Interview with John Heald – Rescue at Sea

Posted on January 1, 2017 by LBcruiseshipblogger

Helicopter Rescue at Sea

helicopter coming to the rescue on Carnival Vista

Cruise ships have two types of sea rescues that could happen during the course of a cruise. The least common and most unlikely is rescue of people from another vessel in distress. If a ship comes across a disabled or sinking vessel they may either alert someone who is responsible for rescues in that area such as the coast guard or rescue the people themselves depending on the situation. It’s quite rare for them to actually bring stranded people on board, but in a life or death situation it could happen.

rescue helicopter

The more common sort of rescue at sea seen aboard cruise ships is that of a passenger or crew member on the vessel in distress. Nobody plans for anything bad to happen to them during the course of their vacation or work day, but accidents can happen as can illnesses. Many older people enjoy cruising and some even live on the ships full time or nearly so. Ships do have medical facilities, and while a ship can sail without the captain as there are other people on board qualified to run the ship, it can’t sail without a doctor. The Carnival Vista had 2 doctors and 6 ER-trained nurses on the transatlantic cruise. Ships however do not have all the equipment found in a land-based hospital. Some medical issues are beyond the scope of what the ship is equipped for and they prefer not to have any reason to use the ship’s morgue.

Interview with Carnival spokesperson John Heald about helicopter rescues from cruise ships

Rescues can be made by boat or by helicopter depending on the situation, availability, and proximity to shore. On an ocean crossing they can get to a point where they are too far from any land. The Vista was close enough to Spain when the need arose for them to send out a helicopter to rescue a passenger in trouble.

rescuer looks down from the helicopter

The captain announced that the helicopter was on the way, and passengers were told to leave the area of the top deck where it would land and asked to stay out of that area as well as off of the outside portion of the promenade deck.

looking up at helicopter from cruise ship balcony

the helicopter came in and out of view from the balcony

The helicopter came and went on the side of the ship where our room was so we had a pretty good view of it from our balcony. It seemed to take it quite some time to complete the rescue. It hovered over the ship going in and out of view as our room was on the side of the ship and the patient up on top. At some point they sent down a rescue person from the helicopter as well as the basket for the patient, and of course had to bring both back up before leaving for the hospital in Spain.

the helicopter drops a line

Names and medical details are not made public so we can only hope the person survived. Vacation insurance is always an option and in a situation like this definitely a good investment for the patient if they purchased it.

the helicopter leaves with the patient on board

More Interviews with John Heald

Best Places on Carnival Breeze

Life on a Cruise Ship and Funships 2.0

Carnival Breeze Things to Do and Best Kept Secrets

Copyright My Cruise Stories 2017

Posted in Atlantic Ocean & Islands, Carnival, Randoms, Shipboard Life, Vista | Tagged Carnival, cruise, cruise emergency, helicopter, interview, John Heald, photos, rescue, travel, video | 2 Comments

Grand Cayman Turtle Farm

Posted on December 28, 2016 by LBcruiseshipblogger

Breeze at Georgetown from the marine park where people snorkel with tarpon

Why does Grand Cayman need a turtle farm? Because without it the turtles there likely would have become extinct by now. People have harvested turtles for food from the Caymans since Columbus first came across the islands in 1503 and called them Las Tortugas due to the amount of turtles there. Seafarers of the 17th and 18th centuries followed suit and used Grand Cayman turtles as a means of fresh meat on their ships. Early settlers of the islands hunted turtles to sell to passing ships for income as well as for their own survival. By the 19th century the turtle population was depleted to the point that ships had to go elsewhere for turtle meat. Turtle remains the national dish of the Caymans to this day, though a good percentage of the population doesn’t eat it.

Baby Turtles at the Cayman Turtle Farm

Caymanians of the 20th century still consumed turtles, but by then they had become too scarce for commercial hunts. In 1968 the turtle farm was established, originally just as a means of producing turtle meat both as a source of income and to reduce poaching of the few remaining wild turtles. Somewhere along the way the farm also started releasing turtles to the wild.

The farm still sells some turtles as meat, which greatly reduces illegal hunting of turtles still left in the wild. Most turtle meat is consumed by locals, but there are some restaurants that serve it and a few tourists give it a try. The farm now breeds rare Kemp’s Ridley Sea Turtles as well as their original Green Sea Turtles, which are also an endangered species. Some of their released turtles have matured and come back to the island to breed helping the number of turtle nests in the wild to rise.

aviary at the turtle farm

What started as a private enterprise is now a government-run facility. After losing the majority of their turtles in 2001 when a hurricane washed them out to sea, the farm moved inland to an expanded facility with a bigger breeding lagoon, an artificial reef where visitors to the farm can snorkel with fish and turtles, and other tourist amenities including a restaurant.

the saltwater snorkel lagoon has lots of fish

Shore excursions from Carnival Breeze in Grand Cayman included a couple to the turtle farm, one with lunch included and one without. The one without cost the same as getting there on your own by public bus and less than taking a taxi. We chose to go on our own anyway so we could visit the exhibits at our own pace and avoid the crowd rather than getting herded through in a group on someone else’s timetable.

turtle in the breeding pond

Our ship came in to port at 8am, the same time the turtle farm’s website said they opened. The ship was on Miami time though, one hour earlier than island time. That actually worked out quite well for us. We caught the first tender off the boat and headed ashore with a map in hand showing a bus stop next to the public library. There are 3 tender piers in Georgetown. We were at the one in the middle. From there we took a right and walked about a block to Fort Street where we headed inland. The library is about a block from the water and the bus terminal sits right next to it. The bus cost $2.50 USD per ride. The yellow line bus goes to the turtle farm and one goes by about every 15 minutes. One sat at the terminal when we got there so we got right on. It had just one other passenger at the start, but this is mainly local transportation and various people get on and off all along the way. They let us out right in front of the turtle farm and said we could catch a return bus either under a tree there or at a bus stop just down the road.

Shark in the Predator Tank

We got there at 8:45 our time, so just before they opened. When they did we were the first visitors there. A few more people showed up between when the front desk opened and when the doors out into the exhibits did. The turtle farm has two price options. For $18 you get a green wrist band and can see the large turtles in the breeding pond, the hatchery, and a few other exhibits at the front. For $45 you get a blue wrist band with full access to the rest of the park including a pond where you can snorkel with turtles and fish, a waterslide and pool, aviary, and nature trail. There’s also a predator tank with sharks and a barracuda. You don’t swim with them though.

from the bridge you can see turtles and fish in the salt water swimming lagoon

The swimming areas opened an hour after the park so we had a bit of time to stroll around and look at things. A booth sold turtle food, and the big turtles in the breeding pond are quite happy if anyone buys some to throw to them. It looks just like dry dog food. The hatchery had cases of turtle eggs and a little room with a movie explaining all about the turtles they raise there and how some get released into the wild and others sold for meat which helps to prevent poaching of the wild ones.

