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Allure of the Seas Live Blog - Day 4 - St. Maarten

In:
09 Jun 2016

Our blogger, Michael Poole, is on Royal Caribbean's Allure of the Seas this week and is LIVE blogging every day. Follow along for daily updates.

Morning on board 

Today was our first port stop in the beautiful St. Maarten.

Honestly, I was a little ready for our first stop; I’ve never started a cruise on two sea days before.

I woke up early this morning and went for my first run on the cruise. After that meal last night the run was much needed. I decided to run on the track since we were docking in St. Maarten. On Oasis class ships they have a track on deck 5, and 2.3 laps is 1 mile.

After my run I decided to grab breakfast at the Solarium Bistro, this is also a free breakfast option. If you are looking for a lite breakfast, or fast I’d recommend this venue. 

St. Marrten 

We docked at 8am, but since we did not have an excursion booked, we waiting until 9:15am to get off the ship. Unless you have something booked, try to wait just an hour to get off; it can be a little busy in the gangway.

Once you walk off, they have a water taxi what will take you over boardwalk for $7 round-trip. The cruise compass had a $1 off the water taxi ride coupon, but for some reason they didn’t take it.

The ride over is around 5 minutes but it’s very pretty.

Once we arrived to the boardwalk, we just explored and did some shopping.

Around 11am we decided to have lunch at The Blue Bitch restaurant.

I’ve been eating at this restaurant for many years now, and it’s become my little tradition. 

Afternoon in St. Maarten 

This afternoon, all we wanted to do is enjoy some beach time. They have people selling beach chairs, umbrellas, and a bucket of beers for $20. This also comes with free Wi-Fi, but you just have to walk up to the restaurant to use it since the signal is too weak on the beach.

At 4:30pm was all on board, and I stayed at the beach until 4:15pm, really took full advantage of my day here.

Once I was back on board, we all decided to keep the fun going and head up to the beach pool for an hour.

I usually like to get in the pool once I’m back on board anyway because it’s so hot. 

Dinner – Costal Kitchen 

Tonight for dinner, I was invited to the new suite restaurant – Coastal Kitchen.

The restaurant is located where the Viking Crown Lounge used to be before her dry dock a year ago.

Once I arrived they have a locked door and you must enter your SeaPass card.  The process of getting in is very similar to the Diamond Lounge.

If you are staying in a suite, they don’t mind you taking a few friends with you to dinner, and it’s also complimentary.

For starters we had some flat breads and mushroom soup. The soup was by far the best soup I think I’ve ever had, nothing like the soups you get in the main dining room.

For the main course we all went with the steak, which was also good, but I think it was just the filet of beef they serve in the main dining room.

Overall it was a great dining experience, but for me, I’ll stick with Sabor

Evening on board 

Tonight was the 70’s party on the Royal Promenade at 10pm.

I noticed they were selling seats on the Rising Tide bar for the duration of the 70's Party. The cost for the VIP sections was $40 per person, and included all drinks during the party.

The show was really fun, I watched from the Schooner Bar, but I didn’t see a lot of dancing happening.

Since we were all in the dancing mood we headed to dazzles where they also had a 70’s themed music, with a live band. 

Today as a fun filled day, very action packed. Around midnight is where I called it an evening.

Tomorrow is San Juan!

Allure of the Seas Live Blog - Day 2 - Sea Day

In:
07 Jun 2016

Michael Poole is live blogging from Allure of the Seas this week. Follow along to see his journey!

Over the years I've started to enjoy the ship just as much, if not more than the actual destinations so any time I have a sea day, I’m in paradise.

Today I woke up and grabbed a coffee at Café Promenade. They have free coffee or you can order one for an up charge. If you have a drink package that includes coffee this is where you us it on Oasis class ships, as the true Starbucks is excluded.

After my coffee I decided to go on the outside track, but sadly not to run! I wanted to enjoy my coffee while taking in the views of the aft of the ships. 

