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Cruise Critic is being difficult with images, so I will finish later.

The tour stopped at the market, so I decided to check it out. I was hoping to find a bocadillo, but sadly found none. Its’s a pretty good market, I think. And it’s bigger than it looks, too, because there is an underground floor. I was tempted by the Marvel cookies, but we had visited a non-accessible Nougat shop during the tour and too many people had brought me back some samples. I was so full of sugar already! I picked a street going towards the water and I followed that until I reached that red, white and blue promenade where our tour had started. I knew there was an elevator going up to the Castell de Santa Bàrbara that wasn’t too far from there, so I decided to check it out.

My tour started at 11:00. I was with two couples I know from the ship. It’s getting hard keeping track of everyone I’ve met while also preserving everyone’s anonymity. So there was the couple from Quest and the couple who was also in the same tour as me in both Cádiz and Málaga. Here are some pictures from the tour. On the last picture, we can see the Face of the Moor in the rocks. I already knew about the Face of the Moor for the most random reason. The last time I was in Barcelona, my goal was to go to that place called Rocambolesc and get a popsicle shaped like Jamie Lannister’s golden hand. Don’t ask… Unfortunately, they were out. Instead I got a popsicle shaped like the Moor’s Face. I thought it was fun to see it “in the flesh”. The tour was good. Thankfully the guide had a microphone, but it was still hard to hear her sometimes partly because the city was SO LOUD. Cars, motorcycles, people emptying a bin full of glass bottles into a bigger bin. At one point we swore a marching band was passing behind us. Accessibility-wise, I would rank Alicante as better than Cádiz, but not as good as Málaga. There wasn’t a lot of cobblestones, and most of them were avoidable. There were a couple of frustrating incidents. One involving a ramp that turned into stairs (why) and the other one was a sidewalk with no dropped curb (what’s this, Rome?).

We were in Alicante, today. I was feeling like experimenting something new last night when I went to bed so I ordered room service breakfast. I completely failed to document it, but they knocked on my door right on time. Once again, I had booked a free walking tour for our stop in Alicante. It was a 1.5km walk to the city center, so I decided to do it on foot. I think they had some shuttles that were wheelchair accessible, but I can’t say for sure. It’s a flat, albeit a bit boring, walk to the city center. Once off the ship, just follow the directions for the walking path. Eventually, you will come across a raised platform with an elevator. From the platform, you get a pretty good view of the beach. It wasn’t too long before I reached the city centre.

Day 13 Compass Info about Alicante provided by RCI

Oh, hey! Same show tonight! So it wasn’t just me who didn’t recognize the songs. I thought perhaps I was just out of touch with that the kids listen to these days. I love your “Top Gun” picture with everyone in the air!

They only had one participant, so they ended up canceling it. But thank you for your input! Maybe next time.

I didn’t love One Sky, but I’m not going to recommend not seeing it because it had its moments. If you think you might not like it, maybe sit at the end of a row so you can make a quick and quiet exit. I tried the brisket sandwich at Woody’s back in 2020 and I had the kid’s grilled cheese this time with the soup. I thought they were both excellent. Also excellent was their breakfast bowl with eggs, tater tots and brisket gravy 😋

I went to the Windjammer a bit later (19:00), tonight, and it felt less busy than last time (18:00). There were several tables available in the back section and it didn’t feel like pure chaos trying to navigate between the stations. It was Italian night, so I was really hoping they would have lasagna and some lemon tarts. Score! And score again! Notice my second Papa Jac of the evening in the background. After dinner, I grabbed a spot in the theatre for One Sky. To be honest, I had no idea what I was going to see. If I’ve read about it, it didn’t make an impression at all. But you’re starting to know me. You know I love all the shows. And, well…it was ok. I liked that we could see the live band. And I liked how people were flying through the air. And I liked the cast. It was good singing and good dancing. Oh, and there was an airplane! But I just didn’t connect with the material at all. I hadn’t heard of most of the songs, which made me wonder if they’re coming from a bank of royalty free music. The backgrounds reminded me of those fake backgrounds that people use on Teams, which reminded me that I work on Monday, which made me sad. So, yeah…that one wasn’t really for me.

Enjoy your last sea day! 😊 I enjoyed 50s Prime Time. I approve of anyone who puts fried Boursin cheese on their menu. How much food did you get at Roundup Rodeo BBQ? My friends were there last summer and the people working there said they bring the same amount of food for 2 or 4 people. They needed a three days nap after their meal there.

Back on the ship, I returned to my stateroom for my usual refresh, but unfortunately it took a bit longer than I expected and I missed sailaway. Bye bye, Scarlet Lady! You look beautiful! I found myself in what I can only describe as a reenactment of Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds. I ordered a Papa Jac, my first of the trip. The bartender (Ade from Indonesia, who is really nice) asked whether I was sure. 👀 Yes? Apparently people don’t like it. They find it too strong. He says he only makes one per cruise! Now I need to order 15 of them in the next days so RCI don’t decide to remove it from the menu. It should be a quiet evening today. I’m planning to have dinner in the Windjammer and then I have a reservation for One Sky at 20:00. After that, who knows! There a Finish the Lyrics game show that I don’t think I’ve ever seen. Can anyone comment on it?

