Will there be Harmony before an Odyssey? Nov 7th-12th, Nov 13th-19th

[NotPayinExtra]

Really enjoying your story. It's been a lot of fun to read. I've gotten to the age that when doctors/dentists talk about how bad my parts are getting, I always say "Well, they are vintage". Lol. But I didn't copyright it, so we can share.

[Ampurp85]

We had a good time on deck.

I mean we look okay but I think it's more so we entertain people when they try. My brother is tall, thin and spicy looking, so all the people try with him everywhere we go. I'm top heavy which is why vintage men always try. If you single with big ones, you will always be hit on. You don't have to look worth nothing either. We look super friendly,  I had a sweet little baby just come and lay on me. I'm sure it's because I'm "soft" and I was smiling at her. We just look down for some sort of good time, we get that we smile and look happy a lot from people. 

[Ampurp85]

Last day continued.......

After I won a jackpot, my BFFs mom and my mother's BFF also hit smaller jackpots. My mother's BFF hit $150 which is what she spent gambling and my BFFs mom hit $290, which was half of what she played. My mother only played $40 but she had won all her money back last night. The casino cash machines were broken, so everyone had to cash out with the cashier. 

There was a lady in line cruising solo telling us how she tried to get 2k to play craps but couldn't. She said they kept rejecting her debt card but she had money. She called her husband and someone had taken 80k from her. Now, first I was like who keeps more than 10k in a checking account? Then I was like can you pay my next star class cruise.....j/k. But she said her husband had, thankfully, got things sorted.

I forgot to mention that several times women brought their children to hang out in the casino. The staff kept making them leave, this one lady brought all three of hers and they were messing with the machines and bothering people. The staff told her to leave and she got mad. She said the ship should be for everyone and that her children can sit in bars, why not here? I watched the whole thing until security removed her.

I definitely thinks there is truth to Liberty, the numbers guy, messing up the food quality and quantity. Desserts are lackluster and there was no chocolate chip cookies anywhere but room service. No body has had any desserts, not at a speciality restaurant, they have loved. Also the Bionic bar was not in service at all the entire cruise. Playmakers has been so understaffed we never got to eat or drink there. Never got bumper cars or virtual reality game play. Lots of children means the adults lose out.

We hung out on deck people watching, several little children dancing to the music made us happy. Their go-to dance is the weak leg bounce. Many were just happy to be out. Several people we have seen around stopped by to make sure we would be attending the farewell parties tonight......not me. I went back around 4:30 to the room and packed. We have dinner and a show, so I wanted to have my luggage out and ready just in case.

I had a good time, lots of laughs.

 

[Ampurp85]

So for some reason I have encountered a lot of ads on the blog. They are making it hard to type. This is both mobile and regular. 

Anyhow we saw Showgirls. It was the same performers from the Effectors and they served vocals. The Showgirls were great too, weirdly one of the male performers pants came loose and he had a wardrobe malfunction......lots of swooning from folks. They started late and we just barely made it to our reservation.  They had the wrong table set up and we waited for them to fix it. Dinner started at 8, so 15min late and ended 2hrs later.

We asked for all the sides to share but double mash and baked potato. He brought 3 of those and double everything else. Such a waste of food. I told them this was a course restaurant but they forgot and was complaining about how long everything was taking. Their eyes were bigger than their stomach. They wanted multiple entrees but barely finished what they had. 

The mac and cheese tasted pretty good, the consistency was right. As usual the mushrooms and asparagus lacked any real flavor. My mother got the apple pie and was so upset. She nasty, she likes raisins in her apple pie; she was upset the apple was not in chunks. She said the filling was like applesauce. So she ordered cheesecake and took it to her room. I got the mango sorbet. 

We got our pictures. Those of us that are diamond got out free one and the gold and platinum folks used their buy one get 50% off. We checked in for our flights and got A31 and on. It's a later flight so I don't know how we will kill the 8+hrs. After dinner the food coma sat in and we just went back to the room to pack carry-on bags. I'm super sleepy. Hopefully breakfast and disembarkment is amazing. I wish we could be cruising a little longer.

[ellcee]

7 hours ago, Ampurp85 said:

So for some reason I have encountered a lot of ads on the blog. They are making it hard to type. This is both mobile and regular.

Hate it.

7 hours ago, Ampurp85 said:

She nasty, she likes raisins in her apple pie;

dead.

 

Thanks for blogging your experience, it's been so fun to read. I feel like you need a few days to yourself now. Safe trip home.

 

[Neesa]

@Ampurp85 thank you so much for bringing us along. I enjoyed your adventures, the way you tell us about the sailing, the spicy....the vintages made me experience your joy, and laughter. I can't wait until your next sailing. Happy Thanksgiving, safe travels home. 

[asquared17]

9 hours ago, Ampurp85 said:

So for some reason I have encountered a lot of ads on the blog. They are making it hard to type. This is both mobile and regular. 

