Sea Dog

I will say the two guys that sang that song last night did a good job but I am so partial to the original. I do need to listen to disturbed version. That could be interesting.

My view. Breakfast in the MDR. I did find out why the Espressos that have ordered are only Luke warm. The espresso machine is broken so the crew literally has to go to the crew mess and make a espresso and have it brought back. So I decided not to get that. Instead I’m going deep. A Spicy Bloody Mary. Good lord help me. It could be a long day.

My motto play hard or go home. That attitude may last maybe another year or so. I can’t do it like I used to. Congratulations on your free week that is fantastic.

I love it. You made my day!!!

So another funny story from last night. So Linda and I after the show went to the schooner bar to look for the gang. The Schooner was packed. Jennifer messaged through the Royal app which is a very nice feature and Linda and I met up with Jennifer, Dave, Deb and Andy at the pub. It was too loud so we decided to go to the Champagne Bar and it too was packed. So we went down to deck 4 and Boleros. It’s nice as it’s split. There is seating on the side of the bar and band and on the opposite side a nice quiet area with chairs and couches. I don’t remember how we got started on it but we started talking about Christmas Trees. Now you know me, the “Ultimate Christmas freak” and I was truly in heaven. Talking Christmas on a cruise ship in the Caribbean. We started showing each our pictures of our trees. Jennifer had some beautiful decorated trees in her home. Andy showed me the tree outside his home and OMG was it impressive. It started to look familiar however….wait is that the tree at Rockefeller Plaza New York? We all laughed hysterically. I’m sure when the waiter came over to get our drink orders seeing us all flash pictures of our Christmas trees He thought we must be nuts. A great time with great people I am so proud and honored to call friends. Merry Christmas everyone!!

Thank you Sue! Please stick around as I have some great videos planned but I need my video workhorse of a computer to help me at home. Hope to have the final videos finished by Sunday or Monday. I have so much good stuff I want to do it good for you.

So last night after I finished my post about dinner and the show, Linda wanted a Diet Coke from the Freestyle machine on Deck 5 in the Promenade. As I was filling her cup I could smell something, what was that small? Could it be cheese???? So I investigated it and sure enough I saw it. The dreaded cheese pizza in the Promenade Cafe. Should I ? Or not? I decided to go in. Would I regret it? I know there are fans and detractors. I wasn’t a fan, especially after a Alfredo Sea Food Pizza at Buccaneer Beach. I got two slices of cheese. They were skinny slivers of limp dough. The tip fell over as I picked it up. Surely it could not be by the weight of the cheese? There was barely any cheese on it, just sauce. I ate it. It was bad but then something good happened about it. I just had over 7 cocktails that evening. The pizza seemed to make that chemical imbalance in my stomach even again. I was now all right with the world. It’s looks bad, doesn’t taste great but it does the trick when you need it. It’s nice to have options. Now back to bed.

We will be at the Beach Club with the rest of the gang hanging around the infinity pool. It’s a great spot and hopefully not as windy today but I did see a forecast of up to 25 knots. That’s exactly what I thought. I know when I watch Deadliest Catch, they measure the crab to see if they are big enough to keep the rest are thrown back. My guess at the processing plant the tails are just cut off and that is what is shipped to Royal. They probably use the claw meet for something else. I am only guessing at this. I should have had Jennifer ask that question in the Galley Tour she did yesterday. Yes I missed it as I was cocktail dancing in the Schooner Bar. I did see one of the ballroom acts perform for the Top Tier event. They were very good.

Can’t Stop The Rock Can’t Stop the Rock" takes the audience on a musical journey through rock and roll movie soundtracks. Covering everything from Chubby Checker and Connie Francis to Whitney Houston and Prince, listen to over 40 years of the greatest music in film history. It wasn’t a bad show but it wasn’t in the caliber of the Broadway type shows on Oasis Class ships and above. While the singing was good for the most part.Seeing a bunch of white kids trying to do a Prince song just isn’t right. No soul whatsoever. Even the girl who did the Whitney Houston song “I will always love you” gave it a valiant effort but fell short. I only want to hear Whitney sing that song. The band was good but I hate electronic drums on a show like this. No dynamics. The music felt flat and lifeless. The Caribbean and Latin bands upstairs were killing it. I could listen to them all night. We did stop in the pub. The singer guitar was good but too loud. Enough for today. Tomorrow is our last day and we will be at a windy Cococay.

