Seeking a SYMPHONY in an OASIS INDEPENDENCE-ly 1/12/2025-1/30/2025

[asquared17]

36 minutes ago, Ampurp85 said:

I see a lot of brave people on cruises. Like this lady wearing a one piece made of crochet, God wasn't on her side.

I SCREAMED!!!!!!!!!!!

27 minutes ago, Ampurp85 said:

Captain Johnny is a mess. He makes the funniest announcements. Today he played golf and the weather was amazing, so we all should have golfed.

I LOVE HIM!!!!!!!!!!

i’m so sad he’s retiring (but also happy for him)

 

and awwww you found mario!!!!

ps: i hate that art with the legs coming out of the wall and the pants down like WHAT 

[GatorCruiser]

@Cactus527 I have to agree , there can certainly be nuance in human interactions, but without doubt those vintages were demonstrating racism and ageism. Despicable behavior. I hate that that happened. I’m a lowly diamond for now (will graduate after my spring break cruise to D+) and I have received stink eye from people in the lounges before for I’m sure seeming youngish to be there. Some  People are odd and territorial and entitled. 

[lovetheplaya]

1 hour ago, Ampurp85 said:

I see a lot of brave people on cruises. Like this lady wearing a one piece made of crochet, God wasn't on her side. These lady's in string bikinis by which a piece of them was loose.......not a piece that should be loose and if you wanted it go be......shave or trim?

I’m dead. I cannot stop laughing. God wasn’t on her side.

[Ampurp85]

The bathing suits continued to be the best source of entertainment. I blame bezos as well because I know some came from Amazon.

Everything is congested tonight. Carousel ......line to JR. Casino, both, standing room only. Central park,  full of people listening to the conductor of Hairspray play selections. Promenade.....the list goes on. Even the MDR was popping. We had to sit in a different section. Also every bathroom had a line, I ended up going back to my room and then coming back to eat.

Tonight was Caribbean night and my favorite menu. I always get the jumbo coconut shrimp and the jerk pork chop. The shrimp were big, hot and flavorful. The pork chop was tender and spicy. I was a happy camper, in all honesty as a whole it was the best meal of the cruise. Even my brother said this was the best MDR meal. We told the waiter to be fast and it was less than 40 minutes  .....counting the fact it was singing and dancing night.

We had adult comedy scheduled but everyone said it was cringe, so we will skip.

 

 

 

[GatorCruiser]

The pork chop and plantains look sick (in a  good way) I would have pounded that. Love Carib food. 

[Cactus527]

I kept thinking "I love Caribbean night too, but what is it I love?" and couldn't think of it until I saw the menu. It's the chicken korma! My absolute favorite dish to order on any menu. It's SO good. Your selections look amazing too!

The crochet comment made me laugh hysterically. Just...no. I've been looking on Amazon as well for potential clothing additions and some? Are not meant for human consumption AT ALL. 

[Cactus527]

52 minutes ago, GatorCruiser said:

The pork chop and plantains look sick (in a  good way) I would have pounded that. Love Carib food. 

I'm listening to 30 Seconds from Mars at the moment. Read your comment and burst out laughing. This is the cover arts for the album:

[WAAAYTOOO]

…and Caribbean night in the MDR is a hard “NO” for us (followed closely by A taste of France).  Good thing everyone has different tastes !

[OCSC Mike]

10 hours ago, Ampurp85 said:

The pork chop was tender and spicy

Now I feel like I've been missing out by skipping Caribbean night. Looks and sounds great!

52 minutes ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

…and Caribbean night in the MDR is a hard “NO” for us (followed closely by A taste of France).

As I mentioned earlier, it always was for us too. It was mostly my wife but she'd go if I told her I really wanted to (and eat something else after). We'll revisit the issue in the future.

[Ampurp85]

In all honesty Caribbean night used to be a hard no. But on Freedom in May I tried the pork chop and loved it.

[Ampurp85]

Day 6 sea day.

The ship rocks pretty hard forward so I slept until 7. Then went to the casino to spend my freeplay.

I stopped in the CL hoping they would have OJ and they haven't had any all week. So I went to park Cafe. I got a couple of chocolate milks.

We have Hooked for lunch so I didn't get anything to eat but an apple.

I have no plans but to read and relax.

[Cactus527]

1 hour ago, Ampurp85 said:

We have Hooked for lunch so I didn't get anything to eat but an apple.