Anyhow we saw Showgirls. It was the same performers from the Effectors and they served vocals. The Showgirls were great too, weirdly one of the male performers pants came loose and he had a wardrobe malfunction......lots of swooning from folks.

im dying and can only picture this and the mayhem that ensued

sidebar to anyone who has issues with ads -- found this thread yesterday and installed the blocker mentioned in it and it has been a LIFESAVER:

 

[Cruiser4Life]

You honestly seem like an amazing person and sound so great to travel with! I hope you feel like you got some R &R on your vacay. Did you happen to snap a pic of the entertainment schedule? Was there a 70s, 80s, or 90s party on board? 

[Adriana]

Thank you so very much for all your blogs and sharing your experiences with us! I wish I could cruise with you! You have such a great outlook and keep on going when things get tough or icky. Even your fellow cruisers and babies can see it and gravitate towards you. Thanks for the laughs and very interesting points and stories! I also wish you could have cruised a few days longer, especially since you should get a redo of your first cruise!
     I hope you got some rest and had a nice breakfast and off the ship with your crew smoothly. 

     Safe travels home!

[Xaa]

Thanks @Ampurp85I appreciated reading about the adventures daily.  Seems like a good time.  Thanks for bringing us all along.

[Ampurp85]

18 hours ago, Cruiser4Life said:

You honestly seem like an amazing person and sound so great to travel with! I hope you feel like you got some R &R on your vacay. Did you happen to snap a pic of the entertainment schedule? Was there a 70s, 80s, or 90s party on board? 

There was a 70s party but no 80s or 90s. They said the schedule would be changing as this was a 6N right after a TA and they will be moving times and offerings around, hence why I didn't take a picture of the schedule.

[Ampurp85]

Okay I know it's a little late, but literally most of took our phones off of airplane mode and exploded with work crap. 

Disembarkment was late but smooth, I mean they took a long time to call luggage tags. I told everyone they didn't need their passports just walk and scan, all the vintages had theirs out and one......cough chough** my mother, almost lost hers during the process. I was behind everyone, and she dropped it and kept walking. I picked it up and when we got outside, everyone was putting theirs away and she became panicked. I told her plenty of times to be more aware of everything. If I wasn't walking with the vintages, 2/3 have that problem where they literally will just stop in the path of traffic, it would have been a 5-10min process from room to curb. 

The rideshare area was a mess, I didn't have any problems when I got off Harmony, but I think it was the large group that became the issue. We needed 2 vehicles, and one was Uber and the other was Lyft, so they had different standards and practices. They cost us $30+ a piece because they were surge pricing as so many people were leaving and arriving at the port. Our driver was watching a podcast as he drove us, not good.

I should say I didn't plan most of this cruise, but I always offered suggestions. We had a long wait because our flight left around 7pm. I suggested the Hop on and Hop off tour, I asked about day resorts, etc. They said they would find something. Even the first day of the cruise I said late flight, should I book an excursion? After I gave them prices, on day 4 they said no they were okay waiting. Come disembarkment morning, they try to book a day stay. Of course, everything is booked, or they want us to get 2 rooms.........but only have 1 available. This becomes a thing that sours a lot of moods. We make it to the airport and drop luggage around 12, I ask I they want to Lyft/Uber to the movies, and they are tired and being drained of vacation joy, so we go through TSA and begin our long wait. 

My brother, me and my BFF end up working most of the time and it flies by. We had to change gates 2 times and our flight was delayed. We started at B5 and then around 5:45 they move us to A2 which already has a connecting flight going to Detroit by way of Midway. So, everyone was confused and lots of the passengers were rude to us. Then at 6:45 after that flight has finished boarding, they move us to A1. Then we have no crew, we have to wait for one to fly in and we can start boarding. The flight was empty by 20 seats, so we were able to space ourselves out and be more comfortable. We left around 8pm and got to Chicago an hour later than scheduled and had to wait 30 minutes for our luggage to load, thankfully it was in the very beginning of the process. 

I will say that the current Odyssey sailing was also delayed in departure and possibly boarding. When we left our first gate around 5ish she was still in port.

Final thoughts.............

So, nobody liked quantum class. In that nobody wants to sail Anthem or Odyssey again.

The fact that whole areas of the ship, on multiple floors, were cut off, was a big issue.  We were all use to maybe you can only get to the conference room from forward, or the Loyalty Ambassador from aft. But the staterooms, sports deck, etc. all were inaccessible depending on the side of ship. We missed the neighborhoods. 

Staff were worked to the bone, and you could tell it. Service did suffer in places like the WJ and MDR, we would sit with uncleared plates for a very long time. None of my reservations were correct, we would get incorrect food, things not replenished in the buffet, late starts, etc. I also felt like morale might have been low because people wanted nineteen-star service but weren't tipping. 

Early on most of the items we received were from European countries, on the last day I started to see the brands Royal normally carries. All of the gravy was red and sort of off-tasting. Also, they had bacon rashers and regular bacon, of which most were a soggy mess. 

I very much enjoy cruising with my family, but I think I might need to schedule a solo cruise/vacation after them to decompress. 

[D Alt]

Were the Black Friday deals onboard as well?  Not only would you get the deals but OBC.  Seems like a good time to cruise. 

