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1st Timer Cruiser View - Please don't judge!


Dannyboy72

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All, 

As a first timer cruiser I thought I would add my views / advice for newbies as there was some stuff which I didn't get or things I didn't expect. These are my views and I'm sure others will have different views so please don't judge me! 

We travelled as family on the 18th Aug on Adventure  

I'll start with the bad stuff: 

Chair Hogs - just annoying. I rise early and I saw people at 7am just laying towels and not returning for hours. Just felt this was a little rude to others  

Lack of time in some ports - we had just a couple of hours in San Juan and felt we could do with a little more time. I get that we booked this and should have understood but as a family we like to explore and felt we didn't or couldn't as we needed to get back on board. 

Windjammer - Breakfast was just a free for all and was busy all the time. Getting a seat was a pain and we would walk around to get a table, 

Food - For me, the waste is incredible, people just stacking plates and plates full of food as if it's it never going to be served again.  I saw one kid with a plate of 10 donuts, I just hope he was sharing them as it was just crazy. I also felt guilty when we arrived in Haiti as we are sitting there having pancakes and bacon looking at one of the poorest countries - just me being a little globally conscious. 

Kids Clubs - The Opitx or the younger one neither looked very inviting. The staff weren't engaging and it looked very dated. The teenage one just looked like a free for all and my 12 year old was not really comfortable with it, I do think 12 to 17 is kind of an aged gap.  The staff were the most uphelpful on the boat but quite some way! 

Sea Days - I've said we like to explore - we had a 4 sea days and I felt that was too many for us as family. I did think that the sea days would be a great chance to relax but we felt a little bored and a bit trapped - strange really as there was stuff going on but we either didn't make it or didn't want to leave our pool beds! 

Activities - A lot of the activities seem to last just 45 mins and by the time you get in to what is happening it then ends. This was a little odd but assuming you get used to it. 

Beer Choice - just me I suspect on this one but it's just the standard beers and I like IPAs or something different and the only place I could this in the pub but then I would miss out on some other activity somewhere else whilst getting a beer.  

Dress Code - just pointless.  I saw people on Dress to Impress in shorts and flip flops.  Either have it or don't..... 

Wifi - Don't bother! Slow and drops out. Leave your phone in the safe with flight mode on.  

 

The Good Stuff:

Food and Service – just excellent. The Main Dining room was excellent with a great range of foods with our servers (Glen and Hubert) being just amazing. The food in the Windjammer was also very good indeed.  You won’t go hungry and if you do then you have something wrong with you.

Lots to do – there was loads on with some activities over lapping making it hard to do everything you want. My advice is scan the QR code for the planner as the apps isn’t as good.

Relaxing – At times I did nothing. And that’s great as I have a very full life so anytime I get to sit and read a book is time well spent.

Sea Ports – Although I did think we could spend a little more time in certain ports, I do also think it’s a good chance to see ports and countries you wouldn’t go back to for a week’s holiday.

Bed – I’ve never slept so well. Every night I was out like a light and slept so heavy. It was either the motion of the boat or the just because I was very relaxed.

Safe – I felt with safe on the boat, not just with covid but with other passengers. My kids (9 and 12) felt ok walking around on their own and liked the adventure of exploring the ship.

Drinks – Although I think it’s expensive, the drink package was excellent and saved so much effort when we went to the bars. Nothing was too much trouble for the bar staff and would make any drink you asked for. Service again, tops!

Flow Rider – loads of fun and well worth trying!

Labadee –Some people have concerns around Labadee with it being a little older than CoCo  Cay but I thought it was excellent, the beach was in very clean, the food was very good. The kids loved it and so did I.  The local market is a little pushy but not too bad.

Balcony Cabin – we stayed in 9622 which was a spacious balcony on a hump (I think that’s the term). Very clean, good size for 4 of us to sleep. The Stateroom attendant was excellent and I loved that he put the sofa bed up and down at night. The only issue was the shower went hot and cold at times but not really an issue. 