I had booked a free walking tour with Explora Málaga and we were meeting in the Plaza de la Constitución. It turns out that the two Canadian couples I’ve been hanging out with were booked on the same tour, so it was fun to have people I know around. Málaga has a lot of very charming little streets with places to share a coffee or hide a body. Málaga’s cathedral, whose real name I don’t remember but they call her the one-armed lady because she is missing one tower. I enjoyed the tour a lot and I think the guide (Maria) and I could have fun together sharing a round of drinks. We certainly have one interest in common (Antonio Banderas). I do wish the guide had had a microphone, because it was hard to hear her sometimes. I was very terrible at taking pictures during our tour. If you would like to see more of Málaga, I invite you to visit my Wonder review. What I did take at least 15 pictures of was the candy store. We found ourselves close to the public market after the tour and we had bocadillos. Those little sandwiches are so good and satisfying! And they’re so simple! Just bread and olive oil and meat and cheese. But it’s so good! That one’s bread could have been crunchier, but it really hit the spot. And now I want another one.

It was a beautiful day today in Málaga. There was a shuttle available from the port to the city centre, but it’s a nice and relatively flat stroll for me and I like to do it on wheels. According to Google Maps it’s approximately 2km. Málaga has a pretty big terminal. The gangway today was on deck 5. Found some pretty neat art as I was exiting the terminal. If you want to walk to the city centre, just follow the people exiting the port area. There should be many of them if you’re getting off early in the day. The sidewalks are paved with small tiles. It’s not as flat as pavement, but it’s nowhere near cobblestones. I had to go pretty far, but eventually I was able to fit the Oasis into one picture. Just follow the sidewalk. Eventually you will arrive to a point where you can either go up or down. Both options are fully accessible and there are a couple of elevators along the way if you change your mind. You can find some accessible public washrooms in that area (downstairs). Once you see this waterside promenade, you’re close to the city centre.

I don’t remember what you ate (I barely remember what I ate), but I don’t think Hollywood Studios is where the best Disney food is. What you’ve been eating on Virgin looks better (I think) than most food in HS (perhaps Brown Derby being the exception, but I haven’t made it there yet).

Thank you and welcome aboard! Sharing snacks was such a game changer. When I’m alone, I can’t try that many things because I don’t like wasting food and I’m never hungry enough. We tried Satu’li Canteen the day I was there with my friends, which I didn’t report because I was so behind and couldn’t catch up. I love the bowls. They’re some of the best quick service food I’ve ever had at Disney. Also delicious is the blue mousse 🤤 Guardians is SO good. I was thinking about it last night during Aqua 80 because both soundtracks share some songs. I think I will make it a new life goal to get all the songs from Guardians. I’m not off to a great start, but it will give me an excuse to ride again (and again).

I had to miss sailaway, unfortunately. Otherwise I would have waved from somewhere you could have seen me with those binoculars. See you soon! Are you in port tomorrow?

It was so horrible to watch. Those poor people must have felt so helpless watching it happen without being able to do anything 😔 I’m guessing with a huge ship like Oasis there is more room onboard for backup equipment for all the essential bits? Captain seemed to say that even if we had been moving we would have been fine. Still, probably better for it to happen while docked.

Well…the power just went out in my stateroom. Edit: the captain just told us that the whole ship has suffered a blackout. They’re investigating why. Power is back in my room. Edit 2: captain just came on again to say the power is back on the whole ship. Apparently a blackout is rare, but it can happen when equipment fails. All is fine and they always had power on the bridge with backup power for the important equipment.

Day 12 Compass Info about Malaga provided by RCI

The little bridge was open, but it was further from where I was. You can see it in the background here.

Hey, girl, hey!

This is where I took the picture. It’s close to the waterside promenade that goes around Cadiz. I’m a bit confused and I think there is someone who looks like you on the ship. I thought I was seeing you around, even talking to you, but now I’m not sure. I remember I met you in Central Park. But was it you I saw coming out of the theatre after Cats in the elevator chaos? I thought I had run into you yesterday during the 70s party, but that lady was coming from 150 and had absolutely loved it. So now I’m thinking there are two of you 😂 Help!

That’s sounds really cute 🐙 ❤️ I’m sorry about your internet. Ours have been excellent. The few things that I’ve had issues I think that it was CC’s fault. Where was the early snorkeling? Was it good?

Not sure how CC will do with links, but here goes. That’s the very basic recipe I have saved: https://pin.it/1syq2fNNV But you can also get a little wild with it: https://pin.it/7mxBU04NT The possibilities of spices are endless (Old Bay corn on the cob, maybe?). Just go to Pinterest, search for “air fryer corn on the cob” and follow your heart.

That’s so fun! Enjoy! With the UDP you’ll be able to try the whole menu!