ve never seen so many Pinnacles in one place as on this sailing. Everywhere I turned, I saw a name badge with Pinnacle Club on it. Overall — A-
Some aspects of this cruise could have been better. The ship has an overcrowded feel, especially in the MDR. The beauty of the ship, the well known connection to the sea, the many amenities and especially the crew make for an amazing experience. 

All the more reason to reduce image size.  I typically use no more than 700 pixels wide on here and keep files under 200 kB unless there is text like on menus, then a higher resolution makes it easier to read.   Typical smartphone images are 2-3 MB which take 10 times longer to upload over Voom.  
Being all Apple I use Airdrop to move files back and forth but there are many image transfer apps in the Play store that use wifi to move images.  

when you log into cruise planner at the airport immediately after getting off your last cruise you carry moisturizing lotion because you wash your hands 50 times a day your Evernote shortcuts is dominated with cruise related planning info

Your question made me curious, so I opened my Shipmate app on my phone to see. I have found it to be consistent with the ships I have been on and with the deck plans on the RC website.
Jewel -- a movie theater is on Deck 6 in the same place where it is on Brilliance. Radiance -- a movie theater is on Deck 6 in the same place as Brilliance. There is an English Pub next to it as well. Serenade -- same as Brilliance So, it appears that all of the Radiance class ships still have cinemas.
The moves we saw
Logan Lucky -- there were five others in the theater of 48 Dunkirk -- there were only two empty seats I think that is would be more popular if they promoted it elsewhere on the ship in addition to the Cruise Compass. We probably never would have walked by it if the Pub wasn't on the other side from the elevators. and not far from our stateroom. If our room was elsewhere on the ship, I am not sure we would have gone to it other than touring the ship.

Thanks for asking. I just realized that I didn't grade VOOM above. I give it a C+.
I used speed test in a couple locations, and when the area wasn't crowded, it tested pretty well. In our stateroom, the Solarium, and a few others spots, it was as fast as our home. The current version of Speedtest on my phone doesn't seem to have a history feature like the last version did, so I can't post it here.
Here's the rub:
It was extremely difficult to get my iPhone 7+ to connect. The staff at the VOOM desk helped tremendously by setting the ISP address for the login uRL (I don't know why that was necessary) and then going into Settings/Privacy/Location Settings, then scroll to the very bottom/System Services, and then turn off Share My Location and WiFi Networking. Ugh...without the crew member, I would still be trying to connect. Even as it is, I think there are too many steps to connect.
Also, VOOM went out a few times completely at inopportune moments, and that was frustrating. I also think that when we were docked next to Liberty in Cozumel, that the VOOM on that ship was what appeared on the WiFI queue on my phone rather than Brilliance (it just said royal-wifi), because I kept getting an error message that my login was not valid when we were docked together. I would have investigated on board if I wasn't in a hurry to get to Nachi. Liberty was sailing away when we returned, and I was able to reconnect when we got back on board.

End of the Last a Sea Day and Reflections on the cruise:
After killing a couple hours on deck 12 after the Sexiest Man competition, which had some alcohol induced cringe moments between one of the judges and Flavio, the Activities Manager, we did some much needed napping there and a little later in the Solarium. I was sad that I was still too full after Chops to have another Kummelwick. 


More napping was to be had, so that continued to happen into the evening.

We had intentions of going to the farewell show before dinner. That did not happen, so we opted for the drawing to guess the carat weight of a piece of tanzanite jewelry in order to win it. I missed it by a half carat, and someone else nailed it. Congrats to him!
We listened to some music by the Kronos Band, and I shared a couple of scopes. They moved from country to Jimmy Buffet, and are my favorite musical ensemble I have heard at sea. Their range goes from Sinatra to Otis Redding, and country to metal. They were extraordinary. 
Screenshot from the Periscope
When 8:30 pm came around, we headed to the MDR for dinner. 

