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Found 14 results

  1. Hello again!! In the words of @SweetPea, do we REALLY need another week long Star Class cruise report on Oasis Class? I certainly hope so, because here we are again. After great blogs by @Jax and @Yesiamthere highlighting their trips on HOS, it's now our turn, in you guessed it, a ATS2BR. I hope to keep this fun and lighthearted. Get ready for some shenanigans and other tomfoolery that will rival what @Ampurp85 and @asquared17 experience. Will it approach #starclassbehavingbadly? We shall see. Who: Myself, The Boss, Heather, Lydia and Johnathan. Sadly my sister Julie is not joining us. For some silly reason she has decided to be responsible and try to save money so that she can buy a house. What/Where: We are sailing on Harmony of the Seas out of Galveston. It is the typical Western Caribbean route. Feb 17 - Arrive in Houston and head to Galveston Feb 18 - Cruise day!! Feb 19 - Sea Day Feb 20 - Sea Day Feb 21 - Roatan Feb 22 - Costa Maya Feb 23 - Cozumel Feb 24 - Sea Day Feb 25 - Eviction Day etc Feb 26 - Back to reality Flights: Flying Southwest into Hobby the day before. We initially had Delta flights booked through Air2Sea, but swapped to Southwest when their schedule was published. We were able to get more convenient flight times, and at a better rate. We are staying an extra day and flying back on Monday which helps as well. Pre-Cruise plans: We arrive in Houston at 7:30pm. We are driving to Galveston that night. We grabbed a Tru by Hilton right on the beach. The Boss has status with Hilton due to her job travels so we always go that route. Nothing fancy since we are really only there to sleep for the night. Since we are staying the extra day, we rented a car for the week. Due to corporate discounts courtesy of The Boss’s job and the fact that nothing is open early on Sunday mornings, it was actually more cost effective and convenient than two one way rentals, or doing a bunch of Ubers etc. Cabin: We really like the ATS2BR. We are on deck 8. The Boss loves the balcony and those Aft views. We also really like to watch the Aquatheater show from there. Johnny already said that since its not Aqua80 so we will probably hate every minute though. IYKYK. We had considered moving up to deck 17 since my sister wasn’t going to come with us, but by the time that decision was made the two star lofts were already booked. We also had tossed around the idea of inviting other family/friends so keeping the ATS was needed. Someday we will try the gated community. Post-cruise plans: We are going to go to Moody Gardens on Sunday after getting off the ship. The rest of the day we will play it by ear. Lydia mentioned she wants to find a good BBQ place for dinner so if anyone has any suggestions that would be great. I have a few people that I know down there that I will also be reaching out to. That night, we are staying in another Hilton by the airport. Our flight home is early in the AM, so being close to the airport is key. The Boss is not a morning person.
  2. So about the blog title. I need to bore you with some history so it makes sense. Many moons ago we booked our September 2022 cruise. Then in April of last year my bride, Nurse Ratchet, decided we should buy a building and convert it to a restaurant. Yeah, seriously she did. Build and operate a So about the blog title. I need to bore you with some history so it makes sense. Many moons ago we booked our September 2022 cruise. Then in April of last year my bride, Nurse Ratchet, decided we should buy a building and convert it to a restaurant. Yeah, seriously she did. Build and operate a restaurant. Not retire and take a couple cruises a year. No. Open a restaurant. At that point, I used the amazing negotiating skills I learned in my law enforcement career and within 20 minutes the decision was made to build and operate a restaurant ! So, with two partners (don't say it) we purchased a market in town that we would magically convert into the restaurant of Ratchet’s dreams. I told the family we more than likely wouldn't make the Sep ‘22 cruise because we'd be slammed serving up pizza and other delights and wouldn't have time to cruise. It was only April, surely we'd be open by September. Right? Without going into the joyous details of converting a market into a restaurant we soon realized that an opening date wouldn't happen before December. So we didn't cancel that cruise. We weren't ready to open and we had partners to monitor the project for a week so we went cruising last September, as planned. After a wonderful cruise, I was sitting in an airport in Florida on September 11, 2022 waiting for our flight home. To kill time before departure I might have perused available cruises for THIS September. Lo and behold, the very suite that we had just