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When it finally dawned on me what was happening, the earthquake still seemed to intensify. Tha's when I began to get nervous & just like that, it was over. It was just me & Leonard. My step-daughter was at work & never felt a thing. Our friends on the Left Coast are probably scoffing at us right now. "Just a 4.8? Amateurs!" 😄😉🙃

They've recorded a few 2.0 aftershocks in NJ. Not sure those can even be felt.

Yeah, that earthquake was a bit freaky. I'm about 75 miles from the epicenter as crows fly but the fault line that it occurred on runs through the northern NYC suburbs, probably 12-15 miles away. Not sure if that amplified it but it lasted a good minute, maybe a bit longer. I was sitting at my laptop in my home office when I first noticed things around me start to shake a little bit, like the leaves on a plant in front of the window. First thought "That was a really strong gust on wind". Just then, the oil burner directly underneath my office kicked in as others items around me started to shake even more, like the coffee in my cup. Then a low rumble that got progressively louder and finally I could feel the floor move sideways and the walls shake. Second thought "My oil burner is going to blow". Which I think is impossible but I still headed for the door when the third thought dawned on me: "Is this an earthquake? Do I go outside, stay inside, lay on the floor, sit in a bathtub, where is Leonard?" All in about a Milli-second. No damage to report around the house & Leonard is just fine. Spent the last few hours watching the news.

I'll definitely check it out, starting from the beginning. Each video seems to be a nice, short, easy to watch size.

I had no idea what you guys were talking about so I started to type into Google Search "Sailing D" which is about as far as I got when it auto-filled the rest with "Sailing Doodles Amanda" Apparently she makes a, uh, big impression. 😁😇

I skimmed thru the NCL thread reading a few pages here and there. I might go back a re-read but I'm sure all the "good" posts are gone. I can imagine the emotional roller coaster the Late Eight must've felt. Maybe slight panic when they realized the tour was running late. Then relief as the driver called ahead to let "them" (Port Authorities? Captain? NCL HQ?, his wife?) that they were running late. Then joy that the ship was still there when they arrived at port. Disappointment that the tenders had left & been tucked in for the night. Ecstatic when the coast guard offered to take them to the ship. What a wonderful country they must thought & then crestfallen when denied boarding when they were sooooo close and yet sooooo far. Then fear when they realized they were being left behind with only their passports & clothing on their backs. Determination to make it to the next port Gambia only to have their hope crushed once again as the ship could not make port. Finally, anger at NCL even though NCL was helping them to get to the next port Senegal. Murphy's Law at its' best (or worst).

I'm curious if you are the author of this article as this is your first on CC? From what I was allowed to read, it looks like satire. Sure to entertain most and maybe infuriate a few. I'll decide later if I want to sign-up for a free trial. Maybe there will be a copy in the waiting room of my dentist or barbershop & I can read for free.

Agreed, when it's good-nature cheering & clapping congratulations, it's fun. I've given a friendly wave to those on nearby balconies when boarding with 10-15 minutes to spare. Speaking from only my experience, it seemed there were a few annoyed people who were cheering in a divisive manner, judging from their expressions.

I like to maximize my port time so I'm usually one of the last people to get on board but I've always made it in time without impacting sail away. I can remember on more than a few occasions, I'd be walking down the pier 20-25 minutes before all aboard time & seeing a long line at the gangway. Hating long lines, I'd stop and finish sipping my drink & take a few photo's. From the ship, I could hear people yelling "Run, Hurry". Knowing that it was a 4-5 minute walk maximum, I ignored them. Heck, I could craw on my hands and knees, stop to eat a sandwich and still make it back in plenty time. Next thing I see is a bunch of red-faced, out of breath not-in-the-best-shape people half jogging/half running back to the ship, only to wait 10-15 minutes in the heat on a long line to get back on ship. There was absolutely NO need for those people to run. As I mentioned some were out of shape or a bit too old to run. What would happen if one of those people had a heat stroke or heart attack from over exertion?? Those that encouraged them seem to get enjoyment out of this & I suspect some of the holier-than-thou posting on this thread would do the same. I took my time sauntering back to the ship much to the disappointment of those urging me to run. Still made it back with plenty of time to spare. Some people like to get back on ship 3 hours before sail away "just to be safe". That's fine but it doesn't make you a better passenger.