When we arrived, we made sure that we expressed our gratitude to two amazing waiters, Arturo and Lyudmylla. One of my favorite parts of cruising is this connection that develops which I believe is sincere on their part. I have yet to experience a cruise where a short, temporary friendship develops at a minimum and some are Facebook friends to this day. 
So, we love giving some extra to these fantastic people! We also had a chance on disembarkation day to express the same gratitude to Bernardo, our stateroom attendant. I hope that everyone appreciates how hard they work to make guests’ experience wonderful. I will make sure they get our highest evaluation on the email request to do a survey.
Final Thoughts
Embarkation — A+
There’s something about Terminal 6 in Tampa that has it over on Terminal 3. I certainly don’t know all of the behind the scenes contributions to the experience for guests, but it was superior than my previous experience embarking on the Empress.
Stateroom 4014 — A+
access eas early layout was perfect size was perfect everything worked it was close to the forward elevators the Centrum was easily accessible This is by far my favorite stateroom in any of my cruises. I have stayed in a jr suite, Superior OV with balcony, Inside Promenade, Inside. I think it is easily the best value I have experienced, and while balconies are nice, I have rarely used them when I had them. Stateroom Attendant, Bernardo — A Main Dining Room — B
while beautiful, it is over-crowded and there were some organizational and procedural issues that affected others as well as us. I think it had to do with communication between the Head waiters at the two seatings   Waiter and Assistant Waiter, Arturo and Lyudmylla — A ++ I cant speak highly enough of them. They made what could have been a difficult circumstance into not a big deal. In my view, they should run the dining room. They were that good. If you are sailing on Brilliance within the next two months, ask for them.  Food — B++ I could be wrong, but I sensed that some of the organizational issues affected the food quality at times. It was never bad, it just wasn’t as good as I have experienced on other ships.  Windjammer — A
The Windjammer on Brilliance was my favorite I have experienced. It may be because the honey stung chicken was as good as billed, and I finally knocked it off my bucket list. They executed breakfast really well. The made to order omelets were the best I have had at sea. I love the open area at the back. Love. It. I consider Rita’s part of the Windjammer and would like to see Royal Caribbean commit to it or change it into something more appealing. It seems like they are just letting it sit there without any availability of their old menu except on certain days in the Windjammer. Specialty Dining (Chops) — A
i would rate it higher if the Chops on Empress didn’t edge it out by a smidgen. Solarium — B++
I would rate it higher if it was a little larger. I think the Solarium in Enchantment is larger, and remains my favorite. It is a very beautiful spot on the ship.  I really like the Park Cafe and the offerings there. They do Kummelwick roast beef sandwiches during lunch, which was a very nice surprise.  Gym — A
good staff, layout and assortment of exercise options Shopping — B-
they didn’t have a good selection of logo gear, and a limited size availability. I didn’t really look at anything else. Bars
Pub — A+ — favorite pub I have experienced in a ship R-Bar — A
Vintages — B+ — the liquor package seems to be a necessity because the a la carte pricing is quite high. The ambience and location on the ship is great.  Schooner — A — great spot for a cocktail. I really like the location on this ship Solarium Bar — A- — its a little small. The service is really good.  Entertainment — B+  
what we saw was nice, but not set apart from other experiences.  Music — A
The Kronos Band was just great. The options at Schooner are mixed. The Pub singer was pretty good, but we didn’t listen that much.  Movie Theater — A
we saw two movies here, and this is such a great amenity. When you want to chill out. I’d like to see more of these in the fleet. Special Events - A+
The effort and fun out into the College Football National Championship game experience on board was far over and above expectations. It was great, and I would have rated it the same had my team not won.  Dis-embarkation — A +
We self assisted with our luggage. Actually, we have never used the ship’s service. That’s what wheels are for. We were able to walk off with no lines at about 8:45. There was a five minute line at customs. This is the first cruise where we did not have to fill out a customs form. We were in our Lyft 10 minutes later, and having breakfast #2 by 10:30 am. Other — This is just an observation
I’ve never seen so many Pinnacles in one place as on this sailing. Everywhere I turned, I saw a name badge with Pinnacle Club on it. Overall — A-
Some aspects of this cruise could have been better. The ship has an overcrowded feel, especially in the MDR. The beauty of the ship, the well known connection to the sea, the many amenities and especially the crew make for an amazing experience. 

Thanks for the great live blog, Jay! Really appreciated, especially when it meant taking some time out from your vacation to make these posts, edit the photos, not to mention the time every day for WJ recon!

End of the Last a Sea Day and Reflections on the cruise:
After killing a couple hours on deck 12 after the Sexiest Man competition, which had some alcohol induced cringe moments between one of the judges and Flavio, the Activities Manager, we did some much needed napping there and a little later in the Solarium. I was sad that I was still too full after Chops to have another Kummelwick. 


More napping was to be had, so that continued to happen into the evening.

