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Adventure 5 Nights 5/5/18 Repositioning San Juan to Bayonne


twangster

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Day 4 Dinner

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I went back to the MDR where the Rack of Lamb was very good.

After dinner I strolled around the ship and then checked out the main theater where "Rock of the Ages" was playing.

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Later I found myself at Boleros where they had a Latin band playing who were very good.

Right after I took this photo this area filled with people dancing.

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Around 10pm I headed to Studio B for the 80's Flashback party and it was packed.

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The party continued and just sort of turned into the Quest adult game show.

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Laura saved me a seat and I found myself front row on team 2 led by none other than @mpoole3.

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It didn't take long for the night to unfold (or undress?).  Pretty soon Michael was walking around with four bras.  No mention where they came from.

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What happens at Quest, stays at Quest, but some things can't be unseen.

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If I can't unsee them, then neither should you be able to.

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That's our team's best effort in two minutes to create a "Lady" from a manly man being interviewed by the host.

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It was close but we won!

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Now @Matt can no longer point to the water bottle trophy from the Quest second place finish on the Harmony Group cruise in his scopes because among other things, the first place price package included a first place water bottle (that is identical). 

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1 hour ago, twangster said:

Now @Matt can no longer point to the water bottle trophy from the Quest second place finish on the Harmony Group cruise in his scopes because among other things, the first place price package included a first place water bottle (that is identical). 

Agree to disagree!

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On 5/7/2018 at 1:52 PM, tiny260 said:

@twangster have those chairs always been in front of the Sky Bar? Or is that new? I don't drink, the only time I go to the pool bars is to get my wife a drink (Usually the Solarium).

Thanks.

 

On 5/7/2018 at 2:10 PM, twangster said:

I'm not sure, this is my first time on Adventure.

Yes, they were added during the recent drydock: https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2018/02/12/first-look-royal-caribbeans-newly-refurbished-adventure-of-the-seas

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Late to the party, but I was very pleased to learn that you are on the same cruise as @mpoole3, @twangster ? I am loving both of your live blogs and congrats on winning the Quest! 

(Thanks for the travel router rec btw, I am going to keep this into consideration closer to my Adventure sailing in December.)

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Day 5 - Galley Tour

We start the tour on deck 3 in the lobby area where you would check in for dinner at the MDR.  From there our group of about 16 heads to the deck 4 galley.  Behind the divider that blocks the galley from the seating area they have a bulletin board and several notices and tips such as how to tie an apron or the proper way to push a trolley.  My eyes went straight to the "Drink of the Day" guide for crew:

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Now you know how to make your favorite DoTD!

They had another section with 24 common drinks including the Slushy Coco Loco.  I always wondered what's in a Coco Loco.

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Our guide today would be Arasu who is the Executive Sous Chef. 

There are five primary galleys on board.  If you spread them out on land they would cover 2 acres.  The specialty restaurants all have their own smaller galleys unique to each venue.

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Arasu did a great job explaining in technical detail the science and timing they use to keep food at the ideal temperatures to maintain safe food conditions.  Why is it so important he asked us?  Because he explains "There 4,000 guests and 1,025 crew on board but only five beds in the hospital down stairs".

Some appetizers being prepared:

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Shrimp any one?  Is it weird that I was so tempted to reach my hand in their and just swish them around?  (rest assured I resisted)

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These were being used to make the shrimp appetizers for later today.

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The bread making station.  That's all dough on the counter getting ready to be baked.

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Do you have any idea what he is preparing here?

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In my Serenade live blog I talked about having a plate of butter called Escargots À La Bourguignonne which must translate to "lots of butter".  I wasn't too far off, that is a large scoop of butter he is placing on top of the little critters getting them ready to go in the oven.  Once in the oven the butter melts and covers them in buttery delight.

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Arasu went on to explain the many "lines" they use within the galley to maintain separation between food groups.  Beef on one, Chicken on another, fish separate from shell fish, etc.  They go to great lengths to keep foods separated.  Wait staff are not allowed to go all the way into the galley to avoid cross contamination.  This way if someone with an allergy orders chicken or fish there is a high degree of confidence it hasn't come in contact with shell fish or vice versa. 

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He went on to explain the various ovens they have including some that can use steam or heat to cook, or a combination of both.  Super heated steam is very efficient and quick so they can cook hundreds of meals in record time.

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It was very informative and with my son joining me on an upcoming cruise it's comforting to know his allergies can be accommodated safely.

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  • Matt featured this topic

What is up with its hair ?

<shudder>

Who thought it was a good idea to put a sketchy, creepy-looking ventriloquist's dummy in the glass case anyway ?

