EganFire

Day 15 - Partial Recap - Dec 18 - At Sea I want to post this today as tonight will be a little busy as the last night of this cruise and with my post cruise travel plans of going to Disneyland I may not have time for a day or two for my final recaps and the summary I will also post. I will keep up with my notes and add the days after this as well for anyone interested. Last night was our last 25 hour day and my watch and phone did not update. I headed to breakfast at the Local and I also secured some food so I can have an in room breakfast tomorrow as I plan to wake early and be off the ship to get to Disney. I am on the Port side of the Bliss and sun rose on Starboard but our port side sky was very colorful. The seas are calm, it is a little windy, and for sure it is starting to cool down. It is about 68 degrees as the high. I also went to Deck 8 to see the sunrise on the aft starboard side of the ship. Today was the first day for me with WiFi issues. It works fine but has been kicking me off multiple times. I can log in when I notice but it is slightly annoying. I did a little pre-packing so I would not be rushed to do this later. I dislike packing for a trip but really hate packing to leave one. Reality is setting in that the cruise is coming to an end. With a post cruise trip I had to do some planning as I packed as well, instead of my normal routine... throw everything in the suitcase and sort it out at home. I went to the Vibe and it was a nice touch that they had blankets for us. I enjoyed the fresh cool air as this trip is winding down. When I returned to my room I found a small gift from the Assistant General Manager. I spoke with her a day or two ago and I think she sent this for my kind words about her and the staff. A bottle of Merlot and some yummy chocolates. I went to Savor for lunch, had about a 15 minutes wait and service was a little slow but the staff was very nice. Lunch was good. Tonight I have to go to the Q and retrieve the bottle of Almond Tequila I purchased. I have dinner at Ocean Blue as well. Tomorrow we are in LA and here is today's daily: Here is the disembark times for LA if anyone is interested.

Day 14 - Recap - Dec 17 - Cabo San Lucas When I returned to my room last evening I found a new printed excursion ticket, and I will be honest, I did not read it thoroughly. I just looked and saw a new earlier time and it was meeting in the Theatre. The original said 845 AM and this one said 715 AM. So I set my alarm clock early and awoke this morning before the sun again. I saw the sunrise and saw tenders already approaching the ship. As I was leaving the room ready at 700 for a 715 meeting time I noticed that the excursion ticket was for a different excursion, and upon a better examination that it was for a different cabin and passenger than I. So I walked around and enjoyed an early morning. I took an 8 AM tender for my 845 on the pier meeting time. I was put off a little by the tender crew asking everyone to tip them. They asked us to pass around a cup for money from the passengers. I also noticed this sign on the Tender. I also think the grammar police may have something to say since they asked for TIPS and not TEPS. 🙂 At 822, I was at the pier. NCL had towel and water stations on the pier for anyone wanting or needing these. NCL had a bluetooth speaker playing and it was a nice touch; however, a very inappropriate song was suddenly being heard by all on the pier. The song included several explicit words, words that I cannot list here. I looked around for a high ranking NCL employee and found one officer. He did not seem to understand me with my concern and by the time we ended speaking the song was over. As we lined up for the Whale Watching excursion, it appeared this was a large group. I was a little concerned but as we got on the boat there was plenty of room. The crew was amazing, they served a variety of drinks and some snacks. They explained the travel patterns of the whales as we made our way out to see them. We passed some Sea Lions sleeping on Pelican Rock: The boat made a short stop and circled so all sides could capture a true iconic image for Cabo San Lucas, this beautiful natural formed arch. We also went near the Bliss so I snapped an obligatory photo of her. Before leaving the port area, we already encountered whales. We saw several and one was a juvenile who seemed to like to breach out of the water when he came up for air. I have like 150 pictures and here are just a few. On our return to port, I walked around some and came across these Sea Lions begging for scraps, the area they are in is used by local fishermen to bring in fresh catches for area restaurants. The fishermen usually clean the fish rewarding the Sea Lions for the barking with the parts of the cleaned fish. On the return tender ride we again had the staff pass around a cup asking for more TIPS. What really got me here is they did nothing. NCL Staff was helping passengers on and off the tender and the tender crew did their job but nothing in my opinion warranting a TIP. I grabbed a quick snack at the Local and headed to the Vibe. We sailed out of port around 3 and saw several more whales from the Bliss as we made our way out to sea. Tonight's sunset was another amazing Pacific ocean sunset. Dinner was at Teppanyaki and was good. The chef was very funny and the table was all involved. It was one of better performances I have attended. Tomorrow is a day at Sea and here is the daily:

Day 13 - Recap - Dec 16 - Mazatlan I awoke very early today. We had our second 25 hour day yesterday and with the time change of an extra hour. The smart watch and phone did not change and my alarm went off one hour before I needed to be up. So I took advantage of this and watched the sunrise before as we docked. This is a commercial port and many new cars were being processed on or off of train cars and a car carrying ship also docked. I headed to the Local and then to the Theatre as that was where my excursion was meeting. As we left the theatre and the ship, due to the commercial port, they would not allow anyone to walk around. The port offered a free shuttle to an area with stores and restaurants like all piers seem to have. After leaving that the excursion placed us on a Taxi and off to the boat we were taking. My excursion was Sport Fishing and 5 of us from the ship were on our boat. They provided a bag lunch and two beers each. The bag lunch was a ham and cheese sandwich, an apple, a juice box and 4 oreo like cookies. The boat was a 42 foot boat, and it had a sleeping room, bathroom, kitchen, sitting area inside and an upper deck. We trolled for 6 hours before our first fish on the hook. That was a 35 pound mahi-mahi (dolphin fish). Only one other fish was hooked and it got away before making it on the boat. I knew this was a possibility going and I enjoyed the time on the ocean, fresh air, and scenery. We saw a couple of whales, and several sea turtles. After returning from the trip, I headed to the Vibe and again shared our port adventures with new friends. We all watched a beautiful sunset while we were docked in port still over the mountain. Dinner was at Cagneys and afterwards I met some friends at the Silent Party. If you have not done this before, it can be a lot of fun. I have seen this done many different ways now but they are all similar. You are provided a headset and all the music is on that and the room is silent (well you can hear people singing along to the headsets) and can be very funny and entertaining to watch. On the Bliss, the room was divided into 4 areas and each area was a different genre and song. So you had to move around to hear different songs. Our group went to the Observation Lounge afterwards for a nightcap. Tomorrow is Cabo San Lucas and here is the daily for today:

So far I only saw the 70's party, 80s party, and the glow/white party. Most people did not dress up, but the staff does well to help bring some fun into the party. I am solo, I have not attended the meet ups on this cruise; however, I have several times in the past. My observation is they are quite helpful to meet others and I love that NCL provides a host to help coordinate. I have had some work almost like a concierge for the group planning dinners, excursions, and go kart rides together. Some just meet and get others talking as a group. Some groups clicked well and others have not. I will always recommend checking it out and if the first night is not good, go back and try again. The group changes day to day. As I said, this time I have not attended but have spoken to several who have. The first night was hectic as over 60 solos were in attendance but they have been enjoying them when they attend and have met some new friends because of it.

Day 12 - Recap - Dec 15 - Puerto Vallarta Watched us dock at the pier from my balcony around 615 AM. I called to have some laundry taken as it needed to be in before 9 AM and within 4 minutes of calling housekeeping someone came to pick it up. I headed to the Theatre as the meeting point for my excursion. I sat near the soon to be exit for the excursion to get ahead of the crowd. My excursion was called and I immediately saw it was a large amount of people standing to leave. As I sat near the exit I was number 9 to walk out of the Theatre. Unfortunately this excursion had a large amount of inconsiderate people who literally pushed their way ahead as we walked through the ship to leave, arrived on the pier, and walked through the shops to our awaiting 4 buses. I was now number 75 to arrive to load onto a bus. I am not a fan of large group tours and 4 very large buses is a lot of people. Getting on the third bus to load I noticed our aisle was extremely narrow. However, for this narrow aisle we had very comfy large and cushioned chairs for our ride. The sound system was loud and a little crackle as it was used. Alberto was our guide and he was nice and provided some great knowledge. He was very patient with some of those on our bus who needed quite a lot of extra attention at every stop we visited. Alberto took us to the old city and we walked around visiting the shoreline and I took a few pictures. It was quite cool with the breeze from the water. It was about 65 degrees. I am not sure if any code enforcement officers, or electrical inspectors are reading this, but if so, do not look closely at anything in Mexico. It was interesting to see how they wired the city streets for the holiday lights: The church was very beautiful both the exterior and interior. Church of Our Lade of Guadalupe. Outside the church was a festive decorated town square where Alberto said after mass everyone will go here, listen to music, share food, and come together as the community. The trees were filled with bright birds singing some morning serenades to us. We also learned that to be a tour guide in Mexico you have to pass a test and be licensed to do so. Alberto was a licensed tour guide for 50 years and his years of experience were appreciated. We went to a silver jeweler and were given a short class on the processing of silver ore and how that dust is then turned into fine jewelry. We had some time to look around the store, some made purchases, others like myself appreciate the fine craftsmanship each of the pieces had, and some waited outside. The store also provided tequila, lime, salt, and squirt drinks free of charge. These were refreshing. We left the store and back on the bus. We drove back towards port, then into the new city area near the airport out to the country for our Mexican fiesta lunch. Alberto provided information along the way and it was interesting to see all the areas of the city. We drove through some lower income communities and some beautiful country areas. We left the store around 950 AM and arrived at the Hacienda Dona Engarcia around 1045. We took a tequila making tour and learned how they turn agave plants into tequila. Then we sat in room and were handed a shot glass of silver tequila. We learned about it and did a shot. We then upgraded to a gold and did the same; then a much more expensive gold, then it was time for a palate cleanser so they provided a corn chip with a dot of hot sauce. The sauce was good, and I am not usually a heat or hot sauce fan. Then we had a sample of Peach tequila, almond tequila, and coffee tequila. The peach was a little sweet for my liking, but the almond and coffee one was delicious. I really liked the almond one and ended up buying a bottle. I have no idea why as I have no room in my luggage to fly home with this, but maybe it was the 6 shots of tequila and no food other than one corn chip that did it. We then stood in line for food. I was really looking forward to an amazing authentic Mexican family meal. I was very disappointed. It was bland, not thoroughly cooked, and I cant say it enough... disappointing. They provided some entertainment for us to watch as we ate. Dancers, a lasso demonstration, dancing horse, a tequila drinking contest, and pinata. Back on the bus at 1 PM and at the port at 2, back on the boat at 220 PM. On the entire journey, I was not looking for anything specific, but did observe many Irish bars and wing restaurants. I just thought it odd to find so many of these in a port like this. After the long bus ride and a fiesta, I needed a siesta... but instead opted for a Starbucks wake up drink. From my balcony I was able to see many jet skiers in the bay as well as some parasailing, and a pirate ship cruise tour. It was very Mexican Rivera expectations and what I imagined it would look like in the area. I headed to the Vibe where I met with others and shared our experiences from the port today. I had dinner at Food Republic and was not impressed. It was not a bad dinner but some of the dishes were not what they looked like in their pictures or prepared as described. For example, I ordered the pot stickers and they came breaded and did not taste good. Today was not a good food day anywhere for me. I attended the Beatles Experience Sgt Peppers in the Theatre. I enjoyed it. I walked around and listened to some live music at Sugarcane and headed to bed. Here is the daily for today:

Day 11 - Recap - Dec 14 - Manzanillo Went to the Local again for breakfast. As I will be staying in Anaheim for a few days after the cruise, I needed a haircut. I schedule one on board. This was the first time I did this on a cruise and was not sure what to expect. It was expensive; however I had some on board non-refundable credit from being a stock holder and used that to pay for it. I met my barber and he started my haircut. He gave me a 'complimentary' eye treatment and honestly the stuff worked. I did not purchase it at the end but he of course offered to sell me the product since it worked so well on me. I did not have an excursion but wanted to explore the town some so I headed in. Its is a very nice cute town. What sort of scared me was that no one was doing any hard sales or begging me to enter their business. No one had their hands out looking for a tip. No one was acting like every other Mexican port I have ever been to and it sort of freaked me out. I did not expect this at the slightest. I did notice several armed federal troops driving around in pick up trucks as well as multiple police officers. The town was cute, lots of colors of course and honestly the people we very nice. I would for sure re-visit this town if I have the chance again. After walking around town for a couple of hours I headed back onto the ship. I prepared a bag of laundry to go out and this was my first time realizing they have two different size bags. Good to know as next time I will ask for the larger bag when using my complimentary bag of laundry. I headed up to the Vibe and we spotted several whales in the harbor. The pictures did not come out great but it was certainly fun to watch them come up to the surface to breathe and dive down eating for hours. The sunsets on the Pacific have not disappointed and tonight was no different. This evening was breath taking and as great as these pictures look, it was even better in person. I had dinner at Los Lobos again and that guacamole did not disappoint. The one problem I have with this restaurant, the portions are giant. After dinner I headed to the theatre to watch the magician Jean Pierre (JP) Parent, His show was funny and entertaining. Tomorrow we are in Puerto Vallarta and here is the daily for today:

I did not notice a difference on time of day or if at sea or in port.

Day 10 - Recap - Dec 13 - At Sea (Originally Acapulco) Went to Garden Cafe for breakfast, it was not as busy as it has been on previous visits for breakfast. Then I headed to the Vibe for a couple of hours. I went to the Behind the Curtain Q&A in the atrium. I had a great seat in the Local on the glass looking down. Sadly, I did not take into account the newly placed Christmas Decorations. NCL Really should place these lower to not obstruct the view from these seats. Sure you can just lean over the glass; however, how the seats area arranged you will block everyone to your side. The technical manager and 3 cast members from Jersey Boys and 3 from Six attended and answered many questions from the audience. Most questions were quite good and the last one asked if it would be possible to hear an impromptu Christmas Song from them. Gabby Mack-Aragon from 'Six' obliged and sang a beautiful version of "Have yourself a merry little Christmas" for those who attended. After the show I had an opportunity to speak to Sarah McFarlane-Howard from Six and asked her when her contract is up as there has been some conflicting dates provided. She said that this cast ends on 25 FEBRUARY 2024. She does not know the last actual show date as they can change it slightly each week. For our 15 day cruise they performed two shows for two nights, a total of 4 opportunities to see it. I decided to wonder the ship and take the time to really explore the areas instead of just see them. On deck 7, near the Theatre on the starboard side I went outside where the lifeboats are and found a great little place to look at the water. While enjoying this view I came across multiple dolphins in the water. At one point over 20 were swimming along side and I even caught these 4 jumping out of the water together. Remember that ginger bread house I saw on the behind the scene tour? I wanted to see how it looked now that the display is done, and here it is: If you have never observed the power of a ship at sea, I recommend to visit the stern and watch. It is quite impressive. I went back to the Vibe and walked into those at the bar doing shot-o-clock and sat down for a few. I spoke with two ladies on board from Ireland and learned that one of their significant others is reading this blog to keep up with the cruise. Hearing stories like this really help me to stay motivated to spend the time each day doing this. I remember learning many things from someone on a live on here years ago and always thought one day I will return the favor and do this for others. I honestly never thought of someone watching this to keep up with a friend or significant other who was on the same cruise. I have also met several others who someone recognized me from here and again, all of these interactions help to motivate this. Thank you to all who have reached out and shared those stories with me. The conversation at the Vibe was excellent and I did not want it to end; however, I wanted to see a few songs in Six before heading to dinner. So I stood in the back and watched the first 3-4 songs before heading to dinner. Dinner was at the Q - this is my third time on the Bliss and my first time eating dinner at Q. Here are my thoughts from dinner: Service was excellent. My server was very helpful and attentive. I had the Tortilla Soup and 1/4 Chicken meal. I also ordered the smoked peach margarita and really enjoyed that. I really liked the cups. They made them look like red solo cups and I am sure plenty of these are stolen every cruise as they really are nice. I did not take one for those wondering. The soup was good. The jalapeño cornbread was amazing. The 1/4 smoked chicken was thighs and legs. I mention this as they are dark meat items on a chicken and were white as can be. I also noticed this chicken is NOT smoked as you can see. Smoked food leaves colored layers and as the skin looked and smelled to be smoked, I can only guess they use liquid smoke on the outside to give the appearance of smoked food. Desert was the banana pudding and it was very good. I also noticed as dinner service was finishing several entertainment cast were eating dinner in Q. The band took stage and started to play and they were good. The problem was the background music in the restaurant was also still playing. The band said they noticed that but could not turn it off. This is something that should be easy but I did not understand why they could not correct this. I listened to a few songs before heading to the comedy show. The comedy show was with Orlando Leyba and his first show was better. It was still a good show but not as good as I was expecting. As this show ended I looked at the time and realized the last show of Six for my cruise was still going on, so I went to listen to a few more songs. Between my before dinner watching the start of the early show and my now attending the end of the late show I ended up seeing all of 'Six' minus one song. So not a bad way to see it again. Today was the peak of the Geminids Meteor shower, so I went to see what I could observe and the shy was cloudy and no stars were observable so I headed to bed. Tomorrow is Manzanillo and here is the daily:

It all depends where you are on the ship. Most areas I am good. In the bathroom in my cabin no. Public areas have the best. Close to outside also works well. Deeper interior less so. Starling is not yet on board. No one on board can say when that will happen but eventually.

Keep checking back. They often update them as you get closer to your cruise. Something else I learned recently: If you already have one booked in that port you also can’t see others.

Per the Technical Manager on board it will be replaced with ‘Wheel of Fortune’

Day 9 - Recap - Dec 12 - At Sea The sunrise was from behind the ship as we had turned West (later to be found that we were trying to head further out to sea to avoid some rough winds and sea). Today started slightly windy and with gentle seas. After sunrise it started to build. I ate breakfast at the Local and while at breakfast we really started to feel things. I made my way to the Vibe and we were able to see several sea turtles, at least 15 and a shark. I fell asleep too easily with the rolling seas and when I awoke from a good nap I missed the time period for lunch. Well, lunch at Savor or Taste as I had not yeti tried that for lunch and wanted to today. The seas were now 15 ft and the wind was building as well. I noticed NCL placed these at every landing of each staircase. I never did see what the worse height was but the ship was really moving today. The Captain did mention on his announcement today that we headed West to avoid the worse of it. If this was the avoided route, I am glad we did not experience the other. I had some wings from the Local for a late snack to hold me over for dinner. They were quite good. As I ate, the atrium was playing word scramble. I learned on a previous cruise to check your statement daily and address issues you find when you find them instead of waiting for the last night. I noticed two charges for the drinks I purchased to go into Guatemala that should not have been charged as I had the package. I went to the guest services desk and they agreed that I was charged wrong and took them off. While we were in port yesterday, the chefs assembled the ginger bread city in the center of the ship on deck 6, where it opens above to decks 7 and 8. This gave a great view from above of this piece of food art. (I will get better pictures tomorrow). Tonight as reward for the rolling seas, the sun provided a beautiful sunset for our entertainment. Dinner was at Le Bistro. This was my first time to it on the Bliss. I honestly was very surprised it is on deck 17 in aft section. It has a nice view of the darkness at sea at night and then a view of the jogging deck. People were walking or jogging by as we ate. I also noticed that in one of the corners of the restaurant, a table of 5 high ranking ship officers were enjoying a nice dinner together, included was the head Chef and the Captain. After dinner I went to the late comedy show with comedian John Hastings. The place was packed, standing room packed. He mentioned he has been on many cruises and that for the first time, he too was affected by the high seas today and was sick earlier. He was feeling better and the show must go on. He was quite funny and the show ran late as he was just having too much fun with us. I really enjoy these two comedians, and will try to see both of them again while on board for sure. Tomorrow a day at Sea (should have been Acapulco). Here is the daily:

Day 8 - Recap - Dec 11 - Guatemala Last night we gained an hour. This is the card you want to see on a cruise and on this one we will see this card more than once. Here is a picture of us on our way into port: After I woke, I went to eat breakfast in the Garden Cafe and it was busy. I took my food to eat in the Vibe. I did not intend to stay a while, but everyone kept seeing some signs of life in the water so I started to watch as well. They saw sharks, dolphins, and turtles. I did get to see two turtles and 4 dolphins. I only caught one in a picture. From 20 decks up it looks so small. On deck 6, just outside the Social, the culinary team was assembling the ginger bread village for Christmas. Remember the items I spoke about when I did the behind the scene tour? I had an excursion booked through NCL for the Antigua Craft Beer tasting and city walking tour. The ticket said to meet in the Theatre. I purchased a couple of waters to bring with me and went to the Theatre. The place was crowded but that is expected. A large amount of the excursions were asked to meet there. An employee is on stage talking on the PA system telling what groups to head off the ship. They do this to help control the mass crowds trying to leave the ship at one time. People do not listen. She was very clear with her instructions; and repeated things many times. And people did not listen. Then other people were yelling attitude at her as they walked by her. It was embarrassing to say for these people. My group was called and I headed down. It was crowded as expected leaving the ship. They had a large amount of tours going to Antigua Guatemala and every group had to board a bus to do so. We made our way through the shops to the awaiting buses. It was HOT, about 93 degrees F. I boarded the bus and found a seat to settle in for a 90 minute ride to the city. Our bus driver was Oscar, and our tour guide was Nancy. Nancy spoke clear and full English and lived in the Antigua. Our excursion had a meeting time of 12:30 PM. I was on the bus by 1 PM, and we left shortly after. DISCLAIMER: I take notes as I am on an excursion to help write these recaps afterwards. I cannot promise everything is accurate and or correct and if an error is made I apologize on the front side. I never intend to mislead or misinform and I am only reporting things as I hear them and as the tour guides are saying them. On our way into the port I noticed a large area of black smoke that was causing the air around the port to be hazy, and ash often was falling. Nancy explained it was harvest time for sugarcane and they must scorch the field before they harvest. The ride: About 40 minutes on a 4 lane road, and it was very bumpy. After this, we turned onto a 2 lane road to climb to the 5000 feet of elevation. This road was about 55 minutes due to traffic. Antigua does not allow the large buses, so we had to park and change buses to smaller types just at the city limits. This smaller bus ride was 10 minutes on what we were told is cobblestone roads. More to come about the city. Nancy told us that Guatemala has 37 volcanoes, and 3 of them are active. Fire Volcano is one of the three and we would be seeing a lot of that one today. Every so often it erupts 24 hours a day. Nancy explained these eruptions are seen as a good thing by residents as the volcano is venting and not building up for a large scale eruption. Here you can see (from through the bus glass - sorry it had a tint on it) Fire Volcano erupting as we drove up the mountain. Let me tell you, I live in an area with cobblestone. I will never complain about the ones I have at home any longer. These were built in the 1940's and I would describe them as a dried rocking river bed instead. I would call these "wobblestones" instead as thats all the bus did, wobble all over the place. We arrived at Antigua Brewing Company. We found reserved tables for us to sit at and met Kevin, one of the brewers. He gave a brief talk about the brewery process and stated we would be tasing 4 beers today, along with a food pairing. They served each beer and food item one at a time. The first was a Belgium Blonde with a cup of Mahi Cerviche. Both were yummy. The second was an Orange Wheat with a beet salad. I really enjoyed this food item. The third, was the Fuego IPA (named after the active volcano) and a pulled pork. This was my favorite round. The fourth, was a Coffee Stout with a fried plantain in sauce. It was like a dessert round. We had some time before leaving, so we looked around and went to the roof top bar area. Highly recommend this. It was now cloudy and a little cool. The volcano had some clouds blocking the top; if not we could have easily watched eruptions from this vantage point. It was now 60F or about 16C. Compared to the high 90s we had hours ago. We then followed Nancy on a walking tour of the city. The sidewalks are built by the business property owners and not the city. They were narrow, and uneven, and often had large cracks or holes to avoid. The roads and sidewalks were really like walking in a dry rocky river bed. Some struggled with it. Make sure if you go that you have good footwear on. The drivers do not seem to actually have rules and the city did not have a single stop sign or light to be found. Walkers be warned. I found it funny, that in this historical old city, we walked by these two things: The entire time you are in Guatemala, you will be approached by people selling items. Flutes, drums, bracelets, scarfs, blankets, and just stuff. Kids as young as 5 and older folks at my guess 90s can be found doing so. Nancy explained it is cultural here, and as for the kids - this is there. two months off school. They attend JAN to OCT, and off NOV and DEC. I personally found, if I politely said "No gracias" they left me alone, until I walked near others and would just repeat the script over and over. The city has somewhere around 40 catholic churches and some are very old. Nancy took us to the city center square and provided some history. We also saw the city administration building. Our last stop was Jade Maya. We met Mary Lou Ridinger. She provided and overview of what Jade is, how it is formed in nature, and that she and her husband basically started the entire Jade business in Antigua years ago. The store is neat to walk around, they have a courtyard garden area, a jade museum, a jade store, and you can see the shop in which they process the jade stones. We met at 6 PM and for some reason the original bus met us instead of smaller ones we expected. We boarded around 615 and left. It was dark as the sun had set and I much praise Oscar our driver. He certainly earned his salary on this ride. Those corners and turns are not meant for a large bus and he made it look simple. Plus the city traffic was nuts. Remember, no stop signs, no lights, just chaos. 6:55 PM we made it to the two lane road to drive down the mountain. 735 PM we made it to the four lane road. 820 PM we made it to the port. 845 PM I was back on the ship. Due to it being late, I just grabbed a little bite at the Garden Cafe. I then headed down to the Social to watch the new comedian who just joined us today. His name is Orlando Leyba. As soon as he walked on stage I realized I have watched him on a special somewhere. Later I found this to be on HBO MAX. He has also made at least 4 appearances on Jimmy Fallon to name a few. He traveled a red eye to join us today and had not slept in a day, and he was still very funny. At his admission it was a random weird show but I laughed a ton as well as those in attendance. I can't wait to see another show with him. Tomorrow is a day at Sea and here is the daily:

Day 7 - Recap - Dec 10 - At Sea Today I slept in; and by that I mean my internal clock did not wake me as usual. I had a late breakfast at the Local. I sat at a table in the bar area where you can hear what is happening in the atrium. They’ll broadcast the activity on the large screen behind the atrium stage; however, once people sit on the edge you can't see anything from the table in the bar area. They really should mount a few TVs so that those at the table can see as well. The activity below was a Teppanyaki demonstration, and it sounded quite good. The crowd was very engaged and lots of laughing. I wish I could have watched what was happening. I spent a good amount of time at the Vibe, enjoying the breeze and the sun. Watched a great sunset over the Pacific from my balcony. Dinner tonight was at Cagneys, and then it was off to watch the late performance of 'Six' Now, I will say, I have been on the Bliss twice before and never saw 'Six.' I honestly did not know what it was and for some reason never tried it out. After seeing it on this cruise, I can honestly say I do not know why NCL is closing this show. It is very good and well worth the watch. A show is as good as the Cast and this new Cast is excellent. If I had to be critical, I can say that a few lines were delivered a little fast especially in the first few acts; however, I also know this cast is brand new and that will improve over time. I do NOT understand that on this 15 day cruise, they only perform two nights. I wish they had a third so I could see it again and again. The actress playing Jane Seymour (The 3rd wife, and the one who died in child birth) has an absolutely amazing singing voice. Such power and those notes she hit just really impressed me. The song is about having a heart of stone; and ironically, her voice melted my heart with her passionate and powerful performance. I will also say, the actress playing the second wife Anne Boleyn, (the first beheaded wife), was also quite good at the role. The entire cast is brilliant including the Ladies in Waiting, the band performing on stage. Casting did an excellent job choosing 10 extremely talented ladies for this cast. No pictures, audio, or video are allowed during the show; UNTIL the Queens encourage you to do so for the last song. Make sure to bring your cameras. The third picture below shows the queens from left to right, as wife 1 to 6. (Divorced, beheaded, died, divorced, beheaded, survived) Tomorrow we are in Guatemala. Here is the daily:

Learned this on a previous behind the scene tour: cast does not have to get on at the start port or end at it either. The cruiseline has crew, cast, comedians, etc get on or off at any port they need them to. for example. We currently have two comedians on board now that leave tomorrow in Guatemala and two new ones get on. also thought this was cool; any stage show cast is on the ship 1-2 weeks before going live. They do rehearsals on the ship but also rehearse in Tampa for weeks beforehand. If the cast is replacing another cast the two teams help the transition. If it’s a new show, it gives the technical team time to rehearse with them and work out set and costume changes. I highly recommend the tour. It’s amazing to see the entire stage clear and the next day it has a full show on it. When we went the other day, the set for Six was in pieces backstage.

NCL excursions were picked up at the terminal. They had to drive through the construction site as well. I learned on a previous behind the scene tour that socks and underwear are placed into a net bag that is tagged with your number.

Interesting. Well either way, the good news is your cruise will have 'Six' on board. Maybe if it does leave on the 4th, you may be the first cruise with the new show 'Wheel of Fortune' on board. Either way, enjoy 'Six' as I intend to do tonight.

