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3. 2. 1……Does a Mariner Wonder the Allure of Cruising 1/15/24-2/2/24


Ampurp85

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1 hour ago, Ampurp85 said:

A tiny girl grabbed a sausage, sucked on it and put it back while her parents made food🤢🤮

I remember being taught at a very young age to only touch what you were going to take. This is something I have instilled in my own children. Is that just not taught anymore??????

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1 hour ago, Ampurp85 said:

I use the term vintage to mean a person older than 55 aging like wine.

I'm pushing 56 and aging like month old milk!

But like I've said in the past. With every new dentist and doctor appointment, when I'm told my parts aren't working so well anymore, I always say they are vintage. Like a Chanel Suit. LOL.

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34 minutes ago, jbrinkm said:

Oh! I remember him now - he WAS really good. 

He was good but he looked out of place.

I also forgot to mention the special act in the middle. The hula hoop lady was very good but her suit didn't fit because she was extremely skinny. The two girls next to me kept saying it was like watching bones skate. I couldn't unsee it once they said it.

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So I've discovered large ship short sailings are a mess. Trying to walk, eat and drink has been a struggle. I've been able to get exactly one drink in the casino since yesterday. This was also the first time I saw the tips pooled.

I watched people dump money in the machines for a while. This one lady dumped $500 trying to hit a jackpot before she won $89.

Around 1 I was hungry so I headed to ELF at Wipeout Cafe. The line was super long and moved moderately. But nobody understands personal space. This group would rub my shoulders every I moved up.....not with their hands but bodies. It was annoying.

The food at ELF on Allure is substandard.....probably because I miss the steak.

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I agree about large ship short sailings. Everyone trying to do, see, eat everything in a short amount of time. On Wonder we asked crewmembers we interacted with from concierges to stateroom hosts everyone of them said they disliked short sailings very much and not one was interested in working on the Utopia, not one. I think it leans manic, every passenger hyped up, no decompressing and then more turn around days. I'm not a fan of short sailings either. The only reason I'm doing Utopia is to experience an inaugural sailing, disappointed it's only 4 nights. CK, balcony, photo bomb, repeat!

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Good lord, I've been so behind again in all my blog reading, and just read all of this in its entirety. I have so much to say, but will stick to the cliff notes....

1) Your descriptions of your mother had me rolling. I too probably would have made her walk the plank....but being that she is your mother, I understand why you keep her around.

2) You and your brother seem like so much fun. I remember when I was younger and could eat like he does....but alas..those days are long gone.

3) Who is this...gym...you speak of? He seems to take up way too much of peoples time.

4) The people.....gross....in so many different ways......I must give off a "Get off my lawn" vibe because that never happens to me. I also don't venture down into the casino too often where it seems many of these shenanigans start off. 

5) I'm sure there is more, but I'm quite overwhelmed at all of it......

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My steward is cleaning so I stopped in the Crown Lounge for a snack. I spent a lot of my day reading on my balcony and popping in and out of places. I have no plans to get off in Nassau, so tomorrow will be  much of the same.

I talked to a lot of people who got this as a casino comp on their way to trying to make pinnacle. They said they expected less children until they realized it is a KSF sailing.

The tiny humans continue to be a lot. I walked the track, but not fully because the weather is a smidge cool and I have on a dress. I had to avoid several Marilyn Monroe moments. They were playing on the track, which wouldn't be bad if they stayed to one side but you know children. But there was also a carnival on the boardwalk........blue lips everywhere. I peeked in but the choas threw me for a loop and I forgot to take a photo.

There was also a Veterans parade. But I was on a work call, so I missed it. Speaking of Voom, the internet is hit or miss in my room. I do okay on the balcony and in the bathroom but not in the main room.

I was supposed to dine at Sabor but the ELF tacos ruined my taste, I might try for tomorrow.

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I was today years old when I found out Fiona from Shrek was Allure's godmother.

But I have notice a sad trend. Solo folks on Oasis class short sailings aren't treated well. The first time in the Crown Lounge I asked for a Stella, they were out and waiting on them to be stocked. I saw them get stocked and the server didn't come back. On the second day I asked for prosecco, they didn't have so I asked for a glass of water while I decided. 20min past and nobody came back.

I was sat in the MDR the first night, they got my drinks and rushed me for my order. I had my entree before I received bread. Despite sitting in between/very close to other tables that were getting served constantly and consistently. Water and drink refills were nonexistent. On last night I ordered no apps, just an entree. I got the bread and my entree before a head waiter came and filled my water glass. Then the assistant came at dessert to ask if I wanted a beverage. In both instances the parties around me were be checked on frequently.

When I went to the bathroom I found a casino voucher for $30 and some change. I was going to return it to the casino host but it's like money. There's no real way to verify who it belongs too without it being in another form of evidence like a wallet or bag. So I'm $30 richer.

I looked at a bit of the Aqua show in passing and I'm not regretting my decision to skip it the first night. Dazzles had jazz going on and I was shocked at the turnout on my way back to my room. My steward made me a cute bullfrog.

I have been up since 6am, I watched our arrival to Nassau. Funny enough I have never gotten off at this port, none of the excursions ever called to me. And the many bad reviews left me turned off. But I may get off just to clear my head. My 82yo grandmother had her checking account hacked and I spent most of the early morning setting up a new one and helping her dispute everything.

I was able to get a little breakfast during the chaos. The WJ only had one side open.

I have blue planet at 7, which I am really looking forward to. I missed out on the last showing in October.

I have been trying to get a peach daiquiri since last Allure sailing and I finally got one. The casino has the mix, so i now have another reason I can't wait for it to open. 🤣🤣🤣🤣

 

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7 minutes ago, Ampurp85 said:

I was today years old when I found out Fiona from Shrek was Allure's godmother.

Ha, that's something I'll never forget b/c Allure was my first Oasis class sailing (with family) and my then 3-year-old niece hid under the table when Shrek came by during the character breakfast they had in the MDR at the time. She was terrified of him! 🙈

9 minutes ago, Ampurp85 said:

I'm $30 richer

WOOHOO! That pays for Sabor (yes, you should go).

10 minutes ago, Ampurp85 said:

My 82yo grandmother had her checking account hacked and I spent most of the early morning setting up a new one and helping her dispute everything.

That's awful... and so kind of you to spend all that time helping her, while on a cruise no less.

11 minutes ago, Ampurp85 said:

I have been trying to get a peach daiquiri since last Allure sailing and I finally got one. The casino has the mix, so i now have another reason I can't wait for it to open.

Sometimes it's the small victories. My niece had a similar issue at the beginning of our Wonder cruise in June but eventually we found whatever flavor virgin daiquiri she wanted.

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15 minutes ago, Ampurp85 said:

When I went to the bathroom I found a casino voucher for $30 and some change. I was going to return it to the casino host but it's like money. There's no real way to verify who it belongs too without it being in another form of evidence like a wallet or bag. So I'm $30 richer.

They can actually trace the vouchers, especially if a card was used for points during play.

If you ever lose a voucher you can ask about it and if it isn't cashed already, they can cancel and reissue it.

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32 minutes ago, AshleyDillo said:

They can actually trace the vouchers, especially if a card was used for points during play.

If you ever lose a voucher you can ask about it and if it isn't cashed already, they can cancel and reissue it.

So I had the right thought in turning it in. I will when the casino opens.

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46 minutes ago, Ampurp85 said:

So I had the right thought in turning it in. I will when the casino opens.

If someone finds it and uses it they won't do anything..it's only when people claim they're stolen that they look into it. They can tell what machine they were printed from and see where it was redeemed and pull camera footage if someone really throws a stink over it. I've read some tales of bad people doing bad things..my brother also lost a voucher on Celebrity and they reprinted it for him once they verified it was his and it hadn't been redeemed.

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Finally caught up on this blog after a ski trip to Mammoth last week! I have to tell you I had a wild dream when we were up there where I was in a tiny rowboat, I was putting along in a channel and saw the docked Allure! I looked up and thought to myself “I gotta get a pic of this for @Ampurp85, she’s on board!” 🤣  Which is wild because I left on the 23rd and you were still on Wonder, which means my subconscious remembered your S2S2S itinerary. 

The amount of shenanigans you and your brother witness baffle the mind. I think I must be living in a constant bubble to never notice anything like you do! 

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18 minutes ago, DDaley said:

The amount of shenanigans you and your brother witness baffle the mind. I think I must be living in a constant bubble to never notice anything like you do!

Yep, I mentioned the same thing.  @Ampurp85 conceded that it is often casino folks... but I think she's also just a shenanigans-magnet. 🤣

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2 hours ago, OCSC Mike said:

Yep, I mentioned the same thing.  @Ampurp85 conceded that it is often casino folks... but I think she's also just a shenanigans-magnet. 🤣

I believe this is true. 🤣 either I'm invisible enough that people don't care how they behave or I put people at ease enough for tomfoolery.

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After my nap I wondered for a bit. I started at my deck, the card room was popping with vintages.

A quick note they had to put a note on the Living Room saying it was 14-17yos. Yesterday I saw several adults in there, possibly hogging the games.

 I went to the Crown Lounge but stopped to take photos of the library. It was well stocked but nobody there. Crown Lounge wasn't busy and I actually got my prosecco. Dudley, possibly spelling his name wrong, is the concierge. He is very personable.

Side rant. There are actually two....... I'm eating dinner and they are doing the stupid dance thing. Which imho affects service.

There is a lack of cleanliness missing that was prevalent before all the price hikes and changes. I mean it's also the pax fault but man are things dirty. I touched a railing🤢🤮 because I almost slipped on a cookie on the stairs.

But back to the regular program.

I walked the track on deck 5, I was able to do two laps and then head to the Amber theater for Blue Planet, Home. How would I describe it 🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔 Weird as hell......yes the Book levels of Weird but with a ever so slightly more cohesiveness. It was definitely not everyone's cup of tea as several families left. I enjoyed the dancing but imho they all were dancing harder and faster than the sings required. Song choices were mostly good......the sun singing Beyonce "naughty girl/girls run the world " was the only odd choices. The sun was also the only spicy one. I also thought the main character was lacking something because I rarely focused on her.

Overall I enjoyed it. I would watch it again. I personally think Royal does originals pretty well on bigger classes. I waited to everyone cleared because I knew it was going to be too congested. Several people had no spacial awareness and stopped to make plans, talk and just block the walkways.

I have to say I didn't care for my servers this evening. They rushed me, took my food before I was done eating and brought the wrong items. I only asked for the aracini, chicken parm and ice cream. I also got a minestrone soup I didn't ask for and the chocolate hazelnut cake instead of chocolate ice cream. I asked specifically for a can of Coke and they brought me a glass of fountain.....which was apparently a miscommunication. I will say the food isn't bad but I might start factoring in room service for my sorter sailings when the UDP isn't worth it. I wished the WJ had more food to my liking because I would avoid the MDR altogether. It's only partially the food. It's the long waits, service and that dancing.

I popped in the casino for a peach daiquiri and poked my head into the love and marriage game at Studio B but it was too cold, so I went back to my room after peaking at the Caribbean night festivities on Deck 5.

I will read my book until I fall asleep. Tomorrow is my third PDCC.

Despite there being tons of children and vintages, no medical calls have been made......knock on wood. Also despite the wind and speed I have felt nothing being aft......we could be going slow but I did feel some rocking in the theater.

 

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24 minutes ago, Ampurp85 said:

despite the wind and speed I have felt nothing being aft......we could be going slow but I did feel some rocking in the theater.

this is why i prefer aft cabins forever 💚

25 minutes ago, Ampurp85 said:

 

Despite there being tons of children and vintages, no medical calls have been made......knock on wood

BLESS. 

25 minutes ago, Ampurp85 said:

Tomorrow is my third PDCC.

i dream of this 😂

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1 hour ago, Neesa said:

Our family loves Dudley! We sailed with him on the Adventure and the Mariner. He was warm and personable. We sat for hours chatting about family and his life back home. He has the best smile, I am surprised he's not a genie by now!

 

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That's him. We chatted for a while. He said they have been switching the concierge. He has worked in the Crown Lounge a few sailings and then in the suite lounge. I didn't ask if he wanted to be a Genie but he is organized and friendly enough to be one.

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The library is very nice.  I would lay big money on that space disappearing - POOF - once (if ??) Allure ever goes in for Amplification,  Waaaytooo much open, non-revenue-producing space there !

It's been years since we have seen Blue Planet but we always enjoyed it.  I like the Beatles and it seems like there were a number of Beatles tunes in that one.  The living tree was kinda neat - probably not as unique as it once was.

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Day 4 PDCC

So every other Oasis sailing I have been on the solarium bistro was closed or chartered out. Which means I have yet to eat breakfast there. I finally have and love how chill and tranquil it is. The food even taste better😂🤣🤣😂, the bacon was crispy without being burnt and the juices weren't water down.

But it's 🥶,  mucher colder than I thought with the sun out 😆,  I don't know if I will get off. Maybe I will read in the library or hang out in the casino.

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So I did get off. I decided I wanted mozzarella sticks and a walk. Adventure is here with us and the weather improved somewhat. Although I can tell the Floridains by their coats, jackets, shawls and blankets 😂😆😆😆

 I sat down at a table and sure enough a family just sat down at it and started taking pictures. They didn't ask,  just put their bag on the table and started planning their day. They werent the only ones. I've had two other groups just sit down, no asking........maybe it's the table 🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔......finally some vintages asked and we had a nice conversation. One of the other groups said," if we see a table with no bags on the seats or food, we just sit down, we all here together."🙄🙄🤯😱

I found a duck in the casino. I gave it to the next child I saw, he was confused but happy. I went back to the room to wash my feet and charge my phone, it seems like a ghost town.

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6 minutes ago, Ampurp85 said:

I can tell the Floridains by their coats, jackets, shawls and blankets

Yep, those are the natives... they even tend to dress like that for a 30 second walk just to go from their car to a store.

9 minutes ago, Ampurp85 said:

mozzarella sticks and a walk

Good combo! The mere mention of snack shack food makes me hungry, don't even need pictures at this point. Yes, I have a problem.

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16 hours ago, Ampurp85 said:

A quick note they had to put a note on the Living Room saying it was 14-17yos. Yesterday I saw several adults in there, possibly hogging the games.

I'm surprised it starts at 14 - are there a lot of teens on your sailing? When we did Allure, it started at 12.

16 hours ago, Ampurp85 said:

I have to say I didn't care for my servers this evening. They rushed me, took my food before I was done eating and brought the wrong items. I only asked for the aracini, chicken parm and ice cream. I also got a minestrone soup I didn't ask for and the chocolate hazelnut cake instead of chocolate ice cream. I asked specifically for a can of Coke and they brought me a glass of fountain.....which was apparently a miscommunication. I will say the food isn't bad but I might start factoring in room service for my sorter sailings when the UDP isn't worth it. I wished the WJ had more food to my liking because I would avoid the MDR altogether. It's only partially the food. It's the long waits, service and that dancing.

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16 hours ago, Ampurp85 said:

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This library does not look cozy to me at all. I could not curl up with a good book feeling like the other side of the room is staring at me. The furniture is nice, but it looks like a boardroom sans table and speakerphone.

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5 hours ago, Ampurp85 said:

So I did get off. I decided I wanted mozzarella sticks and a walk. Adventure is here with us and the weather improved somewhat. Although I can tell the Floridains by their coats, jackets, shawls and blankets 😂😆😆😆

 I sat down at a table and sure enough a family just sat down at it and started taking pictures. They didn't ask,  just put their bag on the table and started planning their day. They werent the only ones. I've had two other groups just sit down, no asking........maybe it's the table 🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔......finally some vintages asked and we had a nice conversation. One of the other groups said," if we see a table with no bags on the seats or food, we just sit down, we all here together."🙄🙄🤯😱

I found a duck in the casino. I gave it to the next child I saw, he was confused but happy. I went back to the room to wash my feet and charge my phone, it seems like a ghost town.

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Oh my goodness! We have the EXACT same back pack AND water bottle!!!! Travel Twinsies. 🤣

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5 hours ago, Ampurp85 said:

So I did get off. I decided I wanted mozzarella sticks and a walk. Adventure is here with us and the weather improved somewhat. Although I can tell the Floridains by their coats, jackets, shawls and blankets 😂😆😆😆

 I sat down at a table and sure enough a family just sat down at it and started taking pictures. They didn't ask,  just put their bag on the table and started planning their day. They werent the only ones. I've had two other groups just sit down, no asking........maybe it's the table 🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔......finally some vintages asked and we had a nice conversation. One of the other groups said," if we see a table with no bags on the seats or food, we just sit down, we all here together."🙄🙄🤯😱

I found a duck in the casino. I gave it to the next child I saw, he was confused but happy. I went back to the room to wash my feet and charge my phone, it seems like a ghost town.

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Oh my goodness! We have the EXACT same back pack AND water bottle!!!! Travel Twinsies. 🤣

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1 hour ago, Cactus527 said:

Oh my goodness! We have the EXACT same back pack AND water bottle!!!! Travel Twinsies. 🤣

That's the backpack of the first people to sit at the table without asking. I waited until they were out of frame and had removed most of their stuff to show how they just took over my table 🙃 🤣😂🤣🤣

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I wondered for a bit then saw my casino buddy and chatted with her for an hour or so while she played. Although I was in the casino a lot, I only saw one large jackpot of $8k.

Tonight was the bon voyage menu. I never had it but absolutely nothing called to me. The specialty restaurants were begging people to dine on and was giving 35% off, it was for Chop's or Giovanni's.

I went back and forth and decided to go to the WJ at 7pm and see if I could find something to eat. The beef was nasty but the rice, pita and mac and cheese was awesome. I ended up getting a plate of just that and taking my dessert to go.......thinking that by 7:30 my steward would have been long gone.

All the bathroom are in maintenance, so I'm hoping she is done soon so I can pack and get some sleep.

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32 minutes ago, Ampurp85 said:

The specialty restaurants were begging people to dine on and was giving 35% off, it was for Chop's or Giovanni's

That was Mariner in September. They couldn't get folks to go to the specialty restaurants. Walking around the Windjammer every breakfast trying to get people to make a reservation. 

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9 minutes ago, CanHardlyWait said:

That was Mariner in September. They couldn't get folks to go to the specialty restaurants. Walking around the Windjammer every breakfast trying to get people to make a reservation. 

They were doing this in the MDR last night. I noticed how empty they were all week.

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