I got fish and chips from them in December (Navigator) and was highly unimpressed. I hope you have a better experience. 

WHY IS THERE NO ORANGE JUICE?!??!?!?

[Ampurp85]

46 minutes ago, Cactus527 said:

I got fish and chips from them in December (Navigator) and was highly unimpressed. I hope you have a better experience. 

WHY IS THERE NO ORANGE JUICE?!??!?!?

As only a shrimp and occasional calamari eater. I have never been impressed with hooked. However the lunch was like $14 with gratuity and the menu has changed. So I am hoping for the best.

[Ampurp85]

Re: the OJ. 

I rarely expect it in the Lounges but I always hope it is there.

Also tonight is Royal night and the only thing I want is baked Alaska. Which given it's also lobstah night, I don't think we will venture into the MDR for. We also have Flight.....Dare to dream

[Ampurp85]

I keep trying Hooked and I'm not impressed. First I tried it in Nav in 2022 and loved the surf and surf. Then on Wonder were everything was salty and almost inedible. Finally I tried it on Symphony and I'm done.

They only allow for one entree now. This was not the case the previous two times, the only restrictions was that you could only order one whole lobstah, which is no longer on the menu. My brother ordered multiple apps, which were all good, and the messy fish sandwich. I got surf and turf so my brother could have the lobstah. My steak tasted salty and burnt.

The coconut shrimp and shrimp cocktail was great, and filling so thanks for that. My brother said the oysters were really fresh and tasty. But everything else was a meh. The desserts were horrible.  This was the first place we heard the survey talk. It definitely took away from our enjoyment.

Also this biscuits.  So the first biscuits had garlic butter on them, they were good. The second ones on Wonder had old bay seasonings and was dry. These came out looking mand flavorful. They were moist but no discerning flavor. However they were the only thing i could eat more of.

Hooked proved to be quite popular today and almost every table ended up full by 1pm.

On another note Hooked overlooked the solarium bistro and we got to people watch. I stands by my statement of bravery when it comes to clothing and bathing bottoms.

[OCSC Mike]

4 minutes ago, Ampurp85 said:

They only allow for one entree now.

Lame. Not that my wife would let me anywhere near a seafood restaurant but we'll stick with Mason Jar and Gio's where we've always been encouraged to order as much as we want and take extra dessert to go. I get it, steak and lobster are pricey compared to some other stuff, but the rest? Glad the shrimp & oysters were good at least and you had the good BF price.

[dr martini]

love that 'dreams keep me awake' in the stairway, i took a big version pic of that had it as my desktop for a longtime.  i think symphony has the best variety and quality of art i have seen on any royal ship but i've not been on a few of the newer ones.  

hooked is puzzling to me because it's seafood on a cruise ship, how can it not work?  but i've also been on symphony a couple times and hooked is just weird placement too, like is this the spa or where are we?  we went lunch on a sea day and it's like all the way up, all the way forward, really quiet and dead no vibes and rocked like crazy because of that location which didn't help my wife's appetite either and probably cut our stay short.  the food was fine but not special at all, ice bar is a nice idea but ends up being a slightly nicer than WJ presentation for a slower smaller place.  disappointing for sure.

[OCSC Mike]

2 minutes ago, dr martini said:

i think symphony has the best variety and quality of art i have seen on any royal ship but i've not been on a few of the newer ones.

Wonder has some very entertaining art... in the men's rooms, lol.

[Lovetocruise2002]

41 minutes ago, Ampurp85 said:

I keep trying Hooked and I'm not impressed. First I tried it in Nav in 2022 and loved the surf and surf. Then on Wonder were everything was salty and almost inedible. Finally I tried it on Symphony and I'm done.

This is what I am afraid of...We tried it on WN and did not care for it at all. Hubby said he never wanted to go back. Now we are booked to try it again on UT but only because my Mom loves Red Lobster and it's sort of like one of those places. Anyway, with UT being a shortie 4 night, I am afraid if it's terrible like WN, we wasted one of our 4 night on it. Oh well, live and learn I guess.

[Ampurp85]

My major issue with Hooked is the same as Chop's. How can the main thing you do not be the best. My brother said the seafood dishes in other restaurants are better. The same way I've had better steak everywhere but Chop's. I didn't finish my food and had I paid more than the $14. I would have been upset.

[OCSC Mike]

16 minutes ago, Ampurp85 said:

I've had better steak everywhere but Chop's

And I've heard this from multiple other people. Bizarre!