And your name is Jack Dawson* * - "Titanic movie reference.

I had a sore mekun once. It's no joke. Hope it improves soon.😉

Dang, I forgot to buy everyone a card. I guess one of these will need to do.

Sailing from Galveston, the cruise lines are subject to TABC (Texas Alcohol Beverage Commission) rules until they reach International waters, which limit them to serving only alcohol purchased from a Texas distributor. It's a tax thing. Royal offers a limited menu & then switches over once they reach International waters. I've actually watched the bartenders bring out a bigger selection and remove some of the Texas-only bottles, such as Shiner Beer. Apparently Carnival makes it easy on their bartenders & just doesn't offer drinks while in Texas waters. Having said all that, not sure if Virginia works the same way.

@Engineroom Snipe Last minute scrambling can definitely be stressful for all parties involved. Hopefully all that stress melts away the second you step on the ship. For some reason, I thought the North American Homeports forum had a separate sub-forum for each departure port but i was wrong. They are lumped by coast, with the exception of Florida. Here is the link to East Coast Departures, I'm sure if you create a thread regarding parking/shuttle info in Norfolk, you'll get some replies, either from people that live there or Carnival cruisers, many who are in the same situation as you. Best of luck! EDIT: Duh, forgot the link https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/317-east-coast-departures/

I get what you're saying and do not disagree with you. It is possible that since Royal has not used Norfolk in a few years, they may not have the most up-to-date info available at their fingertips. Try the Departure Ports forums section of CC. Lots of valuable information there & resources to ask. I found it most helpful when trying to find parking when sailing out of Galveston. Hopefully the Norfolk folks are just as helpful.

Royal will probably take it one step further & not specify the ship either. "Put in a bid for a nonspecific mid-Atlantic debark location and you'll be guaranteed a 3 star, classic premium cruise ship with a gty stateroom. "

I'm pretty sure everyone would have lost that bet too as it seemed like the obvious choice. Good point, I didn't even think of fuel savings. I just assumed that since Norfolk dusted off their cruise terminal so quickly for Carnival that Royal just tagged along rather than trying to get Cape Liberty opened mid-week. And perhaps shipping traffic? I read somewhere that even thought the Port of NY/NJ is maxed out, they are going to try to take on some the cargo traffic from Baltimore to alleviate the supply chain issues. Just total guess on my part, I have zero knowledge of harbor management.

Amazing how skinny & small the battleship Wisconsin looks compared to Oasis.

100% agree. Particularly like the aquarium pictures.

Beautifully written and so heart-felt. Very mature for his age. No doubt it's with the help of his grandmother too! 🙂 Hope your daughter is healing just as well too.

If I'm reading the email correctly, the up to $200 is for travel expenses (flights, bus, train, or mileage). No mention of overnight accommodations. You may want to reach out to your TA or Royal for clarification.

Agreed. Very knowledge, first hand knowledge, without being a know-it-all, Doesn't BS if he's unsure of all the facts. The VLOG guys has a lot of industry knowledge as well - certainly more than me - but seems to stretch it out a bit. He acts as if he's onsite & has examined all the damage, the ship, etc already,

I did. I wrote "And perhaps their viewing angle, it was hard to notice that a ship had slowly drifted off course." Maybe you meant to quote someone else?

No, you posted that kindness should be shown to those that made it back to the ship on time. I'm just merely asking you if that includes to those that take enjoyment in the misfortune of others. The topic being that we shouldn't feel sorry for those that miss the ship, not matter the circumstances. It's understood that people are responsible for their own actions and no, the ship should not have to wait. It's still okay to feel bad for those that missed the ship. Just my opinion, yours may be different.

If they were engrossed in conversation or looking down on their phones catching up on texts/social media, it'd be easy to miss. And perhaps their viewing angle, it was hard to notice that a ship had slowly drifted off course.