HaveDogWillTravel

Haines is a seriously gorgeous port. The bald Eagle foundation was really, really great! The hammer museum was fun and I sent 30 photos to DH who now wishes he were here. Lol. The Haines Sheldon Museum was a great cultural museum that I enjoyed quite a bit. All are easy walks for those without mobility issues. That said I have plantar fasciitis and did this just fine.

Stanley highly recommends the Bald Eagle foundation. There was a great presentation on Dylan, the Eastern Screech Owl on site. Meeting Bella the Bald Eagle was exciting too.

First stop in Haines was to ask the helpful person at the shore excursion building directions to the American Bald Eagle Foundation. After a short 10 minute walk they were there.

Stanley Bear is at it again. He’s back on board the Ruby in his Alaska coat (so he blends in with the native bears) and his pal McKinley. Este in guest services was excited to welcome them both on board. They will be sailing May 20th through June 9th. He’s so happy to see many familiar faces from his January outings with crew.

We were originally scheduled to get to endicott arm at 5 am so this might have been missed by some who aren’t up that early. And the light certainly would not have been as good. Of course these pictures fail to capture the true glory of the scenery.

Calling room service has improved enormously on this sailing. Only once out of 6 or 7 calls did I hang up bc they didn’t answer. Whether I order on the ap or on the phone my order has arrived in under 15 minutes hot and exactly correct. Big improvement from my personal experiences even as recently as April 23-30. We sailed through some stunning scenery yesterday that Normally we would go through at night. Missing Icy Straight was a disappointment but the scenic sail was quite a treat. I saw orcas breaching and full on whale tail, eagles, seals galore but no bears. I’ll try to post some pictures. I only have pics of scenery.

This was my sail away last thanksgiving out of SF. Best part of sailing that time year is getting that sunset behind the bridge right at the perfect time. If you have long hair you need something to keep it from flying around in the wind. While being on land in SF is considered moderate at sea the first day or 2 to Mexico is considered cold by many. Not Alaska cold but decent layers cold.

3 flavors of house made ice cream today at lunch Zuppa Inglese, chocolate and vanilla. Also mango house made frozen yogurt. My chicken tacos and hotdog at the salty dog grille for lunch yesterday were really great. Even my fries were so hot they stayed that way till I was done. No small feat given the weather! my Baja deck balcony room is in excellent repair and my steward, Michael, is outstanding. The light in the closet is no longer a motion sensor light! It’s on a switch again. The QR code for Good Spirits at Sea showed the old menu. I know there was a menu on the Discovery in April with a set of new drinks being rolled out and I thought I saw some of those new drinks here on the Ruby in either February or April. IDK it’s all a blur. Someone asked for a review of Good Spirits ……..if you search my activity you’ll find all the recipe cards with pictures of all the drinks from when I earned my shirt. I think from January. All the drinks are great. Every one will have their own favorites understandably.

The new International Cafe offerings are a huge hit for me. Today I had the blueberry yogurt, the egg & avocado sandwich and the broccoli egg muffin. Excellent! I hope the pictures post.

Stardust and Colors of the World

No I didn’t try the carpaccio. I wasn’t too hungry so stuck to my favorites. The soup, salad and lamb skewers were excellent, even better than last month. The lamb was cut it with a fork tender. I normally love the spaghetti & meatballs and they were fine but didn’t wow me like last month. Could have been I was so full by the time they came. The risotto and pappadelle are usually solid choices. @Coffeeluvr05I wish I had asked about whether to cancel or not. Doggone it I did and I really love where I’ve been sitting in MDR. And now Endicott Arm is 5:30 to 9. That’s going to make it hard for folks to get a nice dinner and spend time on the decks. My reservation is at 8 but I’ll bet that ends up being a popular time.

Yes I’ve Lapin, Stella and Montmorensey. The Lapins made it onboard. I’ve been growing a small organic urban orchard (34 trees) for the last 13 years and this is the best crop of cherries we’ve ever had. It is normal to get about 30% fruit drop prior to ripening but this year there was almost none. DH is picking and putting up the crop while I’m on this B2B. Thank goodness we got the bird netting up two weeks ago. I grow a lot of sunflowers for my birds and they are allowed some of the blueberries, apricots and peaches but I do deny them the cherries. Lol.

Dennis and Carlos managers of Sabatini’s and Crown respectively were both at Sabatini’s tonight. They both said they wouldn’t know until the 29th which restaurant would be open on the 30th. And they said if you’re booked fir a night they are shut they automatically move you to the next night. If you want to keep the same night they do their best to accommodate you in the other venue. captains announcement was 2080 passengers 1084 crew. I will try to post pictures of Sabatini’s menu they added something for the Alaska bit and gave it a $5 up charge. They don’t have the crunchy bread sticks anymore. Hopefully the picture of the new bread posts.

I hope those winds don’t come until I’ve finished my afternoon nap in the sanctuary. 😴

@cruzin4usmakes a very solid point. The only thing I will add is each person’s immune system will play a role in whether or not you fend off the virus once you’ve been exposed and if a large proportion of passengers are masking the viral load will be lower making it easier to fend it off. We can reduce our risk but not eliminate it. on the current Ruby sailing more people are masking than when I sailed her April 23-30. I’ve long since given up worrying about if people are masked or not so this is just my off hand non scientific observation based on the places I go to on this ship. People who go to the theater or explorers (where I do not go) May very well have different impressions.