A group of little tanks with little turtles serves as an area where visitors can hold the turtles if they are careful and follow the directions on signs posted there. A couple of the tanks have stairways where people can go in the water with the little turtles. All of the bigger turtles in bigger tanks have signs saying not to touch them, though throwing turtle food into the water for them is fine.

wild iguanas sunned themselves on rocks around the ponds

By arriving at the farm ahead of the crowd we got to see most everything without anyone else around us. We did run into a group at the little turtle handling ponds, but had the option to leave there at will and go off in a different direction. The turtle snorkeling pond stayed empty of people awhile after my watch said it should have opened, but apparently nobody else was ready to swim yet because the only thing the worker there said when I went to get in the water was that snorkel vests were required. I despise snorkel vests. Warm salt water is very buoyant and it is much easier to float than to dive under the surface. At least they didn’t charge a rental fee for it. Though a lot of places require the vests they don’t ever make people put air into them if they don’t want to.

several turtles stayed near this reef just beyond the turtle and fish crowd

We had seen from the bridge between the turtle and predator ponds where most of the turtles and fish hung out, the opposite side of the pond from the beach near the area where the restrooms/showers and booth of snorkel equipment were located. There is a ladder into the water near the bridge, but it’s a lot more fun to swim there and snorkel along the way.

underwater video from snorkeling in the turtle lagoon

Some turtles and a few fish swam about through areas of the pond away from the bridge and a sunken ship around the middle of it made a nice resting place for several turtles. Another advantage of going there on our own – I had the whole bathroom to myself to shower off and get ready for the swim and the whole pond to myself for quite some time. As I swam back to the starting beach a few people went by the other way, the first of the cruise ship crowd that were entering the water as I left it.

freshwater pool and slide

From there we went to the freshwater pool, which had a waterslide, a waterfall, no turtles, and not many people. The slide was not as tall or as fast as the ones on the Carnival Breeze. Iguanas sunned themselves on the rock by the waterfall at that pool. Other iguanas and lizards large and small roamed the park freely and sunned themselves anywhere they liked. Little birds hung out at the edge of turtle ponds, stealing food from the little turtles and hoping some washed ashore from the bigger ones.

turtle in the snorkel lagoon

We had paid the $20 deposit for locker use, but since John decided not to go in the water we never actually used the lock since he watched our stuff while I snorkeled. We did remember to return the lock before we left though and got $17 back because they keep $3 as a locker rental fee whether you actually use the lock or not.

We only waited about 5 minutes before the bus came by when we decided to leave. Another couple was already under the tree waiting. Before returning to Georgetown the bus went through Hell, so anyone wanting to go there could get off and have a look around before going back to the ship if they had time. They would just have to pay another $2.50 each for the bus fare on the next ride.

marine park stairway to the sea in Georgetown

We had time after reaching Georgetown to walk down to Paradise Restaurant and look at the tarpon. John still had his swimming trunks on since he had decided not to swim with the turtles. He’s not nearly so fond of snorkeling as I am, but he can’t resist snorkeling with tarpon.

Tarpon Video

I’d already changed and figured he’d be done quicker than I could put my swimsuit back on (which he was) so I just stayed on shore while he went in to swim with the giant fish. Farther from shore they have coral reefs and more colorful fish, but it’s the tarpon he always wants to see. From the restaurant there is a stairway into the sea, which is a marine park. It’s free to snorkel there. Anyone who doesn’t have their own gear can rent it from the restaurant. They also have lockers available.

turtle in the snorkel lagoon at the turtle farm

More Adventures in Grand Cayman: Kittiwake Wreck and Reef Snorkel, Island Tour, Snorkeling with Tarpon, Grand Cayman.

Copyright My Cruise Stories 2016

Posted in Breeze, Caribbean, Carnival, Ports of Call, Shore Excursions | Tagged Grand Cayman, Grand Cayman Turtle Farm, on your own in port, photos, snorkel, snorkel with turtles, tarpon, Turtle Farm, turtles, videos | 6 Comments

How to Make a Towel Grinch

Posted on December 25, 2016 by LBcruiseshipblogger

How to Fold a Towel Grinch

towel Grinch

Supplies Needed to Make a Towel Grinch

Green Bath Towel Green Hand Towel Red Hand Towel

Construction Paper Green Pompom Small Santa Hat

Cotton

How to Fold a Towel Grinch Body

tightly roll both ends of bath towel to the center

For the towel grinch body start with one green bath towel. Lay towel out flat and tightly roll both sides to the center from the short end.

fold the rolled towel in half rolled side out and pull the inside tips out of the end of each roll

Fold rolled towel in half rolled sides out. Pull the tips out of the end of each roll.

take the tips of both ends of one roll in one hand and both ends of the other roll in the other hand and pull

take tips of both ends of one roll in one hand and both ends of the other roll in the other hand and pull

Take the tips from both ends of one roll in one hand and both ends of the other roll in the other hand.

towel Grinch body

Pull both sides at the same time until the towel pulls out into the arms and legs of a towel body.

place towel Grinch body in seated position and drape with red hand towel

Place towel body in seated position. Drape red hand towel over back of body and fold around the arms to make sleeves. Tuck any excess red towel under the body and legs.

How to Make a Towel Grinch Head

roll both sides together – you can keep both hands on the towel if you’re not taking photos

Hang center of one edge of long side of green hand towel on a hook or peg or tuck it under your chin. Adjust towel so both ends hang evenly. Tightly roll both sides to the center. Roll both sides together, keeping rolls as tight as possible from top to bottom.

set towel rolled side down, fold loose ends over top and roll from wide end

When finished, set towel down on a flat surface rolled side down. Fold the loose ends over the top of the towel and roll starting from the wide end of the towel. Tuck the pointy end in between the rolls. A towel rolled tightly enough will hold together on its own once the end is tucked.

tuck the pointy end in between the rolls

Make Grinch eyes from red, yellow, and black construction paper. Use double stick tape to attach eyes and pompom nose onto Grinch head. Set head onto Grinch body. Adjust red towel around head.

Finishing the Towel Grinchy Claus

Set small Santa hat on Grinch’s head. If you were unable to find a small enough hat fold a bigger one inside of itself to shrink it to size and use safety pins to hold it at the size you want. Put strips of cotton around the ends of the red towel sleeves and neckline to make a Santa coat. Pose Grinch as desired.

finished towel Grinch

More Christmas Towel Animals:

Towel Reindeer Towel Santa

For other towel animals see My Cruise Stories Towel Animal Page

Copyright My Cruise Stories 2016

Posted in Towel Animals | Tagged Christmas, Christmas towel animals, free towel animal folding instructions, grinch, Grinchy Claus, how to fold towel animals, photos, step by step, towel animal folding instructions, towel animals, towel grinch | 1 Comment

Tahiti Island Tour

Posted on December 23, 2016 by LBcruiseshipblogger

Exploring Tahiti From a Cruise Ship On Your Own

P&O Arcadia arrived in Papeete, Tahiti of the windward islands in French Polynesia on a rainy February day. We hadn’t made any specific plans for this port stop. We knew we could find a few things to see within walking distance of the ship if nothing else came up including an old cathedral, a municipal market, a pearl museum, or the ferry to Moorea Island. Exiting the ship we were handed a map highlighting a nearby pearl market so anyone looking for Tahitian pearls would not have far to go.

P&O Arcadia in Papeete, Tahiti

Tahiti is the largest of the 118 islands that make up French Polynesia. While before this trip I would look at the word Papeete and think it rhymed with Tahiti, all the ship’s announcements pronounced it as paw-pay-eh-tee. Whether that is how the locals and French say it or a British pronunciation I have no clue. Papeete is the capital of Tahiti. The two islands of Tahiti Nui and Tahiti Iti connect by a narrow isthmus to make the whole of Tahiti, an island created by volcanoes. Most of the towns and houses sit in an often narrow strip of lowlands ringing the jungle-covered mountainous interior. The larger cities sit in areas with a broader expanse of lowlands and sprawl up into the highlands as well.