Lunch at Park Café & Sabor 

Lunch today was back at Park Café, there was no line so the first day rush appears to be over. I did not take a picture of my lunch because I got the very same thing as yesterday, roast beef sandwich and a salad.

We were just enjoying each other at Park Café and I made the suggestion to move over to Sabor for a drink.

I actually starting laughing when I got there because, we left one lunch walked straight to the next, I think I know somebody that does that too…

I ordered a spicy margarita and boy was it spicy. I took around three sips and just started to get very and sweating, so I asked the bartender if there was any way to bring the spice down. However, she just suggested making me another drink at no charge.

If you have the premium drink package the margarita’s are included here. We enjoyed most of the afternoon at Sabor 

Formal Night 

Tonight was formal night with the Captain’s reception on the promenade.

One of my favorite spots on formal night is the Schooner Bar by the glass looking over. I arrived here at 6pm to start building our section of seats.

I like sitting here so you are not packed on the promenade. The captain’s reception is a great option if you don’t have the drink package because they hand out free champagne from 8pm.

The captain made talked about how many passengers were on board, where everyone was from, and a little history about the ship. 

Dinner 

Tonight we headed back to the main dining room for dinner.

One of my second favorite meals in the dining room is tonight for the lobster bisque soup and filet of beef. I went with the two orders of soup and double meat on filet of beef.

Tonight’s dinner was going at a much faster pace than last night. I noticed the table beside us tell the waiter they had a show in 30 minutes so their dinner was rushed out to the table. After dinner we went to dazzles where they had a game going to sing the song when they cut the music off. At first I did not think I would like the game, but I stayed and thought it was really fun.

After the game was over the had a live band playing 80’s music, which I loved. 

Tomorrow is another sea day, but it’s action packed with a bar hop, Mama Mia, and Giovanni’s Table!

Live blogging from Allure of the Seas - Preamble

In:
31 May 2016

Royal Caribbean Blog writer Michael Poole is going to be LIVE blogging from Royal Caribbean's Allure of the Seas later this week. Follow along here for all the fun he will be sharing!

Well friends, I am back for another live blog from Allure of the Seas.

As many of you likely recall, the Royal Caribbean Blog Group Cruise was on Allure of the Seas this past February. I am going to try and take you on a different journey, but still copy some of Matt’s daily trips to Sabor. This will be my second time cruising on the Allure of the Seas and it has been some years since I was last on her. She was just 3 months old the last time, so I’m excited to see how she has matured.

I am sailing on this cruise with my brother; Jason Poole and his husband, Caleb. But also joining us is 23 other friends! We met most of our group on other cruises over the years and have stayed in touched. There are a few people in the group - friends of friends - that will be new friends to me. However, sailing in a large group is going to be a lot of fun and I will share many group photos.

Itinerary

This cruise is sailing to the Eastern Caribbean, but has a unique itinerary because it is stopping in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

It has been a few years since I last sailed to San Juan, so I am excited to explore and take endless photos of old San Juan. I’ll also be stopping in St. Maarten and ending the cruise in Labadee, Haiti.

The reason I booked the cruise on this date, was because of the stop in San Juan, as they usually stop in St. Thomas. I booked this cruise a year ago while on board Freedom of the Seas, using their next cruise-booking perk.

Cabin Type

When I originally booked this cruise, I booked into a Central Park Balcony. I know many people have fallen in love with these balconies and I understand why.

However, they just are not my favorite, but I booked this cabin because they were the best value at the time. Over the course of a few months, I noticed the boardwalk balcony dropped in price to what I was paying, so I jumped cabins.

Well believe it not; as time went on, I was able to switch to an ocean balcony for the very same price. So over the course of a year, I’ve been in three different cabin types.

I will be sailing in ocean balcony cabin D8 – 6688. I know almost everyone likes their balcony to be on the higher decks, but trust me on this one… Try a balcony on a lower deck on Oasis Class ships. Here are my reasons: Promenade one deck down, Boardwalk is right down the hall, Central Park is two decks up, Schooner Bar for my balcony beer just a few feet away.