Formal Night – This was great as most people dressed up (apart from the swim wear and flip flops!) and the Dress to Impress night seemed more dressy than formal night.  I think it’s night to dress up and sit as family and enjoy a good meal. 

The Staff / Crew – they make it. I don’t have a bad word to say about the crew, each one had a smile on their face and was willing to help all the time even when they are very busy. The main dining room staff were amazing with nothing being too much trouble.                            

 

I would say that I will cruise again but I will research more on the ports and the sea days so we aren’t all at sea as a family!  Royal, I thought as a company seemed to be excellent and I would consider booking again in t future but I do thing that I might need to try another cruise company to compare as others on the cruise did say that P&O and Carnival were better.

If you haven’t cruised before, like me, try it, it’s great but accept that it's a flying visit to ports on what is a five star Vegas type floating hotel. 

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So glad you posted.  Our family has experienced nearly everything you stated ✔️.  Those  are all real and it happens.  We love the cruise experience, but definately have certain "annoyances" or "what the heck" items.  As you cruise more you will become tolerant, learn the work around, find your groove style cruise, and learn to leverage the available amenities on the ship/cruise to craft a vacation that gets better.  Some of the fun is looking back and saying, "I    wish I    knew then, what I    know now" and then have a good laugh/memory.

IMO each one of your items has a work around or option to avoid.  It may have a consequence, but it has one.  For example, many ships have an off the beat and path lounge chairs area with great views, still hear the music, and a 30 second walk to jump in the water, or stumble to the bar.  You just aren't going to be next to an overrated pool area that likely has a bad human body to water ratio.

The more you cruise the more you learn.  On top of that, stick with this blog.  Matt has crafted an excellent way to interact, connect with people that have the same and different cruising styles.  You can learn a ton to apply to your next cruise.

 

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 A very balanced review.

I have cruised both Royal and P&O but I don't have children.  I would say that there's lots more for children on a Royal ship.  P&O is cheaper.  In my opinion the food is comparable.   I would research the facilities each ship has.  I would certainly cruise with either company - the itinerary is key for me

 

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Your list seems typical for most cruises.

Some folks love the MDR, others hate it. Same with Windjammer.

Chair hogs are a way of life on the cruise ship and I have seen it on every cruise we have taken except for the cruises right after they started sailing again with fewer passengers. Everyone has an opinion on how it can be fixed but there is really no way to cure it without some extreme confrontations which the cruise lines will never do.

Royal on the WiFi is at least fixing that with the installation of Starlink which for me is a game changer as I typically work half the time I am sailing. Love my remote office view.

There is really no dress code now. They have only suggestions and some follow them some don't. We personally do not dress up but do avoid the MDR on those night to not spoil the ambiance for those that do.

For us it is about the relaxation and interaction with new acquaintances that we have met over the years so the sea days do not bother us as much but we do love our port stops and have explored some very unique places that we have never seen at home.

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Hello @Dannyboy72 nice review.  I was on Adventure Aug 13-18 and found somewhat of the same.  My advice to you is this…keep cruising but choose a different ship each time.  Experiencing what each ship has to offer is just as exciting as visiting the various ports.  Most people find good things and bad things with anything and everything and as long as the good outweighs the bad…awesome!!!

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We are early birds and have not yet had trouble with crowds at Windjammer for breakfast (now that ships are at capacity, we shall see if that changes).  Our kids are NOT early risers, and they did have trouble finding seating.  I don't know why, but we never thought of going to the MDR for breakfast!  We will be trying that on our next cruise. 

11 hours ago, Dannyboy72 said:

All,

Sea Days - I've said we like to explore - we had a 4 sea days and I felt that was too many for us as family. I did think that the sea days would be a great chance to relax but we felt a little bored and a bit trapped - strange really as there was stuff going on but we either didn't make it or didn't want to leave our pool beds! 

Activities - A lot of the activities seem to last just 45 mins and by the time you get in to what is happening it then ends. This was a little odd but assuming you get used to it. 