left an hour before, was available for September 10 of this year. But should I book it? The restaurant was going to open in December so I wasn't sure we could plan another week away. But, we had partners! (Don't say it). Yeah they can watch the restaurant. That was the thought in my head as I hit the ”book” button. Now I told you all of that to tell you this: It's Aug 28, 2023. The restaurant is not open. There are no more partners. But by golly we're about to go cruising! Shortly after we returned home last year the partners requested we buy them out because the project was more expensive than they had planned. So that happened. (And yes, we're still all friends). And the construction, which I do myself, continued. As did the requests, requirements, questions, inspections and fees from our wonderful County Building and Safety, Planning, and Health Departments. Sometime around March or April I told the girls we needed to cancel. But we didn't. I said it again just before final payment was due. But we didn't cancel. A few weeks ago I told them to go without me because this is a critical time in this restaurant and I needed to be here. And then really just days ago I finally decided that this cruise is a go - for all of us! I need the break. Dealing with the County is like trying to un-ring a bell, wash a cat and put toothpaste back in the tube – all at the same time. I won't mention which County. (It's San Bernardino, California ). Their emails flow like blended Mojitos on the pool deck. Their direction changes as quickly as Captain Johnny trying to outrun a storm. I feel like I'm caught in the middle of the Escape Room and the Quest! I need a break. And I think a cocktail on the balcony as we sail out of Galveston will provide that. So,in just 12 days we will board a Southwest Airlines jet, with two good engines, and fly from Palm Springs, Ca to Las Vegas, NV, to Tucson, AZ, to Houston Texas. With the price of the room, budget air is a necessity ! I know this is an early start to the Blog. But after making the decision to go and reading @Lovetocruise2002live blog I need to switch from restaurant mode to CRUISE mode! I hope some of you will follow along as Stacy, Katie, Taylor, Melissa and I head out for 7 wonderful days on our favorite Allure of the Seas. Now I can spend a few days of not only thinking about it but writing about it. Makes it seem more real this way . Not retire and take a couple cruises a year. No. Open a restaurant. At that point, I used the amazing negotiating skills I learned in my law enforcement career and within 20 minutes the decision was made to build and operate a restaurant ! So, with two partners (don't say it) we purchased a market in town that we would magically concert in the restaurant of Ratchet’s dreams. I told the family we more than likely wouldn't make the Sep ‘22 cruise because we'd be slammed serving up pizza and other delights and wouldn't have time to cruise. it was only April, surely we'd be open by September. Right? Without going into the joyous details of converting a market into a restaurant we soon realized that an opening date wouldn't happen before December. So we didn't cancel that cruise. We weren't ready to open and we had partners to monitor the project for a week so we went cruising last September, as planned. After a wonderful cruise, I was sitting in an airport in Florida on September 11, 2022 waiting for our flight home. To kill time before departure I might have perused available cruises for THIS September. Lo and behold, the very suite that we had just left an would hour before, was available for September 10 of this year. But should I book it? The restaurant was going to open in December so I wasn't sure we could plan another week away. But, we had partners! (Don't say it). Yeah they can watch the restaurant. That was the thought in my head as I hit the ”book” button.
  3. Is there a pre-cruise Genie phone number or Genie email that Star class guests can contact prior to cruising? My husband and I have decided to splurge and get a star class room, one of the benefits we really liked was specialty restaurants are included free of charge. The crazy part is no one in the call centre knows how I can book a restaurant before we depart. I can't book them the way every other passenger does (web or app) as there's no way to override the charge and even if I pay (and yes I did do that) and ask for a refund through their call centre they can't refund the money without cancelling the reservation. I understand that I can book when I'm on the cruise, the catch is all of the restaurants I want and the times I want are booking out quickly. I love that Royal offer Star class but none of their systems or staff are set up to service it. So in fact you get less pre-cruise options then a regular cabin guest does.