Pre – Cruise

Friday I’ll be flying down to Ft. Lauderdale late, so I won’t have any plans other than heading to my hotel. However, Saturday will be a full day in South Florida to kick start our vacation.

We plan to explore around the city and experience eating at some new places. In the afternoon hours, I’ll be heading over to the beach to watch The Oasis of the Seas sail away. If you are interested in watching, I’ll be sharing the sail away live on Periscope app, @mpoole3.

Well friends, the next post will be from the Allure of the Seas! I am really excited to share my experiences with you virtually.

Please comment below if you have any questions about the ship.

Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast Episode - Previewing Harmony of the Seas

In:
04 May 2016

Listen to the Show

New cruise ships are always a very intriguing event, and with Royal Caribbean's Harmony of the Seas, there is so much to be excited about.  This new ship debuts later this month and she has so many Royal Caribbean fans talking about what she has to offer.

This week, we join in the conversation and preview what Harmony of the Seas will offer and what makes Harmony of the Seas a very different Oasis-class cruise ship.

Share with me your thoughts, questions and comments via...

On this episode:
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Royal Caribbean Blog Podcast Episode - Brilliance of the Seas back-to-back cruise review

In:
13 Apr 2016

Listen to the Show

I’m always dreaming about taking another Royal Caribbean cruise and even when I am onboard my cruise, I always lament it is not longer. Back to back cruises are a solution to both “problems” and this week, Michael Poole is joining us to talk about his recent back to back cruise on Brilliance of the Seas. We will talk about why he chose to do a back to back cruise in the first place, as well as review everything Brilliance of the Seas has to offer.

Share with me your thoughts, questions and comments via...

On this episode:
Running time:

Brilliance of the Seas Live Blog - Day 9 - Sea Day

In:
04 Apr 2016

It’s my ninth and final day on board the Brilliance of the Seas, and these days just fly by. 

Today, we were at sea all day traveling back to Tampa, Florida. 

I started the morning off with room service to the cabin.  I’ll be honest; it’s not the best option if you are looking for great food.  But I really enjoy just eating on the balcony and taking in all the views. 

I’ll also mention, in my past cruises, the coffee they deliver was less than drinkable.  However, on this cruise I actually enjoyed the coffee, so looks like they have made a change. 

I sat on my balcony for over an hour this morning just enjoying my coffee and reflecting on my past 9 days. 

Afternoon onboard

We wanted to relax in the Solarium and just take it easy. 

The ship was starting to rock a little, as we were in the middle of The Gulf of Mexico.  The water in the pool was splashing around a lot and it was like a mini wave pool. 

I really enjoyed my time in this pool; heated water is always a pleasant experience. 

Since it was my final day on board, I had to enjoy one more roast beef sandwich.  Look at all this meat they put on my sandwich! 

I had to take one of them off and eat with a fork, but I didn’t mind.  They also serve salad’s here and have a wide variety of toppings. 

Evening on board

Tonight we got ready early, so we could take full advance of the ship on last evening. 

I went to the photo lounge, to get my free diamond 8x10 photo.  After which, it was time to get a pre dinner cocktail. 

I went down to the R Bar since they were playing live music at 5pm.  It was a band playing beautiful music with violins; it almost felt like formal night again. 

I went with the classic old fashion and Hillary had the champagne cocktail. 

Dinner at Giovanni’s Table

We loved our dinner last night at Giovanni’s Table so much; we decided to go back again. 

I had did met a couple on the Enchantment of the Seas two years ago, and we dined with them this evening to celebrate their birthday. 

They are Pinnacle members, and I’ll say, we received a little extra service at dinner. 

Since it was a special occasion we were celebrating the chef made us lasagna.  If you have dined here before you know they only serve this dish at lunch.  However, if you request it in advance they will prepare some for you. 

For our starters, our waiter just brought out a few to try family style.  I enjoyed dining here with more people, because we got to try more options. 

For the main course, I had the filet and lasagna, I know two dishes!  Again the filet was absolutely amazing, so tender just like at Chops Grill. 