View of Papeete, Tahiti from the ship

We were not sure if Tahiti would have the random local excursions you can get as you get off the ship like the Caribbean ports have, but sure enough there were a line of taxis and several people rounding up passengers for island tours. One outfit wanted $50 each for an open truck. We had heard of the local LeTruck busses. This was the same sort of bus on a flatbed truck type vehicle, but it was for cruise ship passengers only and not public transportation. It did have a cover over the top, but the next guy down the line had an enclosed and air conditioned bus and was offering tours for $40, both a better deal and a better option for a day with heavy showers on and off. We bargained him down to $35 each. Still more than these tours cost on most Caribbean islands, but things are expensive in Tahiti and the tour went around the entire big island and lasted over 4 hours.

map of Tahiti

French is the official language of Tahiti and some of the natives speak Tahitian as well. We had a guide who spoke perfect English, having lived in the USA for 10 years. Besides telling us about the things we saw along the way she also talked about different plants used for native medicines and the different fruits growing there. She said at one time everything including their homes had been made from coconut palms, but none of those houses are still around. She also said people get a longer jail sentence for selling drugs than for murder, although neither was all that long at 4 years for murder and 5 for selling marijuana. She spoke wistfully of living off the land as she grew up and sadly added that her grandchildren prefer McDonalds over native foods and store-bought skin care products over the homemade ones that she said work much better.

flowers from Tahiti’s botanical garden

While rain beat down on the roof of the bus our guide said that the rainy season was over. It’s not supposed to rain that time of year, but the climate has changed. Something we’ve heard over and over on many tours all over the world in the last few years. Whatever the current weather is doing is not supposed to happen at that season or time of the year.

Lighthouse at Point Venus

First we stopped at Point Venus, so named because Captain Cook went there to study the movements of the planet Venus in hopes of gaining better knowledge of the earth’s distance from the sun. Point Venus was where all the early European ships landed including Louis de Bougainville who claimed Tahiti for France and Captain Bligh with the HMS Bounty of Mutiny on the Bounty fame. The mutiny happened not long after leaving Tahiti. Point Venus has the only lighthouse on Tahiti, built out of coral in 1867.

surfers at Point Venus unbothered by on and off rain and a jellyfish warning sign

Then we made a quick stop at a local grocery store where people could pick up drinks and snacks. Local currency is the French Pacific Frank, but most places are happy to accept American dollars or credit cards.

rooster in Tahiti

The island has a lot of chickens running around and we saw a couple random dogs as well. Anytime we walked through a forested area John said he was under attack from biting bugs, but I had a bounce dryer sheet in my pocket. Not one bug bothered me all day and normally I’m the one with the most bites. Dryer sheets really do make great bug repellent. Bonus – no chemical bug spray and you can still use it in the dryer. I’m not sure if one kind works any better than another, but I had a Bounce Free unscented.

tunnel past the blowholes and turnout to the tour stop

Next we stopped at the Ara Ahoaho blow holes, something we had wanted to see. I saw a photo on the internet before we came that showed the blow hole spewing seawater across a road, but apparently that was an old picture. Now a tunnel bypasses that road and the blow holes have their own tourist stop with a pathway where the road was and a lookout to another blow hole next to the sea.

where the road used to be

There’s a bit of the old road remaining beyond a fence. The hole makes a bit of noise before it sprays. Now and then it sprayed a decent amount, but most of its efforts during our brief stop were rather pathetic.

the blowhole was more mist than water while we were there

Stormy seas or perhaps a higher tide would make a far more impressive show, although there was enough wave action that day to have surfers out on every beach we saw. After viewing the blowholes with dry skies a downpour came just in time to soak everyone before getting back on the bus.

waterfall at the botanical garden

Luckily it stopped raining by the time we got to our next stop at a Botanical Garden. It is home to the Gaugin museum, but the museum is closed for renovations and has been for about 3 years. Our guide said they ran out of money to finish and reopen. The garden is still open and has a pretty sizeable waterfall and lots of pretty flowers. An eel swam about near a bridge by the waterfall.

biggest of the water caves

Next we visited the water caves. These are high-ceilinged grottos in the side of a mountain with water at the bottom. Water also dripped from the top, but it was a rainy day so that may not always be the case. The largest one had its own mist emanating from the dark depths of its water-filled floor. Actually I have no idea whether it is deep or not, but definitely dark.

this back of a pyramid was the only part of the temple still standing any higher than the platform

Our last stop brought us to the site of an ancient Polynesian temple made from lava stones. It is mostly platforms now, many of the stones having been carted off to build a cotton plantation nearby. It’s still an impressive site though. The stone platforms cover quite a large area. One had a short wall from what may once have been a room and another had one pyramid-like wall still standing.

small statue and platform in front of the pyramid

Carved statues sat at the entrance, and another much smaller one on a pole by the last platform with the pyramid wall. Our guide mentioned the islander’s original religion having a god of war to whom they made human sacrifices, a god of peace to whom they gave animals and produce, and a goddess of fertility. Probably why there were three platforms. Missionaries of the 1800’s came to convert the islanders to Christianity and now churches from a variety of denominations dot the island.

The guide warned us to mind our valuables should we decide to stroll through town because unemployment is about 10% and thieves will sometimes go by on bicycles and grab purses and things right off of people.

Things To Do When Visiting Tahiti as a Cruise Port

Shore Excursions

The excursions offered through our ship were: Tahiti Sightseeing tour by bus, Tahiti Sightseeing tour by helicopter, Dolphin Watch, and Mountain Safari by Jeep.

On Your Own

Things within walking distance of the cruise ship dock: Black Pearl Museum, Ferry to Moorea, Bougainville Park, Place Tarahoi government buildings, Cathedrale de L’Immaculee Conception (Tahiti’s oldest Catholic church), Marché Municipale (public market), City Hall, Shops, Restaurants.

Venturing farther:

Taxi or bus tour, Visit the tourist information booth at the port for current options, Travel the Island by local bus. Privately Arranged tours pre-booked on the internet.

Copyright My Cruise Stories 2016

Posted in Arcadia, P&O, Pacific Ocean & Islands, Ports of Call | Tagged blow hole, cruise, French Polynesia, island tour, Pacific Islands, Papeete, photos, Tahiti, travel | Leave a comment

Cruise Ship Cabins on Carnival Vista

Posted on December 16, 2016 by LBcruiseshipblogger

Vista in Malta

Carnival Vista has all the usual cabin categories – inside, oceanview, balcony, suites, and spa cabins. It also has two brand new categories not available on any of Carnival’s previous ships – Family Harbor and Havana.

Low budget cruising – inside cabin that sleeps 4

The most affordable cabins are the regular inside cabins. Inside cabins are also the least expensive way to upgrade yourself to special locations on the ship. You can find inside cabins in the spa, Havana, and Family Harbor areas so they are the cheapest option to book there and take advantage of the unique perks each of those locations have to offer.

this porthole cabin is called upper lower because it has one real bed and one couch bed

There are even some cabins that book as inside but have a view – the porthole cabins and the obstructed view cabins at the bow. There aren’t many of those though so you have to book early to get one. Inside cabins with just one regular bed are called upper lower whether the second bed is a bunk or a couch bed and are the lowest priced cabins on the ship even though some have portholes.

spa oceanview cabin

Oceanview cabins provide more space and a view without breaking the bank. These cabins are found on exterior areas of the ship in places where balconies can’t go, mainly on lower decks. Some of the ocean view cabins are among the largest cabins on the ship other than suites. Vista doesn’t have very many regular ocean view cabins though. Most are deluxe ocean view which have an extra bathroom with tub and sink and of course cost more.