  4. Hello everyone! I have been reading all the blogs on here for a while so I figured it was my turn to give one back for everyone to read! We were originally booked on Harmony in the Villa Suite, but the ship was changed to Wonder (which IS exciting). Only problem was that there is no Villa Suite on Wonder so we were moved into the Ultimate Family Suite. I am SUPER excited as this will be our first time in Star Class, but there is a lot of uncertainty for me around this suite. The layout of it onboard wonder is unknown (to me at least) and since we were expecting to have 4 bedrooms and bathrooms, we will need to do a little bit of rearranging where people will sleep. I am looking forward to everyone following along and excited of course for another cruise!
  5. We are off on Anthem in a Grand Loft in a few weeks and just received our Genie email (we never received the questionnaire). This is our first Cruise, so lots to learn. I wondered if anyone had experience working with Monica Sosa as their Genie? Her email seemed very organised, but would love to know if there are tips people had on her, including things she likes we could bring as gifts? We are also big wine drinkers, so hoping to get a "few" glasses of wine delivered to the room each evening. Is it frowned upon to tip a portion up front on the cruise to see if that may grease the skids on this kind of ask?
  6. The time is finally approaching very quickly and I have officially decided to blog my vacation experience with the www (aka Royal Caribbean Blog)! I am Kayla (25f), a new mommy and newer wife to my wonderful husband Jake (26m). We will be cruising with our little girl, McKenzie (8 months), my mother, Kelly, father, Big Wayne., brother, Little Wayne, and brothers friend (ex boyfriend but friend still? I have no idea!), DJ. We will ALL be cruising on the March 19th sailing on symphony of the Seas in the 2 Bedroom Aqua Theater Suite! We are BEYOND EXCITED. I have so much excitement that I decided to live blog throughout our trip in order for me to calmly express my excitement for everything. I plan for this blog to mostly be about our experience with sailing Star Class mixed with sailing on Symphony mixed with sailing as first time parents. As you can read this trip is about all firsts! Feel free to join along with me!
  7. We board today for my first RC cruise - Anthem, Grand Loft Suite, 7-night out of Bayonne. I’ve been up since 3:30 this morning in excitement. I don’t know if I’ll have the stamina for a live blog, and I saw the feedback on here that we have a LOT of star class blogs, but I figured I’d start this and maybe add any interesting observations as a newbie. I’m traveling with my family - husband, two kids (12 and 7). We’ve been trying to sail RC since we booked an awesome Black Friday sale in November 2019 to sail in March 2020. You all know what happened then. As we kept rescheduling and getting canceled, we kept upgrading. This story started in a junior suite and ended up in star class, lol. We had two years to pay it off and, as a teacher with a doc husband, we both really, really needed an amazing break from the last two years of reality. Our genie is Leroy and he’s been lovely so far in our emails. I’m ready to grab the wheel from my husband if he tries to pull over before the star class zone at the port, lol. I am usually a great packer, but with the limits of air travel taken away, I’ve gone insane. Apparently I think I’m Beyoncé and need several outfit changes per day. I’m legit concerned about fitting it all in the car. Then there’s my 7-year-old, who announced to me that she’s all packed and when I checked she is bringing a slinky, an army of stuffed animals, and one shirt. I remedied that but let her keep the slinky, because I’m not gonna die on that hill. This site has made me feel like an expert before I’ve ever even stepped foot on a ship. You all are so kind and patient! Thank you for answering my questions and for your blogs that gave me an exciting preview of star class. I was especially inspired by @Lovetocruise2002 and @WAAAYTOOO from reading their blogs and asking them questions - thank you! We live about 90 minutes from Cape Liberty so it’s way too early to leave but I am so antsy. I might burst into tears when we finally get on the ship after so many tries. Sorry for rambling, but I’m sleep deprived! Hope to update from on board later today.
