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NancyJewel92

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Posts posted by NancyJewel92

  1. On this sixth anniversary, reflecting on such an avoidable calamity, his sentence seems light.

     

    He was the captain of my 1/2011 sailing aboard the Costa Atlantica. There was a noticeable difference in ship operations on that trip as compared to sailings with other captains. The other captains ran much "tighter" operations.

  2. No worries - you will be able to avail yourselves of the regular MSC entertainment as it will take place nightly in the theater, lounges, etc. MSC has an array of live performances and musicians. They are wonderful. Check the daily bulletin for the schedules.

     

    The Irish travel group also has assorted musicians and musical groups hailing from the USA and Ireland. Performances are scheduled in various lounges at various times throughout the week and are reserved for the travelers with the group. Additionally, on past trips, there also were performances available to all on the ship, typically in outside venues.

     

    All in all, the entertainment schedule is very coordinate and there is MUCH to be enjoyed by all. :)

  3. For a good deck plan illustration, Google "MSC Divina Cabin 12093". Then, in the search results, go to the site: i cruise dot com (no space between i cruise). Cabin 12093 will be highlighted with a flashing box. From the drawing, you'll see that the balcony is deep and there will be no view toward the right side/aft of the ship. But overall, the balcony is spacious. :p

  4. I like that MSC is pro-active in reaching out to Cruise Critic members by planning a Meet and Greet on the first sea day. I think it's smart customer relations.

     

    Had the same experience on each of my Costa sailings. The cruise director took care of coordinating the CC meet and greet; it was published in the daily cruise news. Various officers and managers would attend. It was a nice way to start the week.

     

    Other lines would be wise to do the same. :D

  5. Good morning Mark, hope you are enjoying a great cup of coffee in those great full size coffee cups.

     

    And they are ceramic coffee cups -- not plastic. :D

     

    Thanks, Radio, for taking the time once again to post *Live* reports. Your reports are always fantastic!

  6. Thanks to the OP and all who followed for posting here. All the info has been great. We're looking forward to boarding MSC Divina in the morning. :-)

     

    We did take someone's hint and rented a car from Alamo at MAI. Worked out to be about $40 w/taxes for a 24-hour rental. We'll return the car to MAI tomorrow and Alamo will provide a free transfer to the port. Nice!

     

    Ate dinner tonight at a terrific Cuba restaurant -- Havana Harry's. Great food, service and price.

  7. OP - Great idea to have a thread dedicated to news (as opposed to just conversation) about the Costa Concordia.

     

    Having sailed with Costa five times, I've been drawn to news about this tragedy. I've been especially keen on getting info about the crew to see if any folks that we had sailed with on our prior trips were on this ship. Interestingly, Schettino was the captain of our 1/2010 sailing on the Costa Atlantica.

     

    Here's a link to a news story from last week about some crew members arriving home in the Philippines.

     

    http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/245275/pinoyabroad/48-more-crew-members-from-ill-fated-italian-liner-arrive-in-manila?ref=related_stories_top

     

    Here's a link to a video showing some crew members arriving at the airport in the Philippines. While the audio is not entirely in English so some of the details are not understandable to me, the sense of joy and happiness comes across. I also love the banners that were hung to welcome these folks home. :D

     

    http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/video/107035/106-pinoy-crew-members-ng-costa-concordia-dumating?ref=related_video

  8. On many cruise lines, the morning of disembarkation is chaotic and breakfast is almost nonexistant. On my first Costa cruise, however, I was pleasantly surprised to find that the dining room was open for a regular full sit-down breakfast! When I expressed my surprise to the restaurant manager, he said "But of course, you must dine for breakfast!".

     

    It's such an elegant, civilized way to end the cruise. We have made it a tradition now, to all gather together for this last meal. It gives us a chance to say goodbye to friends and family before they scatter about to cars and airline terminals, and to say farewell to the crew.

     

    And don't worry about rushing to get off, or missing the call of your luggage tag color. The dining room is opened very early (I don't recall the exact time). And on all of my Costa cruises disembarkation is very efficient (no sitting around forever in a lounge, though you can if you want to). The colors are called very fast; people form a and simply leave. Each time, we were easily off the ship no later than 9 a.m. Bear in mind, however, that all of our Costa sailings have been in and out of Fort Lauderdale. The experience in other ports may well be different.

     

    We were so confident with Costa's efficency that after the first cruise, we've always booked late morning flights back to NY and have not heeded the usual standard guideline of booking after 1 p.m. However, I wouldn't recommend doing this if you're traveling with senior citizen, kids, etc. I'd classify ourselves as experienced business travelers, so we tend to hussle through airports. :-) Also - there always have been plenty of taxis at the terminal ready to whisk you to the airport.

     

    So - on disembarkation morning -dine for breakfast! :D

  9. Going to bring this thead to the top as it's time to think about planning a trip to Maine. Years ago, I sailed on the Stephen Taber numerous times. LOVED IT! And would go in a heart beat now, though my DH would stay ashore.

     

    Rockland and Camden, Maine are the best! Can't compare to a "traditional" cruise other than you're aboard a sailing vessel on the water. :D

     

    I'd be happy to answer any questions.

  10. "NCL used to have "Sports Afloat" cruises, in fact our 1st cruise was an NFL cruise with active, retired players and sportscasters and referees. My DH and DS were in heaven! The following year we took the MLB cruise and were again right there with many of the top stars of baseball."

     

    I, too, sailed on a NCL Sports Afloat cruise - an MLB cruise aboard the Norway. Went with a girlfriend and much to our suprise many then-current pro baseball players (including a few NY Yankees - who had just won, I think, the World Series) were aboard as well as many seasoned retirees. Can't remember the names now, but Roy Campenilla (sp) comes to mind.

     

    On our up coming Costa Med trip, the Ronan Tynan will be traveling with our Cruise of the Irish All Stars. RT was one of the original Irish Tenors and may be known to most due to his singing God Bless America at Yankee Stadium. :D

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