Day 6 - Recap - Dec 9 - Panama City After docking last night around 7 PM, we were able to come and go from the ship as much as you wanted at anytime. I watched many people leaving the ship the minute the gangway opened for them. Overnight, I could hear some typical port noise. With no movement and no ocean noise it was different. It was something I had not thought of beforehand. If anyone is a sensitive sleeper you may want to pack ear plugs. Today, I awoke at 430 AM for my excursion. I booked this from a website Viator and not with NCL. I booked the "Ancon Hill walking tour. Sunrise, nature tour, and authentic breakfast." I found this tour on here, Cruise Critic, when I saw someone on my cruise post they are doing it. I was not excited about many of the options provided by NCL and after hearing some things from others who did today I am glad I went my decision to book a non NCL excursion. I will share more about that; however, I want to mention the terminal first. (Sorry no pictures, I should have taken some) First, the new port. We used the bridge system to leave the ship from Deck 6, instead of a gang way from a lower deck. This bridge still has that "new walkway bridge" smell. Seriously, we must have been one of the first using it, and the concrete walkway to the terminal was sparking new concrete. Inside the Terminal nothing is there. It is big, and it is obvious Panama has built this to be a starting point for cruises as they have counters for check in, etc... To continue about the terminal before getting to the excursion, it has no road yet. That is to say no paved road. It is a construction site. Gravel roads with large sewer caps and manholes cause a bumpy ride in and out. Outside they have no signs saying where you go. No taxis awaiting and no shuttle bus offered. Talking to others on board, you can use Uber, but many drivers don't know or think they can drive in as the sign from the road says "construction entrance". Those that I spoke with and used Uber said they had to contact the driver and tell them to enter that entrance. The terminal does not allow you to walk out at this point as there is no sidewalk to do so. Back to the Excursion.... The tour operator emailed saying a free shuttle would take us to the Tropical Vibe Hotel, and as I said earlier, nothing exists for that. A very helpful tour operator for another company helped us and called us a Taxi. He charged $5 per person to take us to the Hotel. The driver spoke no english and dropped us at a gate and signaled we would have to walk from there. The entire drive was maybe .7 miles through a gravel road with no lights and many bumps. I would have walked it if I could have. We walked and found the hotel where Carlos met us on time. He spoke English very well and walked us to a waiting van. In the van we met a couple that was leaving on a Viking ship the next day to Ft Lauderdale. It was a total of 5 of us taking the tour. After about a 10-15 minute drive we exited and walked. Carlos gave great information the entire drive and walk. He previously worked for the Smithsonian as a scientist and his speciality was amphibians. He was very knowledgable about everything we encountered as well as the local customs, cultures, and history. The walk included many stairs at the beginning and the entire tour was about 10,600 steps. It was a good amount of walking up hill on roads. The hill formerly was US soil and local woman were known for sneaking on to have their babies so that their child would also be a US citizen. The land was returned to Panama by President Carter. It was a former military base and this is one of the old bunkers on location. The views were great. The day was warm but not yet intolerable as it was so early in the day. This was one of our first photo spots and when I remembered I should have been taking photos earlier than this. The sunrise was at low tide and you could see the NCL Bliss as well as the skyscrapers of Panama City. Carlos explained that before 2000, there was only one skyscraper. The rest have been built after 2000, when the Panama Canal was returned to Panama control from the US. The economy skyrocketed and the development was out of control. Carlos said as a Boy Scout he camped in the woods in 1995 that is now all skyscrapers. We saw the following local wildlife while on the tour. Sorry that I was not able to get pictures of each. We saw Toucans, Tamarin, Agoutis, and many birds. We hoped to see a sloth, and Carlos was looking in all their regular areas but they must have taken a vacation on this day. The views were great; however, Carlos was the star. His knowledge was amazing and he was so eager to share and ensure that we had a great time. We were able to see the Canal and the Pacific gates, both new and old. We also were able to see the loading area for the transcontinental railway. The large shipping container area is now under the control of China. Carlos said he has noticed an increase of Chinese in the city since this transfer of ownership. On top of the hill, Carlos offered us some snacks that included bananas and mandarin oranges. After seeing everything the hill had to offer, minus a Sloth, we walked back down the way we came and loaded back into the van. Carlos gave a tour as we drove through the city to what he described to us a place the locals would go and eat. He said this is not a tourist area and represents what the locals would typically eat. Everything we could eat or drink was included. It was cafeteria style and we just pointed at what we wanted to eat and it was loaded onto a plate for us. Many forms of corn meal, yuca, pork, empanada, sausage, liver, and sausage. There were also numerous fruit juice options and many other selections to choose from. No one left hungry for certain. On the 20 minute ride back to the terminal, Carlos gave more information and answered any and all questions. Now that the sun was up, we had a great full view of the new downtown area of Panama City. We also could see the Bliss awaiting our arrival. Everyone in the van said it looks like our ship gave birth to the cruise ship docked next to us. The driver at our request, tried to get us back to the terminal instead of the hotel we were picked up at. This is when we noticed the sign said construction entrance and at our request, he drove on in. No one stopped him and he was amazed. He even took pictures and videos as many locals did not realize it was in use yet. Of course, I took the obligatory photo of the stern of the Bliss as we walked back to her. My summary: the tour is worth it, if Carlos is on it. I would not repeat it but I would recommend it to do once. It was worth the price and I enjoyed it. Hopefully as the new terminal gets better organized they can just pick people up there instead of the hotel. Talking to others on board who went to NCL excursions they said they were PACKED. The jungle tour had hundreds of people in multiple buses and it was a mess they said. After getting back I went to the Vibe and it was SOO hot. Especially with no wind and the Bliss vibe has no misters. Before leaving for the excursion this morning, I called housekeeping and notified them I had laundry for pickup. Pickup by 9 AM promised a return by 6 PM if you pay for same day or 6 PM the next day. I marked it for next day as that is included as a Platinum. At 545 PM, my room steward had my laundry back to me the same day. They fold everything so nice and for those who have not done this before, with the exception of socks and underwear, every garment has a tracking number attached. They easily peel off, and that is that little yellow tag pictured below. I had a late dinner reservation at Ocean Blue again. I had the Salmon and it was delicious. After dinner I wanted to catch part of the Beetles show but it was coming to an end. I made my way to the Theatre and saw the Juggler who was brought on for this cruise. It was better than I expected, not sure I would see it 100 times but I was glad to see it. He juggled things that did amaze me and he had an expected fun and cheesy personality. Jim the Juggler was his name. As we were now underway, I sat on my balcony and enjoyed the stars for a long time. I wish the ship could be darker at night; however, I know for safety and security of those on board they have to have lighting. I just wish we could see those stars without the lights. Tomorrow is a day at sea and here is the daily for today:

I will have yesterday’s recap up later today and it should cover all you asked. If I miss anything please let me know or if you have additional questions afterwards.

Well, I may have misheard; however, this in on the website confirming the date I heard. https://sixthemusical.fandom.com/wiki/Bliss_Cruise_Production