  8. Could someone please confirm or deny if Star class has free/unlimited Starbucks on Oasis?
  9. I am both excited and terrified to begin my first live Blog here of my first ever Star Class sailing and also….our wedding! I can only hope it is HALF as good as the amazing bloggers I read religiously here! 48 DAYS! Here we go! The Story- My husband and I (I will explain!) booked this cruise for our wedding 2 YEARS ago during a Black Friday sale at an amazing price! We both LOVE cruising…so much so that we have a YouTube channel called BoosCruize so it seemed natural that we would choose to tie the knot in a small ceremony on the high seas! So after much research we decided on the Star Loft Suite 1720 on Oasis Of The Seas! This suite had a HUGE rectangular balcony that could fit guests and also give us the ocean view we wanted….and a Genie to help us pull it all off! What could go wrong?!? Enter…COVID As you can imagine we basically needed a new pair of britches every other day for the last two years as things changed. It’s a good thing I buzz cut my head or I’d probably be bald and NOT by choice LOL A year later we weren’t even sure if this cruise would happen but we also KNEW we wanted to be married. So when a company came to us and asked to throw us a huge West Coast “David Tutera” style wedding in Hollywood that will be published for magazines we obviously said YES! We now have two bi-coastal weddings Lol It was amazingly gorgeous but nothing was our choice. It was all chosen for us….right down to our tuxes. We feel BEYOND blessed but it also wasn’t what we had in our head two years ago. So now here we are….our guest list of 50 has gone down to 12 due to covid complications. Are we upset? HECK NO! We completely understand and are going to have the time of our LIVES on a gorgeous ship surrounded by people who love us! We can’t wait! Who: We are an LA couple. Jarell is an international Flight attendant (yaasss benefits!) and I am an actor who just moved from NYC in time for a pandemic to close Hollywood Where: We are sailing on the Oasis Of The Seas out of Miami in the Star Loft Suite 1720 with stops at Coco Cay, St.Thomas, and St. Maarten When: We sail November 7th-14th, 2021 I think that covers most of the back story and introductions! So happy to meet you all and take you along with us on this very special journey that is over 2 years in the making! Can’t wait to see who our Genie will be! For good measure I have included a photo of the happy grooms from our West Coast Wedding!
  10. Hi guys. I’m here to share my recent experience with RoyalUp, a program that allows people with existing reservations to bid for an upgrade to a higher room category. The reason why I’m sharing my experience is because prior to and after the upgrade, I had a ton of questions that I’ve been trying to look for answers all over the internet but couldn’t find any. Hence, I’d like to share my experience with everyone and hopefully it can give some answers to my fellow cruisers! A brief introduction: (or skip to the end for the answers to the “FAQs”) I’ve booked a last minute 4-night sailing onboard Quantum of the Seas in Singapore, also known as Cruise to Nowhere. It is basically a hospitality restarting program by the Singapore government with no ports of call. Strict restrictions are also put in place for the safety of the guests. I’ve booked a Junior Suite (J4) for me and my wife. The price displayed on the RC’s booking website was SGD 1399pp for 4-nights before pre-paid gratuities and port taxes. There wasn’t any other suite options left for booking, which I presumed was fully booked. Almost immediately after completing the reservation transaction, I received the RoyalUP email, and invited me to place a bid to a higher room category. Even though I could clearly see that none of the higher suite categories were available for booking, I still decided to give it a try at bidding for RoyalUp. Long story short, I placed bids on all categories, ranging from Grand Suite to Royal Loft Suite and kind of forgot about the whole RoyalUp thing. Until around 24 hours before the sailing, I received an email saying that my bid for a Grand Loft Suite was successful. My bid amount was SGD 1210 per person hence SGD 2420 was charged to my credit card on file immediately. In general, I paid about $2710 per person ($1399 (JS) +$1210 (RoyalUp) +$100 taxes and pre-paid gratuities) I’ve checked the price of a Grand Loft Suite on a different sailing date, and it cost around SGD 5400 per person and before taxes. Which means, I’ve gotten nearly a 50% off the original price. From Junior Suite to Grand Loft Suite is a big jump. In terms of Royal Suite class, it was upgraded from Sea Class to Star Class. At this point, I was very excited! But at the same time, I have a lot questions that needs answers to. To be honest, even with a “huge discount”, SGD 2710 (SGD 5k+ for 2 people) is almost double the original budget hence to me, it is still a lot of money to fork out for a 4-day vacation. As we know, Grand Loft Suite is a Star Class suite and it is practically All-Inclusive such as free specialty dining, deluxe beverage package, internet package etc and it comes with a Royal Genie. So naturally, some questions flashes through my mind, and since it was an upgrade through RoyalUP: “Am I going to get a Royal Genie as well?” “Will I be treated differently in terms