[AshleyDillo]

1 hour ago, Ampurp85 said:

I very much enjoy cruising with my family, but I think I might need to schedule a solo cruise/vacation after them to decompress. 

Sounds like you need to just flip it around next time and do the solo cruise after the family one.

[asquared17]

5 hours ago, Ampurp85 said:

I will say that the current Odyssey sailing was also delayed in departure and possibly boarding. When we left our first gate around 5ish she was still in port.

we should ask @Matt what was going on with that since he's aboard with his family this week for the 8 night sailing

5 hours ago, Ampurp85 said:

So, nobody liked quantum class. In that nobody wants to sail Anthem or Odyssey again.

The fact that whole areas of the ship, on multiple floors, were cut off, was a big issue.  We were all use to maybe you can only get to the conference room from forward, or the Loyalty Ambassador from aft. But the staterooms, sports deck, etc. all were inaccessible depending on the side of ship. We missed the neighborhoods.

i appreciate this honesty. one of the things we are a bit concerned with sailing odyssey next month is this very issue. we love the oasis class, love the neighborhoods, and find the non-neighborhood style a definite adjustment. i am curious to see how we do in a few weeks and if we like it for this very reason.

i definitely think you have earned a solo cruise -- this has been a real journey from start (harmony) to finish -- sweet lord your mom dropping her passport makes my anxiety skyrocket. HOLY CRAP. good thing you were behind her and were able to nab it.

i also admire your self restraint; i know you were helpful and offered suggestions but so much angst could have been avoided had they just taken like a FRACTION of your advice. good grief. i don't know how you did it.

relieved you are home safe but woof what a way to go. i foresee a palate cleanser of a cruise in your future...

 

[Adriana]

Soo glad you are home and can rest and cleanse…on your own! Well, with your sweet kitty! She must be so happy to see you and vice versa!

     You really are a trooper, I commend you on keeping your cool. You did a great job keeping things together and offering suggestions. I concur that you could def use a solo cruise. I hope you find the perfect one. I have only sailed Anthem multiple times (I live in Jersey) and the tiny ones like Monarch and Empress when I lived in South Beach/Miami. My last cruise on Anthem def left plenty to be desired. 
    Thank you again for taking us along with you. I hope you get some much needed rest and kitty snuggles!

[GregD]

On 11/18/2022 at 11:24 PM, Ampurp85 said:

She nasty, she likes raisins in her apple pie

Wait......first there were people that ATE the tomato, and now you tell us that you have a family member that likes raisins in their apple pie!!! What is this world coming to!!

 

Thank you for the entertaining read. I certainly does sound like you need a nice solo vacation, to decompress from your vacation!

[asquared17]

57 minutes ago, GregD said:

Wait......first there were people that ATE the tomato

....why would you remind us of this great tragedy i'm triggered!!

[Ampurp85]

1 hour ago, GregD said:

Wait......first there were people that ATE the tomato, and now you tell us that you have a family member that likes raisins in their apple pie!!! What is this world coming to!!

 

Thank you for the entertaining read. I certainly does sound like you need a nice solo vacation, to decompress from your vacation!

Ugh yes, she found the filling to be mushy and proceeded to pick and eat all the raisins. I stared in revulsion. 

[Ampurp85]

I also will point out that BFFs mom eats the tomatoes!!!!!! Whenever we got one on a plate, she would eat it.

You know how you are in the moment, and you come home and then remember all the little weird things? Well I just started that!

You all know that sign on the back of the door? The one that says NOT to have your cabin door and balcony door open at the same time? Well, the vintages had to be told twice to adhere to it by staff. The first time they did it I was coming up from the casino and felt craziness in the hallway, I prayed it wasn't them........I got round the bend and heard it was them. I told them they can't do this. Well, they didn't listen and got yelled at by another steward, then ours caught them. It was like the beginning of a hurricane, very freaky. 

The casino would give you multiple drinks. I am used to getting a margarita and a soda/water. They would give you 3 beers, 2 mixed drinks, a mixed drink and beer plus your soda and waters. If you tipped well, so would a lot of bars. I only signed for one diamond drink and never used them up. My brother was using his diamond drinks to get the vintages a smoothie or daiquiri but was rarely charged.

 

[GregD]

11 hours ago, asquared17 said:

....why would you remind us of this great tragedy i'm triggered!!

[mom2mybugs]

On 11/12/2022 at 12:45 PM, Cruiser4Life said:

I think you seem like a ton of fun to be around and your jokes actually make me laugh out loud. You are appreciated by people you don’t even know, don’t let anyone take that from you…

I too have been baffled by the burnt tomato. When DD was a toddler, she noticed it on my plate and shrieked “mommy, don’t eat that! They didn’t even wash off the dirt from the garden!” Ahh kids… also good for a laugh.

I am praying Odyssey is a totally different experience. I sail on her for NYE and have Harmony in March so we’ll see how they compare after yours!

We almost booked that odyssey cruise and are going to be on harmony for New Year’s Eve instead.  I hope I have a better experience!  (And that story is hilarious!) Jane