Karannk Posted January 1 Report Share Posted January 1 Our last star class sailing was on Oasis in October 2023. We found Oasis to be a little crowded, and decided to go back to what we know. We did a similar itinerary on Anthem in 1/2020, and loved it. Our suite will include myself, the husband, and our 12 yr old son (13th birthday on this sailing). Today marks 28 days to go. We received our genie survey on 12/22 and genie assignment on 12/30. We have Elizabeth Perez. There doesn’t seem to be much info out there about her. A somewhat new-ish genie. What info that I have found is favorable, so yay! Cruise Itinerary: 11 night Southern Caribbean (St. Thomas, St. Maarten, St. Lucia, St. Kitts) from Cape Liberty, NJ on 1/29/2024 Stateroom: Grand Loft #8724 Shore Excursions: We have booked an excursion for each port day. Day 5 - St. Thomas: Xmas Cove - Snorkel, Turtles & Rays Day 6 - St. Maarten: America’s Cup Sailing Regatta Day 7 - St. Lucia: West Coast Catamaran Cruise Day 8 - St. Kitts: Caribbean Scenic Railway Tour We live about 2 1/2 hours from port, and will be planning to stay at Fairfield Inn & Suites Edison-South Plainfield the night before embarkation. We stayed there before our last cruise and found it to be acceptable for the price. There is a free breakfast included, but it wasn’t great. The selling point is that it’s very close to a Target and an easy drive to port. JohnK6404, Lovetocruise2002, Sweety and 6 others 9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovetocruise2002 Posted January 1 Report Share Posted January 1 1 hour ago, Karannk said: We have Elizabeth Perez. There doesn’t seem to be much info out there about her. She is not that new. She was new in July 2022 when we sailed Anthem. I met her but she wasn’t my genie on that sailing. People have said some good things about her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asquared17 Posted January 1 Report Share Posted January 1 1 hour ago, Karannk said: The selling point is that it’s very close to a Target honestly, say less!!! also YAY st. maarten! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SweetPea Posted January 2 Report Share Posted January 2 Hi and following. This sounds like the Odyssey itinerary we're doing next January. I'm guessing the CK menus repeat after night 7? Anxious to hear if that's the case. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sweety Posted January 3 Report Share Posted January 3 Will be following. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Va4fam Posted January 8 Report Share Posted January 8 @Karannk.....great ship and intinerary. Your grand loft will be amazing. We will be doing almost the same 11 day trip on January 18th. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karannk Posted January 29 Author Report Share Posted January 29 Greetings from Anthem! We’re just getting settled onboard. Had lunch at Jamie’s. Burrata Squid Fritti Garlic Buns Crispy Chicken Burger Rocket Salad Tiramisu Amalfi Lemon Cheesecake Planning dinner tonight at CK for filet night. Comedy show this evening. OCSC Mike, WAAAYTOOO, FionaMG and 6 others 9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ampurp85 Posted January 29 Report Share Posted January 29 How did you like the new burrata? I thought the honey ruined it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OCSC Mike Posted January 29 Report Share Posted January 29 Not sure how much I'll be following but love the extreme close-up food porn! PPPJJ-GCVAB and Karannk 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sweety Posted January 29 Report Share Posted January 29 Have a joyful cruise. Karannk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FionaMG Posted January 29 Report Share Posted January 29 45 minutes ago, OCSC Mike said: Not sure how much I'll be following but love the extreme close-up food porn! Further enhanced by the fact that the OP captioned each individual pic so we know what the dishes are! Thanks @Karannk! Have an amazing trip. Meddy3580, Karannk, Sweety and 1 other 3 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karannk Posted January 30 Author Report Share Posted January 30 I liked the burrata. It was a bit sweet with the honey tho. Ampurp85 and PPPJJ-GCVAB 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnK6404 Posted January 30 Report Share Posted January 30 Have a great time!!! Love the longer sailings! WAAAYTOOO 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SweetPea Posted January 30 Report Share Posted January 30 Happy sailing!