of services than those guests who paid the original price?” “How about the things I’ve pre-paid on Cruise Planner such as beverage package and internet package since my suite already includes all those packages?” I’ve tried searching for answers on the internet but I couldn’t find any. However, after I’ve completed my sailing, I kind of gotten all the answers I needed. So now, I’m going share them with you guys. My very own set of FAQs: Q: Am I going to get Royal Genie as well? A: Yes! Even though I gotten the upgrade 1 day before the sailing, the Royal Genie got in touch with me via WhatsApp on the morning of the sailing and she already took the liberty to arrange all the activities for us! She already pre-booked all the shows, specialty dinning and some activities such as iFly and Flow Rider. And she was extremely flexible and accommodating on all our requests to change meal timings, shows timings. All you need to do is just let her know your preference and leave everything to her. Q: Will I be treated differently in terms of services compared to those guests who paid the original price? A: Not at all. From my observations, only 2 groups of service crews knew you are an “upgrader”. They are the Royal Genie, and the cruise terminal staff. Usually, Genie will contact you 1 month before your sailing to get to know you better. However, she does know that you are an upgrader since she contacted you just 1 day before the sailing, not the usual 1 month. As for the cruise terminal staff, our information was given to them by the cruise line at the very last minute hence our information was “hand-written” on their paper. They did “congratulate” us on the successful upgrade by the Cruise Line which is why I knew they knew we were an upgrader. Nevertheless, they escorted from the moment we reached the terminal until being handed over to the Royal Genie. Very good service rendered. Q: How about the things I’ve pre-paid on Cruise Planner such as beverage package and internet package since my suite already includes all those packages A: They will be refunded to you and the Royal Genie made sure of that. It will be under “refundable” onboard credit and you can requested to get them in cash on the last night of the cruise. Otherwise, it will be refunded to your credit card. Q: How about my SeaPass card? Will I be recognized as a Star-Class guest? A: You will be identified as a Star Class guest on your SeaPass card, not the original room category that you were booked on. Q: Do I get the same perks and benefit listed under Star-Class suite even though I’m an upgrader? A: Yes! Complementary Dining Package, Beverage package, internet package, complementary mini-bar for the whole cruise with replenishment daily, complementary room-service, complementary laundry (I don’t think they set a limit on the quantity of clothes). For Izumi, there is no limit in terms of the amount you can order. If you have a Ultimate Dining Package, I believe per meal you will get USD35 credit per person for Izumi as it is based on A-la-carte pricing. But for Star-Class, there is no limit on that. The wait staff made it known to you before you order. Q: How about those chargeable activities? A: For our sailing, the chargeable activities are iFly (~$40) and Northstar (~$20) and strictly by reservation only. However, with the help of our Genie, reservation was done before hand. There is no charges for Star-Class guest for these activities. However, you are only entitled to 1 free session for each of these 2 activities. If you would like to go for a second-time, you will have to pay the charges. All other FAQs regarding Star-Class: Q: Can Royal Genie fulfill all your requests? A: Yes and No. I’d emphasize that your request must be reasonable. If you would like to change your dinner venue to another restaurant at the very last minute, you can kindly check with her. Most of the times it can be fulfilled. However, if the restaurant is full, she might suggest to change to an earlier or a later time for you. I’m not sure what kind of magic they have, but I’m definitely against them pulling out other guests from their original dining timing just to slot you in. Firstly, you are putting Genie in a difficult position, secondly, you are causing unhappiness to the affected guests. So I’d suggest to give the Genie some leeway. Do not force you request onto them. If it can be done in a gentle way, go ahead. If not, please do not force or blame them. Q: Do I need to tip the Royal Genie? A: Absolutely. They are not a receiver of the automatically gratuity system on board. Hence, the tips relies solely on you. Royal Genie is not just a regular butler, they are there to learn about you and make arrangements for you which you didn’t even think of. My wife somehow mentioned to the Genie that this is our 2nd anniversary trip when we were casually chatting. (but did not mention in details). The Genie caught it and arranged for a surprise decoration and cake in the room for us. My wife and I were surprised as initially, we really can’t figure out how she knew about our anniversary. It is only when we tried to recall every single thing we said to the Genie, and realized that it must have slipped out of our mouth at certain point. Their attention to details are just simply unbelievable. Hope this post is useful for whoever is looking for the same answers as I did. Happy cruising!