We had intentions of going to the farewell show before dinner. That did not happen, so we opted for the drawing to guess the carat weight of a piece of tanzanite jewelry in order to win it. I missed it by a half carat, and someone else nailed it. Congrats to him!
We listened to some music by the Kronos Band, and I shared a couple of scopes. They moved from country to Jimmy Buffet, and are my favorite musical ensemble I have heard at sea. Their range goes from Sinatra to Otis Redding, and country to metal. They were extraordinary. 
Screenshot from the Periscope
When 8:30 pm came around, we headed to the MDR for dinner. 

When we arrived, we made sure that we expressed our gratitude to two amazing waiters, Arturo and Lyudmylla. One of my favorite parts of cruising is this connection that develops which I believe is sincere on their part. I have yet to experience a cruise where a short, temporary friendship develops at a minimum and some are Facebook friends to this day. 
So, we love giving some extra to these fantastic people! We also had a chance on disembarkation day to express the same gratitude to Bernardo, our stateroom attendant. I hope that everyone appreciates how hard they work to make guests’ experience wonderful. I will make sure they get our highest evaluation on the email request to do a survey.
Final Thoughts
Embarkation — A+
There’s something about Terminal 6 in Tampa that has it over on Terminal 3. I certainly don’t know all of the behind the scenes contributions to the experience for guests, but it was superior than my previous experience embarking on the Empress.
Stateroom 4014 — A+
access eas early layout was perfect size was perfect everything worked it was close to the forward elevators the Centrum was easily accessible This is by far my favorite stateroom in any of my cruises. I have stayed in a jr suite, Superior OV with balcony, Inside Promenade, Inside. I think it is easily the best value I have experienced, and while balconies are nice, I have rarely used them when I had them. Stateroom Attendant, Bernardo — A Main Dining Room — B
while beautiful, it is over-crowded and there were some organizational and procedural issues that affected others as well as us. I think it had to do with communication between the Head waiters at the two seatings   Waiter and Assistant Waiter, Arturo and Lyudmylla — A ++ I cant speak highly enough of them. They made what could have been a difficult circumstance into not a big deal. In my view, they should run the dining room. They were that good. If you are sailing on Brilliance within the next two months, ask for them.  Food — B++ I could be wrong, but I sensed that some of the organizational issues affected the food quality at times. It was never bad, it just wasn’t as good as I have experienced on other ships.  Windjammer — A
The Windjammer on Brilliance was my favorite I have experienced. It may be because the honey stung chicken was as good as billed, and I finally knocked it off my bucket list. They executed breakfast really well. The made to order omelets were the best I have had at sea. I love the open area at the back. Love. It. I consider Rita’s part of the Windjammer and would like to see Royal Caribbean commit to it or change it into something more appealing. It seems like they are just letting it sit there without any availability of their old menu except on certain days in the Windjammer. Specialty Dining (Chops) — A
i would rate it higher if the Chops on Empress didn’t edge it out by a smidgen. Solarium — B++
I would rate it higher if it was a little larger. I think the Solarium in Enchantment is larger, and remains my favorite. It is a very beautiful spot on the ship.  I really like the Park Cafe and the offerings there. They do Kummelwick roast beef sandwiches during lunch, which was a very nice surprise.  Gym — A
good staff, layout and assortment of exercise options Shopping — B-
they didn’t have a good selection of logo gear, and a limited size availability. I didn’t really look at anything else. Bars
Pub — A+ — favorite pub I have experienced in a ship R-Bar — A
Vintages — B+ — the liquor package seems to be a necessity because the a la carte pricing is quite high. The ambience and location on the ship is great.  Schooner — A — great spot for a cocktail. I really like the location on this ship Solarium Bar — A- — its a little small. The service is really good.  Entertainment — B+  
what we saw was nice, but not set apart from other experiences.  Music — A
The Kronos Band was just great. The options at Schooner are mixed. The Pub singer was pretty good, but we didn’t listen that much.  Movie Theater — A
we saw two movies here, and this is such a great amenity. When you want to chill out. I’d like to see more of these in the fleet. Special Events - A+
The effort and fun out into the College Football National Championship game experience on board was far over and above expectations. It was great, and I would have rated it the same had my team not won.  Dis-embarkation — A +
We self assisted with our luggage. Actually, we have never used the ship’s service. That’s what wheels are for. We were able to walk off with no lines at about 8:45. There was a five minute line at customs. This is the first cruise where we did not have to fill out a customs form. We were in our Lyft 10 minutes later, and having breakfast #2 by 10:30 am. Other — This is just an observation
I’ve never seen so many Pinnacles in one place as on this sailing. Everywhere I turned, I saw a name badge with Pinnacle Club on it. Overall — A-
Some aspects of this cruise could have been better. The ship has an overcrowded feel, especially in the MDR. The beauty of the ship, the well known connection to the sea, the many amenities and especially the crew make for an amazing experience. 