Family Harbor oceanview cabin sleeps 5

Ocean view cabins are also available in the Family Harbor and Spa areas. Some ocean view cabins in the Family Harbor area hold 5 people.

spa balcony cabin is the same as a regular one except the colors and the perks

Balcony cabins give the occupants their own little bit of private outdoor space. Vista has some cove balconies on deck 2 as well as the regular balconies higher up.

cove balcony from Family Harbor suite is 1 1/2 times the size of a regular cove balcony

Cove balconies have a close to the water view from a metal surround with watertight doors that lock down in stormy weather and can be found both as ordinary rooms and in the Family Harbor area. Regular balconies on higher decks have a view through the plexiglass fully across the verenda. Balcony staterooms are also available in the Havana and Spa areas.

Grand Suites are the biggest accommodations on the ship

The most luxurious accommodations are found in the suites. The ocean suites start the suite category, and for ever increasing prices passengers can move up to Family Harbor, Cloud 9 Spa, Havana, or the extra spacious grand suite. Besides bigger rooms most suites have larger balconies, whirlpool tubs, and come with extra perks like VIP boarding.

spa suite

Spa cabins and suites are decorated in soothing colors and come with spa products for use on board, special spa bathrobes and slippers, unlimited use of the thermal suite, priority spa reservations, free fitness classes, and exclusive spa discounts.

Family Harbor inside cabin

Family Harbor cabins are decorated in a nautical theme. They come with access to the exclusive Family Harbor lounge which is open 24 hours. The lounge has board games, video games, concierge service, breakfast and snacks. Kids from Family Harbor rooms eat free in the specialty restaurants and get one night of free Night Owls babysitting at Camp Ocean.

Havana Cabana Suite

Havana cabins have their own Cuban style decor specific to those cabins and are all located at the back of the ship on decks 5, 6, and 7 near the Havana Bar and the Havana pool. Havana cabins have exclusive use of the Havana pool at the back of deck 5 during daytime hours.

Havana Cabana

Havana Cabana rooms have a large lanai on the promenade deck and private access to an exclusive area of the promenade deck from their cabanas. Havana Cabana suites feature rainshowers instead of the whirlpool tubs found in other suites. All guests in Havana cabins must be at least 12 years old.

Havana Cabanas have a walkway on the promenade deck gated off for just those cabins

Some staterooms throughout the ship have connecting doors so families or other guests traveling together can book more than one room and have access to both rooms from within. Wheelchair accessible rooms are also found in a variety of categories although it may be necessary to call or book through an agent to get one because they aren’t always offered online.

launderette on the Vista

Like all Carnival ships, the Vista has self-serve passenger laundries.

inside cabin 6328 is more square than the average cabin and accessed from a third hallway

To view staterooms on other ships, see the Ships and Cabins page.

Copyright My Cruise Stories 2016

Posted in Carnival, Vista | Tagged accommodations, cabin with bunks, cabins, Carnival, cruise ship, Family Harbor cabin, Havana cabana, Havana cabin, Staterooms, Suites, Vista | 2 Comments

Celebrity’s Lobster Murano Recipe

Posted on December 9, 2016 by LBcruiseshipblogger

Infinity in Cartagena

While the name SS United States sounds like this specialty restaurant on the Celebrity Infinity would serve American food, it actually had upscale French cuisine. Maybe this confusion led to their decision to replace this restaurant with an Italian place because a couple weeks after our cruise the ship went into drydock and that was one of the things that changed.

entrance to the SS United States restaurant on the Infinity

For bargain hunters on the Infinity, specialty restaurants have a discount on port days. They also had a package where you can book a meal at each of their 3 specialty restaurants without regard to port or sea days and save money over what each cost individually.

places set at a table for 2

SS United States had white tablecloths on tables set with silver plates. Décor included backlit blue and white artwork of sea creatures along one wall and large portholes with wooden slates that resemble open blinds on the wall opposite. Tables for two lined the windows with larger tables in the interior. Likely the décor changed along with the name and type of food served.

menu at SS United States

The menu had options for a five course wine and food pairing with a set menu of two options each course paired with a glass of wine. That option had an additional charge over the regular cover charge for the restaurant (to cover the cost of the wine I suppose). The other side of the menu offered ala carte with more food choices for the starters and main and a separate dessert menu. You could order whatever food you want from that side without adding any extra charges over the basic fee. The ala cart menu included the food choices from the other side as well as additional options. Wine still cost extra.

Spinach Salad

I ordered spinach salad and lobster tails. My husband chose cappuccino mushroom soup, scallop Wellington, and he had the lobster tails as well. Since he had ordered one more starter than me they brought a small taste of green apple sorbet for me so I’d have something while he ate that course. Green apple sorbet tasted a lot better than that sounds. It was actually quite good and had the texture of homemade sorbet.

cooking lobster tableside

This specialty restaurant prepared some menu items tableside. It was also the only place onboard allowed to have an open flame, both in the candles on the tables and in cooking on the portable burners they bring tableside and flambé dishes like the lobster. Our waiter brought out the cooking cart with each ingredient in a separate little dish. He showed us the sauce ingredients and said if there was anything among them that we didn’t want he could leave that item off.

lobster flambé

He sautéed the lobster tails in butter and olive oil, adding things like bacon and garlic to the pan. At one point he poured brandy over it and perhaps dropped a bit on the burner as well since he got the flame to jump from there into the pan. Amazing how the flame burns over the alcohol making the food in the pan appear as if it is on fire, yet the food itself has no burned look or taste at all.

lobster dinner plated and ready to eat

After the flame burned out he added the creamy Dijon sauce and other ingredients from his little bowls and then served the garnished lobster on plates under a silver dome alongside fancy vegetables over mashed potatoes.

the waiter adds sauce to the soufflé

The dessert menu included a couple soufflés. I tried the dark chocolate, my husband the Grand Marnier. The chocolate one had a mocha sauce listed on the menu, but since I don’t like coffee or anything coffee flavored I asked if I could have the vanilla sauce from the other soufflé instead. The waiter said that was fine, but he thought it was better with vanilla ice cream so while he put the requested sauce on the dessert, he also brought out a dish of ice cream as an option. Since it was there I tried a bit of it with the dessert and he was right that the two worked very well together.

The food, service, and dining experience in the SS United States were all wonderful, so I can only hope the new Italian place they replaced it with is just as special.

Lobster Murano recipe from SS United States

Amounts of the ingredients of this recipe are to taste and nothing has to be specific. Somewhere around 2 tablespoons of each of the veggies and bacon works well with 4 lobster tails.

Ingredients

4 lobster tails, shelled and deveined

Olive oil

Butter

Bacon, cut into small pieces

Shiitake mushrooms

Shallots

Garlic

About 1 cup heavy cream

Dijon mustard to taste

Parmesan cheese

Chopped tomatoes concasse (no seeds or skin)

Chopped chives

brandy

Directions

Heat pan, grease with butter and coat with olive oil. Add 4 lobster tails. Add bacon, mushrooms, shallot and garlic to pan. Stir veggies frequently and flip lobster tails partway through cooking. Pour a bit of brandy over the lobster and flambé. When fire is out add the cream sauce, which is the heavy cream with dijon added per your taste. The cream sauce should reduce and thicken some while cooking and stirring for a few minutes. Add the chopped tomato insides and parmesan cheese and stir. Plate lobster and scoop sauce over top. Garnish with chopped chives and serve.