  11. Hi everyone! I've been lurking a little the past few days and have been reading quite a few of the older 2019 SC live blogs...and I just couldn't resist jumping on the bandwagon.. We have been on several RC cruises since our kids were babies but always in a balcony room. These babies are now S10 and D8. Our last cruise trip (Feb 2020) was fortunately or unfortunately just before Covid hit us big time and also our last vacation overseas. We got ourselves a Junior Suite on that trip, had a taste of Coastal Kitchen and enjoyed the add-on of the Speciality Dining package. But didn't quite realise there was a whole other magical genie in the lamp world out there!! ? So not vacationing for almost 18 mths now has been very very tough on our sanity...we were scheduled for a trip on Quantum next week (Grand Suite) but convinced ourselves to cancel because it looked like we were headed for another slew of covid restrictions. I was very hesitant and wanted to just stick with our booking..yes logical thoughts out the window when u are just desperate! But after checking our alternative Sep slot and finding out that there was 1 last Suite available (GLS). I took it as a sign! Haha so here I am, excitedly waiting for my first comms from my Genie and stalking this forum for all the info I can get to tide me over... I have to say the part that tickled me the most from reading most of the SC live blogs was realising that many of you, are just like me! Type A planners!!! I'm a total control freak so this is going to be an interesting experience. But I'm sure I'll find something to 'plan for' even with a genie..after all, I'm here on the boards aren't I? Can't wait!!!!
  12. Hi everyone! My family and I are currently booked on a sailing on Oasis in April 2022 in a 2br grand suite. I need to move it to the fall and need help deciding. I want to go star class this time around because, well, why not. It's my wife and I and our 4 kids (9,7,4,4) sailing. Our options are: Oasis - 2BR Aquatheater suite (deck 9) Harmony - 2BR Aquatheater suite (deck 10) Both sailings hit Cococay and Labadee. Harmony is about $700 cheaper (but I'd get an extra $100 OBC for Oasis sailing and less transportation fees to and from Port for Oasis) Give me your opinions. I know there are a few different restaurants on ship and the decor in the room is a bit dated in Oasis. Any other major differences I should know? Kids club,splash pad, etc? This will be our first star class and first Oasis class. Blow this novice away with your expertise!
  13. Well, actually we’ll fly on down, but you get the idea. Warnings/Disclaimers: This blog is the sole opinions and thoughts of just the old guy who is writing it. It doesn't reflect the thoughts, opinions, clarity, good sense or tact possessed by those sailing with me. And to be clear, I don’t have the sense of humor, literary skills, or good judgement of most of you who post these live blogs. But I'm going to do it anyway. I guess I can be labeled as a “lurker” on this site. I read it daily but have made only a few comments. So today I take the plunge and become one of you by just jumping in the deep end with a live blog! Two weeks from today I will be in the air traveling from Palm Springs, California to Miami to begin our next Star Class adventure. In 2017 we sailed on the Oasis in a crown loft suite and thought we had found the ultimate way to cruise. But no, there was more to discover! In 2018 we booked another crown loft, this time on the Allure. A month or so later while checking for a price reduction I stumbled across something called the.Royal loft Suite! After watching a quick YouTube video of that suite I quickly booked it. YOLO as someone on this blog always says. We sailed in July with Dave Mac as our Genie and there was no turning back. In May of 2019 we cruised in the RLS on the Harmony with the amazing, wonderful Ariceli who I think has spoiled us for life! As I said, there’s no turning back now so two weeks from tomorrow we will be in the RLS on the “new” Oasis and will have Allan as our Genie. If this blog goes as planned you will see and hear much about each of us and what we will be doing during the week. So let me introduce our merry band of sailors: Stacy, my bride and partner. I many times refer to her as Pollyanna, which is defined as “an excessively cheerful or optimistic person.” Defines her to a T. She sees the good in everything and everyone. Poor thing. My Pollyanna uses those traits everyday as she toils as an RN, or BSN to be accurate, in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at Desert Hospital in Palm Springs. She is our cruise planner, specializing in the culinary aspects of the Star Class experience. As she takes her break from those 12 hour shifts