End of the Last a Sea Day and Reflections on the cruise:
After killing a couple hours on deck 12 after the Sexiest Man competition, which had some alcohol induced cringe moments between one of the judges and Flavio, the Activities Manager, we did some much needed napping there and a little later in the Solarium. I was sad that I was still too full after Chops to have another Kummelwick. 


More napping was to be had, so that continued to happen into the evening.

We had intentions of going to the farewell show before dinner. That did not happen, so we opted for the drawing to guess the carat weight of a piece of tanzanite jewelry in order to win it. I missed it by a half carat, and someone else nailed it. Congrats to him!
We listened to some music by the Kronos Band, and I shared a couple of scopes. They moved from country to Jimmy Buffet, and are my favorite musical ensemble I have heard at sea. Their range goes from Sinatra to Otis Redding, and country to metal. They were extraordinary. 
Screenshot from the Periscope
When 8:30 pm came around, we headed to the MDR for dinner. 

When we arrived, we made sure that we expressed our gratitude to two amazing waiters, Arturo and Lyudmylla. One of my favorite parts of cruising is this connection that develops which I believe is sincere on their part. I have yet to experience a cruise where a short, temporary friendship develops at a minimum and some are Facebook friends to this day. 
So, we love giving some extra to these fantastic people! We also had a chance on disembarkation day to express the same gratitude to Bernardo, our stateroom attendant. I hope that everyone appreciates how hard they work to make guests’ experience wonderful. I will make sure they get our highest evaluation on the email request to do a survey.
Final Thoughts
Embarkation — A+
There’s something about Terminal 6 in Tampa that has it over on Terminal 3. I certainly don’t know all of the behind the scenes contributions to the experience for guests, but it was superior than my previous experience embarking on the Empress.
Stateroom 4014 — A+
access eas early layout was perfect size was perfect everything worked it was close to the forward elevators the Centrum was easily accessible This is by far my favorite stateroom in any of my cruises. I have stayed in a jr suite, Superior OV with balcony, Inside Promenade, Inside. I think it is easily the best value I have experienced, and while balconies are nice, I have rarely used them when I had them. Stateroom Attendant, Bernardo — A Main Dining Room — B
while beautiful, it is over-crowded and there were some organizational and procedural issues that affected others as well as us. I think it had to do with communication between the Head waiters at the two seatings   Waiter and Assistant Waiter, Arturo and Lyudmylla — A ++ I cant speak highly enough of them. They made what could have been a difficult circumstance into not a big deal. In my view, they should run the dining room. They were that good. If you are sailing on Brilliance within the next two months, ask for them.  Food — B++ I could be wrong, but I sensed that some of the organizational issues affected the food quality at times. It was never bad, it just wasn’t as good as I have experienced on other ships.  Windjammer — A
The Windjammer on Brilliance was my favorite I have experienced. It may be because the honey stung chicken was as good as billed, and I finally knocked it off my bucket list. They executed breakfast really well. The made to order omelets were the best I have had at sea. I love the open area at the back. Love. It. I consider Rita’s part of the Windjammer and would like to see Royal Caribbean commit to it or change it into something more appealing. It seems like they are just letting it sit there without any availability of their old menu except on certain days in the Windjammer. Specialty Dining (Chops) — A
i would rate it higher if the Chops on Empress didn’t edge it out by a smidgen. Solarium — B++
I would rate it higher if it was a little larger. I think the Solarium in Enchantment is larger, and remains my favorite. It is a very beautiful spot on the ship.  I really like the Park Cafe and the offerings there. They do Kummelwick roast beef sandwiches during lunch, which was a very nice surprise.  Gym — A
good staff, layout and assortment of exercise options Shopping — B-
they didn’t have a good selection of logo gear, and a limited size availability. I didn’t really look at anything else. Bars
Pub — A+ — favorite pub I have experienced in a ship R-Bar — A
Vintages — B+ — the liquor package seems to be a necessity because the a la carte pricing is quite high. The ambience and location on the ship is great.  Schooner — A — great spot for a cocktail. I really like the location on this ship Solarium Bar — A- — its a little small. The service is really good.  Entertainment — B+  
what we saw was nice, but not set apart from other experiences.  Music — A
The Kronos Band was just great. The options at Schooner are mixed. The Pub singer was pretty good, but we didn’t listen that much.  Movie Theater — A
we saw two movies here, and this is such a great amenity. When you want to chill out. I’d like to see more of these in the fleet. Special Events - A+
The effort and fun out into the College Football National Championship game experience on board was far over and above expectations. It was great, and I would have rated it the same had my team not won.  Dis-embarkation — A +
We self assisted with our luggage. Actually, we have never used the ship’s service. That’s what wheels are for. We were able to walk off with no lines at about 8:45. There was a five minute line at customs. This is the first cruise where we did not have to fill out a customs form. We were in our Lyft 10 minutes later, and having breakfast #2 by 10:30 am. Other — This is just an observation
I’ve never seen so many Pinnacles in one place as on this sailing. Everywhere I turned, I saw a name badge with Pinnacle Club on it. Overall — A-
Some aspects of this cruise could have been better. The ship has an overcrowded feel, especially in the MDR. The beauty of the ship, the well known connection to the sea, the many amenities and especially the crew make for an amazing experience. 