I've had very good filet (which isn't even my favorite cut, I like a little fat) at both versions of Giovanni's, the beach club, and CK. What in the world is Chops doing to theirs?

[Ampurp85]

Im currently in the CL. They have cookies and fruit. I got the last 3 ranger cookies and I am enjoying it with peach, orange herbal tea.

I would like to change our Flight.....show reservation. Hopefully to 8:15 or 7pm tomorrow. I booked our shows late anticipating being in the casino in the evening. We are vintage and back in the room before 10pm these days.

So a couple of funny stories.

Idk if you can see my brother's hair. He shaves the side and either wears the top as a Mohawk or I braid it. When I braid it people ask if he gets it done on the islands. He says my sister does it. They ask him to ask me to braid their hair. Whenever I meet them, they have no hair. It's always awkward  and good for a laugh.....at least to me because they are delusional in they believe they have hair.

I saw two cruise friends on this cruise, both were trying to make pinnacle when I met them.....

A lady from Grandeur, who experienced racism there and on here. She said those same ladies complained about her being in the lounge, so the next time she wore her pin and said they were racist haters. She said she only comes in the early morning and late evening to avoid them because she had to curse them out!!!! They tried to complain but she had witnesses. She said one of their children told them that they were lucky, remember that black eye from Harmony? I was laughing so hard.

The second is a man and his wife who were spending a month on Freedom last May. They had just started using the casino comps and now they are pinnacle and addicted to the casino. They play low and fast, nothing more than .88 but they continue to earn certificates, and since they are retired they take whatever. The funny part of this is they are upside down pineapples now. So I guess you can cruise into swinging..

On the way to Hooked, which is located deck 16 forward, a lady complimented my hair. She didn't wait for me to say thank you, she went on a rant about how she didn't reach out and touch it so the compliment should be okay. She was following me to my table. She had to go back to the stand to be seated. She was sat at a table by us and stared the whole time.

 

[Ampurp85]

15 minutes ago, OCSC Mike said:

And I've heard this from multiple other people. Bizarre!

I've had very good filet (which isn't even my favorite cut, I like a little fat) at both versions of Giovanni's, the beach club, and CK. What in the world is Chops doing to theirs?

With the exception of the beach club all those steaks are better than Chop's. I really dislike the beach club marinade. Chop's steaks are a decent cut but lack flavor which is exacerbated by the bland sides. Also I feel like they don't get the temps right in Chop's.

[SweetPea]

On 1/16/2025 at 10:57 AM, Ampurp85 said:

Lots of pinnacles on this cruise and the CL is restricted to D+and higher......despite the door that keeps getting stuck. Side rant, some vintages keep complaining about my brother and I in the lounge. They told the concierge we were sneaking in. The concierge introduced me to one of the complaining offenders yesterday after I used my card to access the lounge . She then tried to say I was either using someone else card or lowly diamond.  Her friend, the first complainer, was like I'm d+ with over 232 nights with this cruise. I was like cool. She waited and then said you must be a new plus and I was like nope. Then off course we must have inherited our status. I didn't want to be rude but I let her talk. I like having status but it's not the end-all be-all.

I'm just catching up, but you know i can't stand this. I've never seen cruisers flaunt their status like i do on Royal, and i cannot stand when they hold court in the lounge either.  On Oasis, Pinns literally hung out there for HOURS and made a huge circle that was impossible to get around. 

We're sitting at 78 points and i refuse to chase status. 

[Ampurp85]

Just now, SweetPea said:

I'm just catching up, but you know i can't stand this. I've never seen cruisers flaunt their status like i do on Royal, and i cannot stand when they hold court in the lounge either.  On Oasis, Pinns literally hung out there for HOURS and made a huge circle that was impossible to get around. 

We're sitting at 78 points and i refuse to chase status. 

Originally, I cared, I will be honest, not to lord it over anyone. But for the perks. Now that I utilize the casino, it's meh. The way they behave is ridiculous.

[OCSC Mike]

Just now, Ampurp85 said:

But for the perks.

You already know that's 100% why I value it (especially D+ now). Given my frugality and our preferences (no casino, me getting most of the vouchers, etc.), it's worth a lot to me... but I couldn't care less about status.

[Cactus527]

1 hour ago, Ampurp85 said:

But for the perks.

That's why I'm working toward Diamond right now - perks. After I make it in September, I'm going to cruise without thinking about points anymore. It'll be nice. I've got two cruises booked in the next two years that are in solo cabins, and I'm excited to try them without thinking I'm "wasting" not earning double points.