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karannk Posted January 30 Author Report Share Posted January 30 Dinner at CK last night was excellent. Our waiter is Vivek. We were joking that our son doesn’t drink soda, only water and milkshakes and he seriously went to JR and brought back a vanilla milkshake for him. We did not expect that! Burrata Filet Mignon Rigatoni Hazelnut Cake The evening welcome show was OK. It was basically a preview of one of the singers from WWRY and the comedian later in the week. Cruise director noted there are only about 100 kids onboard. We were on Oasis in October, and by comparison we’ve been enjoying Anthem better thus far. Crowds are less. Much easier to catch an elevator. CK is cozier and quieter without having an attached suite lounge. And I prefer Jamie’s to Giovanni’s. JohnK6404, FionaMG, Jax and 4 others 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karannk Posted January 31 Author Report Share Posted January 31 Day 2: Sea Day Breakfast was at CK this AM. Lunch at Chops. Chicken Caesar Salad Chocolate Lava Cake Key Lime Meringue Pie Bumper cars this afternoon. There were lots of people lined up. Elizabeth led us to the front. We only went once, to be courteous to the others. It’s a long cruise, so we’ll be back on another day. Dinner at Jamie’s. Lasagne Penne Carbonara We skipped dessert. It’s way too soon to be feeling the food coma, but sadly it has taken effect. We skipped the headliner show tonight as it was illusionist Jason Bishop, who we saw on Oasis a few months ago. Sweety, SweetPea, FionaMG and 5 others 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAAAYTOOO Posted January 31 Report Share Posted January 31 @Karannk,wwhat do you think of Elizabeth ? I don't know her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karannk Posted January 31 Author Report Share Posted January 31 1 hour ago, WAAAYTOOO said: @Karannk,wwhat do you think of Elizabeth ? I don't know her. My basis for comparison is Yen Lee and Allan Fajardo. Elizabeth is great. She’s been working on Anthem for about 1 1/2 yrs. Very personable and down to earth. Plenty of little personal touches. My favorite genie so far! And this is only day 3. SweetPea and WAAAYTOOO 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karannk Posted January 31 Author Report Share Posted January 31 Day 3: Sea Day While we were planning on CK for breakfast, ultimately we decided to grab a quick fruit cup and pastry from 270 instead. Just didn’t have the room in our stomachs for a full breakfast. Thinking of room service for tomorrow. The husband and I did iFly at 1030AM. We were able to have 2 goes at it each, which I wasn’t expecting. It was just us and another Star fellow of Elizabeth’s. By the time lunch rolled around, we were actually hungry! Elizabeth came to visit us during lunch at Izumi. Chicken teriyaki Spicy crispy shrimp roll Sashimi Champagne lobster roll Green tea ice cream Our son had another chess meetup with a fellow passenger that we connected with on one of the cruise groups. We met yesterday as well. He is learning, which is great! special touches from Elizabeth There were surprise snacks in the room this afternoon. Later this afternoon we have bumper cars planned again. And dinner in Wonderland. FionaMG, Sweety, PPPJJ-GCVAB and 5 others 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LandstromCruise Posted January 31 Report Share Posted January 31 Those cookies look so good!! are they soft and chewy or more crunchy. I love a soft chewy chocolate chip cookie. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karannk Posted January 31 Author Report Share Posted January 31 4 hours ago, LandstromCruise said: Those cookies look so good!! are they soft and chewy or more crunchy. I love a soft chewy chocolate chip cookie. The ones on the left are sugar free and are crunchy. The ones on the right are regular and kinda chewy. LandstromCruise 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coach9 Posted February 1 Report Share Posted February 1 Is “We Will Rock You” on this sailing. I’m going to be on Anthem for the next sailing and it doesn’t have the show in the app planner anywhere? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karannk Posted February 1 Author Report Share Posted February 1 7 hours ago, Coach9 said: Is “We Will Rock You” on this sailing. I’m going to be on Anthem for the next sailing and it doesn’t have the show in the app planner anywhere? Yes. The production shows on Anthem are WWRY, The Gift, and Spectra. WAAAYTOOO 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karannk Posted February 1 Author Report Share Posted February 1 Dinner at Wonderland Reconstructed Caprese Liquid Truffle Mushroom Risotto Mad Hatter’s Purple Potted Shrimp The Bird’s Next Liquid Lobster Snap, Crackle and Pork Short Rib The Chicken and the Egg Forbidden Apple After dinner we checked out Boleros, Music Hall, and Bionic Bar. WAAAYTOOO, Ampurp85, Sweety and 3 others 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karannk Posted February 1 Author Report Share Posted February 1 Day 4: Sea Day Room service breakfast this AM followed by another chess meetup. The decorations on the door are magically multiplying. CK for lunch. I was surprised the Caesar salad didn’t have the encircled crouton thing. Porchetta was