at the hospital she will be seen around the ship with a permanent smile on her face and a blended Love Connection drink in her hand. I expect she will pop in on this blog and provide you with some of her excessive cheerfulness! Shari who I refer to as Polyanna2. Yeah, no kidding. Another one. Stacy’s identical twin sister. The Oasis is a big ship but I’m not sure there’s room enough for this goodness! She and her family have cruised with us the last three trips but this time she will leave them behind at jobs and school while she gets a well deserved week of relaxation. Shari is the 24/7 caregiver for her mother-in-law who suffers from dementia. That’s a task where that Pollyanna thing coms in pretty handy. I expect the twins to be side by side everyday and although they act and talk alike you can tell them apart by their hands. Shari’s will be holding a Bud Light! Daughter Taylor, almost 21. Young T, as I call her, is a preschool teacher with with a gaggle of I think 3 year olds. Can you imagine? A classroom full of germ carrying, tantrum throwing, runny nosed 3 year olds and Taylor is too young to drink! T is the calm, chill one in the group. She gets that from me. You will find her sleeping late, spending lazy days in the sun and with one of two things in her hand. Her Starbucks or a virgin Pina Colada. I told our Genie that I think T holds the Harmony record for most virgin Pina Coladas consumed in one week! We might also find her in the casino which she discovered last year. Daughter Kaitlyn, 30 something. The party girl of the bunch. She is also a nurse like her mom. But she is in the other Intensive Care Unit – the one for adults. Same hospital as her mom. On December 19th Katie received her Doctorate of Nurse Practioner degree which we will be celebrating on the cruise. So now she has more letters behind her name: Dr. Taylor, RN, BSN, DNP, EIEIO. I asked the Genie for time in the engine room for this one because she can talk and drink like a seasoned sailor! You’ll recognize her by her flaming red hair the the gin and tonic in her hand. Or a Margarita. Or a vodka and soda. Or…well you get the idea. Rounding our our group is yours truly, Jim. The quiet one of the group. I will usually be found on that massive balcony at our suite, on the quiet suite sun deck or in the suite lounge. With a Jack Daniels and sprite in one hand and a camera in the other. My plan is to try and share as much here in words and photos as I can. I have enjoyed and learned so much from reading others blogs here so I hope to return that favor. I’m sure much of the blog will deal with Star Class aspects as I try to justify why we spend a bazillion dollars every year to do this! I will be doing Genie recon for those sailing after us and will certainly try to answer questions anyone has once we board. We plan on eating everywhere except the Chef’s Table this year. We’ll even work in the MDR for a breakfast or lunch and a couple of trips to the Jammer. I think we will do all of the shows. Even Cats. Yep, I’m gonna do it. I’ll spend the afternoon in the suite lounge slamming the Jack and sprites and then go experience the feline extravaganza! We have no plans for Cozumel or Falmouth. Just maybe a little shopping and back on the ship. We are looking forward to Labadee which we all love. A relaxing day on the suite beach. In the lead up to our sail day I plan to share more about our travel plans, our night in Miami, our previous experiences with RC and how we survive the Miami airport as we disembark on Super Bowl Sunday. I might have to involve Jack in breakfast plans that morning! I know its somewhat early to post but I’m hoping we can all share and get to know each other by our sail date. It’s not too early by Matt or Sabrina’s standards but it is early! So come along for the ride with this crazy bunch as we embark on our 3rd Star Class adventure. It’s a long way from my first sailing on the Song of Norway.
  14. Because we have already had 33.5 inches of snow here in the Mitten State and I am not a big fan of that nonsense, I spend a lot of time thinking about upcoming cruises. I love reading about people's experiences and living vicariously through them to pass the time. I'm sure a lot of us have countdown to cruise apps on our phones and I've read in numerous posts "Only 623 or 17 more sleeps until we board!" I am currently sitting in my 6 x 8 jail cell (oops, I mean cubicle) at work looking out the window at a dull monochromatic landscape and since I am a numbers person, I have been thinking of other milestones to use for our countdown to cruise. Only 3 more hair appointments! Does anyone else have a fun way for countdown or do you stick to days and/or sleeps?
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