Copyright My Cruise Stories 2016

Posted in Celebrity, Cruise Food, Infinity, recipes | Tagged Celebrity, cruise food, cruise ship recipe, fine dining, French cusine, Infinity, lobster murano recipe, photos, travel | 3 Comments

Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau

Posted on December 2, 2016 by LBcruiseshipblogger

boardwalk by Ruby Princess in Juneau

Ruby Princess arrived in Juneau at lunchtime after an early morning glacier watching cruise through Endicott Arm as a substitute for nearby Tracy Arm, the entry to which had been blocked by ice bergs. Lunchtime is not the best time for a cruise ship to arrive in port. The ship was a madhouse of passengers eager to disembark. The line to the gangway snaked all the way from one end of the ship to the other and back again before the ropes even secured the ship to the dock, long before the door opened to let anyone out.

Mendenhall Glacier visitor’s center

My sisters and I decided that rather than stand in that very long line for ages getting more frustrated by the minute we would go up to the Lido buffet and take a lunch break, after which the line to the exit would not be nearly so long. So instead of standing around griping about lines for the next half hour or so we relaxed with a good lunch and then walked right off the ship just behind the tail end of that formerly long line without having to wait. We probably got off fairly close to the same time we would have anyway, but with our time much better spent.

trail from the visitor’s center to the waterfall

Princess has their own dock in Juneau now, new since last I was there. It’s just a short way down a boardwalk from where the Holland America ships dock near the Mount Roberts tram station at the center of the touristy area of town. Instead of the expected people with signs for last minute tours we had seen on our last visit, there were booths next to the tram building. Several different companies have busses out to Mendenhall glacier among other excursions they offer. You have to buy a round trip ticket at the booth because they aren’t allowed to sell them out by the glacier which means you have to return with the same bus company you go there with. The city bus costs less, but its closest stop is over a mile away from the visitor’s center so saving money over what the busses directly to the glacier cost involves a long walk.

Mendenhall Glacier

From either the ship or the booths, the activity that gets people closest to the face of the glacier is a canoe excursion on Mendenhall Lake. On our cruise it would have been about $30 cheaper to book the canoe last minute on the dock, but not everyone wanted to spend that much money so we just went with the bus to the glacier visitor’s center. From there you can hike a trail out to Nugget Falls and to a closer view of the glacier – which gets slightly farther away each year as the glacier recedes. The glacier views both from the visitor’s center and the trail are still good for now though.

Nugget Falls near Mendenhall Glacier

The visitor’s center restroom down at the trailhead has something I’ve never seen before – a sink with a faucet that both washes and dries. We hiked out to the falls, which is the closest to the glacier you can get without taking the canoe excursion or some sort of helicopter excursion that puts you on top the glacier. I’ve always wanted to do the one that takes you dogsledding for real out on a snowy glacier, but since it takes a helicopter to get there that excursion is just way too expensive for me. The ships do offer a wheeled dogsled on trails for a price I’d pay for a real dog sled on snow, but more than I’d pay for what it is.

you can dry your hands when you finish washing without ever leaving the sink

On the way back we took a side trip down another trail which went past a large hole in a rock with a sign that said the waterfall had dug that hole back in the days when it came straight out of the face of the glacier on that spot. Farther back in history than that Mendenhall Lake did not exist. The entire area that is now lake was once underneath the glacier. Back then people drove right up to it. Probably not the safest thing to do should they be standing next to it when a piece broke off. Pieces do break off and dot the lake with little ice bergs. I suppose the canoes have to watch out for that.

river by the trail

We were there on a warm day, but it still got cold out by the glacier. The visitor’s center has several displays, a gift shop, and a 15 minute movie. They also had a TV which showed the recession of the glacier over the last 10 or so years. I don’t remember the exact number. The visitor’s center also has several glacier viewpoints in and near the center as well as the viewpoints on the trail. The trail out to the waterfall is the most used trail there, but it does have other trails available for anyone who wishes to hike them. The trail out to the falls is mostly level and wide enough people on scooters had no trouble getting out to the falls. We saw several scooters there.

a small ice berg floats by Mendenhall Glacier

You can take excursions from the ship that stop at the glacier visitor’s center, but besides costing more you don’t get as much time to spend there because they will go somewhere else as well. We stopped by on a previous visit after a tour of the lovely Glacier Gardens and had to choose between a brief trek to the falls or going inside the center.

Other Juneau Blogs:

Juneau

Zipline

Mount Roberts Tram

Mount Roberts Tram on a stormy day

Glacier Gardens

River Raft Excursion

Mendenhall Glacier

Copyright My Cruise Stories 2016

Posted in Alaska, Port Cities, Ports of Call, Princess, Ruby Princess | Tagged Alaska, bus to Mendenhall Glacier, cruise, glacier visitor's center, Juneau, Juneau cruise port, Juneau on your own, Mendenhall Glacier, photos, Princess, travel | Leave a comment

Swimming With Horses For Real

Posted on November 25, 2016 by LBcruiseshipblogger

Breeze in Montego Bay Jamaica

While looking online for something to do when Carnival Breeze stopped in Montego Bay, Jamaica, I came across a horse ride and swim at Half Moon Equestrian Center. This is the stable at Jamaica’s biggest and oldest resort. Half Moon Resort is a beautiful place residing behind massive iron gates. Several months prior to my cruise I contacted them by email, wanting to make sure these horses would truly swim. I tried a cruise line horse swimming excursion once at Half Moon Cay in the Bahamas and the horses just trotted through the water instead of the promised swim. While the name sounds similar, the ride is not. Trina the stable manager assured me these horses go out in water 20 or more feet deep where they do indeed swim for real. I reserved a ride for the date our ship came to Jamaica, reconfirming before we set sail. We had to get to the stable on our own and they would return us to the ship from there.

Half Moon Equestrian Center at Half Moon Resort – Montego Bay, Jamaica

The stable sits just 11 miles from the cruise port so we expected to take a taxi for around $20 or so. We felt quite shocked at the port’s taxi line when they said the taxi cost $70. That was considerably more than we had ever imagined. Because Carnival stayed on Miami time, which is an hour ahead of Jamaica time, we had a bit of time to spare before our scheduled ride time so we waited around a bit in hopes someone else wanted to go to that area in a shared taxi, but no-one came by who did. One taxi driver said to go over to a nearby bus as they may be able to take us for less. The bus said they were going right by there and could take us for $20 each so we got on. If we had not had much time to spare before we were due at the stable for the ride we would have had to take the taxi, but since we still had over an hour to get there for our 10:00am ride the bus worked.

John on Romeo in the arena. The thing in his hand is a video camera on a pole, not a whip.

The bus went a short distance, then stopped while the guide tried to talk the majority of people who had got on for a $7 ride to town into taking a $30 island tour instead. As it sat there while the lady talked about stopping here, there, and everywhere we worried we might not make it to the stable on time. Finally the bus moved. It stopped at a beach where people can pay to stay for the day and quite a few got off. Then it moved on to a nicer beach where several others left. After that things moved quickly and the people who stayed on for the tour got to go behind the iron gate and see Half Moon Resort, something the guide said she had seen only a couple times before after living in the area all her life. At the hotel they told the bus driver where to drop us off for the stable. We walked down a short path from the road to the stable, arriving with about half an hour to spare.

Riding to the beach with the guide.

The stable held many thoroughbred horses, mostly former racehorses or jumpers. Thoroughbreds tend to look lean. I had one once and no matter how much that horse ate (which was considerably more than any of my other horses) his ribs still showed, even living in a pasture full of grass. When riding rental horses in the USA they always wear western saddles. These were saddled with English saddles when the time came for our ride. I rode English for years when I had my own horses and English saddles are more suited to Thoroughbreds than western so we were fine with that. Jamaica once belonged to England. They drive on the left side of the road too.