Day 5 — Sea Day
When you pay for several hours in a hot tub losing count of piña coladas, you enter coma land. So, we didn’t venture outside our cabin after dinner. My wife watched a movie while I nursed a serious hangover until I finally fell asleep. I woke up and felt ok, and wandered the ship while most were still asleep. 



I took some video on my GoPro and will post a link in a wrap up after I have had a chance to edit it a little. 
After the walk, we went to the main dining room for breakfast, which hadn’t yet done on this cruise. I always like talking to the people we sit with in the MDR at breakfasts, and wish we had done it a little more on this sailing. 

although it isn’t on this menu, eggs Benedict was available, and that’s what I ordered. I seriously don’t think I ever order it on land, but it’s my default at sea for some reason. 
Following breakfast, I was concerned about still being too full to enjoy Chops lunch, so I headed to the gym to burn some calories. It might all be in my head, but no one can convince me it didn’t help, because Chops was amazing. I cannot think of a better value than pre-booking Chops lunch on the cruise Planner for $19 each  
Mushroom Soup — OMG
Filet cooked medium — Perfection
I paired it with a Malbec from Argentina which was nice, and dessert was warm chocolate cake with raspberries and vanilla ice cream. 
Next, it is to the pool deck to waste away the food coma. 

The next post will wrap up the last sea day, List some final takes and hopefully include links to some video if anyone is interested. 

Trumpeter? It's my favorite wine and I first discovered it on RC.

CREAM OF MUSHROOM SOUP !  I'm so envious !

Day 5 — Sea Day
When you pay for several hours in a hot tub losing count of piña coladas, you enter coma land. So, we didn’t venture outside our cabin after dinner. My wife watched a movie while I nursed a serious hangover until I finally fell asleep. I woke up and felt ok, and wandered the ship while most were still asleep. 



I took some video on my GoPro and will post a link in a wrap up after I have had a chance to edit it a little. 
After the walk, we went to the main dining room for breakfast, which hadn’t yet done on this cruise. I always like talking to the people we sit with in the MDR at breakfasts, and wish we had done it a little more on this sailing. 

although it isn’t on this menu, eggs Benedict was available, and that’s what I ordered. I seriously don’t think I ever order it on land, but it’s my default at sea for some reason. 
Following breakfast, I was concerned about still being too full to enjoy Chops lunch, so I headed to the gym to burn some calories. It might all be in my head, but no one can convince me it didn’t help, because Chops was amazing. I cannot think of a better value than pre-booking Chops lunch on the cruise Planner for $19 each  
Mushroom Soup — OMG
Filet cooked medium — Perfection
I paired it with a Malbec from Argentina which was nice, and dessert was warm chocolate cake with raspberries and vanilla ice cream. 
Next, it is to the pool deck to waste away the food coma. 

The next post will wrap up the last sea day, List some final takes and hopefully include links to some video if anyone is interested. 

Day 5 — Sea Day
When you pay for several hours in a hot tub losing count of piña coladas, you enter coma land. So, we didn’t venture outside our cabin after dinner. My wife watched a movie while I nursed a serious hangover until I finally fell asleep. I woke up and felt ok, and wandered the ship while most were still asleep. 