 

You mentioned being bored at sea days.  We haven't take a cruise with many sea days before.  Did they not have enough activities, were they not timed/spaced out well, or did you not leave your pool bed 🤣 to try them?   We are getting vacation money together in order to HAVE a longer trip and more days at sea, so I'm curious your thoughts there.

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My biggest beef is with the scheduling of shows and with the MDR seating times. The early show needs to be early enough so that the late seating guests can enjoy the show before dinner. I am on My Time dining since I don't want to eat dinner at 5:00 or go to bed with an overfull stomach after the 8:30 seating, and that does not work out well for early risers if you want to go to the shows.

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You covered a lot of points pretty fairly.    Chair hogs are a problem at most every resort in the world on land or not,  places where they have rules I have been and then enforce them have just as many issues the other way so I can see why they dont. 

I haven't been on an old RCL ship like Adventure which is 20+ years old , only Oasis and Quantum class - so I think a number of your comments relate to the ship.  On Harmony for example - our kids (9 and 12) loved kids club and it had a huge range of things to do and the facilities were great,  I couldn't get them out of it - on ever ship the kids club staff have been some of the best staff on board so thats also a bit weird.  I do agree lumping 12 year olds with 17 year olds is weird (my daughter was only 12 by 1 week when we last went) I just asked them to keep her with her brother in the younger group and they were fine with that. 

In the Caribbean i have always found the wifi good but again, newer ships.   I also really enjoyed Labadee we found it one of fav stops - much more enjoyable than San Juan for us which I would happily skip in the future for more time somewhere else but I guess its what your looking for. 

If your going to try something else,  Cant recommend P&O - I think the newest ship might be ok,  but overall they seem a worse choice in most ways.   We did a princess cruise earlier this year with the kids and despite a older vibe the kids club was as amazing and good as any and had a great time.  So many choices with Carnival, NCL etc -  our P&O experience was pretty poor.,   

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Just an FYI: Royal has given away leftovers at Labadee on a daily basis for years. At the end of the day you can see the locals lining up at the entrance gate just outside Nellies Beach. Royal has owned the property for some 35+ years and there have been many, many, many tried and failed attempts all across Haiti to create resorts and vacation destinations. Royal has been the only successful one. So as far as an employer and economic impact on the country as a whole, Haiti has done very well with Royal purchasing a dilapidated, old resort way off in the north of the country where no one ever goes.

Now this is just me talking smack, but at some point when Royal has its' debt under control and they have completed their onshore venues at Paradise Island and Vanuatu; I think we are going to see a spectacular remodel at Labadee. Spectacular because Haiti is a near perfect 1/2 point between Florida and Mexico. Also because there is already a dock in place that is deep enough for Oasis class ships that is only 6 or 7 years old. And exceedingly spectacular because Haiti has far less hurricane potential than the Bahamas. And, unlike the Bahamas which is made of sand, Labadee is made of rock and boy can we build some sturdy foundations for whatever your imagination can dream up. The sky will be the limit. 

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8 hours ago, PRMLVM said:

 

We are early birds and have not yet had trouble with crowds at Windjammer for breakfast (now that ships are at capacity, we shall see if that changes).  Our kids are NOT early risers, and they did have trouble finding seating.  I don't know why, but we never thought of going to the MDR for breakfast!  We will be trying that on our next cruise. 

You mentioned being bored at sea days.  We haven't take a cruise with many sea days before.  Did they not have enough activities, were they not timed/spaced out well, or did you not leave your pool bed 🤣 to try them?   We are getting vacation money together in order to HAVE a longer trip and more days at sea, so I'm curious your thoughts there.

We did leave the sun deck as we couldn't get near the pool beds but it was a then leaving the beds to do something to then try and search around for a bed again and none where that exciting. The sea days aren't awful at all just not what I expected.  