The whole staff came out to sing our friend happy birthday, and made her a large birthday cake. 

I must mention the beautiful sunset we saw this evening.  Our reservations were at 7pm, and we were able to watch the full sunset at dinner. 

I highly recommend eat there at this time, so you are able to watch the sunset while you are eating.  Also, the restaurant is not very large, so no matter where you sit, you will be able to see outside. 

Evening Activities

We decided to end our trip in the pub, this is always were mine started.  They had some live music playing, which I might add seems to be the case all the bars. 

If you are a beer lover like myself, you will love their options here.  They have beers from all around the world, and with the exception of 1 or 2 beers they are included in the drink packages.  I loved being able to try different beers all week, and relaxing in the pub. 

The only downside of the pub is the location itself.  They added this pub during the dry dock, so it’s beside the casino on deck 6.  After a few pints, we called it an evening and headed back to our cabin, this was a sad moment because the cruise was over. 

Thank you for following along with me over the past nine days.  I truly enjoyed sharing my experiences with you from the Brilliance of the Seas. 

If you have any questions about the ship, feel free to comment them below and I’ll respond. 

See you again in two months for another live blog from the Allure of the Seas!  

Brilliance of the Seas Live Blog - Day 8 - Cozumel

In:
03 Apr 2016

Michael Poole is live blogging from Brilliance of the Seas. Enjoy!

Well friends, we are back in Cozumel, Mexico again. 

We docked promptly at 8am and the Independence of the Seas was docked beside us again. 

This morning, I ordered room service to be delivered to the cabin.  The rooms have cards behind the door, and you can simply fill out what you would like, and the time block you want it delivered.   

We selected the 8:00-8:30am window and it arrived around 8:10am.  The options for room service are eggs, fruit, cereal, coffee and tea.   You can get mimosas delivered to the cabin, but these are not included in the drink package, since they came from room service. 

We enjoyed our breakfast on the balcony and both of us, how happy we were to have it.  Now the question is, can I go back to a standard inside cabin? 

Nachi Cocom

As you know from my day 4 live blog post, I was also at Nachi Cocom. 

Most of my experiences were very similar to the first time; in fact I sat in the very same seat.  The only thing different is I arrived a little later and they greeted us with a welcome glass of champagne. 

I’m a little picky when it comes to champagne, and I found this very pleasant to drink, and they also put strawberries in the glass. 

We did have a beautiful sand creation that said, Cozumel.  It was at the end of my chair and thought it was very beautiful. 

I did ask where it came from and they said a family was sitting in those seats yesterday, and their children made it.  The service this time was much faster than my first trip, but there were also about half the people here today.  I enjoyed some time in the swim up hot tub today, and loved having the bartender just had me a drink over. 

I will note there were about 20 women from a different ship at Nachi that started to get out of hand.  I thought the staff would jump in and ask them to tone it down some, but they never did.  But, this was only on our last hour of the day, and it was almost time to leave. 

We ended up leaving Nachi at 3:45pm, and back on board by 4:15 (last call at 5:00), never been within an hour before.  Once back on board, we napped for two hours. 

Evening Time

For a pre-dinner cocktail we decided to head over to the Schooner Bar, since Giovanni’s Table is right there. 

We have met a really great bartender named, Julie here and she was making better old fashions, than the R Bar.  She would also surprise Hillary every time with a new champagne cocktail. 

They have live music in here each evening, singing on the piano.  I must say, this 4-day sailing the bars are much more crowded than on the 5-day.  If you are happening to sail on the Brilliance anytime soon, stop in and see Julie. 

Dinner – Giovanni’s Table

I had made reservations online prior to my cruise for Giovanni’s Table tonight at 8:30pm.  The cost for the meal is $25 per person and that includes tips for the server. 

The restaurant called our cabin at 5:00pm to confirm our reservation, and that we are welcome to come sooner than our time, if we wanted.  We were seated by the window in a table for two. 