I took some video on my GoPro and will post a link in a wrap up after I have had a chance to edit it a little. 
After the walk, we went to the main dining room for breakfast, which hadn’t yet done on this cruise. I always like talking to the people we sit with in the MDR at breakfasts, and wish we had done it a little more on this sailing. 

although it isn’t on this menu, eggs Benedict was available, and that’s what I ordered. I seriously don’t think I ever order it on land, but it’s my default at sea for some reason. 
Following breakfast, I was concerned about still being too full to enjoy Chops lunch, so I headed to the gym to burn some calories. It might all be in my head, but no one can convince me it didn’t help, because Chops was amazing. I cannot think of a better value than pre-booking Chops lunch on the cruise Planner for $19 each  
Mushroom Soup — OMG
Filet cooked medium — Perfection
I paired it with a Malbec from Argentina which was nice, and dessert was warm chocolate cake with raspberries and vanilla ice cream. 
Next, it is to the pool deck to waste away the food coma. 

The next post will wrap up the last sea day, List some final takes and hopefully include links to some video if anyone is interested. 

I know that feeling.  We really enjoyed it last time, but I think when we go to Cozumel next, we are going to do something different just because there's so much to see and do in Cozumel.

Wrapping Up Day 3 and Day 4 in Cozumel
After the delicious Kummelwick, we cleaned up and went to the matinee production of Showtime, the Broadway review show on board. It was what one would expect, and if you like showtimes, it’s a fun show. I especially liked the three ABBA songs that concluded it as shown by how weepy I get every time I hear ABBA. I don’t understand why except that it brings me back to the years when I crushed on Agnetha Fältskog and Anni-Frid Lyngstad.

The next decision was pivotal. As usual, missing out on our waitstaff interaction is a serious thing for us. We’ve grown quite attached to Arturo and Liudmylla. We didn’t want them to think we were cheating on them eating someplace else. 
*confession — we did*
The national championship game was being shown in the main theater and the pool, and the crew put on a big production for the guests with hamburgers, hot dogs, buckets of beer, and a cake for halftime. 
My Crimson Stripe beer brought good luck!
Day 4 in Nachi Cocom
I looked at the prospect of Cozumel with a little fear with seven ships in port. Geeky Jay looked up what was in port and totaled the capacities to get a potential of about 21,000 people in port. 
We docked with the Liberty and it was fun seeing the passengers in the two ships wave at each other. 
Since VOOM went down at this point, instead of scoping, I did a time lapse of our vessel coming alongside. I’ll put a link to it when I upload it to YouTube later...VOOM issues
Somehwat familiar view
Nachi Cocom
The Intenrational Pier, for those who have been there, know that it is a maze of shops with people begging you to come into them. It was crazy busy when we navigated to the taxi stand. Fortunately, there was no line for taxis, and we were on our way in no time  

For lunch we ordered the shrimp and rice and enchiladas verde.

 
We ordered from this menu. I’m not sure what a burguer is. They haven’t updated it since the last time I was here, and that’s no problem at all. The food is really good. 
Consistent with Matt Hochberg’s new tradition of finding hairy little creatures, I found one too, but there wasn’t any arachnophobia. 
Jose (Joseph), our waiter told us they don’t mind the big hairy tarantulas, but they don’t like these little raccoons because they steal. I’ll take my chances with the raccoon. 
After lunch, I went to the hot tub, and was there over two hours. I may or may not have had more piña coladas than I can remember. I paid for it later when I had to wake up from a nap for dinner. 
The trip back to the pier was uneventful, and we got out of the taxi across the street so we could do some shopping. We also saw part of a Mayan pole ceremony.

Love the photos!
Looks like that Cozumel sign is finally done. They were still working on it in November.

Wrapping Up Day 3 and Day 4 in Cozumel
After the delicious Kummelwick, we cleaned up and went to the matinee production of Showtime, the Broadway review show on board. It was what one would expect, and if you like showtimes, it’s a fun show. I especially liked the three ABBA songs that concluded it as shown by how weepy I get every time I hear ABBA. I don’t understand why except that it brings me back to the years when I crushed on Agnetha Fältskog and Anni-Frid Lyngstad.

The next decision was pivotal. As usual, missing out on our waitstaff interaction is a serious thing for us. We’ve grown quite attached to Arturo and Liudmylla. We didn’t want them to think we were cheating on them eating someplace else. 
*confession — we did*
The national championship game was being shown in the main theater and the pool, and the crew put on a big production for the guests with hamburgers, hot dogs, buckets of beer, and a cake for halftime. 
My Crimson Stripe beer brought good luck!
Day 4 in Nachi Cocom
I looked at the prospect of Cozumel with a little fear with seven ships in port. Geeky Jay looked up what was in port and totaled the capacities to get a potential of about 21,000 people in port. 
We docked with the Liberty and it was fun seeing the passengers in the two ships wave at each other. 
Since VOOM went down at this point, instead of scoping, I did a time lapse of our vessel coming alongside. I’ll put a link to it when I upload it to YouTube later...VOOM issues
Somehwat familiar view
Nachi Cocom
The Intenrational Pier, for those who have been there, know that it is a maze of shops with people begging you to come into them. It was crazy busy when we navigated to the taxi stand. Fortunately, there was no line for taxis, and we were on our way in no time  

For lunch we ordered the shrimp and rice and enchiladas verde.