[asquared17]

4 hours ago, dr martini said:

love that 'dreams keep me awake' in the stairway, i took a big version pic of that had it as my desktop for a longtime

i can’t believe i missed this one!!!

augh i love it so much 

[Ampurp85]

I went to read in the Crown Lounge. When I tell you it was almost a riot because it was closed to 5pm when they put out happy hour, it was insane. Those vintages let the poor concierge have it. I was only there to relax and get my reservation changed.

Salvador gave me red stickers because it was too close to make reservations. Since we had the new show time. We went to the WJ. It was Indian food night, plus lobstah tails. I got chicken strips, carrots and fries. I forgot to take a photo because it was basic.

I went back to charge my phone. The tags were there. Normally you would dread seeing them......but we have a date with Oasis . Our tags say 64 but we don't have a meeting place. I'm assuming we were supposed to get another letter but only the tags and extra gratuities envelope was delivered.

All you do is show the sticker on your card and they let you in. The show is part history lesson and part fever dream. The cast was made up of the same actors as Hairspray, so the talent was there. The song choices left a lot to be desired. The storyline was okay. A lot of people kept saying it was boring. I will just say I'm glad we went earlier.

We went to the boardwalk to get the last of our vouchers and I got a hotdog.  We are now in the room, extremely sleepy.

 

[asquared17]

1 hour ago, Ampurp85 said:

Salvador gave me red stickers because it was too close to make reservations

1 hour ago, Ampurp85 said:

All you do is show the sticker on your card and they let you in

i LOVE the red stickers

YOU HAVE A DATE WITH OASIS!!!!!

[OCSC Mike]

3 hours ago, Ampurp85 said:

was Indian food night, plus lobstah tails.

1. #jealousagain

2. Was the towel crab below the mini crab cake pic intentional or happy accident?

3. I swore you were on like day 4. Thankfully you’re not going home. Happy next cruise day!

[Sweety]

Let the craziness continue on the Oasis. Keep the good pictures coming. Have a safe transfer.

[InmyElement]

I don't know whats going on w/Chops our last experience tables all around us were sending things back to the kitchen..on the next cruise we thought maybe will give it another chance looking at a 3N dining package, but Trisha said they have some sort of upcharge menu? I don't remember seeing it..

We tried Hooked for the first time on Symphony and felt the same way..its YOUR SPECIALTY it should be mind blowing!  I'm surprised they put it on Icon..I didn't think it was that popular, but like you say it was a full house It was kinda cool on Icon they incorporated Hooked within the Aquadome, so you could sit at the ice bar or at hooked tables and watch the show kinda like a on the water type restaurant experience..maybe.

Looking forward to hearing about the transition to Oasis!!. Happy Cruise day again..

[Ampurp85]

Day 7 last sea day

Today is the last day of this cruise. Yesterday was a time.

Around 11pm, just as we were falling asleep, somebody knocked on our door. We looked out the peephole and a man was there. My brother asked what he wanted. The guy replied stop playing and let me in. We told him wrong cabin. Now we are sleeping and hear more knocking.  It's 4am and I awake and check. It's another guy. I tell him wrong room but he keeps knocking. My brother gets up and says wrong room but he knocks once more. We go back to sleep and then close to 8am we hear more knocking, someone screams "room service!" But we didn't order it so we check the peephole. It's the first guy who knocked. . I don't know what any of them where on, but I wasn't opening any doors.

I think the plan is either breakfast or lunch in the MDR. I am shocked to say there aren't any casino plans. We will probably do WJ for dinner because the Bon voyage menu is the worst one, and I don't want to sit for an hour for food that isn't appealing.

 

[Ampurp85]

2 hours ago, InmyElement said:

I don't know whats going on w/Chops our last experience tables all around us were sending things back to the kitchen..on the next cruise we thought maybe will give it another chance looking at a 3N dining package, but Trisha said they have some sort of upcharge menu? I don't remember seeing it..

We tried Hooked for the first time on Symphony and felt the same way..its YOUR SPECIALTY it should be mind blowing!  I'm surprised they put it on Icon..I didn't think it was that popular, but like you say it was a full house It was kinda cool on Icon they incorporated Hooked within the Aquadome, so you could sit at the ice bar or at hooked tables and watch the show kinda like a on the water type restaurant experience..maybe.

Looking forward to hearing about the transition to Oasis!!. Happy Cruise day again..