Our server was outstanding; I could just tell he was one of the best, so informative and knowledgeable.  We started out with some sea scallops and mozzarella.  The scallops have so many flavors in them; only problem is we wanted more! 

For the main course, I order the filet and Hillary ordered the shrimp. 

The filet was just as good as chops, maybe even better.  If you are a steak lover and want to save $10 per person in cover charges, just go to Giovanni’s Table.  

They also role a desert cart over table side and all I can say, is save room, because this is the best part. 

Dancing under the Stars

Tonight was the dancing under the stars party again, and I just could not miss that.  Ricky Mathews was the host for the party and it was a fun time. 

There were so many people out on the deck dancing, he decided to extend the party and close the nightclub for the evening. A few times Ricky brought the microphone over for me to sign a few lines of the songs.  

We stayed out on the deck until 11:30pm and then called it a night. 

Stay tuned for one more day, tomorrow we are enjoying our last sea day.  

Brilliance of the Seas Live Blog - Day 7 - Sea Day

In:
02 Apr 2016

Well, here we are again for another sea day on board Brilliance of the Seas.

Today, I decided to not set an alarm and just wake up naturally. I’m not going to lie; it was really nice sleeping in past 8am.

The first thing I did was to blog a little on my balcony; I sure did enjoy having this to wake up with. Sadly, my internet connection was too weak to send pictures from out here.

Breakfast onboard

This morning I decided to make my first trip into the main dining room for breakfast.

Hard to believe I’ve been on board for six days now, and this is my first trip in here. For breakfast, they had had a few tables in the center to grab some fresh fruit and granola. We started off with some morning mimosas, which were included with our Premium drink package.

I decided to order an omelet, which is made to order.

The breakfast in the dining room is a great option for those looking for an alterative option than the windjammer. The breakfast is a much slower pace, and we were dining in there for an hour.

Pool Deck

At this point in the day 10:00am, I knew our luck for finding a pool chair was most likely not going to happen. And I was correct; there were zero open pool chairs so we sat on the edge of the main pool.

After about five minutes of the wind, it was time move to the Solarium. In all my cruises I’ve never spent anytime in the Solarium and I absolutely loved it.

The water in the pool was heated salt water, which I really enjoyed. For those who are not familiar with this pool, it’s the adult only pool, so no kids here.

They also have the Park Café inside the solarium for fresh made to order salads and sandwiches. I could see me enjoying another day here again for my last sea day, I truly enjoyed this pool.

Afternoon onboard

This afternoon we were just taking things at a much slow pace and relaxing.

We decided to take our lunch to go from the Windjammer and eat on the balcony. I’m also enjoying having the balcony and just watching the ocean go by with a beer, so relaxing. Who knows, maybe I enjoy having the balcony even more than I thought I did.

We had some grilled fish, white rice, and two Guinness’. The fish tasted so fresh, some of the best I’ve had, and well the Guinness, you know that was amazing.

Dinner

Tonight, we had dinner in the main dining room, which was also my first meal in the dining room.

I had previous emailed Royal Caribbean requesting a table for two, however I was placed at a large table of eight. If I planned on eating here the next two nights, I’d request to be moved.

The service was a little slow, but our waiter said he was sorry for the delay. I order the filet of beef, which I think is the best dish served in the dining room.

I decided to pass on desert, because I think the drink calories from today was enough.

70’s Disco Party

Tonight was the 70’s disco party in the Centrum at 10:30pm.

It was already 10pm when we left dinner, so quickly changed out of formal attire and off went. The Centrum was packed, shoulder-to-shoulder. 

Cruise Director, Ricky Mathews certain surprised me again, with an amazing time. He has so much energy and really brings the guest into the dancing mode.

In all my cruises on the smaller ships, with a Centrum, I can’t recall a disco party this packed. This party last until 11:15pm, and then off to bed we went. I would recommend getting to this party around 10pm if you want a good seat.   

Brilliance of the Seas Live Blog - Day 6 - Tampa, Florida

In:
01 Apr 2016

Michael Poole is on Brilliance of the Seas and live blogging for us!