 

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7 hours ago, bobroo said:

Just an FYI: Royal has given away leftovers at Labadee on a daily basis for years. At the end of the day you can see the locals lining up at the entrance gate just outside Nellies Beach. Royal has owned the property for some 35+ years and there have been many, many, many tried and failed attempts all across Haiti to create resorts and vacation destinations. Royal has been the only successful one. So as far as an employer and economic impact on the country as a whole, Haiti has done very well with Royal purchasing a dilapidated, old resort way off in the north of the country where no one ever goes.

Now this is just me talking smack, but at some point when Royal has its' debt under control and they have completed their onshore venues at Paradise Island and Vanuatu; I think we are going to see a spectacular remodel at Labadee. Spectacular because Haiti is a near perfect 1/2 point between Florida and Mexico. Also because there is already a dock in place that is deep enough for Oasis class ships that is only 6 or 7 years old. And exceedingly spectacular because Haiti has far less hurricane potential than the Bahamas. And, unlike the Bahamas which is made of sand, Labadee is made of rock and boy can we build some sturdy foundations for whatever your imagination can dream up. The sky will be the limit. 

It's nice to know that RC do that with the food as at least it's giving something back - makes me slightly better when slipping on my Labadozy! 

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9 hours ago, Meridian said:

You covered a lot of points pretty fairly.    Chair hogs are a problem at most every resort in the world on land or not,  places where they have rules I have been and then enforce them have just as many issues the other way so I can see why they dont. 

I haven't been on an old RCL ship like Adventure which is 20+ years old , only Oasis and Quantum class - so I think a number of your comments relate to the ship.  On Harmony for example - our kids (9 and 12) loved kids club and it had a huge range of things to do and the facilities were great,  I couldn't get them out of it - on ever ship the kids club staff have been some of the best staff on board so thats also a bit weird.  I do agree lumping 12 year olds with 17 year olds is weird (my daughter was only 12 by 1 week when we last went) I just asked them to keep her with her brother in the younger group and they were fine with that. 

In the Caribbean i have always found the wifi good but again, newer ships.   I also really enjoyed Labadee we found it one of fav stops - much more enjoyable than San Juan for us which I would happily skip in the future for more time somewhere else but I guess its what your looking for. 

If your going to try something else,  Cant recommend P&O - I think the newest ship might be ok,  but overall they seem a worse choice in most ways.   We did a princess cruise earlier this year with the kids and despite a older vibe the kids club was as amazing and good as any and had a great time.  So many choices with Carnival, NCL etc -  our P&O experience was pretty poor.,   

I do think that one of the bigger ships may be then next cruise and maybe a little shorter - maybe 5 days. 

They wouldn't let my 12 year go with my 9 year old in the kids club unless she tried the teen club, to which they then said the younger club would be full so the chances are you couldn't have got in. Not ideal but to be honest my kids rarely do the kids clubs.  

 

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Great post and I agree with everything however on European sailing we have been on while the 12-17 shared the same area the activities were definitely 12-14 and 15-17. My 13 year old had a great time with kids his age doing the activities.

Perhaps after the restart they are having some issues getting the clubs up and running again. 

 

 

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Nice write-up.

I think I did this itinerary over the summer on the same ship. General consensus from folks I spoke with was those last two sea days are too much. It almost feels like vacation is over, and should be over, but things are still happening. San Juan really could've used more time in port. We were there from 7:00am to 2:30pm which seems like it wouldn't be bad, but most things to see weren't opening till 9:30am. I didn't miss anything I wanted to see or drink, but I also had developed a touring plan beforehand taking into account estimated walking times, opening times, and anticipated length of stays at each point. Can't really expect the typical group to want to do something similar while on vacation.

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On 9/10/2022 at 4:26 AM, Dannyboy72 said:

I do think that one of the bigger ships may be then next cruise and maybe a little shorter - maybe 5 days. 

They wouldn't let my 12 year go with my 9 year old in the kids club unless she tried the teen club, to which they then said the younger club would be full so the chances are you couldn't have got in. Not ideal but to be honest my kids rarely do the kids clubs.  

