Robjame

Terminal J ?

Enjoying a mojito and a Cuban sandwich at Bayside Marketplace overlooking Port of Miami.

Jon we flew YYZ - MIA (Terminal 3) yesterday (Wednesday) and it could not have been smoother!. Only line was at WestJet to check in. Plenty of people working and very friendly and helpful. My recommendation for any Canadian would be to get a Nexus card. Breezed through US customs which is in TO (no line), security was easy with no need to remove shoes or show liquids. Again plenty of English speaking help. One hour from arrival at YYZ to sitting relaxing at gate. Security personnel told us to avoid the early morning to 7am time slot. Busiest with business travellers and huge number of planes.

… or did I just miss it?

Of course the obvious answer is that it is by paying attention to the extra charges and fees, that we can afford that $300 bottle of wine, which is our guilty pleasure. Example - we can afford Oceania by “making do” with a steerage stateroom. ‘Everyone has items which are justIfiable in their personal budgets - cruise lines, clothes or shoes, luxury cars, food experiences, fine wines and they make adjustments accordingly. However, my friend, I suspect you know that and your comment was tongue-in-cheek. 😄

And things are much improved over the situation when you travelled. ‘’We fly to Florida out of YYZ on Wednesday… right in the Xmas rush. (Not AC) However our logic is we could hop in the car on Wednesday and drive and make it on time for the cruise if everything is crazy.

Jon - If you had a do-over what would you do? I still stand by the advice to get out of TO to Montreal, a smaller, friendlier, better run facility.

You mean that wasn’t supposed to be Gibraltar? Well I am stupid.

Watched Guns of Navarone again on Netflix last night. That was a movie!

I have been caught on this more than once where I tipped 20% not seeing the auto tip - total 40%. 😀 What about wine? Same % gratuity whether I order a $30 bottle or a $300 bottle? Jeez I miss France!

I will never get my head around the tipping practices of my American friends. I always feel that I am always too little or too much - never just right. 15% was always my go-to in restaurants but lately some of the Visa machines in Toronto have the suggested tip as 20, 23, or 25% If tipping were really merit based, we would tip the pilot and the ambulance driver. (Relax - meant to be a joke)

Are you possibly thinking about La Reserve as opposed to Specialty Restos? Just asking.

Not for another week - Dec 23. The source is extremely reliable. It was first announced that St John would be missed and then the reason was given today.

The long port time in Miami should allow the engineers to address the problem. I guess engine overhaul wasn’t part of the refit.

StJohn being skipped on current TA because of a slow engine - slow rpm’s ‘Report from Riviera

Not wanting to start a new topic for my topic, I hope it is acceptable to ask a related question? We will be onboard for Christmas. Do you do anything different for the crew with whom you relate directly on that day?

Question for the players: Can Mahjong be picked up by a complete newbie? I know it’s not the same as the match games on line Thanks

To clarify - the Trattoria is the Waves Grill from 6:30 to 9::30 All the pizzas are red sauce (tomato)

And as most corks are now polyethylene, do I still have to pay corkage? 😜

Thank you so much Jan! Our TA has asked us to leave it with her. Apparently it is only a glitch in what we see on our end - the actual information is correct when our information is accessed.. We get the perks and get invited to the right 🎈 🎉 parties..

This is standard procedure if you book yourself. Have you thought of contacting a TA specializing in Oceania and asking what value added they can provide? You have 30 days to transfer this booking to a TA. Minimum should be some OBC or prepaid gratuities.

Growing up in a mining town, my mother always told me “…not to run around bragging about what I got for Christmas because it might make other poorer kids feel badly.” I found out later she didn’t want me to know how well they did compared to me.

I priced out this cruise with our original cancelled cruise. Same category, A2, ~~ $70 Cad for two, per day, more for the new one.