Well, my first cruise leg has already come to an end, but that just means the next adventure is right around the counter.

I woke up this morning at 5:30am (I know, way too early), but I just happen to wake up, so I decided to head out to the pool deck to watch us dock in Tampa, Florida.

The first thing I noticed was the weather was much cooler than I was used to in the Gulf of Mexico.

It was a fun experience watching us dock in Tampa, and only once have I done that before.

After we docked around 6:45AM, I decided to have my first breakfast in the Windjammer. They had the usual breakfast options, but I decided to go for the made-to-order omelet.

On the larger ships, like Matt’s live blog on the Allure of the Seas, you won’t find the fresh omelets due to the number of guest.

Disembarkation

At 7:00 am, they started the disembarkation process for the guest doing express departure.

This lasted for an hour, but I noticed there were not long lines like you might find on the Enchantment of the Seas, due to so many families.

I received a letter to meet in the conference center at 9:00am for sailing again. I arrived a few minutes after, and there were about 20 other guests in the room, with a few others after me.

Around 9:30am, we were escorted off the ship, just like all the same passengers just did. We were held in the United States customs area for 10-15 minutes until they fully cleared the ship.

At 10:05am, we were headed back on board to start our next cruise. The process was fairly easy, but it was a little longer than my previous back-to-back cruise.

Morning onboard

I was a little excited to have an hour on board without any new passengers because I really enjoy taking some pictures without guests in the shot.

But, I didn’t have long, the new guests started coming on board at 10:20AM. I’ve never boarded a ship that early, but I’ve heard they like to flip this ship pretty fast. I then decided to purchase the Premium drink package for $49 per day + 18% cover charge.

I wanted this package since my friend was coming on board, and I new I’d be drinking a little more on this sailing.

Once my friend was onboard, I went up to the helicopter pad and those views just never get old. If you want to go up there, head out to deck 5, where you stand for the muster drill, and walk forward. You will come across two sets of steps, and then you will be standing on the helicopter pad.

Afternoon onboard

I decided to finally enjoy some pool time before the kids over took it again.

The weather was perfect around 85 degrees outside and I got some sun.

So I thought I would report a pretty scary story that happen today on the pool deck. A child got into the water without her mother seeing; the child could not swim at all. Within seconds the child had gone under the water and the mother notice her son was missing.

At this point I noticed the child in the pool and started to make a move to grab him. There was someone else closer than I was, who was able to safely put his head above water. Needless to say, these types of accidents can happen within seconds, and I’m grateful for the outcome.

A few months ago, Royal Caribbean added life jackets for children on every ship.The pool staff then required this child to wear a jacket going forward to get into the pool.

Dinner at Izumi

Tonight’s dinner was in Izumi, and I was really excited about it. I haven’t been to Izumi since Oasis of the Seas in 2012, so I was long over due.

I tried to order saki with the premium drink package, but they trying to force me to purchase a bottle. I went with a few of their cocktails and let’s just say that’s not their specialty.

However, their sushi rolls are their specialty, and I must say I was truly wowed.

The service was very fast, but the restaurant was pretty empty.

We ordered a tuna roll that was so good; I had them bring me another order.

However, this is where I ran into an issue with my SeaPass card. My SeaPass card was actually declined at dinner, boo!

Long story short, they did not link my credit card to leg two of the cruise, and a type of payment was not linked to my account.

It did take about 15-20 minutes for guest services to resolve the issue, but they were able to.

Tomorrow is our first sea day as we head back to Cozumel, Mexico!

Brilliance of the Seas Live Blog - Day 5 - Sea Day

In:
31 Mar 2016

Our blog writer, Michael Poole, is live blogging from Royal Caribbean's Brilliance of the Seas!

Well friends, my fifth and final day is already here. These days sure go by fast. 

The good news is this is just my final day for the first cruise, because I’m staying on board for the next sailing too! 