 

Yea, the chair hogs are perhaps our biggest gripe too.  Celebrity seems to handle the chair hogs [our experience anyway] the best by putting out folded towels on every pool lounge start of the day. One can still get locked out of a lounge, but it seems to tame down those saving a lounge for hours without being there.  Getting locked out of a table in the Windjammer perhaps our next biggest gripe.  That one just due to the hordes of people onboard.  There is that sense of anxiety as one approaches either the pool deck or the windjammer as to 'Will I find a place'?  You get used to it of course and there are workarounds, like showing up early.  I just keep circling the windjammer until I find something open.  I've circled up to 4 or 5 times before [eggs cold by then of course, ha].  I used to get mad inside, but now I realize there is no fault by anyone; just how things work out.

We envy the OP by Dannyboy.  We still love cruising, but there's nothing like the thrill of those first times.  Love to hear about those first experiences too [or any experience]   There's just something about sitting out on one's balcony, sipping on a beer, watching the horizon or for flying fish going by.  Good for the soul or something.  Cudos to the Post Dannyboy; hope you venture on many cruises in coming days.

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22 hours ago, Paid4c4 said:

We were on the same cruise in 1274 on deck 10.  Your summation is spot on.  We made the mistake of using My Time Dinning which was truly a disorganized, mismanaged mess and I am being kind.  Aside from MTD we had a great time on a great ship.

Bill

You brought back a memory that I had conveniently forgotten about!  We had chosen our dining time but once onboard found out they took it away from us and placed us into MTD!  When I asked why this happened I was told there were too many with “timed” seating so the ones who booked later in the process were moved to MTD!  Since I did not realize this…we made no reservations once we boarded!  It was a fight to the finish to try to get the same time each night to eat with the same waiters (we were eventually able to have this)!  I never did MTD before so had no clue what it really means…and same waiters is one of the things you typically do not get!  I did not know that and I do not like it at all!   And the line for no reservations was incredibly long every night…very disorganized and SLOW!   When you have a set time seating I love the fanfare of the wait staff lined up to greet the diners and the escorting to the table!  I may have noted this in one of my other responses…but…Adventure is not a ship I will revisit in the near future!

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Very much on point review. I have tried several different lines, but my fave is Royal, especially for the price. I am not a fan of Carnival at all; too noisy, too crowded with huge groups, food and service not as good. Of course you could try other lines, but allow me to suggest you try other ships and itineraries with Royal. It can make a huge difference. I suggest this mainly for the Crown and Anchor Society. The more you cruise with Royal, the more points you acquire then more perks. When you bounce around, you don’t get to accumulate as much. It may not seem like a big deal now, but down the line, you can hit a great level and start having very worth while perks. 

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On 9/9/2022 at 6:22 AM, Dannyboy72 said:

All, 

As a first timer cruiser I thought I would add my views / advice for newbies as there was some stuff which I didn't get or things I didn't expect. These are my views and I'm sure others will have different views so please don't judge me! 

We travelled as family on the 18th Aug on Adventure  

I'll start with the bad stuff: 

Chair Hogs - just annoying. I rise early and I saw people at 7am just laying towels and not returning for hours. Just felt this was a little rude to others  

Lack of time in some ports - we had just a couple of hours in San Juan and felt we could do with a little more time. I get that we booked this and should have understood but as a family we like to explore and felt we didn't or couldn't as we needed to get back on board. 

Windjammer - Breakfast was just a free for all and was busy all the time. Getting a seat was a pain and we would walk around to get a table, 

Food - For me, the waste is incredible, people just stacking plates and plates full of food as if it's it never going to be served again.  I saw one kid with a plate of 10 donuts, I just hope he was sharing them as it was just crazy. I also felt guilty when we arrived in Haiti as we are sitting there having pancakes and bacon looking at one of the poorest countries - just me being a little globally conscious. 