Dolphin Jumping

They had a mounting block with stairs for these tall horses, so it’s easy to get on even for people who have never ridden before. Once mounted we rode around an arena for a bit to get familiar with the horses. They had one guide to each rider. I had a horse named Wesley and John had one called Romeo. After a bit we set off across a field, down a path, and on a road to the beach. We stopped by their dolphin swimming area to watch the dolphin trainers work with the dolphins a bit. They swam on their backs waving fins, went head down and waved their tails, then jumped out of the water.

After watching dolphins for a bit we rode to the swimming area where we were joined by a few other riders and their guides. While the riders stripped down to swimming suits the guides unsaddled the horses – and stripped down to their swimming suits as well. They offered to carry our cameras and take photos while we were out in the water so we could just have fun and still have photos when we got done. While normally I never let my camera out of my hand I decided to let the guide take it. I much regretted that when I ended up with mostly just photos of me, most of which didn’t even show the horse. He did get a few good snippets of video though. I suppose he’s used people wanting photos of themselves since selfies seem to be the thing with a lot of people these days.

Riding on the Beach

Another mounting block made getting on the horses easy even without saddles. Then they said to hold one hand on the reins and the other on the mane until the horse started to swim, at which time they wanted both hands on the mane, one above and one below the reins and then when they said to, let go of the reins. I could ride bareback without falling off, but they are accustomed to people who don’t ride and want to keep them safe so I just followed their instructions and held onto the mane to keep the guides happy. They clipped a lead rope to each horse, no explanation needed once the horses started to swim.

Heading out into the water

The horses walked out into the water going deeper and deeper. The guides warned people to pick up their feet, the reason becoming obvious when the lead horse picked up its tail and pooped. Once it all floated by putting legs in the water was fine if keeping a watch on the tails of any horses in front of you. When we got deep enough that the their hooves no longer reached the ground the guides asked us to lay flat over their backs, hold the mane, and let go the reins. That way we floated along rather then the horses having to carry our weight while they swam. Next they had us slide off their backs and grab the tail, the reason why each horse needed a leadline as the guides now had to control both their horse and their rider’s while swimming beside them. Most horses can swim a short distance with a rider on their back, but not for as long as we spent swimming with these so by having the rider float behind holding the tail the horses only had to keep themselves afloat.

Wesley Swimming

The horses kept their heads out of the water and the hindquarters would sometimes surface, though mostly stayed under along with their backs and rest of the body. From back at the tail it was pretty easy to see that Wesley liked to swim with one side of his hindquarters higher than the other so if his rear broke the surface at all it was usually just on one side.

In this short horse swimming video there are bits where you can see how their legs and feet move under the water while they swim

After swimming around in the deep water for awhile and doing donuts a bit we headed back to the shore. Horses expend a lot of energy swimming and can’t keep it up forever. As they started approaching shallower water we slipped back up to their backs again, which is pretty easy to do from the tail when you are in the water behind a swimming horse wearing a float around your waist. Once their feet reached solid ground we were all in position to sit up on their backs again while they walked to the shore.

Horse Corral on the Beach

We had brought towels and underwear, but since those things were back at the stable we just put our clothes back on over the wet swimming suits. The horses had some time to rest in the corral on the beach before getting saddled back up to ride back to the stable. The others that joined us for the swim were staying at the hotel and all remained on the beach while we rode back to the stable. One of the guides said he had worked for Chukka before and that their horse “swim” in Jamaica went deep enough for the front hooves to leave the ground, but not the back ones so I’m glad we did not book a ride through the ship.

Leaving the Water

While we waited for the van to come and take us back to the ship one of the people at the stable showed us a table of handmade things they had for sale. The artist sat next to the table weaving a basket. She did nice work with wooden figurines as well as a variety of woven items. It wouldn’t be Jamaica without someone trying to sell you something, but unlike vendors at the tourist attractions these people were not aggressive about it. On the way back in the van we saw all sorts of street vendors taking the name literally and standing in the middle of the street trying to sell things to passing cars. Seems like quite a dangerous way to make a living.

View from the horse’s back

Although getting there was a bit of a hassle, truly swimming horses in the ocean for awhile was an amazing experience and well worth the trouble. We much appreciated the ride back from the stable. The driver even stopped at a viewpoint along the way where we could take a few photos of the ship. If ever you find yourself heading for Montego Bay, I’d highly recommend this ride. Just make sure to make arrangements in advance at www.horsebackridingjamaica.com.

A port is what you make of it. A lot of people don’t like Jamaica, but we’ve always had fun there and this was one of the best excursions we’ve ever done. If I ever go back to Montego Bay I’ll do it again. Jamaica has 3 cruise ship ports. In addition to this one at Montego Bay, ships also stop at Ocho Rios and Falmouth.

Other Jamaica Blogs:

Jamaican Bobsled Roller Coaster at Mystic Mountain (Ocho Rios)

Dunn’s River Falls (Ocho Rios)

Jamaican River Tube (Falmouth)

Zip Line at Good Hope Estate (Falmouth)

Posted in Breeze, Caribbean, Carnival, Ports of Call, Shore Excursions | Tagged cruise, fun, Half Moon Equestrian Center, Half Moon Stable, horse swimming video, horseback swim, independent excursions, Jamaica, photos, shore excursions on your own, travel, video | 10 Comments

Interview with John Heald – Gratuities

Posted on November 24, 2016 by LBcruiseshipblogger

Vista in New York from the deck of the Intrepid, underneath the Concorde

Cruising in America normally means gratuities will be added to your onboard account, unless you pre-paid them. This money goes to the hard-working crew who spend 10 hours daily for months in a row often with no days off making other people’s vacations special. For many years most passengers have just considered this as part of the cost of the cruise and rarely ever removed them – as they should because the crew depends upon earning that money. Lately though a trend of removing tips has emerged. Whether these people are greedy, selfish, or just don’t understand the process, it’s disturbing because every tip removed is that much less earned by a crew who has to work harder every day for those diminishing wages. Odds are the people who remove tips would be the first to raise a ruckus if someone had the power to remove part of their wages and did so. The daily gratuity goes to far more people than just the stateroom stewards and dining room waiters.

Carnival spokesperson John Heald

On a recent cruise on the Vista we had a chance to interview Carnival spokesperson John Heald on his thoughts about gratuities. John’s assistant Jacinta (who was bar crew herself not so long ago) gave a very passionate plea for why people should never remove their tips. Unfortunately it was after we turned the camera off and she didn’t want to say it again on film. She said if people remove their tips to punish a less than stellar steward or waiter it’s not that person they hurt so much as it is the chef who cooked their food, the laundry crew who washed their towels, the lido and dining room staff, and many others around the ship who have families counting on them for support.

Some people say they remove the tips so they can pay in cash, but that’s just an excuse to be cheap because most of them give back far less than they took away, plus it just goes to one or two people that way and everyone else gets left out. It’s always nice to tip a good waiter or steward extra. Cash tips are always appreciated, but should be given in addition to and not instead of the cruise line’s gratuities. Think about how you would feel if someone took away a portion of your paycheck. Never remove the gratuities. We always leave something extra. Most of the time they absolutely deserve it, but even on the rare occasion when the service wasn’t up to par we leave something extra anyway. You never know when someone might be new and struggling or if a waiter or steward’s workload just increased and they haven’t yet adjusted, or what else is going on in their life.

The following is from a post John Heald put on his facebook page a couple weeks after we did the interview. He was on the Vista cruise following the one we had taken at the time.