Today was a sea day, and I decided to do it a little different and stay inside today.  If it was my last day, I’d defiantly be poolside, but I thought my sunburn could use a break.  

Morning on board

Like always, I woke up and grabbed my large coffee at Starbucks, but this time an hour later, at 8am. 

I decided to keep sleeping this morning, since I knew I was in no rush for any early activates. 

I went outside to explore the outside decks and tried to enjoy my sea day in a different way, than just the pool deck. 

I also explored the gift shop to search for these new floating pool cup holders that Matt blogged about the other day, and indeed there they were. 

I collect the ship models and the blue coffee mugs, but I already have both from when I was on her two years ago, so didn’t buy anything. 

After going through a few shops, I decided it was time for my first beer, and I wanted to explore the Schooner Bar. 

The atmosphere in here is really fun, the bartenders are so happy, and well the views they speak for themselves. 

I enjoyed a few goose islands while playing Royal Caribbean Trivia.   I felt like I shouldn’t be playing, almost like I had an advantage over other players. 

The two questions I got wrong were the total number of passengers the Independence of the Seas can hold (it’s 4,370) and the number of current ships in the fleet.  But to be fair, I got that question correct, since they said number of current ships, but they were counting the two new ships, plus Empress. 

Lunch on Sea Day

I was so excited for my lunch today and was actually texting Matt about how I couldn’t wait to eat Giovanni's Table’s lasagna.  Well, serves me right, because they were closed for lunch today. 

I didn’t understand why, because the Cruise Compass said they were open at noon.  Well, that was out so off to the Windjammer I went. 

I walked in the Windjammer and they had a beautiful cake when you walked in saying "thank you" for cruising on the Brilliance. 

I looked around at the food, and nothing really looked good to me, since my mind was set on Lasagna.  They were serving, hot dogs, pizza, burgers, ribs, pasta’s but nothing looked good to me. 

So I was now off to Park Café, third time is the charm right?  I knew the roast beef sandwich and salad would hit the spot.

Theater Tour

On day one I received a card in my cabin inviting me to a back stage tour of the main theater.   The tour was today at 1:30pm, and we were to meet on the portside entrance on deck 5 of the Pacifica Theatre. 

Well it was 1:35 and no one was around to let us into the tour.  After a few calls to guest services and the Loyalty Ambassador’s desk, they showed up a little before 1:40pm. 

Once we got started we received a great tour of the stage and all the elements on the stage.    After, we explored the back room area with all the props were stored. 

Our tour guide was the stage manager and he went over all the items that were set-up for this evenings show.  He also talked about some of the items backstage for different shows they use the longer sailings. 

The tour lasted around 20-30 minutes and I thought it was very unique experience and I’m happy I decided to attend. 

Evening on Board

Tonight, I enjoyed some live music in the Centrum; the assistant cruise director actually sang three songs.  This was her first time signing on a cruise ship and it was quite entertaining.  I heard a guest asking someone after she sang, if she was being serious about it being her first time, she was that good.  After she finished the ship band came on to play some songs.  I really enjoyed myself down in the Centrum this evening, just relaxing and reflecting on the cruise. 

Once the music was over, I decided to go visit vintages wine bar.  This bar is on deck 6 facing the Centrum.  This bar is by far the most beautiful bar on board and the décor is perfect for a win bar.  They have a round bar, so that you can sit on either side, but honestly every seat was open in the evenings.  They have a new rose champagne they are pushing for $31 glass, and I was able to try a sample.  

The service is really great here, and they are very knowledge about the wines. 

Well tonight was sad for all the passengers, the last night of their cruise.  Everyone had their bags outside their cabins so they could take them ashore in the morning. 

This is the departure process if you don’t want to carry the bags off yourself in the morning.  Personally, I like the express option where you carry them off yourself, but I understand with children that’s not possible. 

Well friends, that wraps up my cruise! Thank you for following along with me for the past five days.  But you are in luck, because my trip is not over yet!  I’m headed back out on a four-day cruise tomorrow, back to Cozumel, Mexico I go!   

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