Lobster Night in the MDR. Does Size Matter??? Our last night in the MDR as we will go back to Giovanni’s tomorrow night. Of course the draw for tonight was the Maine Lobster but I also wanted to hand out tips to the dining room manager Royal, who helped get us a good table. Also tips for a great staff Julie and Gabriel. They worked hard, talked to us a lot and were so friendly. My go to Escargot. The Maine Lobster. Slightly bigger than Caribbean Lobster with some more meat but not by much. Hand comparison. It’s small. I could have eaten 2 more easily. Melted butter was lukewarm not good. Cheese Tortellini was very good. Great cheese flavor. This helped fill me up after the small lobster. I had their warm chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream and it was good as I dug in before realizing I did not take a picture. All in all the food in the Main Dining Room was fairly good but unimpressive. The portion sizes were small, hit or miss on how hot the food was. Flavors were good for the most part and service was fantastic after the second. night. Now onto the show.

I like a traditional balcony instead of the infinity. This balcony was nice as in protected as it was on the hump but there was not a lot of space for like a lounge chair. Yes I agree.

Yep lost my footing carrying two beach bags and a go pro. There was a sand shelf that was a little steep. I put my weight on my bad knee and my leg sunk into the sand as my momentum was going forward. My knee and it gave out. As they say “down goes the champ.”

A Chef’s Table For Sushi I’ve eaten at Izumi a number of times. Now while I can eat at some amazing Sushi restaurants in my hometown in the middle of the US with fresh fresh fish flown in every day, Most people don’t realize Royal gets their fresh fish frozen. I will say I like Izumi’s rolls and menu. They were thoughtfully and creatively inspired. So, when I saw a Sushi and Sake pairing lunch I thought I need to do this. Promptly at noon, 20 people or so got seated to begin a 5 course sushi, sake and cocktail tasting. I was comforted in knowing that at least I had a designated driver in Captain Jaret. First Course: Yellowtail Jalapeño Carpaccio with Thinly sliced yellowtail with sea salt, truffle oil, truffle oil, Yuzu Citrus, and house ponzu with jalapeño sliced on top. It was light and refreshing. Tasted great on my palate. The Sake paired with it was Soto Junmai Black 14% ABV It had a white gold color. Aromas of strawberries, cream, and apples in yogurt with a supple, crisp, dry-yet-fruity light body and a sleek, interesting, buoyant white grape, lime, hints of pecan, and green tea finish. A supple, creamy Junmai Sake for delicate dishes It was interesting after I drank my little tea cup of Sake our host came by and poured me another cup. Each cup holds about 1.5oz of liquor. This could get interesting was my first thought. Second Course: Was a roll of 3 pieces, the Crispy Shrimp and Futomaki. It consisted of spicy shrimp with spicy aioli and avocado topped with Tenkusu bites, and sushi sauce along with futomaki, wakame salad and cream cheese that is flash fried and topped with aïoli sauces and ginger dressing with chili thread. Oh how I loved the taste of this. Served with a “She’s a Geisha” Cocktail made of mulled blueberries, sake, pomegranate and rose syrup. This is one of my all time favorites of any cocktail Royal makes. Here is the Sake they use. I was also served another Sake. This time a Soto White. Between the sips of the cocktail I was being served more shots of the Soto Black Sake I was getting more fills up of fuel than my dad’s old 1974 Pontiac 457, 4 barrel Grand AM. Third Course: Champagne Lobster & Lobster Creamy Tempura A wonderful combination of Champagne lobster (blanched cold lobster), avocado and daikon sprouts wrapped with soy paper and a creamy lobster tempura roll-salmon and kanpachi asparagus, topped with lobster tempura in truffle oil and spicy aïoli. We were told that the Soto Black and White helps balance your eyesight but does it do anything for fuzziness? It tasted smooth and crisp. Fourth Course: Teppan Beef Fried Rice. Vegetables and eggs fried rice with garlic-butter-soy Filet Mignon. Paired with a Kikusui Funaguchi Nama Genshu poured in a little can. It felt like drinking an oil can because after drinking the 19%abv, I was fully lubed. Boy this was good stuff. At one point our host kept pouring more sake. I told him I was having a hard time between the three as to which ones I liked the best. So he poured more. My table mate next to me Marlo from Dallas summed it up best, “ Soto Black was more sweet with a hint of tart Soto White was tart with a mild sweetness .” Well said Marlo, she nailed it. Fifth Course: Dessert We were served an assortment of Mochi Ice Cream. Cool flavors of Chocolate, Strawberry and Green Tea refreshed the palette. I the the texture of the firmer outer shell. No sake paired with it just more refills. It was an amazing spirited experience. Such great food and even better Sake. It was the first time I’ve ever been bombed by the Japanese. As I staggered up to my room I did not know how much was the Sake or how much was the rolling sea. Talk to you later I need a nap. Editor note: So sorry for the bad joke, the Sake is speaking and I mean no disrespect, but “ I’m feeling good!” as James Brown would say.