Day 5 - Recap - Dec 8 - Panama Canal Crossing to Panama City Today I awoke to this beautiful sunrise ahead of Colon and the Panama coast. There is something special about watching the sunrise and set at sea. I was able to see that we were also in the harbor area ahead of the locks, but I must have missed the cargo waiting area. Maybe we passed that before sunrise. As we approached the coast, a local was on board and served as our announcer/historian and gave information over the PA system, about the history of the canal and the operations today. The details were awesome, the voice was a little monotone to listen to all day long, but I did appreciate hearing the information. We passed under the new Atlantic side bridge and we saw a 6 ft crocodile swimming in the water. This is what would end up being one of the small ones we would see throughout the day. We also watched as they brought Panama Canal linemen on board to help tie us up in each lock. We could see the old locks in the picture below. If you look closely you will see the Windstar Star Pride as a passenger ship that we would be docked later next to at Panama City. Then we arrived to the new Atlantic side locks on schedule. For those that may not be aware, there are two lock systems, the old and the new. The old locks as you can see in the first picture are two more narrow locks and one goes in each direction. The old locks do not recycle any water and each ship uses about 50 million gallons of water through the 6 locks. The new style locks, are a one way system that they alternate throughout the day. The NCL Bliss would also not fit in the old locks, as the new locks are much wider. The new locks also recycle water as you can see in the picture above, they have large basins in which they pump the water in and out of each lock. The lock gates also serve as a road sometimes when they are closed, as you drive by them you can see the tire marks on them. I watched our first lock arrival from the Vibe. Several non-vibe people snuck in and some even went as far as sneaking into the Haven area from the Vibe. As a people watcher, I find it interesting how I can see they planned it and waited for the doors to open to run in behind another or when someone left. On other cruises, the Vibe staff was very good at checking this and asking people to leave. On this one, they did not. Even when advised that people snuck in, they said they can't do anything about it. If this is the case, that is very disappointing for those who do pay for this area. Out of design, I moved around to see different sides of the ship and different advantage points on the crossing of the three Atlantic side locks. Sometimes from my port (left) side room, or the Observation Lounge (which was nuts so I did not stay long) sometime from the Vibe on starboard (Right) side, and NCL opens the bow (front) of the ship for the crossing. Making access to the bow is on deck 8, and NCL had signs directing us there. You walk through a crew bar on the way so I snapped a picture. On the bow, NCL set up shade tents, and had coffee, tea, and water under them. They also had a few chairs if anyone needed. The bow gave another viewpoint of everything. Here you could see one of the tug boats that assisted us through the locks. Then we saw a large crocodile, about 11 ft. It seemed to know what to expect as it used a chain to hold onto as the water serged into the lock, then he eventually climbed up on one of the bumpers to float it out until we were ready. As soon as the alarm sounded that the lock gates were opening it seemed he knew what to expect and immediately swam to the opening of the lock. We made our way through the man made lake. We passed several areas where you could see how layers were cut out of these mountains to make the channel and the lake that we were navigating through. We also passed several ships on the way to the Atlantic locks. One other item, on the Port side, you may hear and or see the transcontinental railroad carrying containers from one side to the other. We arrived to the Pacific locks and as the Atlantic side locks we could look at the old lock system as we made our way through the new. This is a good look of how the lock gates are inside. I had an early dinner reserved at Las Lobos, and was sitting down just after we left the third lock officially now in the Pacific Ocean. Here I did see many cargo ships waiting to go through the locks. I leaned before the draught, they would do about 40 ships a day. They are only doing 25 now. They also expect it to get worse this dry season. Dinner at Los Lobos has to include the table side guacamole. This is delicious. As I finished dinner, you could see Panama City lights on the coast as we made our way to the pier. We arrived to the new terminal around 7 PM and docked next to the Star Pride. Its barely taller than the pier. I went to see the comedy show after dinner. He was good, I laughed as well as many others several times. The one line that I remember was "he was on a cruise two weeks before and that had like a 1000 kids on it. They kept running over his feet like little rats. On this cruise, hardly any kids; however now its scooters running over his feet." It was an early night for me as I have to be up at 4 AM for an excursion the next day. We are in Panama City until 3 PM tomorrow. More about that on my next post. Here is the daily:

Day 4 - Forgotten Pictures I forgot to add these pictures, and wanted to share. On our way out of Cartagena, we passed this: I also really loved how the clouds looked for this Sunset at sea. Our last night in the Atlantic.

Day 4 - Recap - Dec 7 - Cartagena, Columbia Watched the Bliss pull into Cartagena from my balcony. The picture below is hours after we were at port. I walked around the ship some more today. I had a few areas that I had not visited this cruise like the Observation Lounge. This place is always busy, even on a port day there were quite a few people in it. The just finished setting up the lunch area before I left. I watched the crew doing an on-board training exercise that also included the launching of the lifeboats. They drove around the harbor some before returning and being stowed at the ready. They also tested the water tight doors which actually had me have to wait just outside the Observation Lounge and I had time to check out the model of the ship as well as the awards from ports the Bliss has visited on her maiden call to their port. Just before pushing away from Cartagena, the Captain announced our scheduled Panama Canal crossing times: 630 AM - Pick Pilot up 800 AM - arrive at he first set of locks 1030 AM - leave the first set of locks 1230 PM - passing Gamboa 230 PM - arrived at the Pacific set of locks 6 PM - leave the Pacific set of locks In the evening, I attended the second latitudes rewards party in the Observation Lounge. They had two parties on this ship, one just for Silver and one for Gold and above. They said the sheer numbers of the Silvers on board warranted a second party. It was very crowded, and unfortunately many of us were not sitting where we could hear anything being said. If there were more Silvers than the rest of us, I cant imagine if they had us all in one party, unless it was in the Theatre. I went to Teppanyaki for dinner, I forgot to take pictures as I was enjoying the show and the delicious food. After dinner, I checked out the Hypnotist comedian, and after about 30 minutes of the show I had enough. It was very obvious people were faking on stage and taking away from the experience. I may check out the adult version later on the cruise. Enjoyed wondering around the ship and called it a night. We cross through the Panama Canal tomorrow. Here is the daily for Day 4:

Day 3 - Recap - Dec 6 - At Sea Today will be a short summary, and not many pictures. Started the day with breakfast at the Local, it was not as busy as I thought it would be which was nice to have an escape from the business of the Garden Cafe. Spent a good amount of time at the Vibe enjoying the relaxation until we hit some weather. We could see it off on the coast approaching us. Just before it hit I decided it was time to venture elsewhere to avoid the rain. This is when I remembered the Captain's announcement mentioning a cold front would be affecting us and to expect winds. Winds and waves do move the ship a little and a cold front to boot we had more movement today than yesterday. So I moved to the spa and enjoyed the sauna room and submersion pool. The submersion pool little room (not sure what this little section is called from the main one) was interesting to say the least due to the ship's movement, the water would go down below my knees and up to my shoulders. Here is the daily for day 3:

This cast will end on February 4, 2024 and as they understand it, they will be the last for Six on Bliss. They are the 7th cast to be on the Bliss. EDIT ADDED 13 DEC 2023: After speaking with a cast member directly, she confirmed that her contract ends on February 25, 2024. She does not know the night of the last performance but could confirm that is when she will be leaving the ship with her cast. The information provided on the back stage tour was not correct."