Lovetocruise2002

Day 7: At Sea “The perfect orchestration of the Symphony of life is one of God’s greatest and most beautiful miracles.” Another beautiful morning today as we wrap up our last day on the cruise. Slept in a bit this morning and made it to CK just in time before they stopped serving breakfast. Shockingly, Hubby actually made it with me today and we can show a Hubby breakfast pic ? I had my usual fruit and French toast. Happy to report that as we sit here from CK and people watch, it’s past 10 am and there are plenty of chairs left on the pool deck. Chair hogs are not too apparent this cruise, but parents who don’t supervise their children are ? Again, no plans for today other than to sit around and soak up our last day on this amazing ship.

@emsff02 not to worry, the tables are turning soon. I am looking ahead at an 8 month dry dock!! 226 days till the next cruise ?

If you are in Sky class then you have no need to worry. Most times, the cruise planner will not allow you to reserve it, even though it shows. When the suite concierge emails you the week prior to sailing, just let him/her know the times you want and they will take care of all the reservations for you. You could also wait till you get on board but we always take care of it through email first. One less thing to do on the first day.

One last thing before I go to bed...the things you wonder was you try to maximize #teamDX.... Food coma was so real with Star Class that we gave up our UDP for this sailing and went with CK and complimentary venues. Tonight I feel so full it is beyond food coma!! How can that be possible?? Hubby thinks that it is because we pretty much have been eating cruise food all month. Will this deter me from eating tomorrow? Nope! Haha. 8 month dry dock coming up. Lots of time to detox ?

Flight was hands down, the best Royal Caribbean original production. We have now seen 5 of them and where The Gift is on one end of the spectrum, Flight is at the other. The special effects and set designs are amazing! Royal has really outdone themselves with this one. Really impressive all around. We still found this cast a bit weak vocally, but the rest more than made up for it. I had high hopes for this show as I taught Grade 6 for a number of years and the History of Flight is in the Grade 6 curriculum. I have always enjoyed teaching that unit. I thought they did a wonderful job giving a nod to all the important figures who contributed to Flight. My favourite scene was probably the “In Memorial” scene and the one following with the Wright Bothers. Love the underlying theme in this production as well as this is the one thing, if only thing, I try to teach my students all year, Dare to Dream, Dare to Fly. ?

Nope. I asked the suite concierge and she explained that it has not been approved for Terminal A yet.

Tonight’s agenda...

Ugh...this showed up after dinner. No luggage valet in Miami as of yet.

Dinner Night 6: CK Tried to keep it light tonight as we have been eating way too much! Mushroom Consommé Short Rib. This was absolutely perfect tonight! Coconut Custard. This is another favourite of mine. Really nice and light. CK has been inconsistent this sailing in terms of quality. The first 3 nights, it was not up to the standard that we are familiar with. Last night and tonight, it was fantastic.

Well if you are gaining weight from the pics, imagine my expanding waistline! I need a major detox!

Today has been a simply relaxing day. We got off the ship for a bit so that Hubby could check out the buffet at Barefoot beach. He really enjoys it whenever we have access there. Labadee is so pretty, and natural. I really hope that they leave it instead of turning it into a theme park atmosphere like Coco Cay. Here are a few pics from our time out and about today. Not a fan of the heat and buffet myself, I came back to the ship to enjoy this again. Regarding Fast Track Boarding, the white flag was out today, no signage, and again, there was no difference which gangway people used. Oh well...lost cause. The rest of our afternoon was spent laying out on the balcony with drinks. There was a nice breeze, our balcony faced Labadee, I did some reading and Hubby napped. Perfect. ?

Did not care to find out. ? Bingo! #notteamWJ Especially on a port day morning?! The crowds in there would have been awful!

Another suite perk:

First time I’ve ever spotted a helicopter on the Labadee pier. It was there before we arrived.

Day 6: Labadee “Immerse yourself in nature’s Symphony and let your senses burst with joy.” Good morning from Labadee. Beautiful day here this morning. Probably getting off the ship for just a bit. Hubby always enjoys the lunch buffet at Barefoot Beach so we will likely get off in time for that. I also ran into our suite concierge this morning and she tells me that they have made efforts to fix the miscommunication regarding Fast Track Boarding so I have to do my part to investigate ? In other news, because of our later arrival at Labadee (anticipation clearance time to get off is not until 10 am), Coastal Kitchen is packed this morning. Currently waiting for a table ?

@SuperNinja it doesn’t matter when you check in.

You know me @bellemiche, it was impossible to maintain a blank expression! ?

El Loco Fresh is not available as room service unless you are Star (I’m guessing). But it’s a quick walk down from Deck 17.

Dinner tonight back at CK. We started with a Caesar Salad which I did not bother to take a picture of. Hubby got seared scallops as his appetizer. We both decided to do a Surf & Turf tonight. Butter Poached Lobster Peppercorn Steak (from the classics menu). Dessert Baked Alaska And my two favourites... Coconut Tapioca Chocolate Bar Apologies for the lighting in these pictures. It was quite dark tonight and CK has this blue light overhead which messes up the lighting in these food pics. I will add to that tonight was the second formal night. Most people were more dressed up for this one rather than the first. And then there was the guy in shorts and Crocs. And he even took his shoes off and put them up on a chair!!! ?? Tonight’s Poached Lobster was probably the best that I’ve had in any CK for this particular dish. Both in presentation and quality. No real plans tonight. Off to wander and maybe sit in the Schooner Bar for a bit. I wanted to head to Central Park but it is still raining so that is out. Love & Marriage is also happening tonight. That is always fun.

Believe it or not, I am not a fan of Labadoozies. Over the last year or so, I have stopped drinking the more sugary drinks like Pina Coladas, and lava flows, etc. I stick to my margaritas and tonics now. And maybe the occasional shots if Shotsberg is around ?

Currently formal night in CK on Symphony...dress code ranges from shorts/Crocs ? to jackets and ties for men. Most women in dresses. But not cocktail dresses.

Only one. Labadee tomorrow. Hubby and I are currently discussing if we should get off tomorrow for research purposes ?

Most of our afternoon was spent hanging out in our cabin with drinks from the suite lounge and room service. The weather has not been great, lots of rain since sail away at 3pm and it has not stopped. VOOM also dropped out here and there. Just returned from the Suite Lounge and thought I would provide an update on the Fast Track Boarding situation. I relayed the events of yesterday and today to both ladies and they have promised that they would follow up and that the process should not look like what it has. Basically, if done properly, there should be a dedicated gangway for those who fit the criteria. All others should be using the other gangway. It’s not meant to be shared.

^^^This is exactly what Hubby and I were saying!

Fast Track Boarding...Fail #2! One of the reasons I wanted to get off today was to check out Fast Track Boarding again. Today Royal got it correct in that the first gangway (coming back to the ship) was dedicated to Fast Track Boarding. Here is the signage for it. This was about all Royal got correct. ? For research purposes, I asked the crew member at the podium how it works. If guests who qualify for Fast Track Boarding would by pass the lines coming back, or if guests who don’t qualify would have to use the other gangway? The crew member at the podium had no clue. I pointed to the sign and he said, “Oh that, that is nothing. It doesn’t mean anything.” Ok, classic Royal. Let’s roll out something and not give everyone the memo. Upon our return to the ship, the lines were quite long at the Fast Track Boarding gangway, obviously because this was now the first gangway. We got in line and did not notice them re-directing anyone or giving anyone priority. After we got to the podium, we asked another crew member about the process. He too said, “Oh no, you just get into line with everyone else.” So Fast Track was slow track today.