Chop's has the uncharged menu. Which baffles me because it's one of the more expensive ones and the quality is not always there. Yet they are charging more for added cuts.

Also I agree on Hooked but they kept adding Wonderland to ship's despite many people feeling some type of way about it.

[OCSC Mike]

8 hours ago, OCSC Mike said:

3. I swore you were on like day 4. Thankfully you’re not going home. Happy next cruise day!

And this is why I shouldn't post when insomnia kicks in at 2am. Happy day 7!

[Ampurp85]

I didn't make it to the MDR for breakfast. I took one look at the WJ and went right down to park Cafe.

I make my own breakfast sandwich. I dislike English muffins, so I get a bagel with cream cheese and transfer the toppings. Today the eggs were burnt so it is just the Canadian bacon. I took it back to the room to enjoy.

I passed by a lot of rooms with the "you need to return your pool towels" warning paper.

While in both the theater and crown Lounge I overhead a lot of people talking about S2S2S. A decent number are getting off here and going on Grandeur and then ending with Icon. I found 3 doing the same thing as us, Oasis and then Indy. So the shuttle may be full.

I am going to pack up after I finish breakfast.

[OCSC Mike]

59 minutes ago, Ampurp85 said:

I didn't make it to the MDR for breakfast.

We started trying to go there once/cruise so my wife can get banana choc chip pancakes (told ya, big kid). We don't always make it though. We usually eat in Solarium Bistro since it's smaller but still has most WJ offerings and an omelet station (still fairly crowded but not full early and we don't mind as long as we can easily get a table).

59 minutes ago, Ampurp85 said:

I make my own breakfast sandwich. I dislike English muffins, so I get a bagel with cream cheese and transfer the toppings. Today the eggs were burnt so it is just the Canadian bacon. I took it back to the room to enjoy.

Love a good food hack... and you already know getting something from Park Cafe and bringing it back to the cabin is often my pre-breakfast routine (sub CL cappuccino for your chocolate milk). I started to get tired of having to go to deck 4 for the CL then back up to Park Cafe while juggling my coffee though and started just grabbing CL pastries with the coffee more often.

Tangent time... You (and the other bloggers) are continuing to make it hard to pass on that April Wonder cruise, lol. Now that the GGG sale ended, our prices look pretty good for Wonder in the current climate. We have a neighborhood balcony gty and and interior gty on hold. Only had my TA grab the balcony b/c it comes with a free specialty dinner, a bit more OBC, and wasn't much more than the interior so I figured he should grab it and we'll decide which, if either, later. It's clearly the better deal on paper. Still haven't really discussed it yet.

[InmyElement]

1 hour ago, Ampurp85 said:

I didn't make it to the MDR for breakfast. I took one look at the WJ and went right down to park Cafe.

I make my own breakfast sandwich. I dislike English muffins, so I get a bagel with cream cheese and transfer the toppings. Today the eggs were burnt so it is just the Canadian bacon. I took it back to the room to enjoy.

I passed by a lot of rooms with the "you need to return your pool towels" warning paper.

While in both the theater and crown Lounge I overhead a lot of people talking about S2S2S. A decent number are getting off here and going on Grandeur and then ending with Icon. I found 3 doing the same thing as us, Oasis and then Indy. So the shuttle may be full.

I am going to pack up after I finish breakfast.

That's my kind of breakfast!!!

[InmyElement]

2 hours ago, Ampurp85 said:

Day 7 last sea day

Today is the last day of this cruise. Yesterday was a time.

Around 11pm, just as we were falling asleep, somebody knocked on our door. We looked out the peephole and a man was there. My brother asked what he wanted. The guy replied stop playing and let me in. We told him wrong cabin. Now we are sleeping and hear more knocking.  It's 4am and I awake and check. It's another guy. I tell him wrong room but he keeps knocking. My brother gets up and says wrong room but he knocks once more. We go back to sleep and then close to 8am we hear more knocking, someone screams "room service!" But we didn't order it so we check the peephole. It's the first guy who knocked. . I don't know what any of them where on, but I wasn't opening any doors.

I think the plan is either breakfast or lunch in the MDR. I am shocked to say there aren't any casino plans. We will probably do WJ for dinner because the Bon voyage menu is the worst one, and I don't want to sit for an hour for food that isn't appealing.

 

I think I would have turned to violence after the second knock...maybe magnets would help in this situation, certainly not pineapples.