Good morning everyone from our last day of this Carnival Journey cruise. These last few days the weather has been superb but today as New York approaches it has become suddenly grey, overcast, wet and rather chilly.

It has been a great Journey cruise and even after the loss of Amber Cove because of bad weather and serious flooding in the port the guests have had I think a superb time. Loads and loads of great comments have been given to me and my colleagues about the crew, the fun, the extra activities and events that make up a Journey cruise and of course the Carnival Vista herself. Yep, the ship is a winner and I have a feeling that when she homeports in Miami she will head straight to the top of the Carnival fleet rating charts.

I realise that things change over the years, not just in this cruise industry we all love but in the world we live in. However, there are changes that puzzle me and one is a minefield I may be a total blithering chubby grey haired hemorrhoid ridden idiot for walking through. If I go back 5 – 10 years ago the amount of guests who removed their gratuities was miniscule.

That has changed. It has changed at Carnival and it has changed on other cruise lines as well. I know this because I was discussing this very subject with a dining room employee who had 5 years in the same position at another cruise line that has a wall you can climb up……………..”its the same there,” he said.

Now a large dollop of people who remove their gratuities do pay those that have served them in cash for which we are very grateful. However, some do not and when asked if they have received bad service the answer is most always” no, not at all.”

Tipping is a personal thing, the service from our crew is still outstanding with our ratings based on your comments and reviews showing that they exceed your expectations. They are fun, they are dedicated and they make a great cruise and absolutely brilliant one. So what then has changed, have we as a society become harsher, less giving, less willing to reward others?

I don’t know the answer but I do know that I thank every single one of you who does give our crew a gratuity and on behalf of their families who they work so hard to support, the crew thank you too.

The guests have had the best of times and these Journey cruises continue to be ones that I hope we continue.

Cheers, have a brilliant day and I wish you could have been here.

Unfortunately quite a few of the comments on that bit mention that it is because of changing attitudes and feelings of entitlement in today’s society. It that’s the case things are likely to just get worse.

If you have the privilege of taking a cruise remember the crew are people too. They work very hard to insure you have a good time. They deserve every cent of the gratuities, and if you can leave a little extra so much the better.

More Interviews with John Heald

Left Behind on a Cruise

Best Places on Carnival Breeze

Life on a Cruise Ship and Carnival Funships 2.0

Carnival Breeze Things to Do and Best Kept Secrets

Rescue at Sea

Quick Fire Questions

American Table

Posted in Carnival, Shipboard Life, Vista | 2 Comments

Cruising Across the Pacific Ocean

Posted on November 18, 2016 by LBcruiseshipblogger

P&O Arcadia somewhere in the Pacific Ocean

Our 21-day transpacific cruise on the P&O Arcadia began in Valparaiso, Chile. As one leg of a world cruise the boarding process differs a bit from ordinary cruises where the whole ship changes over to a new cruise. Only some passengers stay on for the entire voyage on a world cruise, which in this case took nearly 4 months crossing both the Pacific and Atlantic oceans twice. Other passengers come and go at various points along the way. Some like us take just one leg of the cruise and others take more.

The cruise terminal in Valparaiso looks so like much abandoned building from the outside that we thought it was one. It is not near the dock, which is in a container port. You check in at the terminal near the public pier and then get bused to the ship. People already on board took the same buses from the ship to the terminal whether they were disembarking or just off on shore excursions or exploring on their own for the day. Valparaiso is famous for its street art murals on many buildings and the old funiculars on its steep hillsides.

view of Valparaiso from one of its funiculars

Most cruises allow people to check in before boarding time and then wait in the terminal until time to board. On this one they did not open the check-in line until just before the boarding time and the people working there were from the ship rather than port employees. They also had no VIP boarding which ships normally have for passengers who have high standings in their loyalty programs or who have booked suites. Things work differently on a world cruise.

Our first night on the ship brought waves high enough to rock the boat all night. Far from not sleeping, it’s like being a baby getting rocked to sleep in a cradle. In the morning there were containers of barf bags by the elevators and some people took them so either they just wanted to be prepared or some felt queasy. The sea calmed down later in the day and we had good weather throughout most of the cruise.

Meridian Restaurant (aka the dining room)

This was our first time sailing with a British cruise line. Arcadia is quite a nice ship and is designated for adults only. We normally opt for dining where you have a time range in which you can show up, which is called by a different name on different lines. Things like your time or anytime dining. On this ship there was an extra charge for that. We booked on a discount site not long before the ship sailed and the freedom dining as it is called on P&O was probably already full as it was not even offered as an option. On cruises with lots of ports we prefer the flexibility of the freedom dining, but on long ocean crossings it’s nice to eat with the same people every night and make new onboard friends. Sometimes they become facebook friends and stay in contact after the cruise.

menu from one night’s dinner – it changes daily

We had a table for 6 with an Australian and a British couple. Sometimes we didn’t recognize things on the menu, but the food was usually good and the English couple was always happy to explain unfamiliar foods like bubble and squeak or syllabub. We were about 2/3 of the way through the cruise before we realized our waiter didn’t like chocolate as he never recommended anything chocolate to a table full of chocoholics when asked for an opinion on the best dessert of the evening. On this ship after the regular dessert they always brought out a little plate with a bite-sized goodie for everyone with the after-dinner tea.

P&O Arcadia balcony cabin

We had a balcony cabin on deck 5 this cruise. I’ve gotten so used to being a bottom dweller I sometimes would head down to the lower decks out of habit when I should have gone up. A deck near the middle is great for cruises with a lot of sea days because it’s never very many decks up or down to get anywhere. We enjoyed having a balcony again too.

hydrotherapy pool which is part of the thermal package from the spa

Even though it was expensive we signed up for thermal package. It’s a real back saver on such a long voyage and we used it every day. They don’t have any spa cabins so only people who bought the thermal package could use the hydro pool, heated ceramic chairs, or aromatherapy steam room. They were never crowded except the one day when we skipped a port due to weather. People must have treated themselves to a one day pass that day since they missed their excursions. When the sea got a bit rough the water level in the pool always got lowered, but they filled it up again when it calmed. The pool is definitely nicer with more water in it.

One of the ship’s officers calls this picture creepy cat lady and avoids this stairway because of it

Each of the ship’s three stairways has a different color carpet and a different sort of artwork to help people know where they are within the ship.

The ship always had group of temporary entertainers on board to keep passengers busy throughout the long crossing. They had guest lecturers daily with topics as diverse as computer security, birds, mystery writers and antiques during the time we spent on board. They had two speakers at a time and changed them in Tahiti along with some other temporary entertainers.

Passengers can also participate in art, Spanish, or bridge lessons from other guest entertainers who stayed for the entire cruise. Each day brought a number of games conducted by the ship’s own entertainment staff. Music, dancing, and dance lessons figure into the daily offerings as well as nightly theater shows from outside entertainers like comedians or musicians or the ship’s own cast with song and dance productions.

moai on Easter Island (photo from The Genius of Ancient Man)

The fifth of our 9 sea days in a row after leaving Chile brought us past Easter Island. Some of the moai the island is famous for were just visible from the ship. We sailed past one side of the island, then turned and sailed by another side before turning away and continuing on towards Tahiti.