Interesting conversation with Royal employee meaning the Excursion Desk. I asked if he happened to know why the vendor cancelled the “Escape to Jost Van Dyke” excursion. He said that Royal is no longer offering that excursion which made it sound like it was Royal Caribbean’s decision. Either way that is a huge disappointment to anyone who would like to visit. I will return and charter a boat with Chillout Charters. They were amazing and a trio of a lifetime.

Thanks Bonnie. It sure was. We’re you the couple we talked to that came via ferry and taxi? If so how was that whole experience? I noticed you had to leave quite a bit earlier? If that was not you who I talked to I -man sorry my mistake. Thank you that means a lot to me.

IMG_3363.mov Going through some rain showers. Glad our balcony is slightly enclosed.

Just did the premium upgrade for the drink package. Decent price. Upgrade on Premium Wi-Fi is still a little pricey. I’ll wait and see if it goes down.

What Bob said. It’s dark. Thank you April I will do that.

A Windy Adventure With 3-4 foot swells from the outer remnants of Hurricane Tammy make for a fun day. Feels good not to have hair today.

Thanks for the recipe Bob. The bartender at Heidi’s Hideaway said they use: Goya or Bluebird Pineapple Juice Goya Orange Juice And Coco Lopez Coconut Cream The Pusser’s was a lot stronger but was really better than the Soggy version. The Soggy was perfect for drinking a lot. Pusser’s for the flavor and enjoyment.

You were the first person I thought of. I was able to upload to YouTube on my other account.

Sea Dog’s Daily Relaxation Minute. For you @perfect match

Cafe Promenade Sone day I need to have breakfast here. Pizza starts being served at 11.30am

Breakfast in the MDR Nice window seat watching the swells as we are still rocking and Rolling. I went with my favorites. Eggs Benedict. This was the worst order I’ve had all week. No hollandaise sauce and eggs over cooked. Razor thin Canadian bacon and a tiny weeny hash brown. French toast was good. not pictured was my espresso served Luke warm. I forgot to go to the Diamond lounge first and get it there. It comes out nice and hot out of the machine. Other interesting note. Remember when the waiter used to come around with a tray full of donuts, danish and muffins. Now you practically have to ask for them. Also no mention of donuts. So I asked them if they still made the chocolate donuts and they said yes and asked me if I would like one. “Of course” I said. I wonder why they don’t just bring them around….oh yeah I know….cost cutting. Out of sight out of mind philosophy. Helps with their bottom line of food cost. Kinda sad it’s gotten to this.

Partly sunny with 3-4 feet swells. We are rocking and rolling. Fun ride.