 
We ordered from this menu. I’m not sure what a burguer is. They haven’t updated it since the last time I was here, and that’s no problem at all. The food is really good. 
Consistent with Matt Hochberg’s new tradition of finding hairy little creatures, I found one too, but there wasn’t any arachnophobia. 
Jose (Joseph), our waiter told us they don’t mind the big hairy tarantulas, but they don’t like these little raccoons because they steal. I’ll take my chances with the raccoon. 
After lunch, I went to the hot tub, and was there over two hours. I may or may not have had more piña coladas than I can remember. I paid for it later when I had to wake up from a nap for dinner. 
The trip back to the pier was uneventful, and we got out of the taxi across the street so we could do some shopping. We also saw part of a Mayan pole ceremony.

I really enjoyed the Kummelwick. I had it with horseradish.  I will try it with mustard next time, and I look forward to comparing it with my trip on Allure this summer. 

I prefer ginger candies and green apples to bonine, so I always have them nearby. I was fairly dehydrated when I woke up, and I was feeling it. A glass of water and a ginger candy took care of it so I could have a great breakfast. I felt queezy on Empress one night and a little on enchantment a few years ago. For me, if I stay hydrated, I usually keep it at bay. 

The alarm went off entirely toooooo early. The ship arrived in Grand Cayman at 7:00, and yes, we were in the Windjammer at that time eating one of Ludmilla’a omelets. 
We were off the ship by 8:15 and the three block walk to Cayman Auto Rentals commenced after some scoping on the tender. 
We rented a Kia Rio after I REALLY wanted a Jeep, but for $50 more, what do you really get. 
 

Driving in the Cayman’s was much easier before the explosion in hotels, cars and people over the last twenty years. So, gps was the best thing ever since driving on the left side of the road is a rare occurrence, and there are about three round-a-bouts for every traffic light on the island. 

 
We pulled into Crystal Caves’ parking lot and redeemed our ticket and waited to board busses to take us into the forrest where a gift shop, nasty poison ivy that grows up in the air and can melt your skin off as well as the famous crystal caves. 
Do not touch this plant. Seriously.
 
Chief Heckowie — as in “Where in the...”
 

 
I took oil far too many pics to share in this live blog, so I’ll spare you just like I’ll spare you pics of my kids when they were babies. At the end of the tour, I told our guide, Robert that we planned on going to Rum Point and what should we order there. He said get nachos and a Mudslide, but if we wanted authentic island food, go to Over the Edge for steamed fish and CayBrew. It was only a quarter mile west of where we were, so we changed up our plans  we did not regret it!

mid you ever find yourself on the North Side Of Grand Cayman, Over the Edge would be a great choice for a meal  
After spending some time on the deck “over the edge,” we decided to head back to Georgetown and turn in the car. We topped off the tank on the way $4.42/gallon and dropped it off without a hitch. As we were walking back, there is a Cuban cigar store where I bought a few.
Fatigue was setting in from the walking at Crystal Caves (a little over a mile), the huge meal, and lack of sleep. The ship was rocking last night, and our cabin creeks like crazy in heavy seas.
We changed into swimsuits and headed to the Solarium to get in the pool and snooze a little.
*I found something!*
i must have walked by it a half dozen times, but Park Café is in essentially two separate spots on board  there’s an assemble your own salad station which I was aware of, but there’s also a sandwich and proteins section. What did they have that I haven’t tried in a Royal Caribbean ship?
The Kummelwick! I grabbed one in a frenzy of anticipation. 

In the next post, I will wrap up our evening and share about our day in Cozumel. Thanks for reading!

The alarm went off entirely toooooo early. The ship arrived in Grand Cayman at 7:00, and yes, we were in the Windjammer at that time eating one of Ludmilla’a omelets. 
We were off the ship by 8:15 and the three block walk to Cayman Auto Rentals commenced after some scoping on the tender. 
We rented a Kia Rio after I REALLY wanted a Jeep, but for $50 more, what do you really get. 
 