...and what do you mean, "at least it stopped staring directly at my door" ?  Did its head move ?  ...or is this just your weirdo bot senses THINKING that it's no longer staring directly at your door ?

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It's been kind of a dull day weather wise so I've been working.  It was like this when I woke up but then it got a little rougher and it rained for a few hours.  It's since settled back down.   I'm not sure I'm a fan of the cove balconies but I understand they changed that on some of the Voyager class ships.  Having said that I'd book another balcony cabin for the right price.

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Our progress so far:

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Voom has been just okay.  I've had several wifi calls and no issues noted.  It's not as good as the Quantum, Oasis or Freedom class ships.  Despite paying for Surf and Stream I'm getting Surf type results. 

It will be interesting to see if Royal does anything now that Carnival has proven they have the fastest internet at sea (at least on one ship).

I also think there is something with the new contract with Speedcast.  This is the second cruise where day 1 speeds were like they used to be but by day 5 they have dropped substantially.  Hardly the fastest internet at sea.

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Tonight's dinner menu.  I'll likely go back to the MDR where service has been outstanding. 

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On 5/9/2018 at 1:29 PM, WAAAYTOOO said:

What is up with its hair ?

<shudder>

Who thought it was a good idea to put a sketchy, creepy-looking ventriloquist's dummy in the glass case anyway ?

...and what do you mean, "at least it stopped staring directly at my door" ?  Did its head move ?  ...or is this just your weirdo bot senses THINKING that it's no longer staring directly at your door ?

I keep looking out the peep hole but so far he isn't looking my way, yet.

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On 5/8/2018 at 5:10 PM, JLMoran said:

Hmm, I'm not so sure it's entirely Apple's fault. I was on 11.3 during my cruise as well. While I had problems with my phone occasionally losing its connection while in our cabin, my wife's Android phone and our first-gen iPad mini (which is only on iOS 8 due to its age) had the same problem. Definitely did not have a problem with roaming around the ship and staying connected.

I know iOS (and especially watchOS, for those with an Apple Watch) sometimes has trouble with WiFi networks that use a capture page to mandate a login, but I'm guessing that it's a combination of iOS and the older WiFi systems on the ships without O3b.

I noted that on Anthem the Voom technician could not fix my issues and told me my WiFi issues were due to me upgrading to iOS 11.3. The WiFi randomly dropped or had no service at all.

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5 hours ago, twangster said:

Also for any future Adventure cruisers, here is a quick reference guide to key events, subject to change of course with the ship repositioning.

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The subject of straws came up recently.  This was observed in the Behind the Scenes Galley tour.

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Can I ask- I notice that the headliner shows are at 7 and 9. Is there traditional dining? What time are the seatings? Are the shows less than an hour?

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1 hour ago, PrincipalTinker said:

Can I ask- I notice that the headliner shows are at 7 and 9. Is there traditional dining? What time are the seatings? Are the shows less than an hour?

You have a choice between three dining options:  Traditional early or late, or my time dining.  Traditional early is 5:30 on this ship.  So we would go to the 9pm shows.  The early dinner seating goes to the late shows, and the late dinner seating goes to the early shows.  My time dining goes to either, based on your dinner time that particular evening.

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1 hour ago, PrincipalTinker said:

Can I ask- I notice that the headliner shows are at 7 and 9. Is there traditional dining? What time are the seatings? Are the shows less than an hour?

I will be sending Matt the Cruise Compasses from this cruise as I suspect a few other blog insiders who are present may as well.  Ultimately none of us know how that may be change for it's new summer port or beyond.  Only time will tell.

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1 hour ago, PrincipalTinker said:

Can I ask- I notice that the headliner shows are at 7 and 9. Is there traditional dining? What time are the seatings? Are the shows less than an hour?

As @KathyC mentioned, they are very aware when dinner is and they schedule most shows with dinner in mind and vice versa.  They understand very well that delaying an appetizer means delaying an entree which delays dessert - this time management was discussed during the galley tour..   They know the entertainment schedule and they strive to be fully in tune with it.   They are not perfect and they deal with staff changes all the time, on top of guests challenges but in my opinion they do a great job to get you onto what ever your next experience is. 

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44 minutes ago, twangster said:

As @KathyC mentioned, they are very aware when dinner is and they schedule most shows with dinner in mind and vice versa.  They understand very well that delaying an appetizer means delaying an entree which delays dessert - this time management was discussed during the galley tour..   They know the entertainment schedule and they strive to be fully in tune with it.   They are not perfect and they deal with staff changes all the time, on top of guests challenges but in my opinion they do a great job to get you onto what ever your next experience is. 

On the Anthem my traditional dining was 8:15. The 7:00 headliner/production shows are all over by 8:00?

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