We enjoyed the view from the ship throughout the voyage. It mostly consisted of a lot of blue, blue water often topped by mini whitecaps. Out in the distance we could see the curve of the earth making it easy to understand how ancient people who thought the earth was flat would think they could fall off the edge if they got too close. The ship’s passage churned the water right next to and behind it to white or lighter blue. Now and then flying fish jumped out of the way, gliding above the water’s surface like little birds until they felt safe enough to disappear back into the water’s depths. White fluffy clouds often broke up the blue of the sky, a lighter shade than the sapphire blue water.

whitewater churned up by the ship’s passage

Sunshine graced most of our days, though we did have a few gray and rainy ones. The air temperature became noticeably warmer as we approached the island jewels of French Polynesia, but the weather that stayed so nice throughout much of our time at sea was not so cooperative for some of our ports.

Unfortunately we missed our port stop at Bora Bora due to stormy weather. I had really looked forward to snorkeling there, but better a missed port than the ship hitting a reef. We had 70mph winds that night with pretty high seas. The barf bags appeared by the elevators again. Some people did stay to their cabins, but plenty of people were out and about and feeling fine. Growing up I was always the one to get carsick, seasick, or sick on rides, but so far I have never been seasick on a cruise ship.

On board we discovered a new game called deck quoits. New to us anyway, not to the British that made up the majority of the ship’s passengers. It’s similar to the bean bag toss AKA cornhole played on some American ships. Instead of tossing bean bags at a little stand with holes in it, rope donuts get tossed toward a target painted on the deck with very specific rules about scoring. People could play on their own most of the time, but twice daily they held a very popular competition.

deck quoits

The first few times I never made it out of the first bracket (in other words never won a game) but then one day I made it all the way to the finals. They randomly assign partners so you are paired with someone different each game. Besides being a way to meet new people, it also keeps the ones who are dead serious about the game and really good at it from always pairing up with each other. My partner hadn’t made it to the finals yet this cruise and I hadn’t even made it out of the first bracket yet, but we managed to hold our own against a pair who had each won several times, only losing the final by a few points. I was just happy that I managed to score some points in each game.

I got 5 points in one go once, but at that point we only needed 2 for the win so it would have been better if I could have thrown like that when we really needed it like my partner did a couple times. In deck quoits the ladies get to throw from a line closer to the target than the men and teams are normally one man and one woman, but if more of one sex showed up than the other a team or two ended up both the same.

On our last day I had a team with another woman. Once again we made it to the finals – only this time my team won! I guess I’m an all or nothing gal because when I made it past the first bracket I made it to the finals. I even scored the winning points to end the game, winning my first and only gold sticker of the cruise. On the last day before disembarking they have a prize room set up for half an hour where passengers can exchange their stickers for prizes. The more stickers you win the better prizes you can choose. The British lady we had dinner with also went to the deck quoits regularly and up until this point none of us had won, but before this final we knew somebody from our table finally would as she was on the opposing team. I thought it would be her because she was a better player than me, but I got lucky and had both a good round and a good partner.

sunrise through one of the openings near the bow of the Promenade deck

The ship also held shuffleboard competitions at the same time as deck quoits and throughout the day they had the usual trivia, bingo, and the other sorts of games always found on ships. Some days they also had blackjack or roulette tournaments in the casino. These had cash prizes so of course we didn’t win.

Each afternoon they had wii bowling. Most days each person got 2 rounds, but if there were a lot of people each person got only one. My first time I got the lowest score of anyone, but the next time I got 2^nd place. I never won, but after that first day I got respectable scores each time. The Australian couple we ate dinner with started coming to that too and each of them won it once.

Sunday roast by the pool on the Lido deck

Food is always a big thing on cruise ships. In addition to the usual lunchtime fare sometimes they had barbecues on the Lido deck and on Sundays they had a big setup out by the pool for Sunday roast. On Valentines Day they had a chocolate buffet on the Lido.

The gym held a variety of exercise classes each day, some with a charge and others free. I tried a couple of the free ones and they really give you a good workout in half an hour even if you can’t do all the things they ask.

Horisn’t – spoof of the daily newsletter Horizon

We skipped one day during the cruise because of crossing the international dateline. Cruise ships always have a daily newsletter with all the events and activities of the day. On P&O they call it Horizon. For the day we skipped they sent a spoof newsletter called Horisn’t. It listed all sorts of events for that day only that would never really happen since that day never happened. It was hilarious. Here’s a few samples:

Spa special of the day – Guaranteed Weight Loss

Brand new treatment! Guaranteed weight loss in our Piranha fish tank. Cost: An arm and a leg.

Tonight’s Themed Dinner- Airplane Food

Tonight’s dress code – your favorite superhero

Special of the day in the shops – Anything Goes! Today only your shop manager will happily helicopter in anything you want at no extra charge. You can collect your order on the next blue moon.

Activities for the day

SHARK BAITING – volunteers needed

WATER SKIING – hang on tight for the ride of your life

CAPTAIN’S JACKPOT BINGO – a full house in 10 numbers or less and you win the Captain to take home as a souvenir!

The spoof newsletter had classes like art forgery for beginners and kleptomaniac’s towel folding where you come with someone else’s towel. The afternoon fun included mobility scooter races and a food fight. In-cabin TV had recommended programs from various crew or passengers including Four Welders and a Funnel from the chief engineer, Faulty Showers from Kev the plumber, Bleaches from the cleaners, The Booze Brothers from the bar staff, Free Willy from Traveling Alone, The Man with the Iron Task from husbands doing the laundry, and from the medics Saving Ryan’s Privates. There was also a notice saying the entire crew got the day off.

New Zealand

After crossing the Pacific the ship made 3 stops in New Zealand before continuing on to Australia where our leg of the cruise ended. As Americans we were the rarity on this cruise since there were very few on the ship. Being a British ship, the majority of passengers came from the UK. Quite a few Aussies got on in Chile, as they only had to fly one way across the ocean. Some Chileans got on there for the same reason. In Auckland we picked up quite a few people from New Zealand and of course the ship had a smattering of passengers from other countries as well. The crew came mostly from India. Some came from other places, but very few from the USA or Canada.

Sunrise over the ship’s wake

We were 2 of a total of just 6 Americans on board. At one point we overheard someone say they thought of Americans as loud people with cameras. Just a day or two later as we stood in line at the poolside grill with cameras hanging around our necks one of the few other Americans made quite a scene yelling at the girl working there for not making him a rare burger even though doing so would be a health code violation she could get fired for.

Another time at the evening show the British comedian made a comment that the Americans in the audience wouldn’t get some of his jokes. We didn’t. I guess they had us pegged pretty well.

Posted in Arcadia, P&O, Pacific Ocean & Islands | Tagged British, cruise, ocean crossing, P&O, Pacific Ocean, photos, transpacific cruise, travel, world cruise | 8 Comments

Helicopter Rescue at Sea

Interview with Carnival spokesperson John Heald about helicopter rescues from cruise ships

More Interviews with John Heald

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underwater video from snorkeling in the turtle lagoon

Tarpon Video

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How to Fold a Towel Grinch

Supplies Needed to Make a Towel Grinch

How to Fold a Towel Grinch Body

How to Make a Towel Grinch Head

Finishing the Towel Grinchy Claus

More Christmas Towel Animals:

For other towel animals see My Cruise Stories Towel Animal Page

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Exploring Tahiti From a Cruise Ship On Your Own

Things To Do When Visiting Tahiti as a Cruise Port

Shore Excursions

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Venturing farther:

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Copyright My Cruise Stories 2016

Lobster Murano recipe from SS United States

Ingredients

Directions

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Copyright My Cruise Stories 2016

In this short horse swimming video there are bits where you can see how their legs and feet move under the water while they swim

Other Jamaica Blogs:

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Copyright My Cruise Stories 2016

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