Driving in the Cayman’s was much easier before the explosion in hotels, cars and people over the last twenty years. So, gps was the best thing ever since driving on the left side of the road is a rare occurrence, and there are about three round-a-bouts for every traffic light on the island. 

 
We pulled into Crystal Caves’ parking lot and redeemed our ticket and waited to board busses to take us into the forrest where a gift shop, nasty poison ivy that grows up in the air and can melt your skin off as well as the famous crystal caves. 
Do not touch this plant. Seriously.
 
Chief Heckowie — as in “Where in the...”
 

 
I took oil far too many pics to share in this live blog, so I’ll spare you just like I’ll spare you pics of my kids when they were babies. At the end of the tour, I told our guide, Robert that we planned on going to Rum Point and what should we order there. He said get nachos and a Mudslide, but if we wanted authentic island food, go to Over the Edge for steamed fish and CayBrew. It was only a quarter mile west of where we were, so we changed up our plans  we did not regret it!

mid you ever find yourself on the North Side Of Grand Cayman, Over the Edge would be a great choice for a meal  
After spending some time on the deck “over the edge,” we decided to head back to Georgetown and turn in the car. We topped off the tank on the way $4.42/gallon and dropped it off without a hitch. As we were walking back, there is a Cuban cigar store where I bought a few.
Fatigue was setting in from the walking at Crystal Caves (a little over a mile), the huge meal, and lack of sleep. The ship was rocking last night, and our cabin creeks like crazy in heavy seas.
We changed into swimsuits and headed to the Solarium to get in the pool and snooze a little.
*I found something!*
i must have walked by it a half dozen times, but Park Café is in essentially two separate spots on board  there’s an assemble your own salad station which I was aware of, but there’s also a sandwich and proteins section. What did they have that I haven’t tried in a Royal Caribbean ship?
The Kummelwick! I grabbed one in a frenzy of anticipation. 

In the next post, I will wrap up our evening and share about our day in Cozumel. Thanks for reading!

I prefer ginger candies and green apples to bonine, so I always have them nearby. I was fairly dehydrated when I woke up, and I was feeling it. A glass of water and a ginger candy took care of it so I could have a great breakfast. I felt queezy on Empress one night and a little on enchantment a few years ago. For me, if I stay hydrated, I usually keep it at bay. 

Thanks for sharing! It looks like they still have the "old" MDR menu.  Makes my decision to buy a dining package seem better now.
I salute your coffee ice cream choice!

Travel Day and Embarkation Day 1
After wrapping up a few things at work, we headed to the airport for our evening flight to Tampa. 
We landed in Tampa at 9:50 and walked into our hotel room at the Tampa Airport Marriott at 10:10. Nothing is better than walking from your plane to baggage claim to check-in.   Getting to the hotel is easy. Adjacent to baggage claim is a bank of red elevators with the name “Sikorsky” above them. Just go back up to level 3 and follow the signs to “Hotel.”     1/06/2018 — Embarkation Day   No alarms today, but we woke up at 9, got ready and we’re out the door at 10.    Our ride share arrived at 10:30, and that was the longest wait of the morning.    We arrived at Terminal 6 at 10:50 and were on board by 11:03. Here was a slight snafu with my SeaPass card bringing up my photo as I scanned in, so security had to retake my photo instead of kicking me off. Whew.    Now, to Deck 11   Windjammer   In all of my Royal Caribbean cruises to date, have yet to have found honey stung chicken anywhere. My wait ended today!   I grabbed Honey stung chicken, zucchini salad and rice biryani, and all three were delicious!     The Windjammer was bustling, so instead of braving the chilly weather on the open deck by Rita’s Cantina at the back, we headed forward to the Solarium and celebrated Embarkation with Kraken Lava Flows...slurp!     After muster, I went to the helipad and hung out for sail away, and was able to see and be seen on Michael Poole’s Periscope (mpoole3) as I waved his way!     A little after 4:30, we went to the Pub to watch the Titans play the Chiefs. We lasted until the Titans were down 21-3 only to find out as we headed to dinner that they came back and won!      After resting and cleaning up, we headed to the Main dining Room for dinner.    I ordered   Shrimp cocktail Horseradish encrusted salmon Coffee ice cream (Really good iced tea)     This concludes a great Embarkation day. Next will Be Day 2 at sea...we’re rocking it as I prepare this post, and our day in grand Cayman. Thanks for reading!