Kids Clubs - The Opitx or the younger one neither looked very inviting. The staff weren't engaging and it looked very dated. The teenage one just looked like a free for all and my 12 year old was not really comfortable with it, I do think 12 to 17 is kind of an aged gap.  The staff were the most uphelpful on the boat but quite some way! 

Sea Days - I've said we like to explore - we had a 4 sea days and I felt that was too many for us as family. I did think that the sea days would be a great chance to relax but we felt a little bored and a bit trapped - strange really as there was stuff going on but we either didn't make it or didn't want to leave our pool beds! 

Activities - A lot of the activities seem to last just 45 mins and by the time you get in to what is happening it then ends. This was a little odd but assuming you get used to it. 

Beer Choice - just me I suspect on this one but it's just the standard beers and I like IPAs or something different and the only place I could this in the pub but then I would miss out on some other activity somewhere else whilst getting a beer.  

Dress Code - just pointless.  I saw people on Dress to Impress in shorts and flip flops.  Either have it or don't..... 

Wifi - Don't bother! Slow and drops out. Leave your phone in the safe with flight mode on.  

 

The Good Stuff:

Food and Service – just excellent. The Main Dining room was excellent with a great range of foods with our servers (Glen and Hubert) being just amazing. The food in the Windjammer was also very good indeed.  You won’t go hungry and if you do then you have something wrong with you.

Lots to do – there was loads on with some activities over lapping making it hard to do everything you want. My advice is scan the QR code for the planner as the apps isn’t as good.

Relaxing – At times I did nothing. And that’s great as I have a very full life so anytime I get to sit and read a book is time well spent.

Sea Ports – Although I did think we could spend a little more time in certain ports, I do also think it’s a good chance to see ports and countries you wouldn’t go back to for a week’s holiday.

Bed – I’ve never slept so well. Every night I was out like a light and slept so heavy. It was either the motion of the boat or the just because I was very relaxed.

Safe – I felt with safe on the boat, not just with covid but with other passengers. My kids (9 and 12) felt ok walking around on their own and liked the adventure of exploring the ship.

Drinks – Although I think it’s expensive, the drink package was excellent and saved so much effort when we went to the bars. Nothing was too much trouble for the bar staff and would make any drink you asked for. Service again, tops!

Flow Rider – loads of fun and well worth trying!

Labadee –Some people have concerns around Labadee with it being a little older than CoCo  Cay but I thought it was excellent, the beach was in very clean, the food was very good. The kids loved it and so did I.  The local market is a little pushy but not too bad.

Balcony Cabin – we stayed in 9622 which was a spacious balcony on a hump (I think that’s the term). Very clean, good size for 4 of us to sleep. The Stateroom attendant was excellent and I loved that he put the sofa bed up and down at night. The only issue was the shower went hot and cold at times but not really an issue. 

Formal Night – This was great as most people dressed up (apart from the swim wear and flip flops!) and the Dress to Impress night seemed more dressy than formal night.  I think it’s night to dress up and sit as family and enjoy a good meal. 

The Staff / Crew – they make it. I don’t have a bad word to say about the crew, each one had a smile on their face and was willing to help all the time even when they are very busy. The main dining room staff were amazing with nothing being too much trouble.                            

 

I would say that I will cruise again but I will research more on the ports and the sea days so we aren’t all at sea as a family!  Royal, I thought as a company seemed to be excellent and I would consider booking again in t future but I do thing that I might need to try another cruise company to compare as others on the cruise did say that P&O and Carnival were better.

If you haven’t cruised before, like me, try it, it’s great but accept that it's a flying visit to ports on what is a five star Vegas type floating hotel. 

The newbie mistake you may have made is sailing Adventure & not an Oasis class ship for your first cruise. Many of the issues including “feeling bored and trapped” are less likely on the massive Oasis ships because there is so much to see and do.

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I started cruising in 1979 and have been on most of the cruise lines. Cruising (and society) has changed A LOT over the years.  All I can say now is that every cruise is different depending on time of year, itinerary, ship, cabin, crew, length, departure point. Some are good, some are better, some are just okay but they are all different.

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