Woke up to gorgeous calm seas and this fabulous sunrise. We are off the coast of northern Oregon I believe

Sabatini’s was open Friday the 20th, Crown is open tonight the 21st. So if you want to guess what alternating day each is open for the next cruise that might help. I’ll be eating at Sabatini’s tomorrow night and will ask Dennis the restaurant manager there if the pattern continues across cruises. Albert & Max (two of my Sabatini waiters from last month)were both promoted to assistant restaurant manager….Albert in Michelangelo and Max in DaVinci. I have been eating at a private table for one in Michelangelo’s and it has been night and day better than my previous MDR experiences on this ship. I often, but not always, eat in Club Class which is of course wonderful. I have also had a few sailings without CC where I tried to use DMW and eat in the MDR. In the past (November thru April) it has been a dismal failure. This time lo and behold they see my reservation, the two tops are very nicely spaced apart and I am truly impressed with the service and food. I keep my meals simple and have been in and out in an hour or less. As was mentioned by @Coffeeluvr05the Alaskan cod last night was simply stunning. Best I’ve ever had. The prime rib tonight was excellent (the baked potato of all things was a miss). I ate at 7 pm yesterday and at 5:20 tonight. Both nights I’ve noticed a huge line at DaVinci as I head down to deck 5 for Michelangelo’s where I’ve had only 1 or 2 parties ahead of me in a “line”. I will have to say the white wine by the glass selection has been nothing short of dismal. I am not a Chardonnay drinker so can not speak to that. But Vines has no whispering Angel, no Gloria Ferrar or Chandon Sparkling, no decent Sauvignon blanc at $12 or less. I went on a mission today to all the bars and was able to find a couple of bars that had some of my preferred choices. But they told me that the bottle they had was the last one they had. Ughhh. I am not a cocktail, red wine or beer drinker but it looks like I may have to branch out…..at least until we get to a port where I can buy some bottles to bring back on.

My PVP got back to me saying Princess has no rules against bringing fruit on board. Those that answer chat are not the most experienced sometimes. Plus they answer on the fly. My PVP researched and took his time getting me what he felt was an accurate answer. I carried those cherries on ……out in the open …..no hiding them. No one blinked an eye throughout the process of boarding. When I delivered small bags of them to the crew I’ve been sailing with since last November I did so openly in front of senior managers and there was even a security person near me who definitely saw what I had and had zero reaction. My crew peeps were over the top happy to get this small treat. Your opinions may vary but I broke no stated Princess rules and I certainly made the day of several people who have been on this ship 7 long months.

You should receive a letter in your cabin at embarkation with the details of where and what hours the specialty dining room breakfast is (not to be missed) as well as the evening cocktail hour for elites & suites with (recently) pretty nice offerings. You could do Club Class breakfast but the specialty dining breakfast is nicer and they serve mimosas with fresh squeezed OJ. You can ask for anything the ship has on board and they will get it for you, usually by the next morning. The MDR menus are not always automatically given. Tell you steward on the first day you’d like the lunch (sea days) & dinner menus before noon. I date them and save them by tucking them in a drawer. Ordering from the MDR is one of the very best perks. If you can not get through to room service call the front desk and tell them you are not able to take advantage of this full suite perk and they will put you through and the phone will get picked up. The same day laundry is another priceless perk. I send in a few things every day. Ask your steward what time they need it by to get it back that night. I don’t send my super delicate clothes or anything I’d cry about if it was lost/damaged but pants, pjs, socks, shirts & basic underthings have always come back perfectly. I’ve used this service hundreds of times across a half dozen ships and never had a problem. Others may not agree but that’s been my experience. I always take a picture of what that days laundry is just in case my steward has to look for a lost item. I haven’t seen the actual pillow menu post pandemic but there is a wide variety to choose from. I really like the Dream Pillow & a body pillow. By default your sheets should be changed daily. I ask my steward to only change them every other day. Some stewards are more experienced than others, but they are always willing to learn and improve. I know full suites already pay more in auto grats but I always tip my steward at the end of the sailing for a job well done. Welcome to the suite life as they say.

Thank you very much for relaying your experience. I find it odd that Princess has this secret rule. I mean what is this? In and Out Burger? I have no problem following rules but how can I follow a rule if it isn’t stated? Secret rules should not exist. thanks to all for posting their experiences and thanks for sharing your expertise @chengkp75 As always we all appreciate your wealth of knowledge.

Thank you to all those who gave me respectful and thoughtful replies. I truly appreciate your input. For those who missed it. I had indicated that the cherries would be consumed on board and they would in all likelihood not see the dawn. So no taking them off ship at another port to spread disease. I do think that the list of prohibited items should clearly state what food items can not be brought on board. I carefully read that document and my passenger contract. There is no mention of food being an issue. I have never done it so I had no personal experience. It seems unreasonable for people to be expected to know about secret rules. I’ve asked my PVP and am waiting for a reply.

Thank you for the clarification. I wasn’t trying to daft but it seemed your response was only for prepared foods and not things like whole fruit that wouldn’t be processed. But your explanation of how the fruit and veggies are sanitized makes sense.

Thank you @CruiseRaiderfor relaying your first hand experience.