delicious! Caesar salad Margherita flatbread Roasted fennel & chili porchetta Ras el Hanout seasoned swordfish Seafood linguini alfredo Rum cake Bumper cars again after lunch, then spent some time relaxing on the balcony. Tonight is Chops dinner and The Gift show. Supposedly, the show has changed a bit from pre-Covid times as there is now a shortage of riggers. FionaMG, SweetPea, MaryS and 1 other 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karannk Posted February 2 Author Report Share Posted February 2 Dinner at Chops Crispy goat cheese salad Crab cake Lobster bisque Spicy jumbo shrimp Lobster Apple pie The Gift was not the best. When we saw this before, there were more visual effects. With the rigger shortage, the show has been altered and it is now definitely lacking. Also, the sound was not balanced causing a few singers to overwhelm the rest of the cast. JohnK6404, FionaMG, SweetPea and 2 others 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karannk Posted February 2 Author Report Share Posted February 2 Day 5: St Thomas Our excursion today was Xmas Cove - Snorkel, Turtles & Rays. Indeed we saw turtles - two types: loggerhead and green sea turtles. And rays. There were also starfish, cuttlefish, dusky squirrelfish, and a shipwreck. One of the crew members led an optional snorkel tour in the water, highlighting important facts about the area and sea creatures. He dove down to the bottom and brought up several starfish for us to pass around for up close inspection. So cool! The guys who run the tour had a great sense of humor. We had a great time. Snorkel boat Afternoon room snacks By the time we made it back to the ship, most options for lunch were closed. We braved the Windjammer for a late lunch. The Indian choices - potato bhaji and fish curry - were a win. Overall, not bad. JohnK6404, Sweety, SweetPea and 3 others 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karannk Posted February 3 Author Report Share Posted February 3 Izumi dinner was much of the same as previous, aside from the Futomaki roll. This time, they brought the She’s a Geisha drink for my husband in a large cup. Supersized! Futomaki roll After dinner, we had to stop by Excursion desk to pick a new something for the next day. The America’s Cup Regatta excursion was cancelled due to lack of wind. We settled on the Golden Eagle Catamaran snorkel trip. They gave us a 15% discount. This evening we saw Spectra’s Cabaret. We were delighted that Terry Lavell has recently returned to reprise the role of Spectra. MaryS, JohnK6404 and SweetPea 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GregD Posted February 3 Report Share Posted February 3 1 hour ago, Karannk said: Terry Lavell Terry is amazing!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karannk Posted February 3 Author Report Share Posted February 3 Day 6: St Maarten Today was an early morning. Our excursion had us meet at 815AM in the Royal Theater before heading out to the dock as a group. We booked Golden Eagle Catamaran Sail & Snorkel. There were maybe 20 of us total. Loved that! The catamaran itself was roomy. There several groups of tables. We stopped at a snorkel site first. There was a downed helicopter, a cannon, some walkways, and a statue underwater where the fish could hide. Crew fed the fish to attract them. There were soo many. Clouds of itty bitty fish, needlefish, snapper, and some others. Then we stopped at Simpson beach for some swimming. They served ham and cheese sandwiches on freshly baked baguettes on the return to the ship. Drinks were plentiful as well. Would definitely recommend. now even more - genie magic Windjammer lunch and Johnny Rockets dinner. We completely slummed it today, but that’s OK. It was a busy day, and we’re tired. We are planning to see tonight’s headliner show - a juggler. Tomorrow brings a full day catamaran cruise to the pitons in St Lucia. asquared17, Lovetocruise2002, Sweety and 4 others 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaryS Posted February 3 Report Share Posted February 3 2 hours ago, Karannk said: Terry Lavell has recently returned to reprise the role of Spectra. Terry Lavell is the best playing Spectra. Also on the 2 Christmas cruise I took on Anthem he did a solo in the Christmas show and he was phenomenal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SweetPea Posted February 4 Report Share Posted February 4 On 1/30/2024 at 9:38 AM, Karannk said: We were on Oasis in October, and by comparison we’ve been enjoying Anthem better thus far. I know that's blasphemy here, but I'm quietly raising my hand in agreement I could honestly not care less about Symphony in May and would rather just do Odyssey in January. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SweetPea Posted February 4 Report Share Posted February 4 On 1/31/2024 at 7:31 AM, Karannk said: We skipped the headliner show tonight as it was illusionist Jason Bishop, who we saw on Oasis a few months ago. Sorry I'm just catching up. But another +1. He was fine once, but i wouldn't feel the need to see him again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asquared17 Posted February 4 Report Share Posted February 4 30 minutes ago, SweetPea said: I could honestly not care less about Symphony in May and would rather just do Odyssey in January. our twinness has finally come to an end [plays “i will remember you” by sarah mclaughlin forlornly] AshleyDillo and PPPJJ-GCVAB 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karannk Posted February 5 Author Report Share Posted February 5 Day 7: St Lucia Another early day with room service breakfast followed by excursion. Interestingly, Freewinds was in port with us this AM. It’s a Scientology retreat ship for high level folks. I don’t know about you, but I’ve watched my share of Leah Remini TV shows exposing Scientology and this was pretty neat to see. Our excursion was West Coast Catamaran Cruise. There were soo many people shoved on to this double decker catamaran. First we headed to Pigeon Point, then turned around towards Soufriere and the Pitons. The first swim/snorkel stop was plagued with aggressive locals trying to sell us refrigerator magnets, wood carvings, and coconut milk. They did not allow us to jump off the catamaran to swim. Everyone had to use the forward fold down stairs. That was a huge mess and so slow. We continued to the Pitons. Our second swim stop at the base of the Pitons was a bit more relaxing. Lunch was served onboard. It was tasty. There was enough left over for folks to have seconds if they wanted. Ultimately, it was probably the best way to see the pitons. I’ve heard that driving there in a bus is kinda unpleasant and not as great a view. Jamie’s for dinner tonight. Risotto Rosso Penne vodka arrabbiata Chicken Parmesan Followed by sweets at the Patisserie. Cookies & Cream cupcake Carrot Cake No show or evening entertainment tonight. We were tired. Another excursion tomorrow at St Kitts. MaryS, JohnK6404, Lovetocruise2002 and 3 others 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karannk Posted February 6 Author Report Share Posted February 6 Day 8: St Kitts Room service breakfast followed by St Kitts Scenic Railway excursion. Elizabeth walked us down to the pier and arranged for us to be first on the shuttle bus to the train. We were able to hop off the shuttle quickly and secure an air conditioned seat inside the lower part of the rail car rather than the open air upper deck. After the last few days in the sun, it was a treat for our sunburned skin. This was a nice relaxing ride around the perimeter of the island with a bit of historical narration. Plus drinks and a sampling of coconut ginger cakes. Would recommend. Lunch at the pub today. Which was OK. And mostly consisted of appetizers. Yes it was good, but would I want to pay extra for this? Nah, not really. BBQ pulled pork nachos Royal pub burger German soft pretzel sticks Lobster mac & cheese wedges Poutine We went to the concierge lounge before dinner and our son filled up on chicken wings and shrimp. Dinner is a bit later today, so we figured why not? Had a chance to speak with Captain Toni while at the lounge. Port time was shortened today from 5pm to 2:30pm to accommodate expected delays. The next few days will have increasingly rough seas, and he is worried about making it back to Bayonne on time. We’re looking forward to “a bit less than 25 feet waves” - maybe 18-20? I’ll keep you posted. Dinner dragged on seemingly forever tonight at Chops. They were temporarily out of the Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc. And also ran out of onion rolls. We had much of the same dishes as before. This was the only new thing: Branzino New towel animal tonight. Not sure what it’s supposed to be, but kinda looks like a baby yoda. MaryS, Lovetocruise2002, JohnK6404 and 3 others 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karannk Posted February 6 Author Report Share Posted February 6 Overhead announcement from Captain Toni about the weather. We’re currently going thru a thunderstorm. 17 ft waves, expected to reach 20 ft later today. Stabilizers have been deployed. All open air decks are now closed. FionaMG, PPPJJ-GCVAB, asquared17 and 3 others 1 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ampurp85 Posted February 6 Report Share Posted February 6 Looks like a weird turtle or baby turtle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PPPJJ-GCVAB Posted February 6 Report Share Posted February 6 On 2/5/2024 at 6:16 AM, Karannk said: Chicken Parmesan yikes…that does NOT look like Chicken Parm! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FionaMG Posted February 6 Report Share Posted February 6 I hope things don't get